Powell offers message of respect, valuing others
Life lessons from a U.S. statesman and retired four-star general, including the story of his first job in retail
Colin Powell, U.S. statesman and retired four-star general, brought grand themes of respect, appreciation of diversity and investing in youth down to a personal level at Retail’s BIG Show 2016, sharing life stories and lessons learned to a packed North Hall.
“Diplomacy: Persuasion, Trust and Values” was moderated by Kip Tindell, chairman and CEO of The Container Store, and NRF chairman of the board. Tindell quickly admitted that Powell’s leadership had greatly influenced his organization — to the point that “everybody at The Container Store can quote this guy.”
As it turns out, retail greatly influenced Powell.
Powell, 78, told the story of being a teen in the Bronx when a toy and children’s furniture store owner pulled him aside one day, offering 50 cents an hour to unload a truck. At the end of the day, the owner asked if Powell would return the next day. Powell did — for numerous Christmas breaks and summers to come.
“What I remember so vividly was that I learned what work was all about,” he said. He learned to show up on time and listen to what was happening in the store, making himself indispensable in the process. Case in point: Powell learned enough Yiddish to show customers stock and pick up what they said to each other, thinking he didn’t understand. Then he could go to the store owner with an idea of what he thought they’d pay.
The real life lesson came a few years later; the store owner once again pulled him aside, this time telling him that the store would pass on to his daughter and son-in-law, and as a good kid, he should go on and get an education to be ready for other opportunities.
“In that moment,” Powell said, “he showed that he cared about me. That marked me for the rest of my life.” Powell’s future became one of valuing others, inspiring trust and respect — leadership tenets as important in retail as anywhere else.
“We exist for our fellow citizens,” Powell told the audience. “Without them, we are nothing. That means you respect every person who works for you, and every person who comes through your door.”
Touching briefly on terrorism, last week’s 25th anniversary of Desert Storm, the observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and other diverse topics, Powell also shared stories from his book, It Worked for Me: In Life and Leadership (which, he said with a chuckle, is available through retail outlets everywhere).
“If you trust your people, you empower them. Then they will believe in you and in the power of your organization.”
In one tale, he had an early morning meeting with former President Ronald Reagan while serving as Reagan’s National Security Advisor. Powell was detailing the problems of the day, he said, but Reagan was more interested in watching a squirrel outside the window. He went back to his office, “and it struck me what he was saying: ‘Colin, I’ll sit here as long as you want … but I hired you because I trust you and I have confidence in you, and I’ve given you a range of activity in which you decide. And if it’s outside that range, then you come see me.’”
For the rest of his career, he said, he took that approach: “If you trust your people, you empower them. Then they will believe in you and in the power of your organization. I’ve found that works splendidly.”
This story originally appeared in print as part of STORES Convention Daily on January 19, 2016. Download the digital edition and see more coverage of Retail’s BIG Show 2016.
