The 4 enablers of excellence

We all want to be successful. The excellence, as it turns out, is the vehicle to achieve success.

So what it takes to achieve the success? What are the 4 pillars? What are the four enablers of excellence? Here they go:

  1. Essence: “I chose because that’s how I live my purpose. I’m responsible.” 
  2. Ownership: “I’ll make it happen no matter what.”
  3. Gratitude: “I’m thankful for all what I’ve got. Now let me give something back without expecting anything in return.”
  4. Courage: “If I don’t try, I can’t fail. But then what’s the point? Fear? Sure I do have my share of it. But I choose to feel the fear but do it anyway.”

We were born excellent. Fearless. We had all the above qualities although we did not have the distinction that lets us know that our core is made of pure excellence.

Then they taught us to be obedient. They gave us rules to live by…a sense of right and wrong from the perspective of society. Stories of punishments we will get if we don’t follow the rules became a part of our lives.

What they did not teach us was this understanding: it’s okay to break the rules; it’s okay to create your own rules…and be responsible for what you’ve created!

The result? Mediocre we. Yes, you. And me!

They were none other than our beloved family members, school teachers, elderly people whom we respected in society and alike.

They wanted to see us happy but their understanding of happiness was against bringing the “excellence” out from us.

Their definition of happiness was fulfilled if we get a “secured” job which was predictable enough to raise children, go to Europe tour once or (twice at a maximum) in a lifetime and live an apparently “settled” life.

Now, nothing is wrong with that definition if we are okay with mediocrity. Excellence takes something else.

The choice has always been ours; the choice will always be ours: we can choose to dance on the head of fear and get the sh*t done or let fear dance on top of us.

A choice well made is a choice which we won’t regret on our deathbed. What choice do you want to make?

Entrepreneurship 30

What is entrepreneurship all about?
 
Here are thirty thoughts on what it is and what it is not.
 
For some people, entrepreneurship is “cool” but in fact, it is easier felt than done! 
 
Entrepreneurship is:
  1. Glamorous, in the beginning;
  2. Hard (in fact, very hard), soon after;
  3. Needs a groundbreaker (pioneer, go-getter, fireball kind of) mindset;
  4. Not for you if you:
  5. …get disturbed by things you cannot control in your job;
  6. …need very clear objectives from your management to perform;
  7. …need very co-operative people to get things done;
  8. …always need someone to listen to your complaints. Ah…you complain??
  9. …are reasonable, well at least 90 percent;
  10. …think one has to lose in order for the other to win;
  11. …think that honesty was the best policy in 20th century, maybe. This is 21st – isn’t it?
  12. …think you need a perfect plan to get started (does perfection exist? Where?);
  13. Sure for you if you:
  14. …don’t depend on your MBA degree to take decisions;
  15. lead beyond your title to get things done, always;
  16. …want to take the pain of making the road;
  17. …know that someone else is going to travel that road later, but anyways;
  18. …don’t complain. About the dust. About bad people. About crazy clients. about anyone;
  19. …take responsibility for the problems created by other people;
  20. …have persistent determination; a completely different level of commitment;
  21. …listen to criticism about what you do; look at the things from multiple perspectives but still move ahead;
  22. …think you’re smart – you always learn from everyone’s (mostly others’) mistakes;  not necessarily your own;
  23. …understand multiple contexts well; better if you apply lessons learned in one into the other;
  24. …believe in creating win-win business prepositions (Haven’t read 7 Habits from Stephen Covey? Huh?);
  25. …are a (the best) people magnet – someone said ‘like attracts like’ …isn’t it? Are you?
  26. …are unreasonable;
  27. …begin with the end in mind (Covey, again) but having (smart) goals is must;
  28. …understand what ‘empathy’ means. It means: how people feel about things. It leads from hiring right person to producing great products to selling not so great products what you wanted to. Not so easy but simple.
  29. …enjoy reading (and acting upon, most important!) what Jobs or Seth or Bate have to say.
  30. …start something, right now!