Striving for excellence gives us pride in what we do. Challenging yourself and others to go beyond
is contagious!
So, how do we improve? Encouragement helps. Ideas that lead
to solutions also help.
But it’s really about a
willingness to come back with ideas again and again despite hearing ‘no.‘ Hearing
‘no’ builds our dignity and builds who we are. If you really believe in growing
you must be willing to hear the no’s and still move forward. When you hear no,
do not give up. Listen to the comments and then see if there is a need to
negotiate—with yourself and with others, in every situation. Keep coming back to the table with more
solutions and ideas to help move the concept forward.
‘No’ lives inside of us all. My friend C., is recently
divorced. She knew she would have to step into a different role with her sons –
one of strength. She would have to mute the no voice inside of her by giving
herself a challenge. She knew her boys loved to hike and so, earlier in the
year, she planned a challenging summer in Yosemite hiking one of those trails that reach some
8,000 feet above sea level. For C., this
was daunting yet at the same time, exhilarating. She always preferred to stay
home while her family hiked. She knew this was going to be very different for
her. She was asking herself to think differently because her circumstances had
changed.
Every day, she went to the gym after she dropped her boys at
school. She planned some day and weekend
hikes on her own to keep growing. Little did they know that she was making such
physical preparations. Even with a full time job, C. creatively plotted new
ways to negotiate her schedule in order to accommodate this new commitment.
When it came time for the trek, C. hiked right along with
her boys. There was no stopping her! She strived for and achieved excellence –
and best of all, she felt such strong self-pride and delivered not only the
gift of her presence, but also gave her boys a strong message about reaching
goals despite obstacles. You can change who you are. You can always do
more. You can change how you think. You can think harder. Always remember to believe in your dreams and
keep thinking big, strive for excellence and pursue those dreams.
Striving for excellence means hearing ‘no’ and negotiating
around it every single time. It is neither
self-rewarding nor self-fulfilling. It always benefits others.
