As I watched the athletes perform at the recent Winter Olympic Games, I could only imagine their tremendous desire, determination and dedication, not to mention commitment, enthusiasm and mental toughness. They set goals and prepared. They had discipline.
It's the same in business.
It doesn't matter whether you are pursuing success in business, sports, the arts or life in general. The difference between wishing and accomplishing is discipline.
Discipline is all about setting goals, figuring out a schedule to achieve those goals and then following your plan.
Discipline turns ability into achievement. Dreams may get you started, but discipline keeps you going. Talent without discipline is nothing more than wasted opportunity.
Zig Ziglar said, "It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action,and discipline that enabled us to follow through."
I believe discipline is the difference between good and great.
Most people aim to do right; they just fail to pull the trigger. For whatever reason, they just don't have the wherewithal to finish the job. They lack discipline.
Good intentions aren't enough. People have good intentions when they set a goal to do something, but then they miss a deadline or a workout. Suddenly it gets a lot easier to miss again -- and again and again.
"Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built," said the late motivational speaker Jim Rohn. "Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure. Discipline is the bridge between thought and accomplishment ... the glue that binds inspiration to achievement ... the magic that turns financial necessity into the creation of an inspired work of art."
Whenever I eyeball a resume for a management job at my envelope company, I look for evidence of self-discipline. As candidates have prepared themselves for past jobs, did they identify and master three to five key self-disciplines essential to future success?
I'm looking for specific examples beyond just showing up for work. Did they take leadership on difficult projects that required developing new skills? Were they flexible when original plans had to be adjusted to conform to changing needs? Could they put ego aside when others had better ideas? Were they able to maintain control when challenged by customers or co-workers?
Keeping focused when things are going well is often as difficult as doing so when glitches surface. Self-discipline is what finishes the job. Managers especially need to model self-discipline so that their teams observe how it's done and can follow their example.
And employees aren't the only ones who see discipline in action. Customers take notice of how organizations conduct themselves. If they see a sloppy operation, they assume shoddy results. If they see a well-oiled machine, their confidence in the final product increases.
Discipline means you are prepared to do the things you don't always want to do in order to get the results you need to get. As difficult as that sounds, consider the alternative. Allow yourself to take the easy way out, and that's exactly what you will find: the way out the door.
Discipline isn't optional. It's an investment in your future.
Here's a story to drive the point home. A family was gathered for dinner one night when the youngest son announced that he had just enlisted in the Army. There were audible gasps around the table, then some laughter, as his older brothers shared their disbelief that he could handle this new situation.
"Oh, come on, quit joking," snickered one.
"You didn't really do that, did you?" asked another. "You would never get through basic training."
Finally, his father spoke up. "It's going to take a lot of discipline. Are you ready for that?"
The new recruit looked to his mother for help, but she was just gazing at him. When she finally spoke, she simply asked, "Do you really plan to make your own bed every morning?"
Mackay's Moral: Keep your head and heart going in the right direction and you'll never have to worry about your feet.
Harvey Mackay is the author of the New York Times best-seller "Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive." He can be reached at http://www.harveymackay.com , by emailing harvey@mackay.com or by writing him at MackayMitchell Envelope Co., 2100 Elm St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414.
