The Drive to Aim High Read online

  Observe resilient people. Use them as role models. Human beings learn largely by observation. Frequent venues where you can watch people exhibiting the skills you wish to acquire. Read books about people who have overcome obstacles similar to those you face. Call or write them. Ask them to share their lessons learned. Their success will be contagious.

  Maintain your perspective around challenges. Resist the urge to see any event as insurmountable. This can be cultivated by applying that perspective to small difficulties throughout the day.

  Develop your resilience muscles. This can be accomplished in many small ways throughout your day. Notice and observe your adaptive abilities, and feel appreciation for those skills. Shift to a positive mindset when you feel doubt or reservation. Taking this approach will enable the growth of those skills, which once seen, can be intensified.

  Challenge yourself to get out of your comfort zone by accepting new provocations from others. Don’t be afraid; we are all born with infinite potential. You just need to believe in yourself and allow time to develop your craft.

  Create your New Year’s resolutions and respect them. It’s about training your mind to keep focus. Keeping focus builds resilience and positive thinking.

  Take on an assignment that will open up your thinking even if it initially scares you. Resilience is about thinking beyond where others have limitations. It has positive effects on the brain and energizes the body to move forward when thinking of the positive outcome.

  Don’t be afraid to take on another assignment even if you failed the first one. Remember, failure doesn’t measure your abilities or potential for future success. You just need to work harder to develop the abilities needed to overcome those challenges.

  Consider developing a faith habit. Those who have a faith practice have been shown to have more resilience in crisis. Hope is a powerful motivator and belief in a higher power creates the ability to sustain us through demanding times.

  Practice mindfulness through meditation. Meditation has been well researched, and is found to benefit our well-being in a variety of ways. Meditation changes the structure of the brain, thereby creating a greater sense of overall peace and well-being.

  Research has uncovered the following benefits of meditation:

  Greater emotional regulation

  Improves insight and the ability to employ broader perspective

  Decreases stress

  Lowers anxiety and depression

  Improves memory and focus

  Reduces high blood pressure

  I know that many people find meditation hard and often impossible. My suggestion is to start with just five minutes each morning by quieting your mind. Then focus on your breathing. This short break can make a big difference from what is often going on in our brains, referred to as the “monkey mind.” That’s when ideas flash in and out all day long, and for many, can keep them up at night.

  How can you increase your awareness and ability? Practice the skill of staying in the moment. Develop this discipline by stopping yourself from reviewing past concerns and future fears. The book The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle is an excellent guide for this practice.

  04

  THE PASSION MINDSET

  One interpretation of the word “passion” means to do something that you like doing without a paycheck attached. To develop the passion mindset you must totally love what you are doing. If you don’t, then you must find that thing that stirs this mindset within you.

  As Steve Jobs said so eloquently, “You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.”

  Work

  While still a student in Bucharest, it seemed to me that during the time I’d been living in Romania I had faced many unexpected challenges. As it turned out, the first job that I got there was filled with opportunities to challenge myself.

  I was in the fourth year of my studies when I got my first job. During that summer, besides feeling a bit bored, I craved new, enriching experiences. Getting a job seemed the perfect way to move forward. However, I had the handicap of not speaking perfect Romanian. I had to rely on English, although I was still far from mastering it on any advanced level. Still, my only option was a job where my English skills could be of use. I was lucky that a friend of mine heard about a vacant editor position at a newspaper published in English in Bucharest.

  In Romania in the early 1990s, there were very few English-language magazines. This daily newspaper happened to be one of the leading publications to appear solely in that language. In fact, it was dedicated to the diplomatic and expat community. The newspaper was distributed in all the major hotels in Romania.

  I applied for the position, summoned up my courage, went for the interview, and got the job. What the owners of the newspaper had in mind when they hired me as an editor was that I could use some translation skills to check the accuracy of the translation from Romanian to English. The fact that I was a native English speaker who knew sufficient Romanian to understand the original written articles seemed to fit the bill. I had to make sure that the stories translated to English were actually what the journalists wanted to communicate.

  This required meeting with the journalists and listening to their stories and what they had in mind when writing them. Next, I had to proofread the articles to ensure that the English content was in alignment with the original Romanian storyline. Of course, I was well aware that I wasn’t entirely ready for the responsibilities of that job, but I knew I could compensate through hard work. I was prepared to put in any extra time needed in order to deliver the quality of writing that the job required.

  I was in charge of reading all the articles in English with an editorial eye. This meant making sure to eliminate grammatical errors, correcting misspellings, and rephrasing sentences as needed. Boy, it was a challenge! I went in early and was among the last to leave when the newspaper was ready to go to the printing house. Sometimes, I had to stop the paper from being printed because at the last minute I discovered that something wasn’t right, and I had to correct it.

