Ask for what you want

I've noticed that in most situations my assumption that what I want won't be feasible (for my employer, family and friends, service providers, business partners)  is exaggerated and just plain wrong.

Have the clarity to know what you want and the courage to ask for it and more often than not you will get it.

Stop Dreaming, Start Doing.

Dreaming up stuff is fun, but it does not count for anything, if you only stop at that. Inaction is the surest way to fail. That's kind of obvious; I know, so why then do we still dream about success, and yet not start?

Luck has a big part to play in ideas succeeding, and you're only as lucky as the number of ideas you've tried. So it's not just the "doing stuff", but the "doing LOTS of stuff" that really matters when your looking for those few ideas that will eventually succeed.

Oh, and when your doing lots of stuff, expect a lot of them to fail.

Intrinsic Motivation

From Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit by Mary Poppendieck, Tom Poppendieck:

Intrinsic motivation requires a feeling of belonging, a feeling of safety, a sense of competence, and sense of progress.

Failure is Inevitable

Failure is inevitable if you are part of something that you believe will not work.
Failure is inevitable if you are made to believe that you are not capable of doing a good job.

Don't Expect Perfection

There is a difference between setting high standards vs. requiring perfection down to the smallest detail (zero tolerance for mistakes). The former pushes people to do better. The latter kills initiative.

Encourage, don't nitpick.