Recently I saw Leonardo DiCaprio on the Oprah Winfrey
show. He was plugging his new movie, but he also told a
story about his grandmother, describing her as "old
school," a woman who told it as she saw it.
He described a private tour of the Pablo Picasso museum,
personally guided by Picasso's grandson. As they looked at
the paintings, it was obvious his grandmother didn't
approve of Picasso's style and when the grandson asked what
she thought, she told him! Everyone in the audience laughed
at the story, but then Leonardo added the real punch-line:
Later he received a letter from Picasso's grandson saying
how much he loved the old woman's honesty and integrity!
Everyone wants to be told the truth. We recognize
integrity, and we also sense the lack of it.
Here's another great story, variously credited to both
Winston Churchill and George Bernard Shaw. It seems one of
them was seated next to a wealthy, aristocratic woman at a
formal dinner. During the dinner, a slightly inebriated
Churchill (or Shaw) turned to the woman and asked if she'd
sleep with him for a million pounds. After recovering from
her outrage, it's said the woman pondered the question and
reluctantly agreed that for a million pounds she would do it.
Churchill then asked if she'd sleep with him for five
pounds, to which she angrily replied, "Certainly not! What
kind of woman do you think I am?!" Churchill's answer is
classic: "That, my dear woman, has already been
established. Now we are haggling over the price."
Personal integrity is priceless and essential to greatness.
Passion. It's the reservoir of energy and drive that high
achievers use to reach their goals. They have a personal
belief and passion to achieve their purposes!
The second pillar is an absolute, relentless sense of
Positive Personal Integrity. Unusual Self-Awareness tells
them exactly who they are, and their sense of Positive
Personal Integrity keeps them focused straight ahead. With
high achievers, what you see is exactly what you get. They
are who they seem to be, they know their values, and they
stick to them.
I think of John F. Kennedy's remarkable book, "Profiles in
Courage," and the impact those models had on his own life.
Kennedy can be faulted for many things, but as Robert
Dallek's new biography makes clear, Kennedy new who he was
and through his pain and limitations, he stuck to his priorities.
The great golfer, Bobby Jones, was once complimented for
calling a penalty stroke on himself when no one else was
around to see. He was disgusted by the compliment and
replied, "You might as well compliment a man for not
robbing a bank!"
Lots of people can achieve some level of fame or wealth, or
even political power, without Positive Personal Integrity,
but it won't last. It's not truly satisfying or fulfilling
because at some level, they know they are being false.
True success is built on a foundation of Self-Awareness and
stands on the pillars of Personal Passion and Positive
Personal Integrity. Don't leave home without it!
show. He was plugging his new movie, but he also told a
story about his grandmother, describing her as "old
school," a woman who told it as she saw it.
He described a private tour of the Pablo Picasso museum,
personally guided by Picasso's grandson. As they looked at
the paintings, it was obvious his grandmother didn't
approve of Picasso's style and when the grandson asked what
she thought, she told him! Everyone in the audience laughed
at the story, but then Leonardo added the real punch-line:
Later he received a letter from Picasso's grandson saying
how much he loved the old woman's honesty and integrity!
Everyone wants to be told the truth. We recognize
integrity, and we also sense the lack of it.
Here's another great story, variously credited to both
Winston Churchill and George Bernard Shaw. It seems one of
them was seated next to a wealthy, aristocratic woman at a
formal dinner. During the dinner, a slightly inebriated
Churchill (or Shaw) turned to the woman and asked if she'd
sleep with him for a million pounds. After recovering from
her outrage, it's said the woman pondered the question and
reluctantly agreed that for a million pounds she would do it.
Churchill then asked if she'd sleep with him for five
pounds, to which she angrily replied, "Certainly not! What
kind of woman do you think I am?!" Churchill's answer is
classic: "That, my dear woman, has already been
established. Now we are haggling over the price."
Personal integrity is priceless and essential to greatness.
Passion. It's the reservoir of energy and drive that high
achievers use to reach their goals. They have a personal
belief and passion to achieve their purposes!
The second pillar is an absolute, relentless sense of
Positive Personal Integrity. Unusual Self-Awareness tells
them exactly who they are, and their sense of Positive
Personal Integrity keeps them focused straight ahead. With
high achievers, what you see is exactly what you get. They
are who they seem to be, they know their values, and they
stick to them.
I think of John F. Kennedy's remarkable book, "Profiles in
Courage," and the impact those models had on his own life.
Kennedy can be faulted for many things, but as Robert
Dallek's new biography makes clear, Kennedy new who he was
and through his pain and limitations, he stuck to his priorities.
The great golfer, Bobby Jones, was once complimented for
calling a penalty stroke on himself when no one else was
around to see. He was disgusted by the compliment and
replied, "You might as well compliment a man for not
robbing a bank!"
Lots of people can achieve some level of fame or wealth, or
even political power, without Positive Personal Integrity,
but it won't last. It's not truly satisfying or fulfilling
because at some level, they know they are being false.
True success is built on a foundation of Self-Awareness and
stands on the pillars of Personal Passion and Positive
Personal Integrity. Don't leave home without it!
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