It sounds ridiculous, right?

Imagine walking into McDonalds with a group of people in evening gowns and tuxedos.

It’s about the same thing as walking into court in pajamas. Clearly, you’re not dressed for the occasion.

Your dress tells us a lot about your attitude toward the day.

Sweatclothes says “this is relaxed” and suits, dresses, and uniforms say “this is important.”

Much like how you dress for the occasion, your mind is dressed for the occasion, too.

At times, your mind is wearing pajamas. It’s relaxed, indifferent to what happens, and takes a casual approach to the day.

Other times, Your mind is dressed in a tuxedo. It’s in high gear, ready to approach the next task, and willing to put it’s best foot forward.

Think about it. Do you wear a tuxedo or evening gown with disheveled hair, unbrushed teeth, a dirty face, and tattered sneakers? No. You go out of our way on special occasions to make yourself look your best.

The question I have for you is: how often does your mind wear a tuxedo?

How often are you taking a formal approach to your leadership? How often are you preparing your mind for getting the most out of your day?

You might not wear a tuxedo to McDonalds. But, if your mind was wearing one, you might not make the same order as you would if you showed up in your mental pajamas.

Here’s a question:

What’s the easiest way for a college student to throw away $6,000 a year?

I’ll give you a hint:  It’s not overpriced books, failed scholarship applications, or forking over too much in tuition.

It’s bigger than that.

Imagine tossing a briefcase full of $100 bills into the Grand Canyon.

It’s that big.

What I’m about to say will probably send some academic types into a tizzy. But, it needs to be said.

The easiest way for a college student to throw away $6,000 a year is:

Rely on the standard college education.

I’m talking about the “just enough to get by” philosophy. You’ve seen it before. Students asking themselves, “What’s the least amount of work I can do to get an ‘A’ in this course?”

Nowadays, if you do everything the teacher asks, you get an “A.” If you muddle your way through, that’s considered average. You get a “C.”

Really?

Here’s a startling reality: muddling your way through school is average nowadays.

If you don’t show up for half the classes, you might get a “D.” Even then, you’re only considered slightly below average.

There’s a lot of pressure for colleges to retain students. Each student that says “college is not for me” means loss of revenue. What’s a way to keep students inspired to stick around?

Somewhere along the line the “C” became the “A” in many colleges and universities. Now, minimum requirements are rewarded with marks of excellence.

How would I know?

I lived through college. I turned in some “average” papers. I did just enough to get by, and my reward for that work was an “A.”

The current system deludes students into thinking that they’re producing exceptional work. In reality, the work is mediocre.

And guess what? Don’t expect that big balloon to deflate any time soon.

I call it: The way it is.

No need for an overhaul of grading scales. Grade inflation is just the way it is.

The real answer to overcoming the shortfall of the standard education is within the individual.

To really get the most out of your education, you must go above and beyond. Don’t settle for the standard “A.” Don’t do just enough to get by. I’m telling you, all you’re doing is cheating yourself.

College is the opportunity to stretch to the fullest capacity, to put in the extra effort to learn everything you possibly can, to add discipline to your life that will propel you to accomplish your dreams once you’re done with school.

Here’s the real challenge:

Go beyond the “required” knowledge and become self-educated.

One student came to me when I was a writing consultant and said, “I want to be a great writer, but I haven’t taken enough writing classes.”

I said to him, “Well, do you really want to be a great writer?”

“Oh yes,” he said, “more than anything.”

“Well, here’s the greatest secret I know: You don’t have to wait and take classes to be a great writer. There are tons of books available that can teach you how to improve your writing.”

“Yeah, but that’s boring,” he said, “Besides, I don’t like reading that much.”

“Well,” I said, “The books are there whenever you are ready to become a great writer.”

You don’t have to wait for a professor to tell you what to do. Get curious. Spend time reading the books outside of class. Read more than what you’re assigned. Dive into the material with childlike wonder and watch as you add so much more value to your life.

BEWARE:

If you go for “standard,” you’ll get standard – or worse.

Rely on the standard education, and it’s as good as that briefcase full of money at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

BEHOLD:

Use college as an opportunity to learn the miracle of self-education, and you’ll have invested one year and $6,000 into your future.

You have to set your own standard, a high standard, a standard that grows each and every day.

You, and you alone, have to require much, much more of your self.

You are the leader of your education.

One of the greatest myths about leadership is that you have to be given an official title before you can be considered a leader.

This is not the case.

Everyone is a leader in some capacity. The only two ingredients you need for leadership are influence and possibility. You find this leadership in even the most mundane tasks.

For example, when you make breakfast in the morning, you make the choice of what you’re going to eat. Maybe it’s going to be a salad. Maybe it’s rice. Maybe you’re going for apple-cinnamon oatmeal, or a bowl of crispy rice cereal.

Here’s the deal:

There are many different possibilities, but ultimately you choose the possibility, and you influence your environment to make the possibility a reality.

This freedom of choice carries with it a great responsibility. We see this a lot in how we deal with food. And your leadership of your nutrition can manifest itself in how you look and how you feel.

If you eat a lot of fatty foods, and don’t do very much exercise, chances are your metabolism won’t keep up, and you’ll put on the pounds.

On the other hand, if you are careful about what you eat, and add good exercise to your schedule, you can shed the pounds and create a healthier you.

It seems so obvious, so why do people get messed up?

It all comes back to realizing that you are the leader of your nutrition. You are responsible for making the choices of how you will eat.

If you discipline yourself, buckle down, and focus on eating healthy and exercising, you can have that rockin’ body.

The first step in all leadership is taking responsibility, and holding yourself accountable.