“It is not the critic who counts; not the [person] who points out how the strong [person] stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the [person] who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spend [themselves] in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if [they] fail, at least fails while daring greatly, so that [their] place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

One of my Board members was giving me a pep talk once and told me: “No one ever built a statue to a critic.”  How true!

Many of you reading this – regardless of your level of responsibility in your organization – are “The Person in the Arena.”  Have courage!  Have faith in your mission and vision!  There are many of us cheering you on as you “dare greatly!”

This is the standard that I set for myself – and I remind myself of this every day.

This does not mean that I do a perfect job in every class – far from it.  I always have ideas on how I can do better.  But I go for it and give 100% effort every day.

What would it take for you to bring you’re “A Game” to work every day?

Here are some of the things I do:

• Prepare.  Every day brings a new challenge.  Make sure you have put the time into being ready for each of your key goals for the day.
• Focus.  It is easy to get distracted during the day.  Work to keep your focus on your key goals for the day.
• Prioritize.  Bringing your “A Game” does not mean that do everything perfectly.  You need to pick the top goals for the day to focus on.
• Rest.  We cannot be our best without getting proper rest – whatever that means for you.
• Health.  Taking care of our health is great for the long term, but also for today.  Make sure you have the energy you need to bring your “A Game.”
• Continuous Improvement. All of us can get better each day.  Continually evaluate improvements for the future.
• Make Your Own List. These are the things that I need to bring my “A Game” – what about you?

Are you bringing your “A Game” every day or are you sleepwalking through life; same ‘ol, same ‘ol?  Are you phoning it in?

We can never get a day back.  I suggest making the effort to bring your “A Game” every day.  Not only will you be more successful – the whole experience will be much more fulfilling.

In fact, many are so driven to succeed that they cannot fathom the idea of having a single failure.

In his book, Originals, Adam Grant says:

“When achievement motivation goes sky-high, it can crowd out originality: The more you value achievement, the more you come to dread failure.”

It’s not that you should love failure.  No one “loves” to fail.

The question becomes, do you follow your passion and set a high goal – knowing that the chances of failing are significant?  Or do you sell out what you want in your heart, to be “successful” at accomplishing a much smaller goal?

The difficulty is that many people focus on goal attainment versus actual results.  If you want continuing improvement in results – over time – then set big goals, try innovative ideas, and be true to your passion.  You will absolutely fail many times.  But over time, your results will be better and you know will know in your heart that you followed your passion.

Nelson Mandela once said: “Your playing small does not serve the world.”

Play Big!  And if you fall short, get up the next day and play big again.  That will serve the world and your passion.

The new year is around the corner and you are figuring out how to get your team fired up for the new year.

That’s great.  But before you dive into new year planning, take some time to look back and savor your accomplishments from 2025.

You can do this in just a few hours.  Look through your calendars.  Come up with the top three accomplishments your team had for every month of 2025.  What were the highlights?  Who were the heroes?  Celebrate these!  Ideally you can have a celebratory lunch or dinner to really appreciate all of your accomplishments.  Savor these for a few days.

Then – focus on 2026.

Set the three most important Strategic Goals that your team needs to accomplish in 2026.  Use the following guidelines.  If you already have the goals, use the guidelines to sharpen them up:

• Outcomes.  Set your goals as outcomes – results – not activities you want to complete.
• Specific & Measurable. This is the only way to know if you are on track.  If you have difficulty, try this book as a resource: Make Success Measurable.
• Aggressive.  If you want to get even more innovative, try setting Almost Impossible goals like they do at Google.  Learn more in this brief, free video.
• Relevant.  What are the three most important goals you can set that will advance your larger organizational goals – as well as the vision and mission.
• Time Bound.  Every goal must have a date.
• Outcome Milestones. Set at least four of these during the year to see if you are on track with your results – not your activities.
• SWOTs.  People like to reserve SWOTs for strategy, but you can use them for each goal.  What Strengths do you have that you can leverage to achieve the goal?  What Weaknesses do you need to develop in order to achieve the goal?  What Opportunities can you seize to help you accomplish the goal?  What Threats do you need to keep an eye on so you are not derailed with the goal?  This analysis can help you set your Action Plans.

Your review and savoring of 2025 will set a positive tone and build your team’s confidence.  This will act as a springboard to catapult you into setting and accomplishing your 2026 goals.  Good luck making a Mission Impact in 2026!

Note: There will be no Insights With Impact blog on December 30, 2025.  Enjoy savoring some time off!

However, many of us do not take enough time to celebrate and savor our wins.

