Executive Perspectives Interview with David Coleman - America's Dating Doctor

Our Executive Leader’s Perspective interview this week is with David Coleman. Mr. Coleman is known worldwide as The Dating Doctor™ and has been honored 13 times as The Speaker of the Year and was recently honored as the 2011 Entertainer of the Year and 2011 Male Performer of the Year by Campus Activities Magazine. His best seller, Date Smart, has sold more than 250,000 copies worldwide and his previous works, Making Relationships Matter! and 101 Great Dates continues to impact lives worldwide. David has been featured in such fine publications as Us Magazine, Glamour, Celebrity Living, Mademoiselle, Women's World, Cosmo, ESPN Magazine, The USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The New York Times. He has been featured on CNN as well as on all major television networks and on hundreds of radio stations worldwide. David has spoken live to more than 2,000,000 people in all 50 states, Canada and Europe and has impacted another 50,000,000 people through his appearances on radio, television, the internet and in print. Audience members at more than 2,500 college campuses, military installations, corporations, conferences, single's organizations, churches, and civic groups have experienced his energetic and entertaining programs.

As speaker who travels worldwide, what is the most important leadership quality that student leaders must develop in college?

The most important leadership quality that student leaders must develop in college is an ability to make decisions with Courageous Conviction. In other words, college students must understand that leadership is not about the position they hold, it's about how well they perform in every unique situation that arises and how as an elected or selected leader on campus they meet the demands of the task at hand and the people they represent with courage, integrity and honor.

Who is your greatest leader of all-time?

The greatest leader of all-time to me is former president John F. Kennedy. When asked to run for Vice President, he replied, "If I accept second place when first place is available, I will have a tendency to accept second place the rest of my life." Essentially, what John F. Kennedy taught me as a leader is that I should always strive to give my best in everything I do and pursue the best things in life and never settle for less. Second place is acceptable, but only after giving 110% and aspiring to be the best that I can be in life and everything I do.

As the president of a highly successful speaking and entertainment agency, what are the keys to developing a strong team as a leader?

To develop a strong team around you, it is extremely important to select highly qualified and motivated people, train them well, pay them fairly, inspire them, empower them, and then stay out of their way and allow them to do their jobs to the best of their ability.

It is important to surround yourself with people who share "One Heartbeat," which is a sincere desire to exceed all expectations and surpass all goals without one ounce of interest in who gets the credit. The team. The team. The team. 

What are some networking strategies that leaders can use to develop positive relationships with others?

One of my top young speakers, Hoan Do, says it best when he educates students to, "Stop Networking and Start Connecting". Networking is about meeting people in mass without ever utilizing the strengths one another possesses, while connecting is about developing meaningful relationships with others where both parties can serve as a resource for one another.

As leaders, if you are going to effectively network with others, not only is it important to courageously step out of your comfort zone to meet a wide variety of people, but its vitally important that your personal interaction is a meaningful and memorable experience with the person with whom you are connecting.

Since it is Valentine's Day and you are "The Dating Doctor," what are some tips you can offer during this time of year?

There are many dating tips that I could offer leaders during this time of the year, but if I had to choose three tips for this season, these are the four tips that I would offer on Valentine's Day.

#1: Don't forget about the Holiday. This is a special day, and men are wise to remember that many women define romance as performing an ordinary act of love/kindness at an unexpected time. Being creative and caring FAR outweighs how much you spend.

#2: Instead of giving your significant other a gift on Valentine's Day, present it on February 13th along with a handwritten note that says, "No one as special as you should have to wait another day".

#3: Never give your significant other a gift that infers that at some point they will be using it on or for you. "Here is that wonderful non-stick cookware, hair cutting sheers and vacuum cleaner!" Um..no.

#4: Go on a progressive dinner date that includes an appetizer at one restaurant, a dinner at another restaurant, and dessert at a special place to close out the night.

What has been the greatest lesson you have learned as a leader?

The greatest lesson that I have learned as a leader is that people will support what they help create. When I personally develop ideas without the input of others, it is almost always universally rejected, but when I develop ideas with my team, amazing things happen. Include your top team members in major decisions and major progress will follow.

