What No One Will Tell You About Preparation

I’ve always wondered why in every aspect of life does it take an enormous amount of time to prepare for a goal or an event. Why does a thirty minute talk take more than eight hours to construct? Or why does it take more than four hours to write a blog post which will be digested in a matter of minutes?

The motivation to pursue our ambitions will increase once we understand what is happening during the preparation process. No one is exempt. It’s like death and taxes. We are repeatedly preparing for something in an area of our lives, although some of us more intensely than others. Here is what no one will tell you about preparation:

1. There are two types of preparation

The obvious preparation is our education, training and experience in the pursuit of a desired goal. We call it obvious because it is a more logical course of action. Starting a blog may be a logical course of action for someone who may want to publish a novel in the future, as is selling clothes on Etsy for an up and coming fashion designer.

There are times that we don’t always take the logical course of action, simply because the goal is so far away that it doesn’t seem necessary to act upon it now. But any goal worth pursuing, is worth starting as early as we possibly can.

The not so obvious preparation are challenges, which arrive in all forms. Challenges can range from money to rejection. When we observe famous actors, we only witness their sudden success and are acutely unaware of the decades of struggle they had experienced in entering their chosen industry. The key is to find a way to manoeuvre around each challenge which presents itself.

2. Preparation takes longer than anticipated

I despise any system or program which teaches success in a matter of days. These systems play to our emotions and leave us disillusioned, like a 5 year old who has just realised that Santa Claus is not real. My point is that any change that we want to see in our lives will require hardwork over a duration of time.

The premise of Grant Cardone’s book The 10X Rule is to assume and expect every project will take 10X more resources and increase your effort accordingly.

3. Preparation is the value adding process

The process of preparation is the process of adding value. It is a time of continuous improvement by us staying on one thing for an extended period of time, so much that we improve our level of skill and ability in that area.

Sometimes you can chart the course of a talented individual who continues to improve. After a while you will notice a vast improvement in their talent and if you ask them, they will mention their experiences both good and bad as being part of the process.

What are you currently preparing for and how are you finding the preparation process? Is there something that you have prepared for that took you absolutely ages? It would be great if you could leave a comment below or join in the discussion on Facebook.

Images courtesy of Iosphere, Kromkrathog, and Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.