There’s an old saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Do you agree with that?

Of course, you’re not a dog and you probably don’t do any “tricks”. But this saying isn’t really about dog tricks. It’s about people and our ability to learn new things and change our ways. Actually, that’s not entirely correct either.

Sure, ability has something to do with it. But the real key to learning new skills and changing our behavior is our desire to do so.

Unfortunately, most people become comfortable and content with what they’re currently doing. They use this “not great, but not bad” mentality as their justification for staying where they’re at. I’ve done it in the past and I’m guilty of doing it in the present. How about you?

How often do you tell yourself that you need to improve or change something? How often do you actually follow through and do it?

Sure, I make excuses. I also procrastinate. And every time I do those things, I stay right where I am. I don’t learn anything new, and I don’t get any better.

For some people, that’s ok. They’re content with what they already know and what they’ve always done. They say things like “It’s working just fine the way it is… I don’t see why we need to change anything.”

Maybe that’s you. And maybe you’re okay with that. If that’s the case, just put it in cruise control and start coasting. Five, ten, twenty years from now you’ll be as good as you are right now. Alright, maybe you’ll be a little better, but not much better. “Much better” happens because you intentionally set out to make improvements. “Much better” comes from your deliberate efforts to learn and improve what you’re doing and how you do it. In other words, you choose to thrive, not merely survive.

So where do you begin? Do you start with making improvements at work? At home? How about starting with something that you’ve always wanted to do?

Can you run a full mile without stopping? Can you play the guitar? Can you build a bird house? Don’t laugh, I’m serious. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never done something before. If you really wanted to do something, you could. You see, the people who do “cool things” aren’t superhuman. They’re just like you and me. Sure, they might possess some natural abilities that you and I don’t. The real difference is that some people just “want it more” and choose to actually do it.

Nobody says you have to keep doing what you’ve always done. It doesn’t matter how old you are, you can choose to learn something new. The only one stopping you is you.

And on that note, this past month marks five years since I started writing these weekly columns… that’s 200+ emails. For the past couple of months, I’ve been dragging my feet when it comes to making a change, but I think it’s time. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that you’ve taken the time to read these over the years… for that, Thank You.

I plan to keep writing, I just want to take a break from doing these weekly columns and work on some different things that I’ve been thinking about for quite awhile. Over the next few weeks, keep an eye out for some new material that will hopefully challenge you to become a better leader and manager for the people who depend on you everyday… I can’t wait to start sharing some of the new stuff I’ve been working on.