#1: Be better tomorrow than you are today.

Being better tomorrow than you are today means continual improvement day by day. Often, we are drowned in our daily lives and focus on completing this project, that assignment, and the routine, rather than trying to improve. Maxwell uses a quote by Elbert Hubbard, “If what you did yesterday still looks big to you, you haven’t done much today,” summarizing it perfectly (Maxwell, 2006). Similarly, as James Clear states in his book, Atomic Habits, if we can even become better by 1% every day, we would have improved nearly 38X by the end of the year (Clear, 2018). Not only does improving yourself increase your value, but it also increases your potential for tomorrow and, more importantly, as a leader, others’ potential tomorrow (Maxwell, 2006). I picked this lesson because it resonated with me and related to my life. I frequently – without realizing it – look at every day with a negative attitude, focusing on everything I need to do and how it is unlikely I will be able to accomplish everything I want to do. The next day is the same, and I constantly feel unsatisfied. Learning about simply becoming better every day has quickly changed my mindset, and now I treat every day as another challenge and an opportunity to improve. This principle also relates to TALONS because a key to becoming a leader and autonomous student is constantly augmenting and developing your abilities. Another quote used by Maxwell is from Jack Welch, “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself” (Maxwell, 2006) – setting your sights to improve daily is one of the best ways to do this. Thus, this lesson will further my leadership skills too. After identifying what areas I can improve, I can work towards them during every leadership opportunity and analyze whether I have improved.

#2: Put completing fellow leaders ahead of competing with them; be a friend.

Although competition itself is fine, competitiveness can often be detrimental, create a hostile environment, and result in one’s peers sabotaging and not helping each other at all. Thus, Maxwell states that when it comes to your teammates, you should always try to complete them (Maxwell, 2006) – I know from experience that you have far more to gain from the knowledge others can provide you rather than keeping it all to yourself. As a result, everyone can develop trust, share ideas, and work together harmoniously. Even better, one can develop strong friendships – a quote Maxwell uses from Richard Huxley describes how a true friend should understand, support, correct, forgive, and celebrate you (Maxwell, 2006). Like the previous lesson, I chose it because it resonated and currently applies to me. I have found that developing friendship and teamwork is far from as easy as it sounds. Indeed, putting your peers above you, sharing all of your knowledge, truly celebrating their successes, and not feeling any jealously at all, I have found, is very difficult. This lesson also easily relates to TALONS – building relationships and working together effectively as a team is critical for leadership (especially for outdoor trips). It is also crucial for us, as students, to support each other, allowing us to all benefit from our shared knowledge. Finally, this lesson furthers my leadership skills: With this knowledge on my mind, I can more easily recognize when I am not supportive of my peers and competing with them – instead of completing them.

#3: Don’t pretend you’re perfect.

Last but not least, no one is perfect, and pretending to do so – never admitting one’s faults – is detrimental to both the leader and everyone around them. Maxwell finds yet another quote that strikes the meaning perfectly, by John Henry Cardinal Newman: “Nothing would get done at all if a man waited until he could do something so well that no one could find fault with it” (Maxwell, 2006). Thus, he points out that we should always admit our faults, ask for advice, and “Worry less about what others think.” I picked this principle because worrying about what others think is something I have frequently experienced – reading Maxwell’s interpretation made me feel like a load had transferred off of me. With all of our recent projects (e.g., eminent, most notably the speech), this lesson served as a reminder: No one is perfect and making mistakes is human. This principle applies to TALONS because it tells us that everyone has their weaknesses, faults and that these are places where we can assist each other. Not recognizing this creates an awkward, tense environment where everyone is reluctant to embarrass themselves. Hence, this furthers my leadership skills because I can ask others to show me my faults and ask where I can improve. Admitting faults also tells others that one is honest, ready to improve, and eager to work, communicate, and cooperate.