The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk Episode #317: Susan Cain - The Power of Introverts In A World That Can't Stop Talking Join us for our annual workshop - Personal Excellence 2.0 -- Click HERE for dates and availability Full Shownotes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com  Susan Cain is the author of the world-wide bestseller Quiet: The Power of Introverts in A World That Can’t Stop Talking, which has been translated into 40 languages, is in its seventh year on the New York Times best seller list, and was named the #1 best book of the year by Fast Company magazine, which also named Cain one of its Most Creative People in Business. LinkedIn named her the 6th Top Influencer in the world. Leaders who sustain excellence = Understand that soft is hard and hard is soft.  Soft skills = essential skills.  They are hard, but essential to develop. Leaders in corporate America surprise Susan She expected a lot of resistance from others, but her ideas have been embraced. The responsibility Susan feels for making "introverting so hard" a cool thing to say... It wasn't before her book. People would hide the fact they were an introvert prior to Quiet being published and/or lie on personality tests The point is not to say that you should want to be an introvert or an extrovert -- We need both. Charisma = magic "The wind howls but the mountain remains still."  We moved from being --> To being a culture of personality. Susan's roots: A Harvard educated lawyer Building a Negotiation Consulting business after leaving the corporate world How can an introvert be a good negotiator? The best negotiators are the ones who do their homework Present in a neutral way, calm, collected, ask questions, try to learn, better understand the other person's position Romantic relationships - An extrovert and introvert getting married -- "you must really understand the other person's preferences are legitimate." When should you act more extroverted than you are? We should all step outside of our comfort zones, but be intentional about it.  An introvert who is a public speaker (like Susan) must do this to share the message with groups of people. What are your core projects?  When in service of others, do it. Restorative niches --> After a keynote (for an introvert), go to your hotel room and relax alone (to restore energy expended speaking) Why is cool overrated? In the Enron scandal, Vince Kaminski was the "uncool introverted nerd."  He was the unsung hero in the scandal.  He figured out what was happening in advance.  They told him, "You're like the police and we don't like that." The process to sell the proposal for Quiet: Started writing it in 2005. Agent shopped it an received 12 offers --> A bidding frenzy The importance of writing the "first crappy draft." Take the feedback as a gift Most successful authors have had a lot of help

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk #316: Cal Newport - How To Choose A Focused Life In A Noisy World Cal Newport is a computer science professor at Georgetown University who studies the theory of distributed systems. In addition to his academic work, he writes about the intersection of technology and culture.Cal is the author of six books, including, most recently, the New York Times bestseller, Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World.  Join us for our annual Personal Excellence workshop. Go to www.RyanHawk.me for details Full shownotes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com "Be unambiguously good at something important. Head's down with an apprenticeship mindset." Show Notes: Leaders who sustain excellence = They know what matters and get after it They are not easily distracted... They have the ability to be intensely focused on the task at hand at a tactical level Train to be so good they can't ignore you Concentrate intently -- Introverts are happier doing this.  But it's also a trainable skill. Cal's background: theoretical computer science computation group - Focus and master on a small number of things How to be "so good they can't ignore you?" They want a secret formula.  That's not how it works.  It's not about a life hack.  "The reality is simpler... 'Be relentlessly good at something valuable.' Deep Work = Focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task.  This skill is more valuable.  It's how you learn complicated things and produce at a high level. Culture-wise - We are getting worse at deep work We need to be able to be locked in to produce something valuable for work... Deep work can also be personal development.  There is overlap. Digital Minimalism Unexpected consequences of technology = Our attention is captured by glowing screens Phones = Completely banish solitude.  We are never alone with our own thoughts anymore. Do one or two things a day without your phone.  Force solitude. Why do we have a compulsive need to look at our phone?  Social media has been engineered to do this... Junk food is built the same way.  Cal has never had a social media account. A 30 day digital declutter: Be away from optional technology for 30 days. Detox -- Give yourself time and space to see what you value outside of work.  Then ask, "What technology do I want in my life?" What's the best way to use technology? For someone who loves Twitter (like me) for the gathering of interesting people? Create a curated reading list from Twitter.  Click all the useful links to articles, then block out time to just read those. The power of going on walks: "I walk a lot.  That's how I think." Walking with no phone -- It creates reflection, insight, thinking.  Do walking meetings. Get sun - get outside.  