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Vail Valley success: A secret to success: showing up

Michael Norton
Vail, CO, Colorado

Did you ever hear the saying, “showing up is half the battle?”

If you read this column on a regular basis you know that I have shared that philosophy on more than one occasion. However, over the past several months I have come to believe in many cases that another simple secret to success is that showing up is more than half the battle – it may be the whole battle for some of us.

In last week’s column, the first in a four-part series on success, I shared the importance of believing in ourselves, developing and nurturing a healthy self image, and a belief and commitment in knowing we truly are something special at the start and end of each day.



In today’s second installment of the series I want to focus on simply showing up and being present in the moments of both our personal and professional lives.

It’s one thing to say we are here or to be physically here or there, like raising our hands when attendance is taken, but are we really present, both emotionally and mentally? Are we there as an active participant or is our existence in our own life more like that of a spectator watching as the events and happenings pass us by?

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You know what I mean – we watch as other people achieve success and wonder how they found that job, won that sale, built that relationship, found love, lost those extra pounds, quit smoking, or exceeded a goal. We watch and say things like “I could do that too if I tried” or “that should have been me.”

Get in the game, show up, and be ready to play each and every day. And with baseball’s spring training officially under way, I am reminded of one the true heroes of the game, someone who was known for showing up every day.

Cal Ripken Jr., baseball’s iron man who broke Lou Gehrig’s record of 2,130 consecutive games played and who has already been inducted into baseball’s hall of fame, is the epitome of showing up every day. Not only did he show up ready to play, he did so with a passion and a purpose.

He learned this work ethic from his father, who also played and coached in the major leagues and who showed up each and every day. Not only did he show up every day, he was the first one to the ball park, the first one in uniform, and the first one on the field. He was also typically the last one to leave.

When was the last time you were the first one in and the last one out? By the way, I highly recommend two books by Cal, “The Ripken Way” and “Get in the Game: 8 Elements of Perseverance That Make a Difference.”

Show up with an attitude of achievement, be in the moment ready to perform, bring that spark back to your friendships and relationships, ignite others by your motivated presence in the exciting and in the mundane, and you won’t have to worry about finding success – success will find you.

Tell me how you plan on “showing up” this week at msnorton@comcast.net and make it a better than good week.

Michael Norton is a strategic consultant, business and personal coach and motivational speaker, and CEO of http://www.candogo.com. He writes a weekly motivational column for the Vail Daily.


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