10 Untapped Secrets to Vitality
Vitality rises when you stop working to prove yourself.
You’re most like your real self when you feel most alive. But stress rises when you feel like a fraud.
10 Untapped Secrets to Vitality
Vitality begins when you show up as your best self.
#1. Think less about yourself. Self-focus is grueling. Losing yourself sets you free. Serving gets you out of your head and into life.
#2. Trade proving for presence. Show up grounded in your best self. You don’t need to earn the right to belong—just be where your feet are.
#3. Turn self-doubt into curiosity. Don’t fake confidence. Explore with questions. Take time to reflect. When you need it say, “I need time to think this over.”
#4. Swap self-deceit for self-knowledge. “You are your own raw material.” (Bennis) You can’t give yourself until you know yourself.
#5. Replace pressure with purpose. Actions become life-giving when you serve something bigger than approval or fear. You lose yourself when you give your energy to something bigger than yourself.
#6. Focus on who you are becoming, not who you used to be. Your past is a prison until you use it. Vitality is fueled by forward motion.
#7. Use hardship as a lens. Who are you based on the things you’ve overcome? Adversity reveals strength. People say they can’t do it, even when they’re doing it.
#8. Choose progress over perfection. Perfectionism kills joy. Growth energizes. Chasing impossibilities defeats you. The goal is pressing forward.
#9. Emulate people you admire. Vitality increases when admiration shapes you. Think of their attitudes as well as actions. Don’t seek to become someone else.
#10. Give energy to energy. Invest in life-giving activities.
“Nothing is truly yours until you understand it—not even yourself.” Warren Bennis
What’s one way for you to honor vitality today?
How can leaders make vitality more likely for team members?
What a powerful story!
One of the biggest challenges to leadership is being unaware of our weaknesses and blindspots. And, unfortunately, those things can tank our success. Being humble enough to pursue self awareness in those areas is a huge step in the right direction.
The lessons on leadership in this book are awesome! The writing is absolutely incredible! The story grabbed me from page one and didn’t let me go until I finished. And the practical application steps will help anyone grow into the kind of leader that makes their world a better place.
Great job, Dan Rockwell, and John David Mann!
Increasing your vitality—become more aware of what fills your tank and what empties it. Then, make daily choices that add energy rather than subtract it.
Do the same thing for your team members? In addition, ask them, “What increases your vitality?”
My professional focus this year is to be my best self and provide my best work. I’m finding this to be impossible without truly knowing who I am, and what makes me my best self. Thank you for these words. They are getting printed out and put on my desk for regular reference. I look forward to exploring further.