Podcasts about break all leaders

For many of us, the Covid pandemic feels like ancient history as our lives and businesses have gone back to normal. But for some companies, there is no going back. That's the case for Meetup.com. In late 2022 I had a chance to chat with David Siegel, founder of Meetup and how they completely turned their business on it's head during the pandemic.  His lessons on how to adjust to a crisis are relevant for every business owner.  If you missed the conversation, this is your opportunity to listen to the entire conversation. Clear Mission: Establishing a clear mission helps guide decision-making during challenging times.  Embrace New Opportunities: A crisis can present new opportunities for growth and innovation. The trick is to have the process in place to move quickly.  Challenge Sacred Cows: Continuously question established practices and assumptions within the organization. Just because you have always done it that way, doesn't mean it is the right direction for you now.  Include Diverse Voices: Bring new team members into the organization who offer fresh insights and ideas. Allow different perspectives to challenge existing biases  Balance In-Person and Virtual: Striking a balance between in-person and virtual interactions is essential. Both serve different audiences and offer unique advantages, helping organizations maximize connection and collaboration. About David  David Siegel is CEO of Meetup overseeing its global business, which has 52 million members, hosts 15,000 events daily, and has events in 193 countries David hosts Keep Connected, a podcast dedicated to the power of community and the author of Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders

What can be done to make a great team out of a variety of people? What makes listening the most important skill for the modern leader? In this episode, Adam answers these questions and more. What You'll Learn: 1. Why you must know what you want before jockeying for promotions. 2. The importance of simplifying complexity as a leader. 3. What listening has to do with leadership. 4. Delegation is a MUST. Learn to give things away and let go. 5. The best managers are coaches. 6. It's great to be a workhorse, but you need to have a little showpony in you to move up. 7. How good managers are talent developers, not talent hoarders. Who is Adam? Adam Bryant is managing director of The ExCo Group and Merryck, a global leadership development consultancy. Prior to working with Merryck, Adam worked as a journalist, including 18 years as a reporter, editor and columnist at The New York Times. Adam has published 4 books, having interviewed over 150 leaders. His new book is The Leap to Leader: How Ambitious Managers Make the Jump to Leadership. Mentions: The Leap to Leader: How Ambitious Managers Make the Jump to Leadership by Adam Bryant https://www.amazon.ca/Leap-Leader-Ambitious-Managers-Leadership-ebook/dp/B0B5YGWWW2  The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders by Adam Bryant and Kevin Sharer https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B08CNP2G39/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0  Follow Adam: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership/  More of Do Good to Lead Well: Website: https://craigdowden.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigdowden/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/craig-dowden/message

