We’ve all heard the slogan, “knowledge is power.” I don’t dispute that, but to be an effective leader, you have to get from knowing to doing. Knowledge will give you a foundation, but being able to apply that knowledge so your team gets results is why you were hired.
 
While coaching executives over the years, I often see executives with book shelves stocked with dozens of leadership books, plus they have books on disc and listen to numerous podcasts. In addition, we all are deluged by services we sign up for that push articles on leadership our way.  Truth be told, the knowledge is there for our taking. But what are we doing with it?

Surveys constantly show a deficit of leadership in organizations. An Academy Leadership sponsored survey pointed out that 67 percent of the work force did not feel motivated to achieve their employer’s business goals and objectives. This points out a gap between how we think we are leading and what we are actually accomplishing with our people. This is a result of the knowing-doing gap.
 
So how do you reduce this gap? Let’s look at a sports analogy. In his book, Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf published in 1957, golfing great Ben Hogan covers in 127 pages the basics of the golf swing. His clear illustrations and simple, straight forward instructions make it easy for the student, at any level, to visualize proper swing mechanics.

In the years since first reading his book, I have yet to see a more effective instruction text or magazine article on learning how to play golf. Despite my urge to devour more contemporary articles and videos, it never fails that when I return to Ben Hogan’s lessons, I get inspired to stay with the basics.
 
So what can we learn from the master? Hogan’s teaching method is simply transformative. He breaks down the golf swing to the basics, gives you a solid foundation then emphasizes disciplined practice. He emphasizes getting to the practice range and then the golf course to put it all into action. And when you feel like you are starting to stagnate, just go back to his basics to refresh.
 
Your leadership repertoire should be the same: 1) Find some classic books and articles to learn and internalize a few basic principles. In the education field, this is called scaffolding. Start with basics and add additional elements. Borrow from a colleague. Ask your boss what she or he has read or ask me 2) Study the material. I mean study! Underline and make notes 3) Then, apply these principles in a consistent fashion. Critique yourself. Ask others to critique you. But, master your basics before moving on. Your success as a leader will be defined by how well you narrow the knowing and doing gap.
 
If you study great leaders both military and industry, you will find a consistent theme — they have a variety of central philosophies, but they make it a habit to stick with those philosophies and act accordingly. As leaders, we all need to learn those basics and move quickly to applying them on a regular basis.    
 
Ron works with emerging leaders, execs, entrepreneurs and managers who want to sharpen their leadership skills and inspire their teams to achieve a level of performance beyond their imagination. He does this by providing high-impact, energizing programs that give the participants an opportunity to learn and practice the guiding principles of leadership that are crucial to establishing a success-oriented environment. You already know a lot about leadership, Ron helps you to amp it up and put it all together so that you use your abilities in a disciplined fashion every day to achieve results! His course participants are unanimous in their feedback, "I wish I had attended earlier in my career." He has also brought his Leadership Excellence Course to the Battleship North Carolina, where participants learn in a most inspiring environment how to motivate people, the power of integrity, the reasons for good feedback and many other defining leadership principles that help leaders and teams get to the next level and achieve results. You can check out some other course opportunities at AcademyLeadership.com. Look in the Raleigh, Greensboro, Charlotte and Wilmington areas.