Training the Will

"The education of the will is the object of our existence," says Emerson.

"Developing the will is the purpose of our existence," says Emerson.

Nor is this putting it too strongly, if we take into account the human will in its relations to the divine. This accords with the saying of J. Stuart Mill, that "a character is a completely fashioned will."

Nor is that too strong a statement if we consider the human will in relation to the divine. This agrees with J. Stuart Mill's saying that "a character is a completely fashioned will."

In respect to mere mundane relations, the development and discipline of one's will-power is of supreme moment in relation to success in life. No man can ever estimate the power of will. It is a part of the divine nature, all of a piece with the power of creation. We speak of God's fiat "Fiat lux, Let light be." Man has his fiat. The achievements of history have been the choices, the determinations, the creations, of the human will. It was the will, quiet or pugnacious, gentle or grim, of men like Wilberforce and Garrison, Goodyear and Cyrus Field, Bismarck and Grant, that made them indomitable. They simply would do what they planned. Such men can no more be stopped than the sun can be, or the tide. Most men fail, not through lack of education or agreeable personal qualities, but from lack of dogged determination, from lack of dauntless will.

Even in everyday affairs, developing and strengthening your willpower is essential to success in life. No one can measure the power of the will. It is part of the divine nature, inseparable from the power of creation. We speak of God's command, "Fiat lux, Let there be light." Man has his own command. The achievements of history have come from the choices, decisions, and creations of the human will. The will made men like Wilberforce and Garrison, Goodyear and Cyrus Field, Bismarck and Grant impossible to defeat. Their wills might be quiet or combative, gentle or fierce. They simply resolved to do what they planned. Such men can no more be stopped than the sun or the tide. Most men fail not because they lack education or pleasant personal qualities, but because they lack persistent determination and fearless will.

"It is impossible," says Sharman, "to look into the conditions under which the battle of life is being fought, without perceiving how much really depends upon the extent to which the will-power is cultivated, strengthened, and made operative in right directions." Young people need to go into training for it. We live in an age of athletic meets. Those who are determined to have athletic will-power must take for it the kind of exercise they need.

"You cannot look at the conditions under which people fight the battle of life without seeing how much depends on willpower," says Sharman. "It must be cultivated, strengthened, and put to use in the right directions." Young people need to train their willpower. We live in an age of athletic competitions. Those determined to have an athlete's willpower must exercise it as needed.

This is well illustrated by a report I have seen of the long race from Marathon in the recent Olympian games, which was won by the young Greek peasant, Sotirios Louès.

A report I read about the long race from Marathon in the recent Olympic games illustrates this well. The winner was a young Greek peasant, Sotirios Louès.

There had been no great parade about the training of this champion runner. From his work at the plough he quietly betook himself to the task of making Greece victorious before the assembled strangers from every land. He was known to be a good runner, and without fuss or bustle he entered himself as a competitor. But it was not his speed alone, out-distancing every rival, that made the young Greek stand out from among his fellows that day. When he left his cottage home at Amarusi, his father said to him, "Sotiri, you must only return a victor!" The light of a firm resolve shone in the young man's eye. The old father was sure that his boy would win, and so he made his way to the station, there to wait till Sotiri should come in ahead of all the rest. No one knew the old man and his three daughters as they elbowed their way through the crowd. When at last the excitement of the assembled multitude told that the critical moment had arrived, that the racers were nearing the goal, the old father looked up through eyes that were a little dim as he realized that truly Sotiri was leading the way. He was "returning a victor." How the crowd surged about the young peasant when the race was fairly won! Wild with excitement, they knew not how to shower upon him sufficient praise. Ladies overwhelmed him with flowers and rings; some even gave him their watches, and one American lady bestowed upon him her jewelled smelling-bottle. The princes embraced him, and the king himself saluted him in military fashion. But the young Sotirios was seeking for other praise than theirs. Past the ranks of royalty and fair maidenhood, past the outstretched hands of his own countrymen, past the applauding crowd of foreigners, his gaze wandered till it fell upon an old man trembling with eagerness, who resolutely pushed his way through the excited, satisfied throng. Then the young face lighted, and as old Louès advanced to the innermost circle with arms outstretched to embrace his boy, the young victor said, simply: "You see, father, I have obeyed."