A recent article in Harvard Business Review points out the downsides of moving on too quickly to the “next goal.”  We miss out on three critical benefits:

1.  Refuel Motivation: Celebrating an achievement provides a crucial moment of positive reinforcement. It allows you to connect the hard work you put in with the satisfying outcome. This connection is essential for recharging your internal battery.

2.  Validate Your Strategy: A win is evidence that your chosen approach was effective. By celebrating, you mentally record what worked, making it easier to replicate that successful strategy in the future. If you rush past it, the valuable data of success is lost.

3.  Build Confidence and Anchoring: The modern business climate is defined by uncertainty, scrutiny, and nonstop demands. Acknowledging an achievement—even a small one, like a successful presentation or an on-time deliverable—serves as a stabilizing force. It helps you stay anchored and energized.

Acknowledging your own achievements isn’t self-indulgence; it’s a strategic necessity. Start by integrating small, simple habits into your routine:

• Practice a “Moment of Notice”: After a successful outcome, take 60 seconds to simply notice it. Don’t immediately check your email or jump to the next item. Acknowledge the achievement with a simple: “I did that well.”
• Keep a Success Log: Maintain a brief log (a simple document or notebook) where you record daily or weekly wins. These notes serve as an external source of validation to look back on when self-doubt creeps in.
• Share the Success (Authentically): When a team win occurs, share it widely and specifically. Credit the individuals and explain how their efforts led to the positive result. This reinforces the behavior and makes the team feel seen.

We are at the perfect time of year to begin practicing this!  Take some time at your next team meeting to list your key accomplishments for 2025.  Celebrate!  Do the same thing for yourself, personally.  Don’t let these moments slip by. Noticing your successes will help you build the confidence you need to keep moving forward.

*Ideas for this blog taken from: Chaplin, L. N.  “Most Leaders Don’t Celebrate Their Wins – But They Should,” Harvard Business Review online, November 10, 2025.

Will the annual audit ever be critical of you for not trying to seize that new opportunity that you decided was too risky?  No.

Audits are critical of acts of “commission” vs “omission.”  You don’t want the financial report to show a big expense on a project that did not work out.  But the audit will never fault you for missing that investment in a new idea.

Just ask Kodak.  Remember them?  They once had 90% share of the film market in the US.  When the idea of digital photography came along, they said “pass.”  They only realized many years too late that this new technology – which they invented – was the future.

Sometimes we become so successful that the idea of taking a risk and failing is unthinkable.  And yet, that risk could lead to even more success.

How do we overcome our fear of failure?  Here are some ideas from an article in Harvard Business Review.

1. Redefine Failure. Fear of failure often stems from a fear of looking foolish or not meeting expectations. Instead of viewing failure as a sign of personal inadequacy, reframe it as a learning opportunity. Successful professionals are not those who avoid mistakes, but those who learn from them and move forward. Entrepreneurs like to say: “Fail fast and fail forward.”
2. Acknowledge the Fear. Rather than pretending the fear isn’t there, take a moment to acknowledge it. Giving your fear a voice can lessen its power over you. Respond to the fear by saying: “This is a calculated risk that I am willing to take. The potential upside is worth this risk.”  Keep a picture of success at the forefront of your mind.
3. Test Your Assumptions. Our fears are often based on worst-case scenarios that are unlikely to happen. Test your fear by asking yourself, “What is the worst that can happen if I fail?” Often, the answer is not as dire as we imagine. In the professional world, setbacks can lead to new opportunities, new skills, and even new professional relationships.
4. Get Comfortable with Discomfort. Feeling fearful is a normal part of stepping outside of your comfort zone. If you don’t feel a little apprehension, it might be a sign that you aren’t challenging yourself enough to grow and achieve your most important goals.

You will absolutely fail sometimes.  Fine.  Own it.  Learn.  And be proud you were willing to take a risk on something you believed in.  The alternative is that you would never know if you could have been successful.  Use these four steps so you can start to see fear not as an obstacle, but as a guide that helps you move forward and achieve your full potential.

*Ideas for this blog taken from: Peppercorn, S.  “How to Overcome Your Fear of Failure,” Harvard Business Review, July-August 2022, pp. 135-139.

Are you seizing the day or sleepwalking through it?

Are you maybe feeling a bit “meh” at work?

Even the most dedicated professionals hit a wall. When work feels like a monotonous routine, or a sense of “fine” replaces genuine fulfillment, it’s a clear sign you’re in a slump.

The good news, according to a recent Harvard Business Review article, is that you can proactively reignite your motivation with a few key strategies.

