Playing the Long Game: Creating Success through Consistency

Creating Success through Consistency, by Ryan Hansen

Throughout 2019, our Solutions Team members have been sharing crucial principles that young leaders should learn and master. You may have seen these notes posted to our FacebookTwitter, and LinkedIn pages. In January, we covered three well-known principles: "Everyone is a leader," "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care," and "Leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand." These are powerful leadership lessons, but there is another principle that every leader - young and old - should consider every day:

 Consistency Compounds

 Aristotle said "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." John Maxwell included consistency in one of his Laws of Growth: "Motivation gets you going, but discipline keeps you growing." Renowned speaker Jim Rohn pointed out that "Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying basic fundamentals." Bruce Lee adds, "Long-term consistency beats short-term intensity."

Many of us made resolutions for 2019. Some of those resolutions were probably intended to develop our professional skill sets. Now, in mid-February... how are you doing? Are you still progressing with the same fervor you had when you began? Don't feel bad - it is simply human nature to lose momentum when we cannot see the impact of our efforts. We all need to renew our enthusiasm from time to time.

Let me ask you this - have you seen your team lose momentum in its initiatives? Maybe you had a training session to teach some new skills. How long did you see results from that session? Unfortunately, it has become common thinking that a single meeting or training session will make a transformative impact. But how could it?

Consider how we approach other aspects of our lives, like personal finance or physical fitness. The greatest investors didn't get there overnight; they worked every day for a very long time to achieve their goals. Similarly, you don't train for a marathon by going for a couple of jogs; it takes a long-term plan and a disciplined routine. It's about doing the small stuff, every day. Whether it's a personal goal or an organizational initiative, the simple truth is that all spectacular successes are predicated on consistent, unspectacular efforts.

Each day is an opportunity. What are you going to do today? Maybe it's a new habit or a new attitude. Seize your opportunity and start compounding!

Whether you know it or not, you are compounding every day. It's up to you to decide if you are compounding positively or negatively.

What would you share with an emerging leader in your life? What lessons would you add to our list? Let us know on our social pages, or at!


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