What I always find on AR is high regard for the optimism. I think this is an American phenomenon, and no wonder that Americans are the most optimistic bunch in the world.
The weigh that people give the attitude is very high. But like with everything else in life, there are no absolutes.
My high school-aged grandson throws some ideas about who he would become, which in my opinion are often unrealistic, but he is insisting that the determination will help overcome everything. And to certain extent it is true. But from practical point of view it is very important to know yourself. To know you strong and not so strong points.
There maybe some physical limitations. he wanted to be a basketball player, but he is short for it, and there is no career in sight for him in basketball (and he is not agreeing to anything less than NBA). That type of thinking bothers me. It breeds future frustration.
I remember my former Moscow boss. he was not a bright guy, like many around him. But he knew it, and he knew that he can't beat them there. But he is very diligent, very well organized and incredibly persistent. he achieved more in life and in his career than many bright young people, who showed much more potential and who were supposed to have had much brighter careers.
My brother used to say "Ideas are cheap, implementation is the key" though I am not sure that he coined that phrase. But he was right. Ideas are in the air. It takes, however, a lot to take them from this air and bring to a product stage.
Gary Keller in 'Shift' writes about 3 types of people who emerge in every shift of the market. "First, those who fearfully predict the worst and are unnecessarily pessimistic;l second, those who are hopefully wish for the best, believe they can't fail and are unrealistically positive; and, third, those who respect the fact that they may fail, actively prepare for the worst, and strive for the best. these are the resourcefully realisitc and are always the timely triumphant". And a few lines down he concludes: "You can not control the market, but you can control your outlook and your response to the market".
While the first group is plain negative, the second will not arise as winners, as it is not enough to keep saying "honey", it is a lot of flying and gathering the nectar...
P.S. You can purchase the book by going to http://giftofshift.com/activerain
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