What Got You Here, Won’t Get You There
How Successful People Become Even More Successful!
byMarshall Goldsmith, Mark Reiter
Book Edition Details
Summary
In the competitive arena of corporate leadership, where ambition and charisma abound, only a select few rise to the ultimate echelon. Enter the world of executive coaching with Marshall Goldsmith, whose wisdom has transformed careers at the cost of a king’s ransom. Yet here, within these pages, lies the secret map to ascendancy for a mere fraction of the price. Goldsmith unveils the subtle art of behavior that could be the invisible barrier between you and your summit. It’s not grand gestures, but those seemingly trivial missteps—like neglecting a simple thank you—that can cast long shadows over your path. With his refreshingly clear guidance, you can shed the habits that tether your potential and stride confidently toward the success you’re capable of achieving.
Introduction
Picture this: you're standing at the pinnacle of your career, surrounded by the trappings of success. Your achievements speak volumes, your expertise is unquestioned, and your track record is stellar. Yet something feels off. Despite your undeniable accomplishments, you sense that certain invisible barriers are preventing you from reaching even greater heights. The very behaviors and habits that catapulted you to success might now be the subtle saboteurs holding you back from your next breakthrough. This paradox affects countless high achievers who discover that their greatest strengths can become their most limiting weaknesses. The journey from good to great requires not just adding new skills, but courageously examining and modifying the deeply ingrained patterns that no longer serve your highest potential.
Identifying Your Behavioral Blind Spots
Understanding your behavioral blind spots begins with recognizing that success can create its own unique form of blindness. These blind spots are the unconscious habits and responses that worked brilliantly in your past but now limit your future growth. They're called blind spots precisely because you cannot see them yourself. Consider the story of a brilliant CEO named Carlos who ran a successful food company. Carlos possessed every quality you'd want in a leader: intelligence, work ethic, industry expertise, and genuine charm. He loved connecting with people throughout his company, buzzing around facilities like an energetic hummingbird, sharing ideas and building relationships. However, Carlos had developed a habit of verbalizing every thought that crossed his mind. When his design team presented new snack packaging, he casually suggested changing the color to blue because "blue says expensive and upmarket." The team worked tirelessly to deliver exactly what their CEO requested. A month later, when the designers proudly presented their finished blue packaging, Carlos mused aloud, "I think it might be better in red." The design team rolled their eyes in unison, feeling confused and demoralized. Carlos thought he was simply sharing creative ideas in a collaborative democracy. His employees experienced it as inconsistent commands from an unpredictable monarchy. The higher your position, the more your casual suggestions become perceived as direct orders. To identify your own blind spots, start by examining the gap between your intentions and others' perceptions. Ask trusted colleagues a simple but powerful question: "How can I do better?" Pay attention not just to what people say, but to their body language, response time, and energy levels when interacting with you. Create a feedback-rich environment where people feel safe sharing honest observations about your impact. Remember, the most successful people are often the most resistant to feedback because their track record seems to validate their approach. The courage to seek and accept difficult truths about yourself is what separates those who plateau from those who continue ascending to new levels of effectiveness and influence.
The Seven-Step Change Process
The seven-step change process provides a systematic approach for transforming limiting behaviors into leadership strengths. This process recognizes that sustainable change requires more than good intentions; it demands a structured methodology that addresses both the psychological and practical aspects of behavioral transformation. The journey begins with Marshall's work with an executive named Ted, a senior manager with an impressive track record who had one glaring weakness: terrible follow-up with clients and colleagues. Ted's relationships would start enthusiastically but gradually deteriorate due to his pattern of passive neglect. He would fail to return calls, never initiate contact to check on people, and only reach out when business was at stake. This benign but hurtful pattern emerged slowly over time, as people only missed nurturing and caring in their absence. Working through the seven-step process, Ted first had to acknowledge the specific behavior that needed changing. Next came the crucial step of apologizing to everyone affected by his poor follow-up habits. Ted then advertised his commitment to change, regularly telling colleagues about his improvement efforts. He mastered the essential skills of listening without judgment and expressing genuine gratitude for feedback. Most importantly, Ted implemented relentless follow-up, checking in monthly with colleagues to ask how he was progressing. The practical steps involve: first, committing to change a specific behavior; second, apologizing to those you've impacted; third, advertising your change efforts; fourth, listening to feedback without defensiveness; fifth, thanking people for their input; sixth, following up consistently to measure progress; and seventh, practicing feedforward by asking for future-focused suggestions. Each step builds upon the previous one, creating momentum and accountability. The process typically takes twelve to eighteen months to fully embed new patterns. Remember, you must change one hundred percent to receive even ten percent credit from others. The key insight is that changing behavior is ultimately about changing relationships, and relationships change slowly through consistent, demonstrated effort over time.
Mastering Feedback and Feedforward
Mastering feedback and feedforward represents a fundamental shift from dwelling on past mistakes to creating future possibilities. Traditional feedback often feels like criticism and creates defensiveness, while feedforward focuses on generating helpful suggestions for upcoming opportunities. This approach transforms conversations from painful confrontations into collaborative problem-solving sessions. The power of feedforward came alive through Marshall's experience with a manufacturing company COO who initially responded to every piece of feedback with defensive phrases like "But Marshall, I don't do that." Marshall implemented a simple but effective technique: every time the COO started a response with "no," "but," or "however," he had to pay twenty dollars. Within the first hour, the executive was down four hundred twenty dollars. The financial pain created immediate awareness of how often he was shutting down communication before it could begin. After this breakthrough, the COO learned to replace defensive responses with a simple "thank you." This shift transformed his relationships throughout the organization. When a female employee later made a presentation about gender equity in leadership, the CEO began his response with "You're making some very interesting points, but..." The newly reformed COO immediately interrupted his boss saying, "Excuse me. I think the correct response is, 'Thank you.'" The CEO smiled, corrected himself, and asked the presenter to continue. The feedforward process involves four simple steps: first, identify one behavior you want to improve; second, describe this goal to someone and ask for two specific suggestions; third, listen to their ideas without judgment or commentary; fourth, respond only with "thank you." This method works because people love giving helpful suggestions when asked, and the future focus prevents arguments about past events. You can practice feedforward with anyone - colleagues, family members, even strangers - because the process doesn't require them to know your history. The most powerful aspect of feedforward is that it enlists others as partners in your growth rather than judges of your past. By consistently seeking suggestions and expressing gratitude, you create a network of people invested in your success and willing to support your continuous development.
Summary
The fundamental insight woven throughout this transformation journey is that what got you here won't get you there. Success creates its own unique challenges, breeding overconfidence, defensiveness, and blind spots that can derail even the most accomplished individuals. The behaviors and habits that initially drove your success may become the very obstacles preventing your next level of achievement. As Marshall wisely observes, "The higher you go, the more your problems are behavioral." True leadership growth requires the humility to acknowledge that past success doesn't guarantee future effectiveness, and the courage to examine and modify ingrained patterns that no longer serve your highest potential. The path forward demands that you stop trying to add more skills and start focusing on subtracting the limiting behaviors that diminish your impact. Take action today by identifying one specific behavior that may be holding you back, then ask a trusted colleague this simple question: "How can I do better?" Your willingness to seek honest feedback and commit to behavioral change will determine whether you remain where you are or breakthrough to where you want to be.
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