There had been no great display about this champion runner's training. He quietly left his work at the plough to make Greece victorious before the visitors gathered from every land. He was known to be a good runner, and he entered the race without any fuss. But his speed, which carried him past every rival, was not the only thing that made the young Greek stand out that day. When he left his cottage home in Amarusi, his father said to him, "Sotiri, you must return a victor!" Firm resolve shone in the young man's eyes. The old father was sure his boy would win. So he went to the station to wait for Sotiri to come in ahead of all the rest. No one knew the old man and his three daughters as they pushed their way through the crowd. At last, the crowd's excitement showed that the critical moment had arrived. The runners were nearing the finish. The old father looked up through eyes that were a little dim. He realized that Sotiri was indeed in the lead. He was "returning a victor." How the crowd surged around the young peasant when the race was won! Wild with excitement, they could not find enough ways to praise him. Ladies showered him with flowers and rings. Some even gave him their watches, and one American lady gave him her jeweled smelling-bottle. The princes embraced him, and the king himself gave him a military salute. But the young Sotirios was seeking praise from someone else. His gaze passed the ranks of royalty and fair maidens, the outstretched hands of his countrymen, and the applauding foreign crowd. At last, he saw an old man trembling with eagerness, pushing his way determinedly through the excited, satisfied throng. The young man's face lit up. Old Louès came into the innermost circle, his arms outstretched to embrace his boy. The young victor said simply, "You see, father, I have obeyed."

The athlete trains for his race; and the mind must be put into training if one will win life's race.

An athlete trains for a race, and you must train your mind if you want to win life's race.

"It is," says Professor Mathews, "only by continued, strenuous efforts, repeated again and again, day after day, week after week, and month after month, that the ability can be acquired to fasten the mind to one subject, however abstract or knotty, to the exclusion of everything else. The process of obtaining this self-mastery--this complete command of one's mental powers--is a gradual one, its length varying with the mental constitution of each person; but its acquisition is worth infinitely more than the utmost labor it ever costs."

"Only through continuous, strenuous effort can a person learn to focus on one subject to the exclusion of everything else," says Professor Mathews. "That effort must be repeated day after day, week after week, and month after month. The subject may be as abstract or difficult as it is. Gaining this self-mastery, this complete control of one's mental powers, is a gradual process. How long it takes depends on each person's mental makeup. But gaining it is worth infinitely more than all the effort it ever requires."

"Perhaps the most valuable result of all education," it was said by Professor Huxley, "is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not; it is the first lesson which ought to be learned, and, however early a man's training begins, it is probably the last lesson which he learns thoroughly."

"Perhaps the most valuable result of all education," Professor Huxley said, "is the ability to make yourself do what you have to do when it needs to be done, whether you like it or not. It is the first lesson a person should learn. Yet no matter how early a person's training begins, it is probably the last lesson they learn thoroughly."

When Henry Ward Beecher was asked how it was that he could accomplish so much more than other men, he replied:

When Henry Ward Beecher was asked how he could accomplish so much more than other men, he replied:

"I don't do more, but less, than other people. They do all their work three times over: once in anticipation, once in actuality, once in rumination. I do mine in actuality alone, doing it once instead of three times."

“I don’t do more than other people. I do less. They do all their work three times: once while thinking about it beforehand, once while doing it, and once while thinking about it afterward. I do my work only once, when I actually do it.”

This was by the intelligent exercise of Mr. Beecher's will-power in concentrating his mind upon what he was doing at a given moment, and then turning to something else. Any one who has observed business men closely, has noticed this characteristic. One of the secrets of a successful life is to be able to hold all of our energies upon one point, to focus all of the scattered rays of the mind upon one place or thing.

Mr. Beecher did this by using his willpower wisely. He concentrated on what he was doing at the moment, then turned to something else. Anyone who has closely observed businesspeople has noticed this trait. One secret to a successful life is the ability to direct all our energy toward one point, focusing all the scattered rays of the mind on one place or thing.

The mental reservoir of most people is like a leaky dam which we sometimes see in the country, where the greater part of the water flows out without going over the wheel and doing the work of the mill. The habit of mind-wandering, of worrying about this and that,

Most people's mental reserves are like a leaky dam, the kind we sometimes see in the countryside. Most of the water flows out without turning the wheel and powering the mill. The habit of letting the mind wander, of worrying about one thing and another,

Many a man would have been a success had he connected his fragmentary efforts. Spasmodic, disconnected attempts, without concentration, uncontrolled by any fixed idea, will never bring success. It is continuity of purpose alone that achieves results.

Many men would have succeeded if they had connected their scattered efforts. Sporadic, disconnected attempts without focus or a clear purpose will never bring success. Only a sustained sense of purpose achieves results.

