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[mredsanchez]

Art by Danny Haas

Ironman VS Captain America = Greene VS Maxwell

In an earlier post “Mastery Journey Timeline“, I laid out what I had hoped to learn and strategies to use for each class of my Entertainment Business Master’s program. For the Executive Leadership class, I anticipated learning about what a leader is and what it takes to be a good one. My strategies where to read certain books, watch instructional videos; reach out to my course instructors and build relationships with them. I have enjoyed this class and would like to explain what I have learned so far just by reading two books.

 I recently had an argument with my wife about who is the leader of Marvel’s Avengers. I say Ironman and she feels Captain America: The First Avenger. Her argument is that Cap is the first Avenger and his leadership style, when in battle, clearly makes him the leader. My argument was that Captain America was frozen in ice when the Avengers was formed by Ironman.  Even though he is a self centered, narcissistic, jerk, Ironman still cares for Earth and his friends; his leadership style is questionable but effective. As I dove further into my explanation of why Ironman is the leader, I made the realization that the two books we read in class, clearly describe the two heroes we were comparing. Captain America represents the principles taught by John C. Maxwell and Ironman jumps straight out of the pages of Robert Greene’s Book.  

The leadership styles of Robert Greene and John Maxwell

The books that were assigned were: “The 48 Laws of Power” by Robert Greene and “Developing the Leader Within” by John C. Maxwell. The views of both authors are from two completely different sides of the spectrum. Greene’s take on leadership focuses on the “SELF”. Chapters are represented as laws with names like: Pose As A Friend Work As A Spy, Crush Your Enemy Totally, and Conceal Your Intentions. This type of leadership is indicative of dictators and monarchs. The ability to recognize these traits in your leaders today can save you from turmoil in the future. Our instructor, Dr. Steve Adkins, refers to this book as “How to play the game.”

 Maxwell’s book or as Dr. Adkins refers to it, “The principles of leadership”, definitely takes a democratic view. Equating leadership to influence; teaching how to obtain influence by uplifting and caring for those you lead is a major theme throughout the book. The chapters of the book take a different tone with some being Vision, Influence, and Integrity. In my opinion, being a leader using Maxwell’s’ teachings will gain you followers that love you and want to see you achieve, because of what you represent and how you have helped them. If using Greene’s style, you will gain followers who fear you because of how unpredictable you can be. 

 The thing I value the most from this class was the ability to determine my leadership style. If you want to lead, you must first realize what kind of  leader you are in order to gain followers. Proudly, I will say that I am a Maxwell type of leader. I enjoy helping others and wish for others to succeed as well. Everyone moving in a positive direction will breed more positivity. However, I will hold a few “Greene tools” in my tool bag. In the future, I plan on using what I have learned to not only assess myself but those I work for or with. The ability to recognize or utilize his principles in a pinch may determine my or my organization’s success in the future.

[mredsanchez]

Elevator Pitch: More Bang For Your Buck

Elevator Pitch: More Bang For Your Buck

Presentations are a staple in the business world. From illustrating a product to a client, outlining a new system to a sales team, or grand speaking events, there are many types of methods that one can use. Employers now look for the skillset and knowledge of how to research, create, and showcase a presentation from their employees.   Some people are given the luxury of time and choose to use visual methods like Power Point, Keynote, and the lesser-known Pecha Kucha (A presentation that uses 20 image based slides with each slide being 20 seconds long). What happens when you don’t have time to make a fancy presentation?

Imagine you are a startup with a brilliant idea but you need an investor to get the concept up and running. One day, you head out to the office and find yourself riding the same elevator as investor Mark Cuban. There is no one else but you and Mark and you have a chance to get him interested in your idea. How do you approach this situation? Do you beat around the bush?  Make small talk and miss your opportunity? Do you verbally barrage him with your idea and how he could be a part of it? Or do you do something else? The elevator pitch is used for this situation and more. It is a perfect way to make your idea or product a concise well-formulated message that hits all the highlights of a business plan.  

Becoming an expert in this type of presentation would be a handy tool for any entrepreneur. The article written by Dan Schwable, “How to craft an Elevator Speech and Make a Big Impact”, is loaded with amazing information on how to set yourself up for success. Some topics that he touches on are, three effective ways to create an elevator speech, how to set yourself apart, and how to find your effective voice.  Another, more recent, article by Martin Zwilling, “Eight Common Elevator Pitch Blunders and How to Fix Them”, addresses frequent mistakes that occur. Carrying this skill in your entrepreneurs’ toolkit will have you prepared the next time you find yourself with 60 seconds, a wealthy investor, and idea that can take you to new heights.

[mredsanchez]

The class for this month is called Executive Leadership. The assignment for this week was to read selected chapters of Robert Greene’s 48 Laws of Power and John C. Maxwell’s Developing the Leader Within You. I feel that both books are amazing books. Maxwell approaches leadership with a sense of care. Discussing how to lead by example and integrity. Greene approaches leadership by appealing to the selfish nature. He uses examples from the past to illustrate how to strategically put yourself in a position of leadership/power. I feel they both are powerful tools to have, I would equate Developing the Leader Within You as blueprints to guide you and the 48 Laws of Power as a hammer that gets the job done. 

Have you read it? 

What did you think?

[mredsanchez]

10 Things Entrepreneurs Need to Know about Intrapreneurship

Intrapreneurship is a relatively recent concept that focuses on employees of a company that have many of the attributes of entrepreneurs.

I just learned about Intrapreneurship and it sounds really interesting to me.

[mredsanchez]

http://johnmaxwellonleadership.com/2011/08/22/what-are-the-5-levels-of-leadership/

[mredsanchez]

Our free leadership lesson on leading teams focusses on how to build an effective team, the 5 stages that team will go through, the questions you need to ask to keep your team on track, your role as leader of a winning team and much more.

Great Leadership Lesson

[mredsanchez]

Interview with Ron Cook

Just had the chance to sit and chat with Ron Cook, President of Telemetree. He was so awesome and very knowlegeable. One bit of advice that was given to him in which he bestowed on me was to, “Understand who you work for”. The customer pays you, so make sure you meet their needs.

[mredsanchez]

Masters love the journey and expand the understanding of the destination.

James Jessup