The Longer The Night Lasts, The Longer Our Dreams Will Be

What this ancient Chinese proverb is saying is that the longer we stay in a disadvantageous position, the more risks we'll take. So, is that good or bad?

Well, there are always two sides to a coin.

As far as possible, we'll always want to be in an advantageous position. That's human. But then again, that advantageous position may be far from being an advantage. Let me explain.

We can always opt for a safer decisions to be in our comfort zone. But that results in us always being in our comfort zone, which may not be the ideal or maximum zone that we truly can thrive in. But, we are comfortable.

We could be earning a relatively reasonable income, with minimal effort and stress. Or we could be doing a job that barely uses our capabilities. In short, we are under-acheiving.

Most successful people arrived at their stations in life by pushing themselves out of their comfort zones i.e. from their advantageous positions, to be in a less advantageous position. These people could have been well paid employees who ventured out to be their own bosses. In moving from theses zones, they were forced to take risks. And in most cases, they were rewarded.

Am I advocating a risk taking perspective from now on? No, but maybe you should look at where you are now and see if it's truly what you want. Success does not necessarily mean riches and fame. To me, success is doing what you want and being what you want.

It is what we are, not what we have.

And may I end by saying that `You can't catch a cub without going into the lion's den'. In trying anything new, there will always be risks. You can't succeed without risks.

Underwear Sells!

Just read an article about the richest sports personalities and the money they are raking in. Tiger Woods, quite naturally, tops the list at US$128 million last year. Guess many will not grudge that as golf is an extremely difficult game to master and Woods has already stamped his mark on the golfing scene despite being in his youthful 30s.

But what about David Beckham?

He tops the list for non Americans at about US$50 million. What gives?

I'm not in anyway inferring that soccer, a game which Beckham earns his keeps from, is a lesser sport than golf. In fact, it's the sport with the largest following in the world. However, David is not exactly a legend in terms of soccer skills, not when you compare the prowess demonstrated by Woods who is already a golfing legend by all accounts.

So what is it about David Beckham?

He's a brand. And a carefully crafted one at that.

He's got the looks and he's always presented in the best possible light - sometimes in underwear, not indecent at all, sometimes with milk and sometimes with soft drinks. He's associated with Pepsi, Gillette. He has an image, and that image sells. His brand value is estimated to be almost worth US$400 million. Now, that's an obscene amount.

What am I getting at?

In this day and age, it's all about image. Get the right image and present that in the right marketing vehicles, and you'll be rolling in cash.

Whatever your station in life, take a look at the image you're projecting. If you exude certain qualities, capitalise on it. If it's commercially viable, better still. Not in a David Beckham manner, but in ways that enhances your persona and how people perceive you. It applies to whatever circumstance you're in, be it as an employee or as an entrepreneur (remember Richard Branson?).

It's all about perception, and the right perception sells. David Beckham is living proof.

The Man Who Removes a Mountain Begins By Carrying Away Small Stones

All of us face situations which seem insurmountable and gargantuan. That ambition, that goal appears in our mind as a mountain. It's imposing, almost impossible to scale. Add that to the chorus of naysayers who almost always seem to be great prophets of doom, the goal or problem seems like a hopeless cause. All perspectives to the achievement of the goal or resolution of the problem appear as 90 degree precipices.

But is it?

Jacob Riis ( 1849 - 1914) was a journalist and social reformer who, in the lates 1800s, did much to improve the lot of the poor in New York City. He shared an unusual approach in overcoming discouragement. Whenever he felt he needed a morale boost, he would visit a stonecutter. There, Riis would watch the stone cutter hammer away at a boulder. He would strike the stone for a 100 times with no results.

However, at the 101st attempt, the stone would crack. Riis reasoned that it wasn't the 101st blow that did the trick, but rather, the cumulative attempts at cracking the boulder was the fundamental reason for the resultant crack.

And so it is with life. There will be many a time when our efforts seem futile, almost as if we're on a lost cause with nothing to account for despite our most valiant efforts. That's when we must never give up but plod on.

We all will have our boulders and mountains to conquer, but every strike at that boulder and every pebble that we cart away will result in the unthinkable; the boulder will crack and the mountain will disappear.