Celebrating Success Through the Lens of Professional Values

Delivering a lecture at the Council for Higher Education conference, in front of the Minister of Education, Mr. Yoav Kisch, and all the leaders of academia in Israel, was a clear and tangible moment of fulfilling a goal I had set for myself. I want to celebrate this event by offering value, so this post is about the reasons I credit for achieving goals, both in life and in the business world.

The following points are part of my internal operating system, and I hope they resonate with yours. They are not listed in any particular order of importance:

Act for the Benefit of Others

Replace the phrase "the customer is always right" with the principle that "the customer’s best interest is paramount."

Who is right is often irrelevant. What matters is jointly figuring out the best outcome for the client from a genuine belief in helping others. When I act in the true interest of my client, within a space of honesty, sincerity, and integrity, everything else tends to fall into place. It's important to clarify that working for the client's benefit does not mean working against my own interests or compromising myself. For example, I will not provide my service voluntarily just because it serves the client's interest to receive it at minimal cost. If I feel inadequately compensated, it becomes difficult for me to provide full value to the client. Therefore, it is also in the client's interest that I feel fairly compensated for my investment.

It’s possible, desirable, and sometimes a moral duty to volunteer, to offer a discount, or to charge full price – it all depends on the specific circumstances, so that all sides are in a position of satisfaction and fairness.

Striving for Professionalism

Professionalism, among other things, makes it very clear in which areas I am not an expert. Often, I receive requests for services that are not within my expertise or for a product that I am not the ideal person to deliver.

My decision to accept such offers depends on how closely the request matches my field of expertise and whether I can provide a service that fully meets the client's needs and expectations, all while maintaining a level of professionalism that would withstand scrutiny by a subject matter expert. Knowing when to say, "This is something I cannot do," is a core part of being a professional.

Enabling Abundance for Others

Opportunities often arise for us to promote the success of others. Whether it's passing on an offer from a client that I cannot take on, recommending a colleague for a position or opportunity, or connecting people – there's no greater blessing than being able to support and celebrate others wholeheartedly.

Being Grateful and Respectful to Those Who Listen to You

People chose to listen to you or read your words; they invested their time to take in a piece of insight or information you offered. Respect that and treat your audience with care.

When you host me in your home, I wouldn’t disrespect your space or speak poorly. By the same token, I wouldn’t want to "pollute" the consciousness of someone who invited me into it; on the contrary, I aim to offer value – whether it’s a professional insight, an interesting thought, or sincere sharing.

Open Source

Despite how it may seem, none of us truly has a completely new idea. Every idea, as brilliant or unique as it might be, was built thanks to knowledge you consumed – knowledge that others shared before you, allowing you to form the schemas and mental structures to think creatively.

So, take part in the game and share. Except for rare cases involving patents for physical inventions, there are no copyrights on ideas, and keeping them secret is inherently flawed. Sharing ideas, on the other hand, fosters mutual enrichment, positions the person sharing as an expert (assuming their insights are worthwhile, of course), increases exposure, creates opportunities, and so on. Share your knowledge generously.

Recognizing Your Strengths and Weaknesses and Constantly Working to Improve

This point will be clearest if I share a few strengths and weaknesses of my own:

1. One of my key skills is public speaking.

2. I struggle with time management and task organization. I have ADHD, which serves me well in some areas but is a hindrance in others.

3. I’m smart enough to manage, but it doesn't come naturally to me; I don't enjoy the procedural side of management, and my weaknesses (time management, ADHD) make management roles challenging.

Self-mapping is broader than this and includes dozens of items, but for our purposes, this is enough.

The main idea is to focus on your strengths while addressing your weaknesses. In my case:

1. Public speaking skill: I constantly focus on how to maximize the time I spend in my areas of expertise (lectures, workshops, coaching, podcast recording, writing articles and posts, etc.) while minimizing my involvement with other components of my daily routine, partly through delegation and increased efficiency.

2. Difficulty with time management and task organization: I surround myself with mechanisms to compensate for this shortfall: a secretary, task management apps, CRM software, working with AI tools, prescribed medication for ADHD, support from my wonderful wife – anything that can help me manage myself better. I still don’t manage to respond to everyone, reply to all emails, or handle every task, but I’m making constant efforts and am in a process of improvement.

3. Management: Despite various offers I receive, understanding that I don’t want to take on managerial roles (based on my past experiences) allows me to say no more easily to certain opportunities, keeping me from being drawn into areas that are not within my passion. It’s important to know what you want to do, and just as importantly, what you don’t.

Money is a Result, Not an End in Itself

When speaking with a client, I never focus on the question of pricing. My attention is solely on providing value and help. Of course, a price quote will eventually be issued, and pricing is an interesting topic in itself, but from a mindset perspective, I'm not fixated on money at all. I’m focused on helping others and delivering value – money will follow, sometimes directly, sometimes indirectly. A classic example is a client who cannot afford my services, but later, someone in the audience brings an abundance of opportunities. You never know where prosperity will come from, and that’s not our job to know. Our job is to focus on helping others.

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So that’s my little celebration for an event that deeply moved me, and I look forward to many more like it. I hope something here was of value to you, and thank you for reading. I wish everyone success in achieving their goals.

A big thank you to Varda Ben-Shaul, Acting CEO of the Council for Higher Education, for inviting me to this esteemed stage, and to Eti Zaltzman, Advisor to the CHE Chairman, for the wonderful hospitality.