The title of this article might make you initially think of “names of bizarre animals” or some other sorts of weird categories you might find on the game show, Jeopardy. So before we go too far afield, let me tell you what it alludes to. At a recent networking group, the speaker passed out stickers for audience members to wear that said either Gettu or Gottu. Then he asked “So what are you?” No one knew what the heck he was talking about and that’s what made his presentation even better. Of course, he had prepped the group with some ringers to make his point and that’s OK since he went on to make his point with incredible effectiveness.

He proceeded and asked a second series of questions.

“What are you expecting to get out of today’s session?

Who would like to go first?”

Then he pointed to someone (a shill) and said, “Come on Joe, why don’t we start with you?” The response was,

“Oh, man do I gottu go first?”

The speaker stopped him and said

“No, that’s OK Joe, not to worry.”

Turning to another, he asked, “How about Mary, why don’t you start?”

Mary (the second shill), leaped to her feet and said with great enthusiasm,

“Great, now I gettu go first!”

Can you see the difference? Allowing for the grammatical assault, his point was made.

Quite simply put, some of us are Gottu people and some of us are Gettu. Many of us are frequently thinking, “Oh boy, I’ve got to do this” or “I have to do that.” It really colors the way we go about doing things and it makes us, in almost all cases that much less effective. Others cannot wait to sink their teeth into new or even every day projects and frequently and conversely exclaim, “YES, I gettu start working with this client!” or “I gettu finish up this project!”

Ask yourself, who would you want to spend any time with if given the choice? That’s right, the gettu people every time.

Do you think anyone chooses to work with those Debbie Downers of the world? No “expletive deleted” way. As you can imagine when I write this or any of the articles you are reading, I can’t wait to get to them. Hopefully you’ll think about this the next time you need to do something because, here’s the beauty of all this, you get to choose who you are going to be each and every day.

Why not make it the most effective choice you can make?

I had a conversation with a client recently that made me stop and think about my own performance and attitude. Our conversation centered on why some people seem so much more successful than others.  What we discussed was a few simple character traits that seemed to contribute to their overall success:

Drive Hard: a sense of urgency. They seemed to have a very high commitment to achieving their goals. It was more than just ‘not accepting NO for an answer’. These people seem to have an internal vision or knowledge. Something that drives them. It is not fear – it is the pursuit of the idea and a healthy dose of faith. They have the faith to believe or know that somehow things will work.
Work Hard: these people also seem to possess a compulsive drive. They see the goal – a vision, sense of what can be achieved. They are so focused and committed to the goal that it seems they will let nothing stop, hinder or interfere. Truth is they are so committed to achieving the goal they see nothing else.

Play Hard: having fun while doing business is good. After working hard, they take time to look after themselves, enjoy life and have some fun. It is a sign of good mental health and indicates balance.

Finish Well: anyone can start well or sprint. These people finish what they start. They leave nothing left undone. They have endurance. They might appear to be perfectionists – actually they just want to finish what they started. And finish it well!
The difference between success and failure is often just a short distance away – the finish line! When you run a race, why quit 10 feet from the finish line? The truth is you need endurance to finish the race. All you might need is a little encouragement to finish well.

Surround yourself with driven, focused and passionate people. Ask them to mentor, coach and keep you accountable. Because, you are going to work hard and put in the time – why not maximize the results?

Carpe Diem! Seize the day!