| When I lived in Japan, I was amazed by the pride | | | | the internal debate and simply default to giving your |
| that workers took in even the most "unglamorous" | | | | all regardless of what you're doing. |
| tasks. Garbage trucks were virtually spotless, thanks | | | | · Energy begets energy. Whining and |
| to their drivers' concerted efforts, and it was not | | | | grumbling sap your energy and slow you down. On |
| unusual to see city employees carefully wiping down | | | | the other hand, if you throw yourself with |
| the public trash cans out on the street as if they | | | | enthusiasm and a sense of fun into a dreaded task - |
| were a Rolls Royce. | | | | I imagine I'm in a TV commercial when cleaning the |
| Some people, however, seem to have an internal | | | | kitchen - you may just find yourself enjoying it, and |
| mechanism that calibrates their enthusiasm and | | | | having more energy than when you started! |
| attention according to whether they "feel" like doing | | | | · Transform the result. Have you ever seen |
| something - whether they think what they're doing | | | | that commercial for Volkswagen that illustrates the |
| (or who they're talking to) is worthwhile, interesting | | | | chain reaction of kindness? One person sees a VW |
| or important. What they don't seem to realize is their | | | | Bug, smiles happily at a passerby, who smiles back |
| approach in any one instance is a reflection of their | | | | and stops to pick up something someone dropped, |
| approach in every instance. | | | | who then pays the parking meter for someone else, |
| In fact, thanks to the power of individual perception | | | | and the chain continues. Every human contact, no |
| and context, nothing is inherently interesting or dull. | | | | matter how mundane, creates energy - don't |
| There are factory workers on noisy assembly lines | | | | underestimate the power of your attitude to |
| who enjoy their work and brain surgeons who are | | | | influence others and start a ripple effect. (Remember |
| bored with theirs. An actress who was thrilled about | | | | this when calling the phone company.) |
| attending her first few movie premieres on the red | | | | · Enhance your reputation as a person of |
| carpet might, years later, view them as routine and | | | | integrity. Become known for being someone who |
| time-consuming. It isn't the nature of the activity that | | | | always gives their all, every time, and the trust and |
| has changed, just her perception of its significance. | | | | credibility you earn will be priceless. |
| So the bad news is: there's no set of given | | | | · Preparation for the big time. "Doing your |
| circumstances that is guaranteed to be exciting. The | | | | best" isn't something that can be turned on as if it's a |
| good news is: there's no set of given circumstances | | | | faucet. It's more like priming a muscle; you can't |
| that is guaranteed to be tedious if you can create a | | | | suddenly lift something heavy if you haven't been |
| context that will give it more meaning (e.g. if it's | | | | consistently building up strength and stamina. If you're |
| something you've done a thousand times, find a way | | | | used to doing the minimum - cutting corners, taking |
| to learn something new, recall a time when you were | | | | shortcuts - it will be difficult to step it up when |
| excited to be doing it or make it into a game). | | | | there's actually something at stake and you need to |
| But, wait a minute. Doesn't applying the same degree | | | | perform your best. |
| of enthusiasm and effort into everything require a lot | | | | This is not to say you should spend the same |
| more time and energy? Not necessarily - here's what | | | | amount of time on a casual email as you do on an |
| actually happens: | | | | important client proposal, but once you're actually |
| · Get done quicker. It takes time to | | | | committed to doing something, then ditch the |
| determine how much you feel like doing something. | | | | disclaimers, dive in wholeheartedly with all your |
| Once you're in the land of inevitability, why not skip | | | | attention and see if that doesn't change everything. |