PPP 443 | Finding Mentors and Hidden Leadership Lessons, with Scott Millson

Summary

In this conversation, Andy welcomes Scott Millson, author of Frequency of Excellence: Tuning in to Everyday Lessons of Life and Leadership. Scott and Andy discuss the importance of lifelong learning and mentorship, the difference between excellence and perfection, and practical strategies for overcoming challenges, such as public speaking anxiety. Scott shares his personal leadership lessons, including the notion of inattentional blindness and the power of a growth mindset. He emphasizes the value of recognizing learning opportunities in daily life and how mentors can shape our professional and personal growth.

Sound Bites

• "At any moment of any day, excellence is out there. You just have to be tuned into the right frequency in order to see it."
• "When things seem to be falling apart, they may be falling into place."
• "How you do anything is how you do everything."
• "Excellence and perfection are diametrically opposed. Excellence inspires and motivates, while perfection sucks the life out of you."
• "I’ve never formally asked anyone to be my mentor. Instead, I watched, learned, and surrounded myself with excellent people."
• "Speak with a purpose. When you speak, there’s a currency to your words—treat them as valuable."
• "ADD isn’t a disorder—it’s my superpower. My ability to hyperfocus lets me outwork anyone."
• "Above all else, choose family."

Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction
• 01:54 Start Of Interview
• 02:02 How ADHD Is Scott's Superpower
• 04:53 Inattentional Blindness And Key Lessons
• 10:00 The Concept Of Frequencies
• 12:40 About Mentorship
• 15:53 Overcoming The Fear Of Public Speaking
• 20:22 Excellence Vs. Perfection
• 22:11 Pursuit Of Excellence
• 23:24 Handling Stress And Pressure
• 24:00 A Personal Story Of Resilience
• 28:24 Et Loqueris Ad, And Why It Matters
• 31:47 Parenting And Leadership
• 35:32 End Of Interview
• 35:58 Andy Comments After The Interview
• 40:06 Outtakes

Learn More

You can learn more about Scott and his book at ScottMillson.com/author.

For more learning on this topic, check out:

• Episode 410 with Ryan Hawk about his book on excellence. It's a good read!
• Episode 418 with my friend Randy Fox about pursuing excellence.

Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!

Talent Triangle: Power Skills

Topics: Leadership, Mentorship, Excellence, Public Speaking, Personal Development, ADHD, Learning, Lessons, Growth Mindset, Project Management, Perfectionism, Stress Management, Communication, Parenting

The following music was used for this episode:

Music: Tranceverse by Sascha End License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Music: Funny by Frank Schroeter License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license