Adam Bryant is a Senior Managing Director and Partner at the ExCo Group, where he works with hundreds of senior leaders and high-potential executives. As the creator and former author of the iconic “Corner Office” column in The New York Times, Bryant has mastered the art of distilling real-world lessons from his hundreds of interviews and turning them into practical tools, presentations and exercises to help companies deepen their leadership benches and strengthen their teams.  He also works with executive leadership teams to help drive their transformation strategies based on a best practices framework he developed for his widely praised book, THE CEO TEST: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders.   Questions  •  We always like to ask our guests in their own words, could you share a little bit about your journey, how it is that you got to where you are today. •  What would you say the ratio was in terms of gender, and even generation in terms of the number of CEOs that you interviewed? Would you say you got a wide cross section of different generations? And would you say it's more of a male to female higher ratio, or vice versa? Or do you think it was balanced? And did you find any differences based on those considerations that I just mentioned? •  What would you say are three overarching themes that you'd have picked up or trends that you picked up from those interviews? •  What are some ways that you believe the leaders can help to reinforce at least to strengthen any doubts that employees may have to ensure that they recognise that the technology, that artificial intelligence is not there to get rid of them, but rather to make their jobs easier. •  Could you also share with our audience what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely cannot live without in your business? •  Could you also share with us maybe one or two books that you have read that have had a great impact on you? It could be a book that you read a very long time ago, or even one that you've read recently. •  Now, we have a lot of listeners who are business owners and managers who feel sometimes that their products and services, of course, are the best, but sometimes they lack the constantly motivated human capital. And so, if you're sitting across the table from that person, what's the one piece of advice that you would give them to have a successful business? •  Now, could you also share with us what's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. •  Where can listeners find you online? •  Now, before we wrap our episodes up, we always like to ask our guests, do you have a quote or saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you will tend to revert to this quote if for any reason you got derailed, or you got off track, the quote kind of helps to get you back on track.   Highlights Adam's Journey  Adam shared that he was a journalist for 30 years, 18 years he was at the New York Times, spent a lot of years as a business reporter and interviewed a lot of CEOs. And he just found over time, the more he spent with CEOs, the more he wanted to set aside the usual questions people ask of CEOs about their company strategy and their products and services and things like that. And just ask them kind of how do you do what you do? And how did you learn to do what you do? So, he rolled that impulse up into this very simple “What if” in 2009 and it was what if I sat down with CEOs, and never asked them a single question about their companies? And instead just ask them about personal leadership lessons they've learned over the course of their lives and how they think about all the universal challenges of leadership, like hiring and building teams and culture and all those things. So, that was kind of the initial idea, and sort of brought him very much into the leadership space.  So, he did that for a decade, interviewed more than 525 CEOs, started writing books and teaching leadership and all that was a side project in addition to his day job managing teams of reporters at The Times. And he left The Times 6 years ago to join his current firm, the ExCo Group. And as said, their core business is kind of one on one mentoring and leadership development and he's got 4 interview series on LinkedIn, and continue writing books and interviewing leaders about leadership, not about company strategy. So, that's kind of the thumbnail.   Gender or Generation Influence on Leadership Me: So, leadership is your thing, Adam, and I heard that you interviewed 500 and odd people, that's a lot of people to be talking about. And I can imagine that, what would you say the ratio was in terms of gender, and even generation in terms of the number of CEOs that you interviewed? Would you say you got a wide cross section of different generations? And would you say it's more of a male to female higher ratio, or vice versa? Or do you think it was balanced? And did you find any differences based on those considerations that I just mentioned?  Adam stated that he appreciates the question. And it was the 500 plus for the New York Times, and with all the interviews that he's been doing on LinkedIn since, he's now passed the 1000 interview milestone, but to your question. So, he told the story of how he created the Corner Office column based on that simple “What if” and the other sort of guiding principle he set for himself from the very start was that he was going to embrace diversity in every sense of the word - race, gender, nationality, for profit, not for profit, size of company, really want to get as much of a cross section as he could. Interviewed a couple of leaders from Jamaica as well, a guy named Lloyd Carney, who ran Brocade Communications.  And so, his goal was very much to not just go down this sort of fortune 500 list of CEOs, because then it's going to be overwhelmingly white males, of course. And he really wanted to get a complete view of leadership.  And to your question about patterns that he was looking for, he thinks there are pretty clear patterns, like talking to young CEOs who run tech companies in Silicon Valley is a slightly different conversation than somebody who's running at Fortune 20 company, for example.  But on the specific question of gender and being in first couple of 100 interviews he did, he's always sort of looking for patterns and sometimes when he would give talks, people would say, “Have you noticed any differences between men and women leadership styles?” And he has to say, where he comes down is that he doesn't, there's just too many exceptions to the generalizations and stereotypes that people have about men and female leadership styles. So, to the point is like there's so many exceptions that for him, the generalizations and stereotypes do break down at the sort of CEO level.   People have written a lot about it and talk a lot about how one of the differences between men and women when they're coming up in their careers that women will sometimes feel like they need to be 100% qualified for a job before they go for it. Whereas men are much more willing to raise their hand even if they're not ready. And that may be true. And there's a lot of research around that. But for people in the CEO role and their leadership style, he really didn't see the difference, to be clear, not in terms of whether they were the same, they had different leadership styles, but just around EQ or IQ or extrovert, or introvert or different styles, it didn't break down along gender lines for him.   Three Themes/Trends Identified From Leadership Interviews Me: Now, you said you've way surpassed 1000 mark as it relates to CEO interviews, especially with your LinkedIn profile of interviews added to that. Across the many different interviews you've done, I imagine for CEOs across many different industries, what would you say are, let's say three overarching themes that you found that is critical for a leader to be successful, especially if the leader is trying to ensure that customer experience is one of the KPIs that they believe in, not just about operational of the business or making the profits, but having a culture where people value the internal customer experience and of course, there's some, I would say, measurement, or some assessment that's being done to ensure that it's been transcended to the external customers as well. What would you say are three overarching themes that you'd have picked up or trends that you picked up from those interviews? Adam stated that it's a great question about what are sort of the common themes that through lines from all the interviews. And he'll start with the idea of simplifying complexity, which he thinks is an art form, it's a skill. And he doesn't think you can be a CEO or an effective leader if you're not good at simplifying complexity, there's a lot going on in the world, in different industries, inside your company and he really feel like it is a leader's job to be able to stand in front of their entire team at an all hands meeting or on a zoom call, and just answer those really simple questions that frankly, little kids ask in the backseat of the car, like, “Where are we going? How are we going to get there? When are we going to get there? And not everybody does that.  We've all encountered people who actually seem to add more complexity to things, but you've got to be able to simplify complexity and boil it down to the 3 or 4 things that are really going to matter at your company. And he just thinks that's a really critical skill and depending on the nature of your business, but if you are in a customer service business, and that's crucial to your success, then you've got to be really clear about how that is going to drive your success and you can't be the leader who says we have 20 priorities and customer service is one of them. If it really is critical to driving your success, it has to be one of a hit handful of key priorities and there's got to be a way to measure it, you have to talk about it all the time, you have to role model it, and just keep shining that bright spotlight on why it's important. So, he thinks that's one.  In terms of a couple of other things, because people often wonder, like if I want to be a CEO? Like how do I get to the corner office?  And he finds people are often trying to think of like, well, what's the right path? And they wonder, you know, am I on the right path if I want to get that job. And based on all the interviews he's done, he's come down on the idea that there really is no right path per se, directionally, there's obvious things if you want to get to a certain place, you have to be moving in the broadly in the direction toward that. But in terms of the specific path, it's not about sort of checking boxes and getting certain titles, but the thing that has really struck him about all the leaders that he's interviewed is that they make the most of the path that they are on.   So, it's not like they're wondering, am I on the right path? It's whatever they are doing, they've realized that there are life lessons and leadership lessons everywhere, and you can always be learning. And to him, that's one of the skills that really sets people apart that whatever experience they're having, and the metaphor he likes to use is that your experience is like this sort of wet towel, like it absorbs all this experience. But then, what do you do with that, and he thinks the best leaders take that talent, they sort of twist it and wring it, and just get every last drop of insight and lesson around it, from it. Because, again, there are lessons everywhere, you can learn from a bad boss, you can learn from a good boss, you can learn from watching teams.  And so, the really high performers to him is they're always making time to process and reflect and say, “Okay, what did I experience? What did I see? What are the patterns? What are the lessons that I can learn from that?” And the final point he'll make in terms of how you succeeded, we could talk about this for hours, but just one of them that he thinks really sets people apart is the simple idea of being a good listener. Because he feels like it's one of those things it's not taught in business schools, he doesn't know of any business school that teaches a course on listening, but he feels like it's really an underappreciated superpower of good leaders.  Because whenever you start thinking, like, I've got all the answers, like, that's when you're dead in the water. And so, you have to just have a really great skills as listener to get everybody's best thinking out on the table so that you really know what's going on in your organization, because history is filled with stories of big companies that got into trouble because nobody wanted to tell the boss the bad news.  So, you've got to not only be a good listener, one on one and in team settings, but you've almost got to build an infrastructure at your companies so that you know what's really happening and so that there's not some like, bad news on the front lines or trouble spots that you're not hearing about. So, to him, those are the three things that jumped to mind when you asked that question.   Ways Leaders Can Help Reinforce to Employees the True Role of Artifical Intelligence Me: So, leadership is very important, as it relates to delivering a strong customer experience. And I always tell my clients that mud flows from the top of the stream, so meaning, if the leadership is poor, and customer service, or customer experience is not important to them, it really flows all the way down to the end user, which is the customer, whether it's digital experience or face to face.   In your experience, especially with so much technology happening out there nowadays, we have Chat GPT, there's a lot of artificial intelligence coming on board. And I mean up to last night, I was watching the local news, and they had a question poll that they were posing to Jamaicans stating did they feel that their jobs are in jeopardy as it relates to AI being so evolving and coming about.  And so, I wanted your views on as it relates to leadership, what are some ways as I don't think that people's jobs are going to become obsolete. I believe that human interaction is something that we will always need, regardless of the industry that you are in, and I believe the technology is there to definitely enhance the experience not to replace it.   But based on your research across the different industries, what are some ways that you believe the leaders can help to reinforce at least to strengthen any doubts that employees may have to ensure that they recognize that the technology, the artificial intelligence is not there to get rid of them, but rather to make their jobs easier? Adam stated that to him, what Yanique just said is the answer. The point of AI and technology is to take care of much more of the routine things so that we as human beings can add more value and let the machines take care of stuff. So, ideally, it will take care of just those rote aspects of our jobs so that we can figure out better ways to add value, because that's ultimately what's about, right, like, how are we individually and as teams creating value for the company.   And in terms of leadership's role in all this, he often comes back to the power of stories, which is a big part of communication, because he thinks there are some leaders who are good at saying the right words and phrases, and it's easy to stand on a stage and say customer service is really important. But he thinks telling and sharing stories is how you make that real. And whether that story is about how you as a leader, customer service is really important to you and your experience in your life and the success of the company, and then to sort of tell stories to highlight people on the team who have really gone above and beyond and make them the heroes.  Because he thinks company culture, maybe everybody talks about values, and a lot of culture is determined by who gets fired and who gets promoted and compensation structures. But he often thinks about culture is determined in large part by the hero narratives that the companies tell because if you think of companies like tribes, they are tribes in a sense, that it's really like who does the tribe hold up as a hero? And what did they do? And if customer service is really key to your success, then how do you as a leader tell the hero narratives, tell the stories, highlight the people that went above and beyond.  To him, that's one of the ways from a leadership point of view, you make people feel like, “Wow, this really is important.”  And it's not just the heroes within the company, but also telling the stories about your customers, and how you are helping them and having an impact on their businesses in their lives. So, he often come back to this idea that leaders in many ways are like the storytellers and chief and so they've got to tell those stories and share those narratives.   App, Website or Tool that Adam Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business When asked about online resources that he cannot live without in his business, Adam shared that he probably do spend a lot of time on LinkedIn. He mentioned that sounds like a really obvious answer, but just in the work that he does, and he's got 4 interview series, and he really believes that LinkedIn is emerged as kind of the Facebook for business, and everybody's on it.  And people have written about this before, but he also thinks it's just an important reminder that there's a lot of toxic stuff on different social media sites and he just stated the blindingly obvious, but he does find LinkedIn is a pretty positive place. Like people are generally pretty supportive of each other, and then they kind of put their best selves there. So, that's where he spends a lot of time.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Adam When asked about books that has had a great impact, Adam stated that in terms just in terms of fiction. He recently finished a book called Demon Copperhead: A Pulitzer Prize Winner by Barbara Kingsolver, he thinks it won the Pulitzer Prize. It's been a long time since he's read a work of fiction that had as much insight about human nature and just packed with wisdom. So, he does recommend that.  Non-fiction, he really like adventure books, he has to say. So, stories about whaling adventures in the old days and how people survived, he's really drawn to stories about resilience and what people do when they're facing a really tough task. So, he's often drawn to that.   Advice for Business Owners and Managers Who Have Great Products and Services but Lack the Constantly Motivated Human Capital  Me: Now, we have a lot of listeners who are business owners and managers who feel sometimes that their products and services, of course, are the best, but sometimes they lack the constantly motivated human capital. And so, if you're sitting across the table from that person, what's the one piece of advice that you would give them to have a successful business? Adam shared that to him, it's about constantly going back to the why. And people talk a lot about mission and purpose. And he'll be honest, he finds that conversation, especially happened after in the last few years, just companies have been talking a lot about their purpose and mission statements. And some of them he will confess does make him a little sceptical, because they are often very broad and general, and at such a high altitude, they feel kind of disconnected from the business. And very often they're just some version of make the world a better place.   But he thinks there is an art form to doing that, right, which is to constantly be communicating people and reminding people about the impact that you're having as a business. Because his prediction and not asking you to bet 20 bucks on his prediction, but he feels like this moment we're in where purpose discussions are so front and centre, he thinks those are going to be shifting more towards impact over time. And to him, the difference is that when you talk about purpose, that's really about your intent. And that's the very internal, you're basically saying, “When I get up in the morning, this is my purpose. Nobody can question that.” Because you say this is in my heart.  He thinks one of the things that special and unique about business, is that it's more about impact, which is how do you show that purpose in action? So, to him, that's much more about like almost proof, like we said, this is our purpose, but this is what we're doing. We want to show you, we want to be able to document and show you the impact that we're having.  And he thinks as a leader, we can all get kind of pulled down to just the day to day of the business. But you often have to sort of pick your head up and remind people and just sort of take stock and say, “Look at the difference we're making in people's lives.” And when you say those things, they should be tied directly to the business, it shouldn't feel disconnected. And you don't have to worry about being so lofty, and everybody's making the world a better place, you can be very much like look at the difference we're making for our customers and what we're doing. Because that helps bring out people's like, passion and pride. And then you're going to get that extra effort from them.   What Adam is Really Excited About Now! When asked about something that he's really excited about, Adam stated that at a personal level be very mundane at the risk of oversharing, but he's really focused on ping pong these days. Me: Really? Are you trying to master it?  Adam stated hardly master it, but he's sort of living in New Orleans now. And they moved there a few years ago, their two daughters moved there, and so, they joined them. And as he recently passed a birthday with a number six in front of it, he sort of decided he wanted to get back in touch with his inner teenager and start taking up some sports and things. So, he actually has a ping pong coach. He stated that he knows that sounds pretty unusual. Me: That is brilliant. Adam stated that he trains with him a couple of days a week. And his metrics scoreboard about whether he's getting better or not, is he played his son-in-law once a week for a couple of hours, and what's cool is when you're 61, and you say, I want to get better at that, and you actually get better at it. That's pretty cool. So that's his very personal thing he's focused on right now.  But much more broadly, he's been in the leadership field and he's pretty passionate about it for a couple of reasons. He will say that if you give him a really big magic wand with three things to do it, he would get rid of racism, inequality and bad bosses because there are still too many bad bosses in the world.  And he thinks sometimes we under appreciate what a toxic effect they have on individuals and by extension their families. And that's not just to be negative about that but what also gets him out of bed is just trying to help people be better leaders for those who do want to be better managers and leaders. And he thinks there's a huge responsibility and privilege that comes with that.  His approach to leadership, he doesn't wake up in the middle of the night pretending he's come up with some new theory, he takes more of a journalistic approach to understanding leadership and interviewing people who are leading and have been leading for a long time. And then what he tries and do is sort of share the insights and the stories and the frameworks and really open up that conversation so that people could say, “Wow, that's a great tip, I can take that and use it with my own team.” So, if at the end of the day he could make a small contribution and help people become better as managers and leaders, that's pretty motivating.   Where Can We Find Adam Online LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership/   Personal: https://adambryantbooks.com/about-adam/ Book:https://www.amazon.com/Leap-Leader-Ambitious-Managers-Leadership/dp/1647824893/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3GPHBI3CJH7I1&keywords=leap+to+leader+adam+bryant&qid=1682433550&sprefix=leap+to+leader+adam+bryant%2Caps%2C76&sr=8-1 Twitter: https://twitter.com/adambbryant Website: https://www.excoleadership.com/   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Adam Uses When asked about a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Adam shared that there's probably a couple that he always falls back on. And he's heard this from CEOs he's interviewed, but one of them is that “95% of the worst things that happen to you in your life very often turn out to be the best things that happened to you in your life.” And that's not to say all of them, right. And some things that happened to you there's nothing good about them. But when you think back on your life, and sort of those moments of adversity that you've faced, very often they did turn out to be like, really important pivot points that helped you grow and build character. And there's a lot of lessons and insights there. So even though when you're in the middle of something it feels pretty dark, sort of know that over time, you're going to learn a lot from that.  And there's a couple of other short answers. There's that expression, “You're either winning or learning. It's not about winning or losing, but it's about winning or learning.” So, there's always lessons that you can and should be taking from whatever adversity you're going through. If you feel like you've failed or disappointed yourself, it's like that happens to everybody. Right? But the question is, what do you do with it? What is that wet towel of experience that you can then take and ring and say, okay, “What are the insights here and keep squeezing it for that?”  Me: Thank you so much for sharing. We'll definitely have those two in the show notes of this episode. Well, Adam, we are at the end of our interview, I can't believe it feels like we just started talking but thank you so much for jumping on this podcast today and sharing all of these great insights and nuggets as it relates to leadership, all of the great information and experiences that you've garnered over the years talking to CEOs as you had mentioned from so many different industries from all different walks of life across the world. I am sure that anyone who listens to this episode will pick up at least one thing that they can run with to help them sharpen their leadership skills. So, thank you so much.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Links •     Demon Copperhead: A Pulitzer Prize Winner by Barbara Kingsolver   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners  Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.” The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!    

