I always take a little time in December to “review and renew,” evaluating where I got it right and where I got it wrong in the year.

This year, I'm reminded of a charge my father the minister once issued to his staff shortly after taking the helm as their new leader. He said, “Our expectation here is simple: Be loyal, be faithful, be productive or be gone.” I was only in high school then, but even a teenager had to be fascinated by what happened next.

Four senior staff members heard that charge. (This was the same staff on whose watch the organization had steadily declined.) Within months, three of them were gone. They decided they couldn't pull off loyal, faithful and productive.

The great speaker Jim Rohn once said: “I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they plan their lives. Perhaps that is because escape is easier than change.”

As we say in the South, that'll preach y'all.

Success in anything comes down to whether we're willing to change—whether we're willing to choose capable. But isn't it fascinating that when given the option, most people choose easy? They choose simply to escape.

It's often why marriages fail, parents bail on their kids and most people never live the life for which they were created. Every situation is unique, I know, but how many times does it come down to this: It was easier to walk away than to change? And I don't know about you, but that irritates the crap out of me because we're better than that.

So why don't more people simply choose to change? For starters, simple doesn't mean easy. If you confuse the two, you're in for a life of frustration and disappointment. I think it's more a matter of motivation. In other words, it's not that you choose to change; it's why you would want to in the first place.

Change isn't easy; it's sometimes excruciatingly hard. But what would have been different if those staff members had chosen to be loyal, faithful and productive instead? They'd have gained the reputation for being responsive and concerned for those in their care. They'd have enjoyed the tremendous growth that comes when you commit to being productive. They'd have gained a little personal pride.

Instead each one was known as “that guy who bailed when it got tough.” And in case you didn't know, that quality doesn't have much value in the marketplace.

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&lsquo;Be loyal, be faithful, be productive or be gone&rsquo;

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‘Be loyal, be faithful, be productive or be gone’