Goals Gone Wild September 1, 2006

Are We Clear?

Matthew Poepsel, LeftBrain/Co-Founder

Do you know what determines the difference between achieving an amazingly successful outcome in life and coming up short? That's right, it's luck. So go ahead - roll the dice and hope for the best.

Hold on. That's pretty lousy advice, isn't it? Personally, I'd be outraged if a handsome and talented success coach told me that being lucky was the only way I could hope to be successful. (But I'd keep reading just in case he was setting me up for an ironic twist.)

No, the real difference between success and non-success is something altogether different than luck. (I knew it.) That difference comes from a seemingly simple concept that can be incredibly elusive in the real world: clarity. To be a bit more specific, I submit for your consideration: Clarity of Purpose.

Allow me to explain. The majority of people I've ever met have claimed that they want to be successful in life. (I love that kind of moxie.) In fact, a desire to be successful is a great place to begin. The only problem is that while the majority of these same people have great intentions, they're sloppy in their pursuit of the success they envision. (Don't worry - I'm not talking about you, I'm talking about that guy next to you.)

The painful truth is that too many of us have a muddled sense of what we want to accomplish in life and exactly how we're going to go out and get it. Instead, we settle for ambiguous notions of what success looks like or what we should be doing to achieve it. We lack that critical clarity of purpose that would focus our minds on why we should be doing some thing (any thing) to get ahead.

In the movie "Finding Forrester", an aging Nobel laureate (Sean Connery) repeatedly shared his colorful commentary in the margins surrounding the work of a promising young writer (Rob Brown). Again and again, the accomplished author described the young man's writing as "constipated thinking". (There's a phrase you never thought you'd read in a success column.)

Even so, "constipated thinking" aptly describes the condition which stands between many of us and our true potential. Clarity of Purpose is the remedy for "constipated thinking" in our lives. (Prunes optional.) We have to press on and find clarity rather than settle for unconvincing and ambiguous plans. Muddled thinking leads to marginal outcomes.

So exactly where should we seek clarity if we want to find success in life? Look no further than the following:

Yourself. How well do you really know yourself? Seek clarity in your values, your strengths and weaknesses, your learning style, your motivations, and all of those other fantastic things that make you unique in this world. We want to get to know you, but first you have to openly and honestly know yourself.

Your Plan. Chessmaster Bruce Pandolfini wrote an interesting book titled "Every Move Must Have a Purpose". I love that title. (Apparently I have a lot of love to give.) Here's how I see it: if you aren't clear about how to get from here to lasting success in your life, you've got a bit of work to do. Hoping for success with no plan to achieve it is roughly the equivalent of playing the lottery, and I think we all know how that turns out. (Me crying on the sofa covered in bits of shredded paper.)

Your Next Action. What's the absolute next thing you are going to do to achieve success in your life? (Note: 98% of people have no idea.) You should become absolutely clear about why you are doing those things in life that are worth doing. By connecting them to your plan, you can have confidence that you are on the right track. You won't get everything right, but you will get there eventually.

If you lack Clarity of Purpose in one or more of these aspects in your life, you are not alone. That doesn't mean that you have to settle for ambiguity, muddled plans, or constipated thinking. Make it a point to seek clarity in all things that you do.

It's the only way to improve your odds of success.

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