ARTICLE:

Create Success-With Whatever You Have! 7 Practices for Creating What Matters Most In Life And Work
Copyright © 2006-2008 Bruce Elkin

Have you heard about the stranger in New York who wanted to visit Carnegie Hall?

When no one would stop to give him directions, he approached a man carrying a violin case.

"Sir," he asked, "what's the best way to get to Carnegie Hall?"

Jascha Heifetz, one of the world's finest violinists, leaned forward, tapped the visitor on the chest, and said, "There is only one way to get to Carnegie Hall-practice, practice, practice!"


SEVEN PRACTICES FOR CREATING ALMOST ANYTHING

These 7 practices are no magic formula. But they will help you create outstanding results-with whatever you start with.


1. Create a clear, compelling vision of what you want to create.

Focus on the result you want to create.

"Lose weight," becomes "A lean, athletic body."

"Quit smoking," becomes "A non-smoker with clean, healthy lungs."

"Get out debt," become "$10,000 per month doing what I love."

It's fine to start with concepts such as "success," or "a better business." However, power comes from focusing concepts into visions. Picture the specifics of what you want to create.

What would it look like if you were successful? How would your business be better?

Which is more compelling? The concept, "A new car," or the vision, "A candy-apple red, Miata convertible with a black top, beige leather seats, and a six-speaker Alpine CD system?"

Vision does not have to be realistic; it has to be what you truly want. So, stretch for what matters; let your aspirations soar. Grounding vision in reality is the next step.


2. Assess Reality Accurately and Objectively

Vision by itself has little power. Unless it is grounded in reality, it is wishful thinking.

You need to know your destination AND starting point. If you want to go to Denver, and think you are in LA but are actually in Boston, you will not succeed.

Judging it reality distorts it. For example, we say, "Everything is screwed up," when only a part is not going well. Or, "Everything is great," when it isn't. Distorting reality creates a shaky foundation for action.

The key is to describe reality accurately and objectively. Instead of "Everything is screwed up," say, "This part is not working; the rest is."

Describing reality establishes a solid foundation for successful action.


3. Hold Vision and Reality Together to Set Up Creative Tension

Holding vision and reality together sets up a gap out of which a useful, creative tension emerges. Creative tension is the engine of creating.

It replaces the emotional tension and generates the energy to move from where you are to where you want to be.

Imagine a rubber band stretched between Vision and Current Reality. The tension in it can resolve in three ways.

Let go of your vision and give up your goals.

Lower your vision and compromise your goals.

Or hold vision firmly and change reality so you move toward the result you want to create.

Holding vision and reality together sets up an organizing framework in which you can experiment, learn from experience, and shape results.

Your job is to resolve creative tension by making choices and taking actions that support your results.


4. Take Small Steps. Create and adjust.

Many of us are closet perfectionists. We demand first steps be perfect. So, either we give up when we falter, or fear of failing prevents us from getting started.

To get started, take small steps. Work backward from vision to first steps by asking, "Can I do this today?" If you can't do it, ask, "What must I do first?"

If your vision is to be fit enough to run a half-marathon but you get winded walking up stairs, you obviously can't do it today. So what must you do first?

Build an aerobic base. Can you do that today? No. What must you do first?

Use the questions to work back to small, easy steps you can do today. Taking them increase confidence, builds momentum, and helps you stretch toward larger steps.


5. Build Momentum

Momentum is more important than motivation. It generates energy that keeps you going when motivation fades. If you get stuck, or things don't go well, try this:

1. Notice what is happening and what you say about it, others, and yourself.

2. Does what you say support what you want? Is it true? Is it accurate and objective? If it isn't, make it so.

3. Then ask, "What DO I want?" Envision your result fully completed.

4. Choose whatever action occurs to you and try it.

5. Keep trying-create and adjust-until you complete the result.

Like rocking a car, you can use this technique to get unstuck when you are angry, frustrated, depressed, or facing adversity. It shifts your focus from problem solving to creating. It flips your mood from negative to energetic.

Most important, it keeps you moving and builds momentum toward results.


6. Practice, Practice, Practice!

Few of us are born with the skills and talent to achieve our visions. But we are learners. We can try, adjust our actions, and practice until the new becomes natural.

Practice may not make you perfect, but it will make you better. The road to success always runs through better.

One of my clients wanted to be a "Great public speaker." But, because she judged she was "not good," she felt bad and didn't practice. I helped her see she "wasn't good, yet." I also helped her see that, instead of demanding she be good, she'd do better to focus on getting better. In no time, she was making money as a speaker.

Making success an all or nothing jump often leaves you with nothing.


7. Know When You Reach Your Goal

It's not enough to say, "I want to be successful." Without guidelines for judging results, you are like a dog chasing its tail, seeking success but never knowing when you achieve it.

To harness creating power, you need to know when you've completed your creation. This is why vision is best when it's specific. Assess your result against the specifics and see if it matches. If it doesn't, keep working at it. If it does, you're done. =Celebrate.

Completing a creation generates new energy you can use to initiate new creations.

So finish fully and celebrate your success. Then, start on your next result. Success builds on success.


"Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it," Goethe advised, "Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."

So why not be bold. Stretch for what matters-with whatever you have. Then, practice these techniques, and see if you don't create the great results you long for.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Bruce Elkin is a writer, coach and consultant who helps individuals and organisations create what matters most - in spite of problems, circumstances, and adversity. His ebook Emotional Mastery: Manage Your Moods and Create What Matters Most With Whatever Life Gives You is available on his website at www.BruceElkin.com