The way to learn to run is to run, the way to learn to swim is to swim. The way to learn to develop will-power is by the actual exercise of will-power in the business of life. "The man that exercises his will," says an English essayist, "makes it a stronger and more effective force in proportion to the extent to which such exercise is intelligently and perseveringly maintained." The forth-putting of will-power is a means of strengthening will-power. The will becomes strong by exercise. To stick to a thing till you are master, is a test of intellectual discipline and power.

The way to learn to run is to run. The way to learn to swim is to swim. The way to develop willpower is to use it in daily life. As an English essayist says, "A person who exercises willpower makes it stronger and more effective. The more intelligently and persistently that person exercises it, the stronger and more effective it becomes." Using willpower strengthens it. The will grows stronger with exercise. Sticking with something until you master it tests your mental discipline and strength.

"It is astonishing," says Dr. Theodore Cuyler, "how many men lack this power of 'holding on' until they reach the goal. They can make a sudden dash, but they lack grit. They are easily discouraged. They get on as long as everything goes smoothly, but when there is friction they lose heart. They depend on stronger personalities for their spirit and strength. They lack independence or originality. They only dare to do what others do. They do not step boldly from the crowd and act fearlessly."

"It is astonishing," says Dr. Theodore Cuyler, "how many men lack the ability to 'hold on' until they reach their goal. They can make a sudden burst of effort, but they lack grit. They are easily discouraged. They do well as long as everything goes smoothly, but when they meet resistance, they lose heart. They depend on stronger personalities for their spirit and strength. They lack independence or originality. They only dare to do what others do. They do not step boldly out of the crowd and act fearlessly."

What is needed by him who would succeed in the highest degree possible is careful planning. He is to accumulate reserved power, that he may be equal to all emergencies. Thomas Starr King said that the great trees of California gave him his first impression of the power of reserve. "It was the thought of the reserve energies that had been compacted into them," he said, "that stirred me. The mountains had given them their iron and rich stimulants, the hills had given them their soil, the clouds had given their rain and snow, and a thousand summers and winters had poured forth their treasures about their vast roots."

Anyone who wants to achieve the greatest possible success needs to plan carefully. They must build up reserves of strength so they can meet any emergency. Thomas Starr King said the great trees of California gave him his first impression of the power of reserves. "What stirred me," he said, "was the thought of the stored energy packed into them. The mountains had given them their iron and rich nutrients. The hills had given them soil, and the clouds had given them rain and snow. A thousand summers and winters had poured their treasures around the trees' vast roots."

No young man can hope to do anything above the commonplace who has not made his life a reservoir of power on which he can constantly draw, which will never fail him in any emergency. Be sure that you have stored away, in your power-house, the energy, the knowledge that will be equal to the great occasion when it comes. "If I were twenty, and had but ten years to live," said a great scholar and writer, "I would spend the first nine years accumulating knowledge and getting ready for the tenth."

No young man can hope to achieve more than the ordinary without making his life a reserve of power. He must be able to draw on that reserve constantly, and it must never fail him in an emergency. Make sure you have stored enough energy and knowledge in your power supply to meet a great occasion when it comes. "If I were twenty and had only ten years to live," said a great scholar and writer, "I would spend the first nine years gaining knowledge and preparing for the tenth."

"There are no two words in the English language which stand out in bolder relief, like kings upon a checker-board, to so great an extent as the words 'I will.' There is strength, depth and solidity, decision, confidence and power, determination, vigor and individuality, in the round, ringing tone which characterizes its delivery. It talks to you of triumph over difficulties, of victory in the face of discouragement, of will to promise and strength to perform, of lofty and daring enterprise, of unfettered aspirations, and of the thousand and one solid impulses by which man masters impediments in the way of progression."

"No two words in the English language stand out as boldly as 'I will.' They stand out like kings on a checkerboard. Their full, ringing sound expresses strength, depth, solidity, decisiveness, confidence, and power. It also expresses determination, vigor, and individuality. It speaks of triumph over difficulties and victory in the face of discouragement. It speaks of the will to promise and the strength to follow through, of ambitious and daring ventures, and of aspirations without limits. It speaks of the countless powerful impulses that help people overcome obstacles to progress."

As one has well said: "He who is silent is forgotten; he who does not advance falls back; he who stops is overwhelmed, distanced, crushed; he who ceases to become greater, becomes smaller; he who leaves off gives up; the stationary is the beginning of the end--it precedes death; to live is to achieve, to will without ceasing."

As someone wisely said: "Those who stay silent are forgotten. Those who do not move forward fall behind. Those who stop are overwhelmed, left behind, and crushed. Those who stop becoming greater become smaller. Those who stop trying give up. Standing still is the beginning of the end. It comes before death. To live is to achieve and to keep striving without stopping."