Be a Tenacious Failure

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Failures provide opportunities to understand the gaps between what you wanted and and the results you got (internal & external) in any situation (Hint- Gaps always exist. Always.)

If you're interested at all in getting better results in the future, you will take the opportunity to seek the root causes for the gaps and then adapt your efforts accordingly. 

You'll never get to a destination where all conditions are perfectly in your favor and where some, or all, of those conditions won't change in the next moment. The world always changes around you in ways you cannot possibly predict, therefore, you will always fail on some level and finding success is a neverending journey. 

So, if you're always going to fail, be a "tenacious failure." 

Here's How to be a Tenacious Failure:

Tenacious Thinking- Always think about and decide what you want (Success*) and the person you want to show the world in every situation (Values-Driven Actions*) so you will KNOW what to do to get both (Values-Driven Success*).

Tenacious Actions- DO things that will help you get what you want while being the person you want to be.

Tenacious Progress- Assess and evaluate- Did you get what you want while being the person you wanted to be? 

• If no, BE dissatisfied with the gaps and seek to understand their root causes and what you need to do more of, what you need to do less of, and what you need to do differently the next time. BE satisfied with your decisions and efforts and you just might find happiness...even when you fail.
• If yes, BE satisfied with the choices and actions that got those results, but also, BE alert! The world will keep changing around you. Your new success is now your status quo...BE a Tenacious Thinker.

Three simple words: KNOW - DO - BE = The Path to Success

The Alternative

If you're not willing to be a tenacious failure then you're making a choice to ignore the gaps (the gaps that always exist. Always). You become complacent, blinded by the boundaries of your comfort zone. Stuck and fearful of the success you really want. 

Ultimately, even if you try to blame the world, you become dissatisfied with yourself. 

Then, you'll just be a regular ol' failure.

Now, that's no way to truly live, is it? 

The Hardest Part is the Part You Usually Avoid

BUY FINDING SUCCESS!

Truthfully, the hardest part to master is the thinking part. We human beings can be impetuous and foolish- the human heart and it’s constant craving to be filled so often compels us to focus on getting what we think we want- we too often forget about the person we really want to be.

In my book, Finding Success, I share a number of stories from my own life that show how much pain I created for myself by not failing tenaciously. The stories in the book illustrate the difference seeking values-driven success made in my life and the lives of the people around me once I created GPS Theory and started sharing it with the world. I started really living for love, for faith, honor, charity, and reason by seeking to understand, finding the courage to face the truth in every situation, and the creativity to do more to get what I want and be the person I want to be. By applying GPS Theory, any human being can create the mutually beneficial relationships they really want.

BOOM!

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FINDING FAMILY SUCCESS PROGRAM

Tom Eakin is the author of Finding Success and Success Engineer at BoomLife, he helps

people achieve values-driven success. Through his writings, workshops and inspirational speaking, Tom helps people find and expand the sweet spot between what they value, what they’re good at, and what their situation requires so they can exceed even their own expectations. Tom is a former U.S. Army Ranger-qualified Combat Engineer officer with a Master’s Degree in Business Administration and Master’s Certificate in Executive Coaching from Bellevue University and has created stellar performance in teams in a wide range of environments. Originally from the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York, Tom lives in Jefferson, South Dakota, near his three children with his wife, Julie. He is an active and passionate advocate for veterans and entrepreneurs in his community and region.

READ A SAMPLE CHAPTER FROM FINDING SUCCESS

What Every Person On This Planet Really Wants

What Every Person On This Planet Really Wants

If you were to ask what one thing every person on this planet really wants, I could provide you an answer with complete confidence. There is not one person capable of rational thought on this planet who would disagree with this answer. It is a fact. 

I'm not talking about what I believe. It's not about my faith (although my faith plays a role in it and vice versa...as does yours and what you believe). If you asked every human being on this planet if they wanted this one thing, they would say, "Yes," without even thinking about it. 

