I received a comment from Steve on my last post that said:
- “Thanks, this provides almost a "cheat sheet" of how to do it, whereas before I was kind of stuck with writers block staring at a blank sheet of paper. It seems like you have an endless potential of subjects to write about, for example, each of those people that influenced you could be expanded into it's own article that describes how they influenced you and what you learned from it, so they we may benefit from standing on your shoulders."
I appreciate the comment, Steve. However, in the interest of privacy – both mine and the people who have influence me – I’m not going to follow through on your suggestion and give detailed examples of what I’ve learned from each of these people, just one.
However, I will offer one suggestion for anyone interested in learning from other people – pay attention! Watch the people you admire. See what they do. Think about what you can learn from them. And then, apply these learnings in your personal life.
Here is my one example – to help clarify what happened, what I learned and how I use it in my life.
Addie Perkins and I used to work together. When I was finishing my Harvard dissertation, I had a lot of numbers to crunch. Statistics is not my strong suit. Addie has a PhD from the University of Michigan and is very strong quantitatively. I asked her for help in running some regression analyses and interpreting the results.
Addis and I spent a several hours after work for a whole week, running the reports and analyzing the data. This went way beyond what she needed to do – and what I expected. Addie worked with me to make sure that I had everything I needed to finish up the dissertation and get my degree. She asked for nothing in return, and she new that I could not reciprocate -- at least with the kind of help she gave me.
To this day, I am willing to help anyone who asks because of what Addie did for me. She expected and asked for nothing in return – either do I. I help others for a few reasons: 1) I like to see others succeed. 2) I feel good about myself when I help others. 3) I thank Addie by helping others. 4) I hope that those I help will thank me by helping others.
I hope this helps, Steve. Good luck as you work through Blanchard’s questions.
That’s it for today. Thanks for reading. Log on to my website www.BudBilanich.com for more common sense. Check out my other blogs: www.CareerSuperStar.com for common sense advice on becoming the life and career star you are meant to be; and www.CommonSenseDay.com to learn more about Use Your Common Sense Day -- November 4, and to read stories of common sense in action.
I’ll see you around the web, and at Alex’s Lemonade Stand.
Bud
PS: Speaking of Alex’s Lemonade Stand – my fundraising page is still open. Please go to www.FirstGiving.com/TheCommonSenseGuy to read Alex’s inspiring story and to donate if you can.
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