Well the media has followed his career from beginning to end, his death was very shocking for the entire world, and now his last appearance is on film. Michael Jackson’s move THIS IS IT, was very interesting and educational to see.
I can honestly say that I did not plan on seeing this movie so soon… but I’m glad I did. With my pricey Twizzlers in hand and my large mixed ICEEE at my side (that were both more than my matinee ticket price) I sat in an fairly empty theater zoomed to see what the rumors were all about.
I can be known to watch things with a critical eye, but today I chose to simply enjoy this movie, which was a ‘behind the scenes concert rehearsal capture’ directed by Kenny Ortega. “This Is It” was not suppose to be it for Michael Jackson, but instead it produced some great lessons to be learned. Academic success principles, business principles, biblical principles all could be pulled from this movie, but today here are 7.25 Life Lessons and Success Principles that anyone can use to improve their life.
FEW RANDOM OBSERVATIONS
Before I share my *deep* life lessons, maybe you can help me with these or had the same randomness when viewing the movie. Feel free to tweet me if you have the answers
- Early in the movie, did it seem like Michael Jackson dancing skills were off? Was MJ getting old? Maybe he was just in 1st gear.
- Did you hear that bass line reprise on the end of the Thriller part – HOT!! Was that from another song?
- Why was that black coat so big that he was wearing, I’m assuming he borrowed it to stay warm?
- I loved the little girl holding the world – you must stay to the end (after the credits).
So here are the 7.25 Life Lessons…
1 – Have a Strong Personal Coach.
Whatever you plan on doing in life, there is someone who has gone before you and both failed and/or succeeded. All successfull people have coaches, mentors or trainers. In this movie, Michael Jackson’s Dance Choreographer, Travis Payne, was by his side making sure he had his moves down. We didn’t see all of the hands on instruction that goes behind the scenes to his development, but the choregrapher was there to make sure he knew where to go next on the stage and what move would be most effective.
In my workshops and speeches, I make reference to other greats like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods; both had personal coaches to help them get better. If the greatest basketball player and golfer of all time needed a coach, what makes you think you don’t need one? Both MJ and MJ did.
If you are pursuing an academic degree, starting a new business, or trying to become a better parent – locate a strong and proven coach that can propel you to the next level. I myself have several coaches that I invest into every year, because I want to get better as as a speaker, academic success coach, and author. You should too – I challenge you to locate one.
If you want to know who I coach with then, or want me to coach you, ask me here.
2 – Your Vision in Life, Will Pull Forth Vision Out of Others.
I loved listening to the testimonies of the dancers and the musicians in the movie. A consistent thought from all of them was that by having the opportunity to work with Michael Jacskon was a big goal or dream of theirs. One male dancer even mentioned how at a young age he wanted to work with Michael Jackson, and when given the opportunity to audition, he dropped everything he had going to pursue his dance dream.
I’m pretty sure that over Michael Jackson’s career, his vision of excellence and his vision to help the entire world caused those around him to enhance and focus their vision. So I ask you, Will your life vision pull vision out of those you work with?
3 – Work Only With The Best.
Every championship team realizes that it takes *total* teamwork to become a champion in their sport; and if you can get the best players to play together on one team then that is almost a sure guarantee for victory. Like the USA Basketball team has done repeatedly in the World Olympics, Michael Jackson gathered the best of the best to play on his team. From producers, videographers, costume directors, choreographers, staging, lighting and musicians he hired only the best.
One of my friends and mentors, Jonathan Sprinkles said to me one time, “Hang out with, study, and coach with the #1 person in any field (not the #2 person), because the #1 person is #1 one for a reason.”
4 – Have a Bigger Purpose For What You Do in Life.
Even though Michael Jackson was the king of POP, an icon and has had so many songs on the top music charts, his greater purpose was to heal the world – heal how people love one another and how people love the world in which we live in.
What’s your greater purpose? Why do you ultimately exist? Why do you do what you do?
As for me, my greater purpose is to enhance the mindset, attitude, actions and life habits of students and professionals by developing and presenting resources to help them understand their unique and customized purpose. Then be thoroughly equipped to carry it out in the earth – thus making their lives, their families and their calling fruitful.
5 – Capture The Key Moments of Your Life and Learn From Them.
At the beginning of the movie, Director kenny Ortega mentioned that this movie came about because of the video camera that were in rehearsals and the footage was going to go in Michael Jackson’s personal private collection.
