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I did not get up this morning and declare to the world that I want to be average. I do not want to claw my way up to middle management. I do not want to be forced into early retirement.

These are expressions of mediocrity and what passivity looks like! If your desire is to rise above mediocrity then you will invest large amounts of time, thought, and work. Average people are going to invest as little as possible just to get by. Remember this one axiom of leadership; Mediocrity is a downhill discipline. Here are some insights on staying pro-active to reach your fullest potential.

Take Charge of Your Calendar

Your calendar dictates what you do, so take charge of it. When someone else takes charge of your calendar they fill it with their priorities, not yours. If you allow yourself to stay passive in this area, other people will take your time and you will wonder what happened to the day. When you choose to get active with your time, you fill it with your priorities. Understand this truth, you do not manage your time, you manage your priorities. Fill your calendar with things that are important. Do things that are important and will take you above average.

Do What Others Are Unwilling To Do

Successful people do things that unsuccessful people are not willing to do! I have always felt that declaring something is impossible is a green light to go ahead and prove it wrong. Life is about testing new ideas and then failing. It dose not stop their we get up and learn from failure, we figure what happened and why, then we do it better in the next version and then we start over on the next biggest idea that is supposed to be impossible.

Average people do not test much of anything because they do not want to fail. Many times average people are fearful of learning and they are not looking to prove or test anything. The status quo is just fine.

Either Wake up Earlier or Stay Up Later

Only you know your natural bent. Figure it out and stay after a goal earlier or later than everyone else. Each morning I invest two hours in personal growth before I go to the office. That equals 30.4 days per year of preparation and personal development time that I gain annually. Who among us does not want to gain one month of opportunity every year?

You Are Not Good Enough To Remain The Same

Recognize that your talent allows you to become good, but it is not enough to take you to greatness. The ugly truth of the matter is that you and I are not good enough to remain the same. Peter Drucker states there seems to be little correlation between a man’s effectiveness, versus intelligence, imagination, and knowledge. Effectiveness is the result obtained. Without effectiveness, the other categories become lids that contain progress.

Exceed Expectations

Expectations are only the floor upon which you build your life, not the ceiling. Expectations are where you start a journey not the conclusion. Understand the difference between best and better. Your best is what you should be doing today. Better is where you want to be tomorrow. If you become content where you are presently, you will become mediocre. Do not become comfortable with your yesterday’s. If you value the people that you have surrounded yourself with, exceed your own expectations for their sake. You are not good enough to remain the same.

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Music: “Gratitude Mood” by David Arivett. You can learn more about his music by clicking on his name. THANKS DAVID!