Visit link:
From the Olympics to business, discipline is the key! - Rochester Post Bulletin
- Regan Smith: The Triumphs, Setbacks, Pressures and Emotions of Her First Olympics - Swimming World Magazine [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2021]
- Russian officials accuse United States, other countries of rigging 2020 Tokyo Olympics - CBS Sports [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2021]
- The Surprising Relief of the Tokyo Olympics - The New Yorker [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2021]
- Lacrosse Returns to Olympics in 2028but Will the Sport's Indigenous Founders Be Allowed to Play? - Foreign Policy [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2021]
- Agreement reached for NHL players to participate in 2022 Olympics in Beijing - ESPN [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2021]
- About the Olympic Games [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2021]
- Summer Olympic Games - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2021]
- Which Nashville Predators might be headed to the Olympics? - On The Forecheck [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- Team GB set to lose 4x100m Olympic silver after second positive for Ujah - The Guardian [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- Gary Woodland surprises friend Amy Bockerstette with Special Olympics USA Games selection - 'Amy, you got this' - ESPN [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- An Olympics like no other: Four alums reflect on their experiences in Tokyo - The Williams record [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- 35. Three Jazz Players After The Olympics - KSL Sports [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- Simone Biles details how Nassar's abuse impacted Tokyo Olympics: 'I never should have been left alone' - Fox News [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- From the Basement | US should boycott 2022 Olympic Games - Tulane Hullabaloo [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- Which Bruins could play at the 2022 Beijing Olympics? - NBC Sports Boston [Last Updated On: September 16th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 16th, 2021]
- Track queen Harmilan Kaur--hate, love and a burning Olympic dream - Hindustan Times [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- From the Archives, 2000: Freeman rival Perec flees the Sydney Olympics - The Age [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Olympic Team Gold and Individual Silver Medallist Tom McEwen's Top - United States Eventing Association [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Kobe Bryant Once Told an Olympic Gold Medalist That He Would Sometimes Just Chuck the Ball Toward the Basket and Get Surprised Whenever It Went In: It... [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Cornelius Denies Bullying Incidents That Led To His Removal From Olympics Ceremony - Stereogum [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Road to Canada's Olympic curling trials crowded in Ottawa tournaments - CBC.ca [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Did Usain Bolt Ever Lose a Race at the Olympics? - EssentiallySports [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- ATEEZ Responds To Olympic Volleyball Star Kim Hee Jin Revealing She's A Fan + Naming The Song That Meant A Lot To Her At Tokyo Olympics - soompi [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Simone Biles says burdens of Nassar abuse remained with her at Olympics - The Guardian [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- Which Capitals could play at the 2022 Beijing Olympics? - NBC Sports [Last Updated On: September 20th, 2021] [Originally Added On: September 20th, 2021]
- The first Olympic womens hockey qualifying tournaments are here - The Ice Garden [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- Who is Kye Whyte? Dancing on Ice 2022 contestant and Tokyo Olympics BMX star... - The US Sun [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- Gabriel could've made Olympics but prioritised Arsenal & the long-term - Daily Cannon [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- On path to Beijing Olympics, U.S. women's hockey team makes it's home at the Super Rink in Blaine - Minneapolis Star Tribune [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- Erik Tait ready to represent North America at the Olympics of magic - Columbus Alive [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- 46 Special Olympics Teams Compete In Soccer Tournament In Owasso - News On 6 [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- Auston Matthews, Patrick Kane, and Seth Jones Named to Team USA 2022 Winter Olympic Roster - bleachernation.com [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- Two Winter Olympics Underdogs That Have Already Won - The New York Times [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- Winter Olympics 2022: Everything you need to know about Beijing Games - USA TODAY [Last Updated On: October 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 7th, 2021]
- David Robertson's Journey from the Olympics to the Rays' Postseason Roster - The New York Times [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- Duhatschek notebook: Team Canada Olympic roster predictions updated, revisiting the Pavel Datsyuk trade - The Athletic [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- Olympic runner Agnes Tirop's husband arrested in her killing - CBS News [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- Olympic BMX champion reveals the life lessons she learned from her part-time job - CNBC [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- The Olympics Might Be The Biggest Thing, But They're Not The Only thing - Runner's Tribe [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- Tracking all the NHL players selected to Olympic hockey rosters - NBC Olympics [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- The LA Olympics Are Being Planned Behind Closed Doors - The Nation [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2021]
