I recently watched an inspirational video where Arnold Schwarzenegger gives his five rules for success.
Whatever you think of him (I love him) there is no doubt that he is hugely successful, he has achieved everything he set out to get, and it is not like his achievements are easy to obtain!
Please give it a watch, I promise you wont be disappointed.
People often ask me how on Earth I managed to compete as a Bikini Model without a coach. Simple, I had a vision. (Arnie's first rule to success)
How can you strive for something if you don't know where you're headed?
My vision was to get on stage, be proud of the body I had worked to create, feel confident amongst the other competitors and prove to myself that I could do it. There were times when it was extremely tough; weighing food alone whilst my family tucked into whatever they wanted; training late at night after a day at work and putting the kids to bed; cooking separate meals for everyone; giving the children snacks whilst telling myself I must resist; getting up before the kids woke up to get a cardio session in. Yes, it was tough, I nearly cried one evening because my husband was about to eat a biscuit! But my vision was strong. I knew what I wanted and that overpowered any of my doubts or temptations.
So I did it, I got on stage and the sense of achievement was phenomenal. The harder something is to achieve, the better it feels when you finally reach it.
Never think small, think big. (Arnie's second rule of success)
Why set boundaries for yourself before you have even started? There is nothing wrong with reaching for the stars! So many of us feel embarrassed to aim high because the thought of failure is scary. Every successful person has failed somewhere along the line and that is ok, it is just a way of illuminating the ineffective methods, meaning you are one step closer to the effective and successful route. Don't be afraid to think big, there are plenty of people out there who are thinking big and achieving great things, so why shouldn't you?
Another reason why people don't like to set their vision too high or fail to reach their goals is because they listen to the naysayers. Well don't! (Arnie's third rule of success)
Some people like to see others fail. Some people lack the vision. Some people are too cautious. Some people are jealous of others' success. If you are prepared to work for your vision, then grow a thick skin and there is no reason you will not achieve it. Don't let the negativity and doubts of others bring you down.
See what I said there though? If you are prepared to work for it. You must be ready to work, work, work for it. (Arnie's fourth rule of success)
Like I said earlier, the harder something is to achieve, the better it feels when you get it. So put the work in. There are twenty four hours in a day, setting at least one of those hours aside each day to work towards your vision is not actually that difficult, yes it may mean to need to get up a little earlier, or stay up a little later but "You never want to fail because you didn't work your ass off."
Finally, here is me fulfilling Arnie's fifth rule for success. To find out exactly what that is, go and watch the video!