Procrastination also increases stress. As things pile up, we begin to feel overwhelmed, which takes the joy out of our work. Bottom line: Procrastination is costly to all involved.

Ownership: 'A commitment of the head, heart, and hands to fix the problem and never again affix the blame.

It's better to be one who is told to wait than one who waits to be told.

Anyone who’s ever heard or asked questions like these: “When will that department do its job right?” “Why don’t they communicate better?” “Who dropped the ball?” “Why do we have to go through all this change?” “When is someone going to train me?” “Why can’t we find better people?” “Who’s going to give us a clear vision?” These questions seem innocent enough, but they indicate a lack of personal responsibility—I prefer the term “personal accountability”—and go right to the heart of many of the problems we face today. Conversely, turning our thinking around and asking more personally accountable questions is one of the most powerful and effective things we can do to improve our organizations and our lives.

The truth is, different people have different reactions to the same situation. Stress is a choice. Stress is also the result of our choices.

The man who looks for security, even in the mind, is like a man who would chop off his limbs in order to have artificial ones which will give him no pain or trouble.