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The fourth common trend that I picked up amongst all the participants and resources presenting at the conference was that they led their lives in a mentality of learning. When one thinks of learning, one’s mind usually goes to the idea of formal education. There is another whole side to learning, and that is the learning from our day-to-day interactions, experiences and observations of what happens around us. The really successful organizations have crafted themselves into learning organizations. Their specialty is the ability to hire an employee base that consistently and constantly maintains a mode of enhancing its skills, competencies and attributes through learning. How can we expo...

The third area in which I noticed a commonality among these people was coaching and mentoring, or being coached and mentored. Every single one of the participants placed great emphasis on the importance of being coached in order to improve one’s game. While I have talked in earlier posts about the importance of networking or developing a personal career board, attending this conference brought home to me with renewed power the necessity and wisdom of having a teacher or mentor who can help guide our next step. I sometimes view the world like a swamp through which we have to find our way carefully, when a single missed step can plunge us into the quicksand. Wouldn’t it be nice if ...

The other common facet I found that every individual had, regardless of the sport they played, was the passion for the game. I have often wondered just how much truth there is in that clichéd statement ‘I didn’t do it for the money; I did it for the love of the game’. Despite being fairly skeptical, in these close encounters with these stars I realized that it is entirely possible for someone to really do it for the love of the game. Often, while chatting over an after-dinner coffee or dessert, I would observe the way these people spoke about their sport, and this common thread of underlying passion always came through. In fact, I would say that it transcends mere passion f...

It was remarkable that Jerry Rice, who has numerous records in the NFL, mentioned not having taken a vacation for 10 years. While I don’t recommend that most of us lead that type of an unbalanced lifestyle, it reflects the tremendous dedication that he had for his work. Another observation that I made from what he said was that he always ran. He’d run from his car to the door, he’d run during practice, and then when the formal practice was over he’d run some more. He always ran without stepping on the white lines, to protect the outer boundary. And it struck me that such individuals prepared in order to excel at their chosen profession with far greater zeal and much h...

Some time ago I attended a conference where a number of the speakers were professional sportspeople and coaches, from soccer to football. Not only did I get the chance to hear what some of the great athletes like Joe Montana and Jerry Rice had to say, I was also able to engage them in personal, one-on-one conversation. I would like to dedicate my next few posts to consolidating what I heard from these individuals and the lessons that I learn in my day-to-day work. Some of the lessons learned were basic common sense, others were a fresh look at old knowledge, and some were spanking new. Let me begin with some observations on talent. At Kenexa, we believe that talent rules. While I fundamenta...

Mention the words taxi driver and most people will have a story to tell about their encounter with one—and most of the stories will be complaints, whether it is about their rash driving or disregard for passenger comfort or the decrepit condition of their taxis or their crabby natures. While I do concede that all those points are frequently valid and are reflections of the multiple experiences of travelers, I would like to point out a few observations that are equally true and bring out the better side of these same taxi drivers. Philadelphia cab drivers went on a wildcat strike recently. This happened on a day when I really needed a cab. And the lack of one forced me to reflect a lit...