Eyes on the Prize

Filed in archive Inspiration on June 26, 2006

Ben Stein's finishing up his two-part column on getting ahead in your career today. It's well worth the read, with plenty to inspire you.

My favorite lesson from his column is "Keep Your Eyes on the Prize". Stein didn't make this up, it's a civil rights-era slogan. For a long time I didn't understand what that meant, but it's really pretty simple: Don't let distractions, adversity, etc. derail you from your ultimate goal. Remember what you're after.

In the civil-rights era, that meant racial equality (and God knows there was some adversity to overcome there).

For most of us, "eyes on the prize" means our dreams. That might mean something as big as owning your own international company, or finding success in Hollywood, as Stein did. For others, it's more modest, but no less important--buying your first home, getting out of debt, paying for your kid's (or kids') college tuition.

There are many bloggers today who are baring their financial souls, and one of their biggest obstacles is debt. Credit card debt, Student Loan debt, other debt. Their blogs are their way of keeping their eyes on the prize, documenting the small success steps on the way, confessing their waywardness when their eyes waver and fixate on a new flat-screen TV instead of on the longer-lasting prize of financial freedom. Their anonymous readers help them along, with a pat on the back or perhaps a line from Chumbawamba:

I Get knocked down/
But I get up again/
You're never going to/
Keep me down"

You don't need a public blog to keep your eyes on the prize, although I think it's a great way to get some encouragement along the way. But tracking your progress in whatever way works for you is definitely a key to financial success, and the more often you document your successes, failures, and progress toward your goals, the more likely you are to eventually get there.

The distractions will not go away. (BTW, I just wasted 10 minutes playing Hearts on my computer before I wrote this.) The occasional punch to the gut is inevitable. But keep your eyes on the prize and you'll make it.