You Are What You Practice
Recently I had the opportunity to attend a presentation by Dr. Richard Strozzi-Heckler. Richard is an outstanding teacher, an acclaimed executive coach, and a sixth degree black belt in the martial art of Aikido.
As you might expect, Richard takes a very disciplined approach to leadership development. His latest book is called The Leadership Dojo, and it focuses on the practices that leaders can undertake to develop and embody the qualities and values of exemplary leadership.
Practice is at the core of Richard’s approach to leadership development. In fact, he believes you are what you practice. He writes:
Researchers say 300 repetitions produce body memory, which is the ability to enact the correct movement, technique, or conversation by memory. It’s also been pointed out that 3,000 repetitions creates embodiment, which is not having to think about doing the activity – it’s simply part of who we are.
I’ve been reflecting a lot on Richard’s approach to leadership development as I have recently taken up some new practices outside of work. I’ve started to study Spanish, and I’ve rededicated myself to playing the guitar. I can say without reservation that practice – especially starting a new practice – is hard work. It’s frustrating to feel like a beginner, to stumble, to make mistakes, and to perceive that huge gap between where I am and where I want to be.
But it’s also rewarding to finally get that guitar solo from Something to sound just like George Harrison. And it’s fun to be able to say: no voy a estar listo hoy, pero voy a estar listo mañana.
You are what you practice. So what are you practicing to improve your effectiveness as a sales and service leader?
- Are you identifying top performers and sharing their best practices with everyone in your organization?
- Are you consistently and enthusiastically recognizing and reinforcing the positive contributions of your team?
- Are you listening to what your customers say – and what they don’t say – to better understand their needs, goals, and desires?
- Are you testing and revising your key messages so that you can communicate the value of your solutions more powerfully and succinctly?
- Are you expressing gratitude for the opportunity to be of service?
You are what you practice. May you practice well, and with a full heart!
2 Comments
Nice blog. I could relate. New practices can be hard but I can’t think of one that wasn’t worthwhile as a learning experience. Integrating them with body awareness seems important also. Anyway, appreciated your perspective. Thank you.
Beautifully stated! Thanks I would love to pass on. .Don’t see share button