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Becoming an Active Learner & Leading Like a High Level Executive with David Novak

David Novak is the Founder of David Novak Leadership, the parent organization to four nonprofits dedicated to developing leaders at every stage of life. He’s also the host of the top-ranked business podcast, How Leaders Lead with David Novak. A renowned expert on leadership and recognition culture, Novak is also a bestselling author of highly respected and critically acclaimed books, including the #1 New York Times bestseller Taking People with You: The Only Way to Make Big Things Happen. He is the Co-Founder, retired Chairman and CEO of Yum! Brands, Inc., one of the world’s largest restaurant companies with restaurants in more than 135 countries and territories. Novak has been recognized as “CEO of the Year” by Chief Executive magazine, one of the world’s “30 Best CEOs” by Barron’s, one of the “Top People in Business” by FORTUNE and one of the “100 Best-Performing CEOs in the World” by Harvard Business Review.


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How can you use learning to elevate your business, your relationships, and your life?

You already know how important learning is. After all, most skills can be acquired simply by learning more about them. But there’s a key step that you have to do in order to actually master what you want to learn about—you have to put it into action.

I’m excited to go on a deep dive into this topic with today’s guest. David Novak came from humble roots to become CEO of a global company. A feat he credits entirely on his ability to learn. He’s also the author of the bestselling book, How Leaders Learn: Master the Habits of the World’s Most Successful People.

When you put learning at the center of everything you do, everything in your life will grow. But being an effective learner means taking your observations and putting them into action. That takes insight, but more importantly, it takes practice. Listen in as David shares not only how learning shaped his career, but what the most effective tool he discovered that he still uses today.

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"As a leader, you have to see the world the way it really is, not the way you want it to be."

David Novak

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**This week’s show notes are taken from the video — enjoy!**

  • This is the role learning played in launching David’s successful career. [2:55]
  • If you really want to embrace the learning mindset, become this type of learner. [6:30]
  • Becoming this type of thinker was a huge part of David’s success. [9:20]
  • This is why you should embrace a lifelong love of learning. [10:59]
  • The most successful people know the importance of this. [14:52]
  • Warren Buffet taught him this concept. [17:49]
  • This is one of the most powerful lessons David has learned. [19:22]
  • One of David’s mentors taught him this. [21:41]
  • This is one of the most effective tools for growth that David still uses today. [23:05]
  • If you want to be an effective leader, do this. [30:47]
  • You will always reach this if you live a life of learning. [35:08]
  • Start practicing these principles today by doing these two things. [37:08]
  • How do you build self-awareness? Do this. [39:39]
  • This is what David is learning that has him excited right now. [42:43]
  • Take a screenshot, tag us (@jimkwik & @davidnovak), and share your biggest takeaway from this episode.
  • If you want to learn more on leadership, listen to David’s podcast, here.
  • Don’t forget to grab a copy of David’s book, here.

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