Identifying
SuperAttainers
The
SuperAttainment Research Center is funding a multi-year study of high achieving individuals across a great variety of fields and geographies. The purpose is to determine key attributes indicating an propensity toward superior achievement that can be recognized by most people with experience managing other people.
The work is ongoing and is being expanded continuously.
The
SuperAttainment Research Center is an initiative to help people
in management positions identify high potential leaders and channel
them toward meaningful contributions to their organizations and to
society at large.
The
8 attributes of SuperAttainers listed below are considered some of
the
most common and easiest to identify when accompanied by other
aspects of career success.
8
Attributes of
SuperAttainers
1. Early Success
The Early Bird Gets the Worm…and Everything Else
SuperAttainers usually begin doing amazing things early in their life. In fields like music and sport, it has long been
understood that for a child to have a chance at greatness, he needs to begin around age 3 and then work at it for many years. In business and politics, unusual ability is also recognized early in a SuperAttainer’s career and is followed with many years of continued achievement. In the greatness game, it is the rabbit who wins the
race -- as long as he persists like the tortoise.
2. Contrarian
When in Rome, Don’t Do As the Romans
SuperAttainers generally think of themselves as different and apart from other people. They can often be described as rebellious and
disobedient by those who try to rule over them and are never willing crowd followers. Tremendous success seems to require doing things tremendously different.
Doing things a little better will yield results that are only a little better than others and this is not what SuperAttainers are interested in.
3. Conceited
The Pride Before The Rise
In order for someone to be thought of as great in the minds of others, he must first be thought of as great in his own mind. The tremendous achievements of SuperAttainers seem to be merely a realization in the outer world of what is already in their inner world. Predictably, it is uncommon for such people to be overly shy about describing their abundant abilities. Many SuperAttainers have come to recognize that being known as arrogant does not help their purpose and they do a good job of appearing modest. However, a bit of digging into their personality should uncover a deep feeling of self-significance.
4. Hard-Knocked
Nothing Succeeds Like Suffering
SuperAttainers have often experienced traumatic periods when their careers or even their lives were in great peril. It is during these times that they gain a deep seated feeling of personal vulnerability that can stay with them for the rest of their lives. The advantage to the future SuperAttainer is that they become consumed by the realization that they must accomplish all they can while they have the chance because it can all come crashing down at any time. It is a psychological condition that will drive them to greatness for
the rest of their lives.
5. Loner
One is Company, Two is a Crowd
SuperAttainers are often described by others as dreamers, outsiders, cold-hearted and similar labels often given to loners. They are comfortable spending long periods in the company of themselves to ponder, learn and envisage the future. Many develop a love of solitary activities such as book-reading early in their life. They are not usually enthusiastic participants in team activities except when they are
leading the group.
6. Mentored
& Motivated
Behind Every Great Man are His Parents
Parents often play
the key role in the cultivation and realization of SuperAttainers,
spending immense amounts of time and money to give their offspring
the skills, experiences and relationships required for immense
amounts of success. They tutor baby SuperAttainers from the crib,
send them to the best schools and put them in touch with the best
mentors. It has been shown that mothers, in particular, can play a
strong role if they are supremely confident in their son's innate
abilities and then take devoted and continuing action to develop
them.
7. Discontent
Patience is No Virtue
SuperAttainers have an abnormally intense need for continuous accomplishment. Success does not bring these people a sense of inner peace. There is always someone else to overtake or a higher target to aspire to. They are impatient, dissatisfied and edgy when not engaged in activities that lead to the fulfillment of their personal goals. They seem psychologically unstable in this regard compared with most people.
8. Promoted
Self-Flattery Gets You Everywhere
There have been many great people who have lived and died in the history of our species but nobody knows most of them because their achievements were inadequately documented. In order to be thought of as a great success by large numbers of people, someone needs to be a great success at publicizing the SuperAttainer. In most instances, it is the SuperAttainers
themselves who are great self-promoters. In other cases, another talented person takes on the critically important role.
