You’re always going to get the same results, doing what
everyone else does. Sometimes you have
to know when to zig where others zag.
These are some of the counterintuitive lessons I’ve learned and applied
from the most successful folks I’ve met.
Pick Fights – to test others’ resolve in their own
beliefs. In business you can’t turn over
the reins to someone who doesn’t know how to defend their own ideas and plans.
Isolate Yourself – to reenergize. Many seemingly extroverts are
introverts. If you recharge when by
yourself, you need to seek out isolation from time to time.
Purposefully Offend – sometimes the only way to get
someone’s attention is to call him or her out.
But, you can always positively turn the relationship around with
persistence and some mea culpa. Tech
entrepreneur Jason Calacanis is a master of this.
Hyper Self-Critical – of your own standards and
choices. I once watched George Carlin
berate himself on stage, in a rehearsal standup performance, for missing the
timing of one of his jokes by a few seconds.
He nailed the follow-up HBO special.
Peacock – don’t give others the option not to see you or
hear your message. The pick-up lesson
from “The Game” applies to business as well.
Nobody buys a product they’ve never seen. (TIP: more of my thoughts on marketing and
publicity).
Repeat Mistakes – enough times until you really learn the
lesson. Sometimes, mistakes do need to
be repeated if the payoff is big enough.
We hardly ever learn anything truly worthwhile after one try.
Seek Out Rejection – to get desensitized to the fear of
it. Once we lose the fear of rejection
we more easily go after what we want, and thus get more of it. (TIP: more details in the 5 Steps Sales
Process)
Ignore Consensus – when your own data and foresight is
convincingly contrary to the wisdom of the crowd (like Jobs, MLK, Gandhi). Consensus bonds us together and creates
harmony, but it rarely moves us forward.
Progress sometimes has to come at the hands of an individual’s decisive
disruption.
Expect Nothing – in return for helping your peers. Karma
points are dispersed unexpectedly over decades, not in a scorecard of dollars.
Quit – those endeavors you’ll never win at, and take a new
swing at the plate. Don’t double down on
a losing effort by not knowing when to walk away. (TIP: watch How to Make the Right Business
Decisions)
Play Possum – with your competitors. Don’t be so eager to show off your strengths
until it’s the perfect time to strike.
If rope-a-dope worked for The Champ, it will for you too.
Get C’s instead of A’s – if you excel in non-traditional
environments (like entrepreneurs) & can justify the opportunity cost of
your time. Oddly enough, more of the C
students I went to school with, employ our A student classmates, than vice
versa. (TIP: I explain this point in
more detail in video here)
Become Indifferent to Slights – because time and energy are
too valuable to waste on petty matters.
Attention being paid to wounds of our ego is precious energy diverted
from achieving our goals. You can win
the argument, or win the game. I know
what I’d choose.
Self-Sabotage – yourself when you find yourself mired in
complacency. Don’t ever get too
comfortable with the status quo, always be willing to blow it up and start all
over again to truly create something better.
Abstain from Work – which others can do for you. Delegate every task that others can do 80% as
well as you, and focus on those items that only you can achieve that have big
payoffs. (TIP: focus on The One Most
Important Thing)
Plot & Scheme – your next couple moves ahead. If you don’t see the whole landscape of the
playing field, you’re bound to get sideswiped.
Know where you’re going far in advance of making your first move.
Underestimate Demand – for your products and services. Don’t ever assume people want what you got,
and you’ll always have the appropriate amount of urgency and hustle to validate
what you’re trying to achieve.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonnazar/2013/03/19/17-counterintuitive-things-the-most-successful-people-do/
