Achieving success one small step at a time

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Brent A. Johnson
  • 71st Medical Operations Squadron commander
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  "No one plans to live a mediocre life." -- Chaplain (Capt.) Jon Bravinder

Do you want to be a success? I would assume the answer is yes, because nobody I know wakes up wanting to fail.

No matter our job or rank, military or civilian, we all want to succeed and reach our goals.

In his book, "The Slight Edge," Jeff Olson asks that if we are all more alike than different, why are some people successful and others not? "It's the philosophy," he writes. "That's the secret ingredient. Your philosophy is what you know, how you hold it, and how it affects what you do."

He goes on to write that there are two prevalent types of attitudes: entitled and value-driven.

The first says "What have you done for me lately?" and "Pay me more and then maybe I'll work harder."

The second says "What can I do to help you?" and "I'll work harder, and then I expect you'll pay me more."

"Do the thing, and you shall have the power."--Ralph Waldo Emerson

Emerson makes a point about small choices and habits adding up over time and determining success or failure.

If you look at positive successful outcomes, the early changes might be uncomfortable, like establishing a workout routine, setting aside money to invest each month, adjusting your diet or taking classes towards a college degree. But as they become your routine, they become easy.

If you look at failures, they occur because people make choices that are easy and comfortable early on, but lead to very uncomfortable outcomes -- disease, obesity and poverty -- that can last a lifetime.

Those folks simply lack the discipline to make those simple choices every day which will make them a success.

Consider the hypothetical Airman who doesn't make exercise and healthy eating a simple part of his life. As the effects add up he flunks his fitness test and eventually gets separated from the Air Force.

Contrast that with the Airman who makes exercise and healthy eating part of her daily routine. She can take a fitness test on any day, at any time, and easily pass.

Another negative example is the person who fails to pay attention to college classes and eventually never has a college degree and all that goes with it.

The same goes for enforcing the Air Force standards we all must live with, using customs and courtesies, and making a habit of taking care of the small things around us.

We all have the same 24 hours each day. How do you decide to use your time?

For me it's a continuing balancing act and I continue to question if I'm doing things efficiently and paying attention to the things that really matter.

I do my best to walk around our duty sections and talk to people every day. I clear my inbox before I go home. I try to get my work done during the week so I can do fun stuff on the weekend and be a good husband and daddy.

As Olson points out, responsibility and discipline are vital tools in making the right choices. The little things you do every day, the little wins you accomplish, will eventually lead to big things.

Whether your goals involve one-arm pushups, your finances, health, personal development or relationships, the little things you do every day will add up and make you a success.

It's all up to you.