“One of the biggest stumbling blocks for organizations is an unwillingness to be brutally honest about the challenges they face.” There's no question leadership is becoming a more challenging role than it was 5-10 years ago. The rapid pace of change, the on-going uncertainties, even the very nature of the way we work have made being a leader a more strenuous and stressful job. But another factor that's making it challenging for people to succeed at leadership is that many people in leadership roles today haven't asked themselves a critical question before taking on the role – why do you want to be a leader? This question serves as the starting point for my conversation with best-selling author Adam Bryant about what those interested in taking on the leadership reins need to prepared for in this latest episode of my “Leadership Biz Cafe” podcast. Adam is probably best known for his New York Times column, “The Corner Office”. He's also the best-selling author of “The Corner Office: Indispensible and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How To Lead and Succeed” as well as “Quick and Nimble - Lessons From Leading CEOs on How To Create a Culture of Innovation”. Adam was a guest on my podcast two years ago when we talked about his book “The CEO Test - Master The Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders” and I'm delighted to welcome him back so we can talk about his latest, “The Leap to Leader: How Ambitious Managers Make the Jump to Leadership”. Adam and I had a frank and fascinating conversation about the realities of what it takes to move into a leadership role. But even those in leadership positions will benefit from hearing what Adam has to say. I hope you'll make some time to give this episode a listen, and do let me know what you think. https://open.spotify.com/episode/2x8e0p2X20HeVwe63t69NB?si=46193fe60a454f71 Noteworthy links: Buy Adam's book “The Leap to Leader” on Amazon* Learn more about Adam's work - adambryantbooks.com Listen to my previous conversation with Adam – Episode #91: Adam Bryant | Mastering Challenges That Make Or Break All Leaders *sponsored link that helps to support this podcast. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Are there common elements that make a great leader or CEO? Adam Bryant is an expert on executive leadership who has interviewed more than 1,000 leaders for the “Corner Office” series he created at The New York Times and for his four current leadership series on LinkedIn—with CEOs, CHROs, board directors, and prominent Black leaders. Adam is the author of four books on leadership, published by the Harvard Business Review Press – including “The Leap to Leader: How Ambitious Managers Make the Jump to Leadership,” and “The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders,” the book that we discuss on this podcast. We discuss managing up and working with leaders, the trappings of expertitis, substituting the word “priority” with “outcome”, and what Adam thinks is needed most from leaders in the world today.

Adam Bryant shares powerful insights on how to get promoted and be successful as a leader. — YOU'LL LEARN — 1) What every aspiring leader should know about themselves. 2) How to get promoted without asking for a promotion. 3) The key ratio that positions you for advancement. Subscribe or visit AwesomeAtYourJob.com/ep886 for clickable versions of the links below. — ABOUT ADAM — Adam Bryant is Senior Managing Director and Partner at the ExCo Group, where he works with hundreds of senior leaders and high-potential executives. As the creator and former author of the iconic “Corner Office” column in The New York Times, Bryant has mastered the art of distilling real-world lessons from his hundreds of interviews and turning them into practical tools, presentations, and exercises to help companies deepen their leadership benches and strengthen their teams. He also works with executive leadership teams to help drive their transformation strategies, based on a best-practices framework he developed for his widely praised book, THE CEO TEST: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders. • Book: The Leap to Leader: How Ambitious Managers Make the Jump to Leadership • Book: The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed • Website: AdamBryantBooks.com • Company Website: ExCoLeadership.com — RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE SHOW — • Video: “Two Monkeys Were Paid Unequally: Excerpt from Frans de Waal's TED Talk” • Book: The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company by Robert Iger • Book: In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick — THANK YOU SPONSORS! — • BetterHelp. Make better decisions with online therapy. Get 10% off your first month at BetterHelp.com/awesome. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Conversation with David Siegel, the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local communities, the former CEO of Investopedia, the former President of Seeking Alpha, an adjunct professor at Columbia University, the host of the Keep Connected podcast, and the author of “Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders.” Episode on Website

What do you do when external factors turn your entire business model upside down?  That's what happened to MeetUp.com at the beginning of their pandemic, as their entire in person meeting model collapsed. Founder, David Siegel explains how going back to their mission of bringing people together allowed them to successfully pivot, survive and actually thrive in the new economy. David Siegel is CEO of Meetup overseeing its global business, which has 52 million members, hosts 15,000 events daily, and has events in 193 countries David hosts Keep Connected, a podcast dedicated to the power of community and the author of Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders

Welcome to an episode with the CEO of Meetup, David Siegel. Get David's book: https://amzn.to/3QqTkJ6 In this episode, David talks us through his epic journey of becoming and remaining the CEO of Meetup in spite of the challenges that the organization faced and, later on, conquered. He also spoke about Investopedia – which he was the CEO of prior to joining Meetup. David also highlighted and elaborated on what a community is, how it works, and the value that it brings. David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local community. He has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia. Before that, he was president of Seeking Alpha. He hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. David holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he teaches strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He lives in White Plains, New York with his wife and three teenage children. In his spare time, he likes to pop in on Meetup events. Get David's book here: Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions That Will Make or Break All Leaders. David Siegel: https://amzn.to/3QqTkJ6 Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

It's All About Dealing With The Ups & Downs in Business, Baby! David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local communities. He has 25 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive, leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and, before that, President of Seeking Alpha. David holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University, teaching strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He is the author of Decide & Conquers 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders and hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. https://www.meetup.com/ Join Us Live For This Great Interview On Tuesday 12th at 9 am PST https://youtu.be/iHNxDA9MdUU #711 WP-Tonic This Week in WordPress & SaaS, We Interview The CEO of Meetup, David Siegel The Main Questions of the Interview #1 - David, What were some main changes you have faced connected to becoming the CEO of Meetup and moving the company forward? #2 - Obviously, David, a lot of people listening and watching this interview know that WeWork owned Meetup and that "Adam Neumann" hired you, so looking back, what are some of your personal insights on working with Adam? #3- We have just gone through one of the most dramatic economic periods connected to Covid 19; what have been some of the critical things you have learned being CEO of Meetup during this period that you like to share with the audience? #4 - it looks like many people in leadership roles, especially in the start-up community, will be facing difficult times in the next 12 to 18 months. Have you got any advice for them? #5 - It seems to me that we are facing a significant reflection point economically, politically, and environmentally. Would you agree with this statement, and if yes, what do you feel have been a couple of significant factors that have got us into this situation. #6 - David, would you like to share with the audience on a significant challenge you have faced career-wise or personally, and how did you overcome this challenge? https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmsiegel

David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local communities. He has 25 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and before that, President of Seeking Alpha. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University, teaching strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He is the author of Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders and hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. Mentioned in this Episode:WeCrashed Series on Apple+Built to LeadThe Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben HorowitzIn Search of Excellence by Tom PetersTime Codes:(4:02) - When did your core principles become clear to you?(9:44) - Have you done anything since writing the book to apply your values day-to-day?(12:35) - Writing and reflecting on your career journey to help you grow.(14:54) - Interviewing for a leadership role.(19:23) - How do you deal with the fear that comes with a new leadership role?(21:56) - What is a process plan versus a business plan?(25:42) - What are the different frameworks you use and why are they important?(30:19) - Why was moving fast so important to you?(37:28) - WarTime & PeaceTime CEOs.(45:55) - How do you create luck?(49:01) - What are some examples of decisions you've made that led to doors opening or doors closing?(57:38) - How do you create a successful community?(1:04:08) - What is the purpose of business?