- Bobsledder Humphries left Canada over alleged abuse. The move might cost her an Olympics. - Yahoo! Voices [Last Updated On: October 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 17th, 2021]
- Fictional detective Olympics: The oldest, the best, the most murdery - Mashable [Last Updated On: October 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 17th, 2021]
- Simone Biles Reflects On Withdrawal From Tokyo Olympics - ELLE.com [Last Updated On: October 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 17th, 2021]
- An Idea Whose Time Has Come: Bring the Olympics Home - The National Herald [Last Updated On: October 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 17th, 2021]
- Pensacola Race for Inclusion aims to end discrimination against people with disabilities - Pensacola News Journal [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2021]
- 100 Days to the Beijing Winter Olympics - NBC Bay Area [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2021]
- Will this be Shaun White's last Winter Olympics? Maybe. Or maybe not. - USA TODAY [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2021]
- Protestors disrupt flame lighting for Beijing Winter Games - Associated Press [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2021]
- Curious Alaska: Will Anchorage try to host the Winter Olympics again? - Anchorage Daily News [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2021]
- All US Winter Olympic hopefuls must be fully vaccinated by Dec. 1 if they want to compete in Beijing - The Boston Globe [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- 2022 Republican primaries: Who will take gold in the Misogyny Olympics? - Salon [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- 7 questions with Olympian Allyson Felix about entrepreneurship, pay equity and the future - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- Chambers: Highlands Ranch native Troy Terry is red hot for Anaheim Ducks. He might don red, white and blue in upcoming Olympics - The Denver Post [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- Augmented reality project brings Olympics birthplace to life - The Indian Express [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- The popularity of curling; how the Winter Olympics bring attention to the niche sport - The Denver Channel [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- Nine years later, the U.S. has another Olympic gold - MARCA.com [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- How to watch the U.S. Olympic Team Curling Trials - NBC Olympics [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2021]
- UND great Bill Reichart, captain of the 1964 US Olympic team, dies at age 86 - Grand Forks Herald [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- 'It feels so surreal' - Olympic silver medallist Mallory Franklin looks back at Tokyo and adds medals to collection - Eurosport.com [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Special Olympics Inc. Partners with Smartsheet to Unlock Collaboration, Helping Them Achieve More for Athletes Across the Globe - Yahoo Finance [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Inside Shaun White's Unbelievable Ride to His 5th Winter Olympics - E! Online [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Five Players Forcing Their Way Onto the 2022 Olympic Roster Bubble - Sports Illustrated [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Steamboat freeskiers have chance to compete in 2022 Winter Olympics - Steamboat Pilot & Today [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Will Covid-19 Jeopardize The NHLs 2022 Winter Olympics Participation? - Forbes [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Covid Rules for Beijing Olympics Force Injured Athlete to Fly Home on Cargo Plane - The New York Times [Last Updated On: November 17th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 17th, 2021]
- Biden Meets With Canadas Trudeau and Mexicos Lpez Obrador - The New York Times [Last Updated On: November 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 19th, 2021]
- The International Olympic Committee Is Finally Advocating for Trans and Intersex Athletes - Jezebel [Last Updated On: November 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 19th, 2021]
- Autocrats and the Spineless Olympics Committee - The Bulwark [Last Updated On: November 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 19th, 2021]
- Chinese Hockey Team Loses Another Game in Test for Olympics - Sports Illustrated [Last Updated On: November 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 19th, 2021]
- Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist wrestler Bajrang Punia ... [Last Updated On: November 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 19th, 2021]
- Eyeing LA Olympics, ICC likely to award 2024 T20 World Cup ... [Last Updated On: November 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 19th, 2021]
- Sport climbing debut in Olympics creates spike in participation - AZ Big Media [Last Updated On: November 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 21st, 2021]
- Is Shaun White Going To The Beijing Winter Olympics 2022? - EssentiallySports [Last Updated On: November 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 21st, 2021]
- Its my own fault: Rory Sabbatini on his weird DQ, Olympic medal and Tigers comeback - Golf.com [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2021]
- Gold medalist Linoy Ashram on her Olympic whirlwind and becoming an Israeli icon - The Times of Israel [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2021]
- "It was insane" - Vincent Luis on the Brownlees and London 2012 - Tri247.com [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2021]
- Kayla Harrison next fight: Making the case for the Olympic gold medalist to sign with UFC, Bellator or PFL - CBSSports.com [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2021]
- AIBA reforms push to secure boxings Olympic future; polls in 2022, liaison officer to work with IOC - Firstpost [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2021]
- Man with Alexandria connection competes in Olympic curling trials - Echo Press [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2021]