Leadership Soft Skills: Learning Agility
Posted by Orrin Woodward on February 8, 2013
Learning Agility
The second soft skill that every leader ought to develop is learning agility. Learning agility is an individual’s readiness, willingness, and ability to learn from experience. Since everyone makes mistakes, it’s the ability to learn from them that separates the winners from the losers in life. When a winner suffers a setback, he uses the experience as a teachable moment to improve. Unfortunately, however, when a loser suffers a setback, he quickly uses the experience to blame someone or something for his defeat. Evidently, people who blame others cannot comprehend that they are their own worst enemies. Indeed, when a person blames others for any situation, he absolves himself from responsibility, thus ensuring further failures in the future. A much better alternative would be to accept personal responsibility for the outcome and ask what he could do better in the future. There is always an answer to this simple question, and it leads to personal growth when applied, which is the key to leadership development!
This, in truth however, isn’t the whole story when it comes to learning agility. For there is a second part of learning agility that is just as important, namely, learning from the experience of others. Because a person cannot live long enough to personally experience every teachable moment, he must learn to borrow experiences from other winners in the game of life. Thankfully, this can be achieved through reading, listening, and associating with winners. This, in fact, is what the LIFE business is: a ready-made path of reading, listening, and associating! Indeed, with nearly 25% of all monthly subscriptions moved to customers that are not part of the LIFE Compensation Plan, our materials have proven to be viable, valuable, and affordable in the marketplace. Materials include CDs, DVDs, books, online videos, and live events, which the LIFE business has packaged into reading, listening, and associating segments to grow a person’s learning agility.
For instance, the Mental Fitness Challenge, at $220 for the 13-week course, is a steal at twice that price. Why then, does LIFE sell its world-class information for such a ridiculously low price? Because all of the LIFE Founders started their personal development careers with little to no money and had to stretch personally, professionally, and financially to achieve success. We vowed that if we ever started our own company, we would do it differently. Finally, when the doors opened to start our own leadership and personal development company, we fulfilled that vow. Learning agility, then, is not just learning from one’s own experiences, but also borrowing the experiences of others who are growing personally and professionally. There is no better way to do that than by joining the LIFE community as either a Customer or Member and reading, listening, and associating one’s way to success.
The LIFE business is no longer an unproven theory. For thousands of people have experienced the positive effects of learning agility in their lives. Finances have changed, marriages have improved, and leadership has been developed. By any leadership standard, learning agility is certainly one of the keys. The question is: What is the reader doing today to enhance his personal leadership agility? Remember, the quality of one’s life is in direct proportion to the quality of questions asked and answered.
Sincerely,
33 Responses to “Leadership Soft Skills: Learning Agility”
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Randy Robson said
Great stuff! Orrin Woodward, Chris Brady, George Guzzardo, Claude Hamilton, Bill Lewis, Dan Hawkins, Wayne MacNamara, and Tim Marks have such great blogs! I love the information being taught in the LIFE business. Thank you!
Rick Monsipapa said
The MFC is maybe the best training that had lasting impact on my professional relationships.
Christine Fleury said
Thanks for another great post!
So incredible…what a brilliant idea for a business?! Could it be any better? Until LIFE I never thought something like this existed, much less that I could do it. And thanks to the hearts of all the great leadership, it keeps getting better and better!
Thanks so much for all you do to offer us the best shot at winning in life.
Chrissy
theresa buggia said
It is truly an honor to be a part of such a learning program as LIFE… the ripple effects of the knowledge gained and are truly endless!
Chad Waters said
Great Blog Orrin
Life has such great products that could be sold for way more. I love how we serve to the masses vs the classes! The mental fitness challenge has changed my life and many others and will continue changing many more!
What a great company with a great mission!
Elaine Mallios said
A huge impact on our life! The materials rock! It’s so much better to accept responsibility when things go wrong….otherwise you are unable to correct it or make necessary changes. I just devour the information. Serving others to do the same is what we are all about.
Peggi Kern said
This soft skill, leadership agility, doesn’t come naturally for me, so I’m especially grateful for the information I’ve learned through books, audios and the association of others who are striving for excellence. Using mistakes and setbacks as teachable moments and taking full responsibility for my results is liberating! Thanks so much for the article.
Rick Green said
All to often, people talk about “Leaving a Legacy”…
In my humble opinion, there is no longer lasting legacy that you would be able to give the world, had you not stood firm on making these materials available to people from all walks of life, not just the upper crust of society, right from the beginning. Thank-you, for your vision and what it has accomplished….
God Bless!
Jonathan Brandenberger said
Love your blog Orrin!
Steve Duba said
Thanks O. Being involved in the LIFE organization has totally launched our lives in a new direction.The reading definitely is key to
the stretching process. When you realize your in the right place,it just plain makes you smile every where you go. An example of that
place is from a book that came down in system recently. Warren Bennis book On Becoming a leader,page 161 “I think you have to trust in a man who has vision and can make you see that his vision is the right thing to do.Sounds like I’m in the right place.
Godspeed Orrin, We believe….
