The "C" Word: Commitment Is Key To Living Your Dream

"When is the last time you threw your WHOLE SELF at your dreams?"

I don’t follow traditional religious figures but I recently stumbled on a You Tube clip from a sermon on COMMITMENT by Bishop T.D. Jakes and he posed that question. (Here’s the link if you want to check it out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1-ybyUoJUI&feature=share.)

T.D. Jakes had a lot of inspiring and thought-provoking insights to share about the “C” word.

How committed are you to living your life full out? How committed are you to your business?

Commitment to YOU is really crucial to your happiness and success.

If you were to survey the most successful entrepreneurs and personalities, you would surely find that they were 100 percent committed to their goals. When you are committed, you can get whatever you need to succeed whether that’s education, training, financing or other types of support.

It might take longer than you want it to take to reach your goal. You will likely have to make sacrifices. But if you’re committed, the likelihood that you will succeed skyrockets.

Now, there is a price for Greatness. Greatness is not achieved easily. The cost of greatness is the sacrifice that will be required for you to achieve your dreams. You will have to give up something to get what you really want. Maybe you have to give up taking the easy road because being committed requires work. It requires that you do whatever it takes to achieve success and that will likely lead you outside your comfort zone.

Finally, to get what you want, you have to be invested in it. You have to put in the effort. You can’t get other people to take your dreams seriously if you aren’t taking them seriously yourself. If you’re invested, it’s a lot easier to get other people on board.

And, you have to be willing to put in what you want to get out of something. You can’t get something that you’re not willing to put in yourself. Reciprocity (a mutual exchange; a reciprocal relationship or act) is necessary.

T.D. Jakes says if you expect more than you invest, you will live in a state of perpetual disappointment. What are you giving for what you’re getting or want?

You also have to take your commitments seriously. You must fully understand and acknowledge what comes with your commitment. Ask yourself what committing to something will require of me, my time and my energy?

Finally, watch out for common two pitfalls when it comes to commitment. There may be areas in your life or your business where you are only halfway committed. Or, areas where you say you’re committed but you’re really not.

It’s also worth considering what may be stopping you from committing more fully to what you want. Is it fear of failure? Or, is it fear of success? Is it the fact that you’ll have to really work for it? Do you feel you don't deserve to have your dreams? Do you not want to let go of control and enter the realm of the unknown?

So how do stay committed?

• Get clear on what you really want to commit to 100 percent, with your whole body and force. No excuses.

• Commit to your dream.

• Believe in yourself.

• Fight for it, work for it, sweat for it

• Use (AIM) SMART Goals to take small steps that will take you far.
o S = Specific
o M = Measureable
o A= Attainable
o R = Reasonable
o T= Timely
o A = Acceptable Minimum to achieve goal
o I = Ideal to achieve goal
o M = Middle what is a realistic stretch for you?

So what are you committing to with your whole self, 100 percent, no excuses? I’d love to hear about it!