Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn

Growing up in America, the goal of winning has always been ingrained in our minds and hearts. From Queen's anthem for Champions to Vince Lombardi's great quote "Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all time thing. You don't win once in a while, you don't do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing" we are taught that winning is everything.

Although winning is important, getting to the finish line can be just as important, if not more important, even if you don't win. Use your losses as motivation for your next win.

Even the greatest winners in sports history like Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky have been losers. The difference between these guys and the regular Joe is that they learned something from their losses and used it to become better. Don't be afraid to lose. Use it as a learning experience and don't get down, get better.

I remember in high school when we lost a big basketball game to our rival school during the season. Everyone was feeling low and felt terrible for losing to our rival at home. We got beat in the paint and got out rebounded 2 to 1. Our team used that loss as motivation and made sure that we worked on boxing out and protecting the rim. Later that year, we met our rivals in the playoffs and beat them using what we learned in our previous loss to exact sweet revenge. That moment was one of the best moments in my high school career and it happened because we learned from losing.

Finding Your Purpose

My nephew is graduating from the University of California in Davis this May and he called me for some career advice. Like most millennials, he wants to make a lot of money and do something "fun". I understand that he wants to find a career in something that is interesting, but I explained to him that work is not about being fun, it is about working and creating value. Now to find his purpose in life, I found a chart that visualizes the four pillars of finding a dream career.

Will you get paid for what you want to sell/do?
Are people willing to pay for your product or service? Playing video games used to have no value, but these days, kids are scoring six to seven figure contracts for playing video games.

Does the world need what you want to sell/do?
This is important because if nobody needs your product/service you will be hard pressed to get paid for it.

Are you good at it?
To have purpose, you must be good at what you do. If this wasn't the case, anyone would be able to do it and your value would diminish.

Do you love it?
This may seem trivial, but think about doing something for 8 hours a day 5 days a week. Finding your purpose without love is like making a sandwich without bread. You won't be able to sustain something for a long period of time.

Finding yourself is a rite of passage and something most people go through after college. Finding your purpose is a journey that may be difficult, but it is one of the most rewarding adventures that anyone can have.

Elon Musk is a Failure

Elon Musk is probably the closest thing we have to a a real life Tony Stark. His views on innovation should be studied and used in classes. Musk's SpaceX program and Tesla Automotive companies are on the cutting edge of innovation. Many thought that an all electric car would be a total bust, but Elon Musk has quieted his doubters and is making history. Learning to fail and accepting failure as a part of the innovation process should be on the minds of every CEO. I'm sure that history will look back at Elon Musk and chronicle his successes, but only he will know the many failures that lead to the aforementioned success. For more posts and musings, please visit my other blog at NasirShakouri.net.

We All Have Powers

As a kid, I always wanted to be a superhero like Batman or Wolverine. Helping people in need seemed like such a noble job and having superpowers could help people in need. Instead of waiting for others to help people in need, understand that we all have the power to make change for the better. We all have powers to make others feel better. Let's use that power to help those that are less fortunate than ourselves.

Throw me to the wolves and I will return leading the pack

 

I recently saw  this poster in the men's room of a cool new restaurant in Santa Monica. The poster is a testament to those who persevere in the face of conflict and adversity. Everyone should try to maintain this type of attitude when facing an obstacle in life. Staying positive and not psyching yourself out of the game is a key component in overcoming any type of obstacle. This poster didn't have the artist's signature featured on the front. If anyone knows who the artist is, please leave me a comment so that I can properly give credit to this person.

Consistency over Intensity

Bruce Lee is probably my favorite martial arts actor in the world. His level of dedication and discipline is legendary and something we should all strive to emulate. There are times when we are overcome with feelings of motivation and inspiration and we have short bursts or intensity. Instead of relying on these short bursts, cultivate a sense of diligence and practice being consistent. Bruce Lee was a master of the long term consistency plan. His students have also adopted his approach and have been thriving for years. Remember that long term consistency will always trump short term intensity in everything that you do.

Reading is FUNdamental

I've started tracking the books I am reading via a new social network for people who love to read and write stories. Wattpad is different from social media sites like Facebook and Twitter because it focuses on authors and their fans. The site allows fans to connect with authors and comment on everything from the cover art to individual pages within a book. Wattpad is also a great place to discover new authors and past authors.

I just started following Sir Arthur Conan Doyle because I love the Sherlock Holmes series and it allows me to connect with other fans of his work. I love how social networks are starting to splinter off into their own niches and I am excited to be a part of this new phenomenon. If you want to see some of the new authors that I am following you can check out my Wattpad profile here.