An excerpt from Your Most Valuable Asset
by Brian Tracy
Change Your Mindset
What is the difference between people in the bottom 80 percent and people in the top 20 percent? Simple. People in the top 20 percent have a different mind-set from people in the bottom 80 percent. Not only do the words they use have different meanings, but their thinking styles are different as well.
Top people are in continual learning mode. They are curious, interested, and eager to absorb new knowledge. They are hungry to learn. They read, listen to audio programs, attend seminars, and ask questions of people who know more than they do. They are great listeners. They take notes during every seminar and conversation.
Income and Information Go Together
The people in the top 20 percent see that there is a direct link between new information and increased income. They never stop improving. They know that one of the best time–management tools in the world is to get better at what you do. Geoffrey Colvin, author of the bestselling book Talent Is Overrated, refers to this as "deliberate practice."
The people who get ahead faster than others are those who deliberately invest the time and put in the hard word to learn and practice new, essential skills that can help them advance up the ladder of their careers. They never stop learning and growing. Their entire focus is to push to the front.
The Only Real Difference
In its simplest terms, the difference between people at the bottom of the ladder and people at the top is practical knowledge and skill. The people who are ahead today, and getting further ahead, are those who have the knowledge and skill that they require to excel in their fields. They continually add to that knowledge and skill.
Just as money grows with compound interest, knowledge and skills also grow through compounding. Each bet of valuable information that you learn makes your mind like Velcro, enabling you to recognize and hook onto other pieces of information that can help you do your job even better than before.
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