Hard work does not lead to success

Recently, I attended a program which had a key-note speaker several years my senior, and they said – “Hard work does not lead to success. Only mules work hard.”

I got thinking. Like most of us, I’ve grown up listening to advice about how hard work is the only way to success. I am myself a loyal ally of hard work, and was tempted to dismiss his one-liner but for a sliver of doubt that refused to budge.

I have worked very, very hard for most of my life. So did my parents (and that’s why I do too, actually). Even so, something didn't add up. Not all hard work, either mine or theirs, has led to proportionate success. (We ought to have been billionaires by now. Seriously.) On the contrary, at times not working hard has borne results, and working very hard has delivered disappointments. Has this ever happened to you?

Mighty frustrating, if you ask me! Not to mention - upsets my conditioning.

Though on deeper thought, and considerable mulling, I reached some of these hidden realizations. Do tell me if you concur or otherwise.

In the year 2003, my career slumped dramatically, business was bleak, my finances were in shambles, and I was in no position to help my family or myself. The situation was serious enough to give me several sleepless nights - being awake was nightmare enough, I guess.

I still don’t know what happened back then. But I refused to work harder. The very thought of working harder magnified the irony of the situation. Because the only way I knew to work up until then was with diligence, I had remained admirably honest in the face of great odds, and I knew with conviction I had what it took to be the proud owner of a great career. And yet, I was nearly broke. The anomaly disturbed me more than my condition.

In essence, there was every reason and temptation to work harder and try harder. Instead, I decided to sit at home and think harder. Maybe, there wasn’t much to do outside home, anyway. Some amazing questions arose from a mind-numbing series of personal hardships.

What did I want from life? More importantly, what did life want of me? What did I really want to do? How could I improve as a person? What kind of money did I deserve to earn? What did it take to work with the best? And here's the clincher – if I was so capable, competent, honest, and hard working – what was I doing on the wrong side of success?

While I questioned myself, I unwittingly pictured my life to be beautiful, comfortable, happy, healthy, adventurous, and full of friends and supporters (such happy mind tricks these). I then did something that now seems preposterous and downright laughable. I searched for the best training organization I could find in India, and applied for work through their website. In a month’s time, I was on a flight to join them at their headquarters as a specialist trainer.

And this wasn’t the only dream break I’ve had in life. It had happened to me before and it has happened to me much more than once since. The more I peel the layers of what the key-note speaker might have meant, the more I am prone to agree. Hard work does not lead to success.  

Working hard without a purpose is pointless. Working hard with a solid purpose, and knowing what we hope to achieve from daily hard work, is one of the finer points of the art of achievement. I now understand why at times my hard work failed to deliver. From being a hard worker I have now moved to a hard core, purpose driven worker.

I’ll go so far as to say that it’s much easier and wiser to stop working altogether and find our purpose than to keep blindly working hard in the hope of stumbling across something worthwhile. I work hard every day. The only difference is that I choose carefully what I work hard on, and who I work hard with. That’s smart work, I am learning.  

Maybe, human beings are not meant to work hard. We are meant to think hard and choose smart. And then go at it with all our energy if that’s what we need to do. I have a feeling, success might be ours for the taking.   

The secret to being successful

It's confounding, confusing, and complicated to succeed. If we watch too much reality TV, that is.

Success is not just exciting and enriching - it is surprisingly within reach and logical. In fact, you might be hard-pressed to fail if you realized the secrets of it. In my experience with failing miserably and succeeding spectacularly by turns, I have reached some enlightening secrets to success. Here goes.

Some years ago, after falling into the rut of my work, and doing things that even I found uninspiring, it dawned on me. I had been focusing on the wrong things. My job could never make me successful. Nor could the best organization or boss in the world. I had to make me successful.

‘Job description’ sounds like a boring thing. It is boring. Think about this. Succeeding on goals decided for us by others is self-defeating and contradictory. And what’s on paper, generally fails the reality test. Real success is driven from the inside. Here's the first success fact. We need to align our strengths and talents to our broader role at work.  Once you’ve done that mapping, coming up with creative and brand new ways to expand your usefulness within the role is much faster and easier. Just think up of something no one around you is doing or might even be capable of, but that is the need of the customers and the organization. Everyone will sit up and listen. Trust me.

The other fact about success. Let’s quit blaming our job, organization, and boss. These can contribute to our failure, but are generally not responsible for our success. Success is internal and inside-out. Those on the outside can’t make you succeed even if they wanted to. They can inspire, but only you can crack the final piece. You absolutely need to know what you want to succeed with, when, how, and to what extent – these are fundamental to success. Awareness leads to grand success.

The next fact about success is this. Don’t sign up for someone else’s idea of what will make you successful. It is never wise to repose too much faith in others to rise above our limitations. If we are lucky, we find that one great person to support us. But even that wise person does not know the secrets of our soul. Our inner voice speaks only to us - by design. Superbly successful people listen to everyone’s content, but listen to themselves with absolute intent.

