Page 68 - Roy W. Rice - CEO Material How to Be a Leader in Any Organization-McGraw-Hill (2009)

You Know You Don’t Know Enough • 49

You don’t have to lead the pack, but it’s not a good thing to be
deep in the second tier.You have to learn about general business and
about world events, not because they will affect your business, but
because well-rounded knowledge is apparent to those doing busi-
ness with you. Trade data, technology developments, and world
events are a big part of your training program.These are best learned
every day rather than in formal programs. They require time and
effort to be fit into a tight schedule. A 10-minute wait for an appoint-
ment can translate into two Wall Street Journal articles.
You are now attending “graduate school.” Study hard; it will
pay off!

Learn How to Improve from
What You’re Learning

Learning is one thing; getting better from it is another. Conscious, incre-
mentally improved repetition is the key to improved performance. Steps
to repeat over and over include

■ Pick something you want to get better at.
■ Set a goal around it.
■ Pick apart what’s necessary to reach the goal.
■ Part by part, piece by piece, deliberately drill the parts.
(Well-done parts make for a well-done whole.)
■ On each part, get feedback.
■ Seek causes and remedies to problem areas.
■ Take that feedback, make changes accordingly, and concentrate
on improving at least a little.
■ Take the slightly improved, and repeat the effort, feedback, and
slight improvement.

Social scientists find that you have to repeat an action 28 times
before it becomes a habit. I don’t care whether you do it 8, 28, or 228