Basketball players know what I’m talking about. You can see it in their eyes at the very end of the game—win or lose isn’t the question. In the mire of sweat and exhaustion they have a deeper concern: “Did I leave everything on the court?” “Am I walking out of the arena with no fight left in me, with nothing left to give?”
Entrepreneurs know what I’m talking about because they ask the deeper questions all day long: “Am I really leading my team in the right direction?” “Am I doing everything I can to empower my staff?” “Am I making the best decisions for my company?” “What more can I do for my customers?”
You know exactly what I’m talking about. Those private thoughts that slowly begin to percolate at the end of a long day in the studio or at the office. Those concealed concerns that bubble up directly from the soul: “What am I doing?” “Am I doing the right thing?” “Am I headed in the right direction?” “Am I doing my best work?”
And while the amateur asks, “Did they like me today?” The pro asks, “Did I give them everything I had?”
Footnote: As I was writing this, the bugger that kept nudging me was, “it’s not about the deeper concealed concerns, it’s really about the deeper truth that’s revealed by simply asking the questions.”