Passion: The Main Ingredient to Success

One of the quotes that had great impact on my life when I was in college was Zig Ziglar’s famous question, “Are you a meaningful specific or a wandering generality?” This quote came to mind as I was thinking about the ingredients that make a life of purpose, direction and productivity. A keen study of the lives of people who excel will reveal that the main ingredient for their success is usually one thing: passion. Their dedication to a cause, belief in people and commitment to living their best life come from their passion. They find the one thing they really enjoy doing, then do it with passion. Passion is the key ingredient to success.

Where does passion come from? How can we use it to become meaningful specifics? Passion is born out of desire - having a dream, vision or longing to see something different from a current situation. What do you see in your future? What’s your dream? Martin Luther King Jnr. was a very passionate man because he had a dream for racial equality. Princess Diana had a passion for charity work because she wanted to see a better world. Your passion will enable you to soar from obscurity and into the limelight. Your passion will enable you to realize something greater than yourself. Your passion will enable you to be a meaningful specific.

Passion is effective when it is birthed from the inside. You must be motivated intrinsically. You cannot exhibit passion on the outside when deep down you are shallow. You’ve got to cultivate it deep within yourself. That comes by immersing yourself wholeheartedly into pursuing your vision or dream.

The Beauty of WorkHow to Embrace, Love and Honor Your Work

There’s an old African saying that “To till the land is to love oneself”. WIWAK (When I was a kid) I heard this saying a lot. I come from a Kenyan community that tilled the land using very rudimentary tools. It wasn’t easy but it was rewarding. I remember being in the village and tilling the land for up to six or seven hours a day. Work is beautiful. In today’s blog, I would like to share a few thoughts on work.

1. Work should be driven by purpose

Work is supposed to be meaningful. The key to this is for the work to be driven by a vision that is guided by purpose. This means that you have to know what your purpose is first. Work that is done outside of purpose is activity without productivity. This leads to sweat and waste. You want your work to be sweet. This begins by having a solid vision that is founded in your purpose. In an organization, leadership has to clarify to employees what the purpose is. Once they clearly understand what the main objective is, then they will have joy as they work.

2. Work should add value

The beauty of giving time to work is that you have an opportunity to add value. Value is the prime motivator for the expenditure of energy. People enjoy putting in the hours when they know that they are adding value. True reward does not come for the time put in at work but for the value added during that time. Adding value means being able to see a measurable change. WIWAK tilling the land back home in Kenya, I would always look at what I had done with immense satisfaction and joy. Nothing brings more fulfillment than work that adds value.

3. Work should be fun and exciting

When I was in High School I used to enjoy playing soccer and rugby. It was always fun to score in any of these games. It was even more exciting just to be part of a winning team. Most people enjoy sports because of these two reasons: scoring and winning. Work should be fun and exciting too. The key to this is to create an environment when scoring and winning is possible at work. People need to be able to celebrate these moments too. That’s what brings spirit to work. It’s unfortunate that too many people think of work as burdensome and boring when it can be exciting.

Work is beautiful! May this be an enjoyable day of work for you!

Embrace the Sweetness of Risk

Great achievements have always required some form of risk-taking. Most people don’t achieve those great things because they are risk-averse. In order to experience the fulness of all that life has for us we must possess a healthy attitude toward risk. People fear risk-taking because of a fear of failure (or loss). But risk is sweet. Carefully calculated risk can mean all the difference when you are trying to achieve/accomplish something. Embrace the sweetness of risk today and you may just surprise yourself!

The EAGLE Mentality

I’m inspired by the stories of innovators like Andrew Carnegie. Andy surrounded himself with big thinking resourceful people. How he got them is a secret that is open to all of us. Mr. Carnegie went on to become the greatest philanthropist of his generation because he knew how to get the right people and empower them for broad-based action.

In a way, we can say that Andrew Carnegie surrounded himself with eagles. Eagles in this sense represent leaders of the highest calibre. The tricky thing about eagles is that they don’t flock; you have to find them one at a time. Most organizations end up with turkeys instead of eagles because they are position conscious and take whoever shows up. Eagles don’t show up. You have to go and look for them. Here are six marks of an eagle:

1. Eagles are catalysts of experiences - Eagles make things happen based on their skills and abilities. They walk the road less traveled, defying models in order to blaze new trails.

