Desirable goal…

…or limiting vantage point?

ATTRACT Opportunities Instead of Pursuing Them…

…Using Counter-Intuitive Thinking

The one step in the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE that continues to intrigue me day-in, day-out is Step 6, Eclectic Education.  It’s through diverse reading that I find gems like this.

I recently read a brief summary of Socrates’ life by Anthony Gottlieb. In this booklet the author offers four dramatically different perspectives on who Socrates was. These perspectives come from the writings of Plato, Xenophon, Aristophanes and Aristotle.  Gottlieb notes that each author’s account is shaded by the beliefs the author held.  Plato was a profound advocate of reason, consequently his descriptions of  Socrates emphasized Socrates’ reasoning.

Gottlieb goes on to say that while none of these accounts is entirely accurate, by blending the four we can get a reasonable sense of who Socrates was and what he believed.

In a similar fashion, the late Saul Alinsky in his book, Rules for Radicals, says “…judgment must be made in the context of the times the action occurred and not from any other chronological vantage point.”

The obvious questions these two books raise are “What are facts?  Do they even exist?  If so, how do we find them?”  Based on these readings it seems that “fact” is a matter of perception.  Since perception is always based on personal experience, any fact must then be specific to the individual’s or group’s experiences.

For those of you who prefer to make decisions based on “fact” this can be disconcerting.  These authors are in essence saying that there is no single set of facts on which we can rely as the basis for our decisions.  That flies in the face of our natural desire to discover “the facts.”

Should the lack of complete knowledge (facts) deter us from the exploration?  Absolutely not!  All scientific effort has as its goal the acquisition of knowledge about how things work.   Yet, the reality is that the knowledge gained in scientific exploration always falls short of a complete answer – scientists never have all of the facts.

It’s counter-intuitive, but our desire for facts is limiting.  If there were only one set of facts we’d lose the benefit of other peoples’ perspectives.  With that in mind, our search for the facts must necessarily lead us to an exploration of the other party’s experience which, in turn, expands our knowledge – not of “the facts,” but of the vast array of possible interpretations of those facts.

The next time you find yourself inclined to search for the facts, pause a moment and remind yourself that what you’re really seeking is others’ interpretation of those facts.  This approach will not only help you stand out in the crowd.   It will make you INVALUABLE to those around you and, in the process, attract opportunities so that you don’t have to pursue them.

Attracting opportunities is only the beginning.  Visit www.pricingforprofitbook.com to discover how to get compensated well for the value you provide.  Enjoy!

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com.  Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment.

ATTRACT Opportunities Instead of Pursuing Them…

…Using Counter-Intuitive Thinking

Have you become disenchanted with your work?

If so, what can you do about it?

ATTRACT Opportunities Instead of Pursuing Them…

…Using Counter-Intuitive Thinking

I had to chuckle when I read the following comment a teacher made to Dr. Thomas Gordon as related in his book T.E.T-Teacher Effectiveness Training www.gordontraining.com/drthomasgordon.html

“When I started teaching I saw myself as the leader of a happy band of students, eager to learn, to explore, to discover.  It didn’t turn out that way.  I don’t look forward to teaching,  I dread each new class, each new day.  So do the students.  I feel like a slave driver cracking the whip over the heads of a bunch of lazy, good-for-nothing slobs whose only interest is to get out of work.  They lie, cheat, put each other down, and seem to be interested only in how little they can do and still pass the course.  Worst of all, I’m now told that I am going to be judged by how well they do on standardized tests!”

I’m not sadistic; I don’t take pleasure in other people’s pain.  Yet I had to laugh because, by simply changing a few words, I could use that commentary to describe virtually any work environment I’ve ever seen.  Even in the best of environments there are days that cause managers  to echo this teacher’s frustration.

Why do we become so disenchanted?  Why do we experience such great frustration?  More importantly, is there anything we can do about it?

Dr. Gordon suggests that this teacher first look toward her own expectations.  In the language of the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE that means looking at your contribution to the problem.

Regardless of how you frame it, the question is “Is it reasonable to expect human beings of any age, background or temperament to occasionally appear to be ‘a bunch of of lazy, good-for-nothing slobs whose only interest is to get out of work’?”  People also lie, cheat and put each other down.

