10 Lessons I Learned From Robin Sharma’s Book, The Greatness Guide
By: Paul Gimsay
Tags: Entrepreneurship, Startup, Leadership, Self Improvement, Business

10 Lessons I Learned From Robin Sharma’s Book, The Greatness Guide

Practical steps to help you make your way to the top

Photo by Nigel Tadyanehondo@Unsplash.com

Eliud Kipchoge, the great Kenyan runner, took two attempts to break the 2-hr marathon barrier. Two years prior, he tried and failed. He persevered and announced he was going for another challenge in 2019.

On 12 October 2019, he ran 1hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds to break a record that had lasted 65 years. When asked how he achieved this, he said, “personally, I don’t believe in limits”.

At the ripe age of 34 years, no one gave him the chance to succeed. Only Eliud believed the record will fall.

Unlike the first attempt, he prepared hard this time. His training philosophy focused on consistency, variety, and knowing limits. He undertook 10 training sessions per week and clocked between 170 and 190 km. This was abnormal.

When asked the motivation behind this rigorous training schedule, he quipped, “I want to inspire many people, that humans have no limits”.

Similarly, in the game of golf, Tiger Woods strove for excellence and incorporated it into his daily training goals.

Tiger's work ethic was legendary. It was 13 hours of laborious daily tasks consistently. His day started with workouts at 6 am. He focused on all departments of the game, played 9 holes twice, and continued working on improving his game.

This excruciating training schedule primed him for success. It gave him the mental edge knowing that going into a competition, no one overworked him.

The outcome of Tiger’s exceptional performance included 5 Masters and 82 PGA wins, only trailing Jack Nicklaus and equaling Sam Snead’s records.

Describing how a champion’s mind works, Tiger said, “relentless focus is a hallmark of outstanding athletes and great entrepreneurs”.

The two stories above confirm that we all have greatness in us. You have it. I have it. The difference is the steps you take towards achieving it.

Those who push above their limits excel. They excel because of the extra effort they put in. For them, failure is not an option. Instead, it is the energizer they need.

This is the message in the book, The Greatness Guide, by Robin Sharma.

I received a free copy of the audiobook and shared some of its contents. There are 101 life lessons that can provide the ideas and tools to help you grow. I am only sharing 10 of them.

Interestingly, we know most of these things, but we either overlook them or just do not care.

Lesson 1: Kai Harvey’s window of opportunity

How you respond to the windows of opportunity before you define your destiny.

Every day, we run into people that have made their mark in life — sports celebrities, politicians, financial gurus, and others.

Connect with them. You may never have the same opportunity again.

On a personal level, I lost the chance of a lifetime to strike a rapport with someone I looked forward to meeting. It was a chance meeting at the airport. It was an opportunity lost. Fear and doubt triggered this miss.

Fear makes us lose those small opportunities.

You must learn to run towards your fears. Do the things that make you uncomfortable, visit the places that scare you. Talk to people, even if you fear them. Make friends.

In the book, Never Eat Alone, Keith Ferrazzi & Tahl Raz opine that “success in life is the people you meet plus what you create together”.

Your network is your destiny.

Never shut out those small windows of opportunities.

Lesson 2: Nothing fails like success

The iconic entrepreneur, Richard Branson, got thrown out from a west London nightclub. They invited him and his friends for drinks. Upon getting there, they refused them entry.

The club staff accused them of appearing in denim jeans and T-shirts. It turned out that the once-successful club was in financial distress.

Branson bought the club and allowed people wearing jeans to patronize the club. The club may have failed because of its arrogance and perceived success.

Organizations rest on their oars when they succeed. Instead of looking for improvements, they spend energy protecting their comfort zones. Success breeds complacency, inefficiency, and arrogance.

They stop taking risks; they stop innovating.

The more you stop doing what took you up to number one position, that is the moment you crumble.

Organizations that remain successful are humble, efficient, play faster, devoted, and add value to their clients.

Lesson 3: Be a rock star at work

Be passionate about what you do. Work puts meaning into our lives.

Adrian was a window cleaner who became famous for his work. He was so efficient that his work improved the image of his organization. He gave it his all.

To reward him, management invited him to executive meetings and sought his opinions on matters. He became an influencer.

Good things happen to people who excel at work.

If you work hard, you become a gift to yourself and the organization. You will be happier, richer, and live a fulfilling life.

Be a rock star at work.

