Successful People are Self-Taught…ALWAYS!
Successful People are Self-Taught…ALWAYS!
So you wasted all your time and money on that Ivy League business education, right? Not necessarily. Neither are all those degrees a guarantee of success in real life.
Others, like me, may have earned a degree from the “University of Adversity.” While you may want to return to college someday soon to advance your knowledge resources be sure you enter classes with the same sense of determination that got you where you are today.
There’s an old saying in martial arts (isn’t there always?) that goes:
“The teacher is responsible only for the teaching. The student is responsible for learning.”
I know that thinking flies in the face of some of today’s conventional wisdom. I know we’re being asked to spoon feed knowledge into the brains of not-so-eager students while prying their jaws open to shove useful information down their throats. I also know that when students fail these days, it is often the fault of everyone involved from Congress to the local school board to the teachers…
Bullsh#*t!
This attitude often extends into the workplace. Many people today believe they deserve rewards before they’ve proven performance. Too many employees wait for the company to do for them before they take personal responsibility for success.
I know this may be a tough pill to swallow, but I’m sure I’m talking to some of you: Some of you may be waiting for a raise before you put out any more; after all, why should you work harder when you’re not appreciated? Some of you are waiting for the company to buy you a laptop before you organize your client list; after all your competitors have laptops. Some of you may even be waiting for your employer to offer you training that will help you better do your job or help you climb the corporate ladder.
I know. I’ve been there!
At any age learning is my own responsibility. Learning is the most significant single factor that I have complete control over that will have the greatest impact on my personal success.
Best of all, today you don’t need to attend Harvard School of Business to earn a functional MBA. In fact, you can subscribe to Harvard Business Review for just $99 a year! (I don’t get a commission from them!) You can go on-line and read nearly every scholarly article written by every professor at every major business college in the world! You can walk into Borders and buy almost any significant book on business, management and leadership ever written and if you still insist on being cheap I believe we still have the time honored institution of the local lending library!
Point is that there is no excuse for surrendering your own success to anyone else. Take control first by learning, then by doing…your best at all times.
Word of caution to employers: When you see an individual in your organization taking personal responsibility for self-development and learning you better be prepared with some opportunity. Self-motivated people don’t get angry or resentful when you don’t provide the opportunity they deserve; they thank your for the time they’ve spent with you ask you for a reference!
Assuming you attribute some of your success to the excellence education you got at Harvard, University of Maine or Andover College I appreciate your humility. I’d also be confident in the knowledge that while you attended any of these fine institutions you took personal responsibility for your learning, you worked hard to get as much information as you could and you took full advantage of the wisdom and experience of your instructors.
Where are your classmates who blamed their instructors for poor grades, bitched about a heavy workload or complained that the school wasn’t up to their expectations?
Point is that whether you attend business school or learned on the streets, your success is the product of assuming personal responsibility for your learning. Whether you’re in the job of your dreams or you see your current position as one more step on the ladder you’re responsible for your success.
There is no “The Man” and you don’t work for him. You work for you. The only time you make “The Man” real is when you surrender personal responsibility for your success and happiness. As for me, I will not trust my personal success and happiness to a myth.
I’ll do the work myself!
Successful People are SelfTaughtALWAYS - To learn more about this author, visit Jim Bouchard's Website.
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Before anyone gets in a twist, this isn’t MBA bashing or PhD envy. However, every successful person I’ve ever met is and continues to be self-taught…
So you wasted all your time and money on that Ivy League business education, right? Not necessarily. Neither are all those degrees a guarantee of success in real life.
Others, like me, may have earned a degree from the “University of Adversity.” While you may want to return to college someday soon to advance your knowledge resources be sure you enter classes with the same sense of determination that got you where you are today.
There’s an old saying in martial arts (isn’t there always?) that goes:
“The teacher is responsible only for the teaching. The student is responsible for learning.”
I know that thinking flies in the face of some of today’s conventional wisdom. I know we’re being asked to spoon feed knowledge into the brains of not-so-eager students while prying their jaws open to shove useful information down their throats. I also know that when students fail these days, it is often the fault of everyone involved from Congress to the local school board to the teachers…
Bullsh#*t!
This attitude often extends into the workplace. Many people today believe they deserve rewards before they’ve proven performance. Too many employees wait for the company to do for them before they take personal responsibility for success.
I know this may be a tough pill to swallow, but I’m sure I’m talking to some of you: Some of you may be waiting for a raise before you put out any more; after all, why should you work harder when you’re not appreciated? Some of you are waiting for the company to buy you a laptop before you organize your client list; after all your competitors have laptops. Some of you may even be waiting for your employer to offer you training that will help you better do your job or help you climb the corporate ladder.
I know. I’ve been there!
At any age learning is my own responsibility. Learning is the most significant single factor that I have complete control over that will have the greatest impact on my personal success.
Best of all, today you don’t need to attend Harvard School of Business to earn a functional MBA. In fact, you can subscribe to Harvard Business Review for just $99 a year! (I don’t get a commission from them!) You can go on-line and read nearly every scholarly article written by every professor at every major business college in the world! You can walk into Borders and buy almost any significant book on business, management and leadership ever written and if you still insist on being cheap I believe we still have the time honored institution of the local lending library!
Point is that there is no excuse for surrendering your own success to anyone else. Take control first by learning, then by doing…your best at all times.
Word of caution to employers: When you see an individual in your organization taking personal responsibility for self-development and learning you better be prepared with some opportunity. Self-motivated people don’t get angry or resentful when you don’t provide the opportunity they deserve; they thank your for the time they’ve spent with you ask you for a reference!
Assuming you attribute some of your success to the excellence education you got at Harvard, University of Maine or Andover College I appreciate your humility. I’d also be confident in the knowledge that while you attended any of these fine institutions you took personal responsibility for your learning, you worked hard to get as much information as you could and you took full advantage of the wisdom and experience of your instructors.
Where are your classmates who blamed their instructors for poor grades, bitched about a heavy workload or complained that the school wasn’t up to their expectations?
Point is that whether you attend business school or learned on the streets, your success is the product of assuming personal responsibility for your learning. Whether you’re in the job of your dreams or you see your current position as one more step on the ladder you’re responsible for your success.
There is no “The Man” and you don’t work for him. You work for you. The only time you make “The Man” real is when you surrender personal responsibility for your success and happiness. As for me, I will not trust my personal success and happiness to a myth.
I’ll do the work myself!
Successful People are SelfTaughtALWAYS - To learn more about this author, visit Jim Bouchard's Website.
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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