A couple of hours and a visit to the doctor later, you know that you've got some disease that led to your leg pain. With great relief, you smile. You absolutely didn't want to do away with those heels, the ones you fell in love with the moment you looked at them! (And for all the men out there- instead of heels, you all can think about maybe that burger you ate, immediately after which you got a terrible stomach ache! You get the drift.) How did the doctor decide what ailment possessed you? By asking you your symptoms. In my language, by asking you your PAIN POINTS. "Oh your leg hurts? What about your throat? Any other pains? Do you have cough? Are you allergic to any medicines? Do you have a medical history of anything?" Pain point identification, check. And then he does the analysis with your inputs, and then he tells you what ailment you have.

You ping or call up a friend, and tell her about how your day is messed up. You tell her how you awoke to a nightmare, and that's probably why. What your friend says in response, is nothing short of miraculous. She asks you the details of the nightmare, she asks you why that nightmare might have occurred. She helps you identify the PAIN POINT, a fear that has not been resolved, a betrayal that you haven't yet forgiven, a story that you haven't let go. She helps you identify it because though it seems like a decade gone by since, your throat constricts and tears flow like it were yesterday. Time doesn't heal wounds, that's the biggest lie. Acknowledging the pain points and working on them does, that's the true story. After identifying this and clearing your head and heart, you begin afresh at 2pm, and everything is normal again.

Your mentor sets you tasks, your mentor gives you targets. You don't meet them, and you wonder if your capability is lacking. If you're one among a few, you already know why you aren't meeting them, you KNOW how to identify your pain points. And when you're a person who can't, you go up to your mentor, or someone you look up to, and tell them your sad story. Of how no matter how you seem to do, you just don't seem to get there.
Then the mentor/guide asks you, what are you telling yourself while you are going about doing your work? And you tell them: "Please let me not end up last!" That's your pain point, your confidence! Your mentor laughs, and helps you fix it. And the very next time you do the same task with all your heart and soul, you only change one thing- your mindset. And you create history.

Before touching a new gain point, there is a pain point to conquer! What's yours?