"Don't just read the easy stuff. You may be entertained by it, but you will never grow from it." - Jim Rohn
We live in a "make it as easy as possible" world! Hey, I have to admit that I get impatient with the microwave! We have some marvelous appliances and other gadgets in our homes that, indeed, make life easier. And, no, I'm not "bashing" the fact that we have these things in our lives.
However, in a world where you can call anyone in the world and get information from all over the world in the palm of your hand, we have become to expect this type of ease in all areas of our lives. Wouldn't you agree?
We have "instant" EVERYTHING and, that being so, why not have "instant success"? Isn't this what we see advertised with so many "opportunities" out there? "Retire in 6 months with only 1 hour a day!" - EASY! "Learn to make MILLIONS while you sleep!" - EASY!
We'll talk more about these types of ideas of "EASY" in the next day or so, but for now, let's turn to this same idea that we find when it comes to reading, listening or absorbing quality material.
Again, I know this doesn't apply to ALL young people today but, from my continued experience working with teens, it applies to a LOT of young people...they don't want to be challenged in any way at all. When was the last time that you tried to get a teen to actually READ or LISTEN to something that wasn't animated or part of some video game OR some lame television show?
When was the last time YOU spent time reading or listening to something that actually had value? If you were not following along a couple of weeks ago when I did the series on TIME then be sure to go back and discover how much time you waste each day and how much of that time can be "re-purposed" for something more productive!
There's nothing wrong with some mindless entertainment from time to time but, just like eating a few sweets from time to time, you CANNOT make your diet contain large quantities of either of these examples. Garbage in, garbage out, remember?
As Mr. Rohn emphasized, some things are entertaining but they do NOTHING to help us grow. When was the last time that YOU were challenged and, as a result, you grew?
Have you ever worked out? Have you ever started a routine that involved running, walking, weights or all of the above? When you first begin it is DIFFICULT because your body is being CHALLENGED to do something that is not as EASY as what you have been doing = NOTHING! However, with time and consistency, your body begins to adapt to the challenge and you begin to accomplish more and more as you do so. Your muscles begin to "grow" due to the RESISTANCE (not the easy way out, right?) that they have faced.
NO RESISTANCE = NO GROWTH!
Now, let's go back to the diving board scenario I talked about yesterday. Perhaps you still find yourself standing on the edge of that diving board looking down at the water...waiting...thinking...talking about what you WILL do but still standing and waiting. Perhaps you have seen someone else do it and it LOOKED easy or someone else TOLD you that it was easy. Oh, by the way, I'm talking about the HIGH DIVE, not the low one that pretty much anyone will jump from.
When you get to the edge of the HIGH diving board it suddenly looks different than it did watching someone that knew what they were doing, doesn't it? Maybe now you realize that the reason it looked so easy was because they put HOURS and HOURS of work into their skill. They didn't quit the first time they stood where you are now.
Sure, you can jump now. You may get lucky and not even hurt yourself but, at the same time, you just may do a "belly-buster" or, worse yet, a FACE-buster! And, if you do, you have a choice to make...quit or learn how to improve and then WORK at getting better.
Skip the "EZ BUTTON" and go for the growth! You'll be glad you did.
Be sure to join me tomorrow for another great quote from Jim Rohn and, until then, be sure to...
"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"
Mike
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