These are the less attractive aspects of our humanity, yet they exist in each of us.  If we know this, then it’s possible to set realistic expectations that, on occasion, people are going to behave badly. When they do it’s much easier to deal with that behavior because we realize that we’ve had our moments as well.  We can draw upon our less-than-exemplary moments to help the person return to more appropriate behavior.  It also helps if we utilize Step 3 of the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE, Suspend Judgment, to avoid judging the person or the person’s behavior.

The second thing to explore when feeling disenchanted is how the system might be triggering the behaviors we’re seeing.  If you recall from my November 30, 2009 post “The Propensity for Evil”, Philip Zimbardo in his book, The Lucifer Effect, provides great insight into how situations  trigger behaviors that are atypical for the individuals involved.  If your frustration is on par with the teacher’s commentary above, it may be that the system (remember you’re part of the system) is the true source of your frustration.

It’s counter-intuitive to look at our disenchantment from the vantage points of our personal contribution to the problem (Step 1 Contributory Negligence), the system in which we operate and our natural tendency to judge situations (Step 3 Suspend Judgment) but it’s the most effective way to regain the joy and excitement our work once brought us.

Use these simple concepts to help others overcome their disenchantment with work and you, too, will become INVALUABLE.  It’s another way to attract new leadership opportunities.

Attracting opportunities is only the beginning.  You need to get compensated well for the value you provide.  Visit www.pricingforprofitbook.com to learn how to communicate your value and command higher prices or salaries for that value.

Who’s your strongest competitor?

What are your odds of beating him/her?

Step 3 of the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE is “Suspend Judgment.” Let’s take a look at how one winner used this concept to his advantage.

As American Idol is about to launch its new season, I couldn’t help but reflect on last year’s contest. The surprise win of Kris Allen over the favorite, Adam Lambert, offers some valuable insights into competition.

The importance of Winston Churchill’s famous 5-word speech to England’s citizenry, “Never, never, never give up,” was exemplified in Kris Allen’s American Idol win. Throughout the competition Adam Lambert was considered the person to beat. His performances were rewarded with glowing reviews from the judges and standing ovations from the audience. Yet, during the final two weeks of the competition it was Kris Allen who garnered the majority of the votes.

It would have been easy for Kris to embrace the idea that:

• Adam Lambert was more talented than he was
• Adam was more popular and, thus, unbeatable
• His chances of winning were nil

All of these thoughts could have, and probably did, enter his psyche. They all have one thing in common. They’re judgments; judgments wrought from emotion. These judgments limit our potential and the value we bring to society.

The reality is that there will always be someone a little brighter, a little more skilled, more experienced or more of a natural talent than we are. Their abilities make life miserable for us. No matter how hard we try we’re never going to surpass these people – or are we?

We can, and we will, if we follow Kris Allen’s example of setting aside these judgments and doing our best every week. It’s counter-intuitive, but there is only one competitor in your life – yourself. If you compare yourself against those who are brighter, more skilled, possess greater experience or are more naturally gifted, you’re likely to become disheartened and give up.

Conversely, if you compete only against yourself, every time you improve upon your previous performance you gain confidence and you position yourself for greater and greater success. It won’t matter what your competitors are doing, you’ll know that your success is assured because you’re continuously improving in areas that have value for your customers.

Learn from Kris Allen! Set aside those judgments that limit your future. Focus on your customers‘ needs and competing only with yourself. You’ll not only enjoy greater and greater success, odds are that you’ll have others in your industry viewing you as the one who is brighter, more skilled, more experienced or more naturally talented.

Few of us doubt that evil exists…

…the question is where.

I recently had my world rocked when I read Philip Zimbardo’s book, The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil.  Not so much by the fact that each of us has a propensity for evil behavior – who among us hasn’t made a biting comment when we’ve felt hurt or threatened?

What did surprise me was Zimbardo’s insight as to how the situations we face trigger evil behavior and how quickly that can occur.  Professor Zimbardo, a social psychologist, created the Stanford Prison Experiment at Stanford University in the 1970s.  His goal was to determine whether or not situations influenced behavior and, if so, to what extent.  His findings are amazing.

Within a few days male college students who had agreed to be either guard or prisoner depending on the luck of the draw experienced the following:

• Guards became progressively more verbally and psychologically abusive (physical abuse was not permitted) – so much so that the experiment was stopped after just five days.
• Those guards who didn’t participate in the abuse, or did so only sporadically to avoid criticism themselves, didn’t do anything to curb the abusive guards’ behavior.
• Some prisoners experienced such severe depression that they were released after only a day or two in the experiment.  Interestingly they could have left voluntarily at any time, but didn’t.
• All prisoners became accepting of the ill treatment they received.
• Professor Zimbardo admits that he fell victim to the situation and moved away from what he perceived his true nature.

