Determination - friend or foe?

What do you think of when the word ‘determination’ is used?  For me, I picture someone firming their mouth, eyes laser-focused and charging ahead fearlessly and with drive.  Nothing is going to get in this person’s way.  For the most part, it is used in a positive way and seen as a beneficial attribute to have.

According to Webster’s, it is a ‘firm or fixed intention to achieve a desired end’.  And certainly when it is used to describe someone, it is often accompanied by descriptors such as grit, tenacity and willpower.  Some would even describe it as ‘determination is to success as oxygen is to life’.  After all, to achieve something worthwhile and meaningful requires effort and conviction and yes, you’ll need more than three bags full of it to get to where you want to be.

Here are some tips to keep your levels of determination strong.

·      Don’t give up

in spite of the hardships and hurdles, keep going.  Remind yourself of what drove you to set this objective in the first place

·      Grafting is the only way

Not only do you not give up, you know that you cannot afford to be lazy.  If you want something to happen, you know you cannot rest on your laurels and expect others to make it happen for you

·      ‘If at first you don’t succeed, dust yourself off and try again’

If Aaliyah says it, it must be true.  If the path you have chosen is too insurmountable, find a way to pivot but to keep heading towards your vision.  This is what true resilience looks like – a flexible mind and approach to an ultimate goal

·      Look fear in the eye and smile

This does not mean be reckless.  Just that you should acknowledge the fear and do it anyway.  The fear of not pursuing your dream is far greater than not trying at all.  And if it results in a rebuff?  Well, it doesn’t mean you can’t do it, you just have to find someone/where else to do it.  You won’t let negative talk, limiting beliefs or adversity hold you back from achieving your mission

·      Strategic

If you want something, you have to be smart, strategic and patient to make things happen.  Opportunities have to be seized, luck to be grasped all whilst learning & making lemonade and cupcakes out of lemons

·      Self-motivated

Those who are determined tend to be self-motivated and don’t wait around for validation from others to get to where you want to be – showing a large dose of self-esteem and confidence

Is there such a thing as too much determination?

·      Blinkered to the point of blindness

There is a huge difference between being determined & focused and sheer blindness to achieve something.  Where you might needlessly trample on others to get where you want to be.  Or through your blinkers, you might miss other more advantageous routes, or take into consideration the bigger picture or the greater good, ironically losing sight of your initial goal in the first place.  Consider this.

Case study

X is the founder of a successful sustainable engineering projects business.  He has made his name in his home country and wants to expand further afield.  At first he makes some small inroads but not to the speed he had hoped for, nor the quantity of projects.  It was his vision to grow and expand to become the go-to and most reputable provider of that particular service in his industry.  His focus was unwavering and he was determined to succeed with his plans. 

He was so fixated on his expansion plans that he let the standards drop at home.  He had hastily hired an unsuitable regional CEO for his home country, who not only stole from him but also bullied his excellent existing staff.  Which led to a large hole in the bank accounts, as well as mass resignations.  Meanwhile, in the new country, in his haste, he had failed to do the appropriate due diligence including understanding the local culture and customs.  Barriers to entry were not too high but it required him to have a local partner and most were keen to take advantage of a desperate new entrant.  What does not help is when you see quotes like this.

“A failure establishes only this, that our determination to succeed was not strong enough.”

                                                                                                      JC Bovee

X was not wrong to want to expand.  However, his blind determination drove him to act impulsively and impatiently, as he was blinded by his need to achieve his apparent goal.  However, his goal was to be the go-to and most reputable provider of his industry’s services.  He had achieved that in his home country.  He needed to consolidate that properly with a good system and structure before venturing out.  Or he had to at the very least place more reasonable expansion bets, as opposed to all or nothing ones, with regards being a new entrant in culturally predatory country.

In short…

Determination is a fantastic quality and much needed to succeed in life.  Use it as a powerful tool to help get you to where you want to be.  Just make sure that you don’t become crippled by that singular focus!

This is part of the Friend or Foe series where we review strengths, how to use them better and what happens when overused or misused.

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