Life is a game and it’s how you play it that determines your success. Over the past week a news article that got my attention. It tells of a mystery that biologist have been working on for years in AIDS research that has seemingly been solved by video gamers. The article called it a major breakthrough in the quest to find a cure for AIDS. Imagine what other solutions could solved by some of us who play funny games either online or on computer or video game consoles.
As I read the article, it brought back the memory of the book I read years ago called,
The Game of Life and How to Play It.” It is a book about how life is a game and describes some of the laws that life has that make us successful. The great part about this book, it was written in 1925. Yet the very same points work in our modern day world where everybody is online.
Then I think of other game-playing concepts that are now being taught. Robert Kiyosaki in his book, “Rich Dad, Poor Dad,” talks about a financial learning game he uses to teach people how money works. I have a friend here in the Dallas area who runs a monthly networking event. Jenifer Luney and her B-Harmony events, use games and exercises to provide learning, and a different way to teach things from team-building to setting personal goals and ways to share your business with the world.
A few months ago I made the reference to how games can show many things about a person. How they play games is usually how they live life. Companies are now using games to help with the training process in helping new employees learn their products, to the process to serve the customers that walk in the door.
When it comes to your own life, have you ever thought of how you could create a game out of what you have to get done? For me it was always a way to think past whatever was holding the growth of a company or idea I was working on. So last night I was thinking how in my life I have created my own game to define my success. I don’t let many outside influences tell me where to take the companies we have. Yes, I listen to advice, but not all that often is someone going to push me to make a choice or make a decision to do something until I figure out if it fits into my steps for success.
Last night I was watching a few things on TV. While I usually watch movies and movie channels, it’s rare that I’ll watch on a channel that has commercials. I find that they are distracting to what I wanted to do. After all they distract from the show, or movie you were watching. Imagine if you could shut off the distractions that hold you back.
In my life, I’m able to shut out certain distractions that keep me from what I must get done, or from where I want to go. It’s like setting my own game to make my life the success I wanted it to be. This morning while I was writing this, another coach friend of mine posted on her FaceBook wall a picture of success. It was a graphic depiction of what many people think the road to success looks like and, next to it, what the path to success really looks like. The real picture of success is not a straight line. It has many turns, loops and sometimes back steps. But most people think other people’s path to success is a straight line. They don’t realize just how many twists and turns there are in that path.
So if you want to create your own game in life, here are some things you must do:
- Life has certain laws you must abide by. In the book about the game of life it talks of these laws, which we will cover later this week. But when we say “a law we must live by,” well, gravity is a law. No matter how many times you want to keep that rock or ball up in the air, gravity will pull it back to the ground. Laws are things you must live by.
- Set your own rules. I have set my own rules in my life. There are times that people think that all I do is take joy rides on my bike. Truth is, I have a handful of personal friends and my honey who I take along for joy rides on the motorcycle. These are rides with no objective, just get on the bike and ride. Even most of them are riding for some game or objective. But my rule for long bike trips is it must be about some form of business. If I’m not going to meet a client, I’m going to meet people to plan events, or speak at events. That is a rule I hold myself to.
- You must have a goal. No gamer sits and just plays a game without goals. There are levels they are shooting for; there is an objective to winning it. They are always trying to make it further than the time before. But there is a goal, even if it’s to do better than last time.
- You are going to fail a time or two. Yes, you will lose your game from time to time, but you can always start over, play a new game. How many times do people stop playing a game completely just because they lost? Pick it back up and try again.
- Learn from the game. If you fail, learn from it; if you succeed learn from it. Look at the patterns of failure or success. No matter what there is a story in every success or failure that tells about your life.
- The details are yours. Your game is being played by you. Don’t hold others to your rules; they have their own rules to follow. The laws have a way of taking care of themselves. This is where failure and success are usually made.
- Have fun. After all, when you get to create your game, it’s your life. Have fun.
I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time for you to live your own game in life, to love what you do and those you play your game with you. Are you ready to be the RockStar in your game of life? I’m ready to help you. Contact me today.