What’s the message for us?  As we’re thinking about how we structure our organizations, incentive programs and other aspects of our business, let’s keep in mind this propensity for evil.  Are we creating an environment in which we encourage arrogance toward customers, intolerance with employees or exceedingly unrealistic expectation for vendors.

If you’re thinking “I’d never do that.”  Take a look at some of your policies.  Have you set sales quotas and, in doing so, encouraged your salespeople to sell to customers who don’t really value what you offer.  Worse yet, are they lowering the price to get the sale which hurts both your company and the customer.

Have you established aggressive collection policies?  If so, have your collectors lost their compassion for people who are trying to pay you, but find themselves struggling to find a way to do so.

Have you created compensation programs that encourage your employees to ignore what’s in the best interests of your customers or your business.  Years ago, during a training program I was presenting to mid-level managers, they told me of an ongoing problem.  When I began to offer suggestions on how to deal with the problem, they said “Oh, we know how to fix it.  That’s not how we’re compensated.”  Ouch!

It’s counter-intuitive, but the policies we establish and the procedures we put into place have the propensity to trigger the evil that exists in all of us by virtue of our human nature.  Spend a few extra minutes evaluating your policies and procedures with an eye to the evil it could create and you’ll save yourselves and those with whom you interact a great deal of pain.

The 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE program is designed to help you see more effective ways of doing business – ways that dramatically improve your bottom line while making your life easier.  In today’s blog I used Step 6, Eclectic Education, to gain new perspectives from a social psychologist.  I also used Step 4, See Similarities, to demonstrate how his concepts apply our policy-making, procedure-writing activities.  Finally, I used Step 6, Contrarian Mindset, to offer ways to avoid triggering the less savory aspects of our human nature.  For more information on the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE visit www.furtwengler.com/7steps.htm.

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com. Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment.

For insights into how you can apply counter-intuitive thinking to your pricing strategy, visit my Pricing for Profit blog at www.pricingforprofitbook.com.

My latest book, Pricing for Profit, was released 9.9.09 in the United States, Canada, U.K., Italy, France, Germany and the Netherlands.  It’s available in all the major bookstores – Borders, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

Each of us experiences fear.

The question is “How do we conquer it?”

Recently I wrote about fear and the use of a contrarian mindset as a way to prevent personal fears from becoming societal fears and eventually triggering violent acts. In order to be able to become the voice of reason, we must be able to conquer our own fears. Easier said than done?

Chapter 23 of the Chandogya Upanisad says “Where one does not see another, does not hear another, does not know another, that is abundance. Where one sees another, hears another, knows another, that is smallness. Abundance is immortal: smallness is mortal.”

What does this quote have to do with fear and our need to conquer it? Fear is egocentric. Whether I’m afraid of losing power, influence, customers, a valued employee or vendor, the love of my life, a child or financial stability, I’m focused on my needs. That bespeaks smallness on my part. All that I’m concerned with are my needs, my wants, my desires. With that mindset, virtually anyone I see, hear or know poses a threat. I’m going to examine everyone – even those I love – to discern whether they’re a potential rival for what I desire or what I fear I might lose.

Let’s contrast that mindset with the earlier portion of the upanisad – “Where one does not see another, does not hear another, does not know another, that is abundance.” When I’m free from fear what I see are possibilities, not just for myself but for others as well. There is no me versus them; no zero sum game where one person must lose for the other to win. There is plenty of power, influence, love and financial wealth for all to enjoy. I don’t create opportunities just for me; I just create opportunities. I understand that the more opportunities I create the better off we’ll all be.

When I create abundance for others, abundance is assured for me as well. That’s one of the messages of this upanisad!

It’s natural for us, as human beings, to experience scarcity, fear and smallness from time to time. I wish that I could tell you that I’m exempt, but I suffer the same human frailties everyone does. I have, however, found ways to overcome these natural tendencies.

It’s counter-intuitive, but we can train our minds to quickly recognize when we’re feeling scarcity, fear and smallness. With that realization comes a choice, “Do I continue to focus on myself and perpetuate the fear I’m feeling? Or do I choose to begin exploring possibilities for a new, bright future for all of us?” The choice becomes easier over time.

