I think Humphrey Bogart had IT (he is my favorite movie star). I think John Wayne, Angela Lansbury, Audrey Hepburn, President Ronald Reagan, my third grade school teacher Ms. Orange and Tiger Woods have IT. I find it odd, however, that of all the teachers I had in school, college and the military; I can only remember one that had IT. I had a high school basketball coach that at one time had IT but he lost IT when he embezzled money from an inter-state toll booth much to my surprise.
Then, at a recent conference, the Dean of Keller Williams University talked about how someone qualifies to be a certified instructor and outlined all the various steps and qualifications and then said that after a person clears all the initial hurdles, the person has to have IT to be selected.
That is what got me thinking – what is IT? How does one get IT? Can IT be taken away, as was the case of my basketball coach? If someone does not have IT now, can he or she get IT in the future? Has anyone ever really defined IT? If I don’t have IT here, might I move to another area where people in that area would think I have IT where it was non-existent before? Can I fake having IT? You know, fake IT until you make IT.
What I am about to say is not based on any scientific study but rather one man’s opinion. I think I know what IT is.
First and foremost, IT is intangible and beyond description, but I am going to try anyway to define IT. IT is made up of many small elements that when viewed as a whole comprise a very vague description of a person that has IT.
WHO HAS IT?
People who have IT seem to be for real; no gimmicks, just down to earth real good people. People you want to go out to dinner with, play sports with, go to a movie with, work for or have work for you, etc.
- They seem to enjoy the courage of their convictions.
- They know what they want and they tend to persevere in order to attain it.
- They go about their daily activities and life with enthusiasm and excitement.
- They seem to be able to focus on what needs to be done when it needs to be done.
- They are aware of their surroundings and the people therein.
- They tend to be servant leaders by their very nature; what can I do for you?
- They are honest and have integrity.
- They tend to smile a lot.
- They believe that there is a reason that things happen.
I also think they demonstrate a natural leadership that serves as a magnet for others who want to either follow them, be near them, be like them or just feel good when they see them, think about them or are near them. It has been said, by whom I have no idea, that some people brighten a room when they enter it (they have IT); while others brighten a room when they leave (they don’t have IT and that certainly would not be you). We all have known people with IT but not as many as we would like to know. I guess the real question that I would ask is do I brighten a room when I enter it or when I leave it; maybe I don’t want to know the answer to that on any given day.
Any one of these characteristics would be good but together they are magnificent. Together they form the IT that so many people refer to but cannot define. Benjamin Franklin had IT but he didn’t always have IT. In fact a lot of people despised him and did not want to be around him. We don’t hear much of that in the history books – they have been sanitized. Franklin had character flaws but he did something to correct them. He listed the 13 characteristics that he felt were the most important and he dedicated one week for each characteristic. He then focused like a laser on that characteristic, working to improve himself. Then each week he would work on the next and then the next until after the thirteenth week he covered them all. But he did not quit there. He repeated the process every 13 weeks which by the way made up an entire year. So every quarter, he traced his steps working on each characteristic until he improved upon them. Because he worked and studied, he became one of the most admired and respected people in our history. He got IT! One case however, does not prove a point, but in this case it certainly proved that at least one person who failed to have IT could with work acquire IT as Franklin did.
- Authenticity
- Courage
- Perseverance
- Vision
- Mission
- Enthusiasm
- Focus
- Awareness
- Service
- Integrity
- Faith
- Leadership
The Person who has IT -
- Have more friends
- Make more sales
- Are selected for higher positions
- Are voted into office (and then something strange happens to them)
- Achieve their goals
- Have well-rounded families
- Have great relationships
- Are basically happy people
JP Horizons Inc.
Painesville, OH 44077
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