Have you ever boiled water for tea or soup? Do you put the tea kettle or pot on the stove and walk away, or do you stand by the stove to wait for the water to boil? If you have ever stood there and wait (that's usually when you need the water in a hurry), you probably felt like it was taking forever for the water to boil.
You watch for the slightest sign that the water is getting close to boiling. But, the more anxious you are, the slower the process seems to be. Nothing seems to change until the water reaches 212 degrees Fahrenheit, which is water's boiling point.
Nothing seems to happen until the temperature turns from 211 to 212 degrees.
That one extra degree makes all the difference.
Imagine if you become impatient and give up before the water reaches its boiling point, what would happen to your water? If you have turned off the stove, thinking that you have wasted your time and effort, and that the water will never boil, what would've happened then?
Working toward a goal in life is much like boiling water on the stove. Far too often, we either did not give our 100%, or we give up way too early, for various reasons. Maybe your self-doubt got the better of you, maybe you became impatient, maybe you had fears of failure or success, or maybe you lost faith in your Higher Power, your ability, vision, or dreams. It's like a football team quitting on the one yard line, instead of going all the way for that winning touchdown. If you did not make enough efforts to make it happen, or if you give up too early, you would've really wasted all your time and effort without return.
Training in martial arts also taught me the importance of mental toughness, perseverance and following through. Lack of self-confidence, half-hearted efforts and fear of pain sometimes would literally bring you more pain. When you are breaking boards, or sparring, or competing in tournaments, there is no room for self-doubt or fear. No matter how much you practice or how good you are, if you don't believe you can win, you've already lost before you even begin. Anyone who knows how to break boards would tell you that you don't aim at the boards you want to break. You must aim at a few inches behind the boards, and make sure your strike goes all the way through the boards. Second-guessing yourself, stopping short before reaching the boards, or stopping your strike at the surface of the boards would not only result in failure to break them, it often causes more pain or even injury to your hand or foot. Believe me, I've learned my lessons the hard way, and now I know better.
"Most people give up just when they're about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game one foot from a winning touchdown." -- H. Ross Perot
So, what would you rather do? Go that extra mile and give it your all? Or, give a half-hearted performance and wonder what could've been?
Sometimes we need to take a leap of faith and believe that our dreams will come true. To get what we've never had in life, we must do what we've never done before. That extra one degree of effort could make a world of difference for you. Watch this movie 212 Degrees, and think about it.
It's your life, your choice.
* Related post: Quitting on the One Yard Line
Labels: attitude, empowerment, goal-setting, making changes, mental fitness, perseverance, personal development, success
Thanks for the great idea about 212 degrees of effort.