Dangerous Challenges, Greater Rewards

There's a reason why I enjoy pushing myself into challenging tasks. Although I grew up poor and without many opportunities, I also intuitively understood that life rewards those who can solve difficult problems.

It doesn’t matter what the nature of the problem is. The fewer people who can solve it, the greater your reward will be if you can. This occurs for no other reason than rare things are--by definition--more valuable.

The people who can do difficult things will always have an advantage over those who can’t. But it’s not solely a matter of ability. I believe that your attitude determines your future more than your aptitude. A person who believes they can do challenging tasks but actually can’t is more useful than vice-versa..

This is because you’re learn along the way. I think back to my experience with mathematics. When I decided to return to college, it only made sense to me to study subjects that are math intensive. That’s because these are the jobs that have the highest salary.

I didn’t know that I’d eventually study physics, but I did know that I’d study a lot of math. If I decided based solely on my aptitude, barely passing my high school math classes and failing calculus on three separate attempts would have dissuaded me. However, my attitude was simply that this needed to be done so I did it.

It wasn’t easy, but my attitude was that I was going to take on this challenge and prove to myself that I wasn’t an idiot. A chip on your shoulder can fuel the proper attitude for success. A chip on my shoulder is what carried me through a lot of my boxing career as well.

While I had my own reasons for sticking with and excelling at the sport, I always felt like I had something to prove to everyone else as well as myself. There’s nothing wrong with drawing your motivation and drive from external sources. Whatever gives you drive is what gives you drive, and more often than not, drive determines your level of ability--not vice-versa.

The Single Best Thought For Improving Your Attitude

It's this: The worst thing that will happen is you die. Since this is unlikely for most challenges you take on, what’s really the worst thing that can happen? Embarrassment and a waste of your time. You’re worried about looking dumb and losing time while you do it.

Here’s the solution: Remember it and act anyway.

I know that’s easier said than done, so I’ll walk you through it real light and easy.

For the embarrassment problem, remember: most people don’t give a shit about you. Your failures and successes may provide a temporary source of entertainment, but beyond that, they have their own issues to worry about. They’ll forget about you just as quickly as they laughed at you.

As for wasting time, there is no such thing as “a waste of time” if it's been put towards a challenging task. You’ll be learning and developing yourself so that when you face the next challenge, you’ll be more ready and able to be successful. You don’t lose in defeat; you only learn and adapt. The only way for that to happen is to occasionally take on challenges that are beyond your ability.

I always tell my Calculus and Physics students that I know all of the mistakes they’re going to make because I already made them. Part of my teaching success is my personality, but I’m able to do so well with them because I constantly took on challenges in my weak areas (math and science) and that makes me good enough to make money tutoring.

It’s like this in all things. I learned boxing by gradually stepping up the difficulty of my opponents and training, but I took some painful losses along the way. Most people worry about getting embarrassed when they lose. I worry about that too. The difference; I know that what I want most for the long-term lies on the other side of what I’m most scared of in the short-term.

This is the attitude you need to have when it comes to taking on challenges and risks. They will cause you to go grow and make it possible for you to receive the greatest rewards from life. Anything else is a waste and dishonors the gift of life that you’ve been given.

The rest is up to you.