The Right Attitude

I am a real stickler for keeping the right attitude, and I find that passion is one of those things which keeps my attitude on track.

It keeps me doing things with a glad heart rather than just going through the motions.

According to the Marketing and  Research Corporation of Princeton, New Jersey, 50-80% of Americans are in the wrong job.

I have no doubt that these figures reflect this in the rest of the world as well.  If you are in the wrong job, there is no way you are going to be passionate about it.

It’s hard to be passionate if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, and for all the wrong reasons. However, when you are doing something you love, you are in the right place; and it’s always the right time; and you are doing it for all the right reasons. That’s what keeps you passionate.

Passion and joy are synonymous. The passion we have for everyday living is an infectious quality in a leader. It’s what attracts others to our cause.

Different Passions

Because of differences in our personalities, beliefs and urges, we also show our passion in different ways. For example, someone who is melancholic in personality (melancholics are generally creative people) may show their passion through their music or creativeness.

As for me, being a sanguine-choleric, I show passion through excitement, zeal and doing things. Whatever personality type you have, show your passion, because that passion will be the fuel for getting things done.

Passion doesn’t have to be loud; it can be quiet, too. Passion is about feeling and expression more than volume. How many times have you heard a beautiful ballad that is soft yet filled with great passion?

Passion is usually visible though, and it becomes the dividing wall between achievement and mediocrity. With a sense of passion you throw everything you have, your strength of mind, will, emotion and muscle, into your work with all zest and with a great sense of purpose.

How to Stay Passionate

As a relational leader, with all the demands of mentorees and not to mention the daily demands of overseeing your enterprise, it’s easy to lose your passion. This happens from time to time, so what can you do about it? Try the following:

1. Stick with what you are good at.

Be true to yourself and what you have committed to do. Know your gifts and your strengths and let them com­plement your weaknesses. This will help to keep you passionate.

My gift is motivating and loving people. I make no apology for that. If you hang around me long enough, I will keep talking to you about people – people are my business and my business is people. I know my gift is in this area, so I do the best I can to keep focused on working with people – especially people who want more out of life and business leaders, my two passions in life.

I need to know what makes me tick as a person. To put it simply, it’s a calling, and I need to know what my calling is, my purpose and drive, so that I can remain passionate.

• Be willing to pay the cost.

The only way to really taste great victories is to put everything you have into winning them, you must go ‘all in”. It will cost you greatly to be successful but it will be worth it.

Passion fuels the fire to make the sacrifices necessary for success. Winston Churchill said, ‘I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.’ For many people, the term ‘blood’ is a turn off; sacrifice to them is a price paid by either zealous fanatics or blind fools. But there is nothing more rewarding (and it will keep your passion ignited!) than seeing the reward and celebrating the victory of service and sacrifice.

• Be creative.

Use that entrepreneurial flair you have. How do I personally remain creative? I need time to think. I need to fill myself with good thoughts, and my body needs to be free of fatigue so that my mind can think clearly. Creative juices will then flow because of passion.

• Have a desperate desire to succeed.

Vince Lombardi once said that winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing. We must develop the passion to win. I’ve yet to meet a team who didn’t care about winning yet actually won. Every competitive team is driven by the passion to win and not to lose or to draw.

• Don’t be threatened by other talented people. Nothing robs you of passion and vision more than a threatened disposition. Learn to enjoy and align your­ self with other people’s success. Thomas Jefferson said, ‘We confide in our strength, without boasting of it, we respect that of others, without fearing it.’

• Work on your weaknesses.

Don’t be discouraged but use them as a springboard to personal development so you can excel.

• Identify what you are passionate about.

Ask yourself, ‘What do I think about more than any thing else? What is the thing that drives me?’ Next, ask yourself what you would do with your life if you knew you couldn’t fail. What excites you and will keep you passionate? This passion will cause you to stretch further, to leave your comfort zone and to tackle that seemingly impossible task.

CONVICTION

Conviction is absolutely essential to the effective relational leader. You have to have gut-feelings, principles and a sense of integrity, and you must have the courage  to act on them.

Ken Blanchard and Don Shula have written a great book entitled Everyone’s a Coach. In it they discuss being ‘conviction-driven.’ Being conviction-driven means doing the right thing for the right reasons.       

Effective  leaders must have boundaries and reference points. Convictions will be their compass to determine what they seek in life, how they operate and how they maintain a solid course. Beliefs and convictions are also important because they determine  the boundaries within which people can work with you. They spell out the length and breadth of relationship with you.

I think it was Alexander Hamilton who said, ‘If you won’t stand for something you will fall for anything.’ In my book “Capture Your Dreams and Smash Your Fears” I mentioned the difference between living by conviction and living by preference. People couldn’t care less about their preferences,  but they will die for their convictions. A lack of conviction is like a river without banks – just one huge, muddy puddle.

That’s why it’s important to understand the power of convictions. Having convictions gives us momentum and a sense of direction. Unfortunately, sometimes individuals and organisations can lack convictions, and therefore they lack the direction and the momentum to keep going.

Live Life

David