Our guest in this episode, David Siegel, CEO of MeetUp.com, explains why the office is over and what that means for your business. Before becoming CEO of Meetup.com, the largest platform for finding and building local community, whose goal is to use technology to get people off technology, David was the CEO of Investopedia and, before that, President of Seeking Alpha. He is the author of the new book, Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Will Make or Break All Leaders (https://www.amazon.com/Decide-Conquer-Decisions-Break-Leaders/dp/140023087X). In this fascinating conversation, David shares in what ways "the office is over," why rumors of its demise are partially exaggerated, which kinds of business need to keep an in-person element and why, and 2 big strategies for how to successfully go back to (or stay) in-person. Listen to the show on Apple podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/win-win-an-entrepreneurial-community/id1465488607), wherever you normally get your podcasts, or listen on the web at www.FractionalLeadership.io/Podcast!

David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local community, and author of Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Will Make or Break All Leaders. He also hosts a Podcast called Keep Connected and is a Management Professor at Columbia University. Before joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and, before that, President of Seeking Alpha. David has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration.  Some of The Topics Discussed Include: What a day in the life looks like for David as CEO of a large company  The mission of Meetup and why human connection & community is more important than ever now What makes an effective leader  Universal truths & principles for leading a great company  Examples of effective leaders The skills it takes to build a great company  The role of higher education in developing future business leaders Links & Resources Meetup.com  Keep Connected Podcast  David's Email  Connect with David on LinkedIn  Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders Review & Subscribe Thanks for joining us this week! Want to subscribe to our podcast and leave some feedback by posting a review? You can do so by checking us out on Apple Podcasts. The show is also available on Spotify, Google Podcasts, and anywhere else you listen to podcasts.   Prefer watching these discussions? Check us out on YouTube and subscribe to our channel for the video version of each podcast.  Need Digital Marketing Help? Then book a Strategy Call with me to discuss your company's marketing challenges. In less than 30 minutes, I'll help you brainstorm solutions to improve your company's marketing performance and provide you with actionable next steps to turn things around. Use the link below to schedule a time to chat with me.  Book a Strategy Call

You are listening to the podcast that helps innovators and entrepreneurs to create successful digital solutions - from idea to market! Let us introduce David Siegel, CEO at Meetup, a global community platform that connects people in real life by finding and building local communities; the author of NOT boring business book “Decide and Conquer”, which, he hopes, his great grandchildren will read as his life story. Go to our new podcast, and you will know not only David's business ideas, but his personal life portrait. - how it all started for David - what is Meetup and its value for users - how has the pandemic affected David's business and has he been able to use it to his advantage - was there any magic stick that helped Meetup to gather more users than the population of the whole country? David's tips on driving success - how to build a successful strategy for a digital product - 3 lessons from the tech CEO valuable to hear - David's work and approach of doing business in his book “Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders”

Here on the Celebrations Chatter podcast, we aim to highlight the power of community, connection, and relationships. Today's guest, David Siegel, knows how important these values are. David is the CEO of Meetup, the largest online platform for finding and building local communities. Through Meetup, David helps others meet new people, learn new things, find support, get out of their comfort zones, and pursue their passions.  David also has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive, including several years spent working alongside Jim at 1-800-Flowers. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University and hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. David's new book, Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders, lays out the framework for decision-making and combines his extraordinary stories detailing the many challenges he faced as newly appointed CEO for Meetup.  Let's learn how David shares it forward on Celebrations Chatter.     New podcast episodes released weekly on Thursday. Follow along with the links below: Sign up for the Celebrations Chatter Newsletter: https://celebrationschatter.beehiiv.com/    Subscribe to Celebrations Chatter on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@celebrationschatter  Follow @CelebrationsChatter on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celebrationschatter/    Follow @CelebrationsChatter on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@celebrationschatter  Listen to more episodes of Celebrations Chatter on Apple Podcasts:  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/celebrations-chatter-with-jim-mccann/id1616689192    Listen to more episodes of Celebrations Chatter on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Yxfvb4qHGCwR5IgAmgCQX?si=ipuQC3-ATbKyqIk6RtPb-A    Listen to more episodes of Celebrations Chatter on Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5saWJzeW4uY29tLzQwMzU0MS9yc3M?sa=X&ved=0CAMQ4aUDahcKEwio9KT_xJuBAxUAAAAAHQAAAAAQNg  Visit 1-800-Flowers.com: https://www.1800flowers.com/    Visit the 1-800-Flowers.com YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@1800flowers  Follow Jim McCann on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim1800flowers/  Follow Jim McCann on X / Twitter: https://twitter.com/jim1800flowers (@Jim1800Flowers)

PepsiCo Chief Design Officer Mauro Porcini talks with David Siegel, the CEO of Meetup, about his new book, Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders. David shares his journey and offers his advice on how you can make more informed, intentional decisions in work and life. Explore more from PepsiCo Design + Innovation:  

David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local community. He has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and before that, President of Seeking Alpha. David's book, Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders lays out the framework for decision-making that leaders can use to ensure organizational and personal success. In our conversation we talk about David's approach to failing, learning, and the art of the pivot, how to stand the inevitable tensions with doing things on the edge, and how to create a winning culture.

Decision making is one of the most important tasks that we do daily.  The decisions you make have the potential to bring greater luck and the power to move forward toward your next success.  Yieldstreet's CEO and Founder, Milind Mehere is joined by David Siegel, CEO of Meetup discuss his book- Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders, and to discuss the power of making better decisions every day.Click here to subscribe and listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-yield/id1527659260Key Takeaways:[1:10] David's journey from HR to Seeking Alpha president to Meetup CEO. [4:25] David shares his non-ego driven philosophy of business leadership. [7:55] What is the impact of sharing information with team members? [10:15] Decide and Conquer- David's motivation behind writing this leadership book.[12:51] Lucky things happen to people who make options for themselves. [16:45] The benefit of making decisions- and moving on- quickly. [19:05] Building a good company culture starts with core values in action. [24:59] The values of a company should be reflected in how they conduct business. [27:38] Balancing personal ambitions with company goals. [33:30] Managing Meetup in a socially distanced pandemic world. [37:52] David's most and least favorite parts of his new book. [41:15] The top two takeaways from David's book. Mentioned in This Episode:YieldstreetDecide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders by David Seigel

Welcome to Strategy Skills episode 236, an episode with the CEO of Meetup, David Siegel. In this episode, David talks us through his epic journey of becoming and remaining the CEO of Meetup in spite of the challenges that the organization faced and, later on, conquered. He also spoke about Investopedia – which he was the CEO of prior to joining Meetup. David also highlighted and elaborated on what a community is, how it works, and the value that it brings. David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local community. He has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia. Before that, he was president of Seeking Alpha. He hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. David holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he teaches strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He lives in White Plains, New York with his wife and three teenage children. In his spare time, he likes to pop in on Meetup events. Get David's book here: Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions That Will Make or Break All Leaders. David Siegel Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

Suite Have you ever considered what's needed to reach higher levels in an organization? Every executive finds their unique pathway. In this episode of Masters of Business, Steven Haines talks with David Siegel, CEO of Meetup and author of the book “Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions That Will Make or Break All Leaders.” David will describe his profound experiences, challenges, and lessons learned on his profoundly successful path to the C-Suite.

➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory ➡️ About The Guest⁣ David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building the local community. He has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and before that, President of Seeking Alpha. David holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he teaches strategic planning and entrepreneurship.  He hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. David's book, Decide & Conquer,(HarperCollins) lays out the framework for decision-making that leaders can use to ensure organizational and personal success. ➡️ Show Links https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmsiegel/ https://twitter.com/Davidmeirsiegel/ ➡️ Podcast Sponsors HUBSPOT - https://hubspot.com/ ➡️ Talking Points⁣ 00:00 - Intro 04:02 - David Siegel's origin story 06:33 - David's pre-Meetup life 09:36 - Assistant to the CEO 11:27 - Early career struggles 15:10 - The most notable part of David Siegel's career 19:41 - David's leadership book 21:55 - The serial CEO 22:26 - What is the definition of a leader? 23:31 - Leadership principles & shareholder expectations 29:11 - Leadership principles 37:00 - Decision-making process 38:46 - How to hire 40:33 - Skills to hire for 44:25 - The importance of de-prioritization 46:15 - Lessons from David's book 47:34 - Where do people connect with David Siegel? 48:19 - What was the biggest challenge of David's career? 48:51 - David Siegel's mentor 49:39 - David Siegel's book or a podcast recommendation 50:38 - What would David tell his 20-year-old self? 51:04 - What does success mean to David Siegel? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey everyone, Would you agree that we become better people when we're around other people, and ideally, meeting in person? Today's guest certainly does. David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup - the largest platform in the world for finding and building a local community for people with similar interests. Meetup was acquired by WeWork in 2017, a year later David was selected by both WeWork and Meetup's founder to succeed him as CEO. That move proved itself. Nowadays under David's leadership Meetup flourishes with over 40 million members, 320,000 Meetup groups and facilitates, and around 12,000 Meetups around the world daily. David is also the author of a new book called Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders, where he outlines the challenges leaders face when starting a new position, and then presents a decision framework he applied to overcome challenges in his own career. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he teaches strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He hosts the podcast Keep Connected, dedicated - you've guessed it - to the power of community. Prior to joining Meetup, David was the CEO of Investopedia where he tripled its revenue over a three-year period. He also served as the President of SeekingAlpha, a technology company focused on startups seeking financing, and as Senior Vice President for 1-800 Flowers. He's a fountain of experience, insights, and goodwill. We discuss: • The power of storytelling • The role mentors played in David's life • The correlation between pain and growth • The difference between self-esteem and confidence • The significance of vulnerability • How he overcame the social anxiety he suffered from in his early years • The leadership advice he got from Jack Welch • The radical transparency David leads in Meetup as a trust enhancing policy • How he perceives the role of a CEO and the core KPIs he measures his performance with • The difference between being kind and being nice (and why you should opt for the former) • David's decision-making framework • And much more! Enjoy our conversation - we sure did.

What is it like to take over a company from its founder? What is the best approach to interviewing? What was it like to work with Adam Neumann? This week, we chat with David Siegel, CEO of Meetup and author of Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders. Through his career stories and his book, David shares with us how he led Meetup's culture of resilience to evolve and used it to lead the company through the infamous WeWork IPO and the COVID-19 pandemic.

In today's episode, we cover leadership and decision-making with David Siegel. David is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local communities, and the author of Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders.Success is determined by the decisions you make and the people you surround yourself with, so how can you know when you're making the right decision for your future, what can you do to surround yourself with people who will help you create success, and how do you maintain firm boundaries along the way?What to Listen ForIntroduction – 0:00What does it take to be the CEO of a great company like Meetup and how can you apply that knowledge to your own goals?Build a powerful network like a CEO – 19:28What can you do to build a network that will get you to the next level of your career?How do you create luck in your life so more and more opportunities present themselves to you?What can you do to set firm boundaries as you become more successful?Navigate difficult conversations with ease – 38:14When is the right time to have a difficult conversation and what can you do to make difficult conversations easier?How do you move your ego out of the way so it doesn't sabotage your success as a leader?Build a thriving company culture – 49:03What can you do to foster a company culture that is open to change and willing to cooperate on effecting change?What's next for Meetup?CEOs know the importance of having a powerful network and tough decision-making. It's what gets them through difficult conversations and allows them to build a thriving company culture. But, it doesn't happen overnight. You have to be intentional about who you connect with and how you engage with them if you want to reap the benefits. What are some things you can do this week to start building your own powerful CEO-style network and decision-making framework?A Word From Our SponsorsDo you LOVE the toolbox episodes? Did you know that every week we give a LIVE mini-toolbox lesson inside our Private Facebook Group? Best of all it is FREE to join. Join today and get access to all of our live training and level up your communication, leadership, influence and persuasion skills. With 14,000 members it's a great place to network, learn and overcome any obstacle that's in your way.Did you know that you can get the whole Art of Charm catalog when you subscribe to Stitcher Premium using our link? That's 15 years of podcasts featuring expert guests and toolbox episodes! Sign up today and use Code “CHARM” to get a free month!Resources from this EpisodeThe fall of WeWork's Adam NeumannDecide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All LeadersMeetUpCheck in with AJ and Johnny!AJ on InstagramJohnny on InstagramThe Art of Charm on InstagramThe Art of Charm on YouTube

David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building local communities. He has 25 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and before that, President of Seeking Alpha. David holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he teaches strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He is the author of Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders and hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. To get access to all episodes and free resources, visit ChangingLivesPodcast.com.

Decide and Conquer: 44 Decisions that will Make or Break All Leaders by David Siegel Success boils down to one thing: making good decisions. Learn the right framework now that can make all the difference later when faced with terrible options, deep anxiety and fear of failure. Access the decision framework David Siegel used when he took over as CEO of Meetup, the world's leading platform for making connections and finding your community. Let David's success during one of the most tumultuous times in his company's history help guide you on your own path. Decide and Conquer helps all leaders navigate the big decisions that will impact their future and make their organizations a success. David outlines the 44 challenges leaders face when starting a new position, then shows you the decision framework he applied to overcome challenges in his own role. David takes you on an epic journey of corporate and personal survival that includes industry titans like Adam Neumann, Barry Diller, Jack Welch, Bill Ackman, and other leaders. In Decide and Conquer, you will learn to: Apply principles like open communication, transparency, and kindness to inform great decision making. Set yourself up to succeed, even before you start, by removing potential roadblocks before they become a problem. Be a bold and decisive leader and not succumb to fear. By applying the principles he had learned in previous leadership positions, David was able to make the many critical decisions that would mean life or death for Meetup when WeWork decided to sell the company. From deciding to accept the position and negotiating terms to managing a seemingly endless series of crises during the sale and global pandemic, Decide and Conquer walks readers through the key decisions they will face with invaluable advice for each one.

Adam has written three books, including his latest “The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders” and is a senior adviser for Organisational Character and Leadership at Columbia University. As a New York Times journalist & editor, Adam had an extraordinary front row seat listening to more than 525 CEOs and growing through their experiences. Today as Managing Director of The ExCo Group, an executive mentoring firm, he continues to observe and capture the essence of the leaders he interviews. Together we discuss how to set yourself apart as a leader; why your personal brand really matters, why less talking and more walking is needed to close the gap on diversity and how the world has changed and skills like humanity, empathy and compassion matter more than ever.

Success boils down to one thing: making good decisions. Easy to say, but what do you do when you are faced with terrible options, anxiety, and fear of failure? Learning the right frameworks now can make all the difference later.   Today, we are joined by the CEO of Meetup, David Siegel, who is also the author of Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions that Make or Break All Leaders. He addresses common issues that result in poor decisions, and how you can overcome these problems.   Join me and David in this informative episode and get tips on how to become better at decision-making immediately.   Discussion Points:   • 0:00 Introduction   • 2:18 David's worst decision in business   • 4:51 Distinguishing short term and long term consequences in decision-making   • 6:08 What's a trapdoor decision?   • 7:08 David's advice to ensure you're not belaboring your decisions and missing out on opportunities   • 9:01 Learning to make tough decisions through painful circumstances   • 11:24 David's perspective on sunk cost fallacy and why it's a challenge for decision makers   • 15:28 How to decide if you're caught between breaching the contract and damaging your business   • 17:46 Balancing ego and humility in decision-making   • 19:46 As a CEO, how do you ground yourself to become an effective listener?   • 24:06 Getting out of the loop of being the CEO who makes too many decisions   • 25:20 An effective framework for delegation within the company   • 26:48  The biggest mistake in delegation   • 28:36 Managing an environment that feels safe for all team members to give feedback   • 32:34 Framing accountability   • 35:03 Top 3 most important decisions that leaders must make   • 36:45 Are you the fox or the hedgehog in decision-making?   • 40:22 Guidelines in hiring the people we want to work with and surround us   • 43:36 Giving your team the space and confidence to disagree and speak   • 45:33 EQ is crucial in order to become an effective decision maker   • 47:00 What to do when you made the wrong decision?   • 48:47 3 concrete actions a leader should take to get better at decision-making immediately    About Our Guest:   • David Siegel is the CEO of Meetup, the largest platform for finding and building the local community. He has over 20 years of experience as a technology and digital media executive leading organizations through innovative product development, rapid revenue growth, and digital traffic acceleration. Prior to joining Meetup, David was CEO of Investopedia and before that, President of Seeking Alpha. David holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he teaches strategic planning and entrepreneurship. He hosts the podcast Keep Connected, which is dedicated to the power of community. David's book, Decide & Conquer,(HarperCollins) lays out the framework for decision-making that leaders can use to ensure organizational and personal success.   Resources:   • Decide & Conquer: 44 Decisions That Make or Break All Leaders by David Siegel http://www.decideandconquerbook.com/   • Need help designing and playing your business game? Contact Eric Anderton: www.constructiongenius.com/contact    Do Your Project Executives Need to Become Better Leaders?   • Book a 10-minute call with Eric Anderton to see if/how he can help (https://10minutes.youcanbook.me/)   Connect with me on LinkedIn. For more podcast episodes, you may also visit my website. Tune in and subscribe to the Construction Genius: A Leadership Master-Class Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher. Thank you for tuning in!

