The Attainability of Success Part 2: Drive

          If
happiness is the ignition for success, then drive is the engine that keeps you on
course. Some even argue that having drive itself is success. If we take a
slightly different approach and view success as a goal to work towards, drive
is how we propel ourselves from one step to the next. For some people, drive
comes easily; building action plans and self-motivating are second nature. For
the rest of us, drive sometimes feels like it has to be forced, and even then,
it still seems more onerous than fulfilling: like looking at a billion stairs you have to climb. I think I’d rather just wait at the bottom and read thanks.  

            So where do we find drive? Well if
we have taken steps towards being happy, that’s half the battle. The second
half of the battle is the real clincher, and involves us finding motivation and
strength to care enough about our success to consider it an attainable goal.
Rather than make lists and setting down steps that nobody cares to follow, or pretend there
is a formula for finding drive, I think it’s best to just remember one thing:
Success is attainable. Anyone can find success. 

            This may seem presumptuous of me to say,
but I think when you consider this past month of posts, you will understand why
I say that. If you control what success is and what makes you happy, you know success
is achievable. The trick is only getting there. So half of your motivation can
come from the fact that you know this isn’t something only a select and
exclusive group are privy to. The other half of your drive can come from
letting yourself appreciate the little steps you take each day to make yourself
happy. Let’s not go for any huge life changes like buying a zoo or moving to
Bali. But it’s amazing how great the small steps can make you feel. Short-term
goal setting is the easiest way to stay motivated and reach long-term goals.

            If we keep the long-term goal of achieving
success, and what that means to us, on our minds while setting smaller goals
along the way, each step we reach is a success. This makes the task of achieving
such a huge goal of ULTIMATE LIFE SUCCESS a little less daunting and helps to keep
you motivated because the little successes are easily attainable. We turn that staircase into the greatest invention of all: the escalator. It’s a lot like a series of escalators with platforms in between. Although a bit slower, it makes the job of getting to the top a little easier. Go and
explore new ideas for characters in the real world, scribble down a couple
pages of whatever comes to mind, do something completely unrelated to writing
but still inspirational. When in doubt, remind yourself: You are the determiner
for your success, and however many little steps there are along the way… you’re
going to get there!