Today, we were entertained in class (virtually), by the legendary Nido Qubein. As an author, businessman, President of High Point and wonderful speaker, he told us about the importance of specific life skills in today's ever-changing market.
Pictured Above, Nido R. Qubein
He began by referencing our future marketplace, specifically how in 20-30 years the world population will likely be around 10 billion people. Furthermore, one of the biggest ways the world will evolve, will be our proximity to people technologically as well as physically. In the market of the years to come, we may no longer work locally, but rather, compete on a global scale.
With this said, the President moved on to predict that said change may not be fluid, and like any business or individual, there will come great challenges and pitfalls within this transition. We must prepare ourselves, and as Nido Qubein reminded us once again, "All meaningful change comes from within."
The following categorized paragraphs are each a subtopic of effective life skills covered in the President's seminar.
1. Connecting vs. Communicating
What people in our modern world tend to forget, is that- communicating is just displaying information, while connecting means getting in touch with their heart. Therefore, it is important for anyone who ever wants to be an effective communicator, to be a partner in discussion.
What's the significance of this trait? Being a partner in discussion, doesn't mean forcing your own ideas, but rather, being mindfully invested in the other party. For example...
Want to get their attention? First pay attention to them.
Want to be interesting? Be interested in them, for it flows both ways.
Building onto this Qubein referenced the Law of identification, or the idea that, when something becomes personal, it becomes important. It turns a talk about the general anybody, to a specific somebody.
To connect with someone, create feeling within those who listen.
2. Positioning vs. Selling
In the world of sales, it's not what you know or can do that matters, but what people think you can do for them. You can't sell yourself, an idea, or product, without displaying its value.
Focus on first impressions, and these four key words.
Appearance - What do they see?
Words - Why should they listen to you, what words do you use?
Focus - Do you make money or make value?
Attitude - Attitude is everything. Don't be quick to judge.
Remember these key aspects, and position yourself for success in any field.
3. Education vs. Training
Here at High Point University, we are blessed with an extraordinary education. And, we were further encouraged in the virtual seminar to take advantage of everything we are offered here. Nido made an excellent point during the video, to remember that education can only get someone so far in life. In other words, education ends, but training remains.
One may think of training as the how, and education as the why. Or, education is what drives the true end goal of good and proper training. With that said, "School is never out for the pro", as Qubein put it.
We must continue to push ourselves to learn more, and grow more, if we want to stay ahead in the world.
4. Energy management vs Time management
Our President then turned his message inward, again emphasizing that we are in control of our success in life, in how we negotiate with ourselves. For, you can manage your time perfectly, but still be ineffective.
Ask yourself- Is this thing worthy of my energy?
We were encouraged to remember that our days and hours never cease in pace, but our minds and bodies are not designed to keep up. Since nobody can work 24/7, you must invest energy to create value wherever and whenever you can.
Don't let the mundane become urgent, that is how many people live their lives. Instead, focus our valuable time and energy on the important.
5. Risk management vs. Risk avoidance
Especially in this time of COVID, it seems the very notion of risk in life is terrifying to the general public. Sadly, what is not common knowledge is that nothing may be gained, if nothing was ever ventured.
By no means were we encouraged to be irresponsible, but to be calculated in the actions we take in our day-to-day.
Before you take any risk ask yourself, "What is the best thing to happen? What is most likely? What is the worst thing?"
If most likely thing is worth it AND you can deal with the worst, go for it. But, if the very thought of the worst to come is unbearable, it would be unwise to go forward.
With this, Nido again brought forward his thesis of this thinking, in that, circumstances do not determine your end, only where you begin.
6. Significance vs. Success
In life, we strive to make it matter that we lived at all. So for this reason, we must be goal driven, not task driven. To move forward a task is insignificant, but to complete a goal, is one of the greatest joys imaginable in life.
It is true that, the happiest people are focused on purpose, not just the tasks handed to them. Qubein tells us to make a "To Be" list, not a "To Do" list. We must set ourselves above our goals.
With that , he left us with the three "F's" Faith, Family and Friends. And how, to be truly happy, we must be significant in all three. For, significance is spiritual, success is circumstantial.
CONCLUSION
I thoroughly enjoyed this seminar, as it hit on many of the same notes as many influential speakers such as Anthony Robbins, and Jim Rohn. Jim Rohn, in particular, has a very heavy emphasis on adding value into your work and life as opposed to trying to pull all that you can out of it.
Furthermore, his emphasis on how change is only possible within ourselves first, and then the world around us, was echoed in Nido's speech regarding the changing of the modern world. While Jim Rohn is known mainly for his business thinking, Nido applied this very well in terms of everyday life, and how this mindset will carry one far anywhere.
Two absolute amazing speakers, a message that holds up in any time.
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