I seem to have broken a few cardinal rules of blogging recently by talking about religion, politics and chocolate mousse bathing with an Ostrich, but I want to go even further today. Don’t worry I’m not going to broach such thorny issues as dwarf throwing, sheep worrying or cow-tipping, it’s much worse than that.
If you have read parts one (it’ll make you cry) on a sense of purpose and part two on confidence in my triple crown of self-development you’ll know that ‘Belief’ is on today’s agenda.
Belief in yourself is the starting point to achieving outrageous goals. If you don’t believe something is possible it’s reasonable to think you’re unlikely to try and do it. However, it is possible to try something that you think’s possible without being confident that you can get the result you want and people do so all the time.
Belief is the starting point, but confidence is what makes it more likely to happen and a sense of purpose is what drives you on when things get a tad tough. That is why I said I’m working my way backwards.
So what are the naughty shenanigans that I refer to today, you may or may not be wondering. Well it’s like this. When I started thinking about how best to explain the belief system and the power of our beliefs I kept coming back to the same story. It’s one that I blogged about over 2 years ago and ended up in my book ‘Don’t Ask Stupid Questions – There Are No Stupid Questions’
There are hundreds of stories of people refusing to lose belief in themselves and their ideas often in the face of ridicule and going on to achieve stunning success. Roger Bannister with the 4-minute mile, Walt Disney with Disneyworld and the guy that invented fire (Mr. Fire maybe?) spring immediately to mind. But I like this story because it’s so unheralded and yet so remarkable
You may or may not know that Google doesn’t like replicated content because it sees it as spam. I could link through to the old post, but I don’t want to because most people don’t follow links and this is a powerful story that is worth reading. Therefore, I have lifted most of an old post and dropped it in here as though it were brand new. Ok, ok it’s not exactly stealing the piggy bank from the local orphanage, but I am a bit of a scamp. I think you’ll agree.
If you were one of the 7 people that read the original post or have read my book you’re still not excused from reading on. It’s worth a second read because you can never get enough inspiration, and anyway I’ve changed a word or two.
The Sydney to Melbourne race snakes across Australia’s beautiful south east corner covering a distance of almost 550 miles and is considered a real man killer even by seasoned ultra-runners.
In 1983 Cliff Young decided to enter. Cliff was not your average athlete; in fact he was not your average anything. As a cowhand, Cliff was frequently responsible for rounding up cattle after violent thunderstorms. He did this not with the aid of GPS, a Hummer and small light aircraft, but by running around on foot after the cloven hoofed rascals over an area the size of a small state.
So Cliff new he was fit, but this was another matter altogether because most of the entrants were super fit runners in their prime, whereas Cliff was 61 with little competitive experience. The one thing Cliff possessed in spades though was a burning belief that he could and would complete the race.
There were calls for him to be banned for his own safety, but whereas the rules excluded runners that were too young, nobody could see anything discriminating against people being too old. So the organizers reluctantly allowed Cliff to run.
It was a hot day in Sydney when Cliff turned up wearing overalls and galoshes over his work boots inviting howls of derision from some of the 150 competitors and growing interest from the press.
He did not collapse after a few hours or even die as some had predicted; in fact he did rather well. Cliff Young went on to not only finish the 550-mile race, but to win it.
Nobody had told him he was supposed to stop for a rest every evening so he just kept on running whilst others took sleep breaks. Cliff Young decided what was possible for him, not his family, his friends or even society as a whole, he set his parameters in life and he set his own beliefs about what he could achieve.
Cliff rewrote the book on distance running. Suddenly others realized what was possible and started to believe that if Cliff could do it, so could they. They didn’t suddenly increase their stamina overnight, but they did increase their belief in what was possible. Never again did an athlete taking sleep breaks win Sydney to Melbourne race.
What do you believe?
Link Love
If you want to read more on the power of beliefs, check this older post out that also sneaked its way into my book.
For those of you that don’t know Vered from MomGrind, where the hell have you been? Here’s a post of hers called Women Who Say No To Photo Shopping that you may want to check out.
