It is bigger than me! We are not the reason for the season. The graveyards are full of indispensable men, so we need to stay humble, do our best for our team, and work to continue growing. Continuing success and growth happens when we serve others. When we are successful, we have a wonderful opportunity to help others in their struggle for success. We are here to make everyone on our team successful which means that we need to humble ourselves and do what is best for the entire group before we take care of ourselves.
Never grow so big that we are above doing certain tasks to help the team. A boss tells someone to make the coffee or sweep up a mess; a leader makes the coffee and grabs a broom when needed. We are never too big to do the little things. In fact, big success comes from doing the little things perfectly, and the leader or teammate that is willing to be humble and do the trivial but vital work sets the example for the group and helps to create a great culture of synergy within the team.
No matter what situation we are in on the journey, we are entitled to nothing. Nothing worthwhile that makes us become a better person is ever given to us. Everything of worth has to be earned. People of high character understand this and build their legacy knowing that it is not who we are, but what we are that matters when all is said and done.
Reputation is what people think of us and is fickle, while our character is who we really are at the core when no one is watching. If we worry about our house and our business, in the end, things will work out and our reputation will take care of itself.
I was once on a committee and the leader stood up and declared that perception is reality and that we, on the committee should, commit ourselves to looking good for the public. This view on how to get the public to back our cause infuriated me because it was fool’s gold. We were being told to tell the public what they wanted to hear to achieve a short term gain. This leader was willing to compromise character and cut corners to get results for gains at the moment. People with little substance worry about perception while winners work daily to improve character.
Prosper by merit and become a person of substance and high character. Winning without honor and merit is a short term fix, and bigger problems come to us when we compromise our principles to get what we want. Lasting success will take us more time to achieve, but our character and resolve will be strong because of the struggle. John Wooden coached UCLA for over a decade before he led his program to its first national championship. He did things right, and when success came to the program, they sustained it to become one of the most powerful programs in the history of sports. They did this because they prospered by merit and never took shortcuts.
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