How Champions Think Ch 12

Working Hard vs. Working Smart

• Working hard is crucial for success, but working smart is what separates exceptional individuals from the average.
• Initially, the author saw a clear distinction in the success of professionals working in the Rutland area (e.g., doctors, lawyers) relative to those in manual labor.
• Professionals drove nicer cars and had the flexibility of playing golf on weekdays, while factory workers did not have the same freedom.
• The author's understanding developed further after meeting Nick Tomasetti, who made significant income from selling repaired aircraft engines. Nick's success was proportional to the efficiency in his approach to sales
• Working hard establishes a minimum standard for anyone aiming for exceptional status. Achieving higher levels of success requires working smarter.

Working Smarter

• Working smarter includes planning, strategy, and vision, elements that are essential in achieving higher success.
• Exceptional talent often involves leveraging hard work by employing strategies and ideas that add value. Finding unique selling propositions is important.
• The author discusses the idea that exceptional individuals often work as part of a team, including utilizing the work of other exceptional individuals as a tool to attain exceptional success.
• The author emphasizes that working smarter is critical for moving beyond middle-class income.
• Learning from the author's personal experiences with coaching, the author details strategies for working hard and smarter and the importance of effective planning.
• Leveraging one's strengths to gain a competitive edge is crucial, as those who work in the higher class and are exceptional often have a "bigger vision" to help maximize their output and income.

Efficiency in Work

• Exceptional individuals often work for little or nothing to hone their skills at their passion (e.g., coaching, teaching).
• It is essential to understand that in many professions, individuals must accept lower pay in the initial stages of pursuing their careers.
• This experience is applicable across many professions (e.g., doctors in residency, graduate students, teaching).
• Exceptional progress often requires shifts from an employee role to an entrepreneur mentality if one aims to advance to higher levels of income in most fields.
• For example, moving from managing a restaurant to owning multiple restaurants requires specific market knowledge and understanding and more effective managerial skills.
• In certain fields, continuous learning is central to achieving exceptional outcomes.
• The author highlights the principles of efficiency, including optimizing practice time in golf.

Principles of Practice

• Good players focus on maximizing the value of their practice sessions.
• Effective practice strategies often involve varying the difficulty of practice to develop stronger skills.
• Using the principle of "desirable difficulty" will accelerate the development of stronger skills (e.g., practicing shots from various lies, practicing iron shots out of fairway bunkers).
• It is important for exceptional individuals to understand how to translate practice skills to the golf course and real-life competition.

Practice and Hard Work

• The myth that solely hard work leads to success has been debunked.
• Ben Hogan was renowned for a practical method of maximizing practice efficiency. He used a "shag boy" to set realistic targets and focused on precision vs. volume in practice, which was an effective method for improving his game.
• Coaches have recognized the importance of optimizing and maximizing the use of practice time, as well as understanding how individuals can reach exceptional levels by employing efficient strategies.
• John Wooden and John Calipari employ strategically programmed practice sessions with realistic goals (e.g., limiting practice time and focusing on intense, goal-oriented practice to avoid burnout.)

Striking a Balance

• Success isn't solely dependent on the amount of work, but on finding the right approach.
• Recognizing that exceptional people have often struck a balance between their goals, and their personal lives can make a difference.
• Maintaining balance in life (e.g., family and work) has also proven to be a useful tactic in optimizing performance.

General Principles for Exceptional Performance

• To reach and sustain exceptional status people should work very hard but importantly work smarter, more efficiently, more strategically to reach their goals.
• Exceptional individuals are not content with the status quo, and are rarely satisfied with simply remaining in the middle class.
  • They are driven to exceed expectations and continuously strive for excellence.
• Exceptional people value efficiency, precision, and strategic approaches over simply brute force.
• Maintaining a commitment to hard work, planning, and efficient use of time is crucial for long-term success.