I just returned from a conference where I heard several inspiring speakers. On this particular occasion I heard from a former lead fighter pilot for the Blue Angels, Super Bowl winning NFL quarterback, world champion boxer and brand icon, a couple of CEOs and board chairmen. They all delivered impressive messages, some inspiring, some insightful.

As I sat and listened to these speakers and looked around the large audiences, I asked myself, what are the people in the audience getting from these messages? How will these messages change the way they live, work, and play? Afterall, we are not fighter pilots, or NFL quarterbacks, or heavy weight champs, or CEOs or Board Chairs. These speakers have achieved incredibly success and have reached heights many of us have only dreamed of. Their presentations are about high performing teams, highly talented companies, and incredible situations that most of us will rarely find ourselves in. Can the mere mortals in the audiences use the same success formulas and expect the same results?

I emphatically say YES. There is one thing we all have in common with these speakers, a common denominator that runs through their messages but is sometimes hidden. There is one thing we all control as humans, one thing we all control that has the power to define our success.  

That one thing is Ourselves. 

You see, before these accomplished speakers could control their jets, control a huddle, control a company, control their board and investors, they had to learn to control themselves, exercising discipline and putting in the work to advance on their chosen paths. The same control that lies within each and everyone of us.  True many of them may have special talents, but special talent is rarely developed into greatness. They may have had fortunate timing and opportunities, but good timing and opportunities don’t come in nicely labeled packages. It’s only when preparation and hard work transform them into ‘big breaks’. Thomas Edison is famous for saying, “Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”

We, like the performers on stage, have the same tools to control our destinies. We just need to know how to use them. What we see on stage is the finished product, the goal achieved, the objective met, the game won. What we don’t see are those speakers standing at the same cross-road we find ourselves at when we are short of a goal or deciding if a goal should be pursued. Do we keep pressing on and fight through the obstacle, the discomfort, the sacrifice? Or do we give up? We know those speakers did or they wouldn’t be standing on the stage.

If we all have this same ability to control our destinies by controlling ourselves what are the secrets that make the difference for some, that allow some to stand on a stage and tell their stories?  Here are the keys used by the successful that are available to all but used by few. They . . .

Trust the process

Get comfortable with being uncomfortable

Accept failures and setbacks as part of the process

Seek support and assistance

That’s it. They sound simple and they are. You see success isn’t complicated. It’s more about controlling yourself and putting in the work than fancy forumlas. If we all took advantage of these tools far more success would come our way. Each of these items needs to be discussed in more detail and and will in future blog posts.

For now, know that you too can stand on that proverbial stage and tell your story if you utilize these common denominators.