In preparing for the talk this morning, I kept getting drawn back to the word COMMITMENT. I realize that it is such an important word in today's vocabulary. Yet there seems to be either a lack of it or a misplaced sense of commitment. I don't know how many of you are cricket fans and how many of you have today become disillusioned cricket fans over the recent spot fixing scandal that has hit the IPL. But as I was thinking of the individuals who have brought this entire IPL into disrepute, it has to do with misplaced commitment. The individuals were not really committed to cricket; they were committed to making money. They forgot that the whole reason while they were out there on the field was to play cricket. And once commitment to the prime motivator is moved, then somehow, everything begins to get a little muddled and shady.
Commitment to the right things is so important. I was reading an article by George Barna called 'The Frog In The Kettle' where he was talking about reduced signs of commitments in life. He named about 8 of them but 6 of them really spoke to me.
1. Divorce rates are climbing – half of all new marriages end in divorce.
2. Adults feel they have fewer close friends than did adults in past decades. Again this is due to commitment to friendships, which is at such a premium today. It's so difficult to commit to a friendship and give everything to a friendship.
3. Brand loyalty in consumer purchasing studies dropped in most product categories and by as much as 60% in some categories. No longer are consumers committed to particular brands.
4. The percentage of adults with a sense of duty to fight for their country regardless of the cause has dropped.
5. The percentage of people who commit to attend events but fail to show is on the rise. One can see that so often when one posts a Facebook event and so many people say that they are coming. When you look at the list, most of the people who say they are coming are people who live in other cities. There's no way that they could come, yet they say that they will and never show up.
6. Today's parents are less likely to believe that it is important to remain in an unhappy marriage for the sake of the children than they were 20 years ago. Most parents are willing to just give up without thinking of the consequences on the children.
Thomas Watson, of IBM fame, in an article "A Business and its Beliefs: The Ideas that helped build IBM" says that there are 2 basic things that are involved in commitment – you must believe in basic precepts and then faithfully carry them out. Those precepts need to be anchored in something that is good, has integrity and is worthwhile.
An article in Prism Ltd. Said, "As true as this is for the success of a corporation, it is even more so for the individual. The most important single factor in individual success is COMMITMENT. Commitment ignites action. To commit is to pledge yourself to a certain purpose or line of conduct. It also means practicing your beliefs consistently. There are, therefore, two fundamental conditions for commitment. The first is having a sound set of beliefs. There is an old saying that goes, 'Stand for something or you'll fall for anything.' The second is faithful adherence to those beliefs with your behavior. Possibly the best description of commitment is 'persistence with a purpose'."
In his book 'The Professional', Subroto Bagchi talks about a time when he had just finished delivering a keynote address in New Delhi. He was met by a group of enthusiastic entrepreneurs, press persons and students, all coming forward, giving him business cards and so on. A young journalist from a national magazine insisted that she wanted to speak to him for a few minutes; she needed to file a story and had a flight to catch. He told her to send him the questions on email and he would make sure that he would send them back to her by the next day. As he was leaving, another woman entrepreneur introduced herself as a social entrepreneur who had come all the way from Chennai to listen to him speak and she wanted to meet with him. He told her that they were both going back to Chennai and gave her his number and said, "Call me tomorrow morning and we'll fix a time."
He then said that when he got back to Chennai and checked his emails, there was nothing from the journalist. Then, remembering the meeting he had promised but hadn't yet got a call, he called her number. A sleepy voice answered and he found out that she had stayed back in Delhi to visit her mother – obviously hadn't taken his offer to meet the next day very seriously. He ends by saying, "What these two 'professionals' lacked was commitment, or rather commitment to commitment. That is so important. Not only is it important to have commitment, but to be committed to that commitment."
Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar says, "It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action and discipline that enabled us to follow through." We need all three. We need character to enable us to get up every day and say, "I have something that I need to do and I'm going to do it." Commitment it is that moves us into action. Then discipline enables us to follow through.
Brian Tracy in an article on Focal Point Coaching Excellence says that there are nine essential commitments that people need to have in their lines of work, or even personally, to be able to be successful. He says, "In my mind, commitment is the definition of success. Success is total commitment, whether it's commitment in your marriage, commitment in leadership or in starting a business."
I'm going to give you this list that he has put down.
1. Commitment to values – this is your core. If you work with commitment to your values, you will work your hardest.
2. Commitment to goals – successful people set goals, but setting goals is nothing if you don't stick with them.
3. Commitment to action – every single day you need to commit an action towards your goals.
4. Commitment to continuous improvement – it's about being your best and maintaining integrity and pride.
5. Commitment to excellence – remember the rhyme from school? 'Good, better, best, never let it rest – 'til your good is better and your better best.'
6. Commitment to your business – always ask yourself, "Is this the best thing for the company?"
7. Commitment to your promises – did I mention integrity earlier? Let me say it again. Integrity.
8. Commitment to your team – the people who work for you need to know that you stand behind them, that way you can get commitment.
9. Commitment from your team – dedication from the people you work with and who work for you will give you the power you need to drive results.
Nine points that help us to get and be successful. I wonder today, as you listen to this talk, whether any red flags have gone up as you look at your own life, your own level of commitment. I wonder if you need to look at commitment again and say, "I need to rethink my values, my basic principles. I need to again say that I'm going to follow through, faithfully carry them out."
Bagchi finally ends by saying, "Without commitment, we cannot achieve even small successes, much less larger ones. Without commitment, we cannot give our best to an organization. Without commitment, we cannot turn our vision into reality."
Just a word for us this morning. Let's re-examine our commitment. To what are we committed? Are they the right things? If maybe, by some chance we need to do some realignment, let's be committed to do the right things so that we can be successful in the things that we do.
Let me pray with you. Almighty God. Help us to be committed to the things that You want us to be committed to, so that we can be men and women of integrity, who are valued for the things that we say and do, and men and women who are sought after because we are quality people. Help us bring commitment to the front and center of everything that we do. I pray Your blessing, a blessing of wisdom on each one of these precious ones on this call. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Brian Tracy, "Ten Commitments for Business Success: Success is Total Commitment.
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