Three Traits That Will Take You to the Top

By Bruce W. Waller

After my keynote ended, a man approached me with a smile and said, “Hey, you’re a natural.” Of course, it felt great to hear—but it also took me back 25 years.

I had just become the new general manager at a moving and storage company when our president asked me to enroll in a Dale Carnegie course. A few years later, I made a lane change from operations into a corporate sales role with a new company. I knew the business, but I also knew that if I wanted to succeed, I had to improve my communication skills. That’s when I decided to join Toastmasters.

During my first class, I was asked to stand up and deliver a one-minute table topic talk. I completely bombed. “Uh… uh… uh…” almost the entire time. It was awful.

But I wanted to get better, so I kept showing up. Every Thursday. One hour. For two years.

When you become a member of Toastmasters, you receive a book called Competent Communication, which includes 10 speech projects—each designed to help you practice a specific speaking skill through a prepared speech. My goal was simple: complete the speeches, no matter how long it took.

From there, I began speaking at meetings, conferences, corporate events, and more. The more I speak, the more I learn. And the more I learn, the better I become.

So when that man said, “You’re a natural,” I smiled because I was reminded there are three traits you need to become the best… not just in speaking, but in anything you do so I thought I would share with you.

1. Desire

My Uncle Walter was a football coach. On the first day of practice, when he handed out equipment, he would say: “I can give you the jersey, but I can’t give you desire.”

I remember wanting to learn how to play the piano. I took lessons, but after a couple of years, I stopped, not because I didn’t want to keep getting better, but because I didn’t have the desire invest the time it would take to become better. I simply wanted to learn to play some fun songs. Desire has to come from within. I had the desire to learn and that’s exactly what I achieved.

2. Repetition

I once read the proverb, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.”
We have to start where we are and practice, the more we practice, the better we get.

As a teenager, I dreamed of bowling a perfect game. I spent countless hours on the lanes practicing. One day, nervous and excited, I looked up at the scoreboard and realized I was one strike away.

Then it happened.
Strike number twelve.
A 300 game. Perfection.

3. Belief

I once worked with a salesman at our company who asked if I would help my family and friends with relocation using our company’s services. I said, “Absolutely.”

He told me he wouldn’t and that he would refer them to a competitor because if there were problems, it could damage his relationships. That’s when it hit me: he didn’t believe in our company, our services, or our people. He later left the company.

If you believe in what you do, you’ll stick with it. If you don’t, you won’t.

Do you believe in your work and your organization?

Be like the band Journey: “Don’t stop believin’.”

John Maxwell once said, “If it’s your dream, no one can talk you into it—and no one can talk you out of it.” That’s belief.

Keep investing in you and follow these traits—and you’ll be on your way to the top.

Desire. Repetition. Belief.

If this helped you, share it with others… and stay in pursuit!

Quote of the Day:
“It takes a long time to become an overnight success.” — Simon Sinek

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This is Move to Inspire with Bruce Waller.
For more resources—including relocation support, keynote speaking, leadership content, and the Life in the Leadership Lane podcast—visit www.BruceWaller.com.

📞 To connect directly, call 972-389-5673 or email Bruce.