Over the past 25 years I have had the opportunity through my consulting, coaching, and seminars to come in contact with thousands of men and women. Being able to study and spend time with so many people during my career has enabled me to answer one of the oldest questions of modern civilization: Why do some people achieve so much in life, while so many others achieve very little?

One of the big differences I have observed is that high achieving men and women act differently then underachievers do. They always have a positive and optimistic attitude. For example, someone who has a positive attitude always focuses on opportunities rather than on potential drawbacks. They focus on solutions rather than on problems.

On the other hand underachieving men and women have negative attitudes most of the time. For example, they focus on the possible drawbacks rather than on opportunities. The underachievers tend to dive in and find problems when others find solutions.

When Im conducting a seminar or a workshop one of the questions I will often ask is this: What was the worst experience you ever had in any job youve ever held? Overwhelmingly the underachievers in the audience will tell me about the horrible experiences that theyve had and then stop.

On the other hand the high achievers will tell me about the about the horrible experiences that theyve had and then tell me how they overcame the problem. They will tell me and the other people in attendance how they are better off for having gone through it, how they avoided the same problem later in life, and how they turned that horrible problem into an opportunity.

The high achievers turned their problem into something positive. Both groups have had bad experiences in their life, but it is the high achievers who really got something out of it and had become a better person because of it. In contrast, the underachievers merely had a bad experience.

Another important difference that separates the high achievers from the underachievers is that the high achievers consistently exude more confidence than underachievers do. For example, suppose youre a business owner and there are two managers that you could give career opportunities to. You walk up to your first manager and say, Id like you to handle this project. That manager says, Ive never done anything like that before, and Im not sure I can do that. Itll be hard for me to do, but Ill try.

Now you walk up to the other manager and say, Id like you to handle this project. This manager says to you, Ive never done anything like that before, but dont worry; Ill ask other people who have experience in this area, and research things on the Internet. Ill figure out how to do it right and have the completed project on your desk by 5:00p.m on the date you expect it to be completed.

Which of these two managers would you most likely give career opportunities to? Of course, you give the opportunities to the second manager, the one who exuded confidence.

Now lets say that the first manager, the one who showed the lack of confidence, was more intelligent than the second one was. Lets say that the first manager had Masters Degree in Business and was more capable, but the second one was more confident. Im willing to bet you would still be more likely to give the career opportunities to the second manager.

Why do I feel that you would give the career opportunities to the second manager? People who exude confidence are much more likely to engender good feelings in others, including the people who can make or break their careers. Consequently, they get more career opportunities.

Think about a time when you tried to do a project. Think about a time when you tried to finish a project. Did you realize at that time that its absolutely impossible to try to do anything? Either you do it or you dont do it. You really cant try. If you finished the project, did you try to do it or not? No, you actually did it.

As Ive studied high achievers and underachiever over my career, one of the things Ive found absolutely fascinating is how often underachievers use the words, Ill try. I have found that underachievers say, Ill try, an average of eight times a day. Thats in sharp contrast to high achievers, who say it an average of only once per day.

Now, thats a huge difference between high achievers and underachievers. Underachievers are much likely to try to do something, to try to achieve results. In sharp contrast, high achievers really do it. Its a little bit like being pregnant either you are or youre not. Either you do it or you dont do it. Either you try or you really do it.

Being good at your job today just isnt good enough. To succeed and move ahead in the business world today you have to be excellent at what you do and make a good impression on the people who count. High achievers publicize their successes to get the attention they deserve and most of all they eliminate the word try from their vocabulary.

Copyright2006 by Joe Love and JLM & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.