TWO
TYPES OF SUPERATTAINERS
1. Aristocratic SuperAttainers
Pampered and pompous, these people excel despite having been given it all. They grow up with all the best things, attend the best schools and hobnob with the best minds. Because they are so deeply bonded to a powerful and privileged elite, they are often conservative and elitist. Real change seldom happens with these people in charge. On the plus side, they are less likely to lead themselves and their followers down paths of mutual destruction. Examples of Aristocratic SuperAttainers include: Winston Churchill, Peter the Great, Louis XIV and Frederick the Great.
2. Come-From-
Nothing
SuperAttainers
Rags to riches, these people pull themselves up to greatness through tremendous obstacles. Luck plays a role but most of their success is due to relentless force of character. Since they come from outside the establishment, they can be great agents of change. Unfortunately, they are prone to crash and burning when they inevitably overstretch themselves and their supporters. Examples of Come-From-Nothing SuperAttainers include: Joseph Stalin,
Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Mao Zedong.
Rules
for Managers
Rules
for Self-Help
Rules
for Parents
Men
Vs. Women
The
SuperAttainment Research Center is operated as a CSR
(Corporate Social Responsibility) activity of Chalre
Associates Executive Search to help business people identify and
develop future leaders for their organizations and society at
large.
Chalre
Associates is a regional provider of Executive Search services
in the emerging countries of the Asia Pacific region.
Multinational companies use them to bridge the gap between the local
environment and their world-class requirements in countries like
Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
 +632 892 6703
 +63 908 880 4178
 leaders@chalre.com
|
|
Physician of the Roman Period:
Galen
Main
Life Accomplishments:
He
was prominent ancient Greek physician, whose theories dominated Western
medical science for over 1300 years. The forename "Claudius" is
absent in Greek texts; it was first documented in texts from the
Renaissance.
Galen's
writings on anatomy were the mainstay of the Medieval University's
physician's curriculum. In the 1530s, Belgian anatomist and physician
Andreas Vesalius took on a project to translate many of Galen's Greek
texts into Latin. Vesalius's most famous work, De Fabrica was greatly
influenced by Galenic writing and form. Vesalius sought to revive Galen's
methods of dissection and natural philosophy. He saw hands-on human
cadaver dissection, which up to that time had not been done, as an
evolution of Galen's natural philosophy. While Galen's philosophy was
stagnant and unchanging in the Medieval University, Vesalius promoted and
revived Galen and expounded on his teachings by using print methods with
books, and hands-on demonstrations. Most of Galen's writings were
translated into Arabic and for that reason his legacy is especially
revered in the Middle East where his name is transliterated as "Jalinos".
Basics:
Born: AD
129 in Pergamum (modern-day Bergama, Turkey)
Died: ca. 200 or 216
Nationality: Greek
Religion: Roman polytheistic
Fields: Philosophy, Science
Main Accomplishments: Noted for his lectures and writings, he
established a large practice and became court physician to Marcus
Aurelius. He is credited with some 500 treatises, most of them on medicine
and philosophy; at least 83 of his medical works are extant. He correlated
earlier medical knowledge in all fields with his own discoveries (based in
part on experimentation and on dissection of animals) and systematized
medicine in accordance with his theories, which emphasized purposive
creation. His work in anatomy and physiology is especially notable. He
demonstrated that arteries carry blood instead of air and added greatly to
knowledge of the brain, nerves, spinal cord, and pulse.
Chronology
of Life Events:
129
AD
Birth
of Galen
149
He
had become a therapeutes ("attendant" or "associate")
of the god Asclepius in the local temple for four years.
148/
149
Death
of Galen’s father. he left to study in Smyrna, Corinth and Alexandria
over a period of twelve years.
157
He
returned to Pergamum and worked as a physician in a gladiator school for
three or four years
162
He
moved to Rome where he wrote extensively, lectured and publicly
demonstrated his knowledge of anatomy.
166-169
He
briefly returned to Pergamum
191
Fire
in the Temple of Peace destroyed some of Galen’s records.
200
or 216
Death
of Galen
Early
Life:
Galen
was born in the Greek city of Pergamum (modern-day Bergama, Turkey) of the
Roman Empire, the son of Nicon, a wealthy architect. His interests were
eclectic—agriculture, architecture, astronomy, astrology,
philosophy—until he finally concentrated on medicine.
