Q & A with Jim Citrin
- What was your objective in writing The Dynamic Path?
- This is the first of your books to explore the world beyond business. What interests you about the intersection between sports and business?
- What are the most important lessons that you hope readers will take away from the book?
- What surprised you most from your research on this book?
- What impressed you the most about the people you interviewed?
- Who can young people look up to as examples of those who have followed a good path versus the athletes or celebrities who are in the news for getting into trouble?
- How can people who are not interested in sports relate to this book?
- Does everyone have a Dynamic Path?
What was your objective in writing The Dynamic Path?
Jim Citrin: For the past ten years, I’ve been a student of business leadership. I wanted to come at the questions of how to achieve maximum success, professional achievement, and personal fulfillment from a different angle. I’ve been an athlete my entire life. I believe that there are many champions who are inspiring, not only in what they achieve in sports but in how they take their renown and then go on to do even greater things. I believed that if I had the opportunity to spend quality time with the world’s most inspiring athletes and champions, I would be able to identify some new, interesting, and useful insights that could be broadly applied. I believe I’ve achieved this with The Dynamic Path.
This is the first of your books to explore the world beyond business. What interests you about the intersection between sports and business?
Jim Citrin: Sports is in some ways the lingua franca of business. And there are many great business leaders who learned how to compete, how to win, how to lose, and how to play as a team on the playing fields, rinks, on courts, and in pools while they were growing up. I played three varsity sports in high school and college -- I’ve run seven marathons, competed in the world triathlon championships, and play competitive tennis today. I have also been interested in finding out what separates the enduring champions; those that stay on a positive life trajectory, growing as people, and contributing to the greater good from the many other sports stars or celebrities who implode and crash and burn. What in that dynamic could be applied to life more broadly?
What are the most important lessons that you hope readers will take away from the book?
Jim Citrin: The Dynamic Path is a framework by which to live your life if you want to reach your greatest potential. By following the path you may well achieve aspirations beyond your greatest expectations. The Dynamic Path shows you how to set goals and move from one stage to another in your life, continually growing and developing as a person. Also, you don’t need to be Lance Armstrong, Bono, or Magic Johnson to build a legacy. Anyone who has the motivation, energy and a little bit of creativity can have a positive and enduring impact on those around them, or even the world at large. I’ve met a restaurant owner in Denver, for example, who over the past decade has dedicated himself to building an orphanage and school in Ethiopia. With nothing more than a fierce desire to make a difference, energy and creativity, he has mounted a program for Colorado high school students to forgo $1 a day in soda and other casual expenditures to pay for food, education and housing for one child for a day. He has presented this program to the Governor of Colorado and when they hit critical mass of students, the hope is that the Governor will challenge the other 49 Governors to institute the same program for the high school students in their states. In time, this program can educate an entire generation of Ethiopian children.
What surprised you most from your research on this book?
Jim Citrin: Mental toughness, the ability to come through when it counts most, is a learnable skill. I always thought the best players, who come through at the moment of truth in a competition, were endowed with this ability at birth. But, it turns out that the ability to win and achieve a personal best in the seminal time trial – to make the last shot at the buzzer, to hit the RBI with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, to serve an ace on second serve in the decisive point in a tie-breaker, to make the four foot putt on the 18th green for the tournament victory – is a highly learnable skill. With knowledge of how your mind and emotions work, and with deliberate practice in training and competitive situations, you can develop this ability. Moreover, it turns out that mental toughness is a skill applicable far beyond the realm of sports into career, community and personal situations.
What impressed you the most about the people you interviewed?
Jim Citrin: I was impressed by every individual I met whose natural talents, consistent hard work and dedication, and mental toughness exercised over time led them to become among the best in the world in their chosen fields. What impressed me most, however, were those individuals who had become world champions and then kept learning, growing and developing as people. Rather than resting on the laurels of their personal achievements, they moved outside of themselves, focused on the success of others and pursued causes about which they had an authentic connection and passion.
Who can young people look-up to that have followed a good path versus the athletes or celebrities who are in the news for getting into trouble?
Jim Citrin: I am a big believer in both positive and negative role models. Whether it be sports, politics, entertainment, science, or business, there will be people whose values, hard work, dedication, and impact will be an inspiration. Similarly, there are enough people in those very same fields who are cheaters, who take short-cuts, who are selfish and completely self-absorbed to turn anyone into a cynic. My best advice is to be deliberate about what should make a positive role model and seek supporting examples for that and also take the negative role models for what they are – behaviors to avoid. I believe that the positive role models far outweigh the negative, although they often don’t make as compelling news stories. Some of the most positive role models include:
- Sports - Lance Armstrong, Bill Bradley, Andre Agassi, Tiger Woods, Tony Hawk, Billie Jean King, Mia Hamm, Eric Heiden, Roger Staubach, Joe Torre, Roger Federer, Sean Fitzpatrick and Magic Johnson.
- Business – Jeff Immelt, Steve Case, AG Lafley and Meg Whitman.
- Public Service – Colin Powell, George Mitchell, Buzz Aldrin and Bono.
How can people who are not interested in sports relate to this book?
Jim Citrin: An altogether different means to build a personal legacy, frequently under-appreciated, is to be a “champion” parent. Trite as it may sound, leading children by example and inspiring them to contribute to the world as active and healthy participants in society is a legacy that is available to everyone with children of their own, nieces or nephews, or students in school. On a highly personal level, I have found creative ways to apply the lessons from The Dynamic Path to my own parenting, such as helping my children set goals and deal with disappointments, and ascertaining what’s truly important to them.
Does everyone have a Dynamic Path?
Jim Citrin: Everyone has the ability to strive to reach their potential. The framework of The Dynamic Path is most certainly available to all. With commitment and concentration, anyone can also make progress approaching their capabilities. In addition, everyone has the opportunity to move beyond themselves and focus on the success of others. This will enhance their success in any area of life. To become a true champion, however, requires one to make sacrifices, which can only be sustained by a burning desire that needs to be fueled every day. Not everyone wants to assume the responsibilities of leadership or to focus on the success of others around them. And while many people want something that will outlive them and provide a modicum of evidence of a life meaningfully lived, not everyone has the drive or passion to create a bequest of significance. But for those who aspire to do all of these things, The Dynamic Path is the way.
