Some Things I Learned Along the Way

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mleslie@leslieventures.com

Be a Steward, Not a Proprietor

• T H E F I R S T P R I N C I P L E of leadership

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• Proprietorship is about “ME”

…and what you can do for me today

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• Stewardship is about “US”

…and what we can build together for the future

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Be a Leader

• Leadership is creating an environment where:

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• You attract the best and the brightest people
• Who can independently apply their intellect, judgment and energy
• To advance the vision and mission of the organization
• Achieve a personal sense of accomplishment in their work
• And share in the psychic as well as financial rewards

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• It is NOT “management”, which is accomplishing complex tasks through others.
• As a leader, you have to “earn your wings every day” as we can lead only by the consent of the led.

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Be Visible� Be Invisible

• Be Visible
• HP called it: Management By Walking Around
• Find every way possible to be with the people and of the people

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• Be Invisible
• The visible part of leadership is but the tip of the iceberg.

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• Always think about:
• WHY you DO and SAY
• And the effect on others

The more conscious will be your leadership

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“Glamorous” is the Opposite of Leadership

• Don’t get confused -- It is not about “ME”
• A Leader must always think of others and put them first
• When you are doing the “glamorous things”, you are just doing your job on this team
• Warning of Danger:

GLAMOR IS VERY SEDUCTIVE…

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If You Are Loyal to One, You Are Loyal to None

• A leader must be loyal to the mission above all else and all others – You do not have any “friends”
• A leader is responsible for the well being of ALL of his people
• A leader is the keeper of fairness and equity in the organization

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The Further You Are from a Problem the Less You Know About It

• The first line manager knows less than the individual, and THE NEXT manager knows even less.
• When you get to the top you don’t really know anything about anything anymore!
• You trade situational knowledge for judgment, experience and perspective

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The Higher Up you Get, the Fewer Decisions You Should Make

• Everyone “offers” you the decision
• What is the impact of the decision
• Have they thought about it?
• Are they, more or less, in the right quadrant?
• What is the downside?
• Allowing others to make decisions has real meaning to them, and develops their judgment and maturity

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The More Power You Give Away, the More You Have

• You empower individuals by giving them
• Knowledge;
• Authority; and,
• An acceptable margin of execution error
• “What I know that you don’t know makes me more powerful than you.”
• A leader has the power to level this playing field!!!
• And diminish politicization of the organization
• Empowered individuals will be loyal to the company and loyal to the leadership

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Know Thyself

• We all want to know everything, and be best at everything – it is bred into us since childhood
• It is a hallmark of great leaders that they know their own
• Strengths (the easy part) and
• Weaknesses (the hard part)
• Likes
• Dislikes
• Augment your weaknesses with other people’s strengths
• If possible find others to do the things you don’t like
• Check to see if your self-assessment is shared by others

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Be True to Yourself

Trust and You Will Be Trusted

• The first level of trust is based on the “fair play” that is visibly exercised
• Great leadership comes from a deep sense of trust between the leader and the led
• As a leader, you MUST TAKE THE FIRST STEP AND TRUST FIRST!
• Your trust may occasionally be betrayed, but the payoff is far greater than the cost

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The Bank of Trust

• You can make deposits
• You can make withdrawals
• But they do not issue loans

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So if you think you will want to make a withdrawal someday…

…You will have to make deposits in advance

Confront the Issues Directly,�But be Thoughtful, Gracious and Caring

• There are many tough things that you need to do
• Firing one of your executives who is a friend
• Negotiate hard deal
• Go after a competitor
• Reduce your work force
• But you can do all things with caring and grace
• Treat each and every person (and company) you meet with dignity and respect
• And…, you never know when you will run into them again…

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The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth…

• A key job of leaders is to “Fix Broken Stuff”
• If you do not know what is broken, you can’t fix it
• Everyone wants to tell you what they think you want to hear…
• … in a way that will make them look good…
• You must find a way to convince people that you need to know the truth…

…and you must always “Honor the Messenger”

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Listen to Everyone, but Trust your Own Judgment

• Each business is complex and unique
• There are no formulas, fads or gurus with quick and easy answers
• Be genuinely open, listen constructively and learn
• Hold your opinions in abeyance while you collect information – this is counter intuitive to all we have learned. It is very hard to do!
• At the end of the day, trust your own judgment

“If something does not seem to make sense…

…it most probably isn’t sensible”

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If You Don’t Listen to Your Board / Investors…

• If you DON’T LISTEN to your board or investors, you MAY or MAY NOT get fired.

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• But if you DO LISTEN to them, you will SURELY get fired (it just a matter of time).

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There is Life after Death

• In the course of events there WILL BE black days

…days so black that all you will see is despair

• Everyone will be looking at you!
• Communicate candidly and directly
• Be calm and show them a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel, but not false hope
• Focus on the things that you can do to make a difference
• Overcoming adversity together forges teamwork and trust
• Dark days are “leadership opportunities”
• When things are great, remind people that there will be dark days again

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Only Those Who Are Both Paranoid and Courageous Will Survive

• Every Idea has a finite lifetime
• You never know where and how the world might change – it’s just a matter of time
• It is all about Strategic Transformation
• Do it early rather than late.
• You may have to put your whole company at risk in order to save it
• You need the courage to stay the course in spite of many who tell you otherwise
• It is the critical differentiator – it is what makes

Great Companies Great

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Leader of Many, Leader of Few

There is No Finish Line…

• Building a great company is like building a cathedral
• Those who start it hopefully will not see its completion
• Each accomplishment is a prelude to the next challenge
• The IPO is not a “harvest”, simply one step on the long road

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Values and Culture make it worthwhile

• We spend more time at work than any other single activity in our life
• Since the outcome of our efforts is not always predictable so the quality of the daily experience is important
• Values and culture define the character of the company
• Values and Culture permit us to do our work with integrity, and to conduct business in a civilized and honest environment
• Help the organization to recruit the best, the brightest, and the principled
• Values and Culture do NOT sap the competitive capability

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It’s not enough to “do it”…

…You need to “do it right”!

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We All Have to Make Choices

• Each time we make a decision, we leave a “road untaken” – we can never know what “could have been…”
• Success in anything requires:
• COMMITMENT
• FOCUS
• INTENSITY
• ENDURANCE
• Whatever success we achieve, we will by definition sacrifice other dimensions of life’s opportunities
• The ideas of “Quality Time” or “Giving 110%” are...

… DELUSIONS

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If you want a friend…

…Buy a dog

One Final Thought…

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It is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.

• Sidney J. Harris (1917–86)

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Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time;

Some Things I Learned Along the Way

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mleslie@leslieventures.com