A few years ago, I noticed my daughters had suddenly become… how do I put this bluntly – saucy.
The Herman Definition of ‘Saucy’ – Being disrespectful and talking back.
Being ‘saucy’ isn’t something my wife and I nurture. It’s not encouraged or rewarded. So when this new attitude showed up, it was jarring. It didn’t help that it came with a high-pitched, annoying whine.
So what the heck was going on?
Well, on a Saturday morning, I heard the ‘SAUCY VOICE’ – except it was ten times worse than my girls had given us.
The culprit? Luna Girl. A cartoon character from a Disney show, PJ Masks.
That was the last PJ Masks episode they ever watched. And surprise, surprise… after we took the show away, the attitude stopped.
That story illustrates something crucial about performance that many people miss. I didn’t spend weeks researching child psychology or reading parenting books about disrespectful behavior.
I diagnosed. I acted. I got results.
Nowadays, we have too much of a learning mindset. Everyone wants to learn something new.
But learning something new doesn’t necessarily get you anywhere. Often you’re just filling your head with a lot more information and not gaining any wisdom from the doing of it.
After 30 years of coaching the best of the best, here’s what separates champions from everyone else:
Champions all really love the act of practicing and doing the work because of what it means. Essentially, they have a practicing mindset versus learning mindset.
Think about it:
- They don’t collect more training programs
- They don’t accumulate more knowledge
- They don’t attend more seminars
They practice. They do. They implement.
People buy countless courses and programs but never finish them. They accumulate parenting books but never implement the strategies. They learn productivity systems but never actually use them.
Meanwhile, here’s what I’ve observed:
- The leaders who create an intentional identity to transform their performance don’t just read The Alter Ego Effect™ – they create and use their Alter Ego daily.
- The organizations who thrive don’t just learn about the 90 Day Year – they live by the peak performing operating system.
- The clients who see real change in their personal performance don’t just understand the Sports Performance Principles – they apply them consistently.
The difference isn’t in what they know – it’s in what they do.
Here’s something many people don’t understand about skill development: You practice it. You get to experience yourself doing it. You get to see just where you are stacked up in the building of that skill. Sometimes you go, oh, I’m actually a lot better than I thought I was going to be.
Real confidence doesn’t come from learning more. It comes from doing more.
When you practice:
- You build actual competence
- You discover hidden capabilities
- You develop muscle memory
- You gain wisdom through experience
I recently told a group of parents during a summit I spoke at: “Don’t just learn these ideas… take one thing and just start practicing that in your home.”
Then I gave them practical advice:
“Go to your calendar right now and put a reminder every two weeks to revisit what you’ve learned. Put your login details right in the calendar. Make it as easy as possible to return and implement.”
That alone is a sign of someone who’s world-class and going to end up getting a different result than 99% of other people.
The people who transform their families, their businesses, and their lives aren’t the ones who know the most. They’re the ones who practice the most.
Be Bold. Take Action. Leave a Mark.
Todd Herman
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