KNOWING is not as important as DOING: Get Motivated
As Vince Lombardi once said, “The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack in will.” I firmly believe that after the past month or so. With spring (and terrible allergies) upon us, I can look back at all of the accomplishments of the past year in comparison to last spring. With the Capital Classic wrapped it feels pretty great to be finally be done with basketball season. It was a long haul to get to this point. I have to look back and think – would I do it all over again? I feel that most people ask themselves that question after some major event or series of events happen. Do we always have a definitive answer for that question? Not really. There are always extenuating circumstances to every issue. For example, I missed Orange and White weekend down in Knoxville, Tenn., last weekend, the UT spring scrimmage game where all my college friends get together and celebrate the start of an exciting college football season. The first time ever that I’ve missed the game, since I started school there. On the other hand, though, one could also argue that I learned a LOT and gained valuable experience (which I did) that will no doubt help me with my career and all future endeavors.
But which choice is best? Work or play? What is the motivation? It’s the same argument as choosing love or career. You cannot REALLY choose what’s best, because you do not really know what is going to happen in the future. You can predict, but unless you’re Nostradamus, there are far too many unknowns. In class this week, we were learning about the Value Chain Analysis, describing internal and external factors, both having strengths, weaknesses, positives and negatives. It sounds pretty similar to what I’m thinking right now, so why can’t we apply most business models to our everyday lives?
Look at the show Celebrity Apprentice. Not sure if you watch or not, but if you don’t, it’s actually a really great show. It’s interesting to see, using their status in society, celebrities that tackle these specific business tasks and how they work with each other, even though each person is so different. (Latoya Jackson is STILL in it…) It shows how they use specific ideals of incorporating brand management and creating new marketing prototypes that haven’t been used before. I wonder if there’s a motivation in others like there is for the show? I’m talking about thousands of dollars toward a charity of their choice.
Would people act differently or work harder if they were getting something substantial out of it? What if the motivation was something else, like a championship? Look at the Washington Capitals, moving on to Round 2 in the Stanley Cup playoffs, well on their way to (hopefully) a championship. Shall I go a little more extreme? Look at Kate Middleton, about to marry Prince William in a ridiculously lavish wedding event for the entire world to see. Talk about motivation … I think about the Capital Classic event versus running an event like that, with close to 177,000 members of the press guaranteed to attend, I wonder who makes THAT seating chart (and I hope it’s a staff and not just one person).
Whether your motivation is to help yourself in your own career, helping others through charity work, getting that World Championship, or to help land that Prince Charming, the lines of motivation still remain the same. You can try and troubleshoot all the possibilities, but there will always be circumstances that are beyond our control. What it takes is someone who is organized, aware of and utilizes their resources, and is not afraid to act spontaneously to problem solve as situations arise. What is YOUR motivation?
