You may have heard about the passing of 86 year old motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar last month.
Mr. Ziglar’s 25 books, countless audio tapes and seminars, and multi-million dollar motivational company influenced the lives of literally millions of people around the world.
I’ve often been skeptical of ‘motivational speakers’ and their lasting impact upon people. The mere term can conjure up images of hype and pomp lacking in substance.
After all, motivational speakers extol the virtues of positive ‘self-talk’ and we all know only crazy people talk to themselves. And seeing the world through rose-colored glasses can cause you to be out of touch with reality.
But there is no mistaking the indelible quips of the likes of Zig are more than just hype. There is strong scientific evidence about the power of positive thinking on adrenalin levels, energy levels, and on physiological and psychological well-being.
We’ve all heard the true tales of people doing seemingly impossible things, like lifting cars off of accident victims, when can-do attitudes trigger an adrenalin rush.
One of Zig Ziglar’s quotes, "You can get everything in life you want if you will just help other people get what they want" has been a guiding light that’s served me well with my family, my employees, and my clients.
And when there is a task I’m facing that I don’t relish, I simply recall Zig saying, "If you are going to have to swallow a frog, you don’t want to have to look at that sucker too long." Procrastination is the enemy of progress.
Co-incidentally, the week following Mr. Ziglar’s passing, online marketing guru Seth Godin wrote in his daily blog, "When everyone has access to the same tools, having those tools isn’t much of an advantage. It’s time for a new advantage. It might be your network, the connections that trust you. And it might be your expertise. But most of all, I’m betting it’s your attitude"
I can’t think of a single happy or successful person who got there focusing on negatives or what’s wrong. Every happy and successful person I know has been influenced by someone like Zig to look optimistically at how things could be rather than dwelling on the shortcomings of how things are.
So Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year Attitude!