PRESENTATION OUTLINE
ACCOMPLISHMENT by an individual in any field of activity depends on the level of SKILL which the person has acquired.
Skill converts physical energy into useful productive force for achievement. Before the advent of public education and vocational training, individual skills were limited to what could be acquired from the family, by long apprenticeship and through personal experience. The formalization of curricula enabled society to impart much higher levels of skill to many more people (e.g. mechanics, engineering, medicine, etc.) thereby geometrically increasing the opportunities for individual accomplishment and the general social progress.
SKILL converts physical energy into useful productive force for achievement.
Individual skills could be acquired from the family, by long apprenticeship, thru personal experience, public education and vocational training.
The formalization of curricula enabled society to impart much higher levels of skills to many more people (e.g. mechanics, engineering, medicine, etc.) thereby geometrically increasing the opportunities for individual accomplishment and the general social progress.
ACCOMPLISHMENT in any field also depends on the ATTITUDES, UNDERSTANDING, DECISIVENESS and VALUES with which the individual acts.
The simple act of writing depends not only on the physical skill for forming letters and words, but also the attitude of the writer toward the act of writing, the subject matter and the readership. It depends on the writer's understanding of the subject and decision to communicate. In addition it depends on the values with which the writer performs the act of writing.
The Simple Act of Writing:
depends on the physical skill of forming letters and words,
the attitude of the writer toward the act of writing,
the subject matter and the readership
The Simple Act of Writing:
depends on the VALUES with which the writer performs the act of writing
Physical Values:
cleanliness and orderliness determine the neatness of the writing and sequence of thoughts
Social Values:
determine how tactfully the writer communicates his message
Psychological Values:
such as patience, honesty and humility determine how both the author and the message are received and interpreted
Carrying on a Discussion:
requires the ability to speak,
the ability to listen,
a cooperative and open-minded attitude,
Carrying on a Discussion:
requires the self-discipline not to interrupt or change the subject,
the capacity to understand what is spoken,
Carrying on a Discussion:
requires the tolerance, honesty, humility and patience needed to gain the confidence and sympathy of the listener.
The more complex, sophisticated and significant the act, the greater is the importance of these elements in determining the outcome.
The act of selling, winning an election, managing an organization, negotiating an agreement, or leading a group depend more for their success on the person's values, attitudes and decisiveness than on the skills which the individual possesses. Every successful person exhibits these qualities.
Formal education and training programs focus almost exclusively on imparting physical, social and mental skills. They place very little conscious emphasis on the attitudes, the mental understanding and decisiveness and the psychological values needed for these skills to result in accomplishment and fulfillment.
Therefore, the overall effectiveness and accomplishments of the individual and the society are extremely limited compared to the opportunities that are available.
If the requirements for success in each field of life are analyzed, most people would be found possessing only 25% of what is required for high achievement. Thus, the scope for improving personal effectiveness is enormous.
VALUES represent the highest and most powerful individual capacity for accomplishment. As SKILLS direct the use of physical energy, VALUES direct the use of psychological energy of the personality. Therefore, the highest levels of individual and social accomplishment demand the very high VALUES.
