The Rooftop Podcast

What does it take to establish rapport? Building Rapport is a critical skill for all business leaders, all entrepreneurs, anyone who has to deal with people. We are always faced with situations where we have to establish rapport. Rapport is that initial connection that is a harmonious relationship where two parties understand each other and connect. And if you don't have that rapport, because humans are social creatures who protect their jugular, they won't connect. They won't buy from you. They won't invest in you. They'll keep their distance, and without that rapport, it's going to be hard to close the gap, the trust gap that often exists between us and the people that we're trying to lead. Join me by the fire pit so we can work on the critical skill of, “Building Rapport.” I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

On this episode of Rooftop Rally Point, we're talking about another principle of the Special Forces approach that you can use in life and business which is getting, “Surrounded on Purpose”. How do we get Surrounded on Purpose? Well, what I teach on this, and I still teach this to special ops and law enforcement is, one, let's get a really clear understanding of what the goals are. What are our goals, and what are the other party's goals? For example, if I'm taking over a new position as a VP in a company, and I want to build a high performing culture, then the first thing is to get clear on what my goals are, and I've got to be able to put those goals out there to my team and then discover their goals as well. Join me by the fire pit, let’s take a deep dive and get, “Surrounded on Purpose”. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

"Look sir, I think, right in this area here we're doing too much show and tell and we're not working ourselves out of a job." And I was like, "What do you mean?" And my old and wise Team Sergeant started to explain to me that, the most important thing that we could do on this deployment was not demonstrate our prowess or our capability, or to provide a short-term skillset, but to work ourselves out of a job. Join me by the fire-pit and let’s discuss the positive impact on your team if you were to, “Work Yourself Out of a Job”. I’ll see you on the rooftop… Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

As Green Berets building solid teams, we knew that the next best thing to shared struggle is shared experience. As humans, remember, we're the most social creatures on the planet, so we're always keeping tabs at a semi-conscious level of who we can group with, who we can work with, who we can stand shoulder to shoulder with, and obviously the people that we have shared experiences with are the ones that we're going to form deeper bonds with. Join me by the fire pit and let’s take a deep dive into learning how “Shared Experience” can help you build your team. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

Many leaders believe that "soft" skills, like active listening, narrative competence, interpersonal presence, they think that those skills, because they're called "soft skills", are secondary to the "hard skills", or that they convey a form of weakness that a leader really doesn't need, right? They believe you need the "hard" skills if you're going to be a leader, and that the "soft" skills are for the weaker leaders. It's a very, very unhelpful way of framing those skillsets. And I say that as a guy who trains some very senior business leaders in the commercial world, and I've heard it come out of their lips. Like, "Well, what's the use of these soft skills?” Soft skills are critical to functioning as a good leader, and I guess we need to spend a little bit of time on it. Join me by the fire pit as we take a deep dive into the concepts of, “Soft Skills in Hard Places”. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

It was a big lesson for me as a leader to see that in high stakes, no fail situations, the initial reports that often come in are wrong or at least inaccurate, or at least not fully baked. And that's just human nature. We all go through this. If we are exposed to a crisis situation or a high stress situation or a situation where there's just a lot of stress, we likely won't get all the facts right. As leaders, having a mindset that the first report is always wrong, ensures that we are always measured in how we respond to the first report. The reason is because as leaders, especially in the business world it's hard to get ground truth, isn't it? It's hard to get ground truth when your associates, your employees are out there in the trenches doing what they do every day and then all of a sudden something goes wrong. Join me by the fire pit and let’s discuss how having the mindset that, “First Report is Always Wrong” can serve you and your team. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

I made lots of mistakes as an army officer in Special Forces. Lots of things I could have done better, but one of the things I did learn was never to quit. Because of the training that you go through in Special Forces and all the training leading up to Special Forces, if you quit you won't make it. It's just that simple, but I believe that's true in life as well. Join me by the fire pit as we discuss how to impart the message to your team and family that when the chips are down….”Don’t Quit”. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

As a rooftop leader, there's going to be times when you have to do things that are not pleasant. You're going to have to do things with your coworkers that involve you standing up for things. With your associates and your employees where you have to hold the line on standards. Or with your boss where you have to push back on behalf of your people, or what you know to be right. Again, people don't want you to be sweet to them, but they do expect you to be straight with them. Leveling with them, and hearing what's really going on is one of the hardest things we can do as leaders but as rooftop leaders, we have to do it. Especially in this trust depleted age where everyone is just placating everyone else and just playing it down the middle and just yipping and casually chatting, and not saying what's really going on. Join me by the fire pit as we discuss how to, “Be Straight With People.” I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

As I look at my life, six years after retirement from the military, after 23 years, I am coming to see more and more that leadership is forever, that is, real leadership. Rooftop leadership is forever and that's why I chose this title for the third video in our little series right now on, “Rooftop Rally Point”, of five lessons I learned in combat, that I believe you can apply in your life Join me by the fire-pit as we discuss how, “Leadership is Forever”. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann

The opposite of fear, is love. The greatest counter poised to fear the ancients believed is love, the love of the individual warrior for his brothers in arms. At Thermopylae, on the final morning when the last surviving Spartans knew they were all going to die, they turned to one of their leaders and asked him what thoughts they should hold in their minds in this final hour to keep their courage strong. He instructed his comrades to fight not in the name of such of lofty concepts as patriotism, honor, duty, or glory. "Don't even fight," he said, "to protect family or your home. Fight for this alone, the man who stands at your shoulder. He is everything, and everything is contained within him." I think that's true for everything that we do in our life, and I was so gifted to see this on display time and time again with the amazing men and women that I served with. Join me by the fire-pit as we discuss, “The Opposite of Fear”. I’ll see you on the Rooftop, Scott Join Our Rooftop Tribe! Website: http://www.rooftopleadership.com/blog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScottmann Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftop_leader Twitter: https://twitter.com/RealScottMann LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann