The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor. Vince Lombardi
Excellence gives us the confidence we need to achieve balance. Confidence comes from competence and excellence, not just from positive thinking. It comes from knowledge, skills, and experience. It comes from the people you keep company with, television programs you watch, books you read, and cassettes you listen to.
Confidence leads to commitment; commitment means that you will get the job done without excuses.
Steve Jobs ignored the maxim of giving the market what it wants. He was impudent about market research findings and would say, “The consumer doesn’t know what he or she wants until we make it.” He would create something so sexy and different that it would be irresistible, and then tell the market this is what it wanted. For instance, when the market was comfortably settled with the MP3 player, Jobs introduced the iconic iPod and revolutionised market demand.
If education is expensive, ignorance can cost you much more. Invest in education, for it is worth the cost.
“When it comes to the seduction of total commitment, yield,” advised Dr. Joyce Brothers, psychologist, author, and television personality.
Some principles for achieving Life Balance and lifelong learning:
Excellence and Life Balance come from lifelong learning.
It is much easier to be balanced and to excel than to be unbalanced and mediocre.
Achieving excellence and balance is a game of inches and going the extra mile. Expand your capacity and achieve excellence.
Excellence means being the best you can be – with passion.
Excellence and Life Balance result from choices.
Seek to learn from your elders and from your role models.
Excellence is a habit.
Excellence is a competency.
Excerpt from the book, Life Balance the Sufi Way by Azim Jamal & Nido Qubein