If you believe that success is mostly genetic, you’re not going to like today’s message.
I’m continually amazed at the number of people, including coaches and teachers, who’ve been sold and continue to perpetuate the genetics lie.
The lie goes like this: “There’s no real explanation or duplicatable method for Johnny or Jamie’s success. They’re more gifted than others. They have
the right genes.”
This type of thinking does far more harm to the psyche of a human being than teaching someone bad physical form or improper mechanics.
Without realizing it, coaches, teachers and parents tell young children that they can never be great, they can never overcome the odds, that you either have it or you don’t.
Thank goodness I never heard this message when I was growing up.
I didn’t have parents who talked this way. Or coaches. Instead, I was surrounded by people who believed you could accomplish great things in life if you had the right environment.
That’s right. The right ENVIRONMENT.
NOT the right GENES.
In Derek Jeter’s book, The Life You Imagine, he wrote about wanting to play shortstop for the New York Yankees, from the time he was eight years old.
He thought about it, dreamt about it, visualized it and worked toward it. And the day he announced his intention to his parents, they told him that he could do it but he’d have to work very hard at it for a long time.
Note: Jeter’s parents did NOT tell him, “You’re too skinny. You’re not very big. And no one in our bloodline has ever played professional sports.”
Instead, his parents nurtured his desire – and ten years later, Jeter was drafted by the very team he imagined playing. Two years after being drafted, he made it to the big show. And 18 years later, he’s still playing for this same team.
This year, at 38 years of age, he’s hitting better and running faster than he has in years.
When he was a senior in high school, Derek weighed 155 pounds. Not exactly the size you’d expect to make it to the major leagues.
Yet, he worked and worked and worked – and still does. And part of his work was the use of his imagination. Every day, he imagined being where he is now.
In the book, The Biology of Belief, cellular biologist, Bruce H. Lipton, blows the genetics theory to smithereens. In his work he uncovered something interesting.
Your genes are activated or made dormant by your ENVIRONMENT.
What this means is that you may very well have the genes to succeed – but if you don’t have anyone who nurtures you, trains you, teaches you and believes in you – your talent will not fully express itself.
It all comes down, in many cases, to the famous Mark Twain line, “Talent (genetics) is useless without training, thank God.”
I know a boy who threw a baseball 54 mph when he was 10. This velocity was decent for his age group, but certainly not remarkable. In fact, others in his age group in, he was far from being the hardest thrower on the team.
But he had a father who believed in him and worked on his velocity. His father didn’t believe in the genetics myth. He believed you could set a goal and systematically work toward it.
Today, this same boy is seen as a genetic freak by many parents and coaches. Why. Because he’s throwing over 70 mph at age 12.
His father is not derailed by this type of thinking whatsoever. He knows that proper training is the biggest factor in making improvements. Success begins in your imagination then extends into your daily actions and habits.
If I can get you to picture what you want, I have a shot at helping you get there.
But if I can block your vision with images of genetics being the make-or-break factor, then your chances of success diminish within seconds.
If you want to improve your life, regardless of the area, think about creating a success environment in your imagination first. Then create it in physical reality.
Avoid all coaches, teachers and trainers who claim that success is genetic. Listening to them is like eating poison. You cannot succeed if you’re being programmed to believe that getting to the top is out of your control.
Matt Furey
P.S. For the ultimate course in the use of your Creative Imagination, be sure to pick up the Zero Resistance Living System.
P.P.S. Other recommended reading material would be Expect to Win – Hate to Lose and The Unbeatable Man.