My great LIGHTBULB-MOMENT came in 1994. A new president gave his inaugural address and I hung on to every word of it. Chills ran up and down my arms. At that moment, my life changed forever. I knew instinctively that this was Confidence that Captivates. He spoke, but not about the hardship and solitude he suffered for 26 years as a prisoner in a South African jail for going against the government’s system of apartheid, a policy of racial segregation, nor about the anger, and hatred that he felt during that time. Yes, instead he chose to focus on the positive, take the “high road” as one South Africa both black and white and the great future they could have together. He chose to focus on what others called unattainable. This CONFIDENCE CHAMPION, Nelson Mandela, said to the world who was watching ‘This is a joyous night for the human spirit. This is your victory too. You helped end apartheid.” That was my LIGHTBULB-MOMENT, a CONFIDENCE that captivates. I began a journey with LEADERSHIP CONFIDENCE that continues to this day.
To be a great leader, we need to surrender who we were for who we will become. Nelson could have held onto the Hate and Fear he experienced in jail. He chose to be “better than that.” To rise above it. When we hold on to negative feelings, whatever the cause, we stay imprisoned in a downward spiral. To reach the unattainable we must let go of the old to attain the new. Throughout history, all great CONFIDENCE CHAMPIONS have known this.
As a leader who strives to be even greater, look at an area in your work-life that seems unchangeable… Take five to ten minutes to think about what piece of you must begin to surrender to make that change happen. Now write it down, and put it where you will see it for the next thirty days. You’re on your way to being a CONFIDENCE CHAMPION.