Ask the rich and the poor. Male and female. Ask a Wall Street investor and a Yanomami tribe member if they want it and they'll both answer in the affirmative. Ask professional athletes, spiritual advisors, corporate leaders, homeless people, healthy people, sick people. Ask buyers. Ask sellers. Ask everyone! Ask anyone. People of all colors, shapes and sizes will all say, "Yes. I want that." 

So, get on with it, you're saying, "What is it, already!?!"

The answer is simple: Success. Every living person on this planet really wants to be successful.

What Is It?

Ever since I started talking about success in public forums, every time I've asked the question, "What is success," at least one person in the audience will say, "Getting what you want." Once having heard that simplification of the definition, typically everyone else pretty much agrees. If you look up the word "success" in the dictionary, you'll find several definitions which collectively support that simple view. So, let's go with that, for now. Success is getting what you want.

The Problem With It

The problem with defining success as "getting what you want" is every one of us uses a different path to define it. Not only that, we often use a different method of determining how to achieve it in each situation we find ourselves in. 

As we all try to get what we want, we're competing with each other in a world where resources are constrained and unevenly distributed. So naturally, trying to get what we want creates conflict. Things escalate from there. The magnitude of every conflict is based on the scale of the disparity and the strength of the desire each person or group has to get and keep what they want. 

When we're primarily driven to get what we want, we lose sight of what we really want. Every person wants to be perceived in a positive way which means we desire for others to see our actions as "good".

The moment I realized this fact, my whole life changed. I became obsessed with trying to understand the concept of success so I could be successful. Isn't it ironic that the one thing every single one of us wants is also the cause of all of the problems we face?

My own experience with this universal, but preventable human problem, inspired me to find a solution that could help anyone who wants to find success. I recognized I couldn't, and shouldn't, try to make everyone want the same things. So, I focused finding a way to define it in a meaningful way that can be consistently applied to every situation we face and then measure our progress as we take actions to live out our values. From a critical moment in my own life, GPS Theory was born. 

The Solution For It

I propose a simple addition to the definition of success because, in truth, trying only to get what we want isn't enough for any of us. Every one of us has our fill of the problems this world brings. The truth is, we create those for each other and if we really want that to change we must learn to define success in a different way. That's where values-driven success comes in. 

Values-driven success is "getting what you want and being the person you want to be." Here's the catch: You can't really get what you want when you are not first the person you want to be. GPS Theory helps you get both. I didn't change the definition of success, I added a component and a new ideal to strive for.

GPS Theory operates under the hypothesis that our values represent what is virtuous and "good" when it comes to human beings.

Our behaviors are a reflection of what we truly value which does not always accurately reflect what we say we do. The definition of values-driven success helps us think in a way that will lead to getting what we really want.

Thinking leads to action. Our actions are what we become. THINK. ACT. BE. (See my article on three synonymous words, Know. Do. Be. and how they are the path to success)

How to Apply the Solution

1. Think about the person you want to be and the things you want. 
2. Do things that will reflect that person while you strive to get what you want. 
3. Become driven by your values and you will get what you really want with conviction and tenacity.

• When you don't get what you want, your values will drive you to keep trying. Because you believe in what you're doing you can overcome the fears that keep you from getting what you really want.
• When your values inspire you to do things you can be satisfied with as you strive to realize the results you seek, you can get what you really want. 

If you'd like to learn more about this process, download our Success Planning Guide for FREE! This guide is full of tools designed to help you through GPS Theory's process and is a companion to my new book, Finding Success: Get what you really want. 

At BoomLife We Want To Share Values-Driven Success

If you're looking for inspiration, take a look at our BoomShare! videos. We wanted to share stories about people who are inspired to do great things so we created this series of interviews. These people want to help people find success. Hear their stories and learn how you can connect with them...and help. 

If you know someone who is doing great things to help others in meaningful ways, we'd appreciate it if you'd make an introduction so we can connect and feature their story in a future BoomShare! episode. You can email your submission to: tom@goboomlife.com or use the comment section, below.