The Certainty of Success

Are you just trying your luck at succeeding in life and not sure whether you will actually get there? Is doubt and unbelief haunting you and preventing you from making the most of your opportunities life?

If you doubt your ability to achieve or get something, chances are you will not no matter how hard you try. There is something to be said about the power your mind yields on the results you achieve in life. The battle is not won or lost based on circumstances or fate. The battle is won or lost in the mind.

The certainty of success – learning from the past

Looking back at some of the successes I and others I know have experienced in life it seems clear that one ingredient is absolutely necessary to success and victory in any endeavour you undertake. That ingredient is an unwavering faith in your ability to achieve something. It is an inner peace, assurance and confidence that can be described as “certainty.” Benjamin Franklin said “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” But I dare disagree and add that success is certain for the man who believes he can succeed.

The certainty of success – a military story

I have seen it at work many times. One such case, I remember well, was when we decided, with a friend of mine who is also a doctor, to join the military. We had some idea of the rigours of military training and had heard stories of people that had attempted it and failed or quit. But, and this is the crucial thing, before we joined we never once discussed the possibility of failing. We never once made any plans or allowance for failure. We had decided to join the military and as far as we were concerned only 6 months of military training lay between us and getting to be officers in the air force.

I was quite surprised that many people I told the news were very negative about it. They said how difficult military training was and how much pain and suffering we would be put through. The sleepless nights, physical exhaustion, hard labour and all that we would go through were all emphasized. Only one or two people saw the end from the beginning. They saw us becoming officers.

It was so bad that by the time we got to the military academy I was all too aware of what awaited us. But, and this is the crucial thing, failure was still never on my mind. I went there to get into the military. There was only one outcome possible – becoming an officer. I saw this very same determination in my friend whom I had gone with.

The certainty of success – mental weakness

We were both not much to admire physically. I was thin and with my glasses on rather nerdy looking, and he was on the shorter side. It was no surprise that many expected us to quit after a few weeks. When we got to the military academy we found that there were plenty of people around that looked very impressive physically.

I remember thinking how easy the training would be for them. I was wrong. A few weeks into it the strain and stress began to take its toll. Some of the people that looked the strongest due to physical prowess, started to show weakness. It was not a physical weakness, but a mental one.

You could hear it in their talk. You could see it on their faces. They were defeated mentally. Complaints, discouragement and uncertainty were evident in them. Not surprisingly, quite a few of them quit or ran away. My friend and I began to notice this and we would avoid spending time with them. We continually encouraged each other by thinking and talking about what we would achieve at the end of it all.