I love this article by Steve Errey even if I do think he’s wrong with point 3 and somewhat with point 10 too. The rest are great though ;-) The 15 Biggest Lies Told About Self-Confidence and Success
When I started talking about my new business, a mentor of mine said to me that he hoped I wasn’t making a mistake. He had seen others try to do what I am doing but failed.
I thought to myself that I could let this man’s wisdom stop me, or at least let it sabotage my efforts, or I could ignore it knowing this man doesn’t fully know what I am doing in my business. While others have done things in the same area as I am, their product wasn’t nearly as innovative, targeted to need or creative as mine. I have no doubt that my business idea is wonderful and will succeed. And so far, it is doing very well.
I agree Tim, you have to believe in yourself. If you don’t, who will? If I don’t believe that my product is the best out there and that I’m the best one to do it, why bother? But I know I am the best one to deliver it and it is the best (and only one of its kind) out there. So poo poo the warnings of the mentor. (Maybe I’ve outgrown him? What do you think?)
I think belief in oneself can not be overstated. It is the foundation to momentum.
Whatever you have in your inner resovoir, will not be tapped without belief. It would be like standing on a hill in which thousands of diamonds lay beneath. Yet, if you didn’t believe they were there; you would never dig and never find them.
I think Henry Ford’s admonition sums it up best: “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right.”
Bamboo Forests last blog post..Choose NOT To Get on The Negativity Train
I agree with you Tim. Belief is the first key to success. We can have every fanciful techniques for increasing productivity or getting things done but without the belief that we will succeed, we are still doom for failure.
Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger
Vincents last blog post..30 Days Challenge to a Healthier Body
I’ve always had this triple layer of belief/non-belief going on.
On the surface, I’m a super confident guy who loves to talk to everyone about everything, but especially about organizing and procrastinating.
Scratch at the surface however, and you find this bubbling mess of nerves who is only confident in his inability to get things done.
But, scratch a bit more and you reach the core, which is a rock solid, unshakable belief in my complete and total awesomeness and my ability to help others.
My personal development goal is to somehow extract that second layer without damaging the other two… ;)
Tim, I was hoping you’d indicate why when you mentioned that you were writing what seemed to be backwards. I thought the same as you, but you put it better…
“Belief is the starting point, but confidence is what makes it more likely to happen and a sense of purpose is what drives you on when things get a tad tough.”
I read something today that dented my confidence and I got pretty angry about it. After I’d punched a few stuffed toys and drew moustaches on the women in Hello Magazine, I had a think about what I’d read. There was an element of truth in the text and I learnt something from it, about myself and about the person who’d written the text. But you’re right, my underlying confidence and belief in myself won’t allow me to be stuck on the negative for very long. A few more beautiful women will have to suffer a bit more facial hair and some of the blokes will be sporting lobotomy scars and black teeth but their suffering will be worth it for the bolstering of my self confidence. Or do you think I need professional help?
@ Laurie – I’d say you definitely have outgrown the guy. EVery difference maker will have been told at some stage by somebody that they couldn’t do what they wanted to do. Listen to advice, but trust yourself to decide whether it’s relevant to you or not.
@ Alex – That second layer isthere to protect you. It thinks that if it doesn’t hang around you’ll go and do something stupid. The most important thing you can do (Brownson gets serious – shock, horror!) is acknowledge it for what it does for you. Don’t say it’s dumb and don’t fight it. Coaching lesson over ;-)
@ Mike – It’s not very cunning at all. When I originally wrote the post for Writer Dad I had no intention of writing a 3 parter. Then I saw the opportunity and decided I’d just work backwards. Sorry if that’s a tad disappointing.
@ Dave – Don’t come around here looking for support for your bearded lady fetish because I think we all know that’s what your driving at. Quite frankly it disgusts me. I nice handlebar moustache would be cool though. Oh and yes, you need professional help.
I prefer to see a lady with mutton chops.
As usual, I loved the article Tim. Just ignore my silliness *grin*
BTW Bamboo Forest, I love that quote. :)
Dave Fowlers last blog post..Teaching My Children About Health, Fitness and Diet
I read the piece in your book, but this is a great reminder, Tim! I’ve been told by one of my writing tutors on my MA course that I should scale back my plans for my novel, but I’m kinda keen to at least attempt doing it my way. I think it’s a similar situation to Laurie’s, above; sometimes it’s important to listen to expert advice, but also to trust your instincts.
