Enthusiasm Isn’t Enough! Extraordinary Success Will Require More

Why is it that with so much enthusiasm and good intentions, getting fit and healthy, losing weight, improving our lives, and achieving our goals seem so fleeting?   

Here we are in February, with only one full month of the new year behind us, and over 80% of the success-craving people who made New Year’s resolutions have already given up on them. The desires that prompted the New Year’s resolutions have not changed, yet the push towards them has ceased.   

The reason so many people, not just in the new year, but throughout life in general, give up on their goals so quickly, and stay stuck living beneath their fullest potential, is because they rely solely on enthusiasm as fuel for their success journey.   

Don’t get me wrong, enthusiasm is terrific! We should be very excited when we think about our extraordinary future.  Envisioning how life will change for us when we get fit, lose weight, feel better, and achieve next-level success in our careers, we should absolutely feel happy and enthusiastic. While enthusiasm is the push we need to start working on our goals, enthusiasm alone is not enough to achieve our goals.   

Enthusiasm is a strong feeling of excitement or high energy about something that really interests you. When you feel enthusiasm, you are excited about an experience or a result. At the beginning of the year, many people were enthusiastic about their envisioned weight loss results, they were pumped about buying a house in the new year or getting their finances or credit together. Some were thrilled about finally writing that book or starting a new project. Finding their purpose and having more fulfillment ignited the fuse of many. Others were excited and enthusiastic about the next levels they were going to take their business and careers to.  What amazing goals and dreams are these?

  I would love to see every person with big goals achieve them and extraordinarily impact the world. Unfortunately, the problem with enthusiasm alone is that enthusiasm is a fleeting emotion. Typically, enthusiasm is only present when life is good and going our way. A phone call delivering bad news, an unexpected obstacle or challenge, an unanticipated cost or requirement, or a bad experience while you are pursuing your goals will change your feelings of enthusiasm to feelings of frustration and dispiritedness almost immediately. It’s in these moments, when you are not excited, thrilled, or happy during the journey when the road is bumpy, or when you fall, feel frustrated, or confused, that you need something more to carry through.   

You will need the help of these 3 things to move you forward, despite the challenges, when your enthusiasm is gone:   

Vision with Purpose   

Vision with purpose gives you a clear picture of what you are working towards, why, and for whom.   

When I left my six-figure comfy and cozy six-figure tech and financial software job, there were many moments where I became frustrated in the process of getting my business off the ground. I struggled to make contacts, and I felt the sting of not having that excellent salary on many occasions. The obstacles were more than I anticipated, and it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. The enthusiasm I had, in the beginning, was non-existent when bills were due, and there was no money coming in from the business, or when I sent out marketing materials, and no one responded. Those were hard times. Had I relied on enthusiasm alone, I would have quit and gone back to a corporate job. It was a vision with a purpose that pushed me past the point where I wanted to give up.

Vision with purpose was a constant reminder that this journey is a divine assignment and that too much is at stake. Vision with purpose reminded me that I could not quit. I stayed on track because part of vision included speaking, coaching, and igniting lives full time. My vision also included being more present for my children, who were becoming teenagers and starting high school.  Vision with purpose was a constant reminder that my kids needed me more than ever and that I could not give up on them. My purpose was and still is, helping people tap into the fullness of their personal power so they can be wildly happy, successful, and fulfilled. My vision and my purpose were bigger than my frustrations. I couldn’t quit. I didn’t stop. I kept going.   

At the very beginning of your journey, you will need clarity around your vision with purpose. It’s the very thing that will help you stay focused, on track, and relentless in your pursuit of all you desire, deserve and crave in life.   

What is your vision with purpose?   

Commitment   

When you are committed to something or someone, you are fully dedicated; you are all in. Commitment is entirely independent of enthusiasm. When you are committed, you show up fully when you don’t feel like it or want to. When you are committed to losing weight, and getting fit, you don’t negotiate your workouts or skip them. You work out or go to the gym when you don’t feel like it when it’s raining or cold outside, and when your workout buddy cancels on you, you go anyway. Why? Because you are committed to the outcome – the results you want. You also show up fully, with no excuses, because you’re committed to your stakeholders. 

Your stakeholders are the people who benefit from your achieved results. If you are planning to start a business or write a book this year, think about your stakeholders, the people who were meant to read that book and be forever inspired and motivated by you to go after their dreams. Now just imagine if you don’t write the book or start the business because you were not committed to your “vision with purpose.”  Think of how many people you impacted because you did not finish or commit fully.   

 Your stakeholders should be attached to your outcomes. It’s a reminder that the work you are doing, from fitness to your work schedule flexibility to your big business goals, is so much bigger than you. When enthusiasm is out the window, commitment will fill the gap.   

What are you willing to commit to this year? Who are your stakeholders? Is letting them down an option? Why or why not?   

Consistent Action   

Consistent action is how you stay committed. Consistent action is constant action in the form of small steps every day. Consistent action starts with your “next best move.”  This action, driven by vision with purpose, and sealed with an unstoppable commitment to  taking action  every day, will propel you pass fear, frustration, and the lack of enthusiasm.    

The action happens in a period over stages, through the ups and downs, in seasons of enthusiasm, and in times when you are tired, scared, and frustrated. Be resilient through all these stages and push through with consistent action every day.   

When I was writing my first book, A Life Ignited – Ignite Your Inner Fuse, one of the reasons it took so long to write it is because, for a while, I was only writing when I felt like it. I only wrote when “I had time.”  I waited for the mood to hit me and then I typed or dictated parts of the book.  This went on for over two years. Because there was no consistent, constant action every day, the project dragged on longer than it should have and there were months at a time when I didn’t write a single word. It sounded great, the idea of writing a book, and at first, I was very enthusiastic about it. 

Then the realities of life, motherhood, being a wife, and at the time, working full-time set in, and I started giving the book project less attention. The good news is that my vision with purpose  exceeded my lackadaisical approach to finishing my book. I realized the project needed more consistent action from me, even if that meant writing for just 15 minutes a day (small steps). Once I committed to consistent action, I finished the book and published it in six months.   

Your next level, your happiness, your weight loss, your abundance, and all you desire and deserve will require you to take consistent action every day. Consistent action is the glue that holds it all together after enthusiasm has lost its grip of your goals.   

What consistent action are you willing to take?   

Stay the course, fiery spirit. Ignite your fuse with enthusiasm.   

Fan the flames of your journey with vision with purpose, commitment, and consistent action.    

Add all these ingredients to your success mix and watch how powerful you will be as you pursue goals, achieve your goals, and experience the happiness, success, and fulfillment you want in life and in business.