The Proximity Principle

by Ken Coleman

  Great Professors Are Passionate

  Professors shouldn’t just know their stuff, they should also love sharing their knowledge with others. We’ve all had professors or teachers at some point in our lives who seemed absolutely miserable. They were grouchy, impatient, and didn’t make learning fun for anyone. Great professors don’t see what they do as a J-O-B, but as a passion. Their eyes light up when they are sharing all they know, and they truly inspire you to learn from them.

  Great Professors Push You to Grow

  The best professors can also evaluate your skill level and challenge you to be better, pushing you and forcing you to raise your game. So when you are looking for professors, make sure you find ones who aren’t afraid to nudge you out of your comfort zone.

  Jessica had a professor like that. I talked to her on The Ken Coleman Show, and she explained that while she was taking classes in programming, one of her teachers noticed her talent for building applications and her eye for good design. That professor encouraged Jessica to develop those skills further. When she first started out in programming, she had a specific career path planned, but by the time she graduated, she was a top-level mobile applications developer. That meant she was able to choose the job she wanted! Jessica gave her teacher all the credit for helping her identify her strengths and challenging her to do more than she thought she could. Finding a professor who can push you to your potential like Jessica did is key!

  LIFELONG LEARNER

  Regardless of how great the professors are in your life, the responsibility to learn begins and ends with you. You must never stop learning, no matter how high you climb. Award-winning actress Viola Davis is a great example of someone who understands the importance of learning.

  you must Never stop learning, no matter how high you climb.

  Davis has been nominated for three Academy Awards and has achieved the Triple Crown of Acting, which means she has received an Oscar, an Emmy, and a Tony. Why? What was the secret that made Viola Davis so successful? Was it raw talent? Luck? No, Davis began her acting career with an intense desire to learn. She positioned herself to study under professors at The Juilliard School. In a 2013 interview, Davis spoke proudly of her education: “The reason why I went to Juilliard, the reason why I got a degree in acting, is that I wanted people to understand that I could be technically proficient as an actor, that I’m not just up there flying by the seat of my pants.”8

  In another interview, Davis commented that she still maintains communication with her acting instructors and stays open to learning new skills and techniques.9 That respect and gratitude for her professors—even after earning acclaim and success—distinguishes her as a true star who understands that to excel in your craft you must always be learning.

  So what’s the takeaway here? Like Viola Davis, you must look for opportunities to find professors who will invest in you every step along the way. Again, no one is sitting around thinking about how they can help you find your dream job. Even the best professors aren’t going to seek you out. It’s your job to seek them out and stay connected with them as you climb—and sometimes even after you climb—the mountain.

  BACK TO THE BASICS

  Who was that great professor in my own journey? I knew that what I needed was basic knowledge and skills about the broadcasting industry. So I spent some time researching around the Atlanta area until I found a broadcasting school run by a local television producer named Jeff Batten. I called Jeff and asked if he would be willing to meet with me at his office. Within moments of talking to him, I realized that he was an expert and that his class was exactly what I needed from an educational standpoint.

  I’ll never forget that first night of class. I was in my early thirties, about a decade older than everybody else in the class, and most certainly the only guy there with a wife, three kids, and a mortgage. I can still remember the confused looks on several of the students’ faces when they realized I wasn’t the instructor. Talk about a humbling experience! It actually took a couple of weeks for my classmates to stop calling me “sir!”

  It’s funny to look back on it now, but in the moment, I didn’t care that I was the oldest student in the class. I was having fun! I wanted to be there because I was hungry to learn anything and everything that would get me in proximity of my dream job. So hungry that I was willing to look like the odd man out just so I could learn from Jeff. His knowledge was invaluable to me. Having worked in the broadcasting industry, he knew all of the latest trends and approaches to the craft. His class is where I learned some of the basics that I still use today—things like how to use a microphone well, how to edit audio and video, and how to do a news report for television and radio. He taught me the fundamentals of broadcasting, gave me practical experience, and sent me on my way with a lot more confidence than when I started.

  I was really lucky to learn from Jeff, and I will forever be grateful to him for sharing his knowledge with me. Yet, while his teaching greatly impacted my career, it was my responsibility to put what I learned into practice.

  That’s your responsibility too. As you pursue proximity to your dream job, look for professors who will take the time to teach you, respect the knowledge they share and incorporate it into your work. Commit to being a lifelong learner!

  The Proximity Process

  1. Review the key qualities of great professors at the start of this chapter.

  2. Research what you need to learn to be qualified for your “Mount Everest” dream job.

  3. Determine which people are good at teaching what you need to learn, then make a list of the classes or opportunities available both locally and nationally.

  Chapter 3

  The Professionals

  [Professionals] possess a mastery mentality—with the goal of becoming the best they can be.

  —Kevin Eikenberry

  Have you ever heard the phrase “talent imitates; genius steals”? T. S. Eliot, the great American writer and poet, gets credit for that one. Imitating the work of others is really just a way to practice the skills and techniques that others have mastered. It’s when you master their work then make it your own that the “genius” kicks in.