2. Eagles possess great vision and execution - Eagles don’t perch on a tree and wait for manna to fall from heaven. They go out and look for opportunities. They are not risk averse.

3. Eagles are change agents - Eagles influences others in positive ways. They are 360° influencers. Their influence is not restricted by attributes like age or profession.

4. Eagles are multipliers of value - Growing organizations have people who bring added value to the company but great organizations have people who multiply value. The average organization has people who subtract value while the mediocre organization has people who divide value.

5. Eagles empower eagles to lead - Birds of a feather flock together because only they have an uncanny ability to bring out the best in each other. Eagles don’t hang out with hawks.

6. Eagles are sources of creativity - Eagles hunt for ideas that result in quantum growth for the organization. Because of this, an organization with eagles will always be a leader of the pack.

The ABCs of Murphy's Law

Murphy’s Law states that whatever can go wrong, will go wrong, and at the worst time possible. A couple of week's ago I had some experiences with Murphy's Law that prompted me to develop a strategy for keeping Murphy from messing me up ever again. Here’s my three-pronged strategy for dealing with Murphy's Law. I call it the ABC’s of dealing with Murphy:

1. Anticipate what might go wrong

When Murphy struck at me a few weeks ago I did not see it coming at all. All week I had prepared for all my engagements with complete confidence that everything was going to go as planned. This was a little naive from a leadership standpoint. My game plan now is to anticipate what might go wrong so that when it does go wrong, I can deal effectively with it.

2. Bring yourself to a state of calmness

Murphy left me in a panic that week because of the element of surprise. I failed to consciously make the choice of staying calm - actually when I talked to my contact at the non-profit organization, I used the word “flustered”. I was upset that I hadn’t made it for the highlight of my week. Today I choose to stay calm and not let Murphy govern my life.

3. Create systems that allow for success

Success in any endeavor is all about having the right systems. I took a good look at all the systems in my disposal and was able to align them so that I’m assured of victory over Murphy. A system allows you to quickly assess what's wrong and then fix it.

Navigating Life's "Weird" Moments

We all go through "weird" moments in life. Here are some thoughts on how we can navigate such moments:

Thought # 1.

When things get weird, stop doing things as you have always been doing them. Raise the standard. Start living and working like a champion. Recognize that it is only the mentality you embrace that will either make you or break you. Go the extra mile. Pay the costly price. Persevere. Stretch yourself. Do the undoable. Break the boundaries of limitation. Don’t cower like a chick in the rain. Soar above mediocrity. For destiny’s sake, come out of your shell and live the abnormal life! Don’t settle for the normal and mediocre. Get out of control and awaken the giant within. Do the things that you can’t do!

Thought # 2.

Depart from your assumptions about work. Work is not conquered by working hard but by working smart. Work is not labor but laughter. Thomas Edison, respected inventor and holder of patents to over one thousand inventions is well known to have said, “I never had a day’s work all my life. It was all fun!” That’s abnormal living! This guy lived OFF THE WALL! His work attitude could not even be read by the charts. That’s the kind of approach we need towards work. When you learn to love work, you have solved 50% of the problems of life. The other 50% are solved when you actually work.

Thought # 3.

This is a huge piece of advice. When things get weird, turn pro. What distinguishes a pro from an amatuer? A pro never plays, he performs. An amatuer plays and has no concept of what it means to perform for his team. You have to learn to perform. When the axe falls, it takes out the players and leaves those who perform. Those who play entertain but those who perform produce results. Get the difference? Don’t just play for your team, perform for it! Are you an entertainer or a producer? Turn pro. The key is to perfect the art of consistent diligence at working at your task.

Thought # 4.

When things get weird, decide to create your own ripple effect. Disturb the waters. I don’t mean that you rebel against what’s happening. Such a move will destroy you! You’ve got to be wise. You can’t fire a missile from a canoe! You’ve got to elevate your thinking.What do you mean then by saying that you should create your own ripple effect? I’m glad you asked! When things get weird, you’ve got to engage them. You don’t shirk away from them. GO FOR THE JUGULAR!

Thought # 5.

Start singing as you go through the weird times. Sounds funny, eh! I can imagine you guys bursting out in laughter thinking I’ve gone nuts. Ha! Ha! Ha! Honestly, when things get weird, START SINGING! You see, singing lifts up your spirits and there’s no telling what a man or woman in high spirits can do. I’d rather have one person who’s in high spirits, even unreasonably excited, rather than twenty who are discouraged, beat up, ready to give up any moment.

