{"id":437,"date":"2017-01-03T20:03:05","date_gmt":"2017-01-04T01:03:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.leadershipintherealworldblog.com\/?p=437"},"modified":"2017-01-03T20:05:38","modified_gmt":"2017-01-04T01:05:38","slug":"what-these-leaders-learned-last-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.leadershipintherealworldblog.com\/index.php\/2017\/01\/what-these-leaders-learned-last-year\/","title":{"rendered":"What These Leaders Learned Last Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As we start up another year, I have a question for you: What did you learn last year?<\/p>\n

I tend to get some common responses to that question. Most often it\u2019s a tilt of the head and a thoughtful, \u201cHmm\u2026..\u201d The second reaction is a vague response along the lines of, \u201cUm, well, I learned a lot!\u201d or they re-hash some general lesson like, \u201cthe importance of communication.\u201d<\/p>\n

But I\u2019d like you to get more specific. What\u2019s something specific you\u2019ve learned in the last 12 months that you either didn\u2019t know before then or you had to re-learn it?<\/p>\n

Prepared For A World That No Longer Exists<\/h2>\n

After coaching over 250 executives, occasionally I\u2019ll come across someone who says they have something like 20 years of experience. But the more we talk, it becomes apparent they have more like one year of experience repeated 20 times!<\/p>\n

Liz Wiseman warned against this back in Episode 125<\/a> of our People and Projects Podcast regarding her book Rookie Smarts<\/a>. She challenges us to constantly be putting ourselves in rookie <\/em>roles so we can’t just be living off what we\u2019ve already learned.<\/p>\n

Back in episode 126<\/a>, I shared one of my favorite quotes related to this, from Eric Hoffer. He reportedly said, \u201cIn times of profound change, the learners inherit the earth while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s an inspiring quote, for sure, but one that should also scare us some as well. I only know of one way to keep ourselves from being beautifully equipped for a world that no longer exists: to have an insatiable hunger to learn.<\/p>\n

Lessons from Leaders<\/h2>\n

So, what did you <\/em>learn last year? I decided to ask that question to some people I admire as committed learners\u2014actively making sure they\u2019re not simply equipped for a world that no longer exists.<\/p>\n

Each person shares a 3-minute lesson from this last year. I trust you\u2019ll get value from their insights. But even more importantly, I want to spur you on to reflect how you would answer the question.<\/p>\n

You’ll hear from:<\/p>\n