All or Nothing

All or Nothing

I saw that on a tee shirt recently and started thinking about those three words… All or nothing.  It’s a statement, a commitment, or maybe it’s an ideal.  To me it means “give your all, all the time”.  Be passionate, enthusiastic, really jump into the fray. It’s not a half measure, it’s not half assed, and it’s certainly not waiting around to see what might happen before making a decision.

All or nothing.

If you’re giving your all will you succeed?  Maybe.  There are no guarantees, but if you don’t you certainly won’t get where you want to go.  If you’re giving your all and you realize you aren’t getting where you want to be, an adjustment might be in order.  You don’t give less or give up.  You change course.  You don’t change your commitment or your “can do” attitude, but maybe you need to rethink what success means.

The point is that you map out the steps needed and time required in order to march toward that prize.  If you want it bad enough and the goal is realistic you’ll have the “all or nothing” attitude required to make it.

But maybe “all or nothing” has absolutely zero to do with success or failure.  Maybe its just a lifestyle, a way of living everyday, it’s the way you think.  You perform each task as if it’s the only thing of import.  You give your full attention to completing each and everything you do.  Always.  You devote your full attention to your friends and family, you listen, you commit, you care.

Maybe it means success with attitude.

If you really put yourself out there you’re bound to be successful because failure isn’t an option.  You’re confident with yourself, with your expertise, with your knowledge.  Not that you won’t have a misstep or fail at something, but failing and failure are two completely different things.

fail·ure

noun: failure
lack of success. “an economic policy that is doomed to failure”
Synonyms: lack of success, nonfulfillment, defeat, collapse, foundering

fail
verb
to fall short or to be unsuccessful

No one is perfect, which means mistakes will happen, you’ll make an error in judgment or screw up a report.  It’s what you do afterwards that makes all the difference.  Do you admit defeat and become a failure or do you learn from whatever that failed attempt was, grab a hold of that attitude and move onto the next thing?  Remember, we’re all about the “ALL” in all or nothing.

My last thought on “all or nothing” is a play on the Nike ads.  Just freaking do it, and do it with all you’ve got!