Experiences

There are 5 posts filed in Experiences (this is page 2 of 3).

Reading Books Vs. Collecting Books

I used to do it wrong.

I was investing my energy in collecting books rather than in making something remarkable out of reading them.

It was dumb.

And, I thought I was smart: I knew how to acquire the gems from which I’ll learn one day.

The thought of “Learning One Day…” was fascinating but not very helpful.

Better thinking, as it turned out, was to pick one good book, read it till you get the crux of it, apply what you have learned from it in your life and let the book go.

Once the right thought picked my attention, I immediately aligned myself and altered my book collection habit.

Any guess what would have happened?

I saved over 300 hours last year from merely skimming through and collecting books.

I invested those hours and learning from select few books. And applying them.

Collecting more books is a bad goal to have. Making something remarkable out of one that you own (or even don’t own) is good!

The same logic applies in bookmarking blog posts, saving videos for later views, or buying more shirts than we really need.

If we invest our energy in collecting, we’ll end up being a good collector. But, if we invest our energy in applying our learned knowledge in the day-to-day challenges we are dealing with, we end up being a good executor.

I made a choice between being a better collector vs. being a better executor.

What about you? Better late than never.

The right behavior

Every behavior gets something done or delays something that is to be done.

Every word you speak, every sentence you write, every piece of code you test, every story you tell has only one purpose – to get something done.

Purpose of your behavior is NOT to showcase your skills, your knowledge of the facts or standards to be conformed to, or whether you’re smart or committed.

Purpose of your behavior is also not to prove if you were RIGHT or wrong.

Purpose of your behavior is simple: it is to figure out/carry out/push forward/facilitate what you are going to do to get the ONE, most important, thing done. The most important thing is the ONLY thing that matters out of hundreds of things that lie with it on your (and your organization’s) to-do platter.

If you want to argue, argue about how you can make it better.

If you want to disagree, show the value that your disagreement would bring.

But if your expression brings the negative energy in just to PROVE your point, then everyone loses.

It is a waste…it is a waste of your time, and it is a waste of the receiver’s time. It’s a waste for a simple reason: IT DOES NOT GET ANYTHING DONE.

If your expression does not get things done, it is of no use.  Since it is of no use, how can it be right?

The ONLY right behavior is what contributes to making the most important thing done.