Thou Shalt STEAL (And Be Proud of It)

"Wisdom is the principle thing; therefore get wisdom." -- Proverbs 4:7

Now, please be advised that the above title is only meant to get your attention.  I do not condone stealing in any way, shape or form.  No holding up banks.  No taking candy off the shelves and secretly tucking it away.  And definitely no stealing somebody's words/ideas and claiming them as your own. . .

So, what's with "Thou Shalt STEAL"?

Replace "STEAL" with "learn," "acquire," "obtain," "sponge," "tap into" or "fill your cup".  The idea is, use all resources available to learn as much as you can, to become the finest you can be in your profession of choice (strength and conditioning, in this case).  Who are we kidding?  We surely don't know everything.  And the trainers who we think know everything, didn't always.  We've got to get our information from somewhere.  And what we learn won't just come into our minds as an epiphany, it's got to come from a source.  That source is more than likely going to be another human being -- whether it be a college professor, a mentor or our peers in the fitness industry.

We've got to lose any defensive feelings we experience when we see information that we don't initially agree with and denounce it as pure BS.

We've got to lose our feelings of insecurity when we meet other professionals who seem to know more than we do, where we wonder, "why do they know all of this information and I don't?"

In other words, we've got to lose our egos and be open to absorbing every bit of information that's out there, no matter what the source.

(Side note -- Of course, this doesn't mean that we lose our sense of reasoning of and logic.  There is a lot of lousy information out there mixed in with the good.  But just as you can't denounce things that you don't initially agree with, you shouldn't just accept the information that's thrown at you as gospel.  Apply your brain power to each scenario you face/each piece of data you obtain.  Test the new information against the "foundations" that you know exist (if you don't know them, learn those first. . . :) ).  And accept it/deny it as you develop and share your philosophy.)

I think there's a fear that exists amongst younger trainers, i.e. "I don't want to learn from/talk to/ support X trainer" because it's admitting that he/she might know more than me, that he/she might be better than me.  Admitting that you don't have all the answers, that you seek knowledge from your peers is not a sign of weakness or lack of intelligence.  On the contrary, it's indicative of great strength, confidence and intelligence because you're doing everything you can to make yourself better.

What is one of the common denominators of the most prolific, well-respected fitness professionals?  They openly talk about how much they seek out and learn from the experts.  They aren't above gathering information from professionals who may even be their direct competition for business.  They see that bettering themselves for common good, for a united purpose, is just as (if not more) important as the business side of things.

And for many of them, it wasn't always that way.  A few weeks ago, I was at a Perform Better Seminar in Boston when a highly recognized, respected trainer told me, "I've learned more from ages 40-47 than I did from 22-40."  This revelation came amidst the other oft uttered phrase of that day, "The more I learn, the less I know."

Look, our journey along the path of intellectual growth takes us through some pretty common stages:

1. When we're younger, we obtain a foundation of knowledge and think we have all the answers.  Anybody else with contradictory opinions is wrong.
2. We happen to keep learning (if we're lucky) and realize we didn't know as much as we thought.
3. We become walking encyclopedias of theoretical and applied knowledge (if we're lucky), but feel more so like we know nothing, because "there's so damn much to learn." (As if we've lost sight of our foundational knowledge and now wonder, "Which is my head, which is my ass?")
4. Once again, we stand firmly on our foundation of knowledge with the wisdom to be open to ideas, and the ability to find common ground amidst differing opinions and philosophies.
   

This message really comes from the heart, because I used to be that trainer who consistently felt insecure around my competition.  I wanted to be known as one of "the best" trainers around and I wanted others to come to me -- there was no way I was going to have to ask a peer of mine for advice.  Thankfully, I've become wiser with age.  I claw my way into seminars to learn from "experts" in my field.  I make a point to ask fellow trainers (more, less and/or equally experienced) their approaches to various topics.  I have learned more in the last 5 years, than I had in the 12 years prior and, because of that, I know less now than I did before. . .  and becoming a wiser, more polished practitioner every day.

I wish the same for you, as you grow in your career.  Dig in.  Get lost in all the theory and practical experience. . . and then find your way out of it again.  Fearlessly build on your foundation of knowledge.  Just don't forget to give proper recognition to those individuals who helped you along the way.