Better Than Good

Thomas Nelson

Contents

Introduction.....................................................................1Part I: The Passion of the "Better Than Good" Life1. A Passionate Journey..........................................................92. Inspiration: The Fuel of Passion..............................................213. Stress: The Enemy of Passion..................................................334. Watch What You Think..........................................................475. Perception and Attitude.......................................................61Part II: The Peak Performance of the "Better Than Good" Life6. Develop a Passionate Plan.....................................................757. Setting Goals.................................................................898. Failure: Life's Refining Process..............................................1039. "Better Than Good" Habits.....................................................11710. The Power of Grit............................................................13311. Redefining Success...........................................................145Part III: The Purpose of the "Better Than Good" Life12. What Is the Purpose of Life?.................................................16113. Discover Your Calling........................................................17714. People and Purpose...........................................................18715. Change Somebody's World One Act at a Time....................................20316. Let Love Be Your Guide.......................................................215Epilogue: The Promise of a "Better Than Good" Life...............................229The "Better Than Good" Life......................................................241Acknowledgments..................................................................243About the Author.................................................................249

Chapter One

Experience shows that success is due less to ability than to zeal. The winner is he who gives himself to his work body and soul. Charles Buxton

Blind zeal is soon put to a shameful retreat, while holy resolution, built on fast principles, lifts up its head like a rock in the midst of the waves. William Gurnall

The core problem is not that we are too passionate about bad things, but that we are not passionate enough about good things. Larry Crabb

Passion, for all its dangers, needs uncaging if we are to move towards completeness as human beings. Philip Sheldrake

Men spend their lives in the service of their passions instead of employing their passions in the service of their life. Sir Richard Steele

Passion is underrated and underrewarded. When a student with an average IQ performs magnificent feats in the academic world, give passion the credit. When you see an athlete with only average ability accomplish herculean tasks, give passion the credit. When you see a parent provide for his or her children despite physical or educational handicaps and roadblocks-obstacles that would stop an ordinary person in his or her tracks-give passion the credit.

American independence was won because of the passion of our founding fathers. Every religious revival has had passion as its source. The American civil rights movement was fueled by the passion of Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders. Passion deserves far more credit than the records of history provide.

I believe passion plays a significant part in all great accomplishments. Who-and Whose-you are will determine whether your passion is noble and generous or selfish and self-serving. Finding and developing passion is a journey, not an event. There is a process you must follow; some find it early, while some discover it much later. A noble passion, when found and developed, produces great joy and personal rewards and offers huge benefits to society as well.

I am going to tell you the stories of two passionate people who came from very limiting backgrounds-people whom, had you and I looked at their circumstances, we might have passed over as incapable of peak performance and success. But we would have been wrong. The passion they developed in their particular fields of expertise illustrates the point that passion is cultivated and developed over time for most people. Reading their stories will encourage you to believe that passion is lurking in you just waiting to be released and give you examples of how to set it free.

A Dream That Wouldn't Die

Different things motivate different people, but inspiration is critical if we are going to discover what we are passionate about. Author Debbie Macomber's inspiration came from an unusual source: the death of a much-loved cousin who succumbed to leukemia. They had been especially close for many years, and David's death had a profound impact on Debbie. After the funeral she said, "It seemed as if God was saying to me that I could no longer push my dreams into the future, which I had done for years with a long list of excuses and justifications. I was one of those people who was going to do it when ..." David's death showed her that later doesn't always come, that today is the time to pursue one's dreams.

Though she didn't realize it at the time, a defining moment had occurred before David's death when she went to see him at the cancer center where he was receiving treatment. As a dyslexic, she had difficulty reading the directional signs and finding her way into the hospital. After wandering around in frustration for a while, she stopped a doctor and asked him for directions. His answer changed her life. He said, "Go all the way down this corridor and take the first right. Then walk through the doors marked 'Absolutely No Admittance.'"

Debbie says now that she has spent the rest of her life walking through closed doors-because she discovered that day that she could.

High school had not been easy for Debbie and she was unable to secure a scholarship for college. So she did what many young women did in the 1960s-she married and had four children in the next five years. As a stay-at-home mom she dreamed of one day writing books but never thought it would be possible. Today she is convinced she would have continued to do nothing more than dream had it not been for the death of her cousin. She talked it over with her husband and he agreed she should give writing a shot. So she rented a typewriter and put it on the kitchen table, moving it at mealtimes.

In telling her story today, Debbie emphasizes the fact that she has no background that qualifies her as a writer. Her parents were children of immigrants; her father never finished high school and was a POW during World War II. To this day she identifies herself as a "creative speller" and affirms she has no credentials as a writer other than the dream she believes God planted in her heart. She believes dreams come from Him and that the only way we have a prayer of them ever being fulfilled is if we turn to Him in faith and belief.

While the kids were off at school during the day, Supermom turned into a struggling young writer. "Rejections came so fast," she said, "I [felt] that sometimes they'd hit me in the back of the head on the way back from mailing off another proposal at the post office." Her list of rejections was impressive, but after five long years she finally got her first book published.

Debbie heard...