It won’t take long for you to get a sense for how much fun it is to be able to create possibilities at will. Soon your mind will quickly make the shift from the smallness of fear to the largesse of abundance. That’s when you’ll know you’ve conquered fear; that’s when you life will seem fuller and richer even in challenging times. This is my wish for you – a sense of abundance drawn from the abyss of scarcity. Enjoy your freedom from fear!

The 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE program is designed to help you see more effective ways of doing business – ways that dramatically improve your bottom line while making your life easier. In today’s blog I used Step 6, Eclectic Education, to gain new perspectives from the upanisads, spiritual teachings pre-dating most organized religions, regarding the difference between the immortal and mortal aspects of our nature. I also used Step 4, See Similarities, to apply these concepts to the fear each of us experiences by virtue of our humanity. Finally, I hinted at Step 3, Suspend Judgment, when I spoke of “challenging times.” After all, times are challenging only if we decide to judge them to be so. For more information on the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE visit www.furtwengler.com/7steps.htm.

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com. Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment.

For ideas on how to apply counter-intuitive thinking to your company’s pricing strategy, visit my new Pricing for Profit blog at www.pricingforprofitbook.com/. Enjoy!

Good news – My latest book, Pricing for Profit, was released 9.9.09 in the United States, Canada, U.K., Italy, France, Germany and the Netherlands.  It’s available in all the major bookstores – Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com and Amazon.com.

Happy Thanksgiving!

If we merely survive this economy…

…we’ve wasted an opportunity to grow.

The Dalai Lama says that we ought to be most grateful to those who cause us the most trouble because they afford us the greatest opportunity to learn.  The same can be said for challenging times.

There is little doubt that these are uncertain and confusing times.  The question is what lessons can we take from these times to better position ourselves for the future.  Here’s what I’ve learned.

Resilience
We’ve lived through tough times before and come out stronger for the experience.  We will again.  I’ve lived through the recession in 1974 when interest rates were an alarming 12%.  Only to find them pale in comparison to the 21% rates in 1983.

By the way, I was in the mortgage banking industry during both periods.  People in that industry have asked that I not return.  Sorry folks, but whether I re-enter that market again or not, we’ll see much higher rates in about three years.

The lesson is that regardless of the depth of the problems we’ve faced in any economy, we’ve always recovered.  We’re human beings, we’re resilient.

You’re in the marketing business
Success in business has less to do with what industry you’re in, what offerings you have or what business model you use, than it does with your ability to market your offerings effectively.  If you doubt that, recall the tremendous success Microsoft has experienced because they were more effective than Apple in marketing in the early years.  Once buyers become accustomed to a vendor it’s difficult for them to change even when they’re experiencing problems.  Again, that’s human nature at work.

If you want to enjoy greater business success in the future, use this economy to gain greater clarity about who your ideal customer is and how to tailor your marketing message to attract them.

Value is more important than price
Many business people think that buyers become more price conscious during a down economy.  The reality is that they become more value conscious.  It becomes more important to the buyer that every dollar spent provides optimum value.  Let’s say that you’ve historically bought name brand canned vegetables.  In a difficult economy you may try a store brand, but if it doesn’t taste as good as the name brand, you’re not going to change.  If there isn’t a noticeable difference, you’ll switch to the store brand.  Either way it’s a value decision.

It’s counter-intuitive, but focusing on what we can learn from a down economy instead of survival will allow us to enjoy success in any environment.  Some of you may be thinking “That’s not counter-intuitive!”

If you’re right, then why are so many people operating from fear?  Why are business people focusing on pricing instead of marketing?  Why do business people lower their prices in attempts to salvage market share when that strategy has failed in every economy in the history of commerce?  Why do job seekers use the same techniques that everyone else is using?

This discussion of a down economy reminds me of an old baseball adage.  An umpire is asked “How do you know whether a pitch is a ball or strike?”  His response was “It ain’t nothin’ til I call it.”  This is a down economy only if we choose to call it that.  Our mindset is going to determine how challenging these times are and what we gain from them.

