This isn’t going to be as straightforward as what you normally receive from me. You might not like what it says or the implications. If you do, read it a second or third time over the course of the next couple days. You might resist the central premise because it is easier to hold other beliefs, beliefs that absolve you of responsibility.
Your Will
One of my favorite books of all time is Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game. I found the book on the Marine Corps list of books they want all Marines to read, and I decided to see how a science fiction book found its way on to the list. It was the introduction to the book that hooked me.
At the beginning of the book, Card outlines how he came to the central premise of the book while reading a three-volume set of books about the Civil War called Army of the Potomac. Card realized while reading these books that three Generals had commanded the Army before Ulysses S. Grant. Grant inherited the same war, the same President, the same Army, the same mission, and the same resources. Only the leader had changed. But that leader won the war. Card realized that Grant was the first General willing to use the Army as an extension of his will.
Your Real Resources
Yesterday I wrote a post at iannarino.com about Hustlers having a bigger vision of themselves. In that post, I wrote down an observation I’ve had lately about the smart phone. The smartphone is a modern marvel. We can carry our telephone, computer, internet, email, camera, photo album, video camera, home movies, blockbuster movies, music, newspapers, magazine, maps, address book, and global position satellite in our pocket (and the list of all the other things your smartphone does is greater than this list).
What’s interesting about your smart phone is that everything that was necessary to make it has been on planet Earth since before we were. There isn’t a single element that wasn’t here since forever ago. All that was missing was vision and knowledge.
Everything you need to succeed is already inside you right now. Everything that you need in order for your team to succeed is available to you right now, too. Everything. Any gap you perceive is created by a lack of resourcefulness or a lack of willingness to do something.
So what is it that you perceive to be missing? If someone else was to pick right where you are now, what would they do different to produce a better result?
I am speaking at Dreamforce this week. If you are going to be there, be sure to come and introduce yourself in real life on Wednesday at 11:30 AM.
Do good work this week, and I’ll see you back here next week!
Anthony Iannarino
Contributor Anthony Lannarino is an entrepreneur, speaker, author, and consultant. He writes daily at www.thesalesblog.com and you can subscribe to his newsletter at www.thesalesblog.com/newsletter.