Don't procrastinate in the name of perfection.

Do you ever put off doing something because you want to make sure you do it just right?  You know you must do it.  You know it is the right thing to do, but you put it off because you don't think you are ready to do it exactly the right way.  I have a problem with this.  I am a little anal and I want to see things done pretty much perfect.  As a result, I procrastinate.  I put things off until I think I can do them just right.  The problem is, I never get around to doing some of these things because I don't have time to do them perfectly.

Often, it is better to go with something less than perfect than to never go with it at all.  It is better to get something accomplished less than perfectly than to never get anything accomplished at all.  Sometimes, you simply must start something in order to get it done instead of putting it off until you think you have enough time to do it perfectly. 

“Don't be so concerned about wrapping the gift that you never give it.” 

You miss every shot you do not take.

It is an interesting thought and really quite simple.  If you do not take a shot, you will not score.  You must make an attempt in order to give yourself a shot at winning.  Said differently, we cannot be afraid to try.  We shouldn’t be so conservative that we never give ourselves a real chance to accomplish something.  Oftentimes, I fall prey to this myself and tend to be somewhat cautious and conservative.  In order to grow, I need to learn to take more shots.  I am not just referring to the big decisions in life such as spouses and careers.  This certainly applies to those decisions, but this analogy also applies to little things throughout the day.  Maybe you need to take a shot at meeting someone new, at changing something at work, at becoming more involved in your community.

Take a shot.  Give yourself a chance to score in the game of life!

Some days are diamonds. Some days are stones.

Some days are in fact diamonds.  Those are the days when all seems to be right with the world.  Other days are more like rough uncut stones, when nothing seems to go smoothly.  Most days fall somewhere in between.  There are rough spots during the day offset by bright spots at other times.  Some days we even have opportunities to turn stones into diamonds. For the most part we learn to take the good with the bad and roll with the flow, knowing that there are always more diamonds to come.  Maybe not tomorrow or next week but there are more days of diamonds.  Remember however, the stones will likely never totally go away.

Lead Yourself First

How well do you lead yourself?  Recently we talked about how leadership starts at home, and it does.  Beyond that however, it truly starts with leading oneself.  It is very difficult to truly lead at home, in the community or at work without first leading yourself.  I find this to be challenging personally.  I encourage and often portray discipline, yet I am not very disciplined myself.  Many of my greatest leadership failures have been related to leading myself and my family.  For some reason it seems okay to let ourselves down but not others.  Truly great leadership does begin at home.  It begins at home with oneself.  When was your last conversation with yourself about you leading you?

Go make it a great week.  Start by leading yourself first!