Geoff Colvin

One of the most popular Fortune articles in many years was a cover story called: "What It Takes to Be Great." Geoff Colvin offered new evidence that top performers in any field are not determined by their inborn talents. Greatness doesn't come from DNA but from practice and perseverance honed over decades. The key is how you practice, how you analyze the results of your progress and learn from your mistakes, that enables you to achieve greatness.Colvin shows that the skills of business: negotiating deals, evaluating financial statements obey the principles that lead to greatness, so that anyone can get better at them with the right kind of effort. Even the hardest decisions and interactions can be systematically improved.This new mind-set, combined with Colvin's practical advice, will change the way you think about your job and career, and will inspire you to achieve more in all you do.

As technology races ahead, what will people do better than computers?What hope will there be for us when computers can drive cars better than humans, predict Supreme Court decisions better than legal experts, identify faces, scurry helpfully around offices and factories, even perform some surgeries, all faster, more reliably, and less expensively than people?It’s easy to imagine a nightmare scenario in which computers simply take over most of the tasks that people now get paid to do. While we’ll still need high-level decision makers and computer developers, those tasks won’t keep most working-age people employed or allow their living standard to rise. The unavoidable question—will millions of people lose out, unable to best the machine?—is increasingly dominating business, education, economics, and policy.The bestselling author of Talent Is Overrated explains how the skills the economy values are changing in historic ways. The abilities that will prove most essential to our success are no longer the technical, classroom-taught left-brain skills that economic advances have demanded from workers in the past. Instead, our greatest advantage lies in what we humans are most powerfully driven to do for and with one another, arising from our deepest, most essentially human abilities—empathy, creativity, social sensitivity, storytelling, humor, building relationships, and expressing ourselves with greater power than logic can ever achieve. This is how we create durable value that is not easily replicated by technology—because we’re hardwired to want it from humans.These high-value skills create tremendous competitive advantage—more devoted customers, stronger cultures, breakthrough ideas, and more effective teams. And while many of us regard these abilities as innate traits—“he’s a real people person,” “she’s naturally creative”—it turns out they can all be developed. They’re already being developed in a range of far-sighted organizations, such • the Cleveland Clinic, which emphasizes empathy training of doctors and all employees to improve patient outcomes and lower medical costs;• the U.S. Army, which has revolutionized its training to focus on human interaction, leading to stronger teams and greater success in real-world missions;• Stanford Business School, which has overhauled its curriculum to teach interpersonal skills through human-to-human experiences.As technology advances, we shouldn’t focus on beating computers at what they do—we’ll lose that contest. Instead, we must develop our most essential human abilities and teach our kids to value not just technology but also the richness of interpersonal experience. They will be the most valuable people in our world because of it. Colvin proves that to a far greater degree than most of us ever imagined, we already have what it takes to be great.

Never waste a crisis.Some businesses—and some people—will emerge from today’s economic tumult stronger and more dominant than when it started. Others will weaken and fade. It all depends on critical choices they make right now.Geoff Colvin, one of America’s most respected business jour-nalists, says even the scariest turbulence has an upside. The best managers know that conventional thinking won’t help them in tough times. They’re taking smart, practical steps—frequently unconventional and even counterintuitive—that will not only keep them strong, but will also distance them from the pack for years to come.The dozens of top-performing leaders Colvin interviewed reject the common view that slashing costs and firing employ­ees are the only effective tactics. They see volatility as a rich opportunity to reinvent their organizations and lay the ground-work for future growth.Colvin shows us how these strategies really work, using exam-ples of major companies that have successfully applied them.

Paradoxes, the sense of being trapped between a rock and a hard place, are frequently occurring events in everyone’s life. We often ourselves in unchartered territory, out of our comfort zone, needing to make awkward transitions, facing challenging decisions that involve competing alternatives, trying to understand information that does not fit our current frameworks, or wrestling with apparent contradictions. In effect, we find ourselves in a kind of “no-man’s land,” feeling lost or floating as if in a void, that is to say, in a new level of awareness and consciousness. These unsettling experiences can readily lead to tension, confusion, disruption, and troublesome anxiety. While some paradoxes can be dealt with through common sense problem-solving approaches, many are left unresolved. Living with Paradoxes describes a spiritual approach, using a paradox paradigm to understand the situations more deeply, and then turning the problems over to God, trusting in his action, and responding accordingly. The specifics of this approach are described in terms of spiritual supports derived Scripture and spiritual writings considered to be essential elements of a Christian pathway. We then integrate these spiritual supports with practical procedures, including checklists and action responses designed to help you develop a personal plan for living with paradoxes that will enhance your own pathway to a fuller union with God.Living with Paradoxes develops around four chapters:Chapter I: The Reality of Paradoxes describes and defines our use of the term paradox. Instances of conflicting situations giving rise to voids will delineate the critical features of a paradox. Chapter II: Taking A Spiritual Approach introduces the various teachings by spiritual writers on how paradoxes can be an immeasurable source of grace and become part of the fabric of one’s spiritual journey.Chapter III: Key Supports in a Spiritual Approach describes the critical components and practices of a Christian pathway that have particular relevance to living with paradoxes.Chapter IV: Developing a Spiritual Pathway is the “reality” chapter, where the rubber hits the road. We lay out practical steps with guidelines for incorporating paradoxes into the ebb and flow of your own spiritual path. Living with Paradoxes is designed primarily for “everyday seekers” desiring to deepen their spiritual practice by learning to live with paradoxes using a spiritual approach. The book is structured as a self-help book to facilitate personal use. Living with Paradoxes is a useful resource to professionals who support others in their spiritual journey, such as clergy, counselors, and spiritual directors. Finally, Living with Paradoxes is a helpful resource for pastoral leaders in adult education and parish renewal. Rector Bingham Powell, in the foreword to this book, speaks strongly to the need for this kind of book for parishioners as well as spiritual leaders.

