Are you loyal to your values?
In life, a variety of opportunities will be presented to you. However, not every opportunity will make you a better person. When faced with the prospect of change, lots of people are inclined to change themselves, even going so far as to compromise their standards.
Don't change your identity. Don't lose sight of your values. I am here to tell you that if you refuse to compromise, you will succeed.
I've been loyal to opportunities before—it's easy. I've seen lots of people who were more loyal to their opportunities than their values, and it's not difficult to see why. People aren't naturally inclined to ask themselves if an opportunity aligns with their overarching vision—when something easy presents itself and it looks like something better than whatever our current situation is, most people are going to take it!
Don't be most people.
If an opportunity doesn't reflect your values, don't be loyal to it! Don't cheat on your values with an opportunity that will only increase your success in the short term.
A great way to illustrate the principle I'm communicating today is to talk about two different people. The first is addicted to opportunity, and believes that as long as they "hustle," they are doing well. Hustling isn't always a positive attribute—look at what just hustling will look like five years from now. If you take every opportunity that will pay you money, you'll end up losing out on longer-term opportunities. If you take the first job that offers you a paycheck, you'll end up missing out on what might be better opportunities in the long run.
I'm a huge proponent of hard work, but I believe it's incredibly important to work hard at something that aligns with your values. Pursuing something spiritually fulfilling is difficult, demoralizing, and presents long-term returns on investment rather than quick paychecks. Pursuing something that aligns with your values will lose you friends, short-term cash, and many other opportunities that you could use to become successful in other ways.
Don't put on a mask!
It's easy to change who we are to acquire short-term rewards, or to acquire transient value, but it's difficult in the long run.
Let me ask you something:
Is the job you're pursuing now going to satisfy you five years from now?
Do you wish you were more educated, or employed elsewhere?
Do you feel genuinely fulfilled in what you're doing, or did you let your dreams die somewhere down the road miles ago?
Wasted time costs more than lost money. There are plenty of highly successful people I can name who started off very slowly, but remained loyal to their vision till the end. Even when it seems like you are pursuing something unique or difficult or lacking reward, push through! You are on the verge of something truly incredible, so don't waste time trodding down the road of short-term gains.
It all starts with you.