It's a form of 'productive meditation.' Focus on a single problem for that walk Thoughts on Kliff Kingsbury building in time every 30 minutes for his players to check their phones? "This is not good.  Concentration matters.  Especially in football." Use the "Get To Know You Document" Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The podcast discusses commonalities of sustained excellence in leaders, the concept of a 'North Star' for personal goals, the evolution of DuckDuckGo as an internet privacy company, using mental models for decision-making, building a successful career through unique skills, and exploring cargo cult thinking for a purposeful life.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk 314: John Calipari & Michael Lombardi - Building & Sustaining A Culture Of Excellence Full show notes found at www.LearningLeader.com John Calipari has been the head coach of the University of Kentucky basketball team since 2009, with whom he won the NCAA Championship in 2012. He has been named Naismith College Coach of the Year three times (in 1996, 2008 and 2015), and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015. Calipari has coached Kentucky to four Final Fours, in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015. Michael Lombardi was an assistant to the coaching staff of the New England Patriots (until 2016) and is a former analyst for the NFL Network and sportswriter at NFL.com.  Lombardi also previously served as an NFL executive with the San Francisco 49ers working withBill Walsh, Cleveland Browns, Philadelphia Eagles, and Oakland Raiders working with Al Davis.  This was recorded in front of an audience at an event called the NCAA Final Four Coaching Consortium.  The people in the audience were college basketball coaches and athletic directors. Notes: The "Players First" credo: "When I worked for Larry Brown he told me, if you care about the kids and you really care, you'll always have a job." "Larry was a coaches coach, but a players coach, who wasn't afraid to coach.  Right now, we're moving in a direction where we're afraid to coach.  Correcting in real time is so important." "Everyone said the 1 and done rule would ruin college basketball, they wanted to replace me." "If you're about your kids, whatever happens good for them, will not be a negative for you.  It's about them first.  It's about us second.  If you want them to be servant leaders, they have to see it in you." "If they don't see you getting involved in the community, they won't get involved in the community."  Players first is not just them playing basketball, it's everything. "We all should be reading.  The more curious you are, the more curious your players will be.  Read books, give your players books to read." Lombardi -- Coach Walsh was all about the players, he was the first to go on fishing tournaments with players.  He bought Bubba Smith a big tv, he made Michael sit and eat all meals with him. Bill Walsh had a book club in San Francisco Bill Belichick is all about the history of the game and the history of our country.  When you go in the cafeteria and you see the great players on the wall, he expects you to know the history and the culture of your team. You should ask all coaches, "who assigns the jersey numbers?"  The coach should assign those numbers, not the equipment manager.  Your player needs to know the history of that number. Calipari -- Process on getting guys to want to play as a team: It all starts in recruiting.  "If you promise every kid 25 shots, good luck.  Because at some point, someone will be upset.  If the relationship starts with a lie, you'll never recover." "Whatever you do here is earned.  If you're good enough you'll start, but you'll decide that." "If you want them to be great teammates it starts immediately when you meet them.  They have to earn it." You can't oversell and under deliver.  People will not buy in to that. "Pat Riley gave me one of the best compliments ever, he said, 'Your players are some of the best teammates in the NBA.'" Marcus Camby -- "I said, what position do you want to play?"  he said, "Shooting guard."  I said, "Okay, but we do post up our shooting guards a lot." Lombardi -- Putting together a great roster -- Roster construction: The law of 3's Whenever you take over a team you have three groups of people One -- They'll do anything you want them to do Two -- They're unsure Three -- They are never happy Focus on the people in group one and you'll win the whole team. The Four areas of leadership Command of self -- Must be discipline Command of plan Command of meaning/message Command of trust -- You cannot lie.  If you lie, you'll lose the player forever Calipari -- Took over UMass -- Terrible team at the time When he left, he got advice from a business man (Pat Nardelli) "You can a have bad deal with good people.  Stuff happens.  But you can never have a good deal with bad people." "The reason I've had success, I've had the best staffs.  Top to bottom.  When you get your job, you surround yourself with great people." "Assistant coaches must be able to work together.  They are each other's PR machine.  Each guy needs to promote the other guy." Was on football field with Bill Parcells -- Could coach all 22 guys on a football field.  He had incredible vision. The importance of mentors in your career-- Calipari "Who's your kitchen cabinet?  Who do you go to when things aren't going well?"  Who can you listen to? Ken Blanchard - The One Minute Manager Decision making -- you need to run it by someone.  Don't make big time decisions when you're still emotional. "I'll take the job the grass is greener.... Well you have to cut the grass on both sides." You need people to say, "Stop.  