Giuliani Studies Churchill In Time of Crisis

After dealing with 911 and being up sixteen hours, Rudolph Giuliani went home at 2:30a.m., but instead of going to sleep, he picked up the biography of Winston Churchill and started to read.  Why?  He had to look at how someone else who led overcame the odds and rose above invasion.  From what Giulani extracted and formulated from his reading, he developed his process that led New York city and its people back.
Whom have you studied and who has done what you would like to do?
Who do you know who has beaten the odds?
How hard have you tried to have a meeting with that person?

7 Ways To Jumpstart Your Personal Development

1.Take responsibility. No one can do this for you. Not your parents. Not your spouse. Not your best friend. And not your employer. All of these people might be able to support you. However, none of them can do it for you. If you wait for your employer to offer assistance or to pay for the workshop, you might be waiting a long time. If you wait for your spouse to buy you the master class in photography you are interested in, you better be patient. Why must you do this for yourself, even for professional development? Because you are the person who benefits the most! Your development belongs to no one but y-o-u. If others offer assistance, dollars or opportunities, great – just don’t wait for that assistance to get started.

2.Create a learning focus. Long before asking, “What did I learn today?” ask yourself, “What do I want (or need) to learn today?” Human beings are learning beings – in some ways we can’t not learn. But to intensify your personal development beyond happenstance or serendipity, you must be clear on what matters most right now. Create a monthly, quarterly and/or annual learning focus. Yes, of course there will be lessons learned at random times, but having this (possibly daily) focus will help you consciously and intentionally learn the skills and knowledge that is most important to your growth right now.

3.Tie it to a powerful ‘why.’ Why do you want to learn? What value will you gain – be it personal satisfaction, pleasure or a leg up for the next promotion? Tie your learning focus to things that matter to you deeply. Reminding yourself of this why will help maintain your discipline, keep you motivated and improve the chances you keep learning.

4.Connect everything together. Now that you have a clear picture of what you are focused on learning along with your powerful ‘why;’ connect everything you read, experience and observe to that learning goal. For example, I lead a group of leaders through the development of a new skill each month. As I prepare and facilitate the learning of those leaders, I am thinking constantly about that topic/skill. This allows my subconscious mind to see examples, lessons and connections I would miss otherwise. Once you have your learning focus in view ask yourself, “How does this experience/situation/blog post/conversation/you-get-the-idea relate to what I need to learn?” This filter will help you learn much more, much faster!

5.Devote time. You can tell me (or yourself) that you want to learn and grow. But the real proof is in your focus and in your calendar. To build important and valuable skills requires you to invest energy, focus and money. And more importantly, you need to invest time. Getting on a serious personal/professional development plan will require you to invest your time differently. However busy you are, it is a matter of prioritizing your learning and growth higher on your list. Get used to it, and get going.

6.Get help. The best in any field or endeavor don’t get there alone. And perhaps more importantly, they can’t stay there alone! Help could be in the form of workshops, mentors and more. But almost certainly the most important help will be in the form of coaching. The coaching you need might be formal or informal, internal to your organization or external, free or paid (or some of all of these). If you are serious about your personal and professional development, then make coaching part of your plan.

7.Take action. All the good ideas in the world are great, but as long as they stay in your head, sit in your journal or remain on this page, that is all they are – ideas. Want to reap the benefits of developing yourself? Take action!

Coaches Should Create Environments Where Learning Is Valued

Coaches Should Create Environments Where Learning Is Valued Coaching isn’t just technique or strategy. Coaches should acquaint themselves with the kinds of thinking patterns that help athletes perform more effectively; understand obstacles that inhibit performance; determine which practice patterns work best—for the individual and the team. In other words, he should learn about the mental and physical aspects of the sport and the athlete—and create an atmosphere in which the athlete is encouraged to learn as well. --H.A. Dorfman, “Coaching The Mental Game”

The Two Important Things In Learning

From Coach Carril:
"Great philosophers of education have said there are two things important in learning. Both begin with a definition of the words to know.

One is learning facts, data--information. The other is knowing how to behave intelligently. That is what discipline means: behaving wisely.

5 Thoughts On Changing The Next 5 Years

5 Thoughts On Changing The Next 5 Years
From Jim Rohn

• In 5 years we will arrive. But where?
o A few daily disciplines changed will add tremendous value (Compound Effect)
o A refinement of disciplined thought
• To fix the next 5 years, we must come to grips with reality and truth
• Hoping without action is disillusion.
• Adjust our daily programs to take us where we want to go.
• Must translate response into results.

Curt Schilling--Learning From The Best- Adapt vs Adopt

Curt Schilling—Learning From The Best—Adapt vs Adopt

To get the most from his pitching ability, former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling took the best of what he saw from other pitchers and tried to incorporate those elements that made sense for his game:

“I didn’t throw any harder than anyone else who played in the league. Id didn’t have a better curve ball or slider. What I did was go around and examine the best from current and past stars from Gibson to Maddox from Palmer to Sutton. I found how the best in the world did it. I took bits and pieces of each one and assembled that into my game plan. It was unique to me, but I didn’t try to reinvent the wheel.”