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“There are times when there is no adequate substitute for experience.”

A thought by John C. Maxwell, from his book, The Difference Maker (p. 22). HarperCollins Leadership. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

But John says, “The problem with experience, however, is that you rarely have it until after you need it.”

He goes on, “Experience is often a hard teacher because the test is given first and the lessons come afterward. That’s probably why the old quote says, ‘When a person with experience meets a person with money, the person with experience will get the money, and the person with the money will get the experience!’

He continues, “Back when I thought that attitude was everything, I tried to hire people with the best attitudes and figured I could get them up to speed in their skills. Now that I am older and more experienced, I realize that I had things backward. Now I hire primarily for skill and experience. Here’s why: When it comes to talent and skill, a person can grow only a limited amount. On a scale from one to ten, most people can improve in a skill area only about two points. So, for example, if you are naturally a ‘6’ as a leader, you may be able to grow to an ‘8’ if you work at it. However, if you are a ‘2,’ you can work as hard as you want and you will never reach even average. The old saying of coaches is true: You can’t get out what God didn’t put in.

“Attitude, however, is a different matter. There is no growth ceiling. Even a person with a ‘2’ attitude can grow to become a ‘10.’ So even someone whose attitude isn’t the best can turn that around.”

He then says, “On the day that I decided as a leader to hire only people with successful track records to key positions in my organization, my professional life changed. The entire team became more productive, and my organization began going to another level. That’s not to say that I began hiring people with bad attitudes; I didn’t. It wasn’t an either/or decision. It was a both/and decision. Competence, experience, and positive attitude are a winning combination.”

So much for us to learn as leaders, isn’t there? 

Yes, yes!
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