The Greatness Guide: One of the World's Most Successful Coaches Shares His Secrets for Personal and Business Mastery (17 page)

It’s human nature to take the people who love us the most for granted. I’m not saying that’s a good thing—I’m saying that’s just the way we are wired. We need to resist our nature and develop a rich sense of gratitude for our family. Don’t be one of those people who has to experience loss (through divorce or death) before you wake up to the blessings you have. I’ve seen
that happen. All the time. With people all around the world.

If you had 30 minutes left to live, you’d be reaching for your phone to tell those closest to you how much you love them. Then you’d run home and, holding your heart in your hand, speak truthfully about the love that you feel. Just think about the tragedy of 9/11. I still remember those cell phone calls from the people trapped in the towers. Heartbreaking.

I know you’re busy. Tons to do. Places to go and people to meet. But take a minute, right here and right now to make a call. Tell your kids how much you care. Tell your wife or your husband or your mom or your dad or your brother or sister or best friend how you feel about them. You’ll never regret it. Trust me.

What’s the point of doing something if you’re not having fun? Life’s just too short to be miserable all the time, wouldn’t you agree? The best organizations are fun places to be. Sure they demand excellent performance, relentless innovation and superb execution around deliverables. But they also promote fun. Being happy—and laughing—at work promotes collaboration, creativity and commitment. The company that plays together stays together. And fun is good for the bottom line because people love doing business with people who love doing business.

Now let’s talk about your personal life. Having any fun? In my twenties and thirties, I was serious. Mr. Serious. “The purpose of life is a life of purpose” was my driving belief. I wanted to change the world and servant leadership was the name of the game. I worked hard and played little. Only recently did I have a big “a-ha” around the value of fun as I journey through life. I’m different now. I’ve still got my eye on the mountaintop, but I’ve become much more attentive to enjoying the climb. I get goofy
with my kids constantly. I ski with my friends. I’ll add a day to a business trip to visit an art gallery as I did a few weeks ago while I was in London. Because having a good time makes life far better. And a lot more fun.

I’m back at the Frankfurt airport as I write this chapter. Being here in Germany, I can’t help noticing that design matters in this country. The hand towel dispensers in the bathrooms work flawlessly and are ingenious. The latte machines in the lounge read my mind. Luggage carts are not only functional—they are beautiful. The Germans get it—design matters.

Ford has repositioned itself as a design firm that sells cars. Love it. In this world where consumers have more choice than ever, good design is one of the best ways for you, your products and your organization to pop out of the crowd and grab attention. Look at Apple’s iPod, one of the sexiest gadgets you’ll ever feast your eyes on (I wouldn’t dream of traveling without mine). Sure, keeping 10,000 songs in your back pocket is fantastic. But the design is what made us fall in love with it. Look at Apple’s iBook. Actually, look at almost anything that creative and bold company does and you’ll see what world class looks like when it comes to design.

Do a Google search for Philippe Starck, a genius of design. Look what he did with partner Ian Schrager to create the boutique hotel category over a decade ago and make people’s jaws drop when they entered their hotels. (St. Martin’s Lane in London
and The Hudson in New York are still two of my favorite places to sleep.) That’s what good design does. Or invest in a Bodum French Press coffee maker. Makes super java. Looks great in my kitchen. Its great design has inspired me to tell everyone I know about it. Superb design creates product evangelists. “Businesspeople don’t need to understand designers better. They need to be designers,” noted Roger Martin, dean of The Rotman Management School in Toronto.

Here’s a powerful thought for you to take away: Human beings need mystery to be happy in life. If life is bland, we experience no joy. Good design adds to that mystery. It makes life interesting. It connects with the artist that resides within each of us. It surprises us. And isn’t surprising people one of the main aims of being in business and crafting an extraordinary life?

If people don’t laugh at you and your ideas at least once a week, you’re not pushing the envelope.

There, I said it. Needed to. I’m tired of seeing boring businesses and people afraid to take the road less traveled. Most of the things that fill us with fear never happen, so why let them keep you small?

Great people run toward their resistances and play out on the edges of their lives. And great companies spend far less time benchmarking others than creating new ways of delivering outrageous value to their customers. Why? Because the world doesn’t need a better clone. We don’t need more copycats. The world needs more human beings and enterprises that make us say wow. That rock our worlds. The world needs more giant ideas that no one’s thought of to enrich our customers and improve our communities and elevate the planet. The world needs more visionaries, dreamers and outright revolutionaries. I love what Tom Chappell, founder of Tom’s of Maine, said: “Success means never letting the competition define you. Instead, you have to
define yourself based on a point of view you care deeply about.” Beautiful.

One client recently shared that he thought it was daring for me and my team to have a picture on our rebranded website of me with my eyes closed, holding a dove. “What would all your corporate clients, like Microsoft, IBM, Nike and FedEx, think of it?” he asked. “Those companies stand for reinvention and innovation,” I replied. “I think they’d applaud the bold move.” The designer of the new multimedia show I’m running at my presentations shared that the colors I’d chosen were risky because they were not “standard corporate colors.” “Thanks for the compliment,” I joked. Business needs more daring. Business needs more people willing to take risks and play out on the skinny branches. Business needs more human beings like Richard Branson and his devotion to putting tourists into space with his company Virgin Galactic. I love people like that. They inspire me.