Today, #18 in our countdown of last year's top 22 books: “The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders.”In the decade he spent writing the “Corner Office” column for the New York Times, Adam Bryant interviewed hundreds of CEOs and learned what separates good leaders from great ones. In "The CEO Test" Adam and his co-author, Kevin Sharer, the former CEO of Amgen, share what they've learned about staying nimble, handling a crisis, and creating cultures that work.We'll be back with a new season of interviews in February, featuring Jill Lepore, Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Ray Dalio, David Chalmers, Paul Bloom, and a bunch of other brilliant thinkers.To learn more about “The CEO Test,” visit adambryantbooks.com. And to hear more great Book Bites, download the Next Big Idea app at nextbigideaclub.com/app.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, #18 in our countdown of the top 22 books of last year: “The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders." In the decade he spent writing the “Corner Office” column for the New York Times, Adam Bryant interviewed hundreds of CEOs and learned what separates good leaders from great ones. In "The CEO Test" Adam and his co-author, Kevin Sharer, the former CEO of Amgen, share what they've learned about staying nimble, handling a crisis, and creating cultures that work. We'll be back with a new season of interviews in February, featuring Jill Lepore, Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Ray Dalio, David Chalmers, Paul Bloom, and a bunch of other brilliant thinkers. To learn more about “The CEO Test,” visit adambryantbooks.com. And to hear more great Book Bites, download the Next Big Idea app at nextbigideaclub.com/app.

There is practical training and a test to become a driver, yet often, there is no real training or test to become a good CEO. In fact, the research shows that most people in management don't get any real leadership training until they have on average 10 years in management. The result is fumbling or downright failed leadership. Now, you may have been a leader for a long time, but if there was a CEO Test, do you honestly believe you would pass? Let's find out together. Our guest is Adam Bryant. Adam has interviewed more than 700 CEOs about the key leadership lessons they've learned, first as a journalist at The New York Times, and now in his interview series on LinkedIn as part of his consulting work with ExCo Group, an executive mentoring and leadership development firm. Adam's written his third book, "The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders," with Kevin Sharer, the former CEO of Amgen. The book is published by Harvard Business Review Press. Website https://adambryantbooks.com Social Media https://twitter.com/adambbryant https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership Part 1) The Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders The Clarity of Strategy The Dangers of Presumptive Knowledge Would You Pass The CEO Test? 4 Step Strategy: What, Levers, Challenges and The Scoreboard Leadership is...Everything The Importance of Specificity Be & Do Use Your Time Machine The Paradoxes of Leadership

There is practical training and a test to become a driver, yet often, there is no real training or test to become a good CEO. In fact, the research shows that most people in management don't get any real leadership training until they have on average 10 years in management. The result is fumbling or downright failed leadership. Now, you may have been a leader for a long time, but if there was a CEO Test, do you honestly believe you would pass? Let's find out together. Our guest is Adam Bryant. Adam has interviewed more than 700 CEOs about the key leadership lessons they've learned, first as a journalist at The New York Times, and now in his interview series on LinkedIn as part of his consulting work with ExCo Group, an executive mentoring and leadership development firm. Adam's written his third book, "The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders," with Kevin Sharer, the former CEO of Amgen. The book is published by Harvard Business Review Press. Website https://adambryantbooks.com Social Media https://twitter.com/adambbryant https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership

Adam Bryant is managing director of The ExCo Group, a senior leadership development and executive mentoring firm. Prior to this, Adam worked for 30 years as a journalist, including 18 years as a reporter, editor and columnist at The New York Times. He interviewed more than 500 CEOs for “Corner Office,” a series on leadership that he created in 2009. He also writes a monthly column for Strategy+Business magazine and is the Senior Advisor to the Reuben Mark Initiative for Organizational Character and Leadership at Columbia University. Adam is the author of three books: His new book is THE CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders, published by Harvard Business Review Press, which he co-authored with Kevin Sharer, the former President and then CEO of Amgen during which he grew the company to $16 billion in revenue from just $1 billion. Adam's first book, The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed, was a New York Times bestseller, drawing on insights from CEOs to identify the qualities that help explain why certain executives are promoted over others to become CEOs. In his second book Quick and Nimble: Lessons from Leading CEOs on How to Create a Culture of Innovation, Adam distilled the wisdom of hundreds of business leaders to identify the secrets to a high-performing corporate culture. In this podcast he shares: The seven most critical tests that determine the success of a CEO Advice on how to simplify strategy so that everything can get on boardWhy we should be thinking about strategy as “making bets” rather than plansA compelling metaphor for strategy and leadership—think of it as keep bunnies in their boxes__________________________________________________________________________________________"I think that is one of the things that set effective leaders apart...is they have the skill of simplifying complexity. So take all the complexity in the world, in your industry and your company, and boil it down to a simple framework because I always say it's one of the leader's tests is to be able to stand on a stage at an all-hands meeting...and answer the questions that little kids ask...like 'Where are we going? How are we going to get there? '...To be able to do that takes a certain habit of mind...it is a muscle that you need to develop."-Adam Bryant__________________________________________________________________________________________Episode Timeline:00:00—Adam Bryant + The topic of today's episode2:32—If you really know me, you know that....3:24—What is your definition of strategy?6:10—Can you explain more what you mean about leaders lacking "shared language"?6:40—What has been your biggest surprise in interviewing so many CEOs?9:07—Could you tell us about the seven key attributes that you discovered throughout your work?11:40—Is the skill of demystifying and clarifying the complex a skill that can be learned?14:00—Why do people have a tendency to overcomplicate ideas and use hundred-dollar words?15:10—Getting people accept ideas is more than just simplifying; can you explain the importance of repetition?16:48—You talk about business being about bets—could you elaborate on that?18:40—How can people follow, find and learn from you__________________________________________________________________________________________Additional Resources: Company page: https://www.excoleadership.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/adambbryantLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership/Personal Site: https://adambryantbooks.com/

Adam Bryant is managing director of The ExCo Group, a senior leadership development and executive mentoring firm. Prior to this, Adam worked for 30 years as a journalist, including 18 years as a reporter, editor and columnist at The New York Times. He interviewed more than 500 CEOs for “Corner Office,” a series on leadership that he created in 2009. He also writes a monthly column for Strategy+Business magazine and is the Senior Advisor to the Reuben Mark Initiative for Organizational Character and Leadership at Columbia University. Adam is the author of three books: His new book is THE CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders, published by Harvard Business Review Press, which he co-authored with Kevin Sharer, the former President and then CEO of Amgen during which he grew the company to $16 billion in revenue from just $1 billion. Adam's first book, The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed, was a New York Times bestseller, drawing on insights from CEOs to identify the qualities that help explain why certain executives are promoted over others to become CEOs. In his second book Quick and Nimble: Lessons from Leading CEOs on How to Create a Culture of Innovation, Adam distilled the wisdom of hundreds of business leaders to identify the secrets to a high-performing corporate culture. In this podcast he shares: The seven most critical tests that determine the success of a CEO Advice on how to simplify strategy so that everything can get on boardWhy we should be thinking about strategy as “making bets” rather than plansA compelling metaphor for strategy and leadership—think of it as keep bunnies in their boxes__________________________________________________________________________________________"I think that is one of the things that set effective leaders apart...is they have the skill of simplifying complexity. So take all the complexity in the world, in your industry and your company, and boil it down to a simple framework because I always say it's one of the leader's tests is to be able to stand on a stage at an all-hands meeting...and answer the questions that little kids ask...like 'Where are we going? How are we going to get there? '...To be able to do that takes a certain habit of mind...it is a muscle that you need to develop."-Adam Bryant__________________________________________________________________________________________Episode Timeline:00:00—Adam Bryant + The topic of today's episode2:32—If you really know me, you know that....3:24—What is your definition of strategy?6:10—Can you explain more what you mean about leaders lacking "shared language"?6:40—What has been your biggest surprise in interviewing so many CEOs?9:07—Could you tell us about the seven key attributes that you discovered throughout your work?11:40—Is the skill of demystifying and clarifying the complex a skill that can be learned?14:00—Why do people have a tendency to overcomplicate ideas and use hundred-dollar words?15:10—Getting people accept ideas is more than just simplifying; can you explain the importance of repetition?16:48—You talk about business being about bets—could you elaborate on that?18:40—How can people follow, find and learn from you__________________________________________________________________________________________Additional Resources: Company page: https://www.excoleadership.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/adambbryantLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership/Personal Site: https://adambryantbooks.com/

