Tag: expert

A hedgehog or a fox?

Are you a hedgehog or a fox? This is based on Stephen Covey’s writing…

While it is naturally appealing to be a fox (to be good at many things, but not world class in anything), should our goal be to become a hedgehog (be laser focused on mastering one thing, being world class at it, and benefitting from it)?

The idea here is to go deep in one particular subject. Read about it, write about it, talk with others who have already done it (mentors), talk with others who are on the same path (mastermind), listen to books and podcasts, and teach it (to those “behind” you on the path and to those who are not yet traveling on that path).

Learn even more by experiencing it yourself…You’ll make mistakes along the way, but as long as you take the time to figure out what went wrong (or what you think went wrong) and then get back up and try again – you’ll be better for it. In fact, some people think failing quickly and failing often is the key to success.

Because we are amateurs when we first set out to do anything, we don’t know what we don’t know. Nothing will ever be perfect and if we wait for perfection to get started then we’ll never get started. There is no perfect time. The “perfect” time to get started is right now…

If we do finally decide to take action, despite all of our preparation (aka procrastination), we will still make mistakes. So it’s best to get those mistakes out of the way and “fail” quickly! Because, in reality, it’s only a failure if you give up. Otherwise it’s only a bump in the road.

Go deep. Master one subject then try to expand to other related areas after you’ve truly grasped one. If you spread yourself too thin, you might be able to become a Jack of all trades and a master of none. But that will take a long time. If you focus on one (like a laser), you can “quickly” master it and move onto another subject if your heart desires.

Thinking about diversification

Does diversification really make sense? I used to think, of course it makes sense! When you diversify, you are spreading out (aka minimizing) your potential risk. But you’re also minimizing your potential reward. So now, my thinking is…maybe. I think it depends on your level of knowledge in what you’re investing in.

Diversification for the novice investor can be thought of as risk mitigation, but for the expert in their field, instead of putting all of their eggs in the basket they know best, they would be putting some eggs in that basket and some in other baskets which they have limited information/knowledge on how to properly optimize their return on investment. An analogy would be to consider a generalist versus a specialist. A generalist might be a jack of all trades, but a master of none, just as diversifying your portfolio makes you “good” in several areas, but not excellent in any. This is because you have spread yourself too thin to truly become an expert in one area.

For the novice investor (which I am, so no judgement is being passed here), I think diversification makes sense. But if you are an expert in your field and you know something better than 99% of the population, why would you reduce your investment where you have an informational advantage? Does it really make sense to invest in things that you don’t know as well just so you are diversified?

Does a top-tier athlete try to go pro in multiple sports or do they eventually select one and try to be the best at that? When you are starting a business, will you get as far by trying to do a little bit of everything and serving every type of client or does it make sense to niche down and become the “go-to” person/business for one specific type of client? That’s where the saying comes from, “when everyone is your customer, nobody is.” You don’t differentiate yourself from your competitors who have either become the experts in their field or who have the name brand recognition and can afford to spread their resources thin.

Random thoughts on leading, managing, business, and goals

One difference between great leaders and great managers is the ability to innovate. Being creative, progressive, and moving forward with new ideas is important for visionary leaders. But keeping the boat from rocking too much and making sure to implement the visionary’s ideas intelligently are key to great management. You need both to be successful…ideas are great, but if they are scattered all over the place and not aligned with the stated future overarching goal(s), and if they are changed before really being given time to succeed, the business will flounder.

Start out with a couple of great goals. Know why you want to achieve those things. Then figure out what milestones you need to hit along the way and what processes you need to develop/follow to make those milestones happen. After you achieve them (or when you’re 90%+ done), start thinking of adding new goals, techniques, and strategies that are natural extensions of your current goals. Don’t do a 180 degree turn and pivot to something completely unrelated where you have limited-to-no experience.

Four keys to success (inspired by a recent BiggerPockets podcast episode)

1. Decisiveness – clearly define what it is you want. Then ask yourself, will whatever action you’re about to take bring you closer to that goal? If yes, do it. If no, don’t do it. Not sure? Give yourself a set period to decide then take action.

2. Build momentum. Does an airplane start the engine then it’s up in the air flying? No. It has to build up speed to take flight. Once in the air, it’s easy to maintain. Determine what is the most important next action step, then do it (preferably, it should be easy to implement so you can “check it off the list” and build momentum). When you do that, figure out the most important next step and do that. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

3. Measure what matters. Keep track of the most important numbers. What are the lead measures and lag measures you need to hit to achieve your goals? Budget your time, actions, money, etc.

4. Become an expert. What did I do yesterday? How could I have done it better? What did I do that I should stop doing? What do I need to learn to be considered an “expert” in my field.

Accidentally choosing mediocrity

In my quest to be great at all things, I become mediocre in them. I have to choose…just like I can’t reach my peak strength while also having the best endurance, I must prioritize what is most important to me. Do I want to be a powerlifter, a bodybuilder, or a marathoner? If I choose to be all three that’s fine. It may be the best overall for my health (being well-rounded), but I will limit my success in all of them by choosing to do all three simultaneously. If I want to compete to be the best in any of them, I must focus on only one.

One way to try to circumvent choosing only one is to have overlap in the things in which I want to be great. Figure out what each thing has in common…do they have similar training schedules so I’m not spending more time, effort, or money than I need to? If I can maximize my efficiency and effectiveness, I may be able to reach my potential in multiple tasks at once. But if they are very different (requiring different skill sets, training schedules, etc.), I will be limited by my resources (time, energy, money) and not be able to compete as well as I want.