Alan Stein, Jr. is a performance coach, consultant, speaker, and author, who spent 15 years working with the highest-performing basketball players on the planet. He now delivers high-energy keynotes and interactive workshops that teach businesses and organizations how to develop championship-like performance, cohesion, and accountability. He inspires and empowers everyone he works with to take immediate action and improve mindset, habits, and productivity. In other words, Alan teaches how to utilize the same strategies in business that elite athletes (like Lebron James and Stephen Curry, for example) use to perform at a world-class level.
In June, Alan had the distinct honor of giving the commencement speech at Gaithersburg High School’s 2018 graduation. During his speech, he shared three impactful lessons regarding “writing the next chapter of your life.” Regardless of what current chapter of life you are in, or what’s ahead for you, take note of the lessons Alan shares below.
Lesson 1: Find Your Calling
Your calling may be front and center in your life, or it might be something you have dig deep to uncover. Alan poses a great question, “How do you find your true calling?”
First, find what you love to do, figure out what you’re really good at, and discover where those two points intersect. You have to consistently put in the work and give your best effort with your “winning mindset.”
Lesson 2: Learning Never Stops
You will always be a work in progress.
You will never be finished.
You will always be under construction.
Alan’s best advise to being a forever learner is, “You need to strive for improvement every single day. You need to make learning a daily ritual.” The application of your knowledge is your most powerful weapon when it comes to leadership and changing your life.
Lesson 3: Invest Your Time
Alan believes time is, without question, your most precious resource. He has defined three indisputable truths about time in relation to your personal hourglass:
- You don’t know how much sand is at the top of your hour glass. Time is not promised and it is not guaranteed. Every one of us knows someone whose sand has run out unexpectedly.
- You can’t stop the sand from going to the bottom of your hourglass. Time can’t be stopped or paused— it is ever fleeting. The clock is always ticking and the calendar is always flipping.
- Once the sand hits the bottom of your hourglass, it’s gone forever! You can’t save time and you can get time back. Yesterday’s newspaper has already been printed.
Make decisions today that will lead to success tomorrow. “If you make good decisions, you will have a good life. If you make great decisions, you will have a great life,” Alan remarked. Life is made up of little decisions… What are you going to do today that will lead to a happy, fulfilled, significant life?
The key to raising leadership performance lies in the ability to actively listen, embrace change, and close Performance Gaps (the gap between knowing and doing). This can only be achieved by utilizing effective strategies for guarding your time, filling your bucket (so you can pour into others), and inviting your focus in the present moment. Alan’s program, Raise Your Game: What the Highest Performers Do During Unseen Hours is essential for anyone who wants to raise his or her leadership performance and personal influence. Bring Alan to your upcoming meeting or event by contacting Michelle Joyce. Check back every Friday for additional featured speakers!
