Definiteness of Purpose
During a recent visit to the corporate headquarters for Chick-Fil-A in Atlanta, Georgia, I had the opportunity to spend about 45 minutes with Mr. Truett Cathy. Though he is now eighty-nine years young, Mr. Cathy still works diligently as a business leader, mentor, speaker, and author. He founded this company on clear principles and built it into the $4 Billion privately owned company it is today.
At one point in the conversation, he talked about the importance of purpose and referred to the book, Think and Grow Rich, by Napolean Hill. This book was originally published in 1937 and documents the success secrets of Andrew Carnegie. I asked him whether that was an important book in his life. Mr. Cathy said this was a very valuable book to him and had influenced many of his decisions.
Mr. Cathy emphasized a key point from the book: Definiteness of Purpose, where a person clearly knows what he wants and develops a burning desire to possess it. This successful businessman worked for many years to develop not only a delicious chicken sandwich but also a sustainable business model that is highly profitable.
To be a successful fundraiser, you need definiteness of purpose. You must know what you want, have the faith to achieve that goal, visually see yourself achieving that goal, and have a burning passion to attain it. This is a proven ingredient for success!
