Learning from 5 great leaders this week

This week I had the opportunity to hear from 5 accomplished leaders - Coach Mike Krzyzewski, Duke Univesity, Julie Sweet - CEO of Accenture, Nicole Malachowski, Gen. David Pretreus, and Emmanuel Acho. Below are my key take-aways from each speech.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski - Retired Duke mens basketball coach

How do you build strong team? Look at your hand and remember 5 key principles: COMMUNICATION, TRUST, CARE, COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY, AND PRIDE. Good teams don't have rules (rules are set by someone else, no one "owns" them). Good teams have STANDARDS, and the standards are set by the team and agreed to by all. Strive to own principles and standards in your life, not things.

Julie Sweet - Chair & CEO of Accenture

Accenture is the 4th largest firm in the world with over 721,000 employees. Whoa. Julie says that if your dreams don't scare you, you aren't dreaming big enough. Julie believes MetaVerse will be bigger than digitalization itself, even bigger than crypto, blockchain, 5G, AI/ML, all together. Her policy on remote work is to "earn people's commute" if we require at office attendance. She believes hybrid is here to stay. Most important attribute to success? Deep commitment to integrity, be a learning machine, make decisions and live with them, and find a way to improve communication skills. Recommendation? Book "Weekend Language" by Andy Craig.

Nicole Malachowski - Navy aviator

Nicole spent 21 years as a fighter pilot flying an F15E Strike Eagle up to 900 mph at times 3 to 30 feet from other planes in formation. She believes in a "Mach 2 mindset" which is basically discipline, focus, teamwork, and trust. She believes you build trust by being trustworthy. She believes we all need to "find our corner velocity" - a spot where we can change directions in our career much like a plane must change directions at 500 mph. For every situation you are in, always have an out in life. Be ready to adapt, expect disruption. Be ready for chaos (combat), controlled environments (air shows) and disruptions (COVID, for example)

General David H. Pretraeus

4 keys to strategic leadership: 1) Get the big ideas right/decide on the right direction, 2) Communicate effectively across the breadth and depth of the organization, 3) Oversee implmentation at every level, and 4) Perform the necessary refinements and identify the new ideas while jettisoning the old ideas that no longer apply.

Example is KODAK. They had over 2000 patents on digital photography, entirely missed the next big thing, and went bankrupt. Example of getting it right was NETFLIX, who evolved 4 times to the next big thing while letting old models go. Advice for your career? 2 truisms: 1) Life is competive, no trophies for showing up. Strive to be the best individual and the best team. 2) Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Be prepared.

Emmanuel Acho - Uncomfortable conversations with a Black Man, NFL player

For 2000 years, no one could run a mile in <4 min until Roger Bannister did it in 1952. Then 10 people can. Great achievements come at the other side of "illogical". Be illogical in your career. A person with great talent will hit a target others cannot hit, but a person with great wisdom will achieve things others cannot SEE. Don't set goals, set a direction! Example, strive to change life for the better, not just write a book. He did this, and in the end, he wrote 3 books. After getting fired from the NFL (5 times before the age of 26), he sat down and did a 9 min podcast. 25M views in 5 days, then Matthew McConaughey called, then 2 days later Oprah, then the world really started moving fast.

Thank you for reading?The River, and if you have enjoyed it please subscribe to receive notification of future articles. Please help spread the word by sharing The River with your network with an encouraging word asking others to check it out. A special thank you to those of you who have posted comments to share your experience and advice. I'm grateful as these interactions inspire me, and I'm certain it has helped others in their journey.