Bleeding Edge

Too many of us are driven by fear, securing or warming our seat, hedging our bets, and playing it safe, while waiting for the perfect moment to act.

We subconsciously construct an insidious safety net that becomes our undoing, and this is the Pioneer’s Dilemma as Professor Christensen described in his books…

Looking at those who have triumphed — from business to sports, from politics to the arts — reveals the truth, and offers a template for anyone who aspires to achieve.

To make your dent in the universe, you can follow the lead of MLK, George Washington, Marcus Aurelius, Aristotle’s student Alexander, Sun Tzu, Julius Caesar, Abraham Lincoln, Disraeli, Thomas Jefferson, Winston Churchill, and even people like Christina Tosi, Marc Lore, Denzel Washington, Sir Lawrence Olivier, Akira Kurosawa, Lauren Bacall and Bogart, and the many more eponymous leaders whose inspiring biographies, teach us how to cast away our safety nets, overcome our hesitations, and burn our bridges, burn our boats and even burn our mortgages — in order to liberate ourselves to pursue what is really important in our lives.

“Consistently and overwhelmingly, the evidence shows that leaders are made, not born.” 

The way of making leaders can be considered a new science of what we colloquially call “purposeful practice” and it includes the following methodology to achieve the level of competence to be able to be a Good Leader: 

Developing skills that others have figured out, i.e. relying on an established knowledge base about what training techniques and methods work.

Practicing with well-defined, specific goals in mind 

Consistently moving outside your comfort zone 

Using full attention and conscious actions, involves being fully present and engaged in your leadership training.

Using new pattern making, actionable replay feedback and modification of your practice in order to reach our goals, is key to mastering the skillset of Direct Leadership.

Developing effective mental representations, developing new cognitive frameworks, and burning the grooves that allow us to master the leadership skillset through virtuous actions consistent with our Method of Stoicicsm and Resilience. It has been found in study after study of expert military, business and medical performers, that they have developed advanced mental representations that allow them to overcome limitations faced by other leaders.

Building upon your preexisting skillset & building new skills on top of previously acquired skills, because this is the way that most learning is done.

Yet we must also focus on mastering ‘foundational’ skills that define leadership as a practice and not a profession.

I often think about what it takes to build and maintain a fearless mindset. Yes, many of us can be bold and daring but, that’s not what a fearless mindset is all about.

Building and maintaining a fearless mindset is a journey that requires continuous effort and determination. While many of us may have moments of boldness and daring, true fearlessness is about so much more.

As Kobe Bryant once said, “Fear is temporary. Regret is forever.” 

This quote hit me square in the jaw and drives home the idea that taking action and facing our fears is far more valuable than letting them hold us back.

Here are five powerful bullet points that can inspire and motivate us on our journey towards a fearless mindset:

1. Embrace Failure: Failure is a natural part of growth and learning. Don’t let fear of failure hold you back from taking risks and pursuing your goals.
2. Reframe Negative Thoughts: When negative thoughts arise, reframe them into positive ones. This helps you see challenges as opportunities for growth and change.
3. Practice Self-Compassion: Speak kindly to yourself and accept yourself as you are. Recognize that everyone makes mistakes and is deserving of kindness and forgiveness.
4. Nurture Gratitude: Take time each day to focus on what you are thankful for. This shifts your focus from negative thoughts to positive ones and increases feelings of happiness and contentment.
5. Take Action: The most powerful way to overcome fear is to take action. Whether it’s small steps or giant ones, taking action helps build your confidence and reinforces a fearless mindset.

Give one of these a try without delay and you’ll be on your way to developing a fearless mindset and live life with a newfound sense of confidence and willingness to take uncomfortable risks.

“Fear, uncertainty and doubt — may be a temporary feeling that incapacitates you, but the everlasting regret of not facing the FUDs to fight for what is really important, lasts a lifetime.” –Dr Churchill

Yours,

Dr Churchill

PS:

It takes time to become a leader or an expert in any field.

Because even the most gifted performers need a minimum of ten years of intense training before they win international competitions.

And this is where the science of “deliberate practice” becomes the most useful tool in your arsenal…

And if we want to augment our impact in the world and make a bigger dent in the universe — we best get other great people to assist us to climb the mountain because at the end of the analysis, “it takes a village” to accomplish anything of value…

So, hire people better than you, and consistently support them to reach their full potential, because A players hire the best… and they never pierce anybody’s balloon to stop their ascent — instead they add balloons to assist the person to rise to their True Potential.

The important Management Leaders, Political Pioneers, and all the A-players of Business and Entrepreneurship — already know that keeping your people from advancing towards actualizing their full potential, is the gravest mistake of Low Leadership.

Conversely, those Leaders who help others rise above them — have the Best Organizations that produce consistently great results, for all of the Team, because the 3% super-rule still applies, even when the 20% rule keeps the Business running.

So help People rise up into the sky, and make that priority Number One, because underestimating individual potential for growth, creating obstacles on the Career path for others, and failing to show appreciation — is the biggest mistake mangers customarily make and screw up not just people’s careers, but their organization that soon enough will become a graveyard of talent, where good people go to die… in more ways than one.