By
the age of twenty, he had become a therapeutes ("attendant" or
"associate") of the god Asclepius in the local temple for four
years. He like to study the body, but dissection after death was against
Roman law, instead he studied pigs, apes and other animals. This led to
quite a few mistakes about how he thought the body was made. For instance,
he thought there was a group of blood vessels near the back of the brain,
common in animals but not in humans. After his father's death in 148 or
149, he left to study in Smyrna, Corinth and Alexandria over a period of
twelve years. When he returned to Pergamum in 157, he worked as a
physician in a gladiator school for three or four years. During this time
he gained much experience of trauma and wound treatment. He later regarded
wounds as "windows into the body".
Galen
performed many audacious operations that were not again used for almost
two millennia, including brain and eye surgery. To perform cataract
surgery, Galen would insert a long needle-like instrument into the eye
behind the lens, which he then pulled back slightly to remove the cataract
(the slightest slip could cause permanent blindness).
In
162, he moved to Rome where he wrote extensively, lectured and publicly
demonstrated his knowledge of anatomy. He gained a reputation as an
experienced physician and his practice had a widespread clientèle. One of
them was the consul Flavius Boethius who introduced him to the Imperial
court where he became a court physician to Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Later
he also treated Lucius Verus, Commodus and Septimius Severus. Reputedly,
he spoke and wrote in his native Greek, which was popular in the city of
Rome. He briefly returned to Pergamum during 166-169.
Galen
spent the rest of his life in the Imperial court, writing and
experimenting. He performed vivisections of numerous animals to study the
function of the kidneys and the spinal cord. His favorite subject was the
Barbary ape. It has been reported that he employed twenty scribes to write
down his words. In 191, fire in the Temple of Peace destroyed some of his
records. His exact date of death has traditionally been placed around the
year 200, based on a reference from the 10th century Suda lexicon. Some,
however, have argued for dates as late as 216, on the basis that his last
writings seem to be as late as 207.
Father
Background:
Nicon
was a mathematician, architect, astronomer, philosopher, and devotee of
Greek literature. Nicon closely supervised Galen's education and tutored
him at home, intending his son to study philosophy or politics. However
according to Galen, Nicon was visited in a dream by Asclepius, Greek god
of healing, who told to him to allow his son to study medicine. Galen soon
began his studies at the major sanctuary of Asclepius located in Pergamon.
In
his book, On the Passions and Errors of the Soul, Galen described his
father as "the least irascible, the most just, the most devoted of
fathers." Nicon's Stoic virtue in Galen's accounts contrasts vividly
with his hot-tempered and argumentative description of his mother.
Mother
Background:
His mother,
according to Galen himself, was a hot-tempered woman, always arguing with
his father; Galen compared her to Socrates' wife Xanthippe.
SuperAttainer
ANALYSIS SECTION:
1. Early Success
When did the SuperAttainer first display ability
that was greatly above average and what were his accomplishments?
REFERENCES:
1.
2. Contrarian
What actions did the SuperAttainer take that demonstrated a mindset that was very different from those around him?
REFERENCES:
1.
3. Conceited
What are the actions and documented statements that exhibit an elevated sense of self importance of the
SuperAttainer?
REFERENCES:
1.
4. Hard-Knocked
During what events did the SuperAttainer experience personal misery and severe anxiety?
REFERENCES:
1.
5. Loner
Is there evidence of the SuperAttainer being comfortable spending time apart from others?
REFERENCES:
1.
6. Mentored & Motivated
Who was vital to developing the SuperAttainer and guiding his career and what significant actions were taken?
REFERENCES:
1.
7. Discontent
What evidence is there that the SuperAttainer was unsatisfied with even great personal accomplishment?
REFERENCES:
1.
8. Promoted
What actions or events were responsible for
publicizing the tremendous achievements and abilities of the SuperAttainer?
REFERENCES:
1.
Overall
Score:
x
out of 8 = xx%
PASS
SuperAttainer
Type:
Describe the factors in the SuperAttainer’s background to indicate
whether he is a Come-From-Nothing or Aristocratic type..
Conclusion:
Executive Search
& Management Consulting:
Chalre
Associates provides its Executive Search & Management
Consulting services throughout the emerging countries of the Asia Pacific
region with specific focus on Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam
and Singapore.
Regional
Managers use us to help bridge the gap between local environments and
the world-class requirements of multinational corporations.
|
