New Year, New Mindset
Over the Christmas holiday, my mother had a health scare, and we took her to the emergency room to get checked out. After running several tests, the ER doctor determined that her potassium level was dangerously low and that she needed to receive two units of potassium through the IV and two large potassium pills. After receiving the potassium, the ER doctor ordered for her to have another blood test to see if her level was safe again. My mother admitted that she stopped taking the potassium pills that her primary doctor gave her because she was starting to feel better. Of course, I let her have it because had she continued following the doctor’s instructions, then we would not have had to spend part of our holiday at the hospital. Although she got to a place where she felt better a few months ago, her body slowly started to shut down after she stopped taking the pills.
As we have officially crossed over into a new year and decade, we will see a lot of people hosting vision board parties/events, post messages on social media encouraging their followers to do something new to see something new, and many people go to the gym in hopes of losing weight. While many are quick to change their strategy, many neglect to change their consistency. After all, whether you are using a new or old strategy, if you are not consistent, you will not see results.
Webster’s dictionary defines consistent as being marked by harmony, regularity, or steady continuity: free from variation or contradiction. A woman who is the perfect example of being consistent is Ruth. After the tragedy of losing her husband, father-in-law, and brother-in-law, she went to the field daily to get the scraps and leftover crops to take care of her and her mother-in-law, Naomi. Eventually, she caught the attention of Boaz, the owner of the field, who later became her husband. Three things stand out about Ruth’s consistency in this story:
1. She did not collect enough crops to last for a few days and then go back out to the field once they ran out; she went every single day.
2. She did not go from field to field; she stayed in that same field, and her consistency positioned her to receive her covenant and promise.
3. She did not go to the field to find a man to provide for her; she went out to provide for her home.
In 2020, find the right field/niche and master it. Don’t work on one thing and then jump to another to get quick money and results; success will come over time as long as you are consistent! In the words of my mentor, master one thing first, and make the main thing the main thing. It’s also important not to waste time on the wrong vision. A few years ago, I started an entertainment company, and it was not lucrative. For years, I worked the vision but did not see any results. In 2016, I decided to put the entertainment company on hold and start my consulting agency. My agency made more money in the first year than my entertainment company did in five years. As a result, I merged my entertainment company with my agency, and 2019 was my most lucrative year to date. I had to become consistent over the right vision and stop burning myself out, working a vision that was not producing any fruit.
In 2020, I also challenge you not to let your excitement become your enemy and wind up getting stuck at your current level of success. Truthfully, some people aren’t where they should be because they lost momentum after getting excited about achieving their first goal. There’s nothing wrong with celebrating, but do not get comfortable. In sports, there are different tiers/levels of success. For example, in the NFL playoffs, teams must first win the Wild Card game, which advances them to the Divisional playoff game, which takes them to the Conference championship game, which earns them a spot in the Superbowl. They cannot win at just one level; they must win at each level to earn the Vince Lombardi trophy and become World Champions.
Understand that there is so much more that God wants you to achieve. Yes, you started at the bottom of the mountain and maybe going higher, but don’t stop at the middle, keep going until you reach the top. I see so many people post about how they are winning, but technically, you do not win until you cross the finish line, and the game clock says zero. Just because you are leading at halftime doesn’t mean that you are going to win the game. The other team still has an opportunity to win the game just like you do. Make the decision to no longer settle for getting in the game, but get your game plan/strategy together, stay consistent, and win it in 2020!
Written By: Courtney Aiken
FB: Courtney Aiken ; Twitter: @IAmCourtAiken ; IG: @thecourtneyaiken
