LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"I would encourage you to set really high goals. Set goals that, when you set them, you think they're impossible. But then every day you can work towards them, and anything is possible, so keep working hard and follow your dreams." Katie Ledecky, USA Swimmer

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

I've been captivated by the Olympics this past week, and just enjoy the competition, the global stage and the strength of so many athletes. This month, I'm just going to share some quotes from some of the Olympic athletes that I find inspiring.

I'll start with this from Katie Ledecky, one of the worlds most decorated Olympians. Watching her swim is impressive, so when you hear her talk about "impossible goals", you know that she has set her sights high and is achieving those goals.

I often wonder why the goals I set don't see to be very impossible. They are often very safe, very real, and often pretty boring.

We've been taught to define goals as SMART Goals:

• SPECIFIC: clear outcomes

• MEASURABLE: quantifiable

• ACHIEVABLE: realistic

• RELEVANT: aligned with my reality

• TIME-BOUND: deadline

For a goal to be a "real" goal, it has to be a SMART goal.

Does having SMART Goals limit us to what is truly possible?

I wonder if Ledecky, when she won her first gold medal at the age of 15 in London, had declared this as one of her SMART Goals?

Are your goals "too possible"? Are they not stretching you at all?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"You have to be really loyal to the people that supported you when you were coming up." Sylvester Stallone

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

This is the last quote from Sylvester Stallone that I'll share for July. I hope you've enjoyed these this month. You can read them all HERE.

I found this last quote a couple of weeks ago and thought it would be a great one to share.

With Stallone's story, he talks a lot about people that took a chance on him, people who invested in him and people who never left him. He's very grateful to people who walked with him, and this quote is just something that I think he lives out in his life. I don't know him or know his "people", but he appears to be thankful.

It's kind of obvious, but I think it is something that is easily forgotten.

In my life, sometimes I "forget" because...

• I spend more time looking forward than looking back

• An event or season was difficult, I often try to forget about it or I don't spend time dwelling on it.

• I'm just busy

• I'm self-centered and often am thinking only about myself

These aren't excuses, it's just reality.

What about you? What keeps you from remembering people who "showed up" for you again and again?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"I succeed because I keep going and going and going." Sylvester Stallone

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

It's summer and I thought I would go a little "lighter" with some quotes over the next few months, and I'll continue with some thoughts from Rocky Balboa aka Sylvester Stallone this month. I have 2 more quotes to share then we'll move on to something else in August.

This week I read a couple of articles on habits, and when I saw these words from Stallone I connected the dots.

Stallone often talks about the discipline of hard work, his ability to learn from failure and to keep going, and then there are all the boxing metaphors of getting up when you're knocked down, "going the distance" and learning to hit hard.

There's even a story of he and his wife filing for divorce after being married for 25 years, then they decide to call off the divorce and address the issues in their marriage.

I'm not trying to validate all of Stallone's life choices and career, but the idea of "I keep going and going and going" is something to think about.

In a recent podcast that I listen to, the hosts talk about "mid-year resolutions" and they talked about how it's not good to just make resolutions at the beginning of the year, because once you've given up, you have to wait until the following year to try again. They were encouraging people to continually be identifying things they want to work on and address in their lives.

I guess the question I am asking myself is this: "What keeps me going?" Is it motivation, is it discipline, is it habit, is it pressure? What is it that keeps me going and going and going?

So I'll turn that question to you? What is it that keeps you going?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Success is usually the culmination of controlling failure" Sylvester Stallone

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

It's summer and I thought I would go a little "lighter" with some quotes over the next few months, and I'll continue with some thoughts from Rocky Balboa aka Sylvester Stallone this month.

The Sylvester Stallone story and the Rocky Balboa have some similarities in that both people didn't believe that either of these "characters" would succeed. People told Stallone for years that he would never make it as an actor, and the character of Balboa was a "down and out" fighter who no one believed in.

The story for both of them is a story of failure after failure that eventually leads to success, however that story isn't a simple story.

For Stallone, even after his break-out role as writer, director and lead actor in the film Rocky, he continued to have things fail and then he'd find success.

This quote is a really good reminder that most of us won't have a couple of failing moments followed by great success. Our story is usually a lot messier and we will continue to fail at things along the way, and that is OK.

The word Stallone uses in this quote it "controlling failure". I interpret that as "managing failure". We can't control everything that comes at us but we can manage our response, our attitude and how we allow these things to affect us.

Here's the truth: We will fail at times. All of us. This is how we learn, how we grow, how we adapt and how we move towards success.

Every once in a while there's the success story that comes out of nowhere when someone happens upon a crazy product or opportunity and it's a life-altering success story, but this isn't normal life for most of us.

For most of us, it's a journey of small success, repeated failure, and constant and steady growth that redefines how we define success.