The 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE program is designed to help you see more effective ways of doing business – ways that dramatically improve your bottom line while making your life easier.  In today’s blog I used Step 6, Eclectic Education, to gain insights from the Dalai Lama.  Step 4, See Similarities, to demonstrate that the concept applies to situations as well as people.  I also used Step 5, Contrarian Mindset, to demonstrate that the approaches businesses use in down economy are counter-productive.  For more information on the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE visit www.furtwengler.com/7steps.htm.

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com.  Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment.

Borders bookstore is hosting a book signing for my latest book, Pricing for Profit, on November 10, 2009 at 5:30 p.m.  There will be a brief 10-minute presentation on Common Pricing Errors…and tips for avoiding them followed by a Q&A session.

On November 17, 2009, the Cottleville-Weldon Springs Chamber of Commerce has graciously invited me to present an expanded version of Common Pricing Errors at their breakfast meeting at 7:30 a.m. http://www.cottlevilleweldonspringchamber.com/

Coming soon! I’m starting a new blog, Pricing for Profit, which is dedicated to helping you get compensated well for the tremendous value you provide.  Stay tuned for more information on the Pricing for Profit blog.

Finding it yields great power…

…but you have to know how to look for it.

Recently I had the good fortune to present a program for the American Society for Training and Development entitled “Have Trainers Lost Their Way?”  In this program I asked the audience to share their thoughts on what the real purpose of training is.  They offered about a dozen suggestions.

Then I asked them to find a common thread that ran through all of these suggestions.  They found this task considerably more challenging.  Finally, I shared with them what I believed to be the real purpose of training – to build confidence so that the participants felt comfortable employing what they learned.  What was the result?

When we compared the common thread I offered – building confidence – to all of the purposes they had identified, they agreed that building confidence would achieve all of the other purposes as well.

Being able to see the common thread that runs through all things – even those that don’t seem similar, is a powerful tool for you to add to your repertoire.  Josh Waitzkin, World Chess Champion, in his book, The Art of Learning, described it this way “I often sensed a logical thread to positions that seemed irrational – playing exciting chess felt like discovering hidden harmonies.”

It’s counter-intuitive, but “harmonies” do exist in much greater abundance than we realize.  Why don’t we see them?  Because our natural tendency is to see differences, not similarities.  One of the things you’ll discover is that when you train your mind to see the common thread, life gets easier.

Imagine how much easier it is to design training programs when you know that your goal is to help participants build confidence.  In essence all that you, as a trainer, need to do is provide two or three new concepts and develop exercises that allow the participants gain experience in applying those concepts.

How do you develop the ability to find the common thread that runs through whatever you’re facing?

• Broaden your knowledge base by exploring topics outside your normal interests.
• Before you begin your exploration, ask yourself “What am I going to discover that is like situations I’ve already faced in my job, at home, during play time?”
• Enjoy the exploration.  Let your subconscious mind do the work for you; that’s what it is designed to do.

Learn to see the common thread that runs through everything and you’ll not only enjoy a simpler life, you’ll amaze your friends as well.

The 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE program I offer is designed to help you see more effective ways of doing business – ways that dramatically improve your bottom line while making your life easier.  In today’s blog I used Step 6, Eclectic Education, to open the door to a seemingly diverse knowledge base and Step 4, Seeing Similarities, to help you see the common thread that runs through that diverse information. For more information on the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE visit www.furtwengler.com/7steps.htm.

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com.  Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment.

Good news – My latest book, Pricing for Profit, was released 9.9.09 in the United States, Canada, U.K., Italy, France, Germany and the Netherlands.  It’s available in all the major bookstores – Borders, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

While alluring…

…it’s regular use invites the demise of your career.

I’m sure that each of us has, at one time or another, bemoaned the fact that we didn’t have the power to change something.  If only we had the power to…, we could solve this problem quickly.

The reality is that those who have the power and use it regularly often limit their career advancement.  Why?  There are several reasons.  Most employees:

• Hate being told what to do
• Resent not having their ideas heard and acted upon
• Despise the arrogance their leader exhibits
• Will do “exactly” what the boss requests even though they know it will fail
• May harbor desires that the boss’ idea fails or, worse yet, work toward that end

Yet, despite all of these negative consequences some people achieve lofty positions using positional power.  I’m sure each of you could point to autocratic leaders who have enjoyed great success.  Or have they?  What price did they pay for that success?

