Author: Colin Browne
Sharing a grand vision is important, but often employees want to know they’re being led by someone who also has two feet firmly on the ground with BEER AND BASEBALL Many years back, I sat in an audience, watching my CEO hitch up his pants in between sentences, sip from his water, and mumble about […]
Sharing a grand vision is important, but often employees want to know they’re being led by someone who also has two feet firmly on the ground with BEER AND BASEBALL
Many years back, I sat in an audience, watching my CEO hitch up his pants in between sentences, sip from his water, and mumble about how proud he was to be the leader of a great team.
Except that he wasn’t. Not really. That was obvious for everyone to see. Instead, he was divorced, dissociated and distant; desperately awkward in front of the people he was charged with leading.
And for the most part, the favour was returned. In the few moments he set aside for mingling after his address, the conversations were vague with all the warmth of a maths exam.
Why? Because there wasn’t anything to hitch an engaging conversation to.
Politicians, or at least their strategists, understand that winning people’s support isn’t always about vision, strategy or a pithy articulation of the issues. There is a very clear reason why the President of the United States gets handed a baseball mitt for a quick game of catch in front of the press photographers, when Air Force One touches down on the tarmac, or why the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom pops into a local pub for a beer when he’s out gathering votes.
Without such 2 moments, those leaders are hard to separate from their wealthy families, top educations and privileged backgrounds, which themselves offer only an embarrassing comparison to that of their would-be electorate.
If they have one thing in common, leaders of highly engaged organisations are great at creating a compelling personal narrative separate from their professional roles.
Ooba sales head Bradd Bendall has built a niche as a ridiculously well informed rugby pundit. His #DearHeyneke posts during the reign of the hapless Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer earned a broad readership and nearly spun off a range of t-shirts (Meyer stepped down too soon, unfortunately).
Sage ONE boss Steven Cohen rides a motorcycle to work, is a self-avowed fan of alternative rock band Radiohead and is known for his casual dress sense and even more casual language. During his monthly addresses to the entire company, he pulls no punches in saying things exactly as he sees them.
Google co-founder Sergey Brin often joined in a game of beach volleyball on the company’s campus, with the other Googlers.
Politicians know that creating easy points of connection helps to build a narrative that is key to winning mass votes. It’s probably no different for you.
ARTICLE WRITTEN BY COLIN BROWNE,
Contact Us at WeSpeak Global and follow us on Twitter
The articles, video and images embedded on these pages are from various speakers and talent.
These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.
Excited to share the big news that I’ve been talking with many of you about already! The Launch You’ve Been Waiting For. How to Get Results #NoMatterWhat, It turns out there’s actually proven science around how to get results #NoMatterWhat. It’s all too clear that this is still a really tough time for many people […]
Some companies perceive the concept of creating a “Personal Branding at work” to be self-serving for the employee. But the reality is there is no downside to having team members with heightened self-awareness and a willingness to improve themselves. Basically, that is the foundation for developing a respected Personal Brand at work; to get clarity […]
11 days ago was the last time I have been outside and even had the privilege to go for a car ride which gave me the promise of perspective. I had just returned home from the hospital, hopped up on all kinds of meds my body has never felt before, never been through surgery in […]
The Character Ethic vs. The Personality Ethic – Why Character Trumps Personality As Stephen Covey writes in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, most of the success literature published in the United States for the first century and a half after 1776 focused on The Character Ethic as being the underlying foundation of how a person can live an influential, […]
Some people see the glass as half full, others see it as half empty, but I just gulp it down and ask for more Optimistic During Setbacks. Life is a smorgasbord, and even though some servings are tough to swallow, you need to power through it in order to enjoy dessert. Enough with the food […]
What do you do if you hate your job? You have three options: you can stay and suffer, you can look for a new job, or you can change the way you view your work. The best choice is to focus on yourself and what makes you happy. This way, even if you’re still at […]
When I was in high school i realized Leaders You Dont Need To Have All The Answers, there was a teacher that had a brilliant line when he was asked a question that he didn’t know the answer to in the moment. He would state: “That is beyond the scope of this course,” with a […]
I had been begging my dad for ages, and my wall was full of Bruce Lee posters. I wanted to know how to fight! The difference between life and death in a sticky situation could come down to KNOWING what you know. Then one afternoon, he drove up the driveway and said: “Get in, we’re […]
Our Mission
© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME
