For this week’s Biz Coaching On Demand, Fran and Matt discussed Pete Correll, the former Chairman and CEO of Georgia Pacific, a manufacturer and distributor of paper products. Growing up in Brunswick, Georgia, Pete experienced tragedy at age 12 when his dad died, leaving him and his mom to manage a men’s clothing store as their only source of livelihood.
Business Coach
The Story of Purpose
In Joey Reiman’s book, The Story of Purpose, he begins by mentioning that when it’s all about the profits, you’re going to fall into trouble. He talks about how people who focus on the bottom line are in a race to the bottom. The mission to get rich is not sustainable without a guiding sense of purpose, which provides the energy, the partners, and the team of people who allow you to be successful.
Launching Your Personal Search for Success
Fran and Matt discussed the life and teachings of Richard Shell, a professor at the Wharton Business School, who wrote the book Springboard: Launching Your Personal Search for Success.
Decision Making
In business and in life, people must remember to be themselves. It’s easy to look at someone as a role model and try to emulate them in your actions. You can take ideas from other people and build them into who you are, but you have to stay true to yourself when making decisions.
Knowing What You Want
Bill McDermott, current CEO of SAP, started working in a deli at age 16 and ended up buying the deli about a year later. Two characteristics that distinguished McDermott were his enjoyment of his work and his strong work ethic.
Small Practices for Businesses just Starting Out
Successful entrepreneurs face similar challenges during the first stages of running a company. Roger Scott, founder and CEO of Dynamic Sport Systems, discusses what he has learned since starting his business in August 2012.
Learning Business from Changes in Football
We can learn a lot of lessons from watching sports that relate back to other areas of our lives and our business. Fran and Matt Tarkenton discuss a few lessons they’ve witnessed in football that can be applied to business.
Don’t Chase Everything that Shines
In the New York Times article Don’t Chase Everything that Shines, Adam Bryant interviews Sandra Kurtzig, CEO of the software management firm Kenandy. Sandra discusses her leadership style and how it has evolved since she first went into business. Here are a few ways that entrepreneurs can learn from Sandra’s approach to leadership:
Attributes of Great Leaders
After evaluating and interviewing 70 chief executives, Adam Bryant wrote a book titled The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed. In it, he describes 5 attributes that great leaders share. What’s especially interesting is how these qualities are not genetic, but can be developed and applied by individuals in any company.
Leadership: Reading the Signs
Throughout history, in business and elsewhere, great leaders have arisen out of unfavorable circumstances. In major league baseball, Bud Selig pioneered efforts to put an end to the use of performance enhancing drugs that had infected the sport for so many years. As a leader, your first and foremost objective should be to do the right thing.
