February 2026 | Standing on Passion

February 2026

www.SOGiants.com

“If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

Sir Isaac Newton 1643-1727

Greetings, and welcome to another month of Shoulders of Giants!  Each month I write this short letter with hopes that even one of you will find an idea that you find interesting enough to bring into your culture and perhaps pass on to others that are “Standing on your Shoulders.” It’s short, and it’s free!

Let’s talk today about passion, “a deep powerful, intense emotion or strong inclination toward the people, activities, ideas and causes in which we are involved,” Webster tells us. 

From time to time, I speak with some of you on the phone, or perhaps via email or text message, commenting on a recent letter. In the past few days, I have had the opportunity to speak with two men that have the greatest passion for what they are doing in the restaurant business. Chef Michael is an executive chef at a restaurant that is now one of my favorites, and Brian is an owner and operator. Both men serve as great role models for others. With their passion, they would undoubtedly be equally successful regardless of their chosen field.

It occurred to me that success is significantly about being passionate about what we are doing. Where does this passion start? There is a very old book out there titled, “If It Is To Be It Must Start With Me”  by Thomas B. Smith and  Michael A. Markowski. What must we do if it is indeed to start with me? How can we translate this to our team? What can I do to increase my passion?  How can I help them increase their passion? Here are some questions we can ask ourselves before we ask it of our team.

Question one: What is something I learned today? Question two: What happened today that I was proud of? Question three: Who did I help in some way today?  Question four: Who on my team was I particularly pleased with today? (A Daily Passion Check-in Guide attached below)

I have printed these questions on a small card (3x5) and left it on my desk. I try to pick it up each day before I shut things down. It’s great if I have time to go over in my mind all four questions, but if not, I try to spend at least a few minutes on at least one of them, maybe a different one each night. It is surprising what I have learned or who I think I helped.  These questions help me approach my life and any work that I do with more passion. I suggest that once you feel comfortable with these questions that you pass them on. That might just be a part of increasing your passion as well as increasing the passion of those that are “standing on your shoulders” every day.

Today I learned that interacting with people who have passion has great value. Seek out, interact with, and listen to passionate people. I can tell you that it is great fun and helps me maintain my personal passion, even after all these years.

Thank you to all who read this short letter each month, and good luck as you travel your “Shoulders of Giants” journey.

“Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion.”

Georg Wilhelm Hegel

“If you have knowledge let others light their candles on it.” 

Margaret Fuller

Michael M. Carney mr.mikecarney@gmail.com

A special thank you to my support team!

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