Preparation is Key so Prepare Hard.

Have you heard the statement “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”? This means that when one does not intentionally take time to prepare for a desired outcome then they are unknowingly preparing for the opposite which is usually failure. It is very unfortunate that many people live their lives unknowingly preparing to fail, but there is a way to get better results in one’s life, there is a proven formular to achieving success in the endeavours of life. This secret is “preparing hard” not just a menial, wishy washy preparation but a hard intentional and focused preparation.

Let us look at the example of great athletes. Those that are always on the front pages of magazines and newspapers, those that we usually gather for in the coliseums to watch. They are even mentioned in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 9:24- 25 (The Message Version) says “You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athlete’s race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally.”

Did you notice that “All good athletes train hard”, or we can put it another way all good athletes prepare hard? They are focused and they are intentional to take up trainings and disciplines all in preparation for tournaments that will be probably months if not years away. The next time you see your favourite athlete performing remember that they are not just trying out stuff for the first time in the court or pitch but they have been preparing hard well before that day. Be it Novak Djokovic or Serena Williams in Tennis or Ronaldo in soccer or Usain Bolt the sprinter, whoever athlete you can think of, they all invest lots of time, effort and resources preparing for the day of competition.

Usually, the time taken to prepare is more than the time taken to perform, but if anyone intends to perform exceptionally, I mean performing in order to win as the scripture says then they must practice or prepare much harder. They play the game alone first before they come to play with the opponent.

The encouragement and the lesson here is this, if we focus our attention and prepare really hard, we can set ourselves up for big achievements in life. The discipline that is needed is to overcome present pleasures and pains and focus on working towards a desired result. Just like the athlete, their diet is restricted and well managed we too need to let go of those time killing and energy consuming pleasures and focus on preparation. We need to ignore the pains and discomfort of training and keep disciplined in training and preparation.

So, then where do I start? First one must know what results they want to see or the goal that they would like to achieve. It is highly recommended that this be written down clearly. Then secondly establish and document what is needed to achieve that goal. Third and last work towards it regardless. Can I conclude with a question to you, how hard are you preparing for the success of your business, how hard are you preparing for a successful career, how hard are you preparing for your exams and how hard are you preparing for a blissful relationship? If you are serious about winning in life then prepare hard and train like an athlete, train hard prepare hard and the results will show.

Joseph Dhlakama.