  Robin Williams was a comic genius. A versatile, vibrant actor and comedian, Williams was a four-time Academy Award nominee. He won the Oscar for his performance in Good Will Hunting and was given several other awards, including four Grammys. He was the best of the best, a true professional in his field.

  So how did Williams become the best? Growing up, he often watched The Tonight Show and was captivated by the entertainers. He used a tape recorder to capture audio of the comedians who appeared on the show and would spend the next day listening to those recordings over and over, memorizing the jokes and matching the timing of the punch lines.10 Because he loved comedy, he practiced it long before he took the stage himself.

  Robin Williams is considered a genius not because he could tell other people’s jokes, but because he found an approach distinctly his own. That is exactly the mind-set you need when you watch the professionals in your industry. Study what makes them the best. Imitate it. Then make it your own.

  KEY QUALITIES OF PROFESSIONALS

  To get in proximity to your dream job, you need to find professionals who are excelling at the work you’d love to do at the highest level. Professionals have key qualities that make them the best at what they do:

  1. They Are Experienced

  2. They Study Other Professionals

  Now let’s dig into both of these qualities a little more.

  Professionals Are Experienced

  As you begin to look for professionals, you should find people who are at least ten years ahead of you in your career. There is no substitute for experience, and they have it—and all the wisdom that goes with it! Let’s go back to the idea of climbing your personal Mount Everest. You could think of professionals as the accomplished mountaineers who have expertly navigated the summit—people like Sir Edmund Hillary.

  In 1953
Hillary was one of just two mountaineers who were the first to actually climb to the top of Mount Everest. The following year he and four others became the first to successfully take vehicles to the South Pole. Then over thirty years later, Hillary and Neil Armstrong flew to the North Pole in a small plane, making Hillary the first person ever to reach the summit of Mount Everest and trek to both the North and South Poles.11 Now that’s a guy I’d want to have by my side when I was climbing a mountain. He was an expert in his field and was driven to succeed! Hillary’s determination and willingness to push past his comfort level was what got him to the top of Mount Everest, and those same qualities will help you reach your own goals.

  Professionals Study Other Professionals

  Professionals also spend time studying other professionals they admire and look up to. Academy Award winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio was influenced by the legendary leading man Paul Newman.12 Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan grew up learning from the work of his own favorite filmmaker, Steven Spielberg.13 Even The Beatles, arguably the most famous band in the world, modeled their style after the early work of rock legend Chuck Berry.14 And while we all aren’t famous actors, filmmakers, or musicians, we can find people who are top-notch professionals in the field we want to be in and we can imitate them. Find professionals working in proximity to your Mount Everest—the ones who are at the top of their game. These are the people who can show you the tricks of the trade and give you insight into what it takes to succeed.

  That’s The Proximity Principle at work!

  LEARNING FROM PROFESSIONALS

  As an aspiring broadcaster, I had a lot to learn about the art of interviewing. I wanted to learn from the greats who’d inspired me, like Larry King, Bob Costas, and David Frost. I knew it was unlikely that I’d have the opportunity to sit down with them, but there was so much I wanted to learn. So I did my research.

  I spent hours on the internet watching Larry King, learning his approach—how he allowed a certain silence after he posed a question and how his demeanor affected his guests. I paid attention to how Bob Costas was engaged and present but always poised to ask the perfect follow-up question. I studied David Frost’s zingers and distinctive personality. By watching and studying them, I was able to try on various approaches. I borrowed their tools and tactics. And I gained a wealth of wisdom through the work I put in.

  Watching professionals on the internet or on television is a useful tactic, but you can’t stop there. You need to go deeper, and that means finding a few professionals to talk to and learn from face-to-face. Emmy Award-winning broadcaster Ernie Johnson of TNT was one of the first professional broadcasters I got to sit down with. I’d seen Ernie do interviews on TV and admired how effortlessly he navigated the set with huge personalities like Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal. Ernie is somehow able to put these guys at ease, and he seems to be having so much fun with them that you forget he’s actually working! I wanted to be able to imitate that skill. So when I had the opportunity to interview him for a leadership podcast, I jumped at the chance. And the cool thing is, we went to the same church and had a mutual friend. So I used that connection to ask for a personal visit with him. I knew there was a risk that he’d say no, but it was a risk I just had to take. I would’ve kicked myself if I didn’t at least try! And it worked! I was able to get a couple of meetings with him and hear his story.

  It takes a lot of hard work to appear effortless.

  As I spent time with Ernie, I learned that it’s the hard work he does behind the scenes that allows him to be so spontaneous live. Before he takes his seat on the set, he does a ton of preparation and research. He pours over players’ statistics and storylines in relation to the teams that are matching up that night. He arrives on set at about one o’clock in the afternoon, shortly after lunch, and he’s there until after midnight most nights.

