11 Jan Optimism and Motivation
Optimism is a characteristic common to successful people. Seeing the glass half full, rather than half empty, is an optimist’s view of most situations which allows them to see opportunities even in circumstances where others see only defeat. The real bonus about optimism is that it is a choice! If a person chooses to be optimistic about any given situation, the outcome may not change, however, the opportunities and challenges that come with the outcome will be seen differently. An optimistic view allows challenges to be seen as opportunities, therefore, turn potential negatives into positives. If nothing more, the perspective of the optimistic person is more positive, thus will attract others and lend itself to a higher probability for a positive outcome.
Like optimism, motivation is also a choice which is like a powerful engine for an optimist. Motivation comes from many sources, perhaps it is finance, affirmation, purpose, family, responsibility, fear, or love. For most, it’s not about the recognition or rewards. It is a personal responsibility to find your own motivation to be more, do more, achieve more! As the saying goes, “a rolling stone gathers no moss”, meaning motivation propels you forward.
The combination of optimism and motivation are two key ingredients in the creation of a driven achiever who is bound to succeed. For the purpose of this discussion, we will focus on the entrepreneurial and business success. For some, the goal may ultimately be profit, however, it’s not as simple at that. In order to achieve this, the entrepreneur must take care of many different factors related to the business, such as relationships (internal and external), provide a product or service with value, create an organized business structure to duplicate the success, and build processes to correct any deficiencies, to name a few. No matter your vision of success, every business must be sustainably profitable to continue to achieve.
With this being said, there is a difference between how an entrepreneur measures success and how they achieve it. Profit is a traditional measure of success and necessary for a healthy business, however, most entrepreneur are driven achievers who seek to push their limits. For example, for one entrepreneur, creating a social enterprise which helps the environment and people through their practices may be their definition of success. For another, creating a not-for-profit that supports a specific demographic like a children’s hospital or taking a start-up company public could be considered success.
The motivation of an entrepreneur is in doing and accomplishing something that takes effort, determination, skill, and perseverance! When they finally achieve, it is like standing alone on the top of a mountain admiring the view and the feeling of satisfaction that you did it! Then, most entrepreneurs will set new goals and start again… always driven to do more, be more, achieve more.
Now, some people will call driven achievers “lucky”. I believe one would only diminish another’s success to luck if they don’t understand how success works or they are unwilling or unable to do what the optimistic, motivated, driven achievers do. A Roman philosopher, Seneca, once said, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” Therefore, optimistic, motivated people often appear lucky. They are always in a state of readiness for opportunities and they see opportunities in every situation. It takes the right attitude and a lot of hard work to create the “illusion” of luck.
Not everyone has this drive and that is okay because it only takes a few driven achievers to create businesses and industries that change the world and drive the entire economy. It is why they are often referred to as the 1%. They take the risks, work as much as it takes, rarely stop thinking about business, and often never wish to retire from that which they love.
What the future holds is yet to be seen, however, if I could guess with my optimistic view, it will be more of what has come to pass. There will be ups and downs in the economy, new technology advancements, inflation, labour shortages, wars, environmental issues, struggles to solve problems, people who have, and people who have not. One thing I know for certain will remain is that driven achievers and entrepreneurs will be part of the future, providing solutions, creating opportunities, and achieving success. Remember, I am an optimist who is motivated and always will be because that is what I choose.
For those who read this article, I truly hope you see the opportunities that the future holds and remain optimistic while finding your motivation and your success as we move forward together.
Dan Monk, P.Eng. / Red Seal Carpenter
Owner – MONK Renovations