Once upon a time, many, many years ago…
I had an exceptional math’s teacher and he used to teach us math’s, obviously, but he also used to teach us other things, to challenge us, to expand our minds.
As a reward, when we completed all our work, he would teach us about things like the Fibonacci sequence, the golden ratio, we even watched Monty Python and Romeo & Juliet (the sixties classic, not DiCaprio & Danes).
Years later, things seem to constantly pop up that he taught us.
When on a bus tour in Scotland, some years ago, we visited Doune Castle which appears in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. And I wondered what ever happened to him.
In recent years, my life has been all about continuous improvement and a song that he used to quote comes to mind. It was written and sung by the legendary Bob Dylan in 1964 - The times they are a-changin.
A couple of the lines are particularly relevant and echo what I do now, I help people and businesses adapt, change, and continuously improve. Continuous Improvement is about never resting on our laurels because there is no point in which we stop trying to improve, we are never done.
In this rapidly changing world, adaptability is key.
Because, in the immortal words of Bob Dylan…
“You better start swimming, or you’ll sink like a stone.”
“For he who gets hurt, will be he who has stalled.”
“For the times they are a-changin’.”
I sometimes wonder what happened to this amazing teacher. The impact of a good teacher is profound, it is the difference between excelling at something and mediocrity or even failing.
Not that failing is a bad thing – I truly believe failing is an opportunity to learn something, change what you’re doing and improve on it.
Because in the words of another superhuman, Albert Einstein…
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
I believe no matter who you are, you have your own superpower and sometimes it just takes an exceptional teacher or human to bring it out and to help you embrace it.
Now I have a couple of teachers from my life who are exceptional humans, a couple of teachers from school, a couple of inspiring managers and some amazing mentors. And they are still front of mind with everything I do.
When these people enter your life, embrace it!
Be a sponge, learn all you can!
Learn, Adapt & Grow!
Or risk getting left behind as the world moves swiftly past you.