I’m sure that Michael Jackson was his own biggest critic about his craft and was going to use this footage to analyze himself, analyze his show, and use it to get better at his craft. Whisch is an awesome thing to do.
I myself do this after completing a great talk for a high school or college. I would sit down and replay the entire footage of my speech. Most time its’ painful to watch, because I sincerly want to be the best at what I do when engaging a crowd.
I encourage you to capture those key moments in your life. If it’s a presentation, perfrormance event, or simple conversation with someone – use that recorded footage to learn more about yourself and get better.
6 – Stay Teachable and Humble.
It is very obvious from his lifetime of music success that Michael Jackson was teachable and understood humility.
It was very powerful to see how the music director and production director knew when to submit their idea to Michael Jackson, and Michael’s to theirs. I’m pretty sure that his power packed team had a load of great ideas for the concert, but they were willing to adjust and be flexible for the overall objective. It was never about *their* agenda, but about the mission at hand.
Being teachable, flexible, submissive and willing to adjust your thinking for another is a key to promotion and success.
Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”(I Peter 5:5)
7 – Practice, Practice, Practice and then Practice Perfect.
I love seeing MJ do the classic dance routines to His classic songs in the movie, like “Beat It”, “Thriller”, and “Smooth Criminal”. It was very obvious that because of repetition, he was able to do it sweatlessly and flawlessly. it even seemed to me that he had regained his youth when doing those moves, versus other times he looked kind of old and stiff. (Just my randomness again)
Practice does not make perfect, but perfect and correct practice makes perfect.
When it comes to school academics, business, or any life endeavor, your preparation phase will always determine your outcome of victory. You may have heard the famous saying,” When preparation meets opportunity it produces success”, which is so true. See this video and this video where I talk more about this concept of preparation.
7.25 -Know Your Craft Better Than Anyone Else.
The music director and various musicians in the band, said that Michael Jackson knew all of his songs. He knew the key, the tempo, the rhythm of certain riffs. He was a student of his own music and his craft.
Seeing and hearing this on camera instantly made me evaluate my life. As my mind wondered spanned the years of my existence, I was convicted and yet convinced to simply get better. Know my craft!!
You too must daily judge your life and craft. Where do you have cracks? Where are you weak? Where do you need to improve? How are you settling for average when you know that excellence is needed?
If you ever want to do the best, you must consistently do things that will propel you to be the best. Average people will never fully see the best, because their mindset and actions are like everyone else. Success is hard, and it is not for the weak. If you want better, then do better. Consistently learn, consistently train, and consistently improve.
So there you have it… The 7.25 Lessons I Learned from Michael Jackson’s This Is It”.
*** Now I’m sure that if you have seen the movie, there’s a lot that you learned from it as well. Please leave a comment or reply and let me know what you learned. Share your thoughts, it may be the exact thing that somebody else needs to hear.***
If you like this article feel free to read my other articles here, subscribe to my free newsletter, or connect with me on facebook or twitter.
Well the media has followed his career from beginning to end, his death was very shocking for the entire world, and now his last appearance is on film. Michael Jackson’s move THIS IS IT, was very interesting and educational to see.
I can honestly say that I did not plan on seeing this movie so soon… but I’m glad I did. With my pricey Twizzlers in hand and my large mixed ICEEE at my side (that were both more than my matinee ticket price) I sat in an fairly empty theater zoomed to see what the rumors were all about.
I can be known to watch things with a critical eye, but today I chose to simply enjoy this movie, which was a ‘behind the scenes concert rehearsal capture’ directed by Kenny Ortega. “This Is It” was not suppose to be it for Michael Jackson, but instead it produced some great lessons to be learned. Academic success principles, business principles, biblical principles all could be pulled from this movie, but today here are 7.25 Life Lessons and Success Principles that anyone can use to improve their life.
FEW RANDOM OBSERVATIONS
Before I share my *deep* life lessons, maybe you can help me with these or had the same randomness when viewing the movie. Feel free to tweet me if you have the answers
- Early in the movie, did it seem like Michael Jackson dancing skills were off? Was MJ getting old? Maybe he was just in 1st gear.
- Did you hear that bass line reprise on the end of the Thriller part – HOT!! Was that from another song?
- Why was that black coat so big that he was wearing, I’m assuming he borrowed it to stay warm?
- I loved the little girl holding the world – you must stay to the end (after the credits).
So here are the 7.25 Life Lessons…
1 – Have a Strong Personal Coach.
