Excellence is Never an Accident

"Excellence is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skillful execution and the vision to see obstacles as opportunities."

I was one of the world's biggest Michael Jordan fans growing up.  I even had a life size cut out of him in my classroom when I began my teaching career.  The greatest lesson I learned from following Michael Jordan's career is his pursuit of excellence.  His story is a great example of the quote above.  

Take a moment to think about someone that you feel is the best at what they do.  

Now consider the following questions:

• What does excellence look like at this person's level?
• How long has that person been practicing the skills necessary to be excellent?
• Was that person always great at what they do?
• What obstacles did they have to overcome to get where they are today?

People do not wake up as a master of their craft.  It was no accident that they became the top person in their respective field.  Thousands of hours of hard work is behind every expert in every field.  This type of deliberate practice is what separates mediocre from magnificent in every arena.  

Now consider the following questions as it relates to what you want to be excellent in:

• How are you being intentional in both your words and actions?
• What obstacles are currently keeping you from making progress?
• How can you turn those obstacles into opportunities?
• Who is in your starting five and how are they going to push you to be a better version of yourself?

Everyone has an opportunity to be excellent but it will never happen accidentally.  That journey begins today.

How Clear is Your Vision?

"Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others"

Jonathan Swift

One of the cornerstones in propelling organizations forward is having a "Clearly Defined/Articulated Vision".  This is referenced in journal articles and in any Leadership 101 course.  Leaders that successfully transform organizations repeatedly cite the importance of a clear vision.  With the research being so clear I ask the following question:

How Clear is Your Vision?

If you aren't sure, I'll give you some indicators to go by.  

• Can you articulate the vision of your organization in a way that anybody walking in would understand the work that you are doing?  
• Can you do it in less than 3 minutes?  
• Can you do it in 1 sentence?
• More importantly, can other people in your organization clearly articulate the vision?
• Is the vision reflected in the decisions you make as a leader?

Here are some ideas about how to create a clear vision just in case you answered no to any of the indicators above.

• Project forward 3-5 years and imagine your ideal organization.
• What does it look like? 
• What steps can you take today to turn your vision into your reality?
• Involve key stakeholders in the process of developing a collective vision.
• Deliberately tie every decision and action back to the vision of the organization.

Vision is critical to a leader's success.  Communicating your vision does not always come down to the words you speak.  You should strive to get to the point that your actions speak so loudly that you no longer need to say anything...