I'm sitting in my office right now, surrounded by the clutter of my current big project. I'm making a huge push and I'm looking forward to the day when the project is complete and I can simply collapse. The sky is blue and the sun is shining-the great outdoors are calling me forth to play.

As I experience the urge to simply take the day off and get out of the pressure cooker I've put myself in, I'm struck by the fact that every one of the leaders we interviewed for The Art of Business has been in a similar pressure cooker, or worse. And every one of them has had the unwavering resolve to never give up and never give in.

I'm beginning to realize that this absolute dedication to the mission, the never ending search for not perfection but excellence is what sets these people so far apart from the rest of the crowd. It's not just about hard work because many people work very hard. It's not about passion either, because lots of people have passion but still don't advance their careers or companies very far.

It's something deeper and more visceral, more feral, than just hard work and passion. If nothing else, I'd call it a spirit that just itches to fight the good fight. It's a love of the impossible challenge.

I feel that spirit when Phillip Yeo, Executive Chairman of Singapore's Economic Development Board, declares, "Nothing is wrong with being in the number two position, but that is not the point. The issue is about desiring to be and working at being number one. It is a mindset, a competitive spirit, not so much the absolute position we actually achieve. If we are satisfied with being number two, we will gradually slip to the 3rd position, the 5th position, then 10th and 20th and so on. Similarly, if we are presently number one and we take it for granted, we know for sure that someone will overtake us."

Similarly Michael Dell of Dell Computer likes to ask questions such as, "If we have say 99% [market] share of the Ford Company, the question we ask is, 'How do we improve the customer satisfaction in order to get that additional 1% share?'"

This unrelenting drive isn't just about winning or being on top, it's about not being satisfied until the maximum has been achieved. What makes these leaders so unique is that each has subjugated his or her personal will to a professional purpose, regardless of pressure or competition. It reminds me of the Rocky movies … and it inspires me to keep going today, when I'd rather be out playing, and on other days when I feel the squeeze of pressure from all corners. I hope it inspires you too!