I was having a conversation with my coworker the other day and he asked, "What motivates you?" What a great question! Have you ever stopped to think about what motivates you?
I am very goal-driven... I think that motivates me. I love to review what is going on in my life and what I want to accomplish. I am motivated by goals! I love accomplishing my goals and seeing the growth in myself as I complete those goals.
I love failing at completing my goals... weird right?
But is it a failure if you learn along the way?
At our office, we get to hear often from Dr. Craig Manning and I love his High Performance Journal. Each day, it guides me to review three of my strengths and look at one thing to improve on. I love the proverb that says, “Where there is no vision the people perish.” I love Zig Ziglar's quote, “If you aim at nothing you will hit it every time.”
So, what are you aiming at?
With the year halfway over, I thought it would be a good time to review my goals and make some changes.
This morning I was listing to a podcast on a blue-collar mindset. What do you think of when you think of a blue-collar mindset? I think of not being afraid to get your hands dirty. Also, being able to turn around at the end of the day and not only seeing the work you have accomplished... but being proud of the work you have accomplished.
This reminded me of helping my dad with some concrete jobs growing up. When we finished the job, he would let me put my handprint in the cement. That is a blue-collar mindset—stamping your work when you are finished. Do your goals allow you to stamp your work with something you are proud of?
The podcast listed some specific skills we can work on... I find it helpful to work on skills when trying to reach a goal rather than simply focusing on the goal. Craig Manning says productivity and our ability to achieve our goals increase infinitely the more skills we can acquire. Here's the list of skills to help with a blue-collar mindset:
- Accountability
- Establish a routine
- Be willing to do the dirty work
- Know what you are working on
- Be specific and prioritize tasks
- Know your worth
I wrote this while thinking about how to create motivation for my personal goals. I hope this helps you with the goals you are working toward.
I'll end with this poem that was mentioned in the podcast—it will add a little more for you to think about.
A Builder or a Wrecker
I watched them tearing a building down,
A gang of men in a busy town.
With a ho-heave-ho and lusty yell,
They swung a beam and a sidewall fell.
I asked the foreman, “Are these men skilled,
The men you’d hire if you had to build?”
He gave me a laugh and said, “No indeed!
Just common labor is all I need.
I can easily wreck in a day or two
What builders have taken a year to do.”
And I thought to myself as I went my way,
Which of these two roles have I tried to play?
Am I a builder who works with care,
Measuring life by the rule and square?
Am I shaping my deeds by a well-made plan,
Patiently doing the best I can?
Or am I a wrecker who walks the town,
Content with the labor of tearing down?