The more we pursue our dreams, the harder and sadder the shock is when they do not come true.
This sense of failure can haunt you for the rest of your life.
Are you also suffering from a sense of failure?

From the teachings of Master Ryuho Okawa, I have selected a prescription for your mind that, even if you are overwhelmed by setbacks and failures, will surely help you to realize some dream.

What setbacks and failures teach us

 

 

We have setbacks and failures. It is because we challenge ourselves to achieve high goals. For those who do not challenge themselves to achieve high goals, there can be no setbacks or failures.

There are no setbacks or failures for those who simply drift along or float like jellyfish. High hurdles that cannot be overcome appear before you only if you are always aiming to go higher.

People often say, "In order to become a great human being, it is necessary to experience serious illness, unemployment, bankruptcy, ronin (failure in the entrance exam for college), heartbreak, divorce, and so on, and only through such experiences can one flourish as a person.

Of course, such experiences are not what you would want for yourself, but through such experiences, you will have a period of introspection that will allow you to look deeply into yourself and also into the way you see others.

Therefore, when we strive for a high goal and fail, we should not complain or feel down about it, but rather think that we have been given an important period of rest, and we need to make a positive turn toward the light.

Never think, "This has delayed my career" or "This has ruined my life." Perfectionists and idealists are fragile to setbacks. We must not be ruined by setbacks, but must use them as one reason to work even harder.

And since the trials will not last very long, it is important to learn all we can from them. We will come out of adversity someday, so we must learn all the lessons we can in the meantime.

 

From "Seven Tips for Becoming 'I'm Fine!'" by Ryuho Okawa

 

 

Make effort upon effort and give extra devotion

 

I have found one common denominator in everyone who has achieved success, and this common denominator is unrelenting persistence. All successful people have made effort upon effort and have kept persevering in pursuit of their dreams.

It is not about making an effort just once. Success is found in never giving up in persevering toward your dreams, one step at a time. There are no exceptions to this law of success.

Luck may bring you one-time successes like winning the lottery or winning a bet, but this kind of success is fleeting.

To become successful, first make sure that you have a dream. Then, conquer your fears through faith.

And finally, never stop persevering and make a constant effort toward actualizing your dreams into reality.

This mindset of constant effort and devotion is about giving it extra effort even after you have given it all you've got. Where someone else would have stopped and given up, you will think, I'm going to keep going and take another step.

 

From “Think Big” by Ryuho Okawa

 

 

Method for the realization of hopes

 

 

It is easy to wish for success on the surface level. However, if your subconscious denies such wish immediately, you won’t be able to realize your hopes. In other words, you must train your subconscious.

There are three methods as below in order to train your subconscious to aim for the realization of hopes.

The first method is to utilize the power of words. You will do the opposite of the law of “those who mumble do not succeed in love.” Specifically, you shall not say anything self-denying. Instead, you shall always say that you will succeed and something good will happen to you.

If you develop a habit of saying something positive but not passive, you will engrave an image of prosperity on your heart through your ears. Therefore, something good will actually happen. It is just like you will come closer to your destination as long as you are on a right train even if you fall asleep on that train.

The second method is to utilize the power of thoughts.

Human thoughts have power. When a person’s thoughts are concentrated on one thing, it will become a force to move physical objects. Such thoughts are called ‘will’.

When people leave this world and go back to the real world, they start learning how wonderful ‘will’ is. However, there are not many people who understand this power when they are living in this world.

To concentrate one’s thoughts on an object is as effective as throwing a rope. When a loophole catches an object, the rope becomes strained, and one will be able to pull the object close. Concentrating one’s thoughts on success as long as possible is the second method to realize hopes.

The third method is to maintain an image.

You first must have a solid image reflected in your mind. In other words, a vision that appeals to the eye must be clear and vivid.

As I mentioned earlier, the subconscious is a mind with tendency. Therefore, if you can draw a vivid vision in the bottom of your heart, a certain tendency will emerge. If you keep envisioning a clear image all the time, your subconscious mind will start moving toward a certain direction as specified.

