A long time ago (but not in a galaxy far, far away) I reached a milestone. As a child, my mother would give me a bath. She especially wanted to wash my hair, as I seemed either to forget that part, or to do a bad job.
The day finally came when I took my first shower – complete with washing my own hair. As silly as it sounds now, I recall asking Mom what the directions were to wash my hair properly. She told me that the directions were on the bottle. As you probably already know, the directions said:
“Lather. Rinse. Repeat.”
When I read that, I remember thinking to myself, “Is that it? Wow, that is simple. I can do that.”
You might be wondering why I am recalling this basic life moment from decades ago. Well, here is why:
Successful people use the exact same process.
No, I do not mean they involve using shampoo (unless they are in the salon business). I mean they use the same, simple, duplicable system. They discover what works for them either through following a proven system of success in an area of life, or through trial and error. Either way, once they understand how to have success in an area of life, the smart ones will continue to duplicate that process over and over again.
You do not think so? Well, think about McDonald’s Restaurants. How many times have you witnessed one store looking completely different from all the others?
How about college sports? In the recent past, think about the University of Alabama football (which, as a University of Tennessee fan is hard to think about). Or about the University of Kentucky men’s basketball program. Or about the University of Connecticut women’s basketball program (refer to my comments above about Alabama football).
What do these various sports programs, restaurant chains, and other successful businesses have in common?
They all figured out what worked for them – and then they CONTINUED to follow the same pattern.
Do not get me wrong. They all change with the times. They understand the dynamics of current demographics, politics, and social behaviors. But they still hold true to what made them great.
Why am I spending all this time talking about these organizations? Because you and I are no different than they are.
If we want to succeed in our Faith Walk, Relationships, our Financial Life, Career or in our Health, we need to figure out what will work for US. We should not run around trying every new fad to lose weight. We should avoid taking financial advice from our broke friends. We should read books from people who have had success in the area of life where we need help. We should hang around successful people, and ask them questions about what they did to find success in that area. Once we learn the necessary information, put it into practice, and find success, then all we need to do is…
…Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
One last tip before I end today. Yes, “success leaves clues”, but so does Failure. If you are “lathering, rinsing, and repeating” – but your “hair” is still dirty (your area of life is still unsuccessful) – you need to start using a different shampoo.
Start today to get around new people. Get around people who are successful in whatever area of life that you want to grow in, and you will end up with a really good-looking, nice-smelling area of life.
