When I was in Dubai delivering a
leadership presentation for the Young Presidents’ organization a while ago, a
woman approached me and said, “Robin, I loved reading The Monk Who Sold His
Ferrari, but you make it all sound so easy. Making improvements in my life
is hard”. Hmm. Made me think. A lot. Here’s where I am at with that one.
We live in a world seduced by
easy. We want to look great and be spectacularly fit but we don’t want to have
to exercise to get there. We want to be super successful in our careers but we
wonder if there’s a way to reach world class without having to work hard and be
disciplined (every great executive is strikingly disciplined, as is every great
company). We dream of living fearless, joy-filled lives, but we all too often
avoid the very best practices (like getting up early, taking risks, setting
goals and reading) that are certain to deliver us to our ideals. Nothing comes
for free. There truly are no free lunches. The best things in life require
sacrifice and devotion. Each of us, to get to our own unique forms of personal
professional greatness, must pay the price. And the more we pay, the more we’ll
receive.
Wanting to live your life best
life, at work and at home, without having to work at it and stay disciplined
around our important To Do’s is like wanting an amazing garden without having
to plant anything. Or like hoping to be in superb physical condition without
having to give up the daily chocolate bar. Or like praying to have a great business
by swallowing some magic pill. Whatever happened to commitment? And dedication?
Great lives don’t just occur out
of the blue. They are crafted and built, like the Taj Mahal and the Great Wall
of China, block by block, day by day. And superb businesses don’t just appear,
They are forged through continuous and never ending improvement and effort.
Let’s not fall into believing that the best things in life come without effort.
Give your best, and the best will come to you. Guaranteed.
“Nothing comes for free. There truly are no free lunches.
The best things in life require sacrifice and devotion”
(these are not my thoughts J
and are copied from Robin’s book)
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