What is important here is to maintain an image.

The subconscious mind is like a good-natured driver who will work exactly as ordered. If you tell him to go to the right, he will go to the right immediately. If you tell him to go to the left, he will go to the left immediately. He will immediately turn the steering wheel to go forwards, backwards, or in any direction as ordered. Therefore, if you change your order frequently, your car will not move forward at all.

Once you decide to go straight or to go to the right, you need to keep giving the same order. If you do so, since the subconscious mind is very diligent, you will make good progress without you realizing it.

Therefore, once you envision a clear image, it is important to keep the image.

 

From “The Rules of Prosperity” by Ryuho Okawa

 

 

Can you keep doing it with conviction?

 

I think it can start with a dream and then it must change to a goal that is not a dream, but a practical, concrete goal that must be realized.

Starting with a dream, it must change to a goal to be realized, and from the goal to be realized, the next stage must be the stage to work out the specifics: "What kind of efforts will I have to make, and with what kind of help will I need to achieve the goal?" I think it is important to keep working with conviction during this process. (omitted).

I think it goes from "Dream" to "Desire," and to "Goal," but I think there is still variable factors depending on whether it is like a belief that can't be bent, or if it still has some margin to convert and if it's a matter of choice.

If the answer is, "We can still achieve enough with other options," then you can change course, or you can pull back and admit defeat, based on a comprehensive consideration of relationships and many other factors. However, if you think something should not be conceded, you should clearly raise your voice.

 

From "How to Identify a Man Who Can Earn Money" by Ryuho Okawa.

 

 

Keep on creating your vision even if "walls" appear along the way

 

 

In most cases, there is a "trigger" for something to become a reality. On a personal level, for example, building one's own home would not be possible without the desire to build it.

You cannot buy a single car without thinking about buying it.

Marriage is not easy to achieve if you don't want to, and missionary work is not possible if you aren't eager to do it.

However, when you put into action the "ability to dream," a barrier of difficulty will appear, which makes you feel it is easy for you to fail.

However, you must not give up at that point. If you persist in your efforts, you will realize either "as you expected," or "in a different way," or "in a more amazing way than you expected."

People are reluctant to talk about their dreams because they are too afraid of failure, but I don't think you should be afraid. Rather, it is better to write down your goals, draw a picture of your vision, etc., and put it up as you go along. Visualized or visually depicted things are much easier to realize.

 

From “The Unhappiness Syndrome” by Ryuho Okawa

 

 

Perseverance, the resource of success, can be created

 

Anyway, many people may think that only being smart or talented determines success or fortune in life, and certainly, in the short run, this may be true. However, in the long run, some people can fail because they have too much talent or too much ability. There are some who fail in relationships or fail because they have no sense of money.

Therefore, it is important to make a "snowball" type of effort, rolling and growing in size no matter what happens.

Perseverance is a really important and vital resource for the success of people whose talents and abilities have not yet fully developed, or who do not seem to possess such things.

Please know that even if you were not born with this resource, perseverance is a resource that can be created through self-discipline and training. It is a resource that can be created by accumulating it day in and day out with such a mindset.

No matter how much water you stir up, it will not turn into oil. However, there is something about the human mind that changes when we train hard with a goal in mind.

And I want you to know that "even if something seems very difficult to do now, eventually it will become effortless.

 

From "How to Become a Creative Person" by Ryuho Okawa

 

 

If you do one thing for ten years, you become an expert.

 

 

If you are going to lose in the same amount of time, just do it for a longer period of time. As in the story of the hare and the tortoise, people are different in what they do in a short period of time, but in what they do over a long period of time, those who continue to do something for a long time, like the tortoise, become experts.

No matter what you do, if you devote yourself to one thing for about ten years, you will generally not lose. Whether you are a hairdresser, a fisherman, a golfer, or whatever you do, if you keep at it for ten years, you will never lose to an amateur.

That is true of any field, so don't give up on yourself too easily and think, "There is a way."

 

From “The Unhappiness Syndrome” by Ryuho Okawa