There are many ways to do superb work. One approach is to be positive, follow your principles and sometimes, as a by-product, get prizes. One person made an addition to this approach. They said:
“I find that aiming to follow my principles every day is a prize in itself. Sometimes this can also result in getting other kinds of prizes.”
Different people follow this approach when doing different things. They may aim to do so when encouraging people, following their vocation, doing creative projects, playing a sport or doing other activities.
Whatever w they are doing, however, such people often take the following steps. Let’s explore these themes.
They Aim To Be Positive
Such people choose to have a positive attitude. Bearing in mind what they can control, they focus on the possibilities and opportunities. They then aim to do their best in the situation.
They take this positive approach rather than worry about what some would see as pressures. When asked if they worry, they may then give the well-known response.
“I often see things as a pleasure rather than a pressure. Will it help if I worry? Probably not. So I aim to do my best when doing both positive things and also tackling potential challenges.”
They play to their strengths, set positive goals and clarify the real results they want to achieve. They then translate these into a clear picture of success. This leads to the next step.
They Aim To
Follow Their Principles
Such people clarify the principles they want to follow when working towards their picture of success. Different people may follow different principles in different situations. Here are some that some people mention.
Principles – The principles that I
want to follow in my life or work are:
To encourage people … To build on my strengths … To always do my best … To follow strategies that work … To deliver high professional standards … To focus on continuous improvement … To do work that helps people or the planet.
Such people then focus on how they can follow their principles in a specific situation. This can sometimes lead to the next step.
They Aim To Do Superb Work And,
As A By-Product, They May Get Prizes
Such people aim to do superb work on the road to achieving their picture of success. Different people do this in different situations. Let’s look at some examples.
They may do superb work
when they are aiming:
To counsel a troubled person … To manage a specific crisis … To perform in a sporting event … To mediate in a conflict situation … To perform a critical medical operation … To defuse a bomb … To tackle a daunting challenge.
Such people prepare properly. Bearing in mind the goals they want to achieve, they set aside time:
To rehearse following their principles and translating these into action on the way towards achieving the picture of success;
To rehearse managing any potential challenges they may meet on the way towards achieving the picture of success;
To again rehearse following their principles on the way towards achieving the picture of success.
Such people then move into action. They aim to be fully present, follow their chosen principles and do their best to achieve their picture of success. Different people do this in different ways.
Some aim to flow, focus and finish. Some go into their equivalent of the zone. Some follow certain disciplines. Some manage their emotions by going into professional role. One person expressed this in the following way.
“I often go into professional role in certain situations. I tend to forget myself and focus on what needs to be done. I then do my best to achieve the picture of success.”
Different people follow different philosophies in life. Each approach has both pluses and minuses. They therefore aim to build on the pluses and manage the consequences of any minuses.
Some sports coaches follow the latter path. Bill Walsh, the American Football coach, took this approach. After making sure the players practiced superbly before a game, he gave them the following message:
Keep following the standards of performance and the score takes care of itself.
Paradoxically, however, Bill’s players won many matches – including three Super Bowls. They translated their principles into action and rose to the occasion when it mattered.
Let’s return to your own life and work. Can you think of a specific situation where you may aim to be positive, follow your principles and sometimes, as a by-product, get prizes?
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
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