The saying, “Don’t reinvent the wheel” is so well-known it has become almost proverbial. Yet, I constantly see people trying to ”reinvent wheels” and it often works to their detriment rather than to their advantage.

Please don’t misunderstand. Never would I suggest not being creative and trying new things. As human beings, we are, by our very nature, creative beings. Inventions, new cures for old ills and even better and more efficient/productive methodologies are all part of that magnficent creative process; a process that adds increase to all our lives and humankind’s overall standard of living.

However, when desiring to achieve success in a particular area of your life, it’s best to begin with the fundamentals. Once you’ve learned, embraced, and succeeded with the fundamentals, then you can move on and create “new things” or even new ways of doing those things.

In my booklet, The Success Formula, I quote the great Brian Tracy, who writes:

“This process of learning and applying what I had learned changed my life. I am still amazed at how simply and obvoius it is. Just find out what successful people do and do the same things until you get the same results.”

Please share with us an experience you’ve had in which you’ve done what Mr. Tracy suggested and had the results you desired.

In his very first season as a head coach, he took a losing team and immediately turned them into a winner. Speaking of winning, he coached his teams to a mind-boggling total 664 victories in 27 seasons, including 10 NCAA National Championships. Within this period were 88 straight wins and four perfect 30-0 seasons.

Yet, having seen several television feature stories about him, having read one of his books, having been privileged to see him speak, and having spoken to people who have spoken with those who have known him first-hand, the following appears to be very true about retired UCLA Basketball Coach John Wooden:

Winning was not his focus.

Don’t get me wrong; he loved to win and was not one to accept a loss that was not preceded by full preparation and determined effort. But, winning was not his priority; indeed, it was not his focus.

In fact, his very definition of “Success” was not winning the game. Rather, it was: “Peace of mind that is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming.”

Let’s look at just a few of his qualities that stood out the most:

He was a person of his word.

He prepared unceasingly.

He insisted that all players prepared unceasingly and put forth their best effort, being team-focused. He did not accept selfishness on the court, nor did he accept one player criticizing another.

He focused on the “little things” if he felt they had potentially major consequences; most famously how to correctly put on socks and sneakers in order to avoid blisters.

He was/is a man of deep religious faith.

He was/is a very nice, kind human being.

He won.

Coach Wooden, who didn’t hold the winning of basketball games as his highest priority, was – literally speaking – a huge winner, not just in life, but on the court.

Of course, I’m not saying one should or should not focus on winning. That’s for each individual to decide. However, I would like to put up for discussion the queston, ”what lessons you feel we can take from this outstanding coach and human being?”

I have two books I feel absolutely compelled to suggest you read; first, because they are simply great reads. Secondly, if the topics themselves interest you, you’ll find the knowledge and wisdom contained to be extremely beneficial to you. Today, we’ll look at…

Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else by Geoff Colvin My only (and I do mean, only) complaint with this book is the title. It is missing one word. I believe that either “Inborn” or “Natural” should be placed before “Talent.” Because, what the book does, is totally explode the myths regarding why the highest achievers become the…well, highest achievers.

Colvin, the Senior Editor at Large at FORTUNE shows us, with immutable proof, that It is not natural talent. It is typically not a gift with which they were born.

I know, I can just hear your objections. In fact, I’m pretty sure they are similar to the ones I had.

“But, what about Mozart, Steve Ballmer, Tiger Woods (that’s not what I mean), teenage Olympic champions, mathematics whiz kids, young chess champions, a mid-20’s Nobel Prize winning physicist by the name of Einstein and others of that ilk? And, undeniably, there are those rare five-year olds doing some scarily amazing feats.

The author explains all of this and more. He had me about 99 percent persuaded until the very end…and then he won me over completely

I see the book’s main premise being that “Great performance doesn’t come from superior general abilities; it comes from specific skills that have been developed in a particular way over a long period of time.”

The particular way he is referring to is called, “Deliberate Practice.” And, as I sure you can imagine by now, there’s a lot more to it than simply deliberately deciding to practice.

Oh, you might be seeing a resemblance here to Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Outliers: The Story of Success, which, while I felt was amazingly well-written (Gladwell is brilliant and extraordinarily enjoyable author to read) I believe that some of his biases and “life premises” get in the way of his conclusions. When “push comes to shove” – and 10,000 hours of necessary work aside - in the end, Gladwell chalks up this kind of success as mainly a matter of luck and lucky breaks more than anything else.

