Have you ever wondered what makes an “A player”? It’s not about how hard they work (though there’s a lot of hard work involved). It’s not about luck (though there’s luck too… good and sometimes not so good). It’s all about their mental game and how they see their competition. Here’s what I mean:
Fenneke
Significant insight! Very true
Mario von Gollaz
Hi Fenneke, what do you do for business?
Fenneke
Hi Mario, I am a coach (and a starter online)
Ron
Great insight! It takes humility and maturity to genuinely recognize our weaknesses and determine to be with A players who expose those weaknesses but also help us get better!
Nick Thorsch
Very true. Thanks for the reminder to level up who I spend time w most!
Avinash Kunchurkar
Loved it Jeff
Natalie Eastman
Timeless. I appreciated that you pointed out that It’s less about “me” and “what I can get from the A-players I can fine and ingratiate myself to” and more about “am I encouraging, pushing, lifting, and being lifted by the ones around me? Am I surrounding myself with people who may also be at my level, but who are looking to improve continually, Who help me be my best, and whom I help to be their best?
Jean Paul AZZURRO
✨✨✨🌸🦋🌸💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛🌸🦋🌸✨✨✨
Andrew
Thanks Jeff. Always helpful
Regie
Thanks, Sir Jeff! It’s so uplifting!
Walt Hampton
SUCH a powerful lesson. Thank you.
Kate Forrest
This is the lesson we all wish we could have learned as teenagers! I rarely forward anything on to people, but this one I did! Thanks Jeff.
My favorite take away is celebrating the wins of others… so I’m off to look for a party!
Ray Edwards
I usually feel like the dumbest guy in the room. So maybe there/s hope for me yet, Thanks Jeff!
Summer
So true! I’ve been pushing myself to play an A game and having some wins. It starts to become more telling if your friends are pushing you or jealous of you. I realize I need mentors and friends who are heading in my same direction to encourage each other.
Sulet Joubert
We are the average of the 5 people we hang out with the most…eeeeeeek!!!! Makes total sense!!!
I find one really has to make a concerted effort to start surrounding yourself with people /peers who challenge you when you find you are surrounded by mostly those who are not challenging you.
Not always easy when that is your group and you love them but like you said either grow together or else make sure you start finding people who challenge you to hang out with. Thanks for the video, a powerful reminder to never stop growing.
Joey Osborne
Great points Jeff, but you left out something that I would love to hear you speak about. I hope you’ll cover it in a future video and it’s…how do I; as a “B” player, earn the opportunity to get to hang out with “A” players. I’ve had success in doing it by bringing some form of value to the table that benefits the “A” players that I want to hang out with. Sometime it’s been money, but it doesn’t have to be. You’re thoughts on creative ways to hang out with “A”s. I’ll bet some guitar lessons from Clapton would earn some serious launch lessons from Walker. 🙂
Steve Hughes
You hit the nail in the head. That’s the way it works.
Noah D.
Thanks for your words of wisdom Jeff!!! All the best to you playa!
Carol O'Connor
That’s how I feel in the PLF Facebook group. Always inspiring, (most of them are way ahead of me). Listening to others’ questions and learning from the group’s answers.
Thanks PLF community! ❤️
Dr. Mitchell
Really appreciate the message and I’m finding that it all starts with my internal dialogue. What I’m saying to myself that reminds me whether I’m good enough to hang out with A players. The part where I say I Am, is starting to grow day by day. Thanks Jeff
Theo Noailles
Very simplly and well put.
YES. We are the average of thr 5 people we most hang around.
Thanks for remindng me of this old concept.
Cheers
Casey Demchak
Great point, Jeff. Reminds me of when I was a kid playing baseball. I always wanted to play with my older brother and his friends so I was never the best player. It really paid off in a big way when I did play with kids my own age. As you said, if you find yourself being the smartest guy in the room, you’re in the wrong room. Thanks – Casey Demchak
Amaobi
True teaching. Iron sharpened iron. Relational relationship is key in life. Too up teaching.
Bev
Obviously this wasn’t just filmed since i’m sure you didn’t have a Mastermind group meeting together last week as you say in the video. What is your suggestion for how to find A game people to hang out with and how do you hang out with them in the current environment?
Jeff Walker
@Bev: Actually, it was just filmed two days ago. My meeting with my coaching group was a virtual meeting.
The reality is that in the current environment, that the top level people are more accessible than they’ve ever been, because everyone is at home right now. I’ve seen more networking and collaboration in the last six weeks than I’ve ever seen before.
Julia
Thanks, Jeff. I never really thought about this, but now that you mention it I am thinking about my inner circles and pretty psyched with who they all are. Awesome!
Dianne L DeMille
Thanks Jeff for the pep talk. I needed that.
Angel
A player’s do not hang out with B players…so how can I hang out with them if I am jot A yet…
Christina Hills
As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another
Scott Rosberg
We have discussed this same concept for years in the organization for which I am a speaker. When talking to head coaches and athletic directors (and any leaders who are in a position to hire others), we say, “First tier people hire other first tier people. Therefore, their teams are always improving because they are always seeking the best people they can find, people who continually lift the organization up to new heights. On the other hand, second tier people hire third tier people. Therefore, their teams never reach their potential because the individuals in charge are too insecure about having others who are as good as or better than them be part of the team.” Surround yourself with the best that you can find. Learn from them and help them grow even more, so the entire organization is always improving and seeking to be the best it can be. Thanks for the reminder, Jeff!
Donnie Boy
Great stuff as usual Jeff! Some of the A-List may be your direct competitors. Even better. You said it well, “celebrate their acievement” not be jealous of it. Watch them and use the info in “r &d” (rob and duplicate, lol, in a good way) The sports world is analagous to this. Tim Gallwey of the Inner Game of Tennis, impactfully said competition is the sincerest form of cooperation. If the competition does their best, it forces you to do your best, learn from it and BOTH become better. And there are different levels of even A listers. When I was competing in many tournaments, I travelled across the country and quickly found out that an A player in my state was not the same as an A player in say, TX or CA, lol. So I got beaten from Miami to Seattle, but guess what, during that time I went from a high B player to holding the state title in 3 different states in the same year and took an exhibition game off a touring pro. Also went to the nationals and finished second in doubles with one of my top competitors on my team. (note, learned secret of good doubles, pick a great partner, lol) Not bragging, just validating and enjoying the results. Thanks for sharing this great principle!
Marcos Levy
Smart is not the person to knows everything, instead the person who can integrate knowledge and experience from his/her inner circle of influence
Tiago Brandão
Excellent video Jeff!
Alexander H Nottingham
Love your videos! And I love tennis!!! 🙂
Roger Borbon
Amen. I actually created an Enthusiasm Index form that one of the metrics asks if you are the most optimistic person in your group, it counts against the scoring. Most think that it shouldn’t count against to the the most positive. But most people also don’t think about becoming the average of the five people you hang around the most. A full on subscribe to that Jeff. Great post