Tell me what you're thinking..." Lombardi -- Meeting with George Raveling "This man reads more than any human being alive." Take an hour a day to read Calipari -- Look at adversity as a challenge and failure as a learning opportunity "How does someone look when things aren't going well?  That's what I need to know." "The best moments are when things aren't going well.  Give me four games in a row when you lose... Now, I want to see what kind of person are you?"  You're on the stage by yourself, you're looking for friends." "You have issues?  People have their own issues.  They aren't worried about you."  It's about "How do I get restarted?  What's my next step?  Ask an AD, how can I be better?" "When you get fired, make amends with the people who fired you.  The next job you want?  They're going to call those people who fired you." Be a 'pay it forward' person.  The opportunities we have to change lives... And the ripples it causes from it. Lombardi -- The Obstacle Is The Way How to bounce back when you're wrong? When you get a new job, figure out why you got the job and why the person before you got fired.  Take the time to understand the mistakes made. "The only way you'll correct them is to learn them." There's two kind of jobs:  Jobs you can grow from and jobs you can make a difference in. Al Davis would ask Mike -- "Do you know why we won today?"  He wanted to know why the team won and lost and put it on paper. Bill Belichick does an autopsy after every game (win or lose).  You need to understand why the outcome happened (good or bad).  Take stock of your career every single day.  Every obstacle needs to be used to your advantage. Calipari -- "I will not coach if I'm cheating these kids." He signed a lifetime contact with Kentucky "My leverage has always been the job I've done." Why talk to other teams? "I want to help someone I know.  A player or another coach.  The whole thing we do is about relationships." If LeBron James calls you and asks you to coach his team, what will you say? "I'm not doing it.  Pat Riley said Coach Cal coaches and corrects in real time during a game.  He takes a guy out, corrects, puts him back in. You can't do that in the NBA." Lombardi -- At college pro days Belichick observed Coach Cal during a game... Watching him coach "It was so impressive, Belichick was admiring how much Cal was coaching." What skills should we develop?  The commonalities among the most successful coaches: Curious minds -- not a single playbook.  The sport moves.  Adapt. They are about other people -- Servant leaders Wired and driven to work - they love practice more than the games Smart -- Lombardi -- Divergent in thought.  Figure out what's needed with that team.  Passion. "The greatest reward for winning is the opportunity to do it more."

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk #313 - Listener Supported (Q & A) Episode -- Build Confidence Like Beyonce, How To Ask The Right Questions, & When To Make A Job Change Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com Notes: Leaders who sustain excellence = Have a mindset of growth They assume they have so much to learn Question from Ed Arnston -- Lt. Col in The United States Army -- "All of your guests are excellent and offer a lot of wisdom, but as you've done more than 300, what are the top 5 in power rankings of guests on your show? Kat Cole - Courage & Confidence + Curiosity & Humility George Raveling - The curiosity of a 5 year old, he is a learning machine Brian Koppelman - Follow your curiosity and obsessions with great rigor Jim Collins - Who is YOUR WHO? General Stan McChrystal - “Your character is something you can control.  You can decide what your character is.  Nobody can take it from you.” Questions from CaSaundra Garber -- Technical Project Manager, Portland, Oregon -- Who have you always wanted to have on your podcast that you haven't made happen yet?  Reading The Alliance, what are your thoughts on it? Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Oprah, a panel with Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady "You are the sum of your experiences."  A lot of the learnings of my life have come from the great coaches I've played for in my life. One of the biggest parts of The Alliance is the idea of doing "a tour of duty."  Changing jobs and learning new skills and the benefits of it.  Tour of duty = What do you want to learn and gain in this specific area of business?  Don't get a job just to have a job, take a job that will give you a tour where you come out of it in a planed time frame and you've learned something new. --> David Epstein writes about this in Range and on THIS episode.  People that earn roles in the C-suite have a variety of roles on their way to that position.  Open your mind more to take on a role that is currently completely outside of what you do.  This also helps you walk a mile in the shoes of others and creates compassion/empathy. Question from Daniel Jellings -- Manager Local Government, Adelaide, Australia -- Career has been linear, regular promotions along the way, became a manager about five years ago.  What are your thoughts on proactively exploring other roles that are outside of my current skill set (that could be a side step) in order to eventually become a General Manager? Learn as much as possible about the people you may go work with... Try as best you can to simulate what it will be like to work with those people. "You have to mow the grass in both places."  There are a lot of advantages to seeking opportunities that force you to stretch and learn.  They are initially uncomfortable.  "If you want something extraordinary to happen to you, you're going to have to take a an uncomfortable risk in every dimension of your life." -- Scott Galloway Question from Ryan Ogle -- Championship Director for PGA of America, Bend Harbor, Michigan -- What is your current morning and evening routine?  