Aptitude plus attitude equals altitude session handout

Aptitude + Attitude = Altitude

How High will you Soar?



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Revision Date 2/7/2015

Table of Contents Aptitude + Attitude = Altitude 3

It's your Attitude that matters! 3

3 Steps to Gain Altitude Today 7



It's your Attitude that matters!

People of success have a better attitude.

Jimmy Connors, winner of 109 professional singles tennis titles says “There’s a thin line between being #1 or #100 and mostly it’s mental.”




In his well-researched book, Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman shows that it’s our attitude more than our aptitude that determines our altitude. Whilst our society lauds intellectual giants and power, Goleman’s research concludes, “At best, IQ contributes about 20 percent to the factors that determine life success, which leaves 80 percent to other forces.” Other EQ researchers, Robert Cooper and Ayman Sawaf consider this too conservative. In their book, Executive EQ: Emotional Intelligence in Leadership and Organizations, they write, “— IQ may be related to as little as 4 percent of real-world success — over 90 percent may be related to other forms of intelligence — it is emotional intelligence, not IQ or raw brain power alone, that underpins many of the best decisions, the most dynamic and profitable organizations, and the most satisfying and successful lives. Malcolm Higgs and Vic Dulewicz set out to disprove this “faddish idea” relenting after their own research that actually, Emotional Intelligence is of far greater importance than IQ and something they term “management quotient”.




There’s a growing consensus in the academic and popular literature that our attitude and our mindset are more important than our technical capability that make a difference to our success. As Zig Ziglar puts it, “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.”

Do you remember the first time you took up a new sport or any activity? Something that you enjoyed. Perhaps it was your first bike, or even golf. You began as an enthusiastic beginner. You had a lot of enthusiasm, and not a lot of actual talent




We all start new activities in this way. Perhaps you are not always enthusiastic about it, but you are a beginner. Over time, you do this activity more often and improve the skills of doing this new activity, you become better at it. You become competent. But it is inconsistent unless you keep an absolute focus. If you continue simply practicing the immediate skills of the activity you will be a performer, but most probably a frustrated performer. Somedays it is easy. Others less easy. To truly get on top of our game we need to adopt a different attitude.



3 Steps to Gain Altitude Today

We need to constantly be looking to learn how to be better. Watching others, asking questions and trying new things. Learn from our mistakes and our successes. We need to work on changing ourselves. It’s easy to say we are going to change, but actually carrying it through is another matter. Some things are entrenched. This is the way you've done it for years and even though this new way is better, you quickly re-assume the old habits. If I am inconsistent in some place in my life, I need to actually change it. Not simply know I need to change, but do it. Thirdly, peak performers in sports, in life, in business, ALL adopt an attitude of adding value to others.

Nowadays, I mention Tiger Woods, and people only seem to remember he attacked his car with a golf club and threw away his marriage. But let's go back in time all the way to 2008… and the US Open.




Reframing is a technique to consider an issue as currently seen by deliberately taking a different perspective. Reframing can be broken down into two types – content and context. Consider a current situation with someone in your life where you see there is an issue or a challenge with that relationship. Think about the problem, issue or challenge. Now choose ONE of these attitudes and wear it AS IF IT WERE TRUE. Now think about that problem, issue or challenge. Which of these five attitudes do you find easiest to adopt?

Which is most difficult for you?

And the right attitude doesn’t come in a can’t, it comes in a can.




What can I learn?

People who achieve great success are always learning. They seek ways to improve and are prepared to work through the difficulties of change required to become better. Peter Senge in his book, The Learning Organization, expands in great detail about his idea for organizations to constantly seek improvement in everything. But what about learning at a personal level? What if you are currently at the top of your game? Surely you’ve already learned. Our learning journey can go through a series of steps and the height of our performance is determined by our technical ability and our mindset, our aptitude and our attitude. The journey is not always easy or straightforward, but as we challenge ourselves to deliberately learn every day, we are choosing to face up to all the challenges that life throws at us.




Crossed arms exercise

Let’s return to Tiger Woods as we ask the next question: What can I change?




Our third key question is, How can I add value to you today?

The interaction that exists between every leader and follower is a relationship. A relationship can be added to or subtracted from in a person’s life. When leaders see that success cannot be achieved without people, it changes the mindset of the leader. Leaders who add value by serving others stand to gain more in life than just economic prosperity. Greatness is built with people, while mediocrity is achieved by oneself.

Begin to gain altitude as a leader today by asking these three questions:

1. What can I learn?

2. How can I change? And, 3. How can I add value to you today?

Remember, you were born to soar like an eagle, not peck the dirt like a chicken.


Attitude Prioritisation Action Guide

Using the # R’s of Prioritisation and Pareto Knowing that you need to change your attitude doesn’t help anyone. Changing it does. Create a list of three specific things that you can do daily to learn, to change and to add value. Remember, we start with the Three R's of prioritisation and then use the 80/20 rule.

1. Required - What things must I do that nobody else can or should do for me?

2. Return - What gives the greatest return on my time and effort? What am I doing that can be done at

least 80% as well by someone else?

3. Reward - What things do I enjoy doing that I am passionate about? Doing the things that you love to do

is fuel for your soul and body.

Create a list of three specific activities that you are going to DO, that enable you to put the 3 steps into place in your workplace and homelife. Apply the 80/20 rule or Pareto analysis.

Spend 80% of your time in your strength zone - things that you are good at doing (and thus do quickly

and easily)

Spend 15% of your time doing things that are required of you, but you are neither especially strong at

doing nor are you so appallingly bad at doing that you really should hire someone to do it.

Spend 5% of your time intentionally learning, developing and growing.


Template for you to use Think of three specific things that you can do to deliberately choose to learn:

Think of three specific things that you can do to deliberately choose to change:

Think of three specific things that you can do to deliberately choose to add value:

If you want to get it done, get it in your schedule.

Activity Required Return Reward Strength Must Do Learning Scoring



Aptitude plus attitude equals altitude session handout

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