The Key to Success.

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.

Recently a friend and I came to the conclusion that excuses are the enemy of improvement. Of all the handlers I know, the most successful make the least excuses. People who have yet to find their success still make excuses for all the "bad" things that happen in agility. But that's just it, they assume that mistakes are bad. They're not, I can't say how many times during a training session that I say to my dogs, "My fault, let's try again." Mistakes aren't always fun, but I find it valuable to know why my dog and I can't do something or why we do something wrong. Every knocked bar, miscued turn, and off course are simply a chance for improvement. People make excuses and accept them as unchangeable facts. Excuses simply ruin the opportunity for learning, and are discouraging for those chasing down their own success.  Enjoying the process of learning, and being able find the joy in making mistakes makes improvement possible.

 It is quite easy to be happy when everything is going well, but enjoying your dog and the sport are most important when things aren't working out. Being in love with the journey is what gives individuals the courage to keep pushing on. Fighting nerves with the nerve to give it your all. We call agility our passion, why? Because we love the game. If you are only happy when you are winning, you don't love agility. You love the results. Honestly, I don't find that to be "success". Big ribbons, shiny trophies and lots of titles are nice to spice up a resume, but they are the byproduct of success. The lessons we learn from both mistakes and improvement are the ingredients that propel us forward towards both happiness and success. It's a process of accepting all outcomes and learning something from every experience. 

True success is simply happiness.