Create Your Legacy

People today are consumed with the idea of going to the next level in their lives, be it in their relationships, careers, finances or other area of life. While this is great because it motivates them, I find it to be an idea that can limit our true potential. My paradigm is that we need to be consumed with the idea of the kind of legacy we will leave behind at the end of the seasons of our lives.

Thinking about your legacy every day, rather than thinking about the next level only, makes you a better leader. I also believe that thinking about a legacy makes you other-people centered while thinking about going to the next level tends to make one self-centered. How do you transition from thinking about the next level to thinking about developing a legacy?

1. Be more focused on other people rather yourself

The idea of being a ‘people person’ has been around for a long time. Dale Carnegie’s 1936 masterpiece, ‘How to Win Friends and influence People’, has helped so many people over the years to develop a people-centered perspective that has enabled them to leave great legacies. I would highly suggest a reading of the book.

2. Ask how you can help rather than what others can do for you.

President John F. Kennedy immediately became a world figure with his acceptance speech in which he said, ” And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you -ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of teh world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.” In order to leave a legacy you must ascend in thought to where you are asking what you can do for others rather than what they can do for you.

3. Be a giver more than a receiver

Nothing shapes a legacy more than the spirit of giving. When you give of yourself to others you become a part of the solution. It’s solution-centered thinking that sets the pace for the kind of legacy a person will leave behind. Again, when one is thinking of going to the next level, the pre-dominant question is “What can I get (or receive) that will take me to the next level?” When one is thinking of leaving a legacy, the pre-dominant question is “What can I give that will help others?” Be more of a giver and your legacy will be unshakeable because the truth is that what we give is ours forever!

4. Be a leader more than a follower

Leaders impact and influence other people greatly. The great thing about being a leader is that you are able to take other people to the next level as you develop a legacy. What a beauty! Leaders pass along the best in themselves to other people. I’m always pleased when I hear from people I led in high school and at the university. They always say things like, “Herman, that idea was awesome. It took our group to a whole new level.” While those short-term moves were great for whichever group I led, the best thing is that a legacy was developed because even today they still talk about what we did.

Are you living for the next level or developing a legacy for and with your people? Start shaping your legacy today.

Pursuing and Realizing Your Dreams

We live in a day when many people are being inspired to reach for the greatness that is within them. A lot of credit goes to the self-improvement industry which has done a lot to expose people to their true potential. People are dreaming more and dreaming often. But still there are many who have not come to the point of making their dreams come true. How can dreams be pursued and realized?

In The Road to Arrival, I defined a dream as a strongly desired goal. Dreams can easily be realized when they are broken down into specific achievable goals. The Road to Arrival discusses ten empowering principles for actualizing dreams: faith, associations, detachment, perseverance, faithfulness, character and integrity, diligence, the tongue, pursuit and connection. In addition to this, I outlined nine key principles that identified the steps, levels, conditions, essentials, keys, phases, rules, laws and stages of actualization.

What’s your dream? Are you pursuing it? We are all waiting for your arrival in the land of your dreams. Capture your dreams and let your vision soar!

The Power of Good Thinking

A few years ago I really enjoyed reading John C. Maxwell’s book, Thinking for a Change. I had already been practicing some of the concepts he developed in the book but he added superb insight to my understaning of the essence of good thinking. Three of his ideas stood out:

1. Good Thinking Creates the Foundation for Good Results

What do you want to achieve in life? The key to that will be in developing a reservoir of good thoughts that are well implemented. Your progress in life is directly proportional to the quality of your thoughts. As I set the Better Life Company in motion I had to assess the integrity of my thinking. That provided me with the confidence of knowing that I could head into action.

2. Good Thinking Increases Your Potential

Many of the thought leaders I have come to respect have been great proponents of the need to understand and pursue one’s full potential in life. Potential is simply the capacity that a person has for effectiveness in life. We can all attain our potential as we begin to elevate our thinking. Good thinking increases the level of results one can expect in life.

