I stumbled on this Abraham Lincoln quote this morning on the Marketing Essentials International blog and it’s speaking to me:
“Commitment is what transforms a promise into reality. It is the words that speak boldly of your intentions. And the actions which speak louder than the words. It is making the time when there is none. Coming through time after time after time, year after year after year. Commitment is the stuff character is made of; the power to change the face of things. It is the daily triumph of integrity over skepticism.”
We live in a society that jumps on quick fixes and wants long term credit for short term gains. Too many relationships amount to shaking hands, tossing a couple of shovels full of dirt over the fence together, patting each other on the back and moving on to the next “commitment.” I see it in every industry, including this one.
Sure, everything starts there, and it’s fine that a lot of things end there, but it’s a problem when everything starts to end there. Sometimes a couple of shovels full of dirt is all that’s needed, but that’s not commitment. Commitment digs in. Commitment stays. Commitment moves things. The world needs more commitment.
Everything is moving like crazy. The miracle workers are moving them where they want them. Everywhere I turn people are trying to figure out how to make that work. Rapid solutions need to fall from the trees. We need to touch things and turn them to gold with a word. That power is available but it isn’t free. In fact, it’s probably more expensive now than it’s ever been. It’s more valuable too. Commitment is still the only key that unlocks it all. Some things never change.
I love miracles as much as anyone? I count on them in fact and miracles do happen. They happen often. They happen to me. I’ve never seen a miracle happen outside of the realm of commitment though. Never.
Without exception, in those moments where I’ve witnessed transformation happen so fast that it was unexplainable (miraculous), it happened because someone had the faith to pick up a shovel, dig in and stay with their convictions until the barriers moved. Faith, like earthquakes, can move huge barriers in an instant, but the underlying pressure that causes the shift usually takes years to build. Years of commitment. The digital revolution isn’t going to change that.
Everything I’m building, I’m building on faith, but I think I’ve defined faith a little differently than most. The kind of faith I’m talking about, the kind that moves mountains, sticks around for a while and gets a little more invested than a couple of shovels full of dirt over the fence. Lincoln understood that, and because of it, he didn’t just move mountains; He carved his face in them. It cost him his life, but man, what a life! “… The power to change the face of things…” yea, I like that Lincoln; I like that a lot.
That’s the husband, father, friend, creator and all around man I want to be. That’s the company I want to build. That’s the company I want to keep. The kind of company where the logos are worn off of most of the gear but the smiles of long term friendships, and jobs well done, never fade.
Commitment.
Am I speaking to you? Is Lincoln speaking to you? If so, please speak back. What are you building? Is it exciting enough to warrant a commitment from you? Is it exciting enough to warrant a commitment from others? What would that look like for both of you?
Think about it. All of those amazing moments frozen forever in your mind. They are all relationship moments encased in a solid state of unyielding commitment aren’t they? We spend a lot of our lives on the job. Why aren’t more of those memories tied to our careers? Could they be?
Posted by Kevin Halliburton on April 16th, 2010 :: Filed under
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