Lessons Learned #2

I was asked recently if I would share lessons I have learned in 40 years of working, and in particular, the last 20+ years as an entrepreneur. I thought I would share some of those with you, over the coming weeks or months. These are not in any particular order, I hope you enjoy.

Lesson #2: If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re probably in the wrong room.

Sometimes leaders fall into the trap of thinking that they need to be the smartest person in the room. You don’t, and it is a trap. As a leader, your job is to get the best out of the room and to help the people be their best. Otherwise, your organization is going nowhere. I once had a CEO say to me, following a meeting with his Executive team, “Never disagree with me in front of my people.” He left after the company’s board started to question why he was recruiting B players to his senior team. The reason was that he didn’t want people who would challenge him. Always try to surround yourself with people who are better than you, they will help your organization to grow. They will help you to grow.

Steve Jobs said: “It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.”