how to be a REAL success

Idea 1: your success relies on your ability to work with people

 

What does this mean?

The most important part of being a leader is your ability to work with people. Day to day life, you’re always learning about how to do this equation in math, how to solve this problem in science. You spend most of your time training to do the practical part of things; but you never really learn how to interact with people. You’re putting your time and energy into skills that are only half of your job, and you don’t get any preparation for the other half. Your ability to communicate effectively with other people is, I would say, the most important part of your job. Everyone can learn how to do your job if they study hard enough; you’re easily replaceable. The thing that really makes you valuable as a leader is how you talk with others. It all depends on how likeable you are as a person, how clearly you present your ideas, and how willing you are to make an effort. If you don’t try to know the people you’re leading, then you won’t know how to really lead them, you won’t know how to really impact them.  

 

Why did you choose this?

Personally, this lesson stood out to me because of how important it really is. When I think about getting a job, I think about doing the practical part of the job; I never think about how often I’ll have to deal with people. In the workplace, it’s always really important to establish good relationships with the people around you. That way you’ll know how to work with them, you’ll know how they work and what they do best in. It’s always been a personal goal of mine to have good relationships in my lives; I want to be a reliable friend, and it’s always reassuring to know that I can have people that trust me and vice versa. 

 

How can you apply this to future TALONS leadership?

This principle is important no matter what you are doing. When you are organizing a leadership event, you need to know how to work with your teammates; the event can only be successful if you can effectively work together and agree on ideas. You will also have to know what will appeal to your audience/people coming to your event. If you plan an event nobody likes, then no one will bother to come. But if you know your classmates well enough to know if they will like this type of movie, snacks, etc. you’ll get a much bigger turnout.

 

Idea 2 : we fail to equip others because we are in the habit of doing everything ourselves.

 

What does this mean?

Although we never like to admit it, people don’t like to ask for help. You are used to doing things by yourself; some may even take pride in it. You like to be able to say, “I did it myself without any help.” Because of this, when you’re asked to train others to do tasks, you don’t teach them to their full potential. Subconsciously, you’re thinking, ‘I don’t need this person, I can do fine by myself!’ 

 

Why did you choose this?

When I heard this principle, I didn’t understand it at first. But when he talked about how we get an ego boost whenever we feel needed, it made more sense. When you teach others how to do things, you can’t ever teach them properly if you don’t think they can do better than you. I know that I’m guilty of this because I always take pride in doing things independently. When I need to teach someone else, I teach them to the best of my abilities. I teach them to the best of my abilities, not to the best of their potential. 

 

How can you apply this to future TALONS leadership?

In TALONS, it’s more about working together to achieve great things, rather than ‘equipping others’; I’d more say it’s about equipping ourselves along with others. When he talked about how great leaders can turn a good idea into a great one with the right people, it reminded me of Talons and all my classmates. Alone, you can make a pretty decent idea but when you brainstorm it and combine it with others’ ideas, it can create an amazing idea! Just like the cultural events; when planning Cirque du Soleil, my team had a whole bunch of ideas. As we brainstormed, we each came up with more and more ideas that we eventually merged into one great idea. And now we have an amazing plan and event to look forward to!

 

Idea 3 : your attitude is a choice

 

What does this mean?

Your attitude affects yourself and everyone around you. Many people say your attitude can be affected by all kinds of things in your life from how much you slept, who you talked to that morning, what you ate for breakfast; but this principle says otherwise. What this means is that no matter what happens to you, your attitude is a choice. Good attitude may come more easily to some people, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible for others. You can always have a good attitude if you choose to.

Why did you choose this?

I chose this because people with bad attitudes always tend to make excuses for it; like ‘I didn’t sleep well last night,’ ‘I had a rough week,’ or ‘my coffee didn’t taste good today.’ Honestly, I think most people make excuses for their attitude because it’s easier than admitting the other option. It’s always easier to just say you had a bad morning than to try to put a smile on your face and have a good attitude. I know this because I’m also one of these people. More often than not, I find myself feeling really horrible and it’s extremely hard to keep an open mindset and have a good attitude when you’re feeling so dreadful.

 

How can you apply this to future TALONS leadership?

Honestly, you can apply this principle to all aspects of your life; not only TALONS leadership. Your attitude can affect how you perform in all parts of your life. When talking to your boss, your good attitude may benefit you. When doing the dishes, a good attitude can help you finish them faster. Even in Talons leadership; good attitude can help your ability to learn and lead. If your mindset is always negative and you’re thinking things like, ‘I don’t want to learn this, I don’t need to learn this,’ then you won’t ever learn it.

 

Idea 4 : the law of process

What does this mean?

The law of process stated that leaders develop daily, not in a day. It’s very similar to the saying, ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day.’ The law of process basically means that all great things take time; people don’t just immediately become great leaders in a day. Sure, there are natural leaders; people who can lead others more well than others. But this doesn’t mean that they don’t require improvement, or that other people can’t learn to be leaders.

Why did you choose this?

I think this is a really important lesson not only for leaders, but for everyone around the world. Imagine it like this: someone in a small office, working at a desk cluttered with paper and a big dream. You would never imagine them as head CEO of a giant company, would you? But they made it, and it’s really successful. But it didn’t take them a week, a month, or even a year. It probably took them many years, maybe even decades. I always found this lesson really inspiring and it’s helped me in tough times. We all find it hard to remember that you can always achieve amazing things; it just takes time.

 

How can you apply this to future TALONS leadership?

Just like the last principle, I’d say you can apply this to basically all parts of your life. In leadership, you can think of it this way; you may not think that learning all this won’t help you in the long run, but it definitely will. No matter what job or future you have, you’ll always need to use leadership, and all the skills related. You’ll need to know how to work with people, how to form and define ideas, how to keep a good attitude.

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