Become Exceptional

 EXCEPTIONAL PEOPLE WANT

TO DO THE OUTSTANDING

 Exceptional people have specific character traits. By understanding how they became exceptional you will be able to transfer these traits to your very own life. To a certain degree you might have already been using the guidelines given. If this is the case you can reach even further and become more exceptional. The two systems described in the following chapters are easy to understand and to apply, but they will test your strength of character in achieving your final goals.

Angelika’s allegory will clearly portray how she became exceptional. Her life is as unique as yours, or as yours can be.  Her example illustrates achievable possibilities. No one can live anyone else’s life, but we certainly can learn from each other. Angelika went to the extreme in sports and in her lifestyle. You want to go as far as you think is best for you, expressing your very own talents. Angelika’s example reveals her own endowments only, but you can become exceptional in your very own areas of life.

Looking Into The Past

 Exceptional people are outstanding not because they were born with their virtues but because they have acquired most of them by themselves. Angelika tells in her stories about the positive things she obtained from her home life, but she has much to say about what she did not get as well. Her athletic records and world champion achievements evolved from a passion to fulfill her dreams.

Making her mother proud influenced Angelika in her original ambition, but once she found God in her life she leaped into her true greatness. If you have no motivation or passion for laying your own foundation because your mother or father did not care, then reach out for the eternal, supernatural parent, God, and plug into his/her love that awakens an unconditional striving for greatness. All that we do is for His glory, and no one falls short in receiving from God the intangible essentials for life. Spiritual wealth can generate mental and physical health as a treasure that cannot compare to any other.

The first part of Angelika’s life illustrates in what way her mother’s love and her surroundings helped her to become outstanding. Later in life because of the absence of her father she found God’s radiant wisdom. As she stepped out into life, Angelika practiced the two breakthrough systems for becoming exceptional. She had needs and dreams that begged to come true. Remember your own wishes, desires, and hopes. What happened to them? Where are they today? How has your past influenced the actions you have taken today?

 Why Angelika Wanted To Be Remarkable

 Rustic benches, nicely decorated with narrow, little flowery cushions, surrounded a wooden corner table. Dim light and a spicy smell came from the kitchen stove. Snowflakes tapped on the windows and left little stars as reminders that God was at work.  Mother’s favorite soup cooked while five hungry children eagerly waited to get a serving of the wonderful broth, whose smell slowly meandered through the house.

Dinner had become an intimate time for Angelika’s family, a time to talk about anything that came into their minds. They all jabbered and babbled and tattled, but when mama talked, venerate silence in expectation of something important took place. Mama spoke with a soft but excited voice about places, people, foods, and clothing they had never heard of or seen. The children’s eyes became big as suspense tightened their motionless faces. Mama talked about her own achievements and stories.

She was a member of the Olympic ski team and told them many horrific stories of painful crashes when she speeded down the steep hills. She talked about climbing immense summits in the mountains. There was one story the children wanted to hear over and over again: Mama climbed one of the peaks, when suddenly thick clouds appeared and in no time lightning struck. Suddenly her dark brown, medium-length hair stood straight up into the air. The situation was dangerous; they had to climb to a safe place immediately. Mama’s hair finally returned to normal, and they looked down into the valley again. The children chuckled and giggled, while trying to turn their own hair straight up into the air, regrettably without success.

Angelika wanted to be remarkable. Because of mother’s stories from “beyond the mountains” and her challenging adventures, Angelika soon craved more. Mama was admired for her audacity, strength, and courage, which instigated an assortment of fantasies, all reaching toward the outstanding. Angelika was shy and did not talk much, but deep within her the exceptional was born. “I want to be like mama, and I want her to be proud of me,” she affirmed in her most secret thoughts. A message was engrained deeply into her mind

Practice Questions

 Before we move on, ask yourself the following questions. Discuss them with a friend or as a group. Talk about them without judgment or criticism. This is a reality check; look for the facts only and never put yourself down.

·         If you want to be exceptional do you know who you want to be?

·         Why have some of your dreams and wishes not come true?

·         Are you aware of any pattern that sabotages your successes?

·         Choose one essential event. Why didn’t it materialize?

·         Do you measure every step, one by one, so you can progress toward your goals realistically?

·         How many times did you never get started?

·         If you did start at what point did you give up?

·         Did anyone demolish your ambitions when you were young?

·         How do you hold yourself back from fulfilling your desires?

·         Are you willing to pay the price for becoming exceptional?

·         If you become exceptional what would that mean to you?

·         How strong is your desire to be outstanding?

·         Do you feel when you accomplish something that it does not matter?

·         Are you willing to persist and wait until you reach the end result, no matter how long it takes?

·         What role is discipline playing in your life?

·         Do you know how to structure your life?

·         Do you think structure destroys your freedom or spontaneity?

·         Have you planned your year?

·         Have you traced a five-year plan for your life?

·         Where are you going to be when you are 60? (Add 20 years if you are already 60 or older)

·         If you look back on your life before you die, how exceptional was your life?

·         How much have you been in charge of the circumstances in your life?

·         What do exceptional people have that you don’t?

·         What do you have that exceptional people don’t have?

 FUNDAMENTAL ATTRIBUTES

 From your parents, and later from other authority figures, you receive their value system, their beliefs, their goodness, their importance, their taste, their approbation, their honor, and much more. Because of their values and attributes, your motivation and ambition can blossom into beauty. But if something was lacking or restrictive in your childhood, then your soul was damaged and will keep thirsting. For the ones who were forced to strive, striving may be boring. But the ones who weren’t allowed to strive may lack the internal permission to do so. Some children were given the freedom to explore their space, and with it, comes a natural desire for the outstanding. Some people want to become exceptional precisely because of wanting to overcome a traumatic past. Now as an adult you can make your own decisions about where you go with your future. But watch out because your past wants to haunt you! Stretch yourself with the exercises that are suggested. Yes, sometimes it is uncomfortable. But remember that every stretch that pulls makes you greater.

 A Glance At Ambition

 Ambition is defined as being eager or having strong desires. There are two parts to ambition.
 

A.  The desire to achieve power, fame, and wealt
       B.  The desire for exertion or activity

 How you use these two concepts will determine if you become an exceptionally good or exceptionally bad person. Power, fame, and wealth can be blessings sent from God or curses launched directly from the devil. Physical exertion can be destructive on one side or life-enhancing on the other. You are the only one to decide in what way you want to use your ambition.  Becoming exceptional means also wanting to become exceptionally good.

Different traits develop different degrees of ambition

 There are four established personality traits, as described in the Personality Plus book by Florence Littauer. Each one has a unique way of reaching for the exceptional. Not all of us will run 150 miles in 120-degree heat like Angelika did to win a record. A low-key person will not become aggressive or confrontational, or have controlling leadership qualities.

By nature we have our preconditioned temperament that produces our personality traits. Who we become depends on our traits, our conditioning, the environment we live in, as well as our self-improvement. These four basic traits are melancholic, phlegmatic, sanguine, and choleric. But before we look into these traits a definition of character and temperament is necessary.

Character

 It means the same as personality. Our character consists of all objective and visible behaviors as well as our subjective inner experiences. The character reflects the nature of a person’s psychological defense. Our character brings inner and outer forces together. It also means that a combination of qualities distinguishes one person from another because of their different attributes and features. The word “character” is used to describe moral or ethical strength as well.

Temperament

 Here we see the reactions we produce toward our environment based on our genetic precondition. Some people are low key like the phlegmatic, and some are high strung, like the sanguine. These differences are innate and can be noticed soon after birth. The following four descriptions represent the temperament not the character of people.