[November 13, 2013] A major theme in the philosophy of leadership is the concept that passion is an essential trait of leaders. For senior executive leaders, passion is fundamental to their ability to guide their organization and is a characteristic without peer.
Passion is ultimately about winning and success – it is in our human nature to be competitive and to win. Passion drives winners. This means producing results.
“You don’t get any medal for trying something, you get medals for results.” – Bill Parcells
A few days ago I ran across a short, 32 second video called “The Heart of the Game1.” What I liked about it was the acknowledgement that while baseball is very much about physics and technique … to win, what really matters is heart.
What senior leaders instinctively know is, that if you don’t have the will to win, the heart, the passion, the love of the game, you will not win (or succeed) … period.
Whether in baseball, business, the military, or any organization, only through passion as an inner force can anyone hope to beat the odds.
Everyone has some level of dedication about most things in life – the more important it is, the more dedication. But passion goes beyond dedication and this is what makes a leader. For the greatest leaders, either you succeed spectacularly with passion or you fail.
“There is winning and there is misery.” – Bill Parcells
Passion is a combination of extraordinary ambition and zealous commitment. This is the fuel, the inner drive, to do greater good beyond one’s self, to win, to accomplish your goals.
For those who want to be the best of the best, the winner, the leader (CEO, President, Commander); passion pushes you past the basic mechanics of success and places you at the top of your game.
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[1] The URL for the site is: http://wapc.mlb.com/sd/play/?content_id=25794889&topic_id=26668336
[2] There is also an excellent book with the same name that looks at this dedication; in this case, baseball (of course). Heart of the Game: Life, Death, and Mercy in Minor League America by S.L. Price