  Ernie Johnson helped me understand that it takes a lot of hard work to appear effortless. My short time speaking with him showed me how his preparation was the source of his confidence. Hearing about the sacrifices he made—the late nights and the time away from his family—and the countless hours he put in to become one of the most talented sports broadcasters in America was fascinating. And it gave me incredible energy.

  Preparing for the Pros

  When you have the opportunity to spend time with pros—whether a celebrity or a local business person—it’s important to follow Ernie’s example and arrive prepared. This isn’t just a matter of maximizing your time with that person so you get the most out of the conversation. It’s a matter of respect. These professionals are giving their time, probably one of their most valuable resources. Honoring their time is a great way to honor them.

  I love the story my friend Brad tells about his development as a head coach. After he was hired in his first job, he began to look around at the other successful coaches in his city. He called Coach Reynolds, who’d won three state titles, and asked him if he could visit. Coach Reynolds agreed, but he told Brad he only had a half hour before practice to talk, so Brad arrived promptly, showing up prepared with well-researched and focused questions. Brad even kept a timer on his phone to be sure he didn’t take up more than the allotted thirty minutes. Coach Reynolds was so impressed with Brad’s respect, timeliness, and hunger to learn that he invited Brad back to watch several practices! Brad says the strategies he absorbed as a young coach from top-level professionals like Coach Reynolds have made an invaluable impact on his success.

  This is the same mind-set you need to have when you approach professionals. Just like Brad, show up prepared and be respectful, proving that you mean business and want to be intentional. With that mind-set, you’ll get so many more opportunities to learn from the best in your field. And there’s always a lot to learn!

  Steps to Learning from the Pros

  You have to learn from the best of the best in order to become one of the best. When learning from professionals, you want to focus on doing three things:

  1. Learn Their Tricks of the Trade

  2. Develop Your Own Method

  3. Understand that Wisdom Comes from Experience

  Let’s dive a little deeper into these three key areas.

  Learn Their Tricks of the Trade

  You have to learn from the best of the best in order to become one of the best.

  The first thing you’ll want to focus on when studying the pros is their tricks of the trade. By this, I mean the actual skills, hacks, and techniques that keep professionals at the top. As a basketball fan, I was always fascinated by Kobe Bryant’s approach to the game. His dad had been a professional basketball player, and Kobe grew up relentlessly studying game film. Even as a young kid, he didn’t just watch the professionals of his era, he studied old tapes of the greatest players in basketball history. Kobe would pick up different tricks from each one. He copied Oscar Robertson’s hesitation moves, modeled Elgin Baylor’s footwork, and practiced Jerry West’s quick-shooting release. Later, as a high school player, he tested these tools out during his games. Kobe Bryant, the player who would later score eighty-one points in a professional game and who is considered one of the greatest NBA players of all time, was dedicated to studying the professionals in the game of basketball and integrating their techniques into his own game.15

  Develop Your Own Method

  Remember, when studying the pros, the goal is not to imitate exactly how they do things. Your job is to watch and learn what methods they used to help them succeed, then make them your own.

  Take Ryan, for instance. Ryan was learning the ropes of a new sales job in logistics and was determined to learn from the best. He sought out the top performers in his company and asked if he could spend a day making sales calls with each of them. A couple of them agreed.

  Ryan first flew to the Midwest to spend a day with Mike, a sales pro who was gregarious, funny, loud, and full of personality. When I say “full of personality,” I mean Mike would visit clients on Halloween wearing a costum
e! But Mike was also the type of sales representative who knew the names of his clients’ spouses and children and was focused on spending quality time with people, even if it put him a little behind schedule. Ryan took extensive notes during the sales call, then flew home eager to learn even more from the next professional that had agreed to let him tag along. He drove south and went on a few calls with Claire, another high-achieving sales representative in his company. Claire’s approach was completely different from Mike’s. Claire was particular, efficient, and businesslike in all of her calls. While she didn’t seem to have the same type of personal relationship with her clients, she was polite, well received, and it was clear her clients had full confidence in her. Ryan couldn’t imagine Claire dressing up for Halloween, but her approach was just as effective.

  These two high achievers couldn’t have been more different! When he got home, Ryan got to work “trying on” the different methods he learned from Mike and Claire. But imitating their style was not the way to go. He had to find a way to interact with his clients that worked best for him. Because of the time he spent observing both of these highly successful professionals in his field, Ryan had a baseline of successful methods to model and make his own.

  There are a variety of ways to work in your field and be successful. Some people work best when decked out in a power suit while others work better in jeans (or even a Halloween costume). Studying the pros will help you come up with what’s best for you.

  Understand that Wisdom Comes from Experience

  You can gain a lot of wisdom from the setbacks professionals have faced on their climb.

  Wisdom is only gained through experience. When you sit down to learn from professionals, pay close attention to their stories. Listen to how they got to the top and don’t overlook their struggles. Remember, there’s no perfect path. You can gain a lot of wisdom from the setbacks and challenges professionals have faced on their climb. Vernon Law said, “Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lesson afterward.” Every professional has learned a few lessons the hard way. Here are a few questions to keep in mind as you dig into their stories: