When you see an elite athlete or performer, you may be tempted to say that they were born talented. And while there may be some natural talent, K. Anders Ericsson has done the scientific studies to prove that talent isn’t enough. In fact, children who think they are smart or talented tend to not take chances to avoid the risk of that label being disproved. It’s those who work hard who end up really shining in the long run. But to be an elite performer, it takes more than that. It takes hunger.
The original Rocky movie depicts hunger best. Apollo Creed is the reigning heavyweight champion, and he wants to put on an exhibition match with a local boxer. Rocky sees it as his one shot at greatness and gives it his all. He practices and trains with everything he has. Rocky ultimately loses the fight, but Creed is so shaken by his performance that he insists that there be no rematch.
So what made Rocky hungry? His life was miserable and he knew this was his best way out. Basically, we don’t change anything in our lives until the pain of changing is less than the pain of staying the same. We are emotional people. Logic doesn’t drive us to change. Emotion does. So if we want to develop that hunger to excel, we need to spend time thinking about what benefits we would have from learning this new thing, and what we would lose by not learning it.
That can get us started, but may not be enough to generate the emotion to really get us to change. At this time of year, we are reminded of Charles Dickens’ famous story, “A Christmas Carol“. Scrooge is a cruel miser who has no friends, but lots of money. He is visited by three angels who show him what his life was like before he became a jerk, how miserable his life is now, and how terrible it could be if he didn’t make a change. They didn’t just talk about it, they had him experience it fully.
We can use this story as inspiration for our own: if we can visualize what life would be like if we had this knowledge. List the benefits and imagine experiencing them. Then imagine not changing and how miserable life will be without those benefits. Really feel the frustration and confusion and disappointment. Ideally you can write it down or record a video of yourself describing it.
Finally, create a reminder. An object or picture or phrase. Put it where you can see it daily. Not just see it, but notice it. (You know how we stop noticing things after a while.) Let this drive you to continue to improve. Go back and revisit it from time to time if you find yourself getting complacent.
What are you hungry for?