Triumphing Over Obstacles (Part 2 of 2)

By Darren Hardy

Last week I shared point one of four of how to triumph over obstacles, both small and gargantuan, if not downright devastating. I also hope you enjoyed meeting Chad Hymas as well—what an inspiration!

Let me give you the rest of the 4-point plan now…

2. Control the Controllable.
This has been a sanity saver for me.

Atlas used to be my hero.

The guy was such a stud he could carry the whole world on his back. Admirable, but burdensome.

I learned to shrug (a wink to my Ayn Rand friends).

I took Obama, health care reform, global warming, gas prices, the economy, even my wife, friends and family off my back.

If I can’t control it, I let it go.

Any aspect of it I can control or influence (voting, saving energy, building my business and changing my behavior) is all I ever focus on and deal with.

That eliminates 99.99% of what most people worry, fret and agonize over. Whew. Relief at last.

“By releasing control over circumstances, you gain more control over your life.”
—Kyle Maynard

This is especially important when it comes to dealing with obstacles.
Take a look at the situation as it is and ask yourself, “What part of this can I control?”

Then let go of everything else. And voila! 99.99% of the mental and emotional burden is lifted and you are left to just act on the .01% that you can control—which is usually YOU and your response action.

What happens to you doesn’t determine your destiny. What happens to you happens to all of us. It’s how you respond to what happens to you that determines your destiny. —Jim Rohn

3. Ask for Help.
One of the most important key points I took away from both Chad and Kyle was how we all need to be willing to ask for help from those around us more often. Not only will it lighten your burden, but it will also empower those who help you.

People want to be of value, they want to know they matter to you. Being able to help you helps them feel important and be important. Give others that gift by asking others to help you more often.

4. Just Keep Moving.
In my interview with Kyle he shared that, “Just continuing to move is sometimes all we can do, but it’s enough. Just focus on the NEXT step. That’s all.”

Chad shared that, in his extraordinary 513-mile wheelchair trek through the desert, he used a similar strategy; he did just what was in front of him. “Don’t count the mile markers, take it one highway stripe at a time.”

When faced with your own difficult obstacles, instead of trying to figure out the solution to the entire problem, just continue to move and focus only on the next step, the next stripe on the pavement ahead.

Navy SEALs have a mantra they use when under stress, when self-doubt or that little voice suggesting you quit creeps in: “Not dead. Can’t quit.”

“A man (or woman) can only be defeated in two ways… if he or she gives up, or if he or she dies.”
—Navy SEAL Veteran Richard Machowicz

Stuck, not sure what to do? Just keep moving forward… one single (small as it may be) step at a time. If you’re not dead, don’t quit, just keep moving.

As promised, here is a short segment of my interview with Kyle Maynard as well.