So simple and so hard…

I’m 100% convinced that the longer I have the privilege of conducting this work, the more convicted I’ll become that our central tenet is 100% on the money.  One of our central tenets, at BUILT TO LEAD, is so simple and so hard.  We believe that transformational leaders share two primary attributes.  They are believers and connectors.  They believe in their cause, their team, themselves, and so much more.  We are blown away by real believers.  They are so rare and so attractive.  The ones that develop a tribe of followers, however, also have the ability to connect with you and with me.  They do not connect with everyone but they deeply connect with some.

There is no magic branding or marketing spin or special word-smithing that creates the bond between leader and  team, between company and client, or between man and woman.  The super glue of connectors is so simple and so hard.  The unbreakable bond between any collection of individuals, teams, and leaders is the bond of our word.  We are drawn in, as if by a magnet, when we encounter a leader that tells us the truth.  We just are.

The single greatest work we will do with ourselves and with our clients, therefore, will be to become masters at speaking the truth in LOVE. This will be REAL, HARD, WORK.

This won’t be for every leader we encounter.  It will be for some.  Some will respond to our call and to our challenge.  That will be enough.  Throughout history, it always has.  Ernest Shackleton gives us a great example of a believer and a connector.  Here’s his “marketing slogan” for his famous expedition in 1914.  Talk about truth in LOVE…

“Men wanted for Hazardous Journey.  Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful.  Honour and recognition in case of success.”

5000 signed up.

Funny, huh.

Are you mastering your craft?

Are you a master with a clear, compelling vision for yourself, your firm, and your family?

Are you a master at connecting by spinning some kinda shit, telling the truth in anger, or embodying truth in LOVE?

What would your team tell me?