Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Love To Improve!

Result: To spring, arise, or proceed as a consequence of actions.

Improve: To increase in value, excellence, etc; become better.

Look at these two words and their definitions. We all instinctively focus on needing that result at the end of the day, but "improvement" is what we should be really striving for. Look again at both definitions - increasing in value; becoming better is what it's all about in the long run, whether we're trying to become healthier, grow our business, or reach higher athletic grounds.

Results come directly from the actions we take that are IMPROVING OUR PERFORMANCE, and should be looked at as something that can't be controlled. Whether we're achieving the results we desire or not, our only focus should be the improvement of self. If we concentrate on the actions that will advance our execution, the outcome will take care of itself, and most likely be what we want in the long run.

Focusing on results is instinctive, and difficult to change (especially in our results-oriented society), but switching this mindset is absolutely critical if we want to attain our goals. To those who are trying to lose (X) amount of weight, stay away from the scale longer than you normally would, and use that attention to focus on your needed daily actions. I understand the importance of monitoring your progress through this specific journey, but the scale will always reflect your committed daily decisions and actions... make those your focal point!

To you athletes: It's not, and never will be about the winning or losing! I repeat that statement at least 50 times every single day. You're not playing to win, but instead to improve, compete, and love the personal battle that's taking place within. If you truly want to win every time, that's very easy to accomplish... simply play opponents way below your skill level... you'll never lose again! You won't do that, though. You know how bored you'd be if you only played against opponents who you knew you could beat.

Results are inevitable in life, but the important question we should be asking ourselves: "How do we attain the desired results without thinking about attaining the desired results?"


Yee-haw (did I just say that??)... what a fun question to try and answer. There are many techniques to accomplish such an answer, but the one that has always resonated with me the strongest...

Love to improve!

5 comments:

Matty said...

Once again Dayne, good advice. The older I get, the more I realize that I just need to focus on getting better, and not always winning. If I improve a little here and there along the way, the winning will come as a result.

Dayne Gingrich said...

"The older I get..."

Too bad we have to wait so long, yeah?

Bendigo said...

You managed to emphasize a great point...So I guess we need to focus on the trip more than on the destination...

Unknown said...

It's so easy to focus on the result, especially when our "goals" are results.

spldbch said...

I like what Bendigo said -- It's not necessarily about where you are going. It's the getting there that's important.