- Lock Down Your Why
To be effective you must be motivated, enthused and on mission every day. This requires that your life be aligned with your purpose and passion. This in turn requires that you do the work (journaling, reflecting, gaining perspective by going to the mountain top regularly; observing yourself, your thoughts, reactions, feelings and moods) necessary to grow in self-awareness. I find it powerful to write down what I want from every major goal/task/achievement, how I expect to feel and what I expect to be different/better. When a milestone is reached, it is incredibly insightful to go back and compare my future expectations with my current reality. Most of the time, it is a matter of “Everywhere you go, there YOU are.” plus it’s in the journey, not the destination, where the true joy lies.
- Run With Your Strengths, Backstop Your Weaknesses
To do this effectively, you must acknowledge and accept your weaknesses. Backstopping does not mean ignoring or not working on your flaws; rather it means you put in the 20% that gets you the 80% and then you find a way to work around them, cover them.
- Embrace the Lessons of Failure
Take the time to break failure down into its component parts, conduct a positive, future/learning solution oriented “Post Action Review”. Make sure you learn ONLY the lessons therein. Avoid “Cold Stove” overlearning: A cat which sits on a hot stove often never sits on a cold stove again either.
Closing Quotes:
“Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement.” – W. Clement Stone
“Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” – George Addair
“Believe in yourself. You are braver than you think, more talented than you know, and capable of more than you imagine.” – Roy T. Bennett
As always, I share what I most want and need to learn. – Nathan S. Collier