“Gratitude is a “belief and conviction that serves as a constant reminder of what you have been given, where you came from and whose shoulders you are standing on now. “

It is more than a mere “thank you” and far deeper than simple appreciation.

Gratitude is the humble acknowledgement of the extraordinary role that others have played in getting you to this point in your life.  A modest recognition of how their influence first got you started.  Then pushed you to keep going.  And continued to encourage you achieve whatever it was you desired.

When it comes right down to it, gratitude is a way of being. Thinking, speaking and acting in such a way as to honor how others intentionally gave you all they had to give, so you could achieve, excel and succeed. 

Gratis.  

Gratitude is about developing a mindset that is rooted in humility.  And coming to possess an “attitude of gratitude”.

So if you will, please indulge me for a moment. Take a look back, reflect and think of all you have been freely “given”, gifted or entrusted with by others throughout your life. Not so much in terms of things.  But rather the time. Talent. Wisdom. Support.  And love.  

Now, this exercise can be a staggering undertaking if you attempt an honest assessment of such a big picture.  So let’s just focus on one small aspect of our life. 

Something we share in common.

To be honest, where we are today isn’t so much just because of anything one of us did on our own.  Rather, it all pretty much came down to what others thought of us.  Saw within us.    Believed in each of us. Entrusted to us.

And yes, eventually,  expected every single one of us to do. 

Because those individuals had so much faith in each one of us, our transformation became possible.  They pushed each of us in precisely the right manner.  Challenged us to embrace the work, to make the commitment, aim our aspirations higher and achieve at a higher level than we ever imagined.  

They loved us enough to carry us on their shoulders.  

A vantage point that reveals a bigger picture.  To help insure that our present might match what they envisioned what our future would someday be.  Even now, their all encompassing and enduring support remains.  Taking us even farther and higher than ever dreamed. 

There is no way to repay their generosity.  To compensate them for what they gave us in terms of their time, their effort, their support and unyielding faith.  In a certain sense, we will forever be indebted to them.  And yet, this was never a transaction. 

It was always a “quid pro quo.” Simply a gift.  Freely given without condition.  Strings or attachments.   

So it is incumbent on each of us to acknowledge the extraordinary role that others have played in getting each of us to this point in our lives.  Recognize how their influence got us started.  How they pushed us  to keep going.  And continue to encourage all of us to achieve whatever it was we desired.

Embrace an attitude of gratitude.  

Clear some room on your shoulders.  

And help someone to share the view you were once given.  

Gratis.

When vision is bold, there is bound to be discomfort. 

Leadership that chooses to work towards a desired reality far beyond the confines of the known takes a great deal of courage. And to press beyond existing limits is always a difficult task. Not for the faint of heart. 

It is a choice that involves and produces risk. There will be fits, starts and periods of inertia. But without commitment, action with full intention and the fortitude to leave safe harbor, there are no avenues for growth. 

When venturing out into the great unknown is too daunting, there is scant opportunity for improvement. Without embracing risk, average will have to be the accepted standard of achievement. And only wishful thinking can produce any notion of excellence. 

True, leaving the comfort of the known creates discomfort. 

It does command committed effort. Demands personal accountability. Beckons courage and character. Assignments coveted by those that choose to be bold. 

Embraced only by leadership truly visionary.

To a great extent, leadership is centered on vision. 

An ability to imagine, articulate and then transmit an image so powerful, that the “big picture” once only dreamed, eventually gets painted. Becoming reality. 

“Big pictures” that are painted in such a way that everyone can readily “see” the desired reality. A vision conveyed in such a compelling manner that others will want to urgently, and fully, invest themselves in it. 

Not solely in commitment. But by allocating their own precious, personal resources to make that image their reality as well. Becoming as one with that vision. 

Effective and compelling leadership will make others “see” themselves within that work of art as an integral and meaningful part of a much larger work in progress. Conveying the opportunity to add their own strokes, whether broad or fine, enhancing the overall significance of the masterpiece. 

Leadership that can first “see” and then articulate the big picture casts a deep and lasting impression. 

Leadership of this stature will change perceptions, remove obstacles and overcome inertia. 

Leadership of this magnitude creates opportunity, a mode of meaningful and lasting contribution, fair return on personal investment and a chance for all to help paint that big picture. 

It is all powerful. 

Now isn’t that what leading with vision is all about?

“Life doesn’t get easier or more forgiving, we get stronger and more resilient.”

― Steve Maraboli

A profound observation if there ever was one.  

In a sense, the daily test we take is two fold.  

The one we make out of our own volition that becomes intermeshed with the one presented from above.  How we respond to ours, His  or hopefully – both – is what lays the foundation for the next day and all those that follow. 

Choice is key. 

The test solicits a response – via choice – which then produces an outcome. One that might be understood at the moment.  Or one that requires other similar choices and outcomes that merge to create something much, much larger.  

We can enjoin this daily challenge to help overcome our failings, making oneself stronger. Even as we discern and learn to accept the true meaning of the other, making oneself that much more resilient. Not meant to be misunderstood and taken as complex.  Just that these tests require patience, openness and faith. 

The combined strength and resilience that follows will lighten the daily load.   Making the day to day less daunting and what is yet to come a bit less formidable.  For in time we can handle more. Just have to grow into it and learn to embrace it.  

Each challenge that we seek to overcome – when guided by  this sense of enthusiasm and faith – works to reduce the perceived mass of the load.  An opportunity to enhance the strength and resilience that is born of each and every test. And is ultimately always carried forward.

Thereby not just making one’s life “easier”. 

But rather, a life one can choose to fully embrace. 

Finishing is one of the most visible attributes you have. An ability that can be quickly discerned by most from the outside looking in. 

But to get there, you need to take matters into your own hands, from within. The inside out. You see, finishing is all about what you make happen on the inside first. It starts with taking stock of yourself. 

Honestly identifying what you do abundantly well – and – what begs out for work. For it makes no sense to focus only on what you have mastered at the expense of everything else. To do so, will leave you unbalanced. With excess, unused capacity. Unfinished. 

So turn your attention towards the areas that need work. That beckon for help. Examining the ones that have never seemed to flourish. Maximizing their capacity is the key to achievement and success. 

So make yourself a promise.   Take an oath. That you will commit yourself to living up to all of your highest intentions – in all areas. That through sustained and unrelenting action you will come to personify your intentions. 

Through that level of commitment, you will be able to find that ability to finish. For once you finish all the things that are already started from within, then, everything you start from without will begin to fall into place. 

Finishing will then become your second nature. 

And you can then maximize your capacity.