Recently a group I was meeting with discussed how to best motivate people to perform at their best in producing quality products. I believe that trying our best comes from within ourselves. It would be a rare person who gets up in the morning and says to their inner self, "I'm not going to do a good job today." I don't believe anyone does that, at least not consciously.  That said, however, how do we motivate people to improve?

Well, at the core level, we can’t really motivate someone else. All we can do is to provide the culture or environment to stimulate others to motivate themselves. But how do we then cultivate that environment, either for ourselves or someone else?

The answer might come in two different, but not totally separate, ways. One is to demonstrate how to “make it personal.” The second is about stimulating a passion for excellence. What are you passionate about? Do you dare to express and expand that passion in everything you do? If not, why don't you?

You might need to stand back and look at your life from a distance, as people around you do. What you might see is a pattern, a common thread running through the various aspects of all that you have accomplished. That common thread is probably connected to a passion that lies deep inside of you. The more fully you allow that passion to flow from you, the more success and satisfaction you will enjoy. The more readily you admit and express that passion to yourself and to those around you, the more fulfilling your moments will be. Keeping it hidden and suppressed will only lead to frustration, pain, and regret.

There is a passion inside all of us that is constantly straining to be released. We need to let it out and let it energize us in order to greater success and satisfaction.

Passion is a unique and precious gift that each of us have to offer to society. We need to give it freely, with vigor, with courage, and let everyone truly experience its  value.