Extracting Learning 101: Presence Isn’t Enough

The moment I was walking on my college campus as a sophomore and recognized another kid from my neighborhood enrolled as a freshman, I stopped in my tracks. “So, that guy and I are about to get the same degree?!”

I was an ego maniac, for sure. The story in my head was, “What’s the point of have a 4.6 GPA and being a national caliber athlete if anyone can get in here?” Rude and short sided, sure. But, the passing thought has an upward spiral lesson. 

Presence isn’t enough. 

This wouldn’t be the last time this theme shows up. It shows up as a teacher, as an employer, as a consultant, and it feels worth sharing. Being in the right room is half the battle. The rest is your responsibility to extract the most amount of learning possible from your environment. We know all too well that not all practice is created equal and the margin of difference between two people hearing the same lessons is big. For example:

1. Most of the best ideas I have, came from competing in a sport that I attributed a ton of meaning to: baseball. 
2. I’ve shared locker rooms with a few people at the highest levels of high school, college, and professional baseball. Literally the same organizations at all three levels. 
3. We have wildly different results to show for that time. 

The prize goes to those who can get better at getting better. There are no prizes for simply being present.