…and the successful become more and more successful.
I have to confess something to you. While you can definitely glean ideas, tips, and important distinctions that will accelerate your progress, there are three advantages superachievers have that separates them from everyone else—advantages that are not easily accessible.
These advantages are access to Counsel, Connections, and Strategies.
Let me explain.
Counsel—The greatest achievers in the world have the greatest advisors, consultants, and coaches in the world. They surround themselves with the best. It’s how they gain advantage over their competitors.
The best golfer, tennis player, baseball pitcher, singer, Olympian, surgeon, CEO, and entrepreneur all invest in highly paid advisors, consultants, and coaches.
Why?
Unconscious incompetence.
You need to know about this as you seek high performance in your personal and professional goals. In fact, I’d say it’s critical that you understand what it is and how it can affect you.
Unconscious incompetence is a phenomenon that occurs when you don’t realize you are doing something incorrectly or not to the best of your ability. You’re unknowingly clueless. It takes someone else to observe, identify, prod, and counsel you in order to bring awareness to the defects and help you make the adjustments needed to take your performance to the next level.
A top CEO once said to me, “You can never pay too much to rent someone’s eyes, mind, and experience.”
If you want to take your life to the next level, you, too, will need to seek out the best advisors, consultants, and coaches to help get you there.
Connections—It’s not just who the top achievers in the world know and have access to; it’s also the high-achieving reference group this provides them that is critically valuable.
As human beings, we raise or lower our performance to match the expectations and performance level of our reference group. As Stephen Covey pointed out, if you take a walk with someone whose pace is quicker than yours, it will be uncomfortable at first but you will ultimately (and unconsciously) match their pace. The same is true if someone’s pace is naturally slower than yours—you will slow your pace to match his or hers.
Dr. David McClelland of Harvard University concluded after 25 years of research that the choice of a negative “reference group” was in itself enough to condemn a person to failure and underachievement in life.
Many people have written about the power of associations, and all have come to the same conclusion: most success seekers are greatly limited in their ability to raise their game and change their life because they aren’t connected to a reference group that can help them reach their goals.
This is why the ubër-successful join country clubs, symphony groups, the boards of charity organizations, private dining clubs, and other exclusive groups. They can mix with other like-minded high achievers. Then they unconsciously raise their respective games by keeping up with each other.
If you want to take your life to the next level, you, too, will need access to a high-performing reference group.
Strategies—The top performers in the world have the strategies and systems in place that allow them to execute at a much higher level than other businesses or people. Most people are constantly floundering and guessing; they don’t have a proven plan or strategy to follow at all.
Richard Branson said, “Once you create a success of one business you can create a success in many more by following the same set of principles.”
The key is to know those principles.
If you want to take your life to the next level, you, too, will need to know the proven key principles and strategies, complete with execution systems.
To gain the advantages of the rich, powerful, and super-successful:
1) Seek the best counsel—advisors, consultants, coaches—you can obtain.
2) Connect with and immerse yourself in a network of high-achieving relationships and associations.
3) Learn the specific strategies and systems that power the top performers in the world.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.