Hubby is a crazy fast reader. He can blow through one of my 250-page manuscripts in an hour…less than the amount of time it takes me to drive to the nail salon, get a mani and drive home.
He recently read Becoming Steve Jobs by Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli…in about two hours. 435 pages, by the way. What the WHAT?????
Closing the book, he looked up and said, “I want to show you something but I don’t want to show you something.”
Hmmm. Intrigued? Um, YES!
He reluctantly flipped open the book to a folded down page and pointed to a passage. “I’m not showing this to you to say I condone it or anything but I think you should read it.”
What the heck could it possibly SAY???
Well, allow me to indulge you. I also took the liberty of boldfacing some of the key words.
“Jim Collins, the bestselling author of the management classics Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies and Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t, has a wonderful phrase to describe an essential characteristic of great leaders: deep restlessness. Collins applies this phrase to Steve, one of the two great leaders who inspire him the most.”
Whoa…and here I was thinking I was just a little ADD…
“Collins believes this restlessness is far more important and powerful than simple ambition or raw intelligence. It is the foundation of resilience, and self-motivation. It is fueled by curiosity, the ache to build something meaningful, and a sense of purpose to make the most of one’s entire life.” (Page 295)
I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my lips. Finally!! VALIDATION!!!! No wonder he was so torn…
Yes, I constantly get new business ideas. Yes, I like to act on several at once. Yes, I’m sometimes all over the place with my grandiose plans. NO I CANNOT SIT IDLE WHEN I COULD BE EXECUTING ON POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES!!! NO I DON”T LET POTENTIAL FAILURE DETER ME…EVER!!!!!
Hell yeah! This is me, embracing the restlessness!!!