On May 6, 1954, Roger Bannister became the first person to run a mile in under 4 minutes. Most thought it was impossible. Roger didn’t. It became his obsession. He literally thought of nothing else. He had limited training time, due to his medical studies, but according to Bannister, when he wasn’t studying he was thinking non-stop about breaking the 4 minute mile. In his mind, he had already decided he could do it.
For Roger Bannister, that four minute mile goal forced him to step up and modify his training. Necessity is the mother of invention and for Bannister, his limited available training time forced him to discover a new training approach that is still in use today by elite runners.
Successful people, like Roger Bannister, have one thing in common – some huge goal that occupies their thinking to the point of obsession. Obsession with respect to dreams and goals is one of the Rich Habits because when any individual becomes obsessed, they become unstoppable. No problem, no obstacle, no pitfall, no wall will stop the individual who plants their flag of obsession.
The trick is finding your obsession. How do you become obsessed with something?
Obsession is turned on like a switch when you have a clear vision of something you want to achieve. So, the starting point is deciding to do something really challenging. Something that forces you to become something you currently are not in order to get the thing you want.
When you pursue some huge reach-goal or lifelong dream, you stir the passions deep inside of you. That passion toggles on the obsession switch and that obsession will drive you to find creative, novel processes or habits which produces small, positive results that eventually leads to success.
What’s your 4 minute mile? What do you desperately want to have or be? The answer cannot be general, like “I want to be rich.” It must be very specific, just like Bannister’s “I want to break the 4 minute mile.”
Spend a few quiet minutes every day meditating or pondering about what your 4 minute mile is. If you find it, your life will change in ways you cannot even imagine.
About Thomas C. Corley
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