What failure have you experienced in life and leadership that helped to shape you for success? Describe that...

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Life's not about how hard of a hit you can give... it's about how many you can take, and still keep moving forward." Rocky Balboa/Sylvester Stallone

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

It's summer and I thought I would go a little "lighter" with some quotes over the next few months, and I'll continue with some thoughts from Rocky Balboa aka Sylvester Stallone this month.

I remember watching the movie Rocky in 1976. It's a classic comeback movie, but I remember the people in the theatre cheering for this fighter as he came from nowhere to standing in the ring with the World Champion.

The classic Rocky theme was him just taking hit after hit. Sometimes he would even taunt his opponent to hit him again. His strategy was to just keep taking it and to stay in the fight one more round.

While boxing isn't my experience, the idea of facing obstacles and facing obstacles, yet to not give up and to keep going, that's a leadership theme.

Leadership is tough, and there are days and "seasons" where you feel that if you can just keep going a little longer, you'll get through everything that is coming at you.

I used to call them "seasons", but usually one season rolled into another season, and I realized it was just the way life and leadership worked..

However, fixing your eyes on something to keep you focused, keep you grounded, and to remind you of hope is critical to being able to get up time and time again, especially when it's the last thing you want to do.

What motivates you to keep going? To get up again after facing challenge after challenge? What is it?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Every champion was once a contender that refused to give up." Rocky Balboa/Sylvester Stallone

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

It's summer and I thought I would go a little "lighter" with some quotes over the next few months, and thought I'd start with some thoughts from Rocky Balboa aka Sylvester Stallone.

I remember watching the movie Rocky in 1976. It's a classic comeback movie, but I remember the people in the theatre cheering for this fighter as he came from nowhere to standing in the ring with the World Champion.

When I think of the Rocky franchise, the idea of never giving up is a part of every one of Stallone's stories. Each time, when everything was against him Rocky dug in and refused to give up.

I'm sure you remember the moment in each film when the music changes and we see the momentum shift, either during his training or during the actual fight. He's down and ready to just throw it all in, and he finds a way to come back, finds a way to turn things around.

This turn-around is what we all get excited about, whether it's a film or our real-life story.

I think the Rocky story is extra compelling when you learn about Sylvester Stallone's story and the way he was at the end, but he had this dream and he turned that into opportunity.

Think about a time in your life when you felt that you were done, then the music changed and you caught a second wind. What was it that really changed?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"If you want to make everyone happy, don't be a leader. Sell ice cream." Steve Jobs

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

This month I want to look at some words from the late Steve Jobs. While much of his life was focused on building Apple, he has a lot to say about leadership, culture and perseverance.

This final quote from Jobs this month is an appropriate one. Years ago, I read the biography of Jobs written by Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs. In telling Jobs story, Isaacson also shares some of the tough things about Jobs.

Looking at the quote above, Jobs never tried to make people happy. He was relentless in his pursuit of his vision, and he often ran over and through people on his way forward.

The quote is a simple reminder to all of us as leaders: You won't make everyone happy, so don't try!

Leadership is difficult, and many times you're trying to serve, please, cater to and pay attention to the needs of those you're serving, yet if you're goal is making people happy, you'll never accomplish that which is the most important. You'll be distracted in your never-ending pursuit of people pleasing and this will make you ineffective.

This doesn't mean you have to lead like Jobs did. There can be a happy medium, but the challenge is still true: If your goal is making people happy, you're in the wrong seat!

While Steve Jobs was clearly focused on "perfection" in his pursuit of the perfect product for the world, some people loved working in that high pressure environment where everyone was focused on the vision and the task at hand, and they were willing to fight through the conflict to follow Jobs on this journey.

Others didn't want to work in that high-stress culture, and they jumped early.

Have you ever worked for someone who just wanted to make you happy? Who's sole purpose was to serve you? What was that like?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do." Steve Jobs

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

This month I want to look at some words from the late Steve Jobs. While much of his life was focused on building Apple, he has a lot to say about leadership, culture and perseverance.

Jobs was a disrupter.

Over the years, I've read a number of books on his life and leadership, and watched a couple of movies & documentaries on him, and they all tell the story of him as a disrupter.

He never liked people telling him that he couldn't do something, and when he got an idea in his head, he was relentless in his pursuit of it. While this characteristic was a difficult one to manage and work with, he was able to do things that no one ever dreamed were possible.

People called Jobs "crazy" in his pursuit of innovation and in his desire to impact the world, yet today, more than 2 billion people are actively engaged with Apple products.

Jobs believed that he and his company could change the world, and he lived his life in constant pursuit of that and even following his death in 2011, others continue to carry the vision that he began.

Changing the World. That's a crazy goal!

What would it take for you to believe that you can change the world? What are you doing about that?