Page 508 - THE MARKET WHISPERER

504 PART 16 - Preparedness and Empowerment

alternatives, gain experience, and learn so that success becomes easier
to achieve at the next obstacle. Experience is one of your most important
assets on the road to success. There is no obstacle in the world that was
not overcome by someone, somewhere: if someone else could, so can you.

Success, like obstacles, is not finite. What happens once you’ve reached
your goal? Most likely at this stage you’ll set a new one, backed up by a
new belief in your ability to achieve it. In my development as a trader, I set
a target of attaining $200 profit each day. Once I reached that, moving the
target to $500 no longer seemed impossible. And so on. This is what makes
humans competitive, and so very different from animals.

Failure, or challenge, is perceived very differently by successful
individuals than by the general public. For successful people, failure is an
opportunity to start again, from a new angle and with improved methods.
Never for a moment even give a thought to the idea that you might fail.
As infants and children, we naturally seek ways to overcome challenges.
As adults, we need to recover that innate sense of being able to achieve.
If you leave even the narrowest chink open to the concept of failure, that
concept will swell, become empowered, and swallow up you and your
hopes for a better life. If you fear failure, fear will handcuff you. People
fear failing at studies, sports, in relationships, parenting and at work. Fear
weakens our willingness to cope with challenges that life places in our
paths. Yes, some of the blame can be placed on how we were raised and
educated, generally with methods that punished our failures rather than
encouraging our resilience. Successful athletes are known as being target-
oriented, strongly self-disciplined, and intensely determined. Research the
histories of famous athletes and you will often find at least one parent who
imbued the child with the spirit of winning, neutralizing fear and failure.
Earl Woods, father of Tiger Woods, golfer and the richest sportsman in
history, prepared his son for the game from the age of two. Earl himself
was a commando combatant in a Special Forces unit in Vietnam: facing
challenges was not a new concept for him. Earl stuck with the goal he
set for himself and his son. Despite the challenges, he created one of the
greatest achievers in sports history.

Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your
goal. - Henry Ford

Commitment to Success

We’ve all heard Cinderella stories of people who made it rich overnight
due to some brilliant idea.