#941 The will to win is UNimportant
Bobby Knight famously said:
“The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win”
What is the percentage of your time spent in the culmination of a successful activity?
If you're a boxer, you train about 500 hours for a 30-minute bout.
If you're an A student, you study about 200 hours for a 3-hour final exam.
Do you like handmade fettuccine and homemade Bolognese? It takes about 5 hours to prepare and maybe 15 minutes to consume.
Do you love the moment that the client says yes and signs on the dotted line? Depending on your business, it takes about 1,000 cold contacts to bring in a new deal.
A goal begins with the thought of achievement, but what happens next? How do folks get off track? It's about the awareness of what needs to be done and the willingness to do it.
In coaching, folks show me “Big Hairy Goals” and tell me how that they’re going to crush them. I say, “Sounds great! Are you ready?” They say, "I was born ready!." I say, “No, actually, you weren't."
Readiness means asking many questions about what has to happen to achieve the goal and your willingness to do those things. It has to be asked and answered daily. Sometimes hourly. Are you willing to do 500 hours to be ready for the fight? Are you willing to study a few hours each night? Will you knock on 100 doors a day, take the rejection and come back again tomorrow?
First comes the willingness; next comes preparation.
You've got to anticipate what can go wrong and prepare ahead of time.
If I set a goal to go on a high fiber diet, I need to have apples and nuts on hand, or I'll reach for the Cheetos when I need a snack.
The thing is that we all see the successes.
We see the outcomes, but we don't always know the preparation and willingness that precede the outcomes.
Discounting lottery winners, there are no overnight successes. Focus on the process. Focus on doing the daily do's as well as they can be done, indefatigably marching toward your goal with your head up, seeing the excellent outcome in the distance and the confidence of knowing you're on your yellow brick road.
Own Your Sales Gene…