What's Your Secret Sauce?

Here is a question for you?  What’s in your “Secret Sauce” to success in life?  Have you ever thought about that?  If you do, what is your secret?  If you have not, perhaps you should so that you know (a) what helps you to be successful or (b) an area of growth to increase your success.
 
I woke early this morning to drive to Dallas so that I could attend a professional learning opportunity.  There are some of us that prefer to sleep in our own beds instead of hotels, even if that means leaving the comfort of that bed in the wee hours of the morning to arrive at your destination.  Today was one of those days for me.
 
As I was driving from College Station to Dallas I listened to a couple of podcasts.  My wife, the brilliant Amanda Mann @amann4edu, introduced me to podcasts a few years ago and, as with all things my wife introduces me to, my life took a turn for the better.  Thank you, Amanda.  Little did you know that you created a podcast consuming monster…. Or maybe you did!

​The world of podcasts is a fantastic place.  It is like listening to the radio, but without all the commercials.  I love that. If you do not like what you are listening to, you can just go on to the next podcast.  You are in control of your own learning and consumption… just what adult learners (and kid learners for that matter) need to be engaged in learning.
 
I subscribe to some education related podcasts, but most of them are not related to education at all.  Instead, they are about risk taking, big thinkers, storytelling, funs stuff, and creativity leaders.  These various podcasts help me to think differently about leadership, the principalship, and how to relate to the variety of people I encounter each day.  All from one singe device that I carry in my pocket every day.
 
So what is the point you ask?  The point is, I believe that we must always find ways to push ourselves in our learning and growth.  That is a main ingredient in my secret sauce.  If you do not expose yourself to different thinking, ideas, perspectives, life lessons, stories, and points of view you will lose perspective on the world that is outside of yours.  As a leader can you afford to do that?  Perhaps it is time for you to reevaluate the ingredients of your secret sauce.
 
Think.  Achieve. Succeed.
 
Jeff