The Value of Preparation
For about 8 years I had the opportunity to play golf at a very high level of competition. One of my dreams as a young man was to play tournament golf as a professional golfer. While I never made the PGA tour, I did play on what are known as the “mini tours.” These are basically the minor leagues of golf. This t is where players work on their games in order to prepare themselves to play on the PGA tour.
I worked hard at honing my skills, sometimes hitting more than a thousand golf balls a day as well as playing at least one practice round of golf. I would be on the golf course or the driving range for up to 8 hours per day practicing all areas of the game. I would practice my pre-shot routine, driving the ball, hitting all of the clubs in my bag, drawing and fading shots, hitting out of sand traps around the greens, hitting out of fairway bunkers, and hours putting on the green. Even when I didn’t feel like practicing, I practiced anyhow. Why would I put myself through all of that? If I was going to realize my dream, I had to work on improving all areas of my game. I had to value preparation.
I’ve never met anyone that enjoys the rigors of preparation. As we get ready to watch the Super Bowl this weekend, there are two teams that are practicing and preparing as if there is no tomorrow. And in their cases there isn’t. This is the pinnacle of the NFL. This is what every player in the NFL works towards on a daily basis. It’s not just about the money; it’s about winning the Super Bowl and being crowned world champions of the NFL. I can tell you exactly who is going to win the game. It is the team that prepares the best and then executes its game plan most efficiently in the big game. Personally, since I live in Phoenix I hope it’s the Arizona Cardinals!
The people, businesses, organizations, and ministries that accomplish the most in life are the ones that are prepared for success. Through preparation great tasks are accomplished. You can have great potential deep inside of you, but it can only be drawn out through preparation. Jerry Savelle says, “I would rather be prepared and never have an opportunity then to have an opportunity and not be prepared.”
Can you imagine an army going into battle without preparation? Usually months, if not years, of training and planning go on before the first shot is fired. No one would play a sporting event, and expect to win, without preparation. Preparation is fundamental to success in life.
Preparation always precedes accomplishment. Mike Murdock says, “The quality of your preparation determines the quality of your performance.” Great coaches push their teams to victory through preparation. Practice isn’t always fun but it’s essential. The great heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali said, “I hated every minute of the training, but I said, “Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.”
Preparation produces confidence. If you do the right things on a consistent basis during practice, you will be able to do them for real when the time comes. Olympic champions don’t just happen by accident, they are made. By taking their talents and abilities they are molded into experts through preparation and practice. True champions are never surprised by victory. They were expecting it, that’s what they had prepared for.
In scripture Noah prepared for 120 years to be ready for the flood God said He was going to bring on the earth. Moses prepared for 80 years to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Joshua prepared for 40 years as Moses’ assistant to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land. Jesus prepared from before man was created to come to the earth as their Messiah and savior. The Apostle Paul prepare for at least 14 years for a ministry that would turn the world upside down.
How to be prepared:
Dream About What You Want to Accomplish. Know what you want to accomplish. Let it burn within you. Make it a part of your very being. In your mind, see exactly what needs to be done and what you want to accomplish. All great things come out of a dream that someone has had. What are your dreams? What excites you? What motivates you to action? What can you do to make a positive difference in the world around you? These are all indicators of what you were created to do. Allow God to birth a dream that you can pursue.
Be Informed. Get all of the knowledge and information available for your particular project. Go to seminars. Read books. Talk to experts. Immerse yourself in knowledge concerning what you want to do. Right knowledge is power. Seek to know more about your field then your competitors.
Develop an Action Plan. Plans are important to the success of any venture. You wouldn’t build a house without first of all having blueprints (plans) drawn up down to the last detail. Plans allow you to determine each step of the way. They give you the ability to know exactly what to do in any given situation. To fail to plan is to plan to fail. Success doesn’t happen accidently. It is always on purpose. Take the time to Make plans and then follow-through.
Get Focused and Stay Focused. Train yourself to concentrate on the task at hand. Successful athletes learn how to block out everything but what they are doing at the moment. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted by other things or people. Michael Jordan says he never even saw the crowd when he took a shot. All he saw was the basket. In life there are all kinds of things that can distract you on the road to success. Focus gives you the ability to ignore the distractions and concentrate on the end result.
Retain a Coach. Find someone who has the knowledge and ability to help you get where you are going. Make it someone you can trust. Coaches are like miners; they see hidden talent and potential and bring it to the surface. Get a coach that will teach you, train you and encourage you. Find someone who believes in you. Someone that you can respect and listen to. And then follow the directions they give you. Teaching and training are of no value if they are not implemented. (I am available as a life coach to help you prepare for success in life.)
Perfect Practice. An old adage says, “Practice makes perfect.” In reality “Perfect practice makes perfect.” Take time to make sure that what you are doing in practice is essential to what you are seeking to accomplish. More than anything, practice should be a time when you develop your skills, increase your stamina, and build your confidence. It is a time when consistency is developed. Practice that doesn’t make what you are doing routine is useless. Perfect practice prepares you for perfect performance. When I was playing professional golf I would practice hitting balls from similar spots and situations that I might face in a tournament. I would practice until I developed a perfect routine that worked under pressure.
Develop Courage. Fear will stop you from going forward if you allow it to. In essence fear is the feeling that something bad is going to happen to you and keep you from doing your best. It is that daunting voice that keeps telling you why you can’t succeed. Preparation produces confidence which produces courage. Courage says, “I can do it because I’m ready.” Through courage fears die.
Find a Mentor. A mentor is different than a coach. A coach teaches, trains and guides you. A mentor inspires you because they’ve been there done that. They inspire you not by what they say but by what they have done. They are a role model. They are someone you look up to. Someone for you to emulate. Pick someone who comes from the same type of background as you. Someone who has a similar style as you. Someone who has succeeded in spite of the setbacks they’ve had, and the obstacles they have encountered. Find someone with strength of vision, strength of action and strength of character that inspires you to greatness.
Build Your Faith. Jesus said, “All things are possible to him that believes.” Faith is looking past the present and seeing what can be. So how do you build your faith? Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” As a believer, when you spend time reading and studying scripture, something super natural takes place. You faith begins to grow. I would challenge you to spend time reading the accounts in the Bible of people that through faith accomplished great things. I would also suggest that you spend time reading, listening to, and associating with people today that are accomplishing great things in life. You will begin to see that ordinary people accomplished extra ordinary things because they believed they could. By developing your faith you will begin to believe that you too can accomplish great things for God, your family, and the world around you!
