The Foundation for Success

How many of those educational pyramids have you ever seen in your life, especially in school? I feel like every single concept was taught using some sort of pyramid structure to tell you what the base was all the way up to the end goal at the top. From food to business management, that damn pyramid was there to lecture you on how much each level mattered. 

What I always hated about this concept was that most structures are not built using this shape. Most do not get super thin at the top and instead maintain a wide base all the way up. In fact, I only know three pyramids in the world and all haven't been in use for thousands of years and are currently housing dead people.

Enough on the shape, what I wanted to focus on was the concept behind the pyramid. The base was supposed to be the most important part and the top was the end goal or "success" part. I'm not arguing this; the concept does not change in your quest for achieving goals. The base or first steps are the most important part. But what is that base? 

Simple, its character. Most would say money, luck, connections, or skill. Nope, its character, the thing you can control in your quest. It is the only variable that can tell everything about you instantly and its the only variable that you can truly control. Your character is who you are inside, what makes you get up, and what helps you handle all of the challenges you face. It can change by putting effort to move it in either direction. Choose wisely.

Let's revisit the pyramid example. Character as a base is a great start, but then as you go up, each level gets less and less "important" in your journey. Why? What makes those levels less? If you want to run a business, manage relationships, learn a new skill, or graduate college, do you just start neglecting certain steps along the way? Of course not, that's setting yourself up for failure.

I am not arguing that you shouldn't prioritize what is important vs what is not; that is also a must. But the point is prioritizing happens first, then you set out to achieve your tasks. Prioritizing is not the same as determining which vital steps are "less important" once you start your path. If its vital and in your structure, it matters just the same. This is the main reason businesses fail. They get caught up in the good and start neglecting the loose ends, even though they are vital to the success story. How do we avoid this? Remember what factor matters most: character. Strong character avoids getting caught up in the distractions, such as money, power, fame, men or women, and material items. Strong character achieves goals.

Start mapping out goals with a modern building in mind, the ones with a wide base and continue to stay wide to the top. And understand that your base is your character, the factor you can control and account for every single time. It is the single greatest factor to your success story and do not let anyone tell you different. If they say it doesn't matter, it's probably because their character is holding them back.