Bridging the Gap from Where You Are Today to Where You Want to Be to Achieve Massive Success
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Recently I had the pleasure of reading the book, Unqualifed Success: Bridging the Gap from Where You Are Today to Where You Want to Be to Achieve Massive Success. From the moment that I read the book description, I knew that it was exactly the type of book that I love reading.
Written by Rachel Stewart, what I loved most about this book is the way that it weaves beautiful storytelling with tactical tools and ideas to implement.
Each of the 14 chapters centers around one big idea with quotes, stories, and practical thoughts. Then, at the end of each chapter you have specific reflection questions where you can think and then take action on everything that you’ve learned throughout the chapter.
I love this because if we’re not willing to actually TAKE ACTION on the personal development ideas that we’re learning, it’s really just entertainment, like Netflix, or social media.
In this post, I want to give you a little taste for the ideas in the book. But, because I’ll only be scratching the surface here, I’d recommend getting a copy of the book for yourself, so that you can dive deeper.
I’ll share 5 quotes from 5 of my favorite chapters and a few thoughts on it.
Ready? Let’s jump right in.
Unqualified:
“I have been highly unqualified for every position I have ever held. But I have come to learn that we all are. We are all unqualified today for the life we could have tomorrow. That idea should not be disheartening. It should light you up. It should spark a fire in your heart. It means that the possibilities for achievement and growth are endless, and that your “qualification” has nothing to do with getting either one.”
I LOVED THIS so much! Have you ever felt like you are the ONLY human being that feels unqualified? I know I have. It’s easy to feel like everyone has it together, or as if you are no way near qualified enough to try the things that you want to do. It’s actually human to feel this way and is way more normal than you probably think.
Give yourself permission to just keep giving and allow yourself to do the things that make you feel uncomfortable, the things that seem way outside of your comfort zone and that you in no way feel qualified to pursue.
Persistence:
“The little things you do every day, are what add up to the results in your life.”
I 100% believe this to be true…because I’ve seen it firsthand. It can be hard to keep going when you don’t immediately see the outcome that you’re looking for. Unfortunately, most things in life aren’t automatic, we can’t put in a few weeks in the gym and have perfect bodies, or spend a week on Duolingo and expect to be fluent in Spanish, it doesn’t work that way.
Instead, most things require persistence, to keep going, week after week, even when we don’t feel like it.
Also, Steven Furtick has an AMAZING sermon on the topic of Persistence called, ‘Don’t Stop on 6.” I’ve watched it at least 3 times, and it’s one of my absolute favorite sermons. If you need a little extra motivation to keep going, check it out.
Mindset Matters:
“Our thoughts create our feelings which drive our actions which give us results.”
This is an idea that I’ve been talking and thinking about a lot recently. It’s easy to get really caught up doing all the right things, taking lots of actions, etc. But, we often forget that if we don’t start with our thoughts, it’s very possible that we will either take the wrong actions, or that we going to keep going in circles, unable to truly get the results that we desire.
If you like this idea and want more, there are a few chapters in the book relating to the importance of mindset.
Beliefs in Action:
“You get to choose your thoughts. You get to decide what you believe about yourself, about your team, about your company, about your goals. Your brain will then go to work, finding evidence to prove the validity of those thoughts. What can I say? It likes to be right. Exploit this to your advantage.”
A couple of years ago I took a personal development course called, “Inner U” and one of our assignments was to start a “Thought Log” where we wrote down our thoughts. If you’ve never done this before, it’s unbelievably powerful.
You can’t even begin to imagine how many wild and crazy thoughts go through your mind in a single day. And while that might be intimidating, the first step with the thought log is to just recognize your “thought trains” meaning the thoughts that seem to repeat themselves over and over.
Like the quote says, if a thought is not serving you, you don’t have to keep it.
Ripple Effect:
“Using your averageness and admitted inadequacies while still working to achieve greatness in your field, gives others around you a vision for what is possible for them as well. In fact, that very authenticity can make all the difference for those around you as they work to accomplish hard things.”
Whether you are a Marketer, a lawyer, a teacher, a Customer Service Agent, etc….you never know how your life will impact someone else’s. So many people are standing around just waiting for permission to step into what they want.
When we take baby steps forward, it also shows the people around us what is possible for them as well. So, the more you continue to authentically show up and push forward in your career, your volunteer commitments, your family, or with your health, the more you do that, the more you’re setting an example for everyone in your circle.
To Sum Up:
I love when I find a book that just perfectly complements what I’m going through in my own life and Unqualified Success was exactly that for me. Today I just gave you a small taste but if you’re someone who loves personal development books, or you just want to learn and be a better version of yourself, then I’d highly recommend checking out Unqualified Success!
