Conquer is such an imposing word, usually connoting force and power and aggressiveness. And if obstacles are standing between you and the success you hope to achieve, then some good old-fashioned blunt force trauma would seem the appropriate plan of action. Tear down those walls. Pound those impediments to bits. Break through those pesky hedgerows. Hulk smash!

Makes sense right?

The problem with the storm-the-beachhead assault mentality is that it can become exhausting to maintain. Like Sisyphus rolling the stone up the hill day after day, continually trying to pound away at obstacles get really old, really fast.

So what is a better approach?

Turn it into a game. Make it fun. Gamify it. In fact, conquer comes from the Latin conquirere which means to gain or win. Doesn’t that sound a lot more enjoyable than sludging through the proverbial mud trying to beat our obstacles into submission?

I know it does for me. I know myself well enough to know that as soon as something becomes a chore to me, my motivation quickly dissipates. Even if it is something I really want, the minute it begins to feel like a ‘have to’ instead of a ‘want to’ my interest starts to wane.

Better (for me at least) to make a game of it. Figure out ways to keep score, to tally points, to keep it light and fun. Throw some mini-rewards in there. Yes, I understand that not all tasks or goals are inherently enjoyable. In fact, some of them downright suck. But it is the way we approach them that can make all the difference. We can bring a higher mindset to the task. We can figure out ways to turn it into a game. The obstacle may not be fun in the standard sense, but it can be fun nonetheless.

When we switch our conquering mentality from overcoming to winning, the path to success becomes a much easier—not to mention pleasurable—road to travel.

To your good fortune!