Striving Towards Excellence

-Karthik Gurumurthy

Being a leader isn’t some special position reserved for a select few. It’s an attitude. A mindset. A way of living that gets results. And anyone can do it.

Here are 7 steps to get you there:

1) Stay at the Edge

Successful people don’t run from change—they love it. They’ve learned to get comfortable being uncomfortable. If you want to be a leader, you’ve got to embrace uncertainty. The edge is where the big opportunities are.

2) Keep a Positive Perspective

Your life is too important to waste on negativity. Period.

3) Take Total Responsibility

No blaming. No excuses. Ever. When something goes wrong, winners ask themselves, “What am I going to do about it?” Then they actually do it.

4) Watch Your “I Am” Statements

You become the story you tell yourself. Anthony Hopkins (yeah, Sir Anthony Hopkins) put it perfectly: “Be careful what you feed your brain. What happens if you pour negative information in there, or positive information? You change the balance of your nature.”

Successful people shut down the negative self-talk and replace it with powerful “I am” statements.

5) Bring Fresh Ideas

Innovative leaders come up with new ideas. They don’t just repeat what everyone else is saying or follow trends. They contribute original, cutting-edge thinking.

Ask yourself: who would you respect more—someone who creates ideas or someone who just borrows them? Be the person who invents and shares fresh perspectives.

6) Keep Moving

If you let things slow down, they fall apart. Stay in constant motion. Make it your goal to create change every single day. Set passionate goals—that tension keeps you from getting stagnant.

7) Have Fun and Enjoy the Ride

William James said it best: “We do not sing because we are happy. We are happy because we sing.”

Same goes for life: “We don’t stop working and playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop working and playing.”

So keep at it and enjoy the journey.