Table of Contents 01:49 … Meet Colin 06:18 … Key to Achieving Project Success 09:53 … Know Yourself, a Key to Success 12:31 … EQ vs IQ 14:40 … Project Manager vs Project Leader 16:19 … Focus on Relationships 19:44 … Characteristics of a Great Project Leader 23:15 … Value of Team Culture 26:28 … The Challenge of Pleasant Cultures 27:22 … Building the Culture upfront 29:08 … Focusing on Culture While Focusing on Deadlines 31:08 … Utilizing Personality Tests 32:49 … Team Support when Times are Tough 34:53 … How to Use Humor as a Key to Success 37:06 … Importance of Being Honest 39:10 … Get in Touch with Colin 39:59 … Closing COLIN ELLIS: also remember, that you need to be a role model for other human beings.  And when you’re being the best of you, you will always bring out the best in other people. NICK WALKER:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  Every couple of weeks we meet to talk about what really matters to you as a professional in the field of project management.  We sort of pride ourselves on finding the top experts in the field, those who can speak to the challenges you face and draw on their own experiences. I’m your host, Nick Walker, and before we get to our guest today, we’re going to ask our listeners a favor.  We’d like to know your experience with these podcasts.  Would you be willing to share your feedback?  Just leave a review on Google, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or whichever podcast listening app you use.  You can also leave us a comment on our website, Velociteach.com, or on social media.  We want to know what works best for you, and what can help us improve. And one of the folks here who is always calling us to a higher standard, of course, is Bill Yates.  And Bill, we’re going to tackle a question on this podcast.  And that question is what makes a great leader?  And it’s possible we’re going to find some answers that maybe we’ve never heard before. BILL YATES:  I think so.  We’ve got an author of a book, and this is not just one of those theoretical books.  If I were to think about one word to summarize this book, the word would be “practical.”  Project managers are going to find this conversation, and certainly the book if they go and purchase it, very practical, hands-on advice. Meet Colin NICK WALKER:  Well, let’s meet our guest.  Colin D Ellis moved through the ranks from project manager to program manager to PMO to heading up large project departments, and sponsoring projects in both the private sector and government.  He did this in three countries:  the U.K., New Zealand, and currently in Melbourne, Australia.  He is an award-winning speaker and best-selling author, and he helps organizations around the world to build delivery cultures that apparently everyone wants to be part of.  Speaking to us all the way from Australia – we’re up early, he’s up late – Colin, welcome to Manage This. COLIN ELLIS:  Thank you, Nick.  Great to be here. NICK WALKER:  Want to start off just hearing a little bit about your background, your professional career.  Tell me how you got started on all this. COLIN ELLIS:  Oh, that’s a great question, Nick.  So, yeah, 2:24 stutters I’ll just cover it in the next 40 minutes.  I left school pretty early, didn’t really know what I wanted to do, Nick.  And I think often when I talk to project managers a lot of us are in the same boat.  It took me you know, probably about 10 years to get my first project management job.  I worked my way through banking, from a front-counter cashier-type role, where I really learned to enjoy working with people.  My last role before project management was working for a newspaper in telesales.  And I really loved the interaction with people.  I really loved creating and being part of teams.  And so they asked me to be a project manager for Year 2000, back when the world was going to end. BILL YATES:  Y2K. COLIN ELLIS:  We remember those days; right?