Playing Favorites By Marshall Goldsmith There’s a reason I devote...
What’s the most unusual investment system that will reap you benefits of a thousand fold?
For me it’s been giving all of my material away on my website. You can copy, share, download, and duplicate it, it’s all free. I’ve been amazed at how many wonderful people I have met and wonderful experiences I have had because I do this. It’s more than I ever could have imagined!
I started doing this when I was young. I didn’t know what I was doing, it just came naturally. Where I grew up in Kentucky, there was a program called the March of Dimes Bread Drive. My high school was one of the poorer schools in the area, and I was put in charge of the bread drive for my area. We would have been predicted to come in near last place. Instead we can in first place!
We were instructed to knock on doors in our neighborhood. When someone answered the door, we were to ask them, “Would you make a donation?” If the person made a donation, then we were to give them a loaf of bread.
I told my team, “We’re going to do something different. We’re going to give them the bread. At the end of the day, the bread will be thrown away in any case. If they are too poor to make a donation – let’s just give them the bread.” Then we’ll tell them, “If you want or are able to make a donation that would be nice, if not that’s okay too. Either way, we’re going to give you the loaf of bread.”
You see, to me, it was demeaning to try to bribe someone with a loaf of bread. If they can give you something back for it, great. But, maybe they can’t right then, maybe they can’t afford it, maybe they aren’t capable of it. That’s okay too.
It was during that March of Dimes Bread Drive that I really started to live the philosophy of giving.
It’s been a good philosophy of life for me to just “give people the bread.” And, in Valley Station, Kentucky those many years ago, that is how my little March of Dimes Bread Drive team ended up raising more money than any other team in the county!
Today, I’m giving the bread away again with my legacy project 100 Coaches, which I initiated last year. I am teaching 100 people everything I know at no charge. In return, these 100 have committed to do the same thing for 100 others, for free. I was inspired to do this by the many great teachers and leaders who have so generously helped me – without ever asking for anything in return. It is my way of recognizing the amazing contributions they have made in my life.
Our first cohort of 25 coaches has already met twice and learned from some of the greatest leaders of our time, Alan Mulally (former CEO of Ford and CEO of the year in the United States), Frances Hesselbein (former CEO of the Girl Scouts and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom), and Dr. Jim Kim (President of the World Bank). They are well on their way to sharing their new insights with the world!
And, now, I’ve just announced the second cohort! I am so excited to meet with this diverse group of coaches who will come from around the world to join me in Phoenix June 23-25!
Follow the #100Coaches project at www.marshallgoldsmith.com/100-coaches, on Twitter, Facebook, or on LinkedIn!
Triggers is a #1 New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-seller! Order it at Amazon. See The Marshall Goldsmith Thinkers50 Video Blog for more of this video series.
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My mission is simple. I want to help successful people achieve positive, lasting change and behavior; for themselves, their people, and their teams. I want to help you make your life a little better. With four decades of experience helping top CEOs and executives overcome limiting beliefs and behaviors to achieve greater success, I don’t do this for fame and accolades. I do this because I love helping people!
As an executive educator and coach, I help people understand how our beliefs and the environments we operate in can trigger negative behaviors. Through simple and practical advice, I help people achieve and sustain positive behavioral change.