When you get famous, people will ask for you to sign autographs.

Lesson 4: Your days define your life

This sounds more like you reap what you sow.

You create your future by what you do today. Nothing is small. The smallest choices you make now have consequences.

Your days are a miniature of your life. Your thoughts, habits, and the food you eat can affect the world around you.

Attempt to be extraordinary. Those who are the best among us are not more gifted than the rest of us. They simply ask, “why not me”? This spurs them to go for it.

Donny Deutsch refers to this rebel mindset as, “often wrong, never in doubt”. He believes that those who live by this philosophy are the few ones who make it to the top.

Lesson 5: Drink coffee with Gandhi

A leader who reads profusely will encounter situations in which he may rely on the experience gained from a book to solve such problems.

When John Kennedy faced the Cuban missile crisis, he drew inspiration from the experience of B. H. Liddell Hart.

Reading remains the best discipline anyone can cultivate.

One simple idea from a book is life-changing.

Flood your soul with inspiration. If you want to lead, you must learn to read.

Robin Sharma put it aptly, “the hand that puts down a book is never the same”. A mind that takes in new ideas changes forever. Never worry about investing in an excellent book.

You will converse with Gandhi, Jack Welsh, and Dalai Lama over a cup of coffee.

Lesson 6: Get some skin in the game

Albert Einstein describes insanity as doing the same thing over and over and expecting the same result.

You must learn to take risks in life to avoid staying in one position. Taking more risks in pursuing your dreams is rewarding.

Leave that comfort zone and dare. Failure is the price for greatness. It is an essential ingredient for success. The only failure is if you cannot try.

Leave that safe harbor of the known. True joy comes when you put in some interest.

As Robin noted, “you can’t win a game that you don’t even play”.

Lesson 7: Make time to think

“Five percent of the people think; ten percent of the people think they think; and the other eighty-five percent would rather die than think,”–Thomas A. Edison

Do not belong to the group that would rather die than think. The world faces many distractions. The pandemic, and others before it, has made people look for quick solutions. No one has the time to focus.

People that sit still in deep reflection with their eyes closed for about 45 minutes can analyze business challenges. They focus on new markets, novel ways to grow, and even the meaning of life. This is introspection.

Thinking and reflection ensure that you are in the right mindset.

Be thoughtful and strategic as you walk to greatness. Thinking makes it clear on the best use of time. It helps to make wiser choices, better decisions, be less reactive, and inspire big dreams.

Don’t be busy with the wrong thing.

Lesson 8: Leadership begins on the extra mile

The greatness guide teaches that leadership and success begin on the extra mile.

Imagine, at the end of a tiring day, a manager calls to follow up on the service provided. It is the right thing to do, but most times ordinary people never check.

Those who chart illustrious careers and live happily are those who spend their time giving out their best. They are proactive; they put their team first and have an attitude of excellence.

Ordinary people do not spend time on the extra mile.

Who says you are ordinary?

Lesson 9: Mick Jagger and reference points

Business and life are all about forging everlasting human bonds.

You should pick positive reference points that will help you see alternative ways of doing things. Pick the right persons to model. Those you look up to for what they have achieved. There are many of them.

Ultimately, success is about consistency in what you do. Get out of the office, meet people and shake hands. Do coffee breaks, do lunches, share drinks and spread goodwill.

Every new contact is an opportunity to help and establish new friendships.

Reference points are world-class people. It took them years of preparing themselves to be at that level. They open doors of opportunities. Watch them, do the things they do and be passionate like them.

If they achieved greatness, we can get there too.

Lesson 10: Life lessons from Sponge Bob’s cartoon character

Sponge bob cartoon teaches you how to be a happier human being. It encourages you to do the things that make you happy in life. The four key lessons are:

· Be the eternal optimist — get more joy from life and see the best in every situation

· Value people — put people first, respect your friends. They will never fail you.

· Be an original–you are one of a kind. There can’t be two of you. Don’t follow the crowd.

· Be happy–laugh and have fun. Life is not an ordeal; it’s a celebration.

Know thyself and you will do great things.

The takeaways

Pablo Picasso sold a painting for $30m. The buyer thought it was too expensive and asked him, “in only 30 secs you sold this for $30m”? His response was that it took him 30 years to sell the painting in 30 seconds.

He led a life of restless brilliance, and nothing was off-limits. He was hard on himself as he sought to improve. He used the fullness of his talents.

Take what life gives you and run the formula.