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Self Leadership: Continuous learning · Sandra Elizabeth - The Leadership Collective

• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for joining me today.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Sandra Elizabeth.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: You are at the Leadership Collective.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Today's conversation is about one of the most powerful habits any leader can develop.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: Continuous learning.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: Not learning because someone tells you to, not learning because you have an exam, learning because you understand that growth is the price of leadership.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: Here's a thought I'd like to leave with you right from the beginning.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: The leaders who continue learning are leaders who continue leading.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: I want to begin with the story of Warren Buffett.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: One of the world's most successful investors, Warren Buffett, is worth billions of dollars.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: You might expect someone at that level to slow down, relying on decades of experience.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: Instead, Buffett has maintained a remarkable commitment to learning throughout his career.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: He has often shared that he spends around 80% of his working day reading, reading books, reading annual reports, newspapers, reading financial statements, and industry information.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: He has explained that knowledge accumulates over time.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: He once said, the more you learn, the more you earn.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: Think about that.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: A man who has already achieved so much success still sees himself as a student.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: Why?
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: Because he understands that yesterday's knowledge isn't enough for tomorrow's challenges.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_00: His competitive advantage isn't simply his intelligence, it's his commitment to continuous learning.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: Every day he adds another piece to his understanding.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: Every day he sharpens his thinking.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: Every day he prepares himself to make better decisions.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: The lesson from this isn't about becoming a billionaire.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: The lesson is about adopting the mindset of one.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: The most successful people don't believe they know everything.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: They believe there's always something new to learn.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: Success should never become an excuse to stop growing.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, the more successful you become, the more intentional you should be about learning because the world never stops changing.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: When was the last time you read a book that challenged your thinking?
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: Are you investing in your own growth as intentionally as you would invest in your work?
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: What skill do you need to develop to become the leader you want to be?
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: For me, the greatest investment that I'll ever make isn't in the stock market.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: It's in my ability to learn, to adapt, and to grow, because knowledge compounds just like success.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: So continuous learning isn't reserved for beginners.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: It's the habit that keeps great leaders relevant throughout their entire careers.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: What do you know about prison becoming a university?
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: Well, Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: Most people would have viewed prison as a wasted time.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: Mandela viewed it as preparation.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: While imprisoned on Robin Island, he didn't stop learning.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: He read everything he could.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: He studied law.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: He learned Afrikaans, the language of many of the prison guards and the ruling government at the time.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_00: People questioned why would he want to learn the language of those who imprisoned him?
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: Mandela understood something profound.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to lead people, you must first understand them.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: Learning Afrikaans allowed him to communicate more effectively with his captors and later to build bridges instead of walls when he became the president.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: Prison could have made him a better person.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: Instead, it made him wiser.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: He encouraged others to see education as a lifelong journey.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: His famous saying is education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: When Mandela finally walked out of prison after 27 years, he didn't just walk out as a former prisoner.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: He walked out as a prepared leader.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: His years of continuous learning gave him the wisdom, perspective, and the emotional maturity needed to help unite a deeply divided nation.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: So it doesn't matter where you are or what is happening around you.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: Your current circumstances do not have to limit your growth.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: You may not control where you are today, but you can control whether you continue learning.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: Some people allow difficult seasons to stop their development.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: Great leaders use difficult seasons to accelerate it.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: Never waste a season of waiting.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: Turn it into a season of learning.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: Are you using your current circumstances as an excuse or as an opportunity to grow?
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: What could you learn during the season that will prepare you for the next one?
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: And if this season is preparing you for future leadership, what should you be studying today?
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: So remember this every season can become a classroom if you choose to keep learning.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: Your circumstances may slow your progress, but they never have to stop your growth.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_00: Today's podcast might sound like a storytelling session, but I'm using stories to help you understand that it is never too late to learn.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: Look at Colonel Sanders.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: Colonel Sanders was 65 years old when most people thought life had passed them by.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_00: He continued learning.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_00: His restaurant had failed after a new highway diverted traffic away from his business.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: He was left with very little money and only a small social security check.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_00: Instead of giving up, he decided to learn how to turn his fried chicken recipe into a franchise business.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: He traveled across America, knocking on restaurant doors.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: He was reportedly rejected more than a thousand times before someone finally agreed to partner with him.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_00: Imagine hearing no over a thousand times.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: Yet every rejection taught him how to improve his presentation, refine his business model, and become more resilient.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_00: Today, KFC operates in countries around the world.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_00: So age should never become an excuse to stop learning.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_00: The most successful people never stop adapting, improving, and believing that their next chapter can be better than their last.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: Learning has no retirement age.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: The moment you stop growing is the moment you limit your future.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_00: Here's another story: Michael Jordan.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: He is regarded as one of the world's greatest basketball players.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: But before becoming a global icon, he experienced disappointment.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: As a teenager, he was cut off from his high school varsity basketball club.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_00: Instead of giving up, Jordan went back to the gym.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: He practiced relentlessly.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: He studied the game.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: He learned from every weakness.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: Years later, he famously said, I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_00: I've lost almost 300 games.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_00: I failed over and over and over again in my life.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: And that is why I succeeded.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_00: Jordan understood something every leader should know.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_00: Failure is a teacher if you're willing to learn from it.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: So don't allow failure to define you, allow it to develop you.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: Every setback contains a lesson that can prepare you for your next opportunity.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: The greatest leaders don't fear failure.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: They fear failing to learn.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: So let learning become a lifestyle.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_00: See, one of the biggest misconceptions that people have is believing that education and learning are the same thing.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: They're not.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: Education has a beginning and an end.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: Learning does not end.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_00: The certificate on your wall tells people what you once learned.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_00: Your curiosity tells people whether you're still growing.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: The world doesn't reward what you knew ten years ago.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_00: Think about it.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of what you have learned in school twenty or thirty years ago is almost insignificant right now.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: The world has changed, life has changed, technology has come into existence.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: So you have to have the ability to adapt, to innovate, and to continue developing.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: Ask yourself, what did you learn last week?