3. Good Thinking Produces More Good Thinking IF . . . You Make It a Habit

Nothing dominates life more than a habit. As you practice good thinking, you develop a foundation from which you can continue to harvest even better thinking. Internationally respected leadership authority, Stephen Covey, explains that we cannot face the challenges of today with the responses of yesterday. We have to continually raise our response - it takes a habit of good thinking to do that.

LEED - Live Extraordinarily Every Day

There are many different traits that are essential for a better life but when it comes to truly winning in life, there are four crucial traits that one must embody. These are knowledge, passion, humor and a positive attitude. Let’s take a quick look at each of these:

Knowledge

Knowledge is the key quality that enables a man or woman to realize his or her true personal potential. Knowledge sets one apart since it enables you to demonstrate higher capacities and capabilities. The difference between one’s current state and a future desired state is normally bridged by the quality of one’s knowledge. Knowledge lifts you up from the pit to the pinnacle of your desires.

Passion

Passion separates between the committed and the non-committed. Passion is the one essential quality that enables the realization of dreams and desires. Passion births zealous commitment in an individual and enables him or her to stay focused on the quest for a better life. All revolutions throughout the history of mankind have always been brought about by passion individuals.

Humor

Humor is an essential trait because it provides us with the motivation to continue striving through situations that may not fully be desirable. Having a sense of humor about life is essential. Fun, excitement, enjoyment, laughter and happiness are key pieces in teh puzzle of life. Life offers us many unique experiences and challenges. Humor enables us to ride these unique experiences and challenges without losing motivation.

A Positive Attitude

Nothing brings greater results in life than having a positive attitude. Your attitude sets the pace for your experiences. You may not know what kind of situations the day will bring to you but you can determine the attitude with which you will approach each of your experiences with. Your day is not determined by what happens to you. What happens to you is insignificant compared to how you will react to it. So, what kind of attitude will you bring to your experiences today? A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events, and outcomes.

Live Extraordinarily - Every Day!

Growth is not Permanent

One of the most important things that must be grasped in life is that growth is not permanent. Many times we set a goal for accomplishment and once that goal is attained we sort of settle into a feeling that we have arrived. Best example of this is the diploma mentality. Most people stop learning and growing once their degree, diploma or certificate in whatsoever they are pursuing. The end result of this is that they slowly start losing most of what they had learnt. The key to continuos improvement in life is a commitment to never-ending personal growth. here are some growth keys for a better life:

Generate a passion for growth within yourself - Personal growth is not easy. It takes a special commitment to maintain consistent growth. The key to this is to make a personal decision for continuous growth. You have to decide that no matter what you will carve out time for your growth.

Read widely with a desire to expand your knowledge - Leaders are readers. In order to stay ahead of the pack, you must do what the pack doesn’t do. Few people read on a daily basis. What you do daily will decide who you become permanently. You have to read and listen to audio books daily.

Omit useless activities from your daily agenda - Personal growth goes hand-in-hand with time management. In order to develop yourself you must learn to discriminate wisely amongst activities. That’s the key to maintaining focus. Activity doesn’t necessarily equate to productivity.

Wear a whatever it takes attitude - I was watching Tiger Woods play golf on the final day of the 2007 Buick invitational which he won by two strokes for his seventh straight PGA tour win. Tiger has committed himself to continously improving his game. Nobody wears a whatever it takes attitude better than him.

Treasure the company of others that are growing - Who you become in five years depends a lot on who you associate with today. Find people that are growing and share in their growth. Your environment should consist of people that are going in the same direction in which you are headed. That is the key to achievement.

Hammer-out a lifestyle of growth - Developing a lifestyle of growth is not easy. Once you set your eyes on growing, all sorts of obstacles will try and prevent you from attaining that goal. You have to “chisel” out a pathway of growth in your life.

Embrace these keys to growth and you will definitely attain more than you ever thought possible!

Personal Potential and Self-Definition

The quality of our lives is directly proportional to how we define ourselves. Most people tend to define themselves based on their past. It is impossible to attain our full potential if we define ourselves based on past experiences in our lives. Past experiences should never ever be a reference for who we currently are. Past experiences depict what happened in our lives, not who we are.

A proper definition of self should be based on one’s personal potential. Your vision of who you can become and what you can do with your life is the foundation of living the better life every day. What is it that you were born to do? Who do you see yourself becoming? That is the definition of who you are. You must define yourself in a positive way, talking about the good that you were designed to accomplish.