J & P Harteis said
Thanks Orrin! Fear of failure begins to look more like a “cop-out”, the more we learn about personal responsibility & the ability to learn from the mistakes we make! The MFC has certainly helped the process! How can we make a difference in the world, if we are unable to make a differnce in our personal lives! Thanks for leading the way!
Jan Duba said
Thank you Orrin for continuing to stretch yourself. No matter how long we have been developing our willingness and ability to learn we will never be finished. It is incredible, not just to see us change, but to watch and listen to the others who we are helping in the process. With the grace and guidance of our Lord, we will perservere. God Bless you in this journey.
Matthew Scott said
Thank you again Orrin! Fear of failure and rejection and the attendant inaction had closed the doors to excellence in my life. But not tonight and never again! I’m no longer petrified of the mine field to success and am happy to borrow from the experiences of those who have mapped out less perilous and more efficient ways. Keep up the good work!
Penny Tahtinen said
Thanks Orrin! I like that, remembering set backs as teachable moments. We want our children to learn from teachable moments but forget we need to do the same. This was a great way to remember what I need to do during a set back followed by a little PDCA.
Wendi Witkowski said
Thanks for this awesome series. I love being in a community that has a proven strategy for overall success.
Mike Bercier said
Great blog Orrin!! I have personally used others experiences to help me learn about my profession in the military. It is not only beneficial but, also something that they teach…lessons learned.
renee Oettinger said
It is so wonderful to have all these LIFE to learn from. It definitely quickens the learning process
Anthony Nieto said
Without the LIFE business I would have been lost. Being able to learn from others experience who have the fruit is the greatest advantage to life. Thanks Orrin
Kevin Hamm said
Great post and looking forward to the rest of the series. Also looking forward to another great LIFE Live seminar today.
John Morrison said
Once again Thank you. I appreciate the fact you continue to share & serve.
Jessica Sorensen said
This is so true! I never thought reading, listening, and associating could change my life in my thinking, actions, and results so much. I can never get enough of the cd’s and books. Information is truly key to success in life and has improved mine, my husbands, and our families lives and wouldn’t change that for anything. Thank you so much for these blogs and everything you have done. Your determination to make a difference and develop an opportunity so life changing to everyone who has the desire has given me and my husband a hope for the future that wouldn’t have been possible without LIFE.
Bob Rasmussen said
Great truth posted Orrin! I just received a text from an overjoyed and emotional young lady who has used our financial information to become debt free!! She is in her middle twentys and used the experiences of others to put herself in a great position financially! She is just one of tens of thousands who are creating a better life through learning agility and the truth taught in the life program developed through real experience!! Fired up!! Bob
davidhunter said
Enjoyed being reminded,&fortified with fasttrack truth. Thx !,DWH
Christie Simpkins said
What a great insight to have on the topic of learning from our own mistakes. I have found in my own life, that once I started applying this principal in all areas of my life & relationships. I have become much more successful in all areas of life by default. In my marriage, my parenting, my interaction with family members & my job. I credit this new found happiness & sense of true learning & expanding my mind, to the LIFE program & the principals you learn from it. I am truly blessed & grateful to Orrin Woodward & the LIFE program for helping me live the life I have always wanted.
SJ Barakony said
Very insightful post on a topic that far too many don’t (yet!) understand. Definitely included me until this purpose with a business wrapped around it found me through a courageous friend of mine 😀
Jim Martin said
I love seeing your blog email me everytime you put up a new post! It’s also great to see our commuinty commenting on your post because there is so much wisdom you share here on a daily basis.
LT-IT
Michael Hartmann said
I think this article is a great compliment to Chapter 12 in The Magic of Thinking Big – Use Goals to Help You Grow. Author David J. Schwartz encourages everyone to prepare a long term goals for their lives but to be prepared to take detours in stride. “It’s rare a person who has achieved a high-level of success and who has not had to take detours – many of them.” Through learning agility, when we hit a detour, we don’t have to change our goals. We just learn the lesson and travel a different route to achieve them.
Alison Ruhlman said
Great post!!
Kim Decker said
Orrin,
Thank you for another great atricle as we all learn how true all these statements are. We must grow first and they reach out to help others grow in their own ways. LOVE IT
robert wilcox said
“Learning agility is an individual’s readiness, willingness, and ability to learn from experience. Since everyone makes mistakes, it’s the ability to learn from them that separates the winners from the losers in life.” I love this Orrin it is kinda funny that everything you talk about we can pinpoint to areas or events or times in our life that these apply. Ok not soo funny 🙂 I love this because we notice the more we are around this great information with both Team System and the Life materials we start to ask better questions to help with our Learning experiences and we ask questions as we read the books! Thanks for Leading and sharing !
Cheryl said
Great post Orrin!
Valente said
Great information!!
Thanks, Orrin
Easton Kelsey said
Association is the soft-skills ‘lab’ where we have the opportunity to apply the principles we are learning and being reminded of. The Community is the key to growth then and what makes ours so special is that each of us has committed to personal growth and many are then able to take the next step and get public victories as we learn to serve, love and lead others.
Thanks LIFE for aligning with my purpose of leading people to not only truth but transformation and therefore…results. LeaderShift 2013!