The 4 Traits That Birth Greatness Will, clarity, faith and surrender are the road map to realizing your vision.
By Zach Cutler Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Everyone has dreams and visions for the future: hope for a better day, and hope toward accomplishing something great, nurturing someone great or achieving the impossible.
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Our visions and hopes are what keep us excited and passionate as humans. We all have a deep, creative potential that can be used to create an amazing reality in which we bring our dreams to life. But to do so and to be great, four traits are essential. Doniel Katz, a teacher, rabbi and founder of The Elevation Seminar, taught me what those traits are, and I'd like to share them with you:
1. Will
Everyone has multiple ideas and dreams. But the one we most desire is our will, or vision. Will is deep-rooted and is more than a distant hope or passing thought. It inspires action, guides decisions and builds the foundation for one's mission and values. Will is the ignition key and driving force behind any idea.
Visions are deeply personal and may require some soul-searching to find. Determine what goals, ideas and beliefs are most important, and the vision will follow.
2. Clarity
Clarity is the purification of mind and heart, bringing them together under one goal. In other words, clarity is to be focused on the vision. Focus internalizes the vision in the heart and mind so everything is working toward that goal. Without clarity, other goals and tasks become more important, and the vision takes a back seat.
But when the heart and mind want the same thing, they work together to achieve it. That goal becomes the main priority. Building an idea from the ground up isn't easy. It's easy to stop when things get difficult, and to focus on smaller, more achievable goals. Clarity focuses thoughts and passions on the same task, driving ideas forward.
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3. Faith
Faith means you remain uncompromisingly dedicated to your vision, even when it seems like every force in reality stands in the way.
Faith doesn't mean that you believe in something for no reason. Faith means that when that reason gets backed to the wall, you won't compromise and give up, but will stay faithful to your truth. Let's be honest: Life, business, family, creativity -- every process of value -- goes through cycles of peaks and valleys, ebbs and flows, pleasure and pain, successes and failures. Grit, fortitude, mental stamina and sticking it out during tough times are all code words for faith.
Faith is a form of memory: "I won't forget the goal in the overwhelming details and frustrations of time." Faith also requires trusting the process. You think, "It's not just that the process will get me to the goal I want, but it will make me into the person I want and need to be." Riding through the challenges is what make us stronger leaders and better people. So, keep the faith, in order to keep moving toward the will and vision. Because faith in a nutshell is this: In the light, look for truth; in the dark, stay true to the light.
4. Surrender
Surrender is the capacity to be fully dedicated to the goal while remaining fluid and open to the process. In this way you can simultaneously persist and yield, and be both guider and guided. Know that the moment of surrender is the most creatively potent act of all, whose energy catalyzes all that's gone before, finally turning will into reality -- and realizing the vision.
Will, clarity, faith and surrender are the four traits that birth greatness. If we work on these traits and master them, we all have the potential to be great.
What traits do you think lead to greatness? Share in the comments below!
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