Your success is not a matter of how much time you have; it is a matter of what you do with the time you have.  – Tim Kight

 

Time is a precious resource.   I often find myself wishing for additional hours in each day.  I’d like more time each day to spend with family, more time to exercise and more time to sleep.

 

While time is a limited resource, what we do with our time is a decision.  Many of us struggle with the discipline required to keep our focus on what matters most.  It is easy to get distracted by things that flash, buzz, and ping.  The amount of time we spend on social media, dealing with unimportant yet seemingly urgent things, and life’s distractions often keeps us from having the time to make a difference.

 

As you plan your day . . . as you find yourself scrolling through endless Tweets or considering the lesser of two bad options . . . act with purpose and skill.  The minutes you save in one area may make all the difference in the world later in your day.

 

 

Happiness depends upon ourselves.  – Aristotle

 

I find myself struggling at times with competing principals.  I am deeply committed to my passion for growth.  I pride myself in pushing to my personal edge . . . to being better today than I was yesterday.  I am driven by my work, by my purpose.

 

While I embrace this journey, I also want to be happy.  I want to be content and enjoy the blessings of family, friends, and relaxation.  I don’t want to be one of those people who are always working and never stopping to enjoy the journey itself.

 

As Aristotle reminds us, “Happiness depends upon ourselves.”  No one else can make me – or you for that matter – slow down to enjoy the journey.  We talk about intentional and purposeful behavior.  There is no shame, in making time for you. 

 

Be purposeful in taking time to rest and rejuvenate.  Invest in relationships and enjoy fellowship with family and friends.  Only you control your happiness and contentment . . . make it part of your journey.

 

Resisting change is self-defeating.  Success in today’s world goes to those who adjust and adapt.  – Tim Kight

 

We are on a journey together.  Each and every day is a new chapter . . . each action we take is a step down our personal path.

 

Our journey requires us to learn from past experiences, to synthesize an increasingly complex world around us, and to adapt our behavior based on knowledge and skill.  Repeatedly taking the same action over and over, without a mindset focused on growth, will cause us to fall behind.

 

Change doesn’t mean what we are doing today is ineffective or poorly executed.  Accepting change – committing to adjust and adapt – is simply a commitment to continued growth and improvement.

Don’t ever confuse talking about ideas with taking action.  In a world full of talk, be someone who acts with discipline.   – Brian Kight

 

We all know “talkers.”  We know those people in our lives who always say the “right things” but don’t always do “the right things.”

 

It is often easy to identify the actions that are required in the moment, but it is sometimes difficult to have the discipline to act with purpose.  We must work to build that bridge . . . to build the bridge from thought, to talk, to action.  Having a good idea isn’t good enough – we must act.

 

Today, as you begin your day, commit to not only talk about your ideas, but to turn those ideas into action.  Yes, share and collaborate, but also act and do.  The purposeful discipline to step-up requires each of us to make a difference every day.

Optimistic people bring positive energy to any situation.  Pessimistic people suck energy from any situation.  You control both your attitude and your friends – choose wisely.

 

You know the situation.  We’ve all been there.  You are in a room, in a conversation, with people that seem to be feeding off negative energy.  You have a decision to make.  You can easily jump into the negative gossip or complaining . . . it is so easy to go with the flow in the room.

 

OR . . . you can step up.  You have the power . . . you can end it.  You can change the flow to positive . . . you can embrace the productive discomfort and STEP UP.  It’s extremely difficult . . . it takes courage . . . it takes commitment to your convictions, but you want to do it.  You want to be the “game changer.”

 

Today, right now, commit to bringing the positive to every conversation.  Commit to stepping up and leading.  A discipline-driven life, a life lived Above the Line, requires each of us to take ownership of our space in every corner of lives.  You control your attitude and the behavior you permit around you.  OWN IT!

 

Great teams care more.  They care more about their effort, their work, and their team members.  – Jon Gordon

 

Life is a team sport.  We are social creatures, created by our maker to live, love, and grow in communities.  Alone we are powerless – together the possibilities are limitless.

 

Great success comes from caring more for others than for yourself.  It is about working for others, serving the team, and devoting our efforts to the group.

 

Be a servant leader; be a great teammate.  Focus your skill, attention, and energy on the group . . . the rewards will be great.

Motivation is a fire from within.  If someone else tried to light that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly.  – Stephen Covey

 

Leaders inspire greatness.  Great leaders inspire other to inspire greatness in others.

 

My fire, my passion, is to lead.  My vision for leadership is simple . . . to inspire others to be leaders themselves.  When I – or any leader – is successful, the entire organization is leading and learning.  When I inspire others to find their fire . . . the entire organization is functioning at a high level.

 

You must first find your fire . . . and permit others to help you find that burning for greatness.  Don’t settle for having someone else light a fire under you . . . that is short lived.  Take the challenge – find your purpose – and then burn with a passion to be elite.

 

Great team members hold each other accountable to the high standards and excellence their culture expects and demands.  – Jon Gordon

 

Too often, when we hear or see counterproductive behavior on our team, we turn and walk away.  We say to ourselves, “that’s not my job; the boss or supervisor will need to address that problem.”  On athletic teams, we think the coach is responsible for culture and standards.  In schools, “that’s the principal’s job.”

 

Well no (a resounding no) . . . culture is the team’s responsibility.  Every successful athletic team has a culture that is modeled by the coach and enforced by the team.  Every successful organization has a culture that is led by leadership and cultivated within the ranks.  Yes . . . it is your job to foster the culture you expect.  Great team members hold each other accountable.

 

In schools, great teachers lead and contribute to the culture – and hold others accountable to the high standards that are demanded by the team.  It is our job – it is our duty and responsibility – to hold each other accountable.

We see the world, not as it is, but as we are – or as we are conditioned to see it.   – Stephen Covey

 

Our experiences, events repeated over time, shape how we respond.  We have been conditioned – we have been trained – to respond without thinking.  We permit our emotions to become our default condition . . . it has been indoctrinated into our brain.

 

In order to recondition ourselves – in order to gain perspective and act with discipline – we must build the required skills to press pause and step back.  When our instinct, often conditioned over time, creates a Pavlovian response to any event, we aren’t functioning at our best.  We must develop the ability to change our perspective – to assume a different position.

 

Be aware today of your instinctual responses to specific events.  Take a moment, a split second, to refocus your lens.  Our passion for growth, our mindset committed to continual improvement, demands that we build these skills and strive to be elite.

One person can’t make a team but one person can break a team.  – Jon Gordon

 

In your mind’s eye reflect for a moment about your team, your group, or your department.  There are positive people on the team . . . people who bring energy and who inspire the best in others.  And, there are probably negative people . . . energy vampires that seem to suck the life from any activity or initiative.

 

First of all, commit yourself to your team.  Commit to “bringing the positive” each and every day.  Commit to your teammates; be the best teammate you can be.

 

Secondly – and this is the hard part – do not permit one person to break the team.  You have control – call them on it.  You have the power to say, “No, this isn’t how we behave.”  Too often we permit the negative people, the bullies, and the energy vampires to break us down.  Stand-up and Own It . . . break the cycle and strengthen your team.