We all want to be excellent in many ways. However, when it comes to excellence, it’s not the dreamers who win but those who dream and do something about their dreams.
Habits for Producing Excellence in Anything
There are many habits that can increase excellence. Below, I share a few surefire ones.
Be Adaptable.
Adaptability is the most important trait of successful people. There is one thing that is sure to happen, that is change. Things are always changing. We are changing, the people around us are changing, our environment is changing. Besides perhaps an unchanging God, everything else changes. Nothing is stable or constant. Successful people, successful relationships, and successful businesses are made up of people who have learned to be great at adapting to change and new circumstances and situations. The good thing is that adaptability can be learned!
Focus: Focus, Focus, Focus.
You cannot become excellent in many things. Life is short. Prioritize and focus your efforts on what really matters and work at it until you become a master.
What is the best area to focus on? The area of your calling. To help with your focus, write your dream down and make it plain and read it frequently.
Focus means doing fewer things better. Less is more. It means lean management. It means simplifying things and focusing on what is really essential, and becoming great at it.
Passion: Relentlessly pursue love.
Passionately learn to love every day. Love is the root of the kind of passion that you need to do anything well. You need to be passionate about what you desire to be excellent in. Without that, you won’t go very far. The good news is that you can learn to love. Passion doesn’t have to be a happenstance. You can intentionally develop a passion for pretty much anything you want.
Mindset (Growth Mindset)
Mindset is crucial to excellence.
-Believe that you can.
Everything is possible to the person who believes. An important thing that stands between us and our success is our mindset. What we believe is what we become. The good news is that you can learn to believe in something. Faith is something you can develop. Faith is like a muscle; you can grow it.
-Believe that your dream is necessary.
Believe that it is necessary to become excellent in your subject because lives will be changed and a positive impact will be made. Think about the posterity, about the potential lives you can change when you develop excellence in the area of your calling.
-Believe that you must become excellent.
Because there is a lot riding on your decision to become excellent in an area, believe that you must achieve that dream, not only for yourself but for everyone who will be impacted by it now and in the future.
Related: The greatest determinants of excellence and success
Stay Positive.
Always be positive about yourself. Always be positive when working with others.
Stay hungry. Stay Foolish.
If you want to be excellent at anything, be hungry. In the words of Steve Jobs, “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” Develop an insatiable desire for excellence in that area. Want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe.
Eat Voraciously. Eat, Eat, and Eat again!
Devour any source of information or instruction you can find on the subject. Learn without ceasing.
Here are some effective ways to pursue knowledge and understanding on any subject.
- Read everything you can read on the subject of interest.
- Go where leadership is taught. Go to conferences, take classes, listen to videos and tapes, go to churches or synagogues where the subject is taught.
- Approach leaders who are ahead of you and ask them questions. Identify a leader you want to learn from and seek to buy them lunch and have the opportunity to ask them a few questions. Let them know you simply need 45mins to an hour of their time. You are not seeking a mentor or any commitment after that.
Grit: Work hard, endure, and never quit.
The best way to learn anything is to do it. Believing that you can without actually doing something about what you believe leads you nowhere. Work hard and never give up till you accomplish your dream.
Discipline yourself.
Nothing significant can be achieved without great discipline. All successful people understand that discipline is the way to greatness. Learn to discipline yourself to focus on your task.
Surround yourself with the right people.
Nothing great can be achieved alone. Surround yourself with people who can help you on your journey toward excellence.