Heck, even if the novel falls apart in chapter three, I’ll still have learnt more than if I’d taken the easy route…
Ali Hales last blog post..Straight to the top of your career path: the Brazen Careerist blog
Hi Tim – What an awesome story. How long did it take him to complete the race? I had no idea there were running races that were so long.
I’ve always believed anything is possible ever since I passed my driving test the first time. I was so bad at driving that my instructor told me to cancel the test, after I almost mowed down a bunch of pedestrians (thank Christ for dual controls).
But, if you find it impossible to believe that you could fail at something – it really works.
@ BF – Where the hell is that hill? I like that metaphor a lot.
@ Vincent – Exactly right!
@ Cath – Not sure, but you could easily check it out on Google. That is an actual picture of Cliff shortly before he passed away in 2003, a truly amazing guy.
My driving instructor told me I’d be dead before I reached 21! Honestly he did. Unfortunately for him has was huge (over 260lbs) and a chain smoker (even during lessons) and he died himself before I got to 21 so he was almost right.
I’m getting pissed off with my spam catcher now! It keeps grabbing perfectly good posts and a fascist post grabbing kinda way.
@ Ali – The question to ask is when you get much older will you regret trying and not getting the results you’d wish for or not trying at all most of all?
Self-belief is a multi-levelled thing. It’s not simply a case of believing in yourself, but what you believe in yourself. Even if you reckon you have a healthy level of self-belief, it’s entirely possible for there to be different contexts and dependencies woven in there.
Cliff may well have believed he could finish and even win that race, but he might also have believed that women who float are witches, that he possessed all the wisdom of the ages or that his mother was a duck.
Don’t just believe in yourself and leave it at that, open up the detail of what’s in those beliefs and be ready to challenge them.
PS: Thanks for the link love, even if you disagree with 3 and 10 :)
@ Steve _ I hope you’re not trying to suggest that floating women aren’t witches. People have been burned for less than that you know you heretic.
The context is in achievement of outrageous goals and how belief in our own ability can vastly increase the chance of success. Sorry if I didn’t make that obvious and I agree with what you say, but there’s a book in there not a 1,000 word post ;-)
Will you share your own story with us? How do sense of purpose, confidence and belief help YOU achieve your goals?
Vered – MomGrinds last blog post..War Is Ugly. It Hurts People.
Yeah Tim. What Vered said.
Great trilogy Tim,
I used those three things to achieve my first dream in life, and I am using them to achieve my next.
I spent my summers weeding potatoes on my family farm. I worked more hours than I can recall getting those potatoes out of the fields, across the grading table, and into the bag, out to the stores. My purpose was always to live the life that this work had set me up for. Flying. Thats what I dreamed about all those days, partly because our farm was 10 miles east of Syracuse, NY. Right underneath the arrival corridor for runway 28 at SYR. Seeing those planes day after day had its toll. Purpose!
I gained confidence through each flying hour, experiencing the weather, perfecting techniques, learning the “way”. Every flight was a new success, every success fueled the next. Confidence grows through experience. Confidence!
I believed in my ability to fly as a professional; safely, efficiently, and in any situation. I built the experience and knowledge; coupled it with a sense of purpose to make it possible to work in that environment. Belief!
I swung for the bleachers when I was given the opportunity, and landed my dream job. Now that the airlines management is turning that dream upside down, my new dream is to do something else. Something I control, something that is more fulfilling.
I know we hear this a lot, but if this farm kid can do what I am doing, what is your excuse?
Thanks for the reminder Tim!
Mike
Yay for the galoshes!!!!
I good dose of believe in yourself is nice, but it’s easier said than done.
Melissas last blog post..NaNoWriMo Excerpts
@ Vered – Hmm, that’s a great question! Let me think about that and it may have to be a post in its own right. Thanks for asking.
@ Dave – Shut your face Fowler and get your own question.
@ Great example Mike and thanks for sharing.
@ Melissa – Of course it’s easier said than done, but so is everything apart from talking. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it.