Resources to Support
The Performance Talk Chapter
Self-Development
Nineteen Stars by Kevin Puryear discusses the roles of skill, preparation and luck in a career by reviewing the lives of four top American generals from World War II. The lives of generals, Marshall, Eisenhower, Patton and MacArthur will give you insight into how you can manage in a variety of career situations.
You'll also find a lot of great career advice in the book Winning, by former GE CEO Jack Welch. This book developed out of the questions that audience members asked Welch at his many speaking engagements. It's got good practical focus. You'll find lots that's helpful here, no matter what size organization you're in.
There are lots of success books out there and many of them are very good. But my pick for the best is The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You are to Where You Want to Be by Jack Canfield. You may know Canfield as the co-author of the Chicken Soup series of books, but he's also one of the most knowledgeable folks there is about success strategies.
You will need to develop specific knowledge, skills and abilities for specific industries, companies and jobs. But no matter where you're working you have to deal with time and energy management. Here are two excellent resources to help you.
Getting Things Done: the Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen is the only "time management" book I recommend because it's not really about time management. It's about workflow, and that's far more helpful in today's fast-paced, multi-tasking world.
The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz is about the management of energy, how to maintain it, conserve it and concentrate it.
And there is Six Sigma. This is a concept that's become overburdened with a reputation for delivering almost magical results through statistical analysis. In truth, Six Sigma is not so much about statistical analysis as it is about maintaining consistent performance.
The system improves the consistency of performance through two sets of tools. There are tools for disciplined problem analysis. And there are statistical tools for managing processes over time.
Most managers will benefit from the disciplined problem solving methods. Only a few need to learn to use the statistical tools.
There are lots of books on Six Sigma, but the best resource I've found is the iSixSigma web site. You'll be able to dip into this big subject at several points, take what you need and move on. There are also pointers to other excellent resources.
I've prepared some guidelines to help you put together your own self-development plan. Request your free copy using the form below.
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