Iyabo Oyawale: Conquer Yourself to Conquer Your Goals

If you’re goal-oriented, you’ve got to be prepared to conquer yourself first.

That reminds me of this quote by Edmund Hillary.

“It’s not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.”

The message is apt. There’s no mountain anywhere. We are our own mountain.

So often, we get in our own way. We become our own enemies. We prevent the attainment of our goals and dreams.

So, what do you have to conquer in your life to be able to move ahead?

Your Fears

Fear is a very powerful emotion which we all feel. There are all sorts of fears. From the fear of public speaking to the fear of flying, et al. But, to succeed, you’ve got to conquer your own fears. I remember vividly the first time I wanted to speak to an audience. I was scared. My tummy rumbled. I almost felt like calling it off. But, I went ahead to deliver the talk. And, it was so well-received. That taught me a lesson about confronting my fears.

Fear will always be a part of human existence. We can’t wish it away. Not by any stroke of luck. We just have got to master it, to be able to live our dreams. To master fear, we’ve got to confront it. We’ve got to learn to proceed, regardless.

Your thoughts

It’s so essential that your thoughts are brought into alignment with your goals. If your thoughts are at cross-purposes with your goal, attaining them becomes practically impossible. But, one thing I have realised is, it’s possible to choose your thoughts.

Let me quickly state some facts about your thoughts:-

• they can be trained and made to agree with your goals
• you don’t have to believe every thought that drops in your mind
• you can select your thoughts, per time and goal

The mind is a powerful organism and operates the WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) principle.

In essence, whatever you magnify through the mind becomes magnified. Instead of magnifying your challenges, why don’t you start magnifying your goals?

Believe you can achieve them. Create images of possibility in your mind; focus on them day and night.

Your emotions

Our emotions can be so fickle. They are not always a true reflection of what’s happening. But, most people allow their emotions to ride them. If you want to succeed, your emotions must be trained to support your goals. Often, you’ll find your emotions refuse to co-operate with you, while you’re on a project.

For instance, you may have decided to write daily. But, you wake up one day and your emotions are not just co-operating. I’d say go ahead and write anyway. Train your emotions to respect your goals. That way, you’d be able to commit, no matter how you feel. I think your commitment to your goals should override your feelings (no matter what).

Your actions

Your actions must also be trained to align with your goals. Are the everyday things you do helping your goals or detracting from them? It’s okay to take baby steps towards achieving your goals but it’s not okay to do stuff that will detract from your goals.

Everyday, do stuff that would move you towards that dream you’ve always had. It’s essential.

Your words

Ensure your words are in conformity with your goals. Don’t allow your words to ‘kill’ your goals. Even in the face of extreme challenges, remember to speak possibility. Don’t just believe in possibility. Speak it. Confess it. Your goals are energized anytime you speak possibility into them.

Conclusion

Our goals, our wildest dreams are possible, if we have the courage to conquer ourselves. Most often, we pray to conquer enemies but we’re our own enemies. It’s time to take a truthful look at ourselves and see ways in which we’re sabotaging ourselves. And, decide to ‘sabotage-no-more.’

As you make this commitment, remember to focus on your ‘why’.

Challenging times would come, but, when you focus on your ‘why’, you’ll be better empowered to push through. Your ‘why’ is the reason you have that goal. It may be to give your family a better life, to work from home, to lose weight, etc. Whatever your ‘why’ is, just keep it in the front-burner.

You’ll find it handy as you move toward your goals.

Photo Credit: ambassadorsblog

Iyabo Oyawale is an unapologetic Internet nerd. She works from home and believes any dedicated Nigerian can do same. She runs www.askiyabooyawale.com, a blog for people who’re seeking to build wealth, using Internet technology.