“You ready?” I asked my good friend, Anthony, as he exited his car and pulled out his fishing pole.

He quickly surveyed the overgrown, jungle-like area surrounding the picturesque pond. “Just about,” he said as he retreated toward the trunk of his state-issued patrol car.

I followed him and thanked him for going fishing with me on such a pristine Saturday morning.

As I rounded the back of his car, I saw him retrieving a fully loaded gun and gun belt.

“Whoa, man!” I laughed and held up my hands, indicating nobody was within miles of us. “You expecting some trouble way out here in the woods?”

As “Big Ant” strapped the hardware to his waist, he dropped some knowledge that has stuck with me ever since. I’ve shared these words thousands of times since the summer of 2003. He smiled and said, “You stay ready; you don’t have to get ready!”

“She’s just lucky!”

“He got it because he was in the right place at the right time.”

“They are naturally good at things that I’m not.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Do you ever hear or, worse yet, use sayings like those?

Abraham Lincoln said, “I will get ready, and then perhaps my chance will come.”

Success in anything, especially leadership, takes a lot of work and commitment. It requires a lot of trial and significantly more error than is comfortable.

If you are not already growing toward whatever opportunities life may present, don’t wait until you have a better idea of what you want before you prepare.