"Fire In Your Belly"

The name of this post is the most eloquent way I have ever heard someone describe the will to win. It is important to take a look in the mirror and at the individuals on whom you most rely for success to make sure this trait is alive and well. Once the will to win is gone it can be almost impossible to rekindle the flame. You can readily identify this "fire" in those that are competitive by nature and the ones who are putting forth a champion effort on a daily basis. After all, the will to win requires hard work. You know you have a problem on your hands when you have employees showing up late routinely for work or who get in the habit of "clock watching." Other ways to identify a declining will to win is if your conversation is dominated by problems, disappointments, etc. Finally this trait is readily visible in those who do not learn from their mistakes. It is okay to fail forward, but repetition of failure should be a red flag that you have a declining will to win on your hands.

So who has the responsibility to keep the fires burning? Is it the responsibility of the employee or employer? What is your opinion? I believe it is the responsibility of both. Employers and the leaders within any organization must be committed to the ongoing development of their people and placing carrots in the right places to push their teams to strive for higher levels of success. Company leaders should also be expected to provide employees with the tools they need to be successful as well as a a safe, fair and professional work environment. If the issue is that people are leaving early or coming in late, I think the leader has to take a close look at whether they are providing a fun, challenging work environment. Is it possible that they are giving people a reason to want to run out the door everyday at 5:00 pm? If so, it could be time to change up the routine to charge up the troops!

On the other hand, I do believe that there are things that employees should be asked to do to keep their "fire." Jobs are not always all fun and games (that is why it is called a job). We make it more rewarding by challenging ourselves daily and setting both short-term and long-term goals. What are yours? I have a picture hanging in my office that reminds me everyday of a goal that I am working towards. A constant visible reminder of an individual goal (whether it is a vacation to Europe, putting your child through college or buying your dream home) is a great way to keep your personal fire alive and well. It is also important to not let yourself get into a comfort zone. This is especially true for individuals that are doing well professionally and are at a point that they feel they do not need to put forth a tremendous amount of effort to continue to grow their business, skill set or professional abilities. The day will come when these folks wake up and go to work, and the world has changed. In some the change will reignite the fire. In others it will simply mean that it is time to move on. If you fall into this first group, take it upon yourself to force the issue today. Change your routine. Work on developing a new set of strengths. The old adage of "a the best defense is a good offense" pops to my mind. It is my goal to walk away from the office each day knowing that I have improved the ability of the business for which I am responsible to be successful (short-term goal). By accomplishing this, I also improve my own personal skill set (long-term goal).

What are your short-term and long-term goals? What about the goals of the individuals that are the primary reasons for your success? I bet we will all learn something new about the folks that we work with and have some interesting conversations if we ask these types of questions.