Page 84 - Roy W. Rice - CEO Material How to Be a Leader in Any Organization-McGraw-Hill (2009)

You Have Fire in Your Belly • 65

Set Your Goal

Make a list of what it will likely take to achieve your goal, and rank the
list in order of priority. When you are derailed, rejected, or sidetracked,
go back to your list to get refocused.
Big goals happen from daily effort. You need to always have the
future target you are going for tied to something you are currently doing
to get there. Start, continue, and complete steps toward the goal.
Nothing will overwhelm your fear and procrastination like the
excitement that comes from having something you thought of and
planned out come through. You’ll wonder why you haven’t done it sooner
and more often!

Radio and talk show host Tavis Smiley writes:
The tragedy of life does not lie in not reaching your goal. The
tragedy lies in having no goal to reach. It is not a calamity to die
with dreams unfulfilled, but it is a calamity not to dream. It is not
a disaster to not be able to capture your ideals, but it is a disaster
to have no ideals to capture. It is not a disgrace to not be able to
reach all the stars, but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for.

Any individual who decided to write a letter to the editor, write a
book, take on a more complex job, initiate a job move, change employ-
ers, or even run for president of the United States did the same things:
set a goal, took a piece of it, and then started, continued, and completed.

My goal was always to have a day where I wasn’t sure of the outcome.

Gut It Out. Try Hard. Try Hard Again.

Try Harder

When you wake up, seize the day or the moment, and repeat that
tomorrow. Your chosen attitude and action maintain, stabilize, and make