- livingthedash.tv

I ran across a great article by John Maxwell on catalystspace.com

In the article, he describes what he calls The Great Separator……..

Starting is the great separator. It separates the doers from the do nots. It separates the haves from the have nots. It separates the winners from the whiners. In short, it separates successful people from unsuccessful people.

Sometimes we do lots of thinking, dreaming, wondering, talking, planning, analyzing, and strategizing, but we never start.

Is there anything you need to start?

During this past weekend’s Sunday Night Football game between the Indianapolis Colts and the San Diego Chargers, the announcers pointed out that Jim Caldwell was serving in his first season as the Colt’s Associate Head Coach under Head Coach Tony Dungy.

I’ve seen that title before……..Associate Head Coach…….and always wondered what that really meant.

The announcers asked Jim Caldwell what the title means and he said…Apprentice…Understudy.

The Colts organization and Tony Dungy wanted to leave the team in good hands once Dungy decided to move on so they put a plan in place for Caldwell to develop, grow, learn, and study under Dungy.

Tony Dungy is a great leader and great leaders always leave a legacy.

John Maxwell says this about leaving a legacy in his book, The 21 Most Powerful Minutes In A Leader’s Day:

It specifically includes the passing of the leadership baton.  It means succession from the leader to his replacement.  That makes a leader’s legacy a tremendous gift.

Jim Caldwell said this about his apprentice situation with Tony Dungy in a January 2008 USA Today article……..

I have a unique opportunity to learn from men that know this business inside and out. As a head coach, there’s probably no better example in this country than the man I work for and support.

A perfect example of these 2 leadership princples…….

1 // Great leaders leave a legacy by properly passing the leadership baton.

2 // Good leaders become great leaders by learning from great leaders.

Most great communicators, writers, and authors are masters of carefully crafting words into 1 or 2 sentences to communicate a message or concept.

They are quotable.

John Maxwell is one of the most quotable authors I have read. His books are full of numerous sentences or phrases that are perfect for jotting down on a sticky note or whiteboard in your workspace.

But John Maxwell is not only quotable, but he appears to be a lover of good quotes from other quotable people.

Here are a few quotes that John included in his book, Talent Is Never Enough……..

The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems. – Indian statesman Mohandas Gandhi

When a man has put a limit on what he will do, he has put a limit on what he can do. – Industrialist Charles Schwab

When you discover you’ve been leading only half a life, the other half is going to haunt you until you develop it. – Phillip Brooks, writer of the song “O Little Town of Bethlehem”

There is but one cause of human failure. And that is man’s lack of faith in his true self. – Psychologist and philosopher William James

Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed. – Benjamin Franklin

Contrary to popular opinion, life does not get better by chance, life gets better by change. And this change always takes place inside; it is the change of thought that creates the better life. – Attorney Kerry Randall

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. – Franklin Delano Roosevelt

I just started reading Talent Is Never Enough by John Maxwell.

The book covers 13 things that can take talent to the next level.

1) Belief Lifts Your Talent

2) Passion Energizes Your Talent

3) Initiative Activates Your Talent

4) Focus Directs Your Talent

5) Preparation Positions Your Talent

6) Practice Sharpens Your Talent

7) Perseverance Sustains Your Talent

8) Courage Tests Your Talent

9) Teachability Expands Your Talent

10) Character Protects Your Talent

11) Relationships Influence Your Talent

12) Responsibility Strengthens Your Talent

13) Teamwork Multiples Your Talent

Personally, I would say I am in pretty good shape on about half of these items, but I have some room for development in some of the areas like Belief, Preparation, Perseverance, Relationships, and Responsibility.

How about you? Which areas could you improve in to enhance your God-given talent?

What about your team, organization, or company? Is talent being wasted because 1 or more of the 13 items is missing?