If you are looking for a good book on excellence and improvement you should take a look at What Got You Here Wont Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith. But if you are looking for real world examples of what it takes to stay on top you need not look any further than the Manning brothers. You may know them as Peyton and Eli. You may know them as Super Bowl Champions. You may not know they were coached by now Duke University head football coach David Cutcliffe while they were in college and that he continues to be a mentor to them.

Last week both Manning boys wanted to review some fundamentals. They put together their own minicamp at Duke and each brought a few receivers from their team. This isn’t their first trip to Duke to see Cutcliffe. Eli was back two years ago and Peyton spent a good deal of time as he recovered from his neck surgery. In this case, Peyton said, “Eli and I wanted to be coached like we were college freshman again.” Cutcliffe picked up on that comment, “Peyton clearly understands, like most great athletes, if you are not careful, the smallest things are what go after you’ve played a great length of time. The fundamentals need to be retooled.” I would add that this doesn’t apply just to athletes. It applies to winners in all pursuits. Leadership and sales fundamentals need to be retooled too. Those little things that helped you get ahead way back when STILL matter and when you stop doing them you will fall from the top spot.

Cutcliffe quipped that he has known Eli since he was going to see the Lion King at the movies when Peyton was at Tennessee. Eli replied. “He is always a great source to have…someone to talk to who is going to tell you the truth and not what you want to hear, but what you need to hear to keep improving.” Who do you have as a source for you to talk to, to tell you the truth, and tell you what you need to hear. Most of us don’t have that person. Cutcliffe can see the work ethic by the fact they showed up. He can also see the fundamentals in their execution. It may be a bit harder for you and me to find that mentor but that doesn’t make it any less important. Perhaps that makes it more important. I was blessed with a mentor to me for several years in my business. Sadly, he passed away and I still miss his coaching, cajoling and challenging.

Last weekend I attended an elite retreat with 60 speakers. There were some minimum standards to qualify to attend and the small group made it easy to interact and exchange with others who are successful in the industry. Some of the attendees make millions a year. (I would settle for a million!) While it may not be a private minicamp with a valued mentor it was an important opportunity and now I need to review my notes and get to implementing.

What is your plan to mentor and be mentored? Who is your truth teller? You may elevate your game without this person but it will be easier and faster with them.

This entry was posted on Monday, April 15th, 2013 at 2:20 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.