Personal Excellence

The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach

your full potential…these are the keys that will unlock

the door to personal excellence….Confucius

The famed basketball coach from Indiana University, Bob Knight, summed up Confucius’ statement this way, he said, “The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare.” I enjoy finding and reading truth no matter where it is found, the Scriptures, Ancient Philosophers or guru’s such as Confucius and even old basketball coaches.

This saying of Confucius is especially true; for all of us desire personal excellence, don’t we? It matters not whether it is in business, personal goals, a relationship, physical fitness or “tidily winks”. If everyone seems to desire personal excellence, why is it not achieved at a greater rate than it appears to be happening today?

Now listen closely I am not saying that I have achieved personal excellence as often and in as many instances as I would have liked. In team sports often achieving excellence happens in lieu of a weak link somewhere on the roster. But in individual sports as well as life accomplishing personal excellence is a lonely endeavor.

It soon becomes evident if one of those three elements is missing. You see one can have a “want to” win mentality without being in possession of the will to win. A will to win says that no matter the cost I will prevail, I will put in the time, effort and sacrifice to complete the task. A want to mentality starts out fine; however when the going gets tough, the road turns uphill or an avalanche of challenge seem to block your path the will wanes and the want to dissipates quickly.

With the will gone our desire to succeed melts into a sea of excuses and our urge to reach our full potential doesn’t even come up on the horizon, leaving us feeling empty and unfulfilled. Believe me I have been in that neighborhood way more often than I care to admit or even remember.

How about the time that the will was “front and center”, the desire was as firm as forged steel and the urge to excel was forcefully pulling at the reins of our lives like a team Clydesdale on the Budweiser wagon. What made the difference? What infused our lives in those moments?

I think without any doubt it was at that moment a clear in focus vision, fueled not only with a “want to” but a have to desire brought on by a set of circumstances that necessitated success.

The Scripture states, “Without a vision the people perish.” Visionary men and women are simply unstoppable, unflappable and unbelievable…Isn’t that how you truly want to live? If so, get alone, spend time in meditation and prayer and forge a dream and vision for the rest of your life, set a plan and then work that plan…remembering that “even God cannot steer a parked car.”

Have a great week,

Jim