What is the key to dealing with relationship conflict as a leader?

If you have relationship conflict with another person, here are four specific things that I encourage every leader to do in order to bring closure to the conflict.

#1: Address the conflict tactfully with facts and not with lots of emotion.

#2: Develop a minimum of three standards that both parties can agree to and live by following the conflict.

#3: Set realistic and measurable goals as a team that will enable the both of you to avoid these extreme conflicting situations again within your relationship or organization.

#4: If the conflict cannot be resolved, then rectify the situation as fairly as possible. At the end of the day, both parties will not be perfectly happy, but the situation will be over and a fresh start can ensue.

What final word of advice you would like to leave with leaders to desire to succeed in the 21^stCentury?

My final word of advice for leaders who desire to succeed is, "You never get a wasted day back, so take full advantage of every moment of every single day and if you don't believe this to be the best day of your life or the best day you have EVER had, imagine missing it."

Not only do I hope that you were able to receive some great words of wisdom from this interview, but I am so thankful that David Coleman agreed to take time out of his very busy schedule to talk about his leadership experience as an international speaker and corporate leader.

Executive Leader's Perspective Interview with Kymberly Garrett!

Our Executive Leader’s Perspective interview this week is with Kymberly Garrett, an amazing leader, consultant, and expert who has over 30 years of experience working as an Human Resources Professional for major companies and organizations such as the Hyatt Corporation, Oakwood Worldwide, Unicare, and Wellcare to name a few.

As a leadership/business consultant to several top level executives within business, what are the top five leadership skills student leaders must develop if they desire to become a future CEO or Senior Executive?

As the bar continues to shift and refocus ... I am seeing that the critical competencies on Leadership readiness include the following:

Critical Thinking:Information comes in droves today. Being able to sift through mountains of data in order to facilitate informed decision making will require honing critical thinking skills to the point of almost a science. Those that haven't developed this will find themselves, left behind the pack due it lack of readiness.

Intellectual Curiosity: Not only within their organizations but what’s happening in the world around them! Take a lesson from Sears. They started as one of the original mail order catalog companies. Really, the precursor to online shopping. Yet they are lagging behind instead of leading the pack...their original founders were curious about the world they lived in and created a business solution from that curiosity. The current leadership lost that ability and now, sadly, Sears is not doing very well.. This currency will prove invaluable to a forward thinking Leader instead of someone riding the coattails of yesterday's business model.

Extraordinary listening ability: Being able to synthesize information that Leaders disseminate is critical in today's new economy. Listening to the immediate team members but also to the external buzz will once again create a well-rounded Leader whose ego will allow thought compilation.

Subject Matter Expertise: Broad skills are definitely important to future leaders but their foundation should be built upon a strong basis of expertise. Whether it’s in Technology, Business, Marketing or Operations...being known as a Specialist will prove to be key to your future success. Leaders gain credibility when they are seen as having an area of expertise and just as important...keeping up/staying relevant in that area!

Excellent People Engagement: Leaders have one thing in common...a Following! This derives from crafting strong AND authentic relationship building. Taking the time to "be interested" in WHO others are will go along way when critical support is needed. This is from the first level employee all the way to the Directors of the Board.

What has been your greatest leadership lesson as a senior executive within the business industry?

The importance of relying on others. I was brought up in the business world to cultivate a rising star mentality. Not a good path..and one that I have learned many hard lessons. Much more important to the overall success of an organization and my colleagues is to have ambition for the overall vs. yourself. A well-oiled machine will create the kind of success that we all hope for individually .. but so much more gratifying and sustainable.

What is the number one thing that is most important for students to know about in the 21^stCentury job market?

There are still great opportunities created or vacated everyday but as students become first job candidates...it is critical for them to have researched, rehearsed and readied their professional story so that they can shine above the rest of the pack. This job market is so different than any other time. There are four generations in the workplace at one time...and three for sure that are in the same talent pool. The distinction of ones abilities needs to be told in a succinct and validated manner.