5 Reasons It Pays To Study With Great PeopleI was about to board a train from London to Bath when something inside me said, “Check out the paperbacks at that kiosk.”
Lucky for me, I selected Peter. F. Drucker’s classic book on management as a traveling companion. This book lived up to its reputation and it spoke to me, resonating with my experiences as a consultant.
Moreover, having discovered that Drucker was still at that point an active professor at Claremont Graduate University, I decided I’d do whatever it took to study with him.
This meant commuting over a hundred miles roundtrip to campus, and cutting short my weekends at home, which were the only respite I got from incessant travel.
Still, he was worth it, and our time together was something special.
He tapped me to be his informal chauffeur on Saturday afternoons, after class. Slowly shuttling him home to absorb every quark of his wisdom, we talked about matters large and small, and he left his imprint on my thinking, for the better, I’m sure.
Drucker was just one great person with whom I’ve studied. There have been, perhaps a half dozen or more luminaries with whom I have invested time.
Here are five reasons I urge you to do the same, to actively seek out the “greats” in your field, or in any field, for that matter:
(1) Their expectations of you are high, because they don’t hang out with simply average folks, and in one way or another, they let you know that.
(2) You will work harder than ever before to not let them down. They bring out your best, time and again.
(3) It is a rare opportunity, a precious one, and it’s almost ethereal. Your consciousness changes for the better. Their presence puts you in an “Alpha state.”
(4) They know more than their less luminous peers. Their stories are better, and their experiences are more valuable.
(5) The “credential value” of studying with SOURCES, the prime movers, the uncontested leaders, is supreme.
These are just a few of the advantages you’ll get.
Whatever you do, please don’t make the mistake of thinking all Ph.D.s or professors are the same.
Minds are even more unique than fingerprints.
Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, is a popular keynote speaker, management consultant, and seminar leader and the best-selling author of 12 books, including Reach Out & Sell Someone® and Monitoring, Measuring & Managing Customer Service, and the audio program, “The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable,” published by Nightingale-Conant. He is a frequent guest on radio and television, worldwide. A Ph.D. from USC's Annenberg School, a Loyola lawyer, and an MBA from the Peter F. Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University, Gary offers programs through UCLA Extension and numerous universities, trade associations, and other organizations from Santa Monica to South Africa. He holds the rank of Shodan, 1st Degree Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. He is headquartered in Glendale, California, and he can be reached at (818) 243-7338 or at: gary@customersatisfaction.com. For information about coaching, consulting, training, books, videos and audios, please go to: http://www.customersatisfaction.com |