Jensen Huang, the founder of NVIDIA, has never stopped learning. Even after he was “out of the trenches”, he still devoted much of his time to understand the latest innovations so he could make wise decisions.
In an episode of “Founders” that talked about Huang, they shared the story of someone similar to him named Mitch Rales. Rales co-founded Danaher, a company worth $140B today. At conferences, Rales can often be seen sitting near the front, always taking voracious notes. However, he doesn’t take notes because of what he’s done — he’s accomplished what he has because of habits like this.
The show compared Rales to a thought from NFL coaching great Bill Walsh, sharing:
“There is a great line in Bill Walsh’s book “The Score Takes Care of Itself”, and he says that champions behave like champions before they’re champions. I guarantee you, Mitch Rales did not build a $140B company and then start taking notes.”
Champions behave like champions far before their time comes, and great leaders do the same. If you think “when I make it, then I’ll start doing x”, you’re going about it the wrong way. Start the habits of a champion today to give yourself the best chance to get there.
