Common traits of high achievers
Last weekend got me upside down.
I met some amazing people at a hackathon.
But I couldn’t get my finger on what about them got me impressed. It wasn’t their technical or business skills. It was something completely different. Something you can’t write on a resume.
It’s only once the event ended that I started to grasp what it was.
If you’ve studied the traits of high achievers you’ll keep finding the same thing coming again and again: they overwhelm you with attention.
Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, Thomas Edison, Walt Disney, Kobe Bryant, the list goes on.
There’s a type of people who know exactly how to use positive reinforcement to manipulate people. You know the type of people who make you do stupid shit and reward you with their attention. And then you catch yourself and feel stupid for what you just did.
Great people are different. They don’t ignore you. They can get you to tell your whole life story in 5 minutes. The best part is that they won’t even talk about themselves.
99% of people who sound like they care about you, actually just want you to ask the same question so they can tell their story. They don’t even listen. They prepare what they’re going to say once you ask while you give your answer.
Mindset is what really makes a difference. Not skills.