1. Invest in Your Growth. Look over your last performance review and identify some professional development activities which excite you.  Connecting your proposal to your review will make it easier to convince your boss to support you.
2. Schedule Time with Work Best Friends. Make a point to regularly connect with the people you like best at work. This could be lunch meetings or just taking a walk together in the afternoon.  Work friendships make us more engaged and fulfilled with our jobs.
3. Create an Inspiring, Challenging New Project. What cool new project could you dream up that meets the organization’s priorities, but had not been on your radar screen? Brainstorm this with some of your work friends to see what they think.
4. Track and Record Weekly Successes. We are often so busy getting ready for the next week’s list of challenges that we do not take time to review and really savor what we accomplished the prior week. Create a list of your key successes at the end of every week.  Review these along with your “to do” list during the next week.

A career slump is a common experience, but it doesn’t have to be a permanent state. By taking control and proactively engaging in these strategies, you can find a renewed sense of purpose and motivation in your work.

*Ideas for this blog taken from: Goredema, O.  “In a Slump at Work?  Here’s How to Motivate Yourself,” Harvard Business Review online, March 28, 2025.

Many of us seek to lead significant, transformational change in our communities and organizations.  As we engage with others it is important to keep these key characteristics of transformational leaders in mind:

*Begin with a sincere commitment to changes that inspire you – from the heart.  What do you care about?  Keep in mind the important values and principles that are the incentive for your change.

*Communicate your change ideas to others, but also ask for their input.  Make as many one-on-one connections as you can with people.  Ask for their input and listen sincerely to what they care about.  Include their ideas in your change plan.

*Demonstrate pride, optimism, and energy as you communicate with others.  Keep focusing on the future that you and others can build together.

*Encourage others to have a growth mindset and demonstrate this yourself.  Be open to new ideas and different ways of doing things so that the change can take hold.

*Acknowledge that you will face challenges along the way, but commit to working together with others to address those challenges and move forward to the future you are building together.

Maybe people try to “act” charismatic and inspirational.  This never works. You cannot fake this.

Instead, find something that you sincerely care about – that inspires you.  Others will see the inspiration inside of you – and it will draw them to co-creating a vision for the future with you.  That is the key to transformational leadership.

We appreciate people who acknowledge their mistakes, share credit with their team, and welcome feedback to improve.  As it turns out, a new research study shows that these types of leaders inspire others in their organization to step up and lead.  They spark ambition and drive personal growth.

Here are some suggestions from the research for developing your humility:

Focus on the Team.  Make sure your team knows that this is a group effort and share praise for them – especially in front of your boss and other organization leaders.

Develop Your Self-Awareness.  In the field of leadership development, self-awareness is gold.  Find a few people you work with who are willing to give you honest feedback.  Ask them to let you know if you seem open to feedback, admit mistakes, and celebrate team accomplishments.

Create a Culture of Humility.  As best you can, within your zone of emphasis – encourage and reward acts of humility.  Recognize others when they behave this way.

Guard Against Arrogance.  Success naturally breeds temptations for arrogance.  You don’t want to be “that person” who brags to others about how humble you are.  Again, ask colleagues to help keep you in check.

Like sincerity, you cannot fake humility.  You have to begin with an honest belief that you are only as good as your team.  But – at the same time – you can show strength.  You can call it “humble confidence.”

*Ideas for this blog taken from: Lin, X & Tse, H.  “Research: Humble Leaders Inspire Others to Step Up, Harvard Business Review online, January 29, 2025.

But anger can actually be a good thing.  We can channel our Anger into a force for Good.

Consider this quote by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie:

“We should all be angry. Anger has a long history of bringing about positive change; but, in addition to being angry, I’m also hopeful. Because I believe deeply in the ability of human beings to make and remake themselves for the better.”

The process of focusing our anger for good includes:

*Owning and Embracing the Anger.  Don’t push it away.  Say to yourself “Yes!  I am angry!”

*Give Voice to the Anger.  Tell people who care about you and respect you what you are angry about.  Get it out and let it rage.

*Let it Settle.  Once you let the anger out, take some quiet time.  Do some mindful meditation to just “be” with your anger.

*Make an Action Plan.  Forge a plan on how you can take positive action to address the root cause of what made you angry.

*Stay Focused and Intense.  Use the emotion of the anger to fuel your intensity as you carry out your action plan, but do it in a strategic and laser focused fashion.

Austin Channing Brown once said:

“Anger is not inherently destructive. My anger can be a force for good. My anger can be creative and imaginative, seeing a better world that doesn’t yet exist. It can fuel a righteous movement toward justice and freedom.”

Let’s focus our anger to make the world a better place.

*Ideas for this blog taken from: The Mindful Leader blog, “Mindful Anger: 5 Steps to Turn Fury to Focus,” March 18, 2025.