Whatever you plan on doing in life, there is someone who has gone before you and both failed and/or succeeded. All successfull people have coaches, mentors or trainers. In this movie, Michael Jackson’s Dance Choreographer, Travis Payne, was by his side making sure he had his moves down. We didn’t see all of the hands on instruction that goes behind the scenes to his development, but the choregrapher was there to make sure he knew where to go next on the stage and what move would be most effective.
In my workshops and speeches, I make reference to other greats like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods; both had personal coaches to help them get better. If the greatest basketball player and golfer of all time needed a coach, what makes you think you don’t need one? Both MJ and MJ did.
If you are pursuing an academic degree, starting a new business, or trying to become a better parent – locate a strong and proven coach that can propel you to the next level. I myself have several coaches that I invest into every year, because I want to get better as as a speaker, academic success coach, and author. You should too – I challenge you to locate one.
If you want to know who I coach with then, or want me to coach you, ask me here.
2 – Your Vision in Life, Will Pull Forth Vision Out of Others.
I loved listening to the testimonies of the dancers and the musicians in the movie. A consistent thought from all of them was that by having the opportunity to work with Michael Jacskon was a big goal or dream of theirs. One male dancer even mentioned how at a young age he wanted to work with Michael Jackson, and when given the opportunity to audition, he dropped everything he had going to pursue his dance dream.
I’m pretty sure that over Michael Jackson’s career, his vision of excellence and his vision to help the entire world caused those around him to enhance and focus their vision. So I ask you, Will your life vision pull vision out of those you work with?
3 – Work Only With The Best.
Every championship team realizes that it takes *total* teamwork to become a champion in their sport; and if you can get the best players to play together on one team then that is almost a sure guarantee for victory. Like the USA Basketball team has done repeatedly in the World Olympics, Michael Jackson gathered the best of the best to play on his team. From producers, videographers, costume directors, choreographers, staging, lighting and musicians he hired only the best.
One of my friends and mentors, Jonathan Sprinkles said to me one time, “Hang out with, study, and coach with the #1 person in any field (not the #2 person), because the #1 person is #1 one for a reason.”
4 – Have a Bigger Purpose For What You Do in Life.
Even though Michael Jackson was the king of POP, an icon and has had so many songs on the top music charts, his greater purpose was to heal the world – heal how people love one another and how people love the world in which we live in.
What’s your greater purpose? Why do you ultimately exist? Why do you do what you do?
As for me, my greater purpose is to enhance the mindset, attitude, actions and life habits of students and professionals by developing and presenting resources to help them understand their unique and customized purpose. Then be thoroughly equipped to carry it out in the earth – thus making their lives, their families and their calling fruitful.
5 – Capture The Key Moments of Your Life and Learn From Them.
At the beginning of the movie, Director kenny Ortega mentioned that this movie came about because of the video camera that were in rehearsals and the footage was going to go in Michael Jackson’s personal private collection.
I’m sure that Michael Jackson was his own biggest critic about his craft and was going to use this footage to analyze himself, analyze his show, and use it to get better at his craft. Whisch is an awesome thing to do.
I myself do this after completing a great talk for a high school or college. I would sit down and replay the entire footage of my speech. Most time its’ painful to watch, because I sincerly want to be the best at what I do when engaging a crowd.
I encourage you to capture those key moments in your life. If it’s a presentation, perfrormance event, or simple conversation with someone – use that recorded footage to learn more about yourself and get better.
6 – Stay Teachable and Humble.
It is very obvious from his lifetime of music success that Michael Jackson was teachable and understood humility.
It was very powerful to see how the music director and production director knew when to submit their idea to Michael Jackson, and Michael’s to theirs. I’m pretty sure that his power packed team had a load of great ideas for the concert, but they were willing to adjust and be flexible for the overall objective. It was never about *their* agenda, but about the mission at hand.
Being teachable, flexible, submissive and willing to adjust your thinking for another is a key to promotion and success.
Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”(I Peter 5:5)
7 – Practice, Practice, Practice and then Practice Perfect.
I love seeing MJ do the classic dance routines to His classic songs in the movie, like “Beat It”, “Thriller”, and “Smooth Criminal”. It was very obvious that because of repetition, he was able to do it sweatlessly and flawlessly. it even seemed to me that he had regained his youth when doing those moves, versus other times he looked kind of old and stiff. (Just my randomness again)
Practice does not make perfect, but perfect and correct practice makes perfect.
