“Learn how to lead where you are now, Travis, and it’ll serve you wherever you go in the future.”
That’s one of the many leadership lessons I’ve learned and acted on from my friend and mentor, Steve Farber.
Steve and I met through Twitter in 2010. I was searching for a commercial, non-USCG internship to accompany my post-graduate program in performance consulting. I had a search column in Tweetdeck monitoring tweets with the word “intern” in them, and saw Steve tweet his need for an intern. I went to his site and soaked up his background. Leadership consultant? Check. Well-regarded author? Check. Consistent leadership philosophy? Check. A little bit of edginess–ok, a lot? Check.
I passed on the tweet because I thought he’d easily get an intern. Who was I to put in a resume? Classic gremlins in action. So