Was the Olympics Just A Waste of Money?
As I write this the Olympics is drawing to a close.
Being based in the UK, it has had a special impact on me and many hundreds of thousands of people throughout the country. We have achieved more gold medals than before and are currently listed at a very respectable third place in the medal table.
There have been many emotional scenes as the athletes achieve success after many years of grueling hard work and sacrifice.
World records have been broken and spectacular achievements realized. The most notable amongst them being an unbelievable achievement by Michael Phelps reaching a total of 22 Olympic medals and Chris Hoy notching up his 6th gold to beat Steve Redgrave’s 5 golds.
As we reach the closing ceremony people are beginning to ask what the lasting legacy of the games will be. We are reminded that amid all of the euphoria and optimism that the games has created we are still in the middle of an economic crisis.
Inevitably, there are those that are suggesting that the whole thing was just a waste of money and that in a time of austerity it would have been better spent elsewhere.
Once the games are over will we return to the doom and gloom that was the norn before the games or will we take something away from the games to help us build our future.
Sadly, for many people, I know it will be a return to negativity.
However, I believe that the games has a lot to teach us that can fire us all up to greater achievements going forward.
I have to admit that I have really been bitten by the Olympic bug and have watched way more TV than I normally do. TV can be such a waste of your time if you’re not careful.
I particularly liked the interviews with the winning athletes just after they completed their event. Listening to them some common themes came out time and time again.
All of them were asked about how they felt about their achievement. In almost every case, they stated that it was a team effort. They emphasized that without their team around them and particularly their coach they could not have achieved what they did.
They also pointed out that the Olympic event was the end goal of years of hard work and dedication. In every case, the Olympics was a goal that they had held in their minds since childhood. The vision of standing on that platform receiving a medal kept them going through the many years of struggle and sacrifice.
Mo Farrar spoke of years and years of running 100 plus kilometers a week through the rain, snow and cold, alone but committed because he had a vision. That vision resulted in an Olympic gold for the 10,000 meters.
Swimming is thought to be the hardest sport to achieve a medal with and athletes like Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte and Rebecca Addlington have had to commit to years of early mornings and after-school practice to get where they are.
None of the Olympic achievements have come easy, they have all taken years of hard work.
Lessons we can learn
It Takes Work & Time
Without exception, all of the athletes have had to put in years of effort to achieve what they have and will continue to achieve.
Yet, when it comes to achieving success online you are constantly being told that all you need to do is buy this magic button software (bright shiny object)and suddenly the money will be rolling in.
It’s not going to happen. Anything worth achieving will take time. Not necessarily as long as it can take to achieve an Olympic gold medal, but not overnight either.
Team Effort
When asked about their achievement the athletes gave credit to their team. Without the help, support and encouragement of a team around them – their coaches, physios, psychologists, parents and peers they wouldn’t have made it through.
Many of them spoke of the lonely times they experienced as they battled against the weather, little or no financial reward, often times making no progress and even going backwards as unexpected circumstances came along to hamper their progress.
Have you ever felt that working online is lonely? I know I have. Times when I’ve been working late into the early hours, getting by on just a few hours sleep before going off to that job I hated only to do it all again the next day while family and friends were asking me why, I should know it would never work and should be content with my job. Does any of that sound like your experiences?
I spent years like that before I realized the benefit of having a team around you. The members of your team don’t need to know they are your team, by the way. I found that becoming a member of one or more membership sites aimed at the IM market provided me with the support I needed, I could see that I wasn’t the only one trying to make this thing work.
When I started online there weren’t many people you could join to get that sort of support, now there are lots to choose from. In my last newsletter I mentioned that I’m a member of Dennis Becker’s group that is focused on getting to $1000 a day.
I highly recommend you join it. There is a very active forum where you can ask other members for advice not to mention all of the other areas for getting business ideas, breakthrough help to get over your challenges, business models, member to member services like JV partners and lots more. It’s a mastermind group who are all working to achieve the same thing and helping each other do it.
If you think you could benefit from that sort of help you will find it here http://www.trevor-greenfield.com/1kaday
Get a Coach
While making reference to the help that their team had given them, the athletes made special reference to their coach. Many of them had been with the same coach since childhood.
If you don’t have a coach helping you achieve your goals online you need to get one. The key word there is ONE. It is also important to point out that your coach doesn’t need to know they are your coach and you don’t need to pay anyone. If your finances don’t stretch to joining a coaching program just select someone that you feel you would like to emulate, someone that is doing things the way you would want to do them, shares your values and ethics and subscribe to their newsletter or emails.
Follow what they teach and take action to implement their suggestions. Follow what they do and copy it. I don’t mean steal their content of course, I mean analyze how they do things and do the same sort of things.
A Mastermind Group or one-to-one coaching is generally expensive so a good intermediate step is to join something like the 1kaday membership or whoever you feel you would like to join.
A Vision
Finally, the one thing that every athlete had without exception was a vision. They all had a reason why. It was that vision of standing on the platform receiving an Olympic medal that kept them going in may cases since childhood. Time and again they said that winning the medal was something that they had worked all of their life for.
It was that vision that had provided the reason why they should get up in the middle of the night and head down to the pool to practice. The reason why to pound the roads, 100 kilometers a week, week in and week out on their own, the reason why to keep going through injury and pain, pushing themselves to the absolute limit to one day stand there proudly receiving a medal for themselves and their country.
The enormity of the occasion bringing the majority of them to tears as their national anthem was played and they realized they had finally made it.
Having a vision, a reason why, is the foundation for any level of achievement in anything. Sadly, for too many people coming online, the minute you start to mention a vision they lose interest, they switch off. All they want to hear about is which button do I press for the money to come out.
Equally sadly, is the fact that continually grabbing at bright shiny objects promising instant riches keeps you at the back of the race while the people with a vision, a reason why, and a willingness to take continual action despite the obstacles and seemingly slow progress at times forge ahead and break through the tape first.
So was the olympics a waste of money? I don’t think so.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Recommend Action Today To a Friend!
Don’t keep it to yourself – send them to
http://www.actiontodaynewsletter.com today!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
_________________________________________________________________
The Thought For Today
_________________________________________________________________
“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan Press On! has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”
— Calvin Coolidge
_________________________________________________________________
Action Help
_________________________________________________________________
Do you have a vision? Take time this week to get a clear mental picture of what you want to achieve. Imagine your perfect day, what does it look like. When would you get up, what would you spend your time doing. Write it down.
Bob Procter suggests that you get a pad and start at the top with, “I’m so happy and grateful now that ….” and then list all of the things you want in your life as if you already had them.
When you have your list completed make a point of reading it every day. I find that reading it first thing in the morning gets my day off to a good start and then again last thing at night before I go to sleep so that my mind can be working on it during the night.
If you don’t have a coach or a mastermind group get one now. The 1kaday group is an excellent place to start but if you prefer something else go for it.
_________________________________________________________________
Products and services that I recommended to streamline your business
_________________________________________________________________
Recommended Hosting
Reliable hosting for your niche blogs or website
http://www.nichemarkethosting.co.uk
Earn $1000 A Day
http://www.trevor-greenfield.com/1kaday
Unstoppable Blog Traffic
http://www.unstoppableblogtraffic.com
#~#~#
Do you enjoy Action Today? Please tell your friends!
http://www.actiontodaynewsletter.com
Let me know what you think – about anything! Add a comment down below.
