PS#076: The 3 Operating Principles
Alongside those 4 foundational skills, I’ve come to believe in 3 operating principles.
I think the combination of these 4 foundational skills + the 3 operating principles is borderline unstoppable. It’s not easy, but when someone puts them all together, there’s not much they can’t do.
So, what are the 3 operating principles? Great question.
The 3 operating principles are…
Give, give, give.
The hospitality effect.
Do the job first.
Just as the title indicates, these 3 principles are how I try to operate in my life. I’ve found the more I operate this way, the more opportunities I receive, the more success I have, and the more I enjoy each and every aspect of my work.
With that, let’s get started.
1. Give, give, give.
I talk about this one a lot.
But, it’s so, so important, I’m not sure I could ever mention it enough.
Give value first, second, third, fourth, fifth… Give value a hundred times without expecting a single thing in return. Keep doing this over and over again with everyone you meet in your work and in your industry.
After enough time, you’ll be known as the person who provides value.
People will want to speak with you. They will pick up the phone when you call, respond to your emails, introduce you to others, and offer new & exciting opportunities.
2. The hospitality effect.
The next one I call the “hospitality effect.”
This is about the way people feel when they work or engage with you.
If people love to work with you, you’re going to find yourself attracting more and more opportunities. If they don’t… Well, the opposite will happen. You’ll have less opportunities.
We’ve all experienced someone like this in some facet of our lives. Be that person. In a world that can be rather cynical and pessimistic, be the bright spot in people’s lives.
3. Do the job first.
This is another one that I’ve talked about quite a bit.
Most people are trying to optimize their life. They are trying to find just the right amount of work or commitment to achieve their dreams. I’ve found this to be a really, really hard approach with a pretty low probability of success.
On the other hand, those who throw themselves into their dreams or goals tend to find a higher probability of success. In my opinion, one of the best examples of this is doing the job first.
If you want a certain job, look at the job description and do those things. Create tangible products of that job description that you can share with the right people.
For what it’s worth, I’ve seen this approach work across job types and industries. If you’re willing to do the job first, you’ll find an incredible competitive advantage on the other side.
The 4 Foundational Skills + 3 Operating Principles.
That’s it.
The 4 foundational skills…
Finance
Business
EQ/Politics
How to work
And, the 3 operating principles…
Give, give, give.
The hospitality effect.
Do the job first.
In my view, it’s an incredibly powerful combination. It takes time. It takes work. But, if you consistently invest in building this foundation and operating model, you’ll find a lot of success.
