Yesterday, I had the privilege of discussing Authentic Leadership with Bill George, Keith Krach, and Chris Ackerley, all extraordinary authentic leaders. Bill ( https://billgeorge.org/about ) wrote the book defining Authentic Leadership after decades of running big companies and is now a senior fellow at HBS.
Keith has worked for (#GM) and lead (DocuSign) many companies and was the US Under Secretary of State, and Chris has built, run and sold many companies and currently co-owns the Seattle Kraken. It was great to see they all have successful, decades-long, marriages and put family first. They all said trust was the absolute key to leadership and life. It is the key to all relationships. And all business and life is done through relationships. And the key to building trust is vulnerability, which they define as being open about your flaws and failures. This makes it safe for others to do the same, building that connection and trust, which is the foundation for every great business venture and personal relationship. The advice they would give to their younger self is to
- Not move so fast that the people you’re trying to lead can keep up. SLOW DOWN.
- Take even more risks, not less.
- Don’t take yourself too seriously. Laugh and have fun.
- Have integrity.
- And finally, do a reflection every quarter on all your current commitments. Grade yourself on them before taking on any new ones. Make sure you are doing well on your most important commitments, like spouse or parent, before taking on more.
It was validating to see businessmen much more successful than me or any of my bosses that have common values and leadership styles to what I have found work over the decades. It was even more exciting to see these men taking the time to pour back into undergraduates at this conference and having such a blast doing it.
Authentic Leadership, humble, vulnerable, and guided by universal core values of trust, integrity, courage, excellence, respect, and compassion works….in business and in life.
Have a great weekend!
Art