What is your process for utilizing a daily journal? Wake up at 4:45 -- Drink water, stretch, read, journal, workout, breakfast with family, drive daughters to school, work.  When finishing manuscript, I wrote a lot during the early hours of the day.  At night, I like to read out of books (Kindle in the morning and at the gym). Discussed my preparation process for a podcast. A daily journal is helpful to remind yourself of your mindset at that particular time of your life.  It helps you remember what it was really like at that time.  And why I use technology (instead of paper and pencil) to write in my journal. Why I'm fascinated by The Wright Brothers... -- "If you're trying to do something of significance, you will have people who question you, who may think you're nuts." Question from Andrew (Opie) Brodbeck -- Former professional baseball player, Clearwater, Florida  -- What skills from playing football helped you in your business life off the field?  Took a personality test and didn't pass it based on the company feedback?  How to deal with that and develop confidence in yourself in something off the field?  How to lead a dysfunctional team that lacks trust (Chelsea)? It's important to properly set your expectations and realize you'll never get the rush of playing in front of 105,000 people again. Some of the skills that translated: How to prepare, how to deal with adversity, how to be resilient, how to develop the willingness to work... I was able to share what I learned from the best coaches.  Showing that you're coachable.  you must be coachable to learn something new.  Being comfortable with a daily scoreboard (which we had in a sales environment).  On the first day of employment, I asked the VP, "who's the best?"  And then shadowed that person. Confidence -- How to build it like Beyonce?  "Confidence is built through a series of successful events in your life."  Those successful events were built through preparation.  Run a success autopsy -- Why did we win?  Why did it go well?  Create momentum in your life.  Create success in multiple life categories -- Those people take their framework wherever they go to create success.  No only means "not yet." Read Pat Lencioni's work on the dysfunction of a team Question from Lizzie Merritt-- Manager/Leader, Jacksonville, Florida. (and member of my Leadership Circle)  --The quality of your leadership depends on the quality of your questions. I imagine there are plenty of examples of massive failures that can be traced back to a leader not asking the right questions.While this concept is simple on the surface, it gets tougher in practice.  As a leader, how do you respond with questions instead of answers?  How do you know the right questions to ask? Leading with questions -- As a new manager, you may have the need to "always have the answers."  As you develop more wisdom and confidence, you'll stop doing this.  The greatest mentors in our lives are the ones who don't give the answers, they are the ones who help me figure out the answers.  They ask the poignant questions to help me figure it out.  The first questions are good, but the best questions are the follow ups.  Listen, distill, synthesize, ask more, then go deeper....  Don't script questions, but prepare with notes on that person and what they're doing, be an active listener (think like a trampoline)... Write down the qualities of leaders you admire, like, look up to, and write down the qualities of the leaders you feel the opposite about.  Review it regularly... Dealing in uncomfortable conversations -- Crucial Conversations (book).  It should never be a surprised when giving someone bad news about their performance.  The feedback should be happening on a regular basis.  "It is in our best interest for you to improve."  Kim Scott's book Radical Candor  "It's a lot harder when you care" -- "Because I care about you, I need to tell you something difficult." Question from Eric Liddic-- Print broker, Dayton, Ohio -- What advice would you give to someone who hasn't sold in the past, but needs to sell now? Great sales people: are fantastic listeners, they care, and they try to help.  Read Dan Pink's book To Sell Is Human Analyze why you've won each deal in the past.  Understand how you can replicate that. Create a reason for people to call you (put useful material out in the world: podcast, blog, do a project for free) Why Joe Girard was the greatest car sales professional of all time -- "If you get a lemon, it gives me the opportunity to show off." Question from Marietta Sanders -- Lt. Colonel, Squadron Commander, US Air Force, stationed in United Arab Emirates -- What are the common areas you see the best leaders focus on within their businesses? The WHO -- Who will you surround yourself with?  The WHO is the biggest determining factor in your long term success.  Consistently surround yourself by people who are smarter than you. Great leaders have an ability to help "see around the corners."  They share their vision to make their followers feel better about where they're going.  They have vision. Great communication skill -- You have regular moments where you need to share the vision with vivid clarity.   How to attract and retain top talent -- When someone is looking outside of your organization for another job is because those people don't have clarity of their future within your organization.  The leader's job is to provide clarity for the people that they lead.  Great leaders are always on the look out for compelling stories... Then taking the story, distilling it to it's essence (the core themes), and then relating it to my specific role (the "what's in it for me?" OR "why should I care?")

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com  #312: Zvi Band Zvi Band is the co-founder & CEO of Contactually, the top CRM which empowers professionals in real estate, consulting, and other professional industries to build authentic relationships. Having founded Contactually in 2011, Zvi has led Contactually to $12M in venture backing, 75 employees, and tens of thousands of customers, including 8 of the top 20 real estate brokerages in the country. An engineer, a seasoned entrepreneur, developer, strategist and startup advisor, with unique both technical and non-technical operations. Thrice named a Washingtonian Tech Titan, featured in the New York Times, The Washington Post, and Washington City Paper, Zvi was also a finalist for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year. Zvi is a passionate speaker and author whose writing has appeared in Forbes, Inc, Inman News, and many other outlets. He's the author of the newly released book, Success Is In Your Sphere.  Published by McGraw-Hill (Zvi and I share the same agent, publisher, and editor). Notes: Leaders who sustain excellence = They have a level of introspection This creates self-awareness and mindfulness Take a step back... Analyze, pick apart.  Understand why something happened based on the decisions you made They are tactical 5x7 notepad -- Take blank sheet and write the exact things you need to do each day Weekly wrap up -- Capture what happened Use a daily journal to understand how you felt at that moment "It's way too easy to be reactionary."  It's not productive.  Be thoughtful and intentional Zvi at 25 years old: Quit his job His dad's cancer came back and he died The same day was officially declared a recession in 2008 How to respond? Zvi was interested in a startup "I emailed my network, and the CTO of an enterprise software company helped me out" "Relationships are our most important asset" Zvi realized he wasn't good at managing his relationships.  He was using Evernote. He wanted a proactive CRM (customer relationship management) tool to proactively work for the relationship driven professional That was how Contactually was created "It's not about staying in touch.  It's about being of value." How to make the right hiring decisions: It's values based: Be user first - solve problems for others Ownership - entrepreneur types Learn & innovate - embrace failure and learn Demonstrate the ability to learn Be excellent with each other -- "If a company has a named 'No Asshole' rules then that usually means they have a lot of assholes there."  It's a red flag. Keep it simple Be real -- Transparent How does someone demonstrate the ability to learn? Run a mock call, give feedback.  They must be coachable.  How do they respond to the coaching? Ask, 'what are you learning? We want readers We want people who are intellectually curious We want people who have a "general dissatisfaction with their current skill set." Mentor advice: Leverage your experience to know the right questions to ask. Teach them how to navigate the issues, don't just give them the answers. "Relay experience.  Don't give advice."  Don't give a prescription. Mentee advice: Establish a feedback loop Establish what to do -- follow up "Must show that you took their insights to heart and acted on them." The 'icky' feeling of relationship marketing: Avoid this.  Don't just exchange business cards. "Relationships are our most important asset." Collect intelligence on those people important to you.  Listen for the little details they share.  Pay attention.  Take notes after you talk with them so you can ask about them later. Consistency - Play the long game: Create habits:  what are your relationship goals? "We're wired to think short term."  Zag when others zig.  Think long term. Build genuine, real relationships: When we look back at success, we realize it's because of relationships Invest in them long term Contactually got acquired by Compass Zvi and his investors have been rewarded for their work

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk #311: Adam Savage Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com  Adam Savage was the co-host and Executive Producer of the hit show, MythBusters on the Discovery Channel.  Fourteen years, 1,015 myths, 2,950 experiments, eight Emmy nominations and 83 miles of duct tape later, the series ended in March 2016.  He is the author of Every Tool's a Hammer - Life Is What You Make It. Be part of "Mindful Monday" -- Text LEARNERS to 44222 Notes Leaders who sustain excellence = "Obsession is the gravity of making" Obsession towards the project -- A "desire to see the thing they made to your satisfaction." Adam on failure: "I don't trust people who haven't failed." What it means to be a great boss? Give great opportunities... "The time, the facilities, reason, and logic." "Hey, you're doing great."  Let employees have the space they need. "There's nothing better than when someone leading a team project can just run with it." "Give total autonomy with narrow bandwidth.  