  I remember telling my dad about my new job. I wasn’t expecting this from him, but he was so proud of me! Because truthfully, during those days, diplomats did not work. Period. Being the son of a diplomat in Romania was something that most kids would have relished. You didn’t have to work. You had everything at your disposal. But for me, that was not ideal.

  Being the son of a diplomat was certainly something I was proud of. That my humble beginnings in a tiny village had culminated in the opportunities I was now being afforded - all of this was amazing, don’t get me wrong. But, it was not enough for me. I felt something was missing, and that is why I applied for this job.

  What was important for me was the fact that I was able to go out there, get a job by myself without the help of my dad, and at the same time, I was able to expose myself to the real world. This is what I had been waiting for and what all my schooling had prepared me for. This job was even more significant for me because working at the newspaper with the title of “editor” was a big deal in those days, and I loved to impress!

  Because I was in my fourth year at the university, I knew I needed to prove to myself that I was ready for the outside world. This was crucial. During those months of being an editor, I acquired self-confidence and self-sufficiency. At the end of the summer, the newspaper’s manager offered to allow me to continue working, even during the remainder of my studies. I could resume my classes, and after they ended for the day, I could work at the newspaper. It was a good arrangement.

  Most of the articles came in
toward the second part of the day. In the mornings, the journalists went out to interview people, or would go to different events where they collected their stories. Then, when they came back to the newspaper office, they would start writing their articles. Their schedule accommodated me attending classes, and afterwards being able to continue my job. So, in a way, it felt like it was meant to be. I continued to work with the newspaper for another month. By that time, the paper had hired a second editor, allowing me to leave without creating an interruption to the business. I will always be grateful for that first job opportunity.

  My first job ingrained in me the values of hard work and responsibility. Yes, I worked far more hours than I was paid for, but that was all right. The aim was for me to deliver an excellent product I could be proud of. The fact that my dad would be reading the product of my work every day put extra pressure on me, so I loved doing it even more. That first job was extremely important to me. I took pride in working hard to get the best results possible.

  The passion was there. It was reflected in my dedication and willingness to work harder because of how much I still had to learn. Striving first to deliver high quality work rather than solely working with financial compensation in mind was due to my passion. I define the word passion to mean doing something that you love without needing a paycheck.

  It’s a belief, a credo, a hope, a dream. It’s that thing that transforms into reality through hard work, dedication, and continuous commitment. That’s when it delivers the real benefits and results.

  Passion is like the fluid of blood in your veins - it keeps you alive. You might say it’s the lifeblood of your soul. It keeps you awake at night. It makes you shine when performing a task. As long as you have passion, it will benefit you to strive for your best no matter the challenges. It will give you strength to move forward.

  In order to transform passion into results and real benefits, you must do as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. suggested: “He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.’”

  My next job was in sales. Sweeping the hallways of heaven was what my love and passion for a sales job felt like to me. The more meetings I got, the more sales I locked down, and the more I was able to shine in the hallways of heaven so that the angels could notice me.

  I still had difficulties speaking the local language, but due to my passion, I didn’t see that as a setback. Many of my clients appreciated my efforts, which sometimes helped in closing the deal.

  My entire life has been filled with passion. Even the little things that I do are full of life. I put a lot of energy into what I do. It doesn’t matter whether I’m going to succeed or fail. The effort I expend is part of my passion. The energy that I put into things that I do - like my first job - for me, that was a sign of passion. If I had treated this job like most kids look at summer jobs, just doing it for the money, I don’t think that I would have been able to keep the job. And, I certainly would not have been offered the possibility to continue during my final year at the university.

  Ever since I was a child in Liberia, my passion in life has been to deliver results. Whatever I do, wherever I go, I want to deliver positive results. I want to make a positive impact on whomever I meet. That’s my passion in life.

  Learning. Learning before all. I have a passion for lifelong learning. No matter what, even if I fail, I know I’m going to learn and grow. Here are three questions to ask yourself to grow your passion mindset:

  What is the common thing that your family and friends have said is most special about you? For example, are you known as the life of the party, or the best cook?

  What is something you love doing so much that you lose track of time when engaged in it?

  Who is one of your role models? What one attribute do they possess that you love the most? Note that this trait is most likely related to a passion of yours.

  Passion for Innovation

  You can have more than one passion. In fact, it’s good to have several passions, as they will support and enrich each other. One of my passions today as a businessperson is around innovation. My passion to be innovative has actually caused me to set up some high standards for myself, but in the end, it has been all worthwhile.

