Most people have it all wrong.
Every time someone comes to me for advice – as a young American did last week – I give the same dull, unexciting advice. Study.
I said, “If you go into a room confident that you know more about the subject that anyone else, believe me, that is a marvellous feeling.”
Every time someone interviews me, as someone did last week, and asks about the secret of success, I say the same dull thing. Study.
I said, and I meant it, that any success I have had is nothing to do with me. I get down on my knees every night and thank God for the people who are more talented than me but can’t be bothered to study.
Blithering idiots.
Their ignorance and sloth are astounding
A study of senior marketers which I love quoting sought to find out what they knew. It was found that if every respondent had answered “I don’t know” to every question, they would as a whole have got better average marks than they did.
All success and happiness, of a nation, a person or business starts with knowing more. I sold my agency to the firm – Ogilvy and Mather – that was most dedicated to training, not to Grey who offered a better deal but only cared about money.
In the New York Times a piece by Nicholas Kristof points out that in those nations which are doing best, like Singapore and South Korea, teachers are paid more than lawyers.
In those nations, teachers are highly respected and paid better than lawyers and engineers.
In the U.S. a good starting lawyer takes home $115,000 more than a good starting teacher.
No lawyer can set you up for life. A good teacher can.
By not paying enough to teachers and too much to legal vultures, shoddy local politicians and financial drones we are mortgaging our children’s future.
Of all the things I do, training is by far the most valuable.
“Knowledge itself is power” – Francis Bacon.
P. S. I see the bloody machine that sets up these blogs has started playing silly buggers with the type again.
P. P. S. Was that piece a subtle promotion for my seminars? No. But since you ask, I have lost count of the number of people who say I help them succeed. I get at least one message a day saying so.
P. P. S. Should I also say that I am fast approaching 15 years past the age when many people retire, so this could be your last chance?
P.S. the silly buggers are just techies at work trying to control the wold. By the way, teachers must be paid more than lawyers for sure. In many countries, teachers have to pay up to 12 times their salary as donation (operating capital) to get a job in private institutions. How far away are these countries from the ideal situation?
Who does Drayton Bird study these days?
regards
Warren
Mostly a) stuff to do with my clients to try to understand what I should be doing for them. b) books nothing to do with marketing but history or business generally – currentlly Too Big to Fail about the financial collapse and a book I can't find in my flat about the change from the 18th century frankness to Victorian hypocrisy. c) a torrent of emails from liars who promise to make you rich. d) Any book that is well-written. – I am taking Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall with me to the Algarve on Wednesday where I'll spend a week writing and reading.
Few marketing books tell me much I didn't know and most are badly written. Books on other subjects often give me unexpected ideas
Drayton,
Unless something has drastically changed since I left South Korea (as a teacher) in 2008, teachers in that country are most definitely not paid as well as lawyers. Certainly, teaching as a profession is highly respected there, but not a cash cow in any sense. A large portion of people there do aspire to teaching as a profession mainly for the great job security it provides if one is able to surmount the rigorous educational and testing standards required before even being granted an interview for a possible, not guaranteed by a long shot, position. If one is lucky enough to pass the hurdles and land a teaching job, he or she is inarguably 'set for life', but certainly not paid “more than lawyers”.
That said, I do not disagree with the intention of your remarks. Teachers SHOULD be paid more than lawyers. They contribute a hell of a lot more to the world in one day than the infinite law & finance drone zombies could ever hope to achieve in a lifetime.
Best-LM
Funny you should bring this up – the NYTimes also just broke the story this morning that the state is passing a budget that does not propose any new taxes to the uber-wealthy, but instead cuts the budgets of education and health care. Are those bloated budgets? Yes. But do New York students need better education. Bigger yes. Quite a conundrum…
If I go to a seminar or any kind of meeting, I do my study beforehand but expect and hope that I will meet people that I can learn from (and not just the presenters).
Let us know when you find the title of the “book I can't find in my flat about the change from the 18th century frankness to Victorian hypocrisy.”
It'd be interesting to see that documented.
All the best in the Algarve,
BT
Trouble is, studying is hard work. It's much easier to demand a slice of the cake the successful students go on to bake.
Warmly,
Jon
Totally agree. Everyone has an insatiable desire to learn until the education system and envy/sloth trains it out of them. The most listened to TED talk of all time covers this; I highly recommend taking the 20 mins or so to listen to Sir Ken Robinson at http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html