A prominent salesman summed up his success in three simple words: “and then some.” He discovered at an early age that most of the difference between average people and top people could be explained in these three simple words, according to Richard Weaver II, a retired professor who taught more than 80,000 students at Indiana University, the University of Massachusetts and Bowling Green State University.

He explained: “The top people did what was expected of them -- and then some.

“They were thoughtful of others; they were considerate and kind -- and then some.

“They met their obligations and responsibilities fairly and squarely -- and then some.

“They were good friends to their friends -- and then some.

“They could be counted on in an emergency -- and then some.”

“These three little words,” said Weaver, “could transform our society as well as your academic and personal life. It could become a philosophy of life -- a way of living.”

Weaver is referring to grit, a word that I’ve been hearing more and more in business and all facets of life. Grit helps you achieve success. Learning comes from struggle and trying things, failing and learning from your mistakes. The more you learn and practice, the easier things get.

Jon Gordon, author and business consultant, wrote: “What is grit? I believe it is driven by love, inspired by vision and purpose. Fueled by optimism and belief. Powered by faith and hope. Revived by resilience. Kept alive by stubbornness. It also includes a desire to prove yourself.”

Grit is a combination of character traits. Let’s look at some of them:

Perseverance -- In business, prospects may seem darkest when, really, they are about to turn. A little more perseverance, a little more effort, and what seemed a hopeless failure may turn into a glorious success. There is no failure except in no longer trying.

Perseverance separates the winners from the losers. Those who persevere understand that luck is something only failures believe in. Perseverance is stamina, not intensity. It is continuous work over a long period of time.

Determination -- When you study truly successful people, you’ll see that they all saw opportunities, took risks, made plenty of mistakes, but when they were knocked down, they kept getting up ... and getting up ... and getting up. They owe their success to their willingness to accept change as inevitable, and their welcoming of that challenge.

Determined people possess the stamina and courage to pursue their ambitions despite criticism, ridicule or unfavorable circumstances. In fact, discouragement usually spurs them on to greater things.

Resilience -- We’ve all hit roadblocks and dead ends that can make us think twice about whether our goals are worth our efforts. Discouragement and disappointment cloud our judgment. It’s exhausting sometimes trying to figure out how to get past a problem.

So, before negative thoughts lead to negative actions, develop a strategy to clear your head. Train your brain to look for positives. Researchers believe that people who embrace a positive outlook have less stress, an increased sense of well-being, better coping skills and longer life spans. Do whatever it takes to get to that attitude.

Passion -- There is no substitute for passion. If you don’t have an intense, burning desire for what you are doing, there’s no way you’ll be able to work the long, hard hours it takes to become successful. Passion is private grit. But it only works if you are good at what you are passionate about.

Surround yourself with people who are passionate about their jobs. You’ll catch their passion. You can’t be passionate when you feel like it. You must be passionate about your job, product or cause all the time.

Courage -- One of the major human virtues is courage -- bravery, valor, standing up to danger, guts and nerves all rolled into one. It’s easy to be ordinary. Courage is ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

It takes courage to persevere when we are tempted to give up. Trying times are no time to quit trying. One of the greatest challenges in life is doing what people say you can’t. When things seem most bleak, you must have the courage to carry on.

Persistence -- We’ve all heard it before, but there really is no substitute for persistence. In fact, persistence is sometimes as important as talent. It must come from within. Giving up is not an option.

As leadership expert Robin Sharma said, “Your ‘I-can’ is more important than your IQ.”

A company president had little tolerance for procrastination. In an effort to increase organization efficiency, she hung up signs throughout the building that read, “DO IT NOW.” Within 24 hours, her vice-president quit, her assistant got married and the custodian stole the company van.

This story is not entirely true, especially the part about the van. But I suspect the president found a more specific way to motivate staff to achieve their goals.

All kidding aside, procrastination is a thief. It robs you of the one commodity that you just can’t buy back: time. It throws off schedules. It replaces accomplishment with inaction. It turns dreams into nightmares. One of the worst things you can do when faced with a difficult decision in almost any endeavor in life is to procrastinate.

Let’s face it -- given a choice, most people will perform the least important task first, and the most important last -- if at all. That’s why one of these days becomes none of these days.

Here are some tips to stop procrastinating and join the TNT Club -- Today Not Tomorrow:

-- Deal with your fear. Fear of failure can be crippling, but fear of success can paralyze your efforts just as severely. Avoiding success may seem irrational, but success brings change, and change is often threatening.

