MOTIVATION - Strong Desire

MOTIVATION – Strong Desire


By Nikki Viljoen of N Viljoen Consulting CC – January 2012

Napoleon Hill says “The starting point of achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desires produce weak results, just as a small amount of fire produces a small amount of heat.”

I guess this means, more or less, the same as ‘you reap what you sow’ or ‘you get out what you put in’ and it certainly makes logical sense to me, which is probably why I am often really surprised at the number of people who sit back and wait for stuff to happen for them and then when nothing happens they lament – loudly – about how unfair life is and that they didn’t get what they deserved.

My eyes roll upwards and my head shakes from side to side as I try and grasp at their logic. Strangely enough though, on some level, this victim ‘hard done by’ role that they choose to go through life with, does seem to resonate with many and they are commiserated with and empathized with and held up as shining examples of how unequal some are.

Now actually seeing those words in print before my eyes, brought a smile to my face and a giggle to my lips. You see, for me going through life with that kind of attitude would not only be soul destroying it would also be exhausting! I mean can you imagine forcing yourself to feel like that all the time? Now that must be really hard work!

For me the level of motivation is directly attributable to the level of desire – if I really, really and I mean really, want something – I will do everything in my power to get it. The less I desire something, the less motivated I am and therefore the less amount of effort I will put into getting it. Yip, it’s official – I am definitely driven by my desires.

Here’s a thought though – often those desires and the achievements that are realized as a result of those desires, mean nothing to anyone other than yourself and for me, those are the greatest achievements. Let me explain – I write for my own enjoyment. Sure I share the writing with anyone in the world who cares to read the words and yes I do believe that they can change the course of someone’s world but to be quite honest, I don’t really worry about whether anyone is reading my words or what they may or may not think about my words – I write so that I can see the words and often I write about things that I most need to hear or to see or to understand. Every now and then I get a mail from a total stranger, in another country, on the opposite side of the world, who thanks me for the words that I have shared.

My achievement was writing an article, which was based on my desire to write. Once the article is written, I don’t give it much more thought. That said however, the achievement is made all the more sweeter, when I do hear from someone who has been touched by my words. That praise, that acknowledgement, those accolades just make my desire that much stronger and so the circle continues.

My desire is really strong and therefore my goals will be met and my challenges will be overcome and I will succeed. What about you – do you even know what your desires are?

Nikki is an Internal Auditor and Business Administration Specialist who can be contacted on 083 702 8849 or nikki@viljoenconsulting.co.za or http://www.viljoenconsulting.co.za