The IT in Your Life

You can talk about it or you can do it.
— Lynn Tilton

Action Item:
Determine what your IT is and let it motivate you to live an enthusiastic, fearless and rich life.

by Neissa Springmann

During the evenings while feeding and bathing my son Durant, I always have the television on and listen to the national news. I enjoy this time of day because as we wind down and settle in for the night, I get my dose of current events and world happenings.

While watching the news last week, I became interested in the preview of a Friday night 20/20 special called “Billionaire Secrets: What They Know That Can Change Your Life.” Thankful for DVR, I recorded the special so I could watch the World Series (poor Rangers!) and then viewed the 20/20 special early Sunday morning.

My suspicion was correct, as it was a terrific! Barbara Walters interviewed four people: John Paul Dejoria, a once homeless visionary who built Paul Mitchell hair care and Patron Spirits tequila, and resides in Austin (who knew?!). Also interviewed was Lynn Tilton, who specializes in buying lifeless companies, then creates them anew, Guy Laliberte, creator of Cirque du Soleil, and Tony Hsieh, C.E.O. of Zappos, the online shoe company.

The actuality that these people are billionaires was fascinating, since I barely know how many zeros are in a billion. In fact, I learned that in the United States alone there are 403 billionaires, which is 40% of the world’s billionaire population! Again… who knew?! For sure, learning these details was very interesting, however it wasn’t the zeros behind their names that I found most impressive. Instead what I found most fascinating was their life story, personal character, passion and ability to overcome failure.

Each of the people highlighted in the 20/20 special are like us, as they’ve experienced adversities that would cause anyone to throw in the towel. Between the four of them, their hardships ranged from at least one of the following: being left by a spouse (before becoming wealthy), homelessness, business failure, being fired, harassment at work, and the death of loved ones. And, another one of their common denominators was they had each learned from their failures/difficulties and used them as motivation to continue on and preserver. I feel accurate in my assessment when suggesting that failure or one of their set-backs was the IT that drove their passions and inspired them to never give up.

In thinking about my own life, I ponder what IT is that motivates me… I’ve experienced heartache, deaths of a best friend, classmates, grandparents and friends as well as financial and professional woes. The conclusion I have made is that each of them have shaped and molded me to pursue life with no regret. Therefore, my IT is fear of regret, and the dreadful emotions of regret that remind me to keep my words kind, to love deeply, and to live a spirited, passionate and purposeful life. Glance at this week’s Weekly Intention Guide to help you figure out your IT.

iGnite founder Neissa Springmann has come a long way! Here she is speaking at the 2010 Texas Conference for Women.

iGnite founder Neissa Springmann has come a long way away from her IT! Here she is speaking at the 2010 Texas Conference for Women.

So, what’s your IT? Could it be lack of confidence, excuses, fear of failure, risk or regret like me? Regardless of what your IT is, don’t let it hold you back. Remember that the billionaires in the 20/20 special embraced their IT and IT made them who and what they are today. Let your IT inspire you to live an enthusiastic and good life, which is sung in this weeks music video.