My car requires high octane gasoline for the engine to operate at maximum performance. Fueling your personal drive is no different. What octane are you putting into your tank?
Drive – what is it? That internal decision that says I want to be good at what I do. I am competitive and am willing to make sacrifices to achieve my goal. So, what is it that separates those who want to be successful and those who actually achieve success? I believe the following three steps make the difference between wanting to be driven and demonstrating a strong internal drive.
Step 1: Find Your Why
Why do you do what you do? What is your compelling purpose? My experience has seen those with an internally-focused purpose tend to experience greater success than those trying solely to please others. Whether you are trying to win an Olympic medal or lose 20 pounds, success is predicated on why you want to achieve that goal.
Step 2: Be in the Now
When you are faced with a situation where you need to summon your best effort, thinking about the past or the future will only be a distraction. Focus on the now. Great athletes are able to leave mistakes behind them and focus on their ability to perform in the present. They don’t look toward the celebration before the win has been secured either. Business leaders are no different. Perform in the now to the best of your abilities. Move past mistakes and only hold on to the lesson learned.
Step 3: Convert Thoughts to Actions
Thoughts without actions do not accomplish any tasks. Pretty obvious, isn’t it? “I thought about working out this morning” has a different result than, “I worked out this morning.” When we focus on excuses instead of actions we are quick to recognize ourselves for at least having good thoughts. When it comes to being driven for performance, results only appear when actions are executed.
As you start a new year with a focus on improving performance, recognize your drive is all about defining your purpose, then putting that purpose into complete action. Drive for your success.