How to Learn from Others' Successes

Be close to those whose today looks like your tomorrow. We all have dreams, of career growth, financial independence or a life of impact. Then there struggle to achieve them. Often, we want to give up due to lack of support. Proximity to the right people can accelerate our journey. A simple truth is: Every dream we have, someone is already living it. What should we do? 1. Stop only looking Up, start looking around Do not look to far ahead, there are many just a few steps ahead. People we can talk to. Observe. Work with. Shadow. Learn from. Being close does not always mean physical presence, it can be: • Reading their content • Listening to their talks • Attending their webinars • Engaging on LinkedIn • Or even asking for mentorship You do not need to know them personally to learn from them. But you must be intentional. 2. Do not intellectualise too much, just ask “How Did You Do It?” Most people ask successful individuals what they did. Few ask why they did it that way. Be curious about: • Their decision-making process • What they stopped doing to grow • Mistakes they would avoid if starting today • Their mindset during hard times These conversations offer insights we will not find in books or courses. 3. Provide before you seek Want someone more experienced to guide or support you? Do not just ask for help. Offer value. • Help them with research • Offer feedback • Support their projects • Share their work genuinely The best mentorships are not one way. 4. Audit your circle Look at the five people you spend the most time with. Are they moving toward something? Are they growing? Or are they just complaining, coasting or stuck? Proximity to energy, ambition and belief matters more than proximity to comfort. 5. Be “That Person” for someone else The most beautiful part of this journey? Someone will one day look at your life and think: “Their today looks like my dream. I want to be around them.” Do not chase people for status. Seek people for substance. Be close to those whose today looks like your tomorrow and then become that person for someone. Grow. Learn. Rise.

Are you creating an environment for success or just waiting for one? My key to success is not what I achieve—it's how I elevate those around me. It's less about me and more about sharpening skills and learning from others. We are a reflection of our environment. If you're not thriving, you have the power to create a new one. So how are you actively growing today? Here’s how you can start elevating yourself and others: ✨ Sharpen the ax – What are the podcasts you're listening to? What are the books you're reading? Your personal growth directly impacts the growth of those around you. ✨ Share best practices – In my team meetings, we dedicate time to discuss what we're learning. It's a chance to sharpen each other’s skills and bring new insights to the table. ✨ Seek out expertise – I actively found people who were excelling in areas where I needed growth, learned from them, and assimilated their strategies into my own. ✨ Collaborate to grow – Even when I didn’t have the technical expertise, I would listen to my technical specialists and architects. Then, I'd step up and apply their knowledge to make myself stronger. ✨ Build a better environment – Your environment should foster growth. If it doesn’t, create a new one. Surround yourself with people, ideas, and challenges that push you forward. Success isn't accidental—it's a result of constant learning, collaboration, and adaptation. We’re always going to be a conglomeration of our environment. Your environment shapes your growth, and the key to leveling up is learning from those around you. Elevate your environment, and you’ll elevate yourself. What are you doing today to ensure your environment is driving your success? #LeadershipMatters #ContinuousImprovement #SharpenTheAx #BestPractices #CollaborativeGrowth #ElevateOthers #SuccessMindset #LearningCulture #GrowthEnvironment

Comparison for personal growth? No way could those two be connected... particularly in a world constantly bombarded with images of success, right? And you're probably thinking, how could I be smiling that big for something that seems so negative. Well, the bad news is that it's easy to fall into the trap of comparing ourselves to others. But the good news is, that when used correctly, comparison can actually be a powerful tool for growth and development. How do you turn this green-eyed monster into your greatest ally? 1️⃣ Identify role models. Don't see other people's wins as your losses. Then you are already defeated and now actively going against yourself. Find inspiration in those who have achieved what you aspire to. Study their journey, understand their strategies and learn from their experiences. 2️⃣ Measure progress, not perfection. Instead of comparing yourself to others' highlights, compare your current self to your past self (read the book: The Gap & The Gain by Dan Sullivan). Track your progress over time and celebrate every win. 3️⃣ Embrace healthy competition. Use comparison to your advantage by flipping comparison into your favorite teacher. Turn jealousy into showing you what is important and what is possible. 4️⃣ Learn from other's mistakes. Comparison doesn't just highlight success stories; it also showcases failures and challenges. Use these insights to avoid pitfalls and make more informed decisions on your own journey. 5️⃣ Connect and collaborate. Don't turn other people into a problem. People can be your greatest asset to anything. Reach out to those your admire or who are on a similar journey. Collaboration can lead to new opportunities, shared knowledge and mutual respect. ⭐⭐⭐ Remember, you're not playing against other people; you're playing with them, and there is enough of everything to go around for everyone. Comparison is only a pitfall if we let it be. Cheers to consciously and strategically using comparison as a tool to help drive ourselves towards continuous improvement and meaningful success!

