When my brother Barry graduated from high school, I was a junior in college. I went to his graduation where I heard one of the best speeches ever. It was all about excellence.
I'd wager that the essence of the speech was lost on most of those teenagers. But I was at a point in my life where the words rang true. This sentiment of Oprah's echos the speech I heard long ago.
Try as you might to be all things you want to be, to 'have it all,' life generally does not offer up the options to let that happen. Maria Shriver once said, "You can have it all ... just not all at the same time." Career. Family. Spirituality. Travel. Fame. Riches. Power. Talent. Whatever the 'it' is for you.
To have a lot of any one of these things often means giving up another ... or postponing one to take advantage of another.
Yet as these choices are made, one thing is possible. To strive for excellence. Putting time, energy and attention into the choice you make will aid in achieving that excellence. But excellence does not fall into one's lap. It requires diligence and work.
As you work towards your goal with excellence in mind, rather than with success in the forefront, success usually follows. This does not necessarily mean that you are going to be #1 at the thing you are striving for. It does not necessarily mean that you will be 'best all around.' I do believe it means that personal success is possible when reaching for excellence. A personal best. Your own pat on the back.
And often, that larger 'success in the eyes of others' and the awards will follow. Those will be nice additions to a trophy case, sweet icing on the cake, but the true reward will come from knowing that you worked hard and found pride in your own abilities, your own version of excellence.
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