There is practical training and a test to become a driver, yet often, there is no real training or test to become a good CEO. In fact, the research shows that most people in management don't get any real leadership training until they have on average 10 years in management. The result is fumbling or downright failed leadership. Now, you may have been a leader for a long time, but if there was a CEO Test, do you honestly believe you would pass? Let's find out together. Our guest is Adam Bryant. Adam has interviewed more than 700 CEOs about the key leadership lessons they've learned, first as a journalist at The New York Times, and now in his interview series on LinkedIn as part of his consulting work with ExCo Group, an executive mentoring and leadership development firm. Adam's written his third book, "The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders," with Kevin Sharer, the former CEO of Amgen. The book is published by Harvard Business Review Press. Website https://adambryantbooks.com Social Media https://twitter.com/adambbryant https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership Curious about how to tap into what drives meaning in your life and create meaningful transformation in the lives you touch? Take a look at DovBaron.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is practical training and a test to become a driver, yet often, there is no real training or test to become a good CEO. In fact, the research shows that most people in management don't get any real leadership training until they have on average 10 years in management. The result is fumbling or downright failed leadership. Now, you may have been a leader for a long time, but if there was a CEO Test, do you honestly believe you would pass? Let's find out together. Our guest is Adam Bryant. Adam has interviewed more than 700 CEOs about the key leadership lessons they've learned, first as a journalist at The New York Times, and now in his interview series on LinkedIn as part of his consulting work with ExCo Group, an executive mentoring and leadership development firm. Adam's written his third book, "The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders," with Kevin Sharer, the former CEO of Amgen. The book is published by Harvard Business Review Press. Website https://adambryantbooks.com Social Media https://twitter.com/adambbryant https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership Part 1) The Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders The Clarity of Strategy The Dangers of Presumptive Knowledge Would You Pass The CEO Test? 4 Step Strategy: What, Levers, Challenges and The Scoreboard Leadership is...Everything The Importance of Specificity Be & Do Use Your Time Machine The Paradoxes of Leadership Curious about how to tap into what drives meaning in your life and create meaningful transformation in the lives you touch? Take a look at DovBaron.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to Adam Bryant, former New York Times journalist and leadership expert, in conversation with Prof. Hitendra Wadhwa, exclusively on Intersections. Adam has had a 30-year career in journalism, including 18 years at The New York Times, where he created the weekly "Corner Office" column in 2009, interviewing 525 CEOs and other leaders for over a decade. He has written two popular leadership books that emerged from these interviews: Quick and Nimble: Lessons from Leading CEOs on How to Create a Culture of Innovation and The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed. Adam's next book, co-authored with former Amgen CEO Kevin Sharer, THE CEO TEST: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders, is scheduled for a March 2021 release by Harvard Business Review Press.

Our guest is Adam Bryant - Managing Director at The ExCo Group and author of multiple books including the most recent "THE CEO TEST: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders,". Adam has a 30-year career in journalism, including 18 years at The New York Times. He created the weekly "Corner Office" column in 2009, and has interviewed 525 CEOs and other leaders over a decade. Since joining The ExCo Group, he has started popular interview series on LinkedIn with board directors, CEOs, CHROs and prominent Black leaders, and he writes a monthly column on leadership for Strategy+Business magazine. Adam also is the senior adviser to the Reuben Mark Initiative for Organizational Character and Leadership at Columbia University. In this episode of Scaling Culture, Ron and Adam discuss: How strategy drives culture and 4 key components for leaders to succeed The power of defining the most critical metric and setting the tone How to have tough conversations and the importance of listening skills  For more information about Adam, please connect with him on LinkedIn or go to adambryantbooks.com. For more information about the Scaling Culture Podcast or our Scaling Culture Masterclass that comes out in the next 5 weeks, go to scalingculture.org.

Guest: Adam Bryant is a respected and noted expert on executive leadership, whose work includes 525 Corner Office columns for the New York Times. He joined The ExCo Group as Managing Director and Partner after a distinguished career as an editor and journalist. Adam has a proven ability to distill real-world lessons and insights from his hundreds of interviews and turn them into practical tools, presentations and exercises to help The ExCo Group clients deepen their leadership benches and strengthen their teams. He works with executive leadership teams and organizations to foster a culture of innovation, based on a best-practices framework he developed for his widely praised book, "The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders." Before joining The ExCo Group, Adam worked for 30 years as a journalist, including 18 years as a reporter, editor and columnist at The New York Times. He interviewed more than 500 CEOs for "Corner Office," a weekly series on leadership and management in The Times that he created in 2009. Episode in a Tweet: Take the CEO Test! Learn what tests you need to pass to be an exceptional leader and change the world. Quick Background: They had me at the title. A CEO Test??? I hadn't heard of any such thing, and I knew I had to find out if I would pass the test. The average CEO only lasts five years in the job, and I wanted to find out why. What was I doing differently, being that I've been in the CEO role at StoneAge for over 12 years and still have a long runway ahead of me? Would I pass or fail? Have I just been lucky, or am I doing a few things right? I waited with anticipation for the book to arrive. Once I read it, I was a fan. "The CEO Test" is one of the best books I've read in 2021. I appreciate the "tests" Adam and his co-author line out and once I finished the book, I reached out to Adam to get to know him and his firm. During this episode, Adam and I talk about the challenges leaders face today and how they can overcome the obstacles and crises that will undoubtedly continue to come their way. Adam shares his views on a leader's superpower. News flash, it's not what you might think! We also talk about the importance of a clear and simple strategy and a business's reason for existing. Adam also shares what it was like to be a reporter and editor at one of the country's largest newspapers, The New York Times. This is an insightful and motivating episode and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! How to find Adam: https://adambryantbooks.com/ https://www.excoleadership.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership/ Subscribe to his newsletters: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-new-director-s-chair-6495698283434901505/ https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/leading-in-the-b-suite-6516489087090782208/ https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-leading-6509860728994881536/ https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/strategic-chro-6495697551163957248/

If you enjoy reading interviews of CEOs sharing what shapes their understanding and approach to leadership, chances are you've probably read one of the over 500 interviews Adam Bryant wrote for his popular New York Times column, “Corner Office”. I've been an avid reader of Adam's column for many, many years so I was delighted when his publicist reached out to me to say Adam was interested in appearing on my podcast, “Leadership Biz Cafe”. For those who might not be familiar with Adam's work, in addition to writing the “Corner Office” column, Adam wrote the New York Times bestseller “The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How To Lead and Succeed” as well as “Quick and Nimble - Lessons From Leading CEOs on How To Create a Culture of Innovation”. On this episode of my leadership podcast, Adam and I sit down to talk about his latest book, “The CEO Test - Master The Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders”*, which he he co-wrote with former Amgen CEO Kevin Sharer. Over the course of my conversation with Adam, some of the topics we discuss include: How leaders can create a simple plan that keeps their focus on their “big idea” despite the numerous distractions and demands for their time and attention.How to ensure your organization's culture and its stated values reflect the everyday reality in your workplace, as opposed to an aspirational concept.4 simple, but powerful questions that lead to more effective team building and collaboration.How to truly listen to others so people are willing to freely share their insights on what's going right and what's really going wrong. https://open.spotify.com/episode/21iswjhjWPsz37R31nsguR As I mentioned at the end of this episode, if you enjoy this or past episodes of my podcast, I'd appreciate it if you could subscribe, rate, and review my podcast on the app you use to listen to my podcast. Notable links: Learn more about Adam's current work at The ExCo Group.Buy Adam's book "The CEO Test" on Amazon* *sponsored link that helps to support this podcast.

If you enjoy reading interviews of CEOs sharing what shapes their understanding and approach to leadership, chances are you've probably read one of the over 500 interviews Adam Bryant wrote for his popular New York Times column, “Corner Office”. I've been an avid reader of Adam's column for many, many years so I was delighted when his publicist reached out to me to say Adam was interested in appearing on my podcast, “Leadership Biz Cafe”. For those who might not be familiar with Adam's work, in addition to writing the “Corner Office” column, Adam wrote the New York Times bestseller “The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How To Lead and Succeed” as well as “Quick and Nimble - Lessons From Leading CEOs on How To Create a Culture of Innovation”. On this episode of my leadership podcast, Adam and I sit down to talk about his latest book, “The CEO Test - Master The Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders”*, which he he co-wrote with former Amgen CEO Kevin Sharer. Over the course of my conversation with Adam, some of the topics we discuss include: How leaders can create a simple plan that keeps their focus on their “big idea” despite the numerous distractions and demands for their time and attention.How to ensure your organization's culture and its stated values reflect the everyday reality in your workplace, as opposed to an aspirational concept.4 simple, but powerful questions that lead to more effective team building and collaboration.How to truly listen to others so people are willing to freely share their insights on what's going right and what's really going wrong. As I mentioned at the end of this episode, if you enjoy this or past episodes of my podcast, I'd appreciate it if you could subscribe, rate, and review my podcast on the app you use to listen to my podcast. Notable links: Learn more about Adam's current work at The ExCo Group.Buy Adam's book "The CEO Test" on Amazon* *sponsored link that helps to support this podcast.

Meet Kevin Sharer:Kevin Sharer led Amgen for 20 years, first as President and then as CEO. He also co-authored The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders. Kevin served on several boards of directors and on the faculty of Harvard Business School. Kevin received a Bachelor of Science in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy, an MS in aeronautical engineering from the US Naval Postgraduate School, and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh's Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business.Key Insights: Kevin began his leadership journey in Navy submarines, translating his technical skills and interest in personal growth to his roles as President and eventually CEO of Amgen. He shares timeless knowledge about improving oneself and the skills necessary to be a successful CEO or board member.Governance. It's not enough to just show up. Being a good board member means balance, building relationships, and making the tough calls. (46:09)Passing the CEO Test. Kevin discusses what selecting a quality CEO entails, including asking all the right questions and trusting your gut. (24:14)Asking the Right Question. Diving deep and asking the right people questions will give you all the information you need to make quality judgements. (15;59)Listening as an Art Form. The biggest revelation in Kevin's career was the importance of listening, and how he needed to be a better listener. (28:21)

Today's guest is Adam Bryant, Managing Director at The ExCo Group (formerly Merryck & Co. Americas). The Exco Group specializes in helping boards, executives, and teams unlock their full leadership potential and deliver high-impact performance for their enterprises. Adam is also the author of The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders; a book that focuses on the seven most critical reasons leaders succeed or fail. Adam hasn't always been a Thought Leader. For 30 years, he had a successful career as a journalist, editor, and columnist, primarily at The New York Times. As he honed his communication skills and learned the ins-and-outs of complex teams, Adam focused on the question: “What if we interviewed a CEO for an article and didn't discuss their business background?” Instead, he focused the conversation around the lessons of leadership, culture, hiring, and talent, to see what made high-powered leaders flourish and grow.  Over 10 years, Adam interviewed 525 CEOs. Those lessons eventually became a book: The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed. In it, he presented the insights and advice he gleaned through those interviews in order to to help others master the steep learning curve of leadership. In today's episode, Adam discusses his skills as a journalist, and how they positioned him to elevate others through the practice of thought leadership. He credits that background with his impressive ability to see patterns, focus on the essence of an issue, and find insights in both challenges and success - and share those gifts with others. If you're feeling blocked, this is the episode that can show you how to find your strengths and bring them into the game! Three Key Takeaways: Non-traditional questions can be a great way for Thought Leaders to gain new insight.  Thought Leaders can find strong, accessible examples of leadership lessons in TV and movies. Thought Leadership might start out as a "side-hustle," but if nurtured properly, can take on a life of its own!

