February 22, 2008: Ability, Motivation and Attitude
Quote of the Week
“Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.”
– Lou Holtz
Ability, Motivation and Attitude
by Chris Widener
There are three primary aspects of your life that will determine whether or not you are successful in your endeavors. You will not be successful if you have only one or two. You must have all three working together. Consider them like the three legs of a “stool of success.”
Ability - the level at which you are able to actually do things. Your skill level. If you have a high level of skill, that´s good. And the better you get, the better it will be for you. To the degree that you can perform your actions at higher and higher skill levels, the more and more success you will find in your chosen field.
Motivation - the level at which you are able to find “a reason to act.” This is the internal drive that you find that enables you to exercise your abilities. To the degree that you can find a way, or ways, to keep yourself motivated, you will see yourself right in the thick of things, carrying out your actions to the best of your abilities and succeeding accordingly.
Attitude - this is the mental state that you have while carrying out your actions to the best of your ability. It is the way you view the world around you and choose to see it, either positively or negatively. To the degree that you can maintain a positive attitude about yourself, others, and the circumstances you find yourself in, you will see yourself achieving greater and greater things.
“But Chris, can’t I get away with just two?”
No.
What if you have high skills and motivation but a rotten attitude? People will stay away and hinder your success. What if you have a good attitude and motivation but poor skills? People will like you, maybe even root for you, but go to someone else with the skills they need. What if you have great skills and attitude but no motivation? Well, you’ll be sitting on the couch like a lazy slug while the go-getters are out there making your money and achieving your dreams!
No, it takes all three. So let’s ask some questions:
Ability: How highly skilled are you? Is your skill level holding you back? How so? What could you achieve if you just took your skills to the next level beyond where they are right now? How would improving your skills improve the bottom line of your success?
Motivation: How motivated are you? Why do you answer that way? What would your spouse or close friends say? Would they say you are as motivated as you say you are? Why or why not? Why do you have the level of motivation that you have? What could you do to find a higher level of motivation? What would happen if you became super motivated for the next period of your life? What great things would happen?
Attitude: Do you have a good attitude or a poor one? How would you rate yourself? What about when things go wrong? Are you more of an optimist or a pessimist? What would happen if you took your attitude to the next level for the next 60 days? What if you just chose to have an incredible attitude? What would be the ramifications?
“The world cares very little about what a man or woman knows; it is what a man or woman is able to do that counts.” Booker T. Washington
This is so true. People will judge you on what you accomplish, not what you know or what you talk about. In fact, if you know a lot or talk a lot but do not accomplish anything, people will wonder what happened. So the question is whether or not you will take the actions necessary to deliver on your potential. To do so, you will need to focus in on the three legs of the stool of success: Your ability, your motivation, and your attitude.
Chris Widener is the President of Made For Success www.ChrisWidener.com. Chris can be reached at
Coaching Call to Action
Take some time this week to give some serious thought to these three areas. Your success depends on it! And when you have done some reflection - put the conclusions you come to into action!
Community Involvement
Pounce on a Project II - 2008
Last month we worked on developing new PowerPoint skills, writing presentations and cleaning up our offices. Here are what a few folks said:
- “Getting started is such a big help and gets you on a roll.
- It feels really good to get rid of stuff!”
What project would you like to get on top of and accomplish this month? Come to Pounce on a Project II - - 2008. Join Coach Andrea on Thursday, February 28th from 9:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Eastern. We will join as a group by phone and declare what you want to accomplish: getting taxes ready for the accountant, cleaning out those boxes in the corner, getting your website finished or make cold calls.
During the morning, the group will gather by phone a few times to check progress and get any support needed to finish with a bang. At noon, the group will celebrate their accomplishments. Who says projects have to be boring and tedious? Bring your lightness and fun and join us for the energization.
To sign up or learn more, call or by noon on Wednesday, Wednesday, February 27th. Feel free to share this with friends and co- workers, the more the merrier. (Cost of the program is only the cost of long distance phone calls.)
Empowering Yourself at Keefe Tech Continuing Education
Do you feel like you need to make a significant change in your business or personal life and would like some support to address these issues? Coach Andrea will provide her 5-step program for gaining control of your life. This seminar is scheduled for Tuesday, March 4th, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Keefe Tech, Framingham, MA. To reserve your place, please call 508-935-0202 or go to www.ktconed.org/health_and_lifestyle.htm.
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