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_00: Not last year, last week.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: Can you name one new idea, one new skill, one new perspective?
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: If not, perhaps you've become busy making a living while forgetting to build your future.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_00: Learning should become part of your weekly rhythm, not an annual event.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_00: The world has certainly changed.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: The world is moving.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_00: Think about how quickly the world has changed.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_00: Artificial intelligence, digital transformation, remote work, automation, cybersecurity, social media.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_00: You know, five years ago many of today's conversations didn't even exist.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: Imagine trying to lead today's organizations using yesterday's knowledge.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: It simply doesn't work.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_00: So continuous learning isn't optional anymore, it's essential.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_00: Never find yourself in the danger zone of having arrived.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_00: One of the most dangerous phrases you hear is I already know.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_00: The moment you believe you've arrived, your growth stops, innovation stops, your curiosity even disappears.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: The best leaders remain curious, they ask questions, they look for feedback, they admit when they don't know something, and they understand that confidence and humility can exist together.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_00: Every person is a classroom.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: One lesson that has changed my leadership is this every person knows something you don't.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: The receptionist, the apprentice, the customer, the teenager, the CEO, the quiet employee who really speaks.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: Every conversation has the potential to teach me something, to teach you something.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: Great learners don't just collect information, they collect perspectives.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: So go beyond your industry, go beyond what you do, read beyond your industry.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_00: One of the mistakes that professionals make is only reading about their own field.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_00: If you're in finance, read about psychology.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_00: If you're in leadership, read about history.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_00: If you're in marketing, read about behavioral science.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_00: The broader you're thinking, the stronger your leadership becomes.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_00: Learning is intentional.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't happen by accident.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_00: It happens because you want it.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: So create a personal growth system for yourself.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_00: For example, every day read 10 pages of a book.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: Listen to 20 minutes of a podcast.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_00: Write one new insight.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_00: Every month attend a webinar, watch a masterclass, meet someone who challenges your thinking.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: Every year, learn a completely new skill.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: The goal isn't to know everything, the goal is to become better than you were yesterday.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: Most people live in one of three places the comfort zone, the fear zone, or the learning zone.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: See, comfort feels very safe, but nothing grows there.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: The learning zone is where you ask questions, you try new things, make mistakes, but you improve.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: Every expert you admire was once a beginner who chose to stay in the learning zone.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: So make a few notes today.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: Take out a pen, take out your notepad, and write these three questions.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: What do I need to learn to become the leader I want to be?
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: What can teach me what I don't know yet?
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_00: What will I commit to learning over the next 90 days?
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: So don't wait until January, start today.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: As we reach the end of this podcast, I want to give you five habits of continuous learners.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_00: First, they read consistently, even if it's only a few pages every day.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_00: Second, they ask thoughtful questions instead of pretending to have all the answers.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: Third, they welcome feedback and use it to improve.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: What?
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: They surround themselves with people who challenge their thinking instead of simply agreeing with them.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_00: And finally, they apply what they learn.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: Knowledge has little value until it changes the way you think, decide, and lead.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_00: My challenge for you today is choose one area of your life where you've become comfortable.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_00: Then commit to learning something new about it.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_00: Read a book, take an online course, listen to an expert, or have a conversation with someone who knows more than you do.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_00: Remember, small improvements repeated consistently produce extraordinary results over time.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_00: My final thought for today is the future belongs to leaders who remain adaptable.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: Adaptability begins with learning.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_00: So never allow success to become the reason you stop growing.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_00: Never allow your experience to replace your curiosity.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: And never allow yesterday's knowledge to limit tomorrow's possibilities.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_00: Because your greatest competitive advantage will never be what you already know.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: It will always be your willingness to keep learning.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: Continuous learning is the bridge between where you are today and the leader you have the potential to become tomorrow.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_00: Never stop investing in the one asset that appreciates with use.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_00: That is your mind.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for joining me today on the Leadership Collective.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that this episode has inspired you to embrace learning as a lifelong habit rather than a one-time achievement.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: If today's conversation added any value to your leadership journey, share it with a colleague, a mentor, or a friend who is committed to personal growth.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: And remember this.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: Great leaders are not remembered because they knew everything.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_00: They are remembered because they never stopped learning, never stopped growing, and never stopped investing in themselves.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, keep learning, keep growing, keep leading with purpose.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Sandra Elizabeth, and this is the Leadership Collective.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'll see you in the next episode.