Catchphrases are not enough to birth success

“Quitting smoking is the easiest thing I have ever done,” said Mark Twain. “I have done it a hundred times.”

On the condition that fear motivates us to move away from something horrible and atrocious, aspirational messages tempt us toward something desirable. Marketers often talk about the importance of being aspirational, offering someone something they desire to achieve and the ability to get there more easily with a particular product or service.

“Six steps to a happier life.” “Three steps to fulfill your dreams in two days” “In six short weeks, you can be rich.” All these messages manipulate and stage-manage. They tempt and entice us with the things we want to have or to be the person we wish we were. Some years ago, messages as: “how to get rich in a year, four steps to success and three steps to become significant…,” were common. But the truth is, hearing those beautiful catchphrases and slogans can only make one excited, but they are not capable of getting the job done. Aspirational messages are not strong enough to make you successful. To become successful, it will cost you everything.

In the same vein, though positive in nature, aspirational messages are most effective with those who lack discipline or have a nagging fear or insecurity that they do not have the ability to achieve their dreams on their own (which, at various times for various reasons, is everyone). I always joke that you can get someone to buy a gym membership with an aspirational message, but to get them to go three days a week requires a bit of inspiration and determination!

Those who know what it takes to truly become successful and those who are already successful will never embrace aspirational messages like, “two steps to success,” because they know that slogans are not enough to birth success in any field of life. They know that it takes more than mere steps to become successful as leaders. Aspirational messages can start you on the way to success, but they cannot make you become successful. Once again, where aspiration stops, inspiration and determination take over and ultimately get the job done.

Someone who lives a healthy lifestyle and is in a habit of exercising does not respond to “six easy steps to losing weight.” It is those who do not have the lifestyle that are most susceptible. It is not news that a lot of people try diet after diet after diet in an attempt to get the body of their dreams. And no matter the system they choose, each comes with the qualification that regular exercise and a balanced diet will help boost results. In other words, discipline. Gym memberships tend to rise about 12 per cent every January, as people try to fulfill their New Year’s aspiration to live a healthier life. Yet only a fraction of those aspiring fitness buffs are still attending the gym by the end of the year. Aspirational messages can spur behavior, but for most, they will surely not last.

Aspirational messages are not only effective in the consumer market; they also work quite well in business-to-business transactions. Managers of companies, big and small, all want to do well, so they make decisions, hire consultants and implement systems to help them achieve that desired outcome. But all too often, it is not the systems that fail but the ability to maintain and walk them out in shoe-leather.

It is possible for you to design the best systems on earth for your business and company and still make a shipwreck of it. This is what a lot of entrepreneurs do not know. How do I mean? Systems alone cannot deliver any levels of success. For systems to deliver success, you’d need to deliberately drive and maintain them—on a daily basis.

I can speak from personal experience here. I have implemented a lot of systems or practices over the years to help me “achieve the success to which I aspire,” only to find myself back to my old habits two weeks later. I aspire for a system that will help me avoid implementing systems to meet all my aspirations. But I probably would not be able to follow it for very long. Does this sound like you? Following a system through to the end daily and everyday is what delivers success.

Taking the issue before us today a little further, I make bold to say that this short-term response to long-term desires is alive and well in the corporate world also. A management consultant friend of mine was hired by a billion naira company to help it fulfill its goals and aspirations. The problem was, he explained, no matter the issue, the company’s managers were always drawn to the quicker, cheaper option over the better long-term solution. Just like the habitual dieter, “they never have the time or money to do it right the first time,” she said of her clients, “but they always have the time and money to do it again.”

At first, it always looks more expensive to stick to a long-term solution than to stick to quicker and cheaper options, but in the long run, it saves money. Many years ago, I would go for cheap belts, because I thought I was saving money, but in the long run, I was spending more money. How do I mean? Instead of buying one expensive and high-quality belt that would last for many years, I was buying like five low-grade belts in a year, costing me more money. Now, I save money, because I always go for what will deliver into my hands—long-term solution, not quicker and cheaper solution.

Buddy, no matter what it will cost you, always go for what will deliver to your hands—long-term solutions to problems. Also, stop attending seminars where quick-rich slogans are being taught. All they are going to do is waste your time just as they have been wasting other folks’ time, always look for seminars and conferences—where long-term solutions to problems are being taught and run with them till they produce your desired results.

See you where successful leaders are found.

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