When it comes to school academics, business, or any life endeavor, your preparation phase will always determine your outcome of victory. You may have heard the famous saying,” When preparation meets opportunity it produces success”, which is so true. See this video and this video where I talk more about this concept of preparation.
7.25 -Know Your Craft Better Than Anyone Else.
The music director and various musicians in the band, said that Michael Jackson knew all of his songs. He knew the key, the tempo, the rhythm of certain riffs. He was a student of his own music and his craft.
Seeing and hearing this on camera instantly made me evaluate my life. As my mind wondered spanned the years of my existence, I was convicted and yet convinced to simply get better. Know my craft!!
You too must daily judge your life and craft. Where do you have cracks? Where are you weak? Where do you need to improve? How are you settling for average when you know that excellence is needed?
If you ever want to do the best, you must consistently do things that will propel you to be the best. Average people will never fully see the best, because their mindset and actions are like everyone else. Success is hard, and it is not for the weak. If you want better, then do better. Consistently learn, consistently train, and consistently improve.
So there you have it… The 7.25 Lessons I Learned from Michael Jackson’s This Is It”.
*** Now I’m sure that if you have seen the movie, there’s a lot that you learned from it as well. Please leave a comment or reply and let me know what you learned. Share your thoughts, it may be the exact thing that somebody else needs to hear.***
If you like this article feel free to read my other articles here, subscribe to my free newsletter, or connect with me on facebook or twitter.
When you think about achieving SUCCESS, you have to think about setting and achieving GOALS.
When you think about achieving ACADEMIC SUCCESS, you must think about setting and achieving ACADEMIC GOALS.
Achieving SUCCESS EQUALS setting and achieving GOALS.
You cannot achieve success without working towards something that is measurable, memorable and attainable. Goals allow you to gauge when you have achieved success.
During my sophomore year of college, I received a 4.0 GPA. How did I achieve academic success that year? I learned the power of setting academic goals. Because I set this goal, I had to develop various academic survival skills like taking notes, studying for exams, and knowing how to listen in class. I had to change specific academic and social habits in order to achieve success. I changed my study habits, my sleeping patterns and even my dating routine – yes “girls” had to take the back seat.
Read More of this Academic Tip Post a comment (1)![How to Jumpstart Your School Year After a Long Vacation [video]](http://playingyouragame.com/wp-content/themes/bigfeature/library/timthumb/timthumb.php?src=/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/jump-start-car.jpg&w=532&zc=1&zcp=1)
After a great holiday vacation and long break, it’s sometimes challenging to get motivated to go back into another school semester. In this video, I share 5 things you can immediately do to get refocused for the upcoming school year.
http://www.vimeo.com/2721727If you can’t view the video above, see the following:
When you talk about SUCCESS, you have to talk about GOALS.
When you speak of Academic SUCCESS, you must talk about Academic GOALS.
SUCCESS IS GOALS
[AUDIO] “Goal Setting as a Student” by Kantis Simmons
You cannot have success without having something that is measurable, memorable and achievable. So you have to have goals in place to know when you have been a success at something.
Developing various academic survival skills as a student is really really important, however this survival skill of setting and achieving your goals is the motor (or motive) behind all the other skills. What I mean is this…
If you can establish a academic goal that is PRESENT, POSITIVE, and PERSONAL as a student, then all the action survival skills of listening in class, taking great notes, class participation, and the others will support the goal you have initially set for yourself. They become the action steps required to achieve your set goals.
Read More of this Academic Tip Post a comment (1)
Every Sunday in the fall I normally do two things – go to church and watch NFL Football.
One thing that is apparent about every football game is that both teams come with a STRATEGY to beat their opponent.The determination of the winner is based solely on who carried out their strategy with the least amount of mistakes.
When it comes to academic success, preparing for test, succeeding as a college or high school student; studying is a skill you must develop This skill will definitely help your daily regimen
Here are some simple guidelines you can use to better your reading-studying strategy, as well as make the post of your time spent studying.
Read More of this Academic Tip Post a comment (0)
Managing time, budgeting time, and utilizing the 24 hours accurately is a mandatory skill to develop if youwant to succeed academically and beyond. In the 4th part of our Academic Survival Skill Series we will look at time management – how successful studying starts with budgeting your time.
Recently, I was speaking to a friend of mine who is raising a family, working a forty hour a week job, and receiving her Master’s degree. And she simply said, “Kantis I need more time!”
Now you and I know we can’t get more time, but only use the time we have effectively.