And the last fact about success. Success requires intelligence, but not the kind that is measured by IQ tests. It needs a twist! No matter how experienced, talented, intelligent, or educated you might be – above all - you need to be original. Honestly, succeeding is not hard. There is very little to mess up unless we are unaware of our unique strengths, and that which we do with an individual flair. No one can duplicate that. And that kind of uniqueness brings heaps of success. Remember the law of scarcity - what people can't do or have is what they value and want.

I strongly believe that the road to success is quite clear and easy to spot. You only get lost when your path is leading to goals not suited to you.

The disease of being busy...

What is it with people saying, 'I am busy' in response to all manner of questions.

Let's meet up for dinner. Yeah, lets see, I am really busy.

So, did you watch that movie? Nope, been really busy.

Why don't you get to the doc? Can't, I am busy.

I think some people should get to a doctor pronto because saying 'I am busy' is a disease. And it seems to be contagious. Really. Like a mental affliction that makes us believe we have zero time available to do meaningful things in life. Or fun things, for that matter. Busy people are also innately boring people. That is why they can stand to be so busy at work. See.

So what is humanity so busy with? You might ask. Well, going to work, working, coming  back from work...and repeating the above cycle. That should amount to a good explanation. Especially, for those who see work as a worthy cause to be perpetually busy instead of a means to an end - read - having enough resources to watch movies, meet friends for a drink, go on vacations to exotic places, and shop till you drop.

Okay, some of that is a bit of exaggeration just for fun. But seriously speaking, I have come to intensely dislike people telling me on chat, on phone, on sms, on email, and in person...that they are very busy.

Just puttering around all day at work keeps us busy. Ask yourself how many hours of meaningful, real value-adding, customer dazzling work did you do today? What did you do today that will get you a great appraisal and a possible hike and a much awaited promotion?? Now that is worth being busy over.

Being busy all the time generally means we are mismanaging our time - not being organized, not delegating smartly, not preparing for the week, not keeping commitments, and not being smart in general - that keeps us busy and running around.

The most successful....rich....prominent professionals in the world repeatedly declare in their interviews - that they have time because they are super organized, disciplined, and work smartly. They are never too busy for the important things in life. Are we listening??

Let me see how many days I can count off on my fingers before I hear that wretched phrase -I am busy - again! Cross my heart I'll not be saying it myself.

How not to get frustrated at work...

Our boss is not the worst person we ever worked for and neither is our client as cut-throat as we imagine. Most of all we are responsible for our bad health and unhappiness at work.We deceive ourselves when we say things like, 'that's how my industry works, I can't help it' or 'everyone around me is going through the same thing', or better still, 'I guess that's the price one pays to earn big bucks in tough competition.' WRONG.

Just a few days back, one of my good friends vented about their bad work schedules. The person was disillusioned, disappointed, and tired of their work life though they loved their job content.Here are a few things that might prove useful. Do take some time out to think about your own work situation.

What makes us frustrated? 

- Unable to get proper rest
- Eating quick meals or junk food
- Not able to spend time with family
- Killing ones hobbies
- Not able to socialize with friends
- Coming home too tired to even think

After getting burnt much more than once, I devised my own plan for what I call....'Healthy Work Ethic'.

Healthy Work Ethic

1. Understand the limits of your own body and health status. Knowing what you are capable of and your own physical limits seriously helps in deciding  your work priorities. You will be at peace refusing some kinds of work even if it means you might miss out on a few rewards.

2. It is all very well to say work and life should be the same, and yet when one spills over into the other it causes such disruption. Why not make a list of things that you really value in your personal life outside your work. Keep this list where you can see it everyday.

3. Make an effort to pursue your hobbies that made you happy in the past. I used to paint before I got into a job. Then I forgot about it for years. Suddenly, I realized what a joy it was to paint, and I began again. It helped me greatly in restoring my balance.

4. Balance out need and greed. If we get greedy instead of being ambitious we lose our way in the maze of the professional world. How much is too much? I discovered that being contented is good, it gives me perspective.

5. Create a social circle away from your office folks. Don't let your friend circle begin and end at work. Instead, find a club or a social cause or a professional group like Rotary that gives you an out when it comes to socializing. It can make a huge difference to our happiness.

6. Don't wait for someone to say how hard you work and they appreciate it. It is seriously frustrating for anyone to not hear that for long periods. Draw the line yourself. Know that you are doing your best and you need to look out for your health as well.

7. Know your non-negotiables. What are those top few things that you will not give up on no matter what. Think hard about this list. It makes all the difference. In fact, saying no becomes less tough once you know your reasons for declining work or opportunities.

Hope this helps, and do let me know if any of this works for you. :-)