Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Power of the Best getting BETTER



Eric Schmidt, the chairman and CEO of Google recently wrote in FORTUNE magazine about advice that sticks out for him.

He claims that back in 2001 John Door told him, "My advice to you is to have a coach". to which Schmidt responded, "Why would I need a coach? Am I doing something wrong?...How could a coach advise me if I'm the best in the world at this?"

However, after his initial resentment, he realized, "that's not what a coach does. The coach doesn't have to play the sport as well as you do. They have to watch you and get you to be your best. In the business context a coach is not a repetitious coach. A coach is somebody who looks at something with another set of eyes, describes it to you in (his) words, and discusses how to approach the problem".

Schmidt saw himself in a position of power as a CEO but after hiring a coach he was able to recognize that even the best, can be better.

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