  For example, I strived to create a leading agency in the Romanian market. By setting this goal, I put into action a set of steps to achieve it, such as innovating different types of services within our target markets. My strategy paid off, leading to a joint venture with a US-based company. I brought them into Romania, offering services to the market that did not exist at that time. I also brought many new business ideas to Romania that were not yet available in the market. Some of them were successful, and some weren’t.

  I love to discover new ideas. My love for creativity must have been seeded in me during my childhood. In my village, we didn’t have toys. We also didn’t have money. We didn’t have any stores in our village. In fact, we used to build our own cars. In order for you to have a toy, you needed to build one. So, we found pieces of wood and designed our own cars. Using empty food cans of tuna, coupled with the magic of our imagination and innovation - voila! We transformed those into a beautiful car!

  Children are so good at pretending and seeing things through their imagination. I believe many of the most successful adults on the planet have learned to befriend their inner child to open up their hearts and minds to rich possibilities. Passion becomes the spark that ignites innovation and imagination, enabling you to see far beyond what’s right in front of you at the drawing board. This is where your passion mindset can leverage opportunity for greatness in your life.

  Famous People Who Employed the Passion Mindset

  Walt Disney

  Walt Disney had a passion mindset about drawing and cartooning from the time he was a young boy. Around the age of nine or ten, he was selling his paintings and drawings to family, friends, and neighbors. In high school, he took classes in photography and art, and created cartoons for his school paper. In the evenings, he continued focusing on his passion, studying at the Art Institute of Chicago. When he was 18, he moved to Kansas City to take a job his brother Roy got for him at a professional art studio.

  He worked for a time at a newspaper, but was fired for having a “lack of imagination and good ideas,” which seems inconceivable now. Yet, even when others doubted his talent and abilities, he forged onward, driven by his passion for art.

  About that time, he started exploring, using a camera with his art, experimenting with hand-drawn cells to be used in animation. Shortly thereafter, he started his own animation company, which produced a number of cartoons, including seven-minute fairy tales. During the 1920s, his studio went bankrupt. Undeterred, Walt and Roy decided to move to Hollywood and started their own company, Disney Brothers’ Studio.

  Disney cartoons grew in scope and were expanded with an array of characters he created. These have become household names such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto, Goofy, and more. His cartoon titled Flowers and Trees was the first ever to be made in color, and it went on to win an Oscar.

  Disney had a number of setbacks throughout his life, including the theft of one of his early characters, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. But, he always found ways to bounce back and stay focused on his life’s passion: animation. His cartoons went on to win a total of 22 Academy Awards, and he and Roy founded Disneyland and Disney World. He truly exemplifies the heights a career fueled by the passion mindset is capable of achieving.

  J. K. Rowling

  The creator of Harry Potter’s rags to riches story is fairly well-known, but it bears repeating here, that her passion mindset is what led her to massive success.

  A young single mom for a time, Rowling worked as a researcher and secretary. Rowling has said she was inspired to create Harry Potter while riding on a train to work. During the next seven years, she went through many hardships, including the death of her mother, divorce, losing her jo
b, and as a result, having to deal with poverty. Still, her passion mindset kept her writing, and her first book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was published in 1997.

  Knowing that the target market for the books was young boys, she decided to use her initials, J. K., to remove any prejudice about a woman author creating tales of a boy wizard. Little did she know that her books and the resulting films would become a big hit with millions of adults as well.

  She went on to become the first billionaire author. She lost that status intentionally by donating a large portion of her wealth to charitable causes. She still is the bestselling living author in the UK, and has proven herself to be seemingly endless in her creativity and humanitarianism.

  Rowling’s passion mindset is living proof that if you don’t lose sight of your dreams no matter what hand life deals you, but work hard and persist, success may welcome you with open arms.

  Vulnerability

  The passion mindset also involves staying vulnerable. Me? I’m still vulnerable. It’s actually very useful in an online world that is centered in authenticity and transparency. You cannot achieve success there without a level of vulnerability. It can also help you stay ready to leverage the areas of your life that need tending to, areas where you can ask for help.

  Asking for help, one way of being vulnerable, led me to my writing coach. She has helped me improve my writing skills by challenging me to reach deeply within, encouraging me every step of the way. Without her enthusiasm, support, and guidance, I don’t know whether I could have completed this book. I love that parts of it may help others address their own vulnerabilities. I thank her for that.

  It’s true that I still have weak spots, places where I’m vulnerable. But, I also know our vulnerability only makes us more real, authentic, and relatable. Ultimately, as long as we acknowledge our soft spots and address them, these vulnerabilities turn into strengths. With constant attention and acceptance of our vulnerable spots, we break through to a stronger self.