|
Take the time to learn lots of useful tricks
Friday, 2 March 2007
When a magician makes an elephant disappear on stage before our eyes, we all know it's not real magic. We also know he wasn't born knowing how to do that. Instead, we understand that he's spent years honing his skills in order to trick us. He knows exactly how to distract us, fool our eyes, and surprise us with what we least expect. He's mastered the tricks of his trade.
Likewise, a skilled skateboarder can amaze us by doing a 720 degree spin after jumping at the top of a half-pipe. We know he wasn't born with that skill. It's a trick he's learned through knowledge and practice. He's taught himself exactly where to place his hand on the board, where to shift his weight, and what movements to make.
Like the magician and the skateboarder, much of how well we deal with the world has to do with what tricks we've taken the time to learn. A trick is basically a method of manipulating the world in our favour. And if you look carefully, you can see them being used to powerful effect all over the place.
Take, for example, a woman's quest to attract a man. Sure, she'll be born with a few natural assets, but she can also use a lot of tricks to enhance them. She can have her hair spruced up, wear clothes that accent her curves, put on make-up, have shoes that make her legs look nice, and put on a good perfume. I've often been surprised to find a girl I previously thought was quite plain turn into a knock-out with just a few of these. We all know they're superficial, but boy do they work!
At the same time, a man can enhance himself in a whole number of ways. He can buy a nice suit, stand tall, get a good haircut, learn how to make women laugh, and buy a hot car. With a few simple tricks, he improves his chances.
Look at the masters of financial markets. Were they really born knowing how to make money? I think not. Instead, they learned the tricks of the trade. When to buy, when to sell, how to judge risk, and so on.
My own field of IT is full of such tricks. Knowing how to manipulate a computer system in just the right way makes the difference between a genius and a loser.
Successful businesses know how to manipulate their customers in order to get a sale. They know what packaging to use, what price-tag to put, where to sell, when to sell, and what to say. Billions of dollars can ride on a few cheap and simple tricks like these.
Tricks, tricks, tricks. They're everywhere.
Many times, the difference between a winner and a loser doesn't all come down to innate ability. Instead, it rests on who's taken the time and effort to learn the most tricks. Fill your own magic bag with all sorts of them in as many fields as you can. And watch yourself zoom away from the competition.
 | For proof of your own potential genius, just look around you | | What is the difference between you and a person struggling to scratch out a living from nature 50,000 years ago? Biologically, nothing. You are essentially identical. You just got lucky in the draw of history and were born into the modern world. But how this modern world was built must be the greatest story ever told. There we were a few thousand generations back, dropped naked in the dust. And he we are now, flying into space, building the internet and destroying deadly microbes. |  | Too much self-belief can be expensive | | We are often told about how important self-belief is. We're told to be optimistic, think positive and view ourselves as born special and unique. This is all well and good, but at times it can also be damaging. Too much self-belief can actually limit your potential. | | Take lots of small losses for some big wins | | Poker strategy contains many good lessons about dealing with the world. The best of all is that you have to be willing to take lots of small losses in order to hunt out a few big gains. |  | Taking charge of your eating habits | | Many people have trouble controlling their eating habits. You can see it in the rapidly expanding waistlines of the world's population. But what we decide to take into our bodies is something we can take charge of. |  | The world is an amazing place | | "Man is born free, yet everywhere he lies in chains," Voltaire said. He could just as easily have been talking about internal chains as external ones. | | Shaping the behavior of others | | We all have people in our lives who we wish would behave differently. It may be the person who cuts us off when we're driving, or the work-mate who's abusive, or the child who's too rebellious. What can we do to make these people act in the way we want them to? |  | 101 suggestions for squeezing more fun out of life | | Life can sometimes seem like a real drag. The work, worry, stress, chores and general boredom can really get you down. Going to the gym, watching TV and surfing the web are all okay, but often when it comes to having real fun they just don't cut it. | | Become expert at identifying your own weaknesses | | We live in a society that promotes the cult of self-esteem. Anything goes as long as we feel great about ourselves, or so we're led to think. Believing we may have flaws is a big no-no and certain to have a negative impact on our success. |  | The best way to influence the behavior of others | | We are all dependent on one another. We need other people and they need us in order to live the best lives we can. But other people are generally outside of our control. So one of the biggest problem anyone faces is how to get others to behave in the way we want them to. | | Is it better to read fiction or non-fiction? | | One of the most popular articles I’ve written on this site so far has been Five excellent mind habits to develop. It’s been generally well received, but I have come in for some criticism for my belief that it’s a better mind habit to read non-fiction than fiction. |
New articles are being added all the time, so make sure you bookmark Paul's Tips and come back.
|
|