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Great leaders have a number of character traits in common. This is the third in a series of articles dealing with the set of character traits that great business leaders exhibit – A continuous quest for MORE.
Excerpt:
Here’s my nomination for a character trait that fuels business success: A continuous quest for MORE.
Let’s define MORE. I’m not talking about greed here, although money is a part of it. MORE refers to the concept that, in every aspect of one’s life and business, there are greater heights to be experienced, greater accomplishments to achieve, greater impact to be had, greater knowledge to be obtained, greater wisdom to be acquired, greater good to be done, and, yes, more money to be made, more customers to acquire, more revenue to realize, more markets to penetrate, more employees to hire, more influence to extend. Regardless of where you are at, there is always MORE.
For a person with this character trait, the status quo is never acceptable. The status quo is only today’s version, and this moment’s situation. It’s a temporary circumstance which can be made better. After all, there is always MORE.
These people are driven by a sense of positive discontent. They believe, at the core of their being, that there is MORE to be accomplished. I often say this is my seminars:
“If there is nothing more you want to acquire, nothing else you want to achieve, nothing you want to become, no one else you want to impact – if you are perfectly content with every aspect of your life and career – then you will not grow, you will not achieve, you will not become a person greater than you are now.”
I am hardly the first person to uncover this trait. Similar sentiments have been expressed by folks far wiser than I.
“The world owes all its onward impulses to men ill at ease. The happy man inevitably confines himself within ancient limits.” Nathanial Hawthorn
Every invention, every institution, every organization traces its inception to a person who was discontent with something. Every effort to improve, either oneself or the world outside, begins with an impulse of discontent. If you are perfectly content, then the status quo, the world defined by the events of yesterday (Hawthorn’s ‘ancient limits’) is acceptable.
“Restlessness and discontent are the necessities of progress.”
Thomas Edison.
Some Additional Resources:
Free download: E-book – Portrait of a Professional Sales Manager
Blog Post: On the nagging thought that there may be more spiritual potential to your business.
Blog Post: Are you searching for significance?
Additional Podcasts in the series:
Traits of Great Business Leaders #1: An Unshakeable Work Ethic.
Traits of Great Business Leaders #2: The Ability & Propensity to Learn
