Listening and Leadership

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

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Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com 

Episode #351: John Maxwell - The Laws Of Leadership (Follow Them & People Will Follow You)

John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, coach, and author who has sold over 20 million books. A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week best-selling author, Maxwell has written three books which have each sold more than one million copies: The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Developing the Leader Within You, and The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader.

Notes:

• "Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better." - Pat Riley
• The difference between 'best' and 'better'
  • "Whatever is best for now... Tomorrow has got to get better. I always look at 'best' for a moment."
  • "If you're not growing today, I have to talk about yesterday. I don't want to talk about yesterday."
• The great leaders:
  • Listen
  • Learn
  • Lead
• The importance of listening and asking questions:
  • "I began to ask questions, invite people to sit down and talk."  Shared learning and growing together...
• What John learned from Angela Ahrendts:
  • "I aim to always give 60 and take 40.  Always give more than you take."
  • "Add more value to people than you take."
• Working with your team:
  • "I put an idea in front of my team and say, 'make it better,' and they always do."
• Proactive: "If you're not proactive, you're reactive.  I've never met a great leader who wasn't proactive."
  • "Be unforgettable.  Always be the first person to help."
• Action Attraction
  • "The moment I move, I attract all resources because I'm moving."
  • "I never draw people to me when I sit still."
    • "Action shows intention"
• Keynote speaking preparation:
  • "When I'm in the green room preparing, I'm thinking about the people in the audience. I begin to envision the people leaning in, taking notes, engaged.  It helps me."
  • The content you have will alone will not cut it -- "Connecting the content to the people carries the day. I want them to say, 'oh my gosh, he's talking to me.'"
    • "The response of the people charges me up."
• Layered learning:
  • Is your fence facing out or facing in?  Are you growing?  Or shrinking?
• Building a company?  "I wasn't trying to build a company.  It started in a garage.  Each company was created just to help solve problems for people. --> Find a need, start a company, find a need, start a company."
  • There are now over 30,000 John Maxwell coaches
• "I've always had the ability to take a problem and develop a resource for it."
• "I can smell an opportunity... And I can see it in people.  I've always been quick to spot this."
  • How to develop this skill? --> "You must seize the opportunities. Act quickly."
• Adaptability - "A person that lacks flexibility will mist a lot of opportunities."
  • Peter Drucker did not make long range plans.  He focused on seizing the moment.
  • John's long range plan: "What I want for people is for them to do well and I want to help them do that."
• Life advice:
  • Value people
  • Continually grow
  • Live very intentionally