The process
There are a number of fundamental principles that guide and inspire how I think about, practice and teach leadership and communication - all rooted in the art of connecting. The process involves analyzing, personalizing and implementing these principles in ways that best suits you. Who knows, together maybe we’ll discover additional principles that can shape our thinking. Take a look at the fundamental principles, below. The question is, how does this resonate for YOU?
LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLES
AND THE ART OF CONNECTING
HUMILITY
Good leaders
offer to help,
great leaders
seek help.
VULNERABILITY
If you want to truly appear confident, share your fears and vulnerabilities.
PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
All great professional relationships are rooted in strong personal relationships.
POSITIVITY
Instead of focusing on all the ways you want your people improve, focus on what they do well, and inspire them to do more of it
KNOW THEM
Go to great lengths to truly get to know each member of your team.
TONS OF FEEDBACK
Here’s how your employees will rank the feedback you give them:
1. Positive
2. Negative
3. None
SUPERPOWERS
Instead of having everyone to everything, find their superpowers and inspire your team to rely on each other. You wouldn't ask Tom Brad to work on his block skills would you?
ENCOURAGE FUN
Whoever said work can’t be fun never worked with me.
UNDERSTAND HOW TEAMWORK WORKS
Move from striving for a team of great leaders, to a GREAT TEAM of leaders - these are very different ideas.
MORE ON TEAMWORK
Keith Richards and Ron Wood are the two Rolling Stones guitarists. Keith was asked, who is the better guitar player. His answer was, “Neither of us are any good, but together it's magic.”
BRINGING OUT THEIR BEST
Why is Magic Johnson considered the greatest Laker basketball player of all time? Because when he was on the court, YOU played better. Be Magic!
KEEP BRINGING OUT THEIR BEST
The potential for Greatness lives within each of us”
- Wilma Rudolph.
COMMUNICATION PRINCIPLES
AND THE ART OF CONNECTING
PASSION
Bob Dylan famously said that he’d rather listen to a passionate speaker talk about something he wasn’t interest in, as opposed to a boring speaker talk on a topic he was interested in.
YOU!
YOU are the point of the presentation, regardless of what anyone says.
ENTERTAIN
Tell a
compelling story.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
What's the ONE single point you're trying to convey?
FUN IS CONTAGIOUS
If you're having fun, your audience
will have fun.
ADDRESS YOUR REAL FEAR
Most people aren’t struggling to FIND their voice, they're struggling to trust their voice.
GET ME OUT OF THE WEEDS, PLEASE
I've listened to 10,000 presentations. None have avoided having too much detail.
THERE'S GREAT STUFF ALL AROUND YOU
Watch others present. Note what you like, and don't like.
Leadership by connection
I’ve been leading investment teams for more than 20 years - inspiring hundreds of my team members to be their best. As much as I love analyzing financial markets, my greatest joy and gratification comes from mentoring and advising my colleagues on leadership. It's all about bringing out the best in those around you - and inspiring others to do the same. Cultivating that skill and passion in others is one of my single greatest professional accomplishments.
I have found that leadership is more art than science. Very few of us were born leaders. Skill in this area evolve over time. Over the years, through trial and error, I have cultivated a wide range of skills and techniques that have allowed me to become truly terrific leader - at least that’s what my colleagues tell me! Guess what, many of them have become great leaders in their own right. This is quite powerful because the ultimate value a leader can offer is to help other leaders become great as well.
Communication by connection
Communication and public speaking are key aspects of leadership. As an investment leader, I’ve delivered hundreds of board presentations, thousands of client and media speeches, and who knows how many strategy meetings with my various investment teams. Many brilliant executives have difficultly getting up in front of crowd and finding their authentic voice. Connecting with your audience is the ultimate goal. It sounds easy, but as many of many of us know, it can be downright daunting.
Just like leadership, public speaking is more art than science. Likewise, the process for me has involved a great deal of trial and error. I wasn’t always a great public speaker, but I've learned how to find my authentic, passionate voice, and keep my messages simple.