The Architecture of Vision

Architecture is simply the structure of anything. In construction circles, it is the act or process of building. The architecture of vision is therefore the act of giving structure to that which has been intangible - your vision of the future. Going back to our opening quote, we are the architects of our own fortune. Fortune is a child of vision. When it is said that where there is no vision people perish, what that really means is that where people lack hope in the future, there are no fortunes for them to reach for.

Let us briefly look at the work of an architect. An architect takes a user’s vision and brings it to life. He plans and designs that which had been conceived in the mind. Many architects are great visionaries.

One of my favorite visionary architects is R. Buckminster Fuller, the creator of the Geodesic Dome. His concepts were revolutionary. The dymaxion car (contracted from DYnamic MAXimum tensION), for instance. Fuller had a superb ability to dream big and develop audacious goals.

Success and significance in life are directly proportional to how well we act on vision. Acting on vision requires strategy. Developing goals and objectives that bring the vision into clearer focus is essential. Having a team of people who will buy into the vision is key. It’s all about mastery and architecture. May your vision come to pass!

There's no such thing as failure

There's no such thing as failure. What causes us to quit in the face of failure is our attitude. Your attitude determines your altitude. Failure does not mean that it is over. While reading through some of my material I came across a poem that I think would be worthwhile to share.

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill.
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns.
And many a fellow turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering man.
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor’s cup.
And he learned too late when the night came down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar.
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit,
It’s when things seem worst that you mustn’t quit.
And that’s worth thinking about.

Friends, develop a success attitude. That will be the key for prevailing over the arrows of failure. Failure isn’t final!!

The Mastery of Vision

It’s a common quote: we are the masters of our own destiny and the architects of our own fortune. But the real situation is that very few people are actualizing the truth of that statement. What makes some people masters of greatness and architects of achievement while others languish in the obscurity of mediocrity? My thinking is that the main thing that separates between those who soar and those who flop in life is vision. It has been said that where there is no vision, people perish. Vision is the primary ingredient of success, the seed of greatness and the foundation of accomplishment.

Superb winners always show a mastery of their vision way before their competence at a task is demonstrated. As a young teen in the late ’80s I used to enjoy watching heaveyweight boxing fights. Those were the days of men like Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, George Foreman and Lennox Lewis. What enabled me to understand each fighter’s vision for a match-up was the press conferences right before a fight. I liked it even more when it was between the heavyweight champion and a contender. The boxers would vividly describe what they would do in the ring and then it was up to them to go out and show that they could back-up their words with action in the ring.

Winners in life have a mastery of vision that is undisputable. Mastery is defined as the command, grasp or control of a subject. We love sports because we can readily see mastery demonstrated before us. Look at a bike rider like Lance Armstrong. I’ve enjoyed watching him compete in the Tour-de-France year after year and I missed him in last year’s race following his retirement. Lance was a master at teaching us the art of vision. He would train seriously in the off-season and then come out every July in-front of the world’s cameras and show that he had what it takes to win a grueling 21-day race.

Navigating Transitions: The Three Key Stages

Life is full of transitions. We all experience moments in life when we have to make transitional changes. Right from birth to our final resting, it’s all about transition. It’s the transition from the womb to the world, from the bassinet to the crib, from home to school, from high school to college, college to career and so on. Successfully navigating of transitions is a tough thing. Transitions can either lead to an abyss or bliss. It all depends on how you handle it.

Transitions are difficult. Understanding the three elements of transition is the key to moving on. These are closure, limbo and advancement.

Closure signifies the end of one stage. It is the point at which we have to let go of the former. Many people have a hard time handling closures but it is important to understand that everything changes. That knowledge itself guarantees you two-thirds of the victory during transitions. The other third is found in understanding the other two elements.

Limbo is when you haven’t quite moved out of closure fully and are yet to experience the new thing. The most important skill here is that of letting go of the former. New attitudes have to be shaped. New concepts need to be grasped. If this is done well, then your progress to the third element of transition - advancement - is secure.

Advancement is when you have completely put behind the old and have successfully navigated your way to a better life. At this stage, you can look back and say, “Wow! I’m glad I made that change!” Advancement comes after you have made the adjustments that are necessary to take you to the next level.

Your transitions don't have to be difficult. Good luck as you move from closure to limbo to advancement. The best is yet to come!