Kade Dworkin

Over the course of the last week I've found myself having to stretch to reach goals that I've put out in front of me.  In return though I've found that I follow a pretty normal process to acquire new skills and the more that I think about this process the more I see it other people's behavioral patterns as well.

Observe

This is the first step after initial discovery.  People take time to observe the landscape of a situation or how the results of an action look.  This first section can also include reading a lot of books, articles and blogs.  This is where most folks try to gain the knowledge so they can replicate the success that they have seen others have on platforms.  Unfortunately so many people get stuck in the observation stage because that's what they're taught in school to do: acquire information and regurgitate it.

Contemplate

The next stage that people get to is the point where they either want to replicate the actions or an opportunity to do so simply presents itself.  This is where people allow themselves to think about the possible consequences of their proposed action and it's in this place that a lack of self confidence kills projects and people's ability to create what they want from life.  They give themselves all the reasons in the world to simply give up and eventually fall into a state of learned helplessness.  I think this is why so many folks (myself included) consume self-help books and yet never change their behavior.  They get in their own way and prevent themselves from simply trying to see if they can achieve any results.

Execute

This is the step that so few people get to, regardless of project size and scope.  It's these folks who risk their own reputation and go out and do something.  I can't tell you how many times I've been approached by students and other audience members after I speak who say they "could never" speak in front of large crowds.  On one hand that makes me really sad because I know that most folks have a great perspective and if they sat down and boiled away all the regurgitated crap that there are some real original thoughts in there that I can learn from.  On the other hand it makes it easier for me to get speaking opportunities so thanks I guess.  The people who get outside their own head and begin to execute are the one's who are heralded as being thought leaders and icons of their area.  That simply isn't the case, they're simply the ones who had the self confidence or simply lacked fear about stepping out on the public square and risking embarrassment.  To be honest, it takes a lot of chutzpa to do this the first time in any area of your life but I know that for me, my friends and even the folks who I have had the honor of mentoring it's worth doing every time.

What do you think of what I'm proposing?  How can you improve this model to make it even simpler and wide reaching?

So if you've been following my twitter account (@kadedworkin) you've seen a series of tweets over the last 10 days basically lamenting the fact that I've been sick.  It's been a long while since I've felt less than 95% for this long.  That stated I've continued to be blown away by how amazing people are.

The first person I'd like to call out is Annie Sorensen (@anniesorensen, anniesorensen.com).  She's so elevated herself from being a work contact that I'm hesitant to even tell folks that I met her because of my job.  Incredibly intelligent and she has the ability to do anything that she sets her mind to.  Top that off with the fact that her husband Nate is one of the few people who I'm desperate to spend more time with.  He possesses such a cool confidence that I wish I had more of.  I suspect that I'll have to make a trip out to Kansas City to see them both before too long.

The next group of folks that I have to thank for making me feel appreciated are the entire Polcyn family.  I knew that Grady (@gradypolcyn) was a stand up guy but I had no idea his parents, sister, aunt and girlfriend were all at the same quality of character.  Massive thanks to Glen (@bgfinancial), Becki, Grady, Paris (@parispolcyn), Jessie and Chantel for making me feel like family the entire time we were in Vegas.  I can't wait to hang out with each of you again and I'll be crushed if I have to wait until the next Vemma convention.

The final person who I've looked forward to interacting with over the last couple of weeks is none other than a member of the RenMen crew, Grant Peelle (@grantpeelle, renmenshow.com).  It's amazing to me how much I'll do to help people who I think are hustling. Every time I receive a DM from Grant or I finally pin him down on the phone I feel like I help bring in to focus the social media puzzle just a little bit more for both him and his and Alan's (his business partner) entire organization. Such a satisfying feeling knowing that he's not only seeking my counsel but then immediately putting it to work for his business.  I get the sense that he's feeling like this is a one way street though where he's constantly taking from our interaction and I won't hesitate to say this publicly: Grant you're teaching me how it's possible to be actively be involved in many different businesses simultaneously.  The Big Bang Dueling Piano bar has a location out there in the C-Bus that I haven't been to yet....we might have to resolve that soon as part of me swinging out there to hang for a bit.

Who are you grateful for either entering your life or stepping up in a more meaningful way since 2010 started? Leave a comment, @ reply or email me if you're not quite ready to share that information publicly.

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Barring the last three days which have been absolutely crazy (and will require me to go back and write more substantive posts) I am going to call the 30 in 30 for January a huge success and the numbers show that.  This more than anything proves that the idea of hustle and creating any content on a regular basis can grow an audience.

Are there some things I would do differently if I were to do it again? You bet. Has this experiment changed the way I think about blogging? No doubt. Will it affect my future behavior on this blog? Without question.  Should be fun to move this one in a direction that hopefully will help both you guys get value and get to know me a bit better.