High School graduation was a long time ago for me. In fact, this summer, I celebrated 25 years since my peers and I loped through our alma mater’s blue and gold halls. Now, I have two high school students of my own. But this blog is not about the ins and outs of guiding kids into independent adulthood. It’s kind of the opposite.
For years I have been following Brian Johnson and his work at Optimize.me. I love his passion for learning and applying that learning through his Philosopher’s Notes. One day, a book popped up in my inbox that he had reviewed by Cal Newport, How to Become a Straight-A Student. I wish I had noted in my journal why I decided to pick up this book and then its sequel, How to Be a High School Superstar, but instead, just the other day, I stumbled upon the notes I took while reading these books.
It was a “just at the right time” moment that I opened that old journal to the pages where I summarized my thoughts on this reading. Because the next day, in a meeting with three of my Momentum Activator Clients, the notes became relevant.
We were talking about the challenges that come with doing what we love. Seems paradoxical, right? If we are doing what we love, why would there be any challenges? For high achievers, working hard is a sign you are succeeding. So, when we start getting into a “flow state” where ideas and business come easily, we can trip ourselves and create “hard work” situations.
But Cal Newport has three laws: The Law of Underscheduling, The Law of Focus, and The Law of Innovation that guide the high achiever, superstar student to get into college without burning out.
And after reading his books, I made some notes in my journal – because his laws apply to high achievers in business as well.
Here’s what I said in my notes:
June 13, 2021
Listening to How to Be a High School Superstar by Cal Newport is causing me to think about how high achievers in business manage time and success in general and why it goes wrong when they own a business.
1. Overscheduling – Filling the calendar with more than we can handle because we are “get it done” kinds of people.
2. Doing activities that “look” successful – Posting on social media, taking on volunteer and leadership roles, writing books, starting podcasts, etc.
3. Waiting for approval from an outside source – Not allowing ourselves to feel success until we get:
a. Hired by a dream client
b. Awards
c. Money
4. Equating “busy” with “successful” – Filling our schedule with minutiae instead of focusing on deep work.
5. Being at all the “right” things but not feeling good/happy – Similar to imposter syndrome, this stems from following others’ prescribed paths but lacks connection to our values, unique experiences, and skills.
6. Only playing when the work is done – Instead of seeing “play” and rest as part of the formula for reaching success, these are seen as only available when work is done, which it never is!
If students can follow his “laws” to reach the biggest success goal available when they become adults; then we as business owners can also apply these ideas to reach our biggest success goal:
To have a business we can sell, that outlives us.
And we can do it in a relaxed way that taps into our unique experiences and skill set.
