“The bigger the dream the more that people will discourage you” – Imran Khan
If you want the answer to how to reach your potential, then this blog post will give you the answer, in fact the best answer that I have ever come across.
I was privileged to attend an Entrepreneurs Organisation conference in Kolkata India early January 2014 and one of the keynote speakers was Imran Khan who travelled across the border from Pakistan to attend and speak at the event. Of all the speakers at the event which included successful billionaires, Bollywood stars, spiritual leaders and even Miss World, Imran Khan was my favourite and most inspiring speaker. My one disclosure is that I do happen to be a big cricket fan, but the message was what was truly inspirational, not just the ability to bowl hooping inswingers in the 80’s.
Imran khan was not only a Pakistani cricketing legend but has also helped shape Pakistani politics and the welfare of its people to something it has never been.
Ridicule
Imran has lived and breathed setbacks his whole career. Did you know that it took 3 years for him to get back into the Pakistani cricket team after being dropped at age 18? He was continually ridiculed and told that he couldn’t play. In his first cricket test in Lahore he went out first ball and realised very quickly not to live by public opinion as they can be very fickle. “They will clap you one minute when you walk out to bat and then ridicule you a moment later when you’re walking back!”
People laughed at him when he entered politics. Imran was ridiculed when he said he was going to build a cancer treatment hospital and a university with quality education for poor people in Pakistan and make it free.
Handling setbacks
“The bigger the dream the more that people will discourage you”
The higher the goal the higher the setbacks. Imran has faced 17 years of setbacks and not once did he ever think he wouldn’t succeed. It was passion that propelled him forward along with the ability to handle failure and pick himself up and come back stronger each time. Every time he was told he couldn’t play cricket, this gave him strength.
The big advantage Imran felt he had over cricketers was quality education which helped train his mind to be his own best critic. In analysing any mistake, it is the ability to analyse your own failure and accurately diagnose mistakes either yourself or by knowing someone who does have the analytical ability. Imran said, “Why would I read what a journalist thought of my batting technique?” Imran was very conscious of who he would listen to who had the analytical ability to help him improve while accepting criticism from people whom he would listen to.
Imran’s biggest achievements
While all the time people said “you can’t” this is what Imran Kahn has achieved:
- Became Pakistani’s most successful cricket captain and played international cricket for 2 decades.
- Secured the top 20 doctors to work at his cancer hospital. When his mum died of cancer there was no cancer treatment hospital and now 70% of all treatments are free.
- While education in Pakistan had an elitist mentality, when Imran entered politics he build a university in a rural area of Pakistan for poor people. This year the University achieved their first graduates of which 90% of students were educated for free.
Invincibility
If you ever want to reach your potential, then this is how:
Realism kills human potential as you can’t predict what will happen in the future, whereas idealism which breaks new ground is what achieves great things. The more you challenge yourself then the more strength that will come out. Most people will never scratch the surface of their true potential.
Here are the top 8 messages I took away from the legend Imran Kahn in becoming invincible
- Taking risks is the hallmark of anyone who wants to succeed
- Never compromise on a goal. There will always be a temptation to settle. The moment you scale down your goal, it’s a downward spiral
- “What if I succeed?” is a mental state. The moment you give up you can’t win. Often the talented but weak say “what if I fail?”
- You are your best critic
- Come back stronger after each setback
- Always maintain self-belief and do not be scared to take on anything
- Do not give up, defeat cannot defeat you
- You become invincible when you conquer your fear and are not scared to take anything on which at which you simply can’t be defeated – you ARE invincible