Three Fathers and the Lessons Learnt
THREE FATHERS
They all brought me to consciousness
My Maternal father
My Business Coach
My Spiritual Father
They all woke me up at different stages of my life
The message in unison is, “ Don't do things just because It looks good, or feels good, do things because its right, In other words don't let the Ego rule you!!!!
SUCCESS IS PREDETERMINED
My experience over the years has taught me four (4) key principles for success. These principles are Self Awareness, having a clear Mission, possessing a clear set of Values and Goal Setting.
In his best selling book “The Three Laws of Performance” the Author Steve Zaffron says that most of us are living into our “Default Future”. Default means “Failure to fulfill an Obligation”. Without a Mission, a clear set of Values, Self-awareness and Personal Goals; we are bonded to our Default Future.
Self-Awareness allows us to notice the attitudes, habits and behaviors that continue to stand in the way of our success. Self-Awareness develops Personal Mastery through a situational understanding of default behavior. Key to our Unique Methodology is the focus on Personal Mastery through revisiting the effects of our Conditioning. The latter often blocks the assimilation of true Leadership Values and Behavior, which present obstacles to both Personal and Organizational leadership. We have "to be ourselves, but with skill”.
Secondly without a clear mission for ourselves we are prone to live someone else’s mission, eventually loosing our vitality and passion for life. To "live your best life", a sense of your mission/purpose in life is pivotal. We will not be successful at the goals we set for ourselves if we don’t commit to putting those goals in writing. These goals should define our Bright Future not our Default Future. Success as defined by Paul Meyer, founder of Leadership Management International is “The Progressive Realization of Worthwhile, Predetermined Personal Goals”. We must set Goals! It begins with an articulation of our Dreams for Success, followed by the writing of SMART Goals and a Plan Of Action to bring these dreams into reality with the understanding that achieving success is an ongoing journey.
Finally the key decisions we make as we journey towards our Bright future are made through consulting our Values. "What are your Values?" One of the key questions we must ask ourselves before we execute our goals is “Does this goal support my values?” The answer to that question will determine whether the Goal is worthwhile or not.
"Live Your Best Life"
DON’T BE AN INTELLIGENT ASS
Here were two very clear occurrences in my life where my consciousness was peaked and as a result a shift made in my outlook on life. The first was at the age of 9 I believe, when my father, a very bold, practical and straightforward man said "Martin don't be an Intelligent Ass". My father up to this day cannot remember the statement.
I have always been a dreamer. On the day of that famous statement I was tasked with "sorting out" our "backyard" garden. The garden was actually situated at the side of the house. My dreaming led me to leave my father's tools in the garden. My father decided to shake me up. That statement changed me forever. That statement focused me on getting to the "Nuts and bolts" of everything I came into contact with, in order to make my knowledge complete and ultimately to teach it. Teaching is in my genes. My mom was a teacher, my father a teacher of sorts. I am a teacher/facilitator today,...its my Purpose.
The second came at the age of 10 I believe. I was in Trinidad's Primary school system which has its roots in the British system of education. I cheated (This is not a behavior I advocate) during my Standard 4 end of term test by copying answers from the student next to me. I was focused on athletics at the time not school work. Why did I copy? I wanted to get into Standard 5A badly and I used the worst possible route.
At the time the best teacher in the school taught Standard 5A, another hero along with my father and mother. I was "successful" in getting into Standard 5A and as you would intuitively guess, I did terribly at the classwork and was at the bottom of the class. Mr Dean my Standard 5 teacher is one of my heroes because he made a profound statement that added to the next consciousness shift. He said to the class before our final exam in Standard 5....and I felt he was staring directly at me.....; "If you fail to prepare prepare to fail".
These two statements carried me through Secondary School, through failures in academics, and to eventual success at University. How did I get pass "The Wall" when my Personal Vision and Values collided with the working world's. My Father's statement and Mr Dean's admonition guided me! These statements pushed me to put my Best Foot Forward in the face of every adversity!
And you know what happens when you put your best foot forward in the face of adversity......your PURPOSE in life gets a wee bit closer!