“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.” – Tony Robbins

This post is my attempt to surface and share some of my favorite lessons from Tony Robbins.

Tony Robbins is a living example of smart and gets results. He walks his talk. He’s a powerful combination of action, passion, and commitment to continuous improvement. When it comes to unleashing your best, Tony Robbins sets the bar. I actually think one of his super skills is bringing NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) to the masses and making it practical.

Part of “standing on the shoulders of giants”, is finding the heroes to learn and model from. Starting with the assumption that “everybody has flaws,” you can choose to focus on people’s super skills and insights. Everybody brings something to the table.

In this post, I’m focusing on Guy Kawasaki. His super skill is making Entrepreneurs more effective. He’s also a master at the business of life. He lives life in a sustainable way, living his mantra of “empower Entrepreneurs,” keeping things real, enjoying the ride, and staying authentic.

Whether you’re a fan or not, there is no doubt that Oprah Winfrey changes lives, starting with her own. As a real life rags-to-riches story and a self-made success, she knows the power of choice, living with courage, and following your dreams. She makes things happen.

My Mom has been a long-time fan of Oprah. I get why. Oprah stands out as authentic. She comes across as somebody who generally wants to use all her power to lift people up and make a better world

I like to learn from everyone around me. One of my most influential mentors has been my manager, John. Here’s a highlight of my lessons learned.

Peter Drucker was a leader in management philosophy and effectiveness. As a writer, management consultant, and social ecologist, he played an influential role in shaping key concepts around business, innovation, decision making, leadership, productivity, time management, and personal effectiveness. He first coined the term “knowledge worker” back in 1959, and helped pioneer knowledge work productivity.

Sure you know Bruce Lee the martial artist and movie star. But do you know Bruce Lee the philosopher, comedian or master of personal development? Bruce was one of my early inspirations. He continuously pushed his mind and body to new levels and his physical prowess inspired and influenced body builders and martial artists alike. As far as heroes go, Bruce Lee truly set an example of what it means to be YOUR best. Bruce was all about making the most of what you’ve got, seeking truth knowledge, and applying what you know. If you’ve seen him in movies or you know some of his quotes, you know exactly what I mean. In this post, I share my lessons from Bruce Lee.

One of the interesting people I got to meet this year is Ken Blanchard.  He

spoke at Microsoft earlier this year.  He’s all about empowering people, growing people, and helping everybody get an A.  This post is my notes from the session.

Catch People Doing Something Right, Accentuate the Positive I’m putting this right up front because Ken said if there was only one thing he could be remembered for, he would want it to be:
“Catch People Doing Something Right, Accentuate the Positive.”

Random Highlights Here’s a sampling of some of the …

One of the interesting people I got to meet this year is Dr. Stephen Covey.  He presented at Microsoft earlier this year.  It’s one thing to know the information; it’s another to experience the delivery live.  This post is a bit longer than usual, but hey, hey Covey has lots of insights.  Here are some of my highlights from the session.

The Lighthouse Story Covey opened with a story of Captain Horatio Hornblower.  As the story goes, one night at sea, Horatio awakens to find that a ship is in …

One of the interesting people I met this year is Jack Canfield.  He came to speak at Microsoft.  He holds the Guinness Book World Record for having seven books simultaneously on the New York Times Bestseller List, beating out Stephen King.  I didn’t realize who he was until somebody mentioned Chicken Soup for the Soul.  I later realized he’s also the author of The Power of Focus: What the Worlds Greatest Achievers Know about The Secret of Financial Freedom and Success, which I’ve had on my bookshelf for years.  …

Photo by Grzegorz ?obi?ski
Well, it’s the holiday season, so I thought I’d share some lessons from old St. Nick.   Santa has always been one of my heroes.    Granted I never thought much of his outfit and never wanted to dress like him on Halloween, but all in all, he’s a great role model in other areas.  Everybody’s got their strengths and weaknesses.  While fashion’s not his forte, he’s got that relentless positive attitude and a contagious laugh.
The thing is, you can learn something from anybody if you want …

Edward Jezierski(left) and Per Vonge Nielsen(right).
I like to learn from everyone around me.  One of my most influential mentors has been my manager, Per.  Here’s a highlight of some of the lessons I learned from Per over the years:
Communication

Consolidate communication.   Chunky over chatty.  Rather than a random stream of ideas, consolidate down to a theme.  Rather than a bunch of mini-mails, consolidate to a more meaningful message.
Distinguish between phases of communication.  Walt Disney used three stages for ideas: Dreamer, Realist, and Critic.  Dreamer is the vision, Realist is the …