Most people would agree that success requires effort and sacrifice.  Sure, some people are born with natural abilities that may give them a certain advantage.  But many studies have shown that talent is not a determining factor in deciding your level of success, as is discussed in great detail in the book Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else.

In the article Common Traits of Successful People we pointed you to several great articles that lay out the many traits that are commonly found in successful people.  But a fundamental question that for the most part remains unanswered is:  what motivates people to work hard to obtain the skills necessary to be successful?  At a very fundamental level, what is the difference between the person who will go the extra mile to be successful and will stop at nothing until success is reached and the person who simply will not make the sacrifices required to achieve excellence?  Is the motivation to be successful built into your DNA or is it shaped by your environment? 

It is very difficult to answer these questions with any level of accuracy.  Maybe someday research will shed some light into this fundamental question.  For now, if we just assume that motivation is key to success, regardless of where it originates, we may want to explore a related question that may be easier to answer.  How much motivation is needed to achieve success?

In other words, how badly do you want to be successful?  Please watch the video below for some thoughts on the subject.

 

Do you agree with this view that in order to be successful you have to want it as much as you want to breath?  Do you believe that in order to be successful you have to want it so bad that you have to be willing to give up on sleep?  Perhaps the point of the video is simply that your level of success will be proportional to the level of effort you put into it, and if you don’t want it bad enough, well, your results will show.