Stop COMPARING. Start learning. Comparison steals your power, unless you leverage its potential. Here's how to shift from powerless comparison to powerful growth: ❌ "I'll never be as good as them." ✅ "What can I learn from their approach?" ❌ "They got lucky." ✅ "What did they do that I haven't tried?" ❌ "Must be nice to have those connections." ✅ "How can I build relationships like that?" ❌ "They don't deserve that success." ✅ "What are they doing that's working?" ❌ "I should be further along by now." ✅ "What's my next milestone?" ❌ "Everyone else is ahead of me." ✅ "I'm on my own timeline." ❌ "Why does everything come easy to them?" ✅ "What's their system I'm not seeing?" ❌ "I can't compete with that." ✅ "What's my unique angle?" ❌ "They're just more talented." ✅ "Talent is one factor. What else can I control?" Noticing what others achieve? ✅ Natural. Using it to tear yourself down? ❌ Stop. Here's what the research explains about why this matters: 1️⃣ Social comparison theory shows upward comparison lowers self-regard. ↳ Psychologist Leon Festinger's foundational research found that comparing yourself to those you perceive as "better" tends to damage self-esteem—unless you reframe it as learning. 2️⃣ Your mindset determines whether comparison helps or hurts. ↳ Carol Dweck's research at Stanford shows people with a growth mindset see others' success as evidence that improvement is possible. Fixed mindset sees it as proof of their own limitations. 3️⃣ "Benign envy" outperforms admiration for motivation. ↳ Niels van de Ven's research found that when you believe self-improvement is attainable, seeing someone succeed triggers motivation to act. When you think it's out of reach, you just admire from afar and stay stuck. 4️⃣ Attribution matters: luck vs. effort. ↳ Bernard Weiner's attribution theory shows that high achievers attribute success to effort and strategy (controllable factors), while low achievers attribute it to luck or talent (uncontrollable). The questions you ask determine what you can change. 5️⃣ You're comparing to a highlight reel. ↳ Research on social media comparison shows we consistently overestimate others' advantages while discounting their effort, setbacks, and struggles. Comparison isn't the problem. Powerless thinking is. Turn "they have something I don't" into "they know something I can learn." What's one comparison you're reframing into a question? 👇 — john — ♻️➕ John Brewton 📬 Subscribe to Operating by John Brewton for daily perspective on the history, economics, and future of operating companies.

As a founder, one of the most important lessons I’ve learned is this:  “𝑳𝒆𝒕 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔; 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕.” When you’re building a career—or even building a company—it’s easy to slip into comparison mode. You see someone who knows more, has more experience, or seems “ahead,” and instead of learning from them, you feel threatened. But here’s the truth: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗱𝗼𝗺 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲. Here’s how to shift your mindset and thrive by learning from those around you: 1️⃣ 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 ↳ Other people’s skills don’t diminish your value. ↳ Their strengths can highlight gaps you can learn from and improve on. 2️⃣ 𝐎𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐭 ↳ Pay attention to how successful leaders make decisions, handle challenges, or communicate with their teams. ↳ Real-world examples are often better than any textbook. 3️⃣ 𝐀𝐬𝐤 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞 ↳ Don’t be afraid to ask questions—even simple ones. ↳ Seeking clarity shows confidence, not weakness. 4️⃣ 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐞 ↳ Partnering with smart people expands your reach and impact. ↳ Remember: the biggest wins often come from collective effort, not solo work. 5️⃣ 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐲 ↳ Wisdom is useless unless you act on it. ↳ Test what you’ve learned, adapt it, and make it part of your toolkit. ------ 📌 P.S. In business and in your career, you’ll go further when you stop competing with everyone and start learning from them. ⛔️ Don’t see others as threats. ⛔️ Don’t ignore the lessons right in front of you. ⛔️ Don’t underestimate the power of shared wisdom. What’s one piece of advice you’ve learned from someone else that’s shaped your career? Share below!⬇️ ---------- 📌 Follow me Gav Blaxberg for more content like this. ♻ 𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞, 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 to share with your network ♻