Elevate
Elevate
-Robert Glazer
Often, when we are not as successful at something as we hope to be, we give up our aspirations to be somebody else’s version of us. This does not make us happy, but still, we do this because we think we cannot do better. It is this illusion that Robert Glazer unpacks in his book Elevate. He shows us that it is never too late to elevate oneself. To stay true to who we are, we must never let anyone or anything stop us from achieving our full potential.
This process of elevating oneself is not something that is limited to career advancement. It is about moving onwards and upwards in all aspects, be it our career or personal life. Neither is it a project that ends. There is always a way in which we can go further and get better at something. How do we elevate ourselves? That is where the importance of building one’s capacity comes in.
According to Glazer, there are four main areas or “capacities” each person should work on – spiritual, intellectual, physical, and emotional. These four areas are like four sections of a moving ball. When all of these stay fit or expand, the ball moves forward with ease. However, even if one part gets deflated, the ball comes to a standstill. For a person to move forward in life, all four capacities are equally important.
Spiritual capacity building is about getting to know oneself. What gives a journey meaning is its destination. Similarly, when we put in so much effort to build our capacity, we need to first have a clear idea of who we are and what we want in life. Glazer gives us some ways to achieve this clarity. Firstly, we need to reflect and ask ourselves questions about what values we hold dear, what we want in life, and what we desire. After doing this, it is good if we can talk to other people and get to know their outlooks as well. This exercise will help us gain better clarity about our long-term goals. If we are still unable to define our core purpose in life, one thing we can do is to try writing an obituary for ourselves. That will tell us how we wish to be known.
Aligning our actions to our plans is very crucial. Once we get a clear idea of where to go, the next question is “how”. Intellectual capacity is about thinking through, planning, and executing our ideas with maximum effectiveness. Glazer gives us three steps to do this. First of all, we need to drop the rigid idea that our capacity cannot be enhanced further. We should always be willing to improve ourselves. The second step is to look for mentors or well-wishers who will tell us not what we want to hear, but what we need; people who will keep on challenging us to go one step further. The third step is to align our daily routine to our long-term goals. Small changes will eventually add up to make a big difference. For example, getting up fifteen minutes early or giving up the use of gadgets in the mornings will give us distraction-free time to make use of.
The next area to work on is physical capacity building. We often neglect our physical health and wellbeing, but this has long-term impacts. We cannot be well mentally and emotionally if we are not physically strong. We must take care of ourselves more. We should eat nutritious food, get sound sleep, and keep apart enough time to relax and enjoy so that we don’t stress ourselves out. This will change the very way in which we handle things. Also, we need to understand that embracing competition is not about crushing oneself or others, but about constantly trying to better oneself.
Amidst these efforts that we make, we will have to face hurdles and unexpected situations. To face these and move on, we need to be resilient. This is where the importance of emotional capacity building comes in. We have to move out of our comfort zone and try new things. We need to challenge ourselves and be surrounded by people who will prod us to go the extra mile. It is equally important to avoid people who will do nothing but undermine us. Emotional capacity will enable us to better respond and adapt to situations as they emerge. It will also make our relationships more meaningful, thus creating a sound support system for us.
Frazer’s book shows us that top performers are who they are not because they have something that others don’t. What matters is the choice one makes- to not stop and be stopped but to “elevate” oneself.
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