When I was twenty-nine years old, I became vice president of marketing for Thomas Nelson. It was a huge step up in my career. At the time, I thought I had arrived at the pinnacle of success.

But I was in over my head. Or at least that’s the way it felt. I was just waiting for other people to come to the same conclusion.

I know lots of people with big dreams. But they are afraid to pursue them. They are unwilling to take the plunge, waiting until they reach the point of absolute certainty. But it never comes. And it never will.

This is the problem with commitment. You must act on limited information. Whether it is marriage, starting a new career, or leaving a good job to pursue your dream. You do your best to gather the best information you can, but then you must act. If you don’t, you risk “dying with the music in you.”

What separates successful leaders from average ones? What is the secret behind the accomplishments of high achievers? While there are many things that can contribute to success, there is one thing that is sure to prevent it every single time. What is it? The absence of trying.

Sound overly simplistic? It may seem that way, but there is pure genius in this principle that is so obvious, yet often overlooked.

Many people fail at work and in life because they focus too much on the obstacle rather than the opportunity. I’m sure it’s often true in my own organization. Perhaps it is in yours.

When something goes wrong, we spend hours dissecting it. We often refer to these sessions as post mortems—which literally means “after death.” Shouldn’t that be a clue that we are on the wrong track?

The second you open the email, it’s obvious. The sender is not happy with you. Not even a little bit. Something you or your company did or said provoked this valued customer to hammer out a blistering note of disapproval in which they threaten to transfer their allegiance (and their money) somewhere else. Usually to your arch-rival.

I don’t like conflict. In fact, sometimes I think I am conflictaphobic. (I just made that word up.) I will do almost anything to avoid it.

Next week, we begin shipping Fearless, the new book by mega best-selling author, Max Lucado. In a few minutes, I’ll tell you how to get a copy free.

On the morning of September 15, 2008, I arrived in New York City for a series of meetings on Wall Street. When I got off the plane, I discovered that Lehman Brothers, one of America’s most venerable financial institutions, had filed for bankruptcy. People in the street, on the elevators, and in my meetings seemed stunned. They barely talked. The fear was palpable.

Recently, I had an interesting conversation with one of our editors at Thomas Nelson. He had just finished a new manuscript from one of our biggest authors. I asked, “So what did you think?”