More or less any process or formula used to pursue and accomplish goals will present aspects of self-improvement as part of the programme. In many ways goal setting for attaining success can be represented out as a blueprint for thinking in terms of end results and process goals. End results are the wanted end goals, and the process goals can also be characterized as shorter term targets.
We’re all familiar with the concept of being hard, being steadfast and pursuing things in a straight path to our goals. What about being flexible? What does this hold for us? Being flexible is another way of being strong and steadfast, if you think about it. So, flexibility can actually be a recurring process goal built in to a regular routine, or another viewpoint of your daily process goals.
Flexibility can provide you with tremendous power. Flexibility can have as much power, or even much more power than the sheer force of will and determination. Think of the power, energy, and force of water. One of the greatest athletes of all time, Bruce Lee, used the example of water in demonstrating his philosophy about life. What is more flexible and soft than water? It can flow between gaps we cannot even see. It molds itself to any situation or container, yet over many years it can carve deep canyons. Though its methods can seem long and we may see it as a slow and weak flowing substance, can it not crash and cause devastation, or seep into cracks and then freeze, splitting things apart?
This relates to us in ways that may not be immediately clear. In fact, most people may ignore and misunderstand the power of flexibility when it comes to self improvement. Just as water may be immediately diverted from its path, so may we. However, that does not mean that we have to stop in our tracks. We can and should continue on our journey, finding the little cracks and crevices in life that will help us to continue flowing toward our goals. Figuring out the journey is part of the process and we should enjoy it. To your delight, quite often you too may find this aspect of self-discovery is something that would have been missed, or even swept aside without the self-awareness to be flexible.
We might not take the route we in the beginning envisioned, but as long as we continue advancing in a favorable direction, does it really matter how we get there? The answer to that should be easy. Study any life history of people that have found tremendous success, and you will find that flexibility has played a part in their success throughout their life and career. The opportunities afforded those that are open to flexibility can often be the most influential areas of their accomplishments. You don’t always have to stay the course of action of an original plan to attain success.