Jim Randel's (jimrandel) Blog

One of our most fascinating discoveries about successful people is that sometimes the only point of differentiation between them and others is that the succeeders stopped deliberating and took action in the pursuit of something about which they felt strongly. In other words, the idea that success...

There is a well-known bromide that if you fall off a horse, you get right back on.  The point, of course, is that you cannot let the negative experience of the fall control you.  You need to immediately climb back on the horse so that the anxiety caused by the fall does not fester, and so that yo...

I have had the good fortune to become friendly with many highly successful individuals: world-class athletes and entertainers, national politicians, CEO’s of major corporations and very wealthy entrepreneurs. The one predominant, common-thread characteristic they all share is incredible staying p...

I was recently with a friend of mine from upstate Connecticut. My friend plays a lot of golf. He believes in leisure. He does not admire my work ethic. He had been receiving my e-letters and concluded that I spend too much time reading and writing. He felt the need to give me advice. “Randel, you...

One of the hot topics in best-selling books these days is talent – the debate being around nature versus nurture. Are some people born with a gift? Or is talent the result of years of training and practice? Most scientists today seem to favor nurture over nature. Here is a study I recently came a...

One of the most thought-provoking books that I have ever read is Flow, written in 1992 by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, at the time Chairman of the Psychology Department at The University of Chicago. This small print, 300-page book is full of important thoughts. And it is with a lot of humility that I...

I have always been fascinated by how some people rise to the top of their profession or endeavor … and others do not. In certain activities – e.g., business, sports and entertainment – the word “talent” often comes up. An explanation for success almost always uses the word “talent.” “That Roger F...

Last night my wife and I had dinner with friends.  They were telling us about a new couple they had met. The couple they met were very well travelled.  Stories of great hotels.  Had a deer problem on their 8-acre property in the Hamptons. “OK, I get it, they’re rich,” I said.  “What did you tell ...

That’s right … the Welsh singer best known for songs like “Delilah” and “It’s Not Unusual.” I first became aware of Mr. Jones when I was 14 years old. I grew up in Perkins Township, Ohio – a very small town. No gas station or food store. No stop light. No stop signs. Only one thing: a very large ...

It is one thing to write books and e-letters about mental fortitude and the like. It is another to put it into practice on a daily basis. Last Thursday started like a normal day. I was excited as I put on a jacket and tie at 5 AM. I had a meeting on behalf of a client with a government official a...