I hope and trust this post finds you all having had a great day and a great week.
A couple of weeks ago I read an article written by Donna Sollenberger. There were three paragraphs that stood out to me as somewhat profound. I printed them off and taped them right in front of my keyboard at work...I wanted to be reminded of them regularly. I want to share these three paragraphs with you and then elaborate briefly.
"But perhaps the most important part of becoming excellent is to possess the desire and motivation to become the best. The great author, Charles Dickens said, "Whatever I have tried to do in my life, I have tried with all my heart to do well. What I have devoted myself to, I have devoted myself completely."
However you define excellence, it is important to keep in mind that it is not a project, act or job description; excellence is a way of life. It doesn't mean we are asked to hang the moon. Rather, it's the little things that make the big things possible. "Only close attention to fine details of any operation makes the operation first class," said the great entrepreneur, J. Willard Marriott.
When you feel a compelling, constant daily desire to do everything in your life as well as it can constantly be done, you will touch the borders of excellence. When people perform the common things in life in an uncommon way, the world will sit up and take notice. When we do our best at everything, the future takes care of itself."
The First Paragraph
Do you possess the desire and motivation to become the best Friend? What is your goal, your desire, your motivation? Are you a "get by" kind of person or are you a "do the best you can" type of person? This is a choice we all make in all aspects of our lives - separately - every day. For those who possess "get by" desires and motivations in some/all aspects of your life, are you o.k. with "get by" results? See, this is the crux of the matter for all of us; Far to often we want outcomes inconsistent with our desires and motivation. I want the rewards of being a top performer at work however I don't have the desire or motivation to be a top performer. It doesn't make sense does it? Sadly, many people live their lives this way every day. So again I ask you, do you possess the desire and motivation to become the best...man/woman, husband/wife, dad/mom, leader, worker, colleague, friend that you can possibly become? The way you and I answer those questions will determine whether we live a life of excellence or whether we die full of unmet potential.
The Second Paragraph
Excellence is a way of life...Wow! Does that touch you the way it touches me? I find those six words so powerful, so inspirational. Excellence is not something we do every now and then or on some random occasion; it is the way we live our lives each and every day. Doesn't claim perfection, doesn't say you are better than anyone else...it simply says you are striving each and every day to become the best you are capable of becoming in each and every thing you do. It says you are living a life of excellence. And did you catch the most beautiful part of all? It is not dependent on anyone else and it does not reflect outcomes. It is simply a choice you and I will make about the way we will live our lives. With this, excellence is within the grasp of each and every one of us.
The Third Paragraph
I shouldn't even add anything here...I highlighted the entire paragraph when I read it! I simply ask you to think about, perhaps pray about, this; "When you feel a compelling, constant daily desire to do everything in your life as well as it can constantly be done [by you], you will touch the borders of excellence." Will you dare to pursue the excellence that is within you? I truly hope and pray we all will for the world desperately needs people who are living a life of excellence.
Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always be willing to help you any way I can.
Have a great evening, a wonderful weekend and please cherish your precious families.
Kev
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