PAY THE PRICE
INTRODUCTION
Raghava, my neighbor is an ambitious young boy. Three years back he decided to pursue a part-time business. He set a goal to earn a part-time income of about one lakh rupees per month within two years. Last week he came to me with a pale face and was looking a bit disturbed. I asked him about his goal and he replied that in these three years, he has not even reached an income of thousand rupees in spite of his great efforts. Normally a person does not achieve his/her goal only when he/she does not pay the price. I decided to find out the reason to help him. He told me that he has put good enough time into the business, taken several trainings, followed a lot from what his guide had suggested, but could not move to even the first step of success.
ACTIVITIES SUGGESTED BY HIS GUIDE:
- His guide had suggested that he need to be consistent and put effort every day without failure.
- The guide had given him some numbers to be followed, viz. setting a particular time of about two hours daily specifically for business activities, taking training sessions online, reading specific books to develop the business mindset, learning personal skills to build a goal-oriented team, and attending meetings and seminars, etc.
- He was asked to perform specific actions every day and be in touch on a daily basis.
- His guide impressed upon him that all the above points are important and there should not be any exclusion.
When I critically examined whether he had followed the above important points, I found that he has not followed any of the above points in totality.
It was, therefore, clear that his not achieving the income as per his goal was no more a mystery. Simply speaking he had not paid the price that was essential for achieving the goal.
THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH
Quite often we want to achieve big in life and enjoy an exciting lifestyle. But something happens in life and we are left offshore. Ultimately, instead of a great lifestyle, destiny throws us into a mediocre boundary of our life.
The simple question is that why we do not always get exactly what we want or desire. Let us understand this by an old story.
There was a king in ancient times. He had a strong team of scholars in his kingdom. Once he asked his scholars to prepare a draft of the wisdom collected by them. The purpose was that it can be helpful for the coming generations and can be used directly without reinvestigating. The scholars prepared a draft in the form of a book. But the king told that people may not be having enough time to read this entire book. So, he directed this team of scholars to reduce its length. The scholars then summarized their knowledge in just one page. But the king wanted to have still a shorter message. Finally, the scholars presented a condensed statement with just five words. And, this made the king happy. He confirmed that this is the right thing that can be left behind for the coming generations.
Do you want to know what those five words were?
These words were: There is no free lunch.
EFFORTS MUST BE MADE
That is so true in our own life also. Friends! Truly speaking there is nothing significant that you can have, without paying the price.
When you go shopping and you select some item for purchase then what do you do to possess it? You just pay the exact price that has been kept for the item and take it. Understand the fact that when you pay the full price in advance for what you want to have; you receive it. Life is exactly like this. If you are willing to achieve one of your goals, just find its price, pay in full and you will get it.
In the case of Raghava, his guide had clearly informed him as to what actions were essentially required to achieve his goal. By performing those actions he could pay the price and achieve his goal. But, he failed to pay the price. As a result of which he was left far behind in his goal.
PUTTING RIGHT EFFORTS IS THE PRICE YOU PAY
You will never be able to achieve your goal if after setting the goal you just relax and sit in the hope of automatically reaching your goal. Once you set your goal, make an action plan and put all your energy to achieve the goal.
When I set a target to run a half marathon, I had to take the following actions:
- I did a lot of study on the science and techniques of running. Also, I had gone through the books written by international marathon runners.
- I listened to a number of streaming of successful marathon runners and coaches.
- In my city, I joined Runner’s Club and started learning and doing practice with them.
- I arranged proper running accessories viz. footwear, clothing, heart rate monitors, etc.
- Every day, without any break, I used to wake up before 4.00 AM and move out. Quite often, I used to be the only person on the road. I also learned to manage the street dogs in the darkness of the morning.
These points reflect the price that I paid for achieving my dream of qualifying for running a half marathon. Had I missed any of the above actions, my running 21 km would have remained just a dream.
PAY THE PRICE
Well! If you have dreams and you want to achieve each one of them in a time-bound program, follow the steps given below:
- Clearly define what is it that you want to achieve and by what time.
- Write down what actions are essentially required for that. If required, take guidance from a person who is already successful in that field.
- These required actions should become a part of your habit so that you perform them automatically. This will require your strong willpower and firm determination.
- Act diligently and perform these actions consistently. There will definitely be disturbances. You must learn to overcome these disturbances. https://thelifeuddeshya.com/learn-to-overcome-challenges/
- In case you find that taking some of the relevant actions is difficult, learn from the guidance of experts. With the right practice and guidance, you will find that every action has become easy and practical.
Well! These actions are the price that you will be paying in advance to realize your dreams.
TAKEAWAY
Achieving anything big in life is possible. But, there is no free lunch. By putting in hard and consistent work, you can pay the price and reach your goals.
Dr. Lokesh N Rai
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