Essential Force 5: Faith

The fifth and final Essential Force of Success is Faith. Here is how faith can cause extraordinary success:

Faith

Definition (from Dictionary.com): belief that is not based on proof.

Wow. Think about that for a moment. In order to have faith, you have to defy what is logical. You have to go counter to popular belief. You have to stand firm, even when all signs are pointing to the contrary. Faith is the impressive belief beyond a shadow of a doubt that you will achieve your goals. And depending on how challenging the goal or how great the risk, it may require a remarkable amount of faith.

So how do you activate such faith? Well, Faith comes from confidence; and from confidence, diligence. This means that you need to study in your craft, cultivate your skills, and engage in activities that will develop your confidence. Once your confidence is built up and your skills sharpened, faith will come. The experiences that test you will also test your faith, confidence, and skills, so you must always be prepared.

I personally have been developing my faith for years. I believe the event that really built my faith was the nasty divorce between my parents back in high school. It was a very dark time for myself and my family. My younger brother and I found ourselves in the midst of heated exchanges between our parents, tug-of-wars that consistently ended in stalemates, and instability that impacted us for years to come. At one point, my mom, brother, and I were on the verge of living in a shelter, and we could barely afford food. It was one of the most difficult experiences I’ve ever been through.

During this time, I started noticing how depressing my body language had become. I was moping all over the place, shoulders hunched over and head pointed to the floor wherever I went. In order to keep from cracking and surrendering to depression, I forced myself to roll my shoulders back, stick out my chest, and keep my head up. I refused to let this thing beat me, no matter what was going on and no matter how I felt. I then began telling myself everyday that if I could make it through this point in my life, I can make it through anything. My faith started to grow, and even with everything crashing down around me family-wise, I made it through the storm.

It took two long years for that divorce to finalize, not even considering the years leading up to the 2-year divorce process. As a teen, it felt like an eternity. But it was my faith in God, my faith in myself, and my faith in my dreams and goals that got me through this troubling time. And because of this experience, I am now no longer afraid to exercise it. I laugh when people tell me I can’t do something, and then I go and prove them wrong. When things don’t go my way, I adjust and move forward. I know I have the power to do whatever I need to in order to succeed, and failure is only temporary.

If I can exercise faith after everything I’ve been through, you can too. And you will need to frequently in order to achieve unparalleled success in all areas of your life.