The 8 Qualities of a Winner

I recently came across a book called You Can, You Will by Joel Osteen who is the senior pastor of America’s largest church – Lakewood Church in Houston. He is a 6 times New York best-selling author and has an unbelievably positive mindset. The church has a congregation of 43,500 and is growing fast. They bought the former home of the Houston Rockets basketball team which seats 16,800 people.

They have multiple services and these are watched by 10 million viewers each week in the United States, and millions more in 100 nations around the world. He is the author of six #1 national best-selling books and has been named by numerous publications as one of the most influential Christian leaders in the world.

What I really like about Joel Osteen is his positive mindset and his refusal to think or speak negatively. He believes that to be a winner you have to have 8 key qualities in place These are:

1. Keep your vision in front of you
2. Run your race
3. Expect good things
4. Have a positive mindset
5. Commit to excellence
6. Keep growing
7. Serve others
8. Stay passionate

This is a summary of these key principles which Joel describes in his own words:

1. Keep your vision in front of you

Studies tell us that we move toward what we consistently see. You should keep something in front of you, even if it’s symbolic to remind you what you are believing for. Winners have big dreams and they imagine themselves fulfilling those dreams. (I have a Dream Board on which I have all my big dreams in picture form and each day I visualise having achieved every one of them).

He mentions if you are single and you want to get married you should put an empty photo frame on your table. That’s where you are going to put your wedding photo. When you see it you are moving toward it. (By coincidence this is exactly what I did, and after a year of visualising a wedding photo of me and my future wife, I met my wife to be Julie, to whom I am now very happily married).

2. Run your race

You have to accept the fact that you can’t keep everyone happy. You can’t make every-one like you. You will never win over every critic. You are not really free until you are free from trying to please everyone. You are respectful, you are kind, but you are not living to please people. You have to make sure that you spend the majority of you time with lifters and thrusters – those positive people who empower you.

3. Expect good things

Our expectations set the limits of our lives. If you expect little, you’re going to receive little. If you don’t expect things to get better, then they won’t. But if you expect more favour and good breaks, a promotion, and an increase, then you will see new levels of success. Expect to be in the right place at the right time. Expect your dreams to come true. Expect to be a winner.

4. Have a positive mindset

Life will go so much better if you simply decide to be positive. When you wake up choose to be happy. Choose to be grateful for the day. Choose to look on the bright side. Choose to focus on the possibilities. If you have a positive mindset you cannot be defeated. No matter what comes your way, you shake it off and keep moving forward.

5. Commit to excellence

When you have a spirit of excellence, you do your best whether anyone is watching you or not. You go the extra mile. You do more than you have to. You produce more than you have to. You stay behind ten minutes late to finish a project. You don’t start shutting down thirty minutes before closing. You put in a full day. When you are an excellent person you don’t get stagnant. You’re always taking steps to improve.

6. Keep growing

Too many people suffer from destination disease. They reach a certain level, earn their degrees, buy their dream homes, then they just coast. Studies show that 50 percent of high school graduates never read another entire book. Winners never stop learning, whether you are nine of ninety, you should be constantly learning, improving your skills, and getting better at what you do.

7. Serve others

When you live a ‘serve others’ lifestyle, you help friends, volunteer in the community, and take care of loved ones. It’s not something you have to force yourself to do. It becomes part of who you are. You develop an attitude of giving to everyone you meet. That’s when you’ll have true happiness and true fulfilment. You live not to receive but to give. It takes a big person to do something small.

8. Stay passionate

Studies show that enthusiastic people get better breaks. They’re promoted more often, have higher incomes, and live happier lives. That’s not a coincidence. The eighth undeniable quality of a winner is that they stay passionate throughout their lives. The day you quit being excited about your future is the day you quit living. When you quit being passionate about your future you go from living to merely existing. Be the best you can be. You may have had some setbacks, but this is a new day. Dreams are coming back to life. Your vision is being renewed. Your passion is being restored.

The words Joel speaks above all make sense and mirror a lot of what I believe. I already have these eight principles in place and I have seen the dramatic difference they have made in my life.

Three thoughts for the week:

1. Have a look at these eight qualities and see which ones you already have in place, and which ones you can work on.
2. Try choosing to get up in the morning with a positive attitude, looking forward to the day. Observe if your day goes better.
3. During next week see if you can change any negative thoughts you have by thinking about everything you are grateful for in your life. This is a great way to change the way you feel.

Well that’s it for this week. Have a really good weekend and stay positive. .

Warm regards

John

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