Expand. Charlie Munger says, "be a learning machine" and Kevin Eastman preaches, "be a learn-it-all, not a know-it-all." Learn by studying more about what you don't know than what you do.
Study the best and like the best. How does Munger's partner Warren Buffett become a learning machine? He studies about eighty percent of each working day. And Eastman reads for at least two hours daily. Steve Forbes reads fifty pages a day. George Raveling reads voraciously and shares recommendations.
Build your craft. Devote time to strength and conditioning, skill development, film study, game play, and sport psychology. Ask better questions; seek mentors and coaches. Eat better, sleep better. Avoid toxic effects of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs. Don't succumb to Pat Riley's "Disease of Me."
Develop your mind. Professional and Olympic athletes practice mindfulness to reduce anxiety and depression, improve attention, reduce stress hormone levels, and raise their level and consistency of performance. Free apps and websites abound.
Assemble a routine. "We make our habits and our habits make us." Tim Ferriss shares his morning routine, cultivated from hundreds of interviews with achievers. I include MasterClass.com sessions, reading, writing, mindfulness, and 15 minutes of guitar practice. As I work through Chris Hadfield's MasterClass on Space Exploration, I get training ideas, information management concepts, thoughts about psychology and teamwork.
"Playing a musical instrument engages practically every area of the brain at once." This impacts our memory, cognition, and emotional output.
"Free thinking." Bill Russell said, "Imagination leads to innovation leading to differentiation." Take time to think, to explore the random expanse of your universe. Knowledge workers become more productive with time to think. Coaches are knowledge workers. We can only teach others what we know. As we acquire more knowledge and experience, we move better ideas to the front of the queue and shelve others. Nobody wants or needs a buggy whip.
Be intentional and focused while incorporating information into your process. We're not getting older; we're getting better. Knowledge multiplies, as does kindness, but also hate.
Kevin Eastman says, "success leaves footprints." Maybe footprints leave success.
Lagniappe:
We regularly discuss movement to basket cut, screen, and cut to open areas. Cutting to empty space and remove help reflects basketball IQ, too.Basketball IQ in action: LeBron James has a mismatch on Al Horford. George Hill recognizes this and clears out of the strong-side corner. Kyle Korver sets a flare on Jaylen Brown, the defender at the nail, to occupy the middle help. pic.twitter.com/ylvzlEp9PH— Dylan Murphy (@DylanTMurphy) February 11, 2018