**** **********
NB: This newsletter is published every Monday. Point your browser to www.tayosolagbade.com/sdnuggets to read at least ONE new post added to my SD Nuggets blog on a different category from Tuesday till Saturday (sometimes even Sundays) in line with this publishing schedule 
**********
IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS newsletter is published online on the “reincarnated” version of my Self-Development (SD) Nuggets blog. I continue to put finishing touches to the content. If you encounter ANY bad/dead links, and you can spare the time, email them to me via tayo at tksola dot com. Thanks in advance
No. 186: Champions Are Made of “HEART”, NOT Just Talented Muscle!
I explain below, why seemingly ordinary persons achieve exceptional successes, sometimes outdoing more talented contemporaries. You’ll understand why a lack of talent cannot STOP you from excelling. Indeed “pure determination”, mixed with relentless persistence can MAKE UP for ANYTHING you lack in talent.
How is this possible you ask?
It’s simple. The human being is a perpetual learning machine, capable of rapid assimilation of new information and acquisition of new skills. As long as there is sustained INTEREST on the part of s/he who desires to LEARN, nothing will be impossible for him/her.
This is the way we were made by the all knowing and all powerful Creator.
The problem is many of us do NOT know, and have never been told this truth before. Those who get told in most cases reject it, because the societal conditioning they have received all their lives make such a bold truth too scary to accept.
Burt Dubin says such people end up living their lives in “the mire of mediocrity”. I agree.
Do you want to be exceptional at what you do?
This is a very important question, and the answer you give to it will determine just how successful you become at ANYTHING you lay your hands upon to do with diligent commitment.
Last week, I watched the movie based on the amazing true life story of American gymnast – Gabby Douglas – who defeated major bouts of adversity through most of her early life, to become the first ever African American Individual All-Around artistic gymnastics Champion at the London 2012 Olympic Games (See movie trailer here).
What I LOVE about American movies of this kind is that they rarely fail to capture the good, the bad and the ugly sides that occurred in the real life events dramatized.
And so, we got to see/hear how the young Gabby and her mother, and siblings daily struggled to scrape funds together to finance her need for regular gym training visits.
It was expensive, and their mother was all alone working round the clock to earn income to keep 4 growing kids.
We also saw/heard how her first coach repeatedly use subtle (and not-so-subtle) put-downs on Gabby, even right after she gave an excellent showing at a major competition!
She did not miss it, and made a point of telling her family about it, before using it to DRIVE herself to do better…until that got her noticed by the nationally recognized Coach Chow.
The latter would eventually be so impressed by Gabby’s natural talent and demonstrated drive, that he arranged for her to live with foster parents thousands of miles away from her family, so she could train at his gym, for the Olympic trials.
But the best part of the story was when she experienced her first major injury, followed by a woeful outing at a pre-trial meet.
That incident shook up Gabby’s confidence so badly that she did a complete career ambition u-turn and told EVERYONE she no longer wanted to go to the Olympics…she wanted to give up her Magnificent Obsession!
This is a kind of confidence crisis that every normal person experiences especially after facing unexpected setbacks or defeat. All who knew her were stunned to learn of her decision, yet none succeeded in making her rethink it.
I’ve been there – many times – as a sportsman, and in paid employment, as well as an entrepreneur. So I can tell you it can be most traumatizing.
Without the right emotional support from people around, experiences like that can BREAK a person, and keep him/her down for life.
This brings me back to Gabby and what she did to get past that phase…
Actually she was not the one who did it. Those she had around her, who loved her and had supported her from the very beginning, were the ones who helped her out.
Her coach, and especially her family played key roles.
The phone conversation with her brother, which ended with him asking her to open a parcel he’d sent to her, was however the key moment she rediscovered her passion.
In the parcel was a copy of a poster bearing affirmations that there mother had always taught them e.g. “Tomorrow will always be better than yesterday.”
The bigger version was always pinned up on their wall at home. During the really dark days they went through financially, they would draw inspiration and courage from reading it to keep going.
He told her NOT to give up on them (he actually began by calling her STUPID for wanting to quit at such a critical moment)…and then told her to pin the poster on her wall, ending by challenging her to bring home the Gold medal.
It was then that she REMEMBERED WHY SHE HAD BEGUN HER JOURNEY.
It all clicked back in place, and the next day, she walked back into the gym she’d quit from and smiling nodded at the coach that she was back and ready.
What followed next is now history.
But this story confirms what the coach told Gabby and her mother in his office the day Gabby stubbornly told them she was quitting.
He’d said (not exact words)…Champions Are NOT Just Made of Talented Muscle…Champions Are Made of HEART.
Looking at Gabby’s mother, Coach Chow had said: “Some athletes have it, some don’t. If she hasn’t got it, you can’t force it, and we can’t teach it.”
I believe that above applies to people in all fields – including public speaking.
Final Words: To be exceptional, regardless of challenges you face, YOU have got to have HEART!
If you really want to succeed badly enough at something, YOU WILL…and that will happen because when a human being REALLY wants something, s/he typically puts his/her HEART and SOUL into it.
Such persons can be formidable opponents to go up against in sports. And in business or other fields, having such persons in YOUR team can mean the difference between success and failure. As consultants or experts providing services of products, their clients will find them exceptional.
Do you want YOUR clients to call you exceptional and rave about you to others? If YES, then take a cue from the ideas shared in this article, and PUT YOUR HEART into what you do EVERYTIME!
If you need help putting the ideas shared above to use, let me know HERE.
*************
Learn about Burt Dubin’s speaker mentoring products (books, audios etc) below…
If you need help purchasing ANY of Burt’s products (like “Presentation Magic”), call me on +229-66-122-136 (in Benin Republic, my base) or +234-803-302-1263 (in Nigeria) or email tayo@tksola.com
Have a great week :-))
*************
SPECIAL PRODUCT FEATURE
“Inside Speaking Business Success Secrets”
In this offer, Burt Dubin promises to show you how to generate PASSIVE incomes streams WHETHER YOU SPEAK OR NOT.
Plus, you learn a proven shortcut to top level speaking business success across corporate markets.
So, with diligent persistent application of what you learn you’ll start (as Burt says)…”bringing home high speaking fees”…whether you speak or not…in a matter of weeks….
Sooner than later you’ll find you’re ready to go for Burt’s mentoring at Diamond or higher Inner Circle membership level.
The best part is: every cent of your fee to purchase this product counts toward your membership in Burt’s Inner Circle.
In other words, you effectively get to eat your cake and still have it!
CLICK HERE to get full details of what it takes to make yourself a true speaking business champion in Burt’s Boot Camp V: Inside Speaking Business Success Secrets
*************
