I do a lot of conferences, a lot of leadership training. For about six or seven years I've been making this statement - every time I make it, I can see people just kind of - it's just one of those light bulb moments.

Experience isn't the best teacher - evaluated experience is.

People naturally tend toward inertia. That's why self improvement is such a struggle. But that's also why adversity lies at the heart of every success. The process of achievement comes through repeated failures and the constant struggle to climb to a higher level.

My leadership began to take flight when I allowed myself to press people to change-whether they thanked me or cursed me.

Why worry about things you can't control when you can keep yourself busy controlling the things that depend on you?

If you want to reach your potential and become the person you were created to be, you must do much more than just experience life and hope that you learn what you need along the way. You must go out of your way to seize growth opportunities as if your future depended on it. Why? Because it does. Growth doesn't just happen--not for me, not for you, not for anybody. You HAVE TO go after it.

My potential is what God gives me - that's His gift to me - what I give back to Him is what I do with that potential.