Wisdom is wonderful thing. Unfortunately, most of us don’t acquire wisdom until we’ve put a few years on the calendar. Let me share some of the wisdom I’ve acquired, much of it from the school of hard knocks. I think I’ve earned my Ph.D. at that school.
Don’t Confuse Education with Intelligence
A colleague of mine, Kelley Coppinger a professional-in-residence in our university’s AD/PR department said that. I knew it was golden as soon as she uttered those words.
Two Kinds of Intelligence
There are two kinds of intelligence: how smart you are or IQ (Intelligence Quotient) and how emotionally tuned in you are to people or EQ (Emotional Intelligence).
Most colleges focus all of their energies on IQ but more forward institutions of higher education are recognizing the latter, for it is the one that matters most in the game of life.
Have a Plan
Everything is won or lost in the preparation stage. What’s your plan? You have to have one. You have to believe in it. You have to write it down and you have to follow it religiously.
Without a plan, you’re like a person driving a car without a destination. Any road will take you there.
If you don’t have a plan, then others will plan your life for you.
The Fundamentals
As a hiring manager, I hired for attitude and then looked to be sure the person was also trainable.
You have to acquire the basic skills and knowledge of your trade in order to effectively and efficiently complete the tasks that will lead to successful fulfillment of your plan.
It’s easier to win at the game of life when you already know what you need to do.
Goals
Zig Ziglar always used to say “You’ve got to have goals.” Goals keep you focused.
Focus on the now. Focus on the moment you’re living in, don’t worry about the past or the future. Worry about present moment.
Write your goals down and put them where you will constantly see them. They are your action steps, with target dates of completion.
“A goal is a dream with a deadline” wrote Napoleon Hill in his book “Laws of Success.”
Attitude
Everything starts with having the proper attitude. Attitude is a choice. Choose wisely.
Life is not a straight line. Everyone’s path is guaranteed to be filled with twists, turns and pot holes.
Life is a game of adjustments.
When something unexpected occurs, make adjustments to stay on goal.
Success in life is not about what happens to you, but how you deal with what happens to you.
Show Others Why They Should Care
When you engage the people around you, when you involve them in the goal, they change. When the people around you change, they change the people around them. Roadblocks get torn down, problems get solved, good things happen.
I have a picture in my office at the university that I’ve hung in every office of every media organization I’ve managed. The picture has the caption that says if you ain’t the lead dog, the scenery never changes.
Winning is a Goal
Soldiers on the battlefield fight to win. Players on a sports team play to win. Programmers of radio stations play to win. Sales people play to win.
Make it your goal to win in everything you decide to do.
Win Together
Winning is a team sport. Make sure everyone is committed to each other’s success if you’re in management. Make sure everyone is focused on the same goals by having them written down.
Make sure you have buy-in on the goals.
Clearly define the goals, confirm everyone is in agreement and on the same page. Then have everyone commit.
Celebrate Your Success
As you travel toward each of your goals, be sure to celebrate every success along the way. Don’t be afraid to take chances. Make your journey joyful. Make others joyful too. Share the love.
Be dependable. Be consistent. Don’t get distracted. Stay on your plan. Have FUN.
Be Coachable
Even the best in any profession know that having a coach is important. Encourage feedback on your work from those you look up to. Recruit a mentor or two or three to be part of your personal improvement team. Offer to mentor others. We learn so much when we help another person in the game of life.
It’s Often Who You Know
I don’t care what line of work you’re in, life is a relationship business. Successful people quickly learn the importance of building relationships and support networks.
The best time to build a new relationship is when there is nothing more on the table than making a new friend, learning about another person’s goals and life experiences, and enjoying the present moment of their company.
Life is Reciprocal
If you do your very best at everything you tackle and if you care about other people, life will return to you all of the same.
The Bible says as you sow, so shall you reap.
Newton’s 3rd Law says for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
And Zig Ziglar says:
“You can get anything in life you want,
if you just help enough other people get what they want.”
Everything you need to know to succeed in life you probably learned by the time you graduated high school. Do you remember your high school days? You probably couldn’t wait to graduate and begin the next chapter of your life. We were all in such a hurry. Many of us were looking forward to going to college. College, we thought, would be what real life was like. It would be a world where real talent is what counts.
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