Imagine the pressure autocratic leaders must feel as they:

• Manage the most minute details of their direct reports‘ work
• Assume the risk for every decision that gets made
• Work diligently to see that blame for an errant decision doesn’t land on their doorstep
• Are constantly on the alert for potential sabotage
• Work countless hours because they don’t trust their employees

Is that the career you desire?

So what’s the alternative?  Influence!  By engaging people in the decision-making process, you get greater buy-in, quicker implementation and better results.  Indeed, a former chairman of Porsche, said that his mantra was “Decide democratically, delegate dictatorially.”  He went on to say that “a poor idea, implemented well, will produce better results than a great idea implemented poorly.”

It’s counter-intuitive, but the foundation for career advancement doesn’t lie in positional power; it lies in your ability to influence the thinking of others.  How do you do that?  Remember that persuasion is a myth.  We can’t persuade anyone of anything, they have to persuade themselves.

The best we can do is:

• Shine the light on new information
• Allow employees to process that information and reach their own conclusions
• Allow them to validate their conclusions with their own experiences

If our conclusion is correct, our employees will reach the same conclusion we have and they’ll be excited about the idea because they know it will work.  If, however, we’ve overlooked something in our analysis, our employees can pull our bacon from the fire by shining the light on new information for us.

Fortunately, as a consultant, I never have positional power.  I have no authority in any client organization.  As a result I’m never tempted to use positional power.  Instead I rely on influence.  The ability to influence others‘ thinking serves me equally well in my personal life as it does in my work.  I would never trade that skill for positional power.  Indeed, like the Chairman of Porsche, I didn’t use that power when I had it.

Do yourself a favor.  Use the steps outlined above to influence others’ thinking instead of exerting positional power.  You’ll quickly discover that leadership can be fun and exciting instead of stressful and draining.  The choice is yours.  Which will you choose?

The 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE program is designed to help you see more effective ways of doing business – ways that dramatically improve your bottom line while making your life easier.  In today’s blog I used Step 5, Contrarian Mindset, to demonstrate the often overlooked disadvantages of positional power, Step 6, Eclectic Education, to provide insights from an incredibly successful former Chairman of Porsche and Step 2, The Persuasion Myth, to help you see how easy it is to gain influence.  For more information on the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE visit www.furtwengler.com/7steps.htm.

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com.  Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment below.

Good news – My latest book, Pricing for Profit, was released 9.9.09 in the United States, Canada, U.K., Italy, France, Germany and the Netherlands.  It’s available in all the major bookstores – Borders, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

A world-class competitors’ view…

…of lessons learned.

As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve become a huge fan of Josh Waitzkin’s book, The Art of Learning. In particularly reflective mood he wrote “We have to release our current ideas to soak in new material, but not so much that we lose touch with our natural talents.”

What a beautiful way of describing what we need to do to effectively integrate lessons learned.  It’s so easy, when learning something new, to become enamored with the new concepts and fail to ascertain whether or not that new information fits our style or how it will help us achieve our goals.

Certainly most of what we learn can be adapted to fit our style and support our efforts in achieving our goals.  Unfortunately, we don’t often think about how to adapt the lessons learned until we’ve experienced some disappointment.

It’s counter-intuitive, but you can accelerate the successful integration of new knowledge by asking yourself three questions:

1. Will this information help me achieve my goals?
2. Is this information congruous with my style?
3. If not, how can I adapt it to fit my style?

The answers to these simple questions will help you strike the balance Josh Waitzkin so  eloquently described.

The 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE program is designed to help you see more effective ways of doing business – ways that dramatically improve your bottom line while making your life easier.  In today’s blog I used Step 6, Eclectic Education, to gain new perspectives from World Champion Chessmaster and Tai Chi Chuan master, Josh Waitzkin.  I also used Step 4, See Similarities, to demonstrate how to apply these concepts to any life situation you face.  For more information on the 7 Steps to Becoming INVALUABLE visit www.furtwengler.com/7steps.htm.

If you’d like to receive a weekly email reminder with a link to The Invaluable Leader blog or if you’d like me to address specific topics, please send me an email at dale@furtwengler.com.  Please share your experience with our readers by posting a comment.

Good news – My latest book, Pricing for Profit, was released 9.9.09 in the United States, Canada, U.K., Italy, France, Germany and the Netherlands.  It’s available in all the major bookstores – Borders, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

Thanks to all of you, Pricing for Profit jumped from #83 in the category of pricing books on Amazon to #41 in a week.  May your kindness be repaid a thousand times.