Grateful for Leadership Lessons From a ‘Dumb Ass’ CEO
Chester Elton
Executive Coach | Keynote Speaker | Culture as a Competitive Advantage. I teach leaders how to build high-performing teams in a rapidly changing world
There is a simple product you probably have in your home right now. It comes in a blue and yellow can with a red cap. It silences squeaks, loosens rusted bolts, and makes stuck things move again. But beyond its practical uses, this little can holds a surprising lesson about resilience, persistence, and the power of sticking with something.
I’m talking about WD-40.
You may know it as the fixer for household and industrial problems, but have you ever thought about what the “40” in its name stands for? The name means Water Displacement, 40th Formula. That means the inventors didn’t get the mixture right on the first try. Or the tenth. Or even the thirtieth. They had 39 failed attempts.
And yet, they kept going.
That makes WD-40 not just a product, but a testament to the power of persistence. It’s proof that breakthroughs happen not when we get it right the first time, but when we refuse to quit. The real lesson for me: Don’t give up at try 39!
I have had the great privilege to get to know the leader who helped build this wonderful company from a $250 million North American enterprise to a multi-billion-dollar global brand. His name is Garry Ridge, and I count him as not only one of my great mentors but also a dear friend.
He is now the former chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman emeritus of the WD-40 Company, and he shares his wisdom in a new book that outlines exactly how he built his success by building an amazing culture.
The attention grabbing title of the book is ”Any Dumb Ass Can Do It!” Learning Moments from an Everyday CEO of a Multibillion-Dollar Company."
My co-author Adrian Gostick and I have studied Garry’s work for years. His was featured as the opening story in our book “Leading with Gratitude,” where he told how gratitude help lead his company through the downturn of the pandemic and to record earnings the next year.
We are constantly amazed at how Garry and his leadership team take the complex and make it so simple to understand and execute. Garry is also one of the most humble c-suite leaders you will ever meet. He has a way of empowering everyone around him. In fact, he doesn’t just build great products he builds great leaders. Garry makes sure people get credit for their hard work and to us he is an ideal example of someone who leads with gratitude.
I first met Garry at a leadership gathering of our friend Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 coaches in Phoenix years ago now. We were both about to make presentations to the group, so we sat at the same table chatting as we prepared to take the stage. We became friends immediately because of our shared passion for organizational culture.
As the day came to a close, I asked Garry for a favor. I was hoping he’d test out a leadership training we were about to launch, and we needed a group of leaders to be guinea pigs. I will never forget what he said to me. Garry said, “Be very careful what you ask, Chester, because I am going to say yes.”
Who says that? How wonderful. We have been fast friends ever since.
I am grateful for all that Garry and amazing leaders like him have taught me over the years. If you are looking for a roadmap on how to create a learning culture in your team or company—a place where mistakes are learning moments and where people thrive—pick up Garry’s book about his work at WD 40. Here are just a couple of ideas from his book:
At his heart, Garry is a teacher, and I am just one of his many students.
Thank you for your support of this little newsletter, it really does mean the world to me that you sign up and share our experiences every two weeks. Please comment and share your stories with us below. I would love to hear about your mentors and teachers in life. When we all share, we learn.
With gratitude,
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Project Management Assistant at Pevco
1 天前Wow, thank you for sharing - great story. My dad loved WD-40 - used it to fix everything.
Finance Director of nearly 20+ years' experience | European/Indian/Japanese Companies
1 天前Chester Elton “Success isn’t about being the smartest person in the room, it’s about creating a culture where everyone can thrive” is really true. You should never allow anyone to destroy that culture, however smart that person may be. A boss in the early days of my career was not afraid to fight for his team members even against very senior executives, which may be damaging to his own career progression. I was always thankful and decided to do whatever I could to give him in return. I thought I will be like him some day.
Doctor of Education- EdD from University of Minnesota- Twin Cities
1 天前Thank you Chester Elton for this wonderful post. I have been a loyal customer of WD-40 for more than 40 years. I find their product development story quite inspiring- thanks to Garry Ridge and his team for sharing their success and persistence stories. We need to consider another type of mentors from whom we learn great things. These are the toxic leaders whose actions, words, and approaches we must avoid at any cost.
Site Leader/Manufacturing Sr. Program Manager @ Boeing
2 天前Thanks for sharing, Chester
Let's have fun with words! Poetry reading and writing is best way of interacting. Children, adults, welcome aboard!
2 天前Very informative