Realist

A Realist is defined as an individual who has the ability to see reality. The sooner an individual can grasp reality, the better off they will be. The first thought that may pop in your head is “That’s obvious!” But is it?

Many of us have either met or are that person who claims to only “operate in extremes”. A common example would be an individual who drastically shifts from their current eating habits to only eating perceived healthy meals like chicken and veggies. This approach is not impossible, but typically will only work for a select handful of people. A more likely outcome would be that the individual gets tired of their “boring” healthy meals and ends up back on their old eating habits within a few weeks.

One other example of this idea of being able to only “operate in extremes” would be the individual who commits to working out. The number of people who list “Get in shape” as their New Year resolution are too many to count. The normal cycle many of these individuals go through is to begin working out “X” times per week for “Y” length of time. Similar to the prior example, this “X” and “Y” are too drastic of a change and is normally sustained for a short period of time. This individual allows one missed workout to turn into a missed week which ultimately leads them to give up on their “Get in shape” resolution.

Do you think the examples provided illustrate success being able to only “operate in extremes” even if they aren’t sustained? I don’t think so either, but for some reason many of these individuals continue to assume that making drastic changes to their lifestyle is the only way they can be successful. Just to be clear, I am not suggesting that all drastic changes are a waste of time. I am simply pointing out the problem isn’t the desired goal, but rather the approach taken to reach that goal. This idea of “operate in extremes” is the primary reason that many desired goals end up in failure.

What I have found from my own experience is that the best way to successfully reach your goals is to be realistic about the sustainable changes you can make in your everyday life. If you fail to be honest with yourself about the smaller steps you can accomplish, you run a high risk of falling short of your goal. Remember that the most accomplished people in any walk of life did not achieve their goals overnight, but instead chose to embark on a journey towards their ultimate end goals.

Keep the following in mind: Every goal is achievable as long as you keep both of your feet grounded on that thing called REALITY.

-E. REAL