Colvin, on the other hand, comes right out and tells us that extraordinary success is a choice, and that you can attain it, but you will pay a price for it, as well. And, that should be self-evident. That’s also not to say the price is bad or not worth it. It’s just a choice one has to make.

A bonus is that while the book focuses more on the individual, he brilliantly ties his findings to how corporate organizations can perform in a world-class manner, as well. And, of course, he backs this up with examples.

If you get the feeling I really appreciated what Mr. Colvin shared with his readers…you are correct!

—–

In my next “Book Suggestion” be prepared to say “Bravo” to MAESTRO.

Over Part One and Part Two we’ve seen that taking personal responsibility does not mean one has to – or that one even can – do it alone and still be successful. At least not financially successful. And, nowhere does this hold more true than in a Capitalistic society.

It’s difficult to even imagine that in a free-enterprise based society, where the Division of Labor* and specific areas of expertise are so crucial to both individual and overall success, that anyone can ever be totally “self-made.”

In fact, while most people believe that the free-er the country (i.e., where the rights of the individual reign above those of the collective) the more self-contained and do-it-yourself life is, the opposite is actually true.  

You and I can’t even have our morning cup of coffee without the efforts of thousands of people we don’t even know doing the work it takes to get it to us from the very beginning of the process to its final form. A cup of coffee? We wouldn’t even have a pencil to write with* never mind a computer to make our work easier and more profitable were it not for the help of many, many others.

The key to remember though is that it must be a voluntary exchange between suppliers and consumers. The market – when left to its own devices (where government’s only legitimate functions are the protection against force and fraud) – works. It works very well. The current Financial Fiasco suffered by the U.S. was not a failure of Capitalism. Much like the Great Depression of the 30’s, it was caused by extreme government intervention in the normal workings of the marketplace.**

So, yes, while we must not only take responsibility for ourselves, and encourage a society where this is the socially acceptable and normal way to live life (while voluntarily and charitably helping those who truly cannot help themselves), we also need to recognize that, in terms of doing it alone…it jes’ ain’t gonna’ happen. Not if we are to thrive both individually and as a society.

———————————-

*Would you like an astounding look at the magnificence of “Division of Labor” and see how the voluntary exchange of countless people is key to a free and abundant society? (and really cool pencils?) Click here for this brief and famous essay. Prepare to be astounded.

**How can I say that Capitalism didn’t fail us? Click here for a brief essay by Sharon Harris that explains the situation very logically and clearly and in a completely non-partisan manner.

In Part One we looked at two “seemingly” opposing statements, “If it is to be, it is up to me” and, “Nobody does it alone” and saw how – though somewhat paradoxical sounding – they actually fit together quite nicely.

Not surprisingly, everyone who wrote in agreed. It’s rather self-evident that, yes, we need to embrace personal responsibility…and that part of that responsibility is to take action is forming relationships with others for mutual benefit. We don’t do it alone.

Taking it further, I believe the second statement also includes leveraging the knowledge and wisdom of others; perhaps through their personal coaching, books and/or other resource materials. 

In fact, we can actually seek out and learn from those who might no longer still be with us on this Earth.

My personal library is stocked with hundreds of books and audios from teachers ranging from the ancient Sages to Ben Franklin to Booker T. Washington, to Ayn Rand to the much-loved and recently-departed, Jim Rohn. Of course, it also includes luminaries such as Zig Ziglar, Brian Tracy, Tom Hopkins, Nido Qubein and so many others who have filled my head with knowledge that I couldn’t possibly have received from “doing it (life) alone.”

Many of my friends have similar libraries.

According to branding coach and consultant, Bill Ellis, “The first saying does not indicate a need to go it alone. There is much that many of us want to do and will do. However, in order to do so, we need help, insights, knowledge, support and more from others.”

Great point. Actually, I don’t see how it’s possible to “do it alone” and achieve any degree of financial success.

Do you know of anyone who ever has succeeded totally alone? I’d like to take the second saying, “Nobody does it alone” even another step further and see how this ties into individualism, the hallmark of a free and abundant society. And, that’s what we’ll do in tomorrow’s installment.