In your quest to improve your grades, live your life and get it all done within 24 hours a day, here are a few “time tips” below:
- Develop a schedule that includes all “regular” activites, such as classes, a part-time job, meals, family, or practices (with an athletic team or group).
- Reserve time for sleep, exercising, and recreation
- Schedule review time for right after a lecture or right before a discussion of possible.
- Plan ahead for all major projects and exams. Don’t wait till last minute.
- Break up all your tasks and set them as time goals (Goal #1- search sources, Goal #2-review notes, etc)
- Attempt to study the same subject at the same time each day
- Take short breaks to reward yourself – you deserve it
Question:
“Dear Kantis….When I study right before the test I tend to get a good grade, however after the test I don’t remember any of the information. Awkwardly, when I study a week before the test it seems like I don’t remember anything and I end up with a bad test grade. Kantis, what should I do? ” - C. Williams (Decatur, GA)Answer:
“Well, it sounds to me that you are studying and retaining information in your Short Term Memory; where it needs to be transferred to your Long Term Memory. (Especially if it is a subject that you will use over and over again.
Here are three things I practically advise for information retention:
- Study weeks and months before the test (not at last minute). Study about 35-45 minutes on the subject and take a break. Do this consistently weeks ahead of test. Make sure you are getting good sleep and eating well too
- TEACH yourself, TEST yourself, and TALK to yourself. Just like remembering the lyrics to your favorite song ( read the lyrics, sing the lyrics, and rehearse the lyrics) – the same should be true for your class work.
- Discuss your studies with others. If you can openly talk about it with simplicity, that is a sure way that you have it in long term memory.
To shed more light on this question, see How to Cram Your Way to Academic Success.
Question:
“Dear Kantis….When I study right before the test I tend to get a good grade, however after the test I don’t remember any of the information. Awkwardly, when I study a week before the test it seems like I don’t remember anything and I end up with a bad test grade. Kantis, what should I do? ” - C. Williams (Decatur, GA)Answer:
“Well, it sounds to me that you are studying and retaining information in your Short Term Memory; where it needs to be transferred to your Long Term Memory. (Especially if it is a subject that you will use over and over again.
Here are three things I practically advise for information retention:
- Study weeks and months before the test (not at last minute). Study about 35-45 minutes on the subject and take a break. Do this consistently weeks ahead of test. Make sure you are getting good sleep and eating well too
- TEACH yourself, TEST yourself, and TALK to yourself. Just like remembering the lyrics to your favorite song ( read the lyrics, sing the lyrics, and rehearse the lyrics) – the same should be true for your class work.
- Discuss your studies with others. If you can openly talk about it with simplicity, that is a sure way that you have it in long term memory.
To shed more light on this question, see How to Cram Your Way to Academic Success.
After 30 something years of living on this earth, I am finally admitting I have a problem. I’ve battled with this problem for many years. My parents have tried to help me and so has my wife but today the buck stops here.
Before you judge me and before I reveal to you my bad habit, let’s talk about STUDY HABITS.
As a student, what study habits have you developed? Do you study in bed? Do you spend time looking at each subject every day? Do you find yourself distracted when you study? Whatever the case, always keep in mind…the Study Habits you develope will determine your academic success so establish GOOD study habits and respect those habits.
Here’s my coming out: I bite my finger nails. For years, I have looked at my hands, put my fingers in my mouth and chewed on whatever nail was long enough to fit in between my teeth. Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t bitten them down to the bone, I do have some nail to work with, but I have developed a habit of biting my nails. But today I have decided to change this habit and respect this new habit.
You might say Kantis, I need to change some study habits. Well take a look at these tips below:
1. Make a quality decision to change.
2. Become accountable to someone and set boundaries to protect your decision.
3. Develop new and good habits See the “Do-Do’s of Studying”
Changing some of your study habits will change how you perform academically. Once you implement your new habits, set up boundaries that will help you keep them. Don’t lay down when you study or you will fall asleep. Put your calls on forward during your study time so that you won’t be distracted by your phone ringing. Set up boundaries that will protect your new habit – respect your new habits.
In order for me to be successful in my new habit of not biting my finger nails, I have created the boundaries of keeping my fingers away from my mouth unless I am eating, consistently getting manicures and paying a ten dollar fine to my wife whenever I break my new habit. I will create a new habit of not biting my nails and I will respect that habit or my wife will be very rich.
Developing good study habits will help you academically achieve success in all your classes.