All innovators are initially laughed at. Just the way it is. They laughed at Columbus when he said the earth was round. They laughed at the Wright Brothers, who vowed a human being could fly. They laughed at the guys at RIM when they launched the BlackBerry. They laughed at the founder of Evian, who believed people would pay money for water. Who’s laughing
now? I guess the universe really does favor the brave.

People pay for originality (big idea there). You want to lead the field in your business? Be different. Let them laugh. Let them call you crazy. Let them snicker. Stay true to your vision. Dream bigger. Don’t be ordinary. It’s the kiss of death, as far as I can tell.

Throughout this book I’ve encouraged you to “lead without title,” to show up fully and to make a difference. There’s a man who lived the philosophy I evangelize. His name was Garth Taylor. He died recently. I want to honor him.

Dr. Garth Alfred Taylor was born in Montego Bay, Jamaica, in 1944. He was a gifted eye surgeon, a family man and—above all else—a humanitarian. One of his favorite sayings was: “I came into this world with nothing, and all I’m going to leave with is my conscience.” My guess is he did.

Dr. Taylor first came to my attention through my brother Sanjay, a gifted eye surgeon in his own right. Garth was a colleague of Sanjay’s, and a fan of my books. So I signed a few for him one morning and sent them off. I heard it made him very happy.

What made Garth’s impact so profound was that he didn’t just practice medicine—he lived it. For more than 20 years, he traveled around the world, to developing nations, selflessly helping to save people’s sight. In his own words: “I found my nirvana 23 years ago … by treating avoidable blindness. People don’t just get back their sight, they get back their self-esteem.” Because he cared—and had the courage to act—he blessed the lives of thousands of people. Sanjay attended
Dr. Taylor’s funeral. The church was so full many people had to stand out on the street.

As you near the end of
The Greatness Guide
and our time together, I invite you to think about the truths I’ve respectfully shared. Reflect on what you want to stand for and what will be your impact. And then contemplate the words of Dr. Garth Taylor: “Until I have no breath to breathe, I will continue to do this because I think I was chosen for this, not for money, not for compensation but just to make the quality of life of my fellow human beings better.”

I’m sitting here in my study as I write, drinking coffee, and thinking. Not daydreaming. Not wasting time. Not worrying. Simply thinking. One of my best habits. Mostly I’m thinking about the importance of having a sense of mission and then staying true to it. It’s not easy though.

I’ve found that the bigger I dream, the more obstacles I face. My mission in life is pretty straightforward: I want to help human beings become extraordinary and organizations get to world class. I have such passion to realize that dream and do my part to make this world a better place. This isn’t just a business to me—it’s my calling. But the higher I reach, the more I get tested. Sound familiar?

But challenges are good. We grow through them. We are most alive amidst danger. Papa Wallenda—the great high-wire walker—said it so well: “Life is lived out on the wire. The rest is just waiting.” The wisest among us—the genuine leaders—smile in the face of adversity. They understand that life tests the big dreamers—the passionate revolutionaries. It’s almost like a weeding-out process—only the strong (and the best) get to live their heartsong. I really love what Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos once said: “I knew that if I
failed I wouldn’t regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not trying.”

So I’ll rise above any resistance I meet. I’ll keep my eyes on the dream. I’ll stay on message and solidly on mission. Because this world belongs to us dreamers—you and me. And whether we ultimately win or not, we will have made a difference. And that’s good enough for me.

Leadership begins within. Organizational leadership begins with personal leadership. You can’t be great at work until you feel great. You can’t make someone feel good about themselves until you feel good about yourself. You can’t be a source of positive energy if you have no energy. The doorway to success swings outward—not inward.

On your next flight, listen to the flight attendant. “Put the oxygen mask on your own mouth before you try to help anyone else.” The logic is clear: If you can’t breathe, you are useless to those around you. Nice metaphor for personal leadership. Make the time to care for yourself. Get into great shape. Read good business books and inspiring autobiographies. Plan and improve your skills. Work with a coach. Spend excellent time
with loved ones. Commune with nature. Enjoy life while you chase success.

By caring for yourself, you will be able to give more to others. By ensuring that you are on your best game, your leadership effectiveness will be guaranteed. And by making the time to enjoy life, you’ll be more enjoyable to be around.

At a booksigning the other day a man stood up and asked: “Robin, what keeps you going? What is the source of your energy? Who inspires you?” My answer made everyone laugh. I said: “You.”

Pretty well everything I do I do because of my love for you, a reader of my books or a client I have the privilege to work with. Hearing how my ideas have helped you get to personal or organizational success moves me deeply. Like the woman at a signing who shared how she read
The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari
to her husband while he succumbed to cancer on his deathbed to make him feel happier during his last moments. Or the businessman who read my
Leadership Wisdom from the Monk Who Sold His Ferrari
book and not only boosted profits but reshaped the culture so it honored human beings. Or the 18-year-old who told me that she got so inspired after reading
Who Will Cry When You Die?
that she started her own business and is now living her dreams.