There was once a young woman who had finished her degree, and she was asked by a leader to describe her experience in one word.

She paused as she thought of an appropriate answer. As he was waiting the leader thought of a number of words that he would use to deprive such an achievement. He thought of the word faith, and the word discipline.

After a pause, she said “the word is commitment”.

Commitment is far greater than involvement. I will use a story to illustrate.

There was once a politician in a small town who was in the running to become the Mayer. He knew that it was important for him to have influential people by his side. He knew of a farmer who was well respected and decided that he needed this farmer to be on side. He believed that someone with that amount of influence could sway the vote in his favor.

He took a trip into the country and visited with the farmer. The farmer listened quietly while he put forward his policies and spoke about what impact could be have on local economy and the future of their small town. The farmer expressed that he believed that then politician really could make a difference. It was then that he asked the farmer to assist him with his campaign.

The farmer thought about it and asked, “Do you want me to be involved, or committed”.

The politician asked, “what’s the different”.

The farmer walked out onto his land and signaled for the politician to follow. He stood between the piggery and the chicken coup. He then pointed toward the chickens and said, “think about a bacon and egg breakfast. The chicken is involved”. He then pointed toward the pigs and said, “but the pig, he’s committed”.

All the politician could do is nod with understanding.

To fight a good fight. To succeed and win. To finish a task. To break through an obstacle. To complete a mission. To rise above the challenges that encroach upon us all, requires commitment.

We can and will accomplish a great deal if we are committed.

Great sportsmen, musicians, artists, politicians, teachers all succeed through commitment. It is with a high level of commitment toward a worthy pursuit that greatness is achieved. Furthermore people get paid in public for their level of commitment in private. What I have really come to understand recently is that time spent in private perfecting your craft, repetition of fundamentals, and developing a winning attitude create the building blocks of character. Having a morning routine that I am committed to, has created a power in my life that I cannot adequately describe. There is a compounding effect overtime that is creating a belief system that is unshakable. With this belief system I produce fantastic results both for myself and others. This in turn strengthens my resolve toward commitment.