¿Por qué algunas personas son tan talentosas en lo que hacen? Creemos saberlo, pero casi siempre nos equivocamos.Cuestionarse sobre el talento es el primer paso al éxito. Geoff Colvin desvela que la grandeza no proviene del talento natural, sino de un método sorprendente y la práctica deliberada. Con base en investigaciones científicas, este libro revela las claves que siguen las personas más exitosas para alcanzar niveles de desempeño inimaginables. Descubre cómo la constancia y las acciones correctas pueden llevarte a la excelencia en cualquier ámbito. El éxito no es cuestión de suerte, sino de elección y perseverancia.

While many practicing Christians are relatively satisfied with their prayer life, others are not. The latter often find their prayer practice has dried up. Their traditional forms of prayer at churches have become routine and empty. In a very real sense, there is a void in their spiritual lives. They want a deeper union with God yet experience an unsettling estrangement with their current pathway in prayer.In Contemplative Prayer at Work in Our Lives, Geoff Colvin draws on his own experiences, studies of spiritual literature, and participation in retreats and meditation groups, to unravel the challenging practice of contemplative prayer, a unique form of meditation involving very few words in silence and stillness. Contemplative prayer centers on the fundamental belief that God dwells not only in the world at large but also at the center of our being. This book offers Christians an approach for understanding contemplative prayer followed by hands-on detail for developing and sustaining a practice that hopefully leads to a richer and fuller spiritual journey to union with God.

This book is a powerful guide for finding a healthy alternative to the pathway of alcoholism. It begins with a comprehensive review of the pervasive and debilitating effects of alcoholism and provides an understanding of how alcoholism is established and maintained through the application of behavioral psychology. Detailed information is provided what it takes to obtain initial sobriety and attain and sustain quality, healthy, and lifelong sobriety. Many examples and practical strategies are provided throughout the book and each major topic area is accompanied with reproducible checklists, action plans, and pertinent illustrations.

Recovering alcoholics once sober often ask, “What now?” In other words, they seek something more than sobriety. Others, in recovery, have tackled prayer and meditation, the 11th Step, in different ways and end up with an on-again/off-again-practice that is unsatisfying.In Building a Lasting Practice of Prayer and Meditation, Geoff Colvin draws on his own experiences, studies of spiritual and addictive literature, participation in retreats, and meditation groups (including 11th Step Group Meetings) to offer recovering alcoholics practical ways to not only to maintain sobriety, but also to grow spiritually, and to enrich the quality of their lives.The purpose of this book is to explore more fully how the 11th Step can bring to life and put into action these beginning Steps 1, 2, and 3. Specifically, the focus is how to grow our connection with our higher power and, most importantly, learn ways to follow the will of our higher power leading to continued sobriety and a richer spiritual life.The 11th Step has at least three main The intent of prayer and meditation is to not only hear the will of one’s higher power, but also receive the grace to carry it out during the day.To address these core messages from the 11th Step, this book is divided into two sections. Each section is composed of chapters that explore what it means to develop a prayer and meditation practice that leads to living the 11th Step more fully throughout our day.

“Excellent.”—The Wall Street JournalSince its publication ten years ago, businesspeople, investors, doctors, parents, students, athletes, and musicians at every level have adopted the maxims of Talent Is Overrated to get better at what they’re passionate about. Now this classic has been updated and revised with new research and takeaways to help anyone achieve even greater performance. Why are certain people so incredibly great at what they do? Most of us think we know the answer—but we’re almost always wrong. That’s important, because if we’re wrong on this crucial question, then we have zero chance of getting significantly better at anything we care about. Happily, the real source of great performance is no longer a mystery. Bringing together extensive scientific research, bestselling author Geoff Colvin shows where we go wrong and what actually makes world-class performers so remarkable. It isn’t specific, innate talent, nor is it plain old hard work. It’s a very specific type of work that anyone can do—but most people don’t. What’s more, the principles of great performance apply to virtually any activity that matters to you. Readers worldwide have been inspired by this book’s liberating You don’t need a one-in-a-million natural gift. Better performance, and maybe even world-class performance, is closer than you think.

Le best-seller international qui révèle la façon de travailler des personnes les plus talentueuses au monde (artistes, athlètes, scientifiques, entrepreneurs...).Pourquoi certaines personnes sont-elles incroyablement douées dans ce qu'elles font ? La plupart d'entre nous pensent avoir la réponse, mais nous avons presque toujours tort.Pourtant, la véritable source de la grande performance n'est plus un mystère. En rassemblant des recherches scientifiques approfondies, l'auteur à succès Geoff Colvin montre où nous faisons erreur et ce qui rend réellement certaines personnes si remarquables. Ce n'est ni un talent spécifique inné, ni du travail acharné. C'est un type très spécifique de travail que n'importe qui peut faire, mais que la plupart des gens ne font pas.Les lecteurs du monde entier sont inspirés depuis dix ans par le message libérateur de ce livre : vous n'avez pas besoin d'un don naturel unique. Une meilleure performance, voire une performance de classe mondiale, est à portée de main.

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