distracted

I was a fish keeper when I went to high school.

I wasn’t when I left. My interests had moved on. They’ve been moving all my life. I’ve had too many for my own good.

Now this isn’t entirely a bad thing, makes for an interesting life, keeps the synapses in shape. Good for meeting whole groups of people you didn’t even know existed.

But, such a life lacks what Napoleon Hill refers to as a Definiteness of Purpose.

“Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement, and its lack is the stumbling block for ninety-eight out of every hundred people simply because they never really define their goals and start toward them.”*

There are few real differences between all of us. We all have a set of characteristics. If you could place values on these characteristics you would find that they do not vary too greatly from one person to another. If you charted the characteristics of each person you would find that for most people the values would fall into average ranges shared by everyone else.

So why do some people achieve so much?

They achieve more because they are well above the average in some characteristics.

I don’t think you have to excel in very many characteristics to achieve a lot. Just a few key ones will put you ahead of the crowd, and conversely lacking in a few key ones can be a great barrier in your life.

Definiteness of purpose should be considered a key characteristic. It has a knack for increasing the values of other characteristics. The sooner you develop it the better off you will be.

Having a definite major goal is more than a wish, it is a burning desire. It does not allow you to be distracted. You know what you want and you know what you have to do to get it.

If you don’t already have definiteness of purpose it is something you should work out for yourself right now.

I won’t distract you further.

*Napoleon Hill's Keys to Success