Persistence with a Purpose

"Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person."
~ Albert Einstein ~

When I read this quote, I am reminded that the single most important factor for an individual to succeed is through COMMITMENT. Why? Commitment ignites action. I like to think of commitment as being 'persistence with a purpose'.

There are two fundamental conditions for commitment. The first, is to possess a set of sound values. The second is faithfully adhering to your beliefs and to behave accordingly. 

As an award-winning chef of a five star hotel group in India, Narayanan Krishnan was short-listed for a very lucrative career in Switzerland. But a family visit to his hometown of Madurai changed everything! Seeing an old man eating his own human waste for food was a pain too great to bear, so Krishnan started feeding that man - an act that he continues to this day. Since founding his nonprofit Akshaya Trust in 2003, he has served more than 1.2 million meals to India's homeless and destitute, mostly elderly people abandoned by their families and often abused.

Krishnan, the CNN Hero of 2010 is a great example of 'persistence with a purpose'. It depicts one man's faithful commitment to what he considers to be his life purpose.

Here's a quick recap of the D-I-A-M-O-N-D standard

D = DECIDE that you want to change or make changes.

I = INSPIRED to Act by discovering your true desire. What is your greatest desire? Use it to inspire you to make the changes!

A = ACT. Take Action. Create practical steps to move forward towards accomplishing your goals and dreams. Your moment of power is now – The Present!

M = MOTIVATION. It is about making that commitment - choosing to discipline yourself into taking the steps necessary to achieve your dreams and aspirations, Magic Happens! The right people, resources and events will be revealed.

O = ONGOING Commitment. There will be times in your pursuit to achieve your dreams and aspirations that your will and determination will falter. Don't be afraid. Face the challenges head on. As Winston Churchill once said, "Never, never, never Give Up."

N = NETWORK. "Your network is your net worth." Ensure that you have a supportive environment. Surround yourself with people who uphold high standards. Don't allow yourself to slip into being complacent, make excuses or run away from your desires.

D = DRIVEN. Your drive to focus on what you truly want. Write out your goals. Put them in a prominent place so that you will be reminded of your vision and future.

Why Network?

Networking is not only important in business but also for your own personal development. Your network should comprise of people that you know, both directly and indirectly. These are people over whom you can exert some influence and who can in turn exert some influence over you. Some of these people may turn out to be great mentors for you and vice versa.

No matter the industry, it is essential to keep abreast of industry trends, successes and potential problems. The best way to do this is by maintaining contact with a wide range of people within the industry. The more people you know and who know and think about you in a positive way, the more successful you will be in every area of your life.

The X-Factor networking tips

• Get to know the people in your workplace - speak to your colleagues face to face rather than just via e-mail.

• Wherever possible, steer clear of telephone 'meetings' and lengthy e-mail conversations.

• Create a contact book of the 100 most important people in your community – think of how you can get to meet and know these people.

• The meet and greet – remembering names can be very challenging. Master these simple techniques to help you remember people's names.

• Repeat their name at least three times during their conversation

• If their name is unusual, ask them to spell it for you

• Make a mental note of a feature of the person and the environment in which you met

• Make quick notes on the back of their business card

• Always send an email to the person after meeting and thank them for the conversation, privilege of meeting them

• It is imperative that you follow up with a phone call in the next 48 – 72 hours after sending the email. Leave a message if you can't get a hold of them

• Maintain contact by sending them articles relevant to their work or industry, motivational quotes or inspirational stories and youtube clips

• Listening is a skill and can be learnt. Listening skills fuel your social, emotional and professional success. This can be an incredibly difficult task especially if you allow your own thoughts, judgements and opinions to constantly distract you from focusing your attention on the person before you. So, keep an open mind.

• Maintain eye contact and face the person. Leaning forward slightly shows your attentiveness.

• Respond with a nod, or a raised eyebrow, or more direct prompts such as "what happened next?" or "what did he do?".

• Don't go to an event to pass as many cards around and get as many in return. People hate nothing more when they feel that you are already assessing who you can target next while they are talking to you.

• You are better off meeting five people and finding out something important about each of them. This is helpful when trying to build rapport so try to learn something about the individual when you first meet them.

• Don't focus on selling. Instead focus on how you may be able to help. One of the questions I always ask is "what would you like to improve that you don't have time or energy to do?"

• Be genuine about who you are when you are talking to people. Share a personal aspect you are comfortable with in the conversation.

About the Author: Xen (The X Factor) Angelides is the founder of X-Factor Human Performance Systems. Xen Angelides is a Business Development Consultant, a proven veteran of the fitness industry, an accomplished educator and professional speaker. As a certified results coach and master practitioner of neuro linguistic programming (NLP) and neurological re-patterning, Xen has helped many individuals transform their thinking and performance. For more information, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or like his Facebook Fan Page.

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