All leaders face their challenges and versions of stress and demands—the intensity and consequences of those challenges grow as they move higher into roles with more width and complexity. Despite all the effort through the years to understand what it takes to be an effective leader, the art of leadership remains enormously tricky and elusive. Leaders at all levels can learn from Adam Bryant, co-author of the book The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders, as he joins Jason Marc Campbell on Superhumans at Work to share the seven key reasons that explain why leaders succeed or fail in their roles.    Adam Bryant is managing director of The ExCo Group (formerly Merryck & Co. Americas), senior leadership development and executive mentoring firm. He has a proven ability to distill real-world lessons and insights from his hundreds of interviews and turn them into practical tools, presentations, and exercises to help The ExCo Group clients deepen their leadership benches and strengthen their teams. He works with executive leadership teams and organizations to foster a culture of innovation, based on a best-practices framework he developed for his widely praised first book, The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders. In his second book Quick and Nimble: Lessons from Leading CEOs on How to Create a Culture of Innovation, Adam distilled the wisdom of hundreds of business leaders to identify the secrets to a high-performing corporate culture. He continues to conduct leadership interviews on LinkedIn—with CEOs, board directors, prominent Black executives, and chief human resources officers—with more than 160,000 subscribers.    Listen out for: - The CEO test. - The key responsibilities of a CEO. - Why there are so many bad bosses. - The right culture that a CEO needs to nurture. - The best qualities you need to have to be a successful CEO.   Bonus: - Subscribe to 'Mindvalley Membership' to discover 30+ Mindvalley Quests – at a surprisingly low annual fee. You can also watch our podcast sessions live, interact with the guests, connect with the world's best teachers and find your community here

Adam Bryant author of "The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders" by The Best Business Minds

There are certain occupations that most of us would agree take a good deal of skill to perform. Neurosurgeon comes to mind. Airline pilot. Cirque du Soleil performer. And then there's the kind of job that everybody thinks they could do, if only they weren't too busy doing something more important. For example, hosting a radio show. Or writing a book. Everybody can write. And most people believe they've got at least one great story to tell. But if you've ever actually sat down to write a piece of fiction, or even non-fiction, you very quickly discover it's not as easy as it looks. And if you do have the discipline and perseverance to write an entire book - whether it's a serious examination of the role of leadership in business, or a whimsical examination of the inner life of cats - you then have to traverse a minefield of publishing-politics to get anyone to read it. Then, if everything goes right and you're a published author, one of the glamorous things you get to do is go on a radio show and podcast about business, and share your first-hand insightful observations about the state of the publishing industry. That's the situation both of Peter's lunch guests find themselves in on this edition of Out to Lunch. Adam Bryant is a New Orleans resident and creator of the popular New York Times column, The Corner Office. Adam wrote the column as part of his 18-year career at The Times. Adam is also the author of three books. They're all based in some way on his interviews and consulting work with business people, including his most recent, THE CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders, which was published in March 2021 by Harvard Business Review Press. Jim Gabour has been a columnist for the British newspaper, The Guardian. He's also a producer and director of music videos, filmed live concerts, and long-form documentaries that literally span the music world, from Spinal Tap to Nora Jones. Living in New Orleans for most of his life, and sharing his home with cats, Jim hit on an interesting thought. When New Orleans was originally settled by French people, they brought their cats with them. Eventually, the French humans were outnumbered by people of other nationalities. But the French cats remained, well, French. The result of this observation is a book called Meow Monsieur: The French Felines of New Orleans, which was published in March 2021 by Pelican Publishing. If you walked into a teenager's bedroom any time in the past 50 years you would see photos pinned to the wall - of pop stars, rock stars, sports stars, movie stars, and today TikTok and YouTube stars. But you would have to visit a lot of bedrooms to find fan photos of authors. What's statistically interesting about this observation is that in 2020, over 750 million books were sold. And that's not including e-books which account for another 300 million-plus sales. Maybe in the future, A.I will write books, but for now, every one of these billion books that were sold in the last 12 months were written by somebody. And yet, despite this enormous popularity – authors are generally not celebrities in our society. For that reason, you can get to meet extraordinarily talented authors at book signings at your local bookstore. And for a couple of slices of pizza they'll even agree to come on a radio show. For which we are very grateful. Find photos from this show by Jill Lafleur, recorded over lunch at NOLA Pizza, at our website. Here's more lunchtime conversation about newspaper and app publishing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today I talked to Adam Bryant about his new book (co-authored with Kevin Sharer), The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders (Harvard Business Press, 2021). Adam Bryant is managing director of Merryck & Co, a leadership development and mentoring firm. Before then, Adam was a journalist for 30 years, including at the New York Times where he authored the “Corner Office” column. He's a speaker, teacher, and frequent contributor on CNBC. This episode is rooted in the seven parts of what a good CEO needs to master, from a simplified game plan that rank-and-file employees can follow to not trying to artificially resolve the various paradoxes intrinsic to being a leader, such as Creating Freedom and Structure and to Be Compassionate and Demanding. Along the way, the conversation delved into creating a company culture where there's no daylight between what leaders say and do when it comes to values that define the organization. Also of note, why do so many leaders find it hard to coach the people around them to improve? And what are leaders missing that accounts for so many Mergers & Acquisitions not working out? Dan Hill, PhD, is the author of eight books and leads Sensory Logic, Inc. (https://www.sensorylogic.com). To check out his related “Dan Hill's EQ Spotlight” blog, visit https://emotionswizard.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today I talked to Adam Bryant about his new book (co-authored with Kevin Sharer), The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders (Harvard Business Press, 2021). Adam Bryant is managing director of Merryck & Co, a leadership development and mentoring firm. Before then, Adam was a journalist for 30 years, including at the New York Times where he authored the “Corner Office” column. He’s a speaker, teacher, and frequent contributor on CNBC. This episode is rooted in the seven parts of what a good CEO needs to master, from a simplified game plan that rank-and-file employees can follow to not trying to artificially resolve the various paradoxes intrinsic to being a leader, such as Creating Freedom and Structure and to Be Compassionate and Demanding. Along the way, the conversation delved into creating a company culture where there’s no daylight between what leaders say and do when it comes to values that define the organization. Also of note, why do so many leaders find it hard to coach the people around them to improve? And what are leaders missing that accounts for so many Mergers & Acquisitions not working out? Dan Hill, PhD, is the author of eight books and leads Sensory Logic, Inc. (https://www.sensorylogic.com). To check out his related “Dan Hill’s EQ Spotlight” blog, visit https://emotionswizard.com. Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/finance

I'm delighted to have Adam Bryant on Breakthroughs today to discuss some key insights from his new book, “The CEO Test: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders” . ADAM BRYANT is managing director of Merryck & Co., a leadership development and senior executive mentoring firm.  Prior to this role, he was a journalist for 30 years, including at The New York Times, where he created and authored the massively successful “Corner Office” column for which he interviewed more than 600 CEOs and other leaders.  He is the author of two previous books and is the senior adviser to the Rueben Mark Initiative for Organizational Character and Leadership at Columbia University. Adam recently partnered with Kevin Sharer to write a leadership book distinctively different from others applying the breadth and depth of their experiences sharing wisdom that could be applied across industries. Sharer was Chairman/CEO of the biotech company Amgen, where he led its expansion from $1 billion in annual revenues to nearly $16 billion. He spent seven years on the faculty at Harvard Business School and has served on many boards (including Chevron, Unocal, Northrop Grumman, and 3M). He's a sought-after mentor for CEOs of global companies. In his roles as an executive, director, and mentor, He has been involved with more than 20 successful CEO transitions, and he continues to advise CEOs of global corporations. Kevin is a naval academy graduate and served on to attack nuclear submarines. Leaders at all levels can learn from Adam Bryant and Kevin Sharer as they aim to speed up the learning curve in their new book, THE CEO TEST: Master the Challenges that Make or Break All Leaders (March 2, 2021). If you are an aspiring leader looking for insights from hundreds of veteran CEO's, this episode is for you! If you find the Adams insights useful, check this out: The CEO Test: Master the Challenges That Make or Break A... https://www.amazon.com/dp/163369951X/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_awdb_imm_Z9H6Y1CAG6DX9ZY9MM1D