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How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything
Renita T. Kalhorn
When I lived in Japan, I was amazed by the pride that workers
took in even the most "unglamorous" tasks. Garbage trucks
were virtually spotless, thanks to their drivers' concerted
efforts, and it was not unusual to see city employees carefully
wiping down the public trash cans out on the street as if
they were a Rolls Royce.
Some people, however, seem to have an internal mechanism that
calibrates their enthusiasm and attention according to whether
they "feel" like doing something - whether they think what
they're doing (or who they're talking to) is worthwhile, interesting
or important. What they don't seem to realize is their approach
in any one instance is a reflection of their approach in every
instance.
In fact, thanks to the power of individual perception and
context, nothing is inherently interesting or dull. There
are factory workers on noisy assembly lines who enjoy their
work and brain surgeons who are bored with theirs. An actress
who was thrilled about attending her first few movie premieres
on the red carpet might, years later, view them as routine
and time-consuming. It isn't the nature of the activity that
has changed, just her perception of its significance.
So the bad news is: there's no set of given circumstances
that is guaranteed to be exciting. The good news is: there's
no set of given circumstances that is guaranteed to be tedious
if you can create a context that will give it more meaning
(e.g. if it's something you've done a thousand times, find
a way to learn something new, recall a time when you were
excited to be doing it or make it into a game).
But, wait a minute. Doesn't applying the same degree of enthusiasm
and effort into everything require a lot more time and energy?
Not necessarily - here's what actually happens:
- Get done quicker. It takes time to determine how
much you feel like doing something. Once you're in the land
of inevitability, why not skip the internal debate and simply
default to giving your all regardless of what you're doing.
- Energy begets energy. Whining and grumbling sap
your energy and slow you down. On the other hand, if you
throw yourself with enthusiasm and a sense of fun into a
dreaded task - I imagine I'm in a TV commercial when cleaning
the kitchen - you may just find yourself enjoying it, and
having more energy than when you started!
- Transform the result. Have you ever seen that
commercial for Volkswagen that illustrates the chain reaction
of kindness? One person sees a VW Bug, smiles happily at
a passerby, who smiles back and stops to pick up something
someone dropped, who then pays the parking meter for someone
else, and the chain continues. Every human contact, no matter
how mundane, creates energy - don't underestimate the power
of your attitude to influence others and start a ripple
effect. (Remember this when calling the phone company!)
- Enhance your reputation. Become known for your
integrity, for being someone who always gives their all,
every time, and the trust and credibility you earn will
be priceless.
- Preparation for the big time. "Doing your best"
isn't something that can be turned on as if it's a faucet.
It's more like priming a muscle; you can't suddenly lift
something heavy if you haven't been consistently building
up strength and stamina. If you're used to doing the minimum
- cutting corners, taking shortcuts - it will be difficult
to step it up when there's actually something at stake and
you need to perform your best.
This is not to say you should spend the same amount of time
on a casual email as you do on an important client proposal,
but once you're actually committed to doing something, then
ditch the disclaimers, dive in wholeheartedly with all your
attention and see if that doesn't change everything.
Peak performance coach Renita T. Kalhorn is a Juilliard-trained
pianist with an international MBA and a first-degree martial
arts black belt. She specializes in helping entrepreneurs
and corporate professionals achieve extreme focus to reach
the top of their game at work. Subscribe to In The Flow,
her FREE monthly newsletter and receive her FREE Energy Playbook,
Find Your Flow! 21 Simple Strategies to Banish Tedium,
Reduce Stress and Inspire Action at http://www.intheflowcoaching.com.
Article Source: Renita
T. Kalhorn
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