Give ownership." Being a generalist -- "The specialist wasn't always helpful because answers are within the context of a wider story." It's very damaging to ask a nine year old what they want to be when they grow up: "Excellence --> The things we cannot stop thinking about."  That's what we should strive to be when we grow up.  Someone who pursues their curiosity and obsessions with great rigor. The WHO "I think about my relationships all the time."  The people you consciously choose to have in your life are everything "Am I serving those relationships? Am I being present and non-judgmental with them?  Am I with them in the room?" Stop getting mad at customer service -- It's not their fault.  And you'll feel better about yourself. Adam on his preparation process for a big speech: It depends on the engagement, but it's extensive. There are 2 specifics: Record yourself and listen to it -- "It illuminates where you're not hitting your mark.  It's the transitions typically.  How you link them together as a narrative whole." Memorize conceptually -- Practice, practice practice.  Get the reps. Communication as a leader -- "Story is completely vital to leadership in every way." "Language was invented to tell stories." Pay attention to how they people who move you tell stories How playing quarterback is similar to a work of art There is always something changing -- You must adjust on the fly How to become more self-aware? Write everything down -- Keep a journal of your thoughts.  Reflect.  Be introspective Have someone on your team who will tell you the truth.  "It's all about the team." How Adam lowered stress level: Stopped drinking alcohol Slept more Started meditating Increase your loose tolerance Learn by doing -- Take action -- "Creation is iteration." Being wrong isn't failing You don't have to have everything in place to start Be easier on yourself during the iterations Share everything: We love the myth of the lone genius, yet none of us make stuff in a vacuum.  Share credit, ideas, everything.  Increase generosity through sharing Use more cooling fluid: It takes more time on the front end, and forces time to clean up on the back end, but it gives more value to the final product -- "It's a reminder to slow down and reduce the friction in your work and relationships." Sweep up every day: "A clean workbench gives energy.  It helps the future me." Leave a place better than you found it The cultural malaise currently is based on the scarcity model.  Wrong.  There is enough food, be a giver.  Be generous. Use the "Get To Know You Document" Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk #310: David Epstein Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com David Epstein is the author of the forthcoming Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World , and of the top 10 New York Times bestseller The Sports Gene. David has master’s degrees in environmental science and journalism, and is reasonably sure he’s the only person to have co-authored a paper in the journal of Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research while a writer at Sports Illustrated.  David has given talks about performance science and the uses (and misuses) of data on five continents; his TED Talk has been viewed 7 million times, and was shared by Bill Gates. Notes: Leaders who sustain excellence = Voracious learners Voracious readers They attack obstacles Extremely interested in people and about themselves The Sports Gene Having great reflexes is a trained skill -- Pro baseball players cannot hit a pro softball pitcher because they have not trained their reflexes to understand the arm angle (Albert Puhols could not hit Jenny Finch even though she throws slower than the average MLB pitcher) "Chunking" is what world class athletes or chess-masters do.  They pick up on cues from the person's body (or the board) and that helps them make quicker decisions -- Ex:  A baseball player understands/learns the cues of a pitcher and what pitch is coming and at what velocity Sports is a "kind learning environment."  It is more black and white than the business world.  In order to translate this to the business world, try to create a kinder learning environment.  Need as much information available as possible. Create an environment where feedback is happening on a regular basis The business world is not as kind of a learning environment The "annual review" is a horrible way to run a business.  Feedback should be happening on a regular basis... Daily. Bill Campbell would go to the meetings of the leaders he coached and gave immediate feedback. Create a feedback loop for yourself from mentors/people you trust "Everyone needs a coach" -- David regularly takes writing courses to stay sharp and learn David's writing process: The first year = Read 10 scientific papers per day.  He reads a TON Advantage David has created = An expansive search function Have a "master thought list" -- Storyboard, shift scenes around He did film editing as a form of cross training for writing a book and becoming a great storyteller 29 of 32 NFL first round draft picks in the 2017 draft played multiple sports.  Cross training is critical for long term success David debated Malcolm Gladwell on stage in front of a huge audience and changed Malcolm's mind.  