What is the Conventional route of success? It does differ to the career you will pursue, but whatever career it is, I know that you have an idea of how you want to get there—a chronological timetable of where and at what point in your life you must be to achieve success. Developing a plan and long-term journey to tread along does instill great habits and keeps you in track and line with your end goal.
But what if you don't make this deadline... Your giving it your all 24/7, but you just aren't traveling the golden path that you have idealized. You start to get frantic, edgy, irritated, and desperate. Your unable to let go of the fact that you aren't on track with your goals, and you think that flooring the pedal is your only option. Suddenly, you carry more and more weight on your shoulders as you fall behind more and more. When you fall short and experience failure, you beat yourself to the ground until getting up doesn't seem like an option. And when you see a glimpse of success, you play it off like "this is the way it should be" and seize to acknowledge and celebrate your achievements. Let me stop you there... Who told you that you need to be at this point in your career at this point in your life.
YOU
You created a race against the perfect scenario self that you must be in line with as you compare yourself to your peers and competitors. It hurts knowing that you know you've worked a trillion times harder than another kid, and the kid performs better than you. The keyword is EXPECTATIONS. There are two roots to your problems and expectations.
1) Expectations are unrealistic and unachievable.
People tell you to dream big and always shoot for the stars, but there is a fine line between realistic and unrealistic expectations. I am not saying that you need to keep your expectations low, but you need to know that growth takes immense time and patience. Being aware of who and where you are now, goals must be created so that they are challenging to achieve, but are not out of reach. Not reaching a goal is heartbreaking, and if your expectations are too high, you've set yourself up for disappointment.
2) Belief that there is one and only one road.
There is no such thing as a set road to becoming an NBA star or international business owner. No human in this world has tread the same path to a similar goal or success. ZERO. Many PGA tour pros played college at a DIII college and have become major champions. They may or may not have faced with adversity or started their careers later, but they knew that their opportunity and life was so different to anyone else that they didn't worry about needing to take the golden route. High school to D1 to a tour champion... This ideal journey is stamped into society as possibly the only way to make it, but by doing the right thing and staying determined no matter how hard it is, success in all shapes and forms formulate.
My Experience: I have experienced first-hand. Possibly one of the things that have significantly held me back from success. Starting golf again at a very late age, I knew I was behind... I set high goals that I certainly couldn't achieve even if my actions were more than in line with my goals. I created a race in my head against time, and I've been flooring the pedal for too long, where I've possibly taken the wrong turn or have been simply going too fast. Taking it a step at a time and knowing that you run your race was vital for bringing back the fire in me, which slowly dimmed as time passed. I know my road will be more than unconventional, but keep an eye out because ain't nothing stopping me from being the greatest golfer in the world.