-- Make a to-do list with specific deadlines. List what you want to accomplish with a detailed timeline you want to meet. Projects often take longer than expected to accomplish, so add in some extra time. I make my to-do list every morning by working backward: What do I need to accomplish by the end of the day? By the end of the week? The end of the month? That tells me where to focus.

-- Break your work into smaller steps. When you look at a big project, it can be overwhelming, so break it down into more manageable parts.

-- Don’t get frustrated. Seriously, has frustration ever improved a situation? Better to take a break, collect your thoughts and redirect your attention toward making a positive first step. Then go on from there.

-- Stop overcomplicating things. There is never a best time to accomplish a project. Perfection is a big reason for procrastination. You must dig in. Getting started is often the hardest part. Remember the old saying: Well-begun is half done. Once you are off to a good start, it’s much simpler to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

-- Eliminate distractions. Interruptions and distractions are productivity’s No. 1 enemy. I’ve even gone as far as hanging a “Do Not Disturb” sign on my office door. Set aside a period of time each day -- even if it’s only 10 minutes -- when you are unavailable for anything less than a four-alarm fire. That goes for office visitors, telephone calls, email and carrier pigeons.

-- Reward yourself. I’m a big believer in rewarding myself for completing a challenging task or a big project. I’ll go out to play golf or attend a sporting event or take some time off to relax. Rewards are good motivation. It also clears your mind for the next challenge.

-- Hang out with go-getters. I only hang out with positive people who inspire me to take action. Their spirit and drive rubs off on me. It’s like having motivation buddies. And I like to announce what I’m trying to accomplish, because they will check up on me and make sure I’m doing what I said I would do.

There is an anonymous poem called “Mr. Meant-To” that goes like this:

Mr. Meant-To has a comrade

And his name is Didn’t Do.

Have you ever chanced to meet them?

Have they ever called on you?

These two fellows live together

In the house of Never Win,

And I’m told that it is haunted

By the ghost of Might-Have-Been.

Mackay’s Moral: Never put off until tomorrow what you should have done yesterday.

One of the hottest words for leaders today is culture. Culture affects perception. It influences behavior and it shapes our personalities. Creating culture is a concentrated, conscious choice.

Tony Hsieh, the late former CEO of Zappos, said, “If you get the culture right, most of the other stuff will just take care of itself.”

Creating a positive, high-performing, people-focused, result-oriented environment does not just happen. It takes a tremendous amount of work and soul-searching and cannot occur without both. It is what separates the highest-performing organizations.

Every company has a culture, intentional or unintentional, desirable or undesirable. Managers and leaders influence culture by the attention they give it. Those who focus on culture tend to create a vibrant environment, while those who ignore culture end up with a struggling and confused workplace.

Hence, leaders must make creating a positive culture a priority. Employees recognize the difference between a workplace where they want to come to work, feel valued and know what the company stands for. Customers notice as well.

Leadership author Glenn Van Ekeren observes: “Culture is movable, fluctuating, shifting. It requires continual attention, nurturing, direction and adjustments. Culture doesn’t function well on automatic pilot. It flourishes when leadership is continually passionate about infusing culture with their influence.”

Van Ekeren said you have to be there for people and demonstrate that you have their back and best interests at heart. He mentioned the conversation between Winnie the Pooh and his dear friend Piglet. Piglet crept up to Pooh from behind and said, “Pooh?”

“Yes, Piglet?”

“Nothing,” Piglet replied. “I just wanted to be sure of you.”

In an organization with a healthy culture, employees should never have to ask to be sure. You cannot build a culture if you are disconnected from your people.

Culture at a company is everyone’s responsibility, but leadership is heavily responsible for its development. Employees and middle managers will learn what their bosses permit and reward, and will enforce it on each other. And if management fails at any point, it requires immediate proactive effort to mitigate the damage.

So how does an organization develop a desirable culture? I can tell you what I did when I started my company, and we continue to do six decades later.

Know why you are in business. What is your purpose? Set goals, and make them known throughout the company, so your employees understand what’s important to your business.

Hire thoughtfully and carefully. Ask questions during interviews and make your position regarding expectations crystal clear. I believe in being completely upfront about what we need, because I don’t want to waste my time or theirs training someone who isn’t a team player. And I don’t hesitate to fire an employee who won’t comply.

Lead by example. Staff should look forward to coming to work and doing a stellar job. Recognize and reward people for their efforts. Give credit where it is due. And absolutely be the first to admit when you’ve messed up. Then let folks know how you are going to fix it.

Love what you do. I know I may sound like a broken record, but if you don’t love what you do, you will have a hard time doing it well. Your attitude will show whether you are just in it for the money or if you really want to make a difference.

Mackay’s Moral: A team culture is a living organism. Feed it and watch it grow.