Watch here. Athletes that delay specialization excel more than those that specializes (golf is the only exception to the rule) The most effective leaders are constantly updating their mental models It should be celebrated when someone changes their mind because better evidence has surfaced Darwin changed his mind Lincoln changed his mind A 'deliberate amateur' = Someone who loves an activity.  "I don't do research, I do search." It's a constant experimentation to learn In a LinkedIn study, the results of a review of all profiles of people who made it to the C-Suite = Went to a Top 5 Business School "The single most important factor is they worked in different functions within a company."  They were generalists. The people who make the most impact with number of patents filed work across classes.  They are wide ranging generalists. Sales is a great entry point for any business -- Learning marketing and sales will benefit you in every job you will ever have "Take your skills and apply them to a problem where those skills aren't being used." People underestimate how much the world will change -- Must be able to adapt and learn "We learn who we are in practice, not in theory."  -- Take action.  Do the work. Work to accumulate experiences Try something, go all in on the thing you are doing in that moment.  100% focus.  Invest everything you have in it. Then reflect on it -- "We learn in moments of reflection." "When you're 23, don't worry about getting ahead, get information about yourself.  Focus on learning." Use the "Get To Know You Document" Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

Verne Harnish, founder of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and CEO of Gazelles, shares his expertise on scaling businesses. He emphasizes the importance of hiring diverse thinkers and having a mentor. Verne stresses the value of building relationships with top influencers and even recalls cold-calling Steve Jobs' coach. He discusses essential strategies for effective execution and the transition from startup to scalable leadership. Verne's insights provide a roadmap for sustaining excellence and driving sustainable growth in any organization.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk Episode #308: Alex Hutchinson TEXT LEARNERS to 44222 Full shownotes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com  Leaders who sustain excellence = They show up... Willing to take a shot when they might not be successful People over-estimate short term and under-estimate long term.  Be ambitious about long term Consistency - Secret to success: "When an editor gives me an assignment, they will receive it back on time with the right words."  You have to always get it done and be known as someone who does this. To rise above a certain level, you must do more than what is expected.  "Dream big while not neglecting daily responsibility." Eliud Kipchoge - spiritual leader of self-disciplined people around the world. "Only the disciplined in life are free." Getting there earlier than his coach... "As hard as I was willing to work, he was willing to support me." -- Alex describing his great basketball coach "Discipline is a muscle.  You get better as you use it more." Model of achievement -- Work hard, support others "Sweat more than you watch other people sweat."  -- Every leader should get some sort of activity.  It's indefensible to have a healthy body and mind. "We are cognitively better when we are fit." "Pushing yourself physically reveals what you're made of mentally." How to raise your threshold of pain: It's expectation based Pain perception is the same for all... It's all about how you respond Learn to tolerate it it by going through it regularly.  Develop psychological coping system. Pain is just a signal -- Understand it's how you choose to respond Navy SEALs, Olympians did an experiment with brain scanners where oxygen was restricted: They have a 'higher level of self-monitoring' Elite athletes get better when stress hits.  Normal people get worse Take a mindfulness based course: Cultivate "non-judgmental self-awareness" When you make a pancake for your 5 year old and they don't like it, "try not to respond with frustration in the moment.  Think about how you'll feel in 30 minutes." Change in training?  "Training will be the same, but my mind will be different." The importance of self-talk -- Inner monologue -- "I've trained for this, I can do it." "When you've reached a point that you think you've hit a wall, in fact in almost every case, those limits are perceptions of effort." Handle fear with preparation -- You must show yourself you have reason to believe you can do it. Delayed gratification -- Sports is the clearest venues to see benefit of delayed gratification "Champions in November are made in July." Alain de Botton quote -- "Of many books, one feels, it could have been truly good, if the author's appetite for suffering had been greater." Advice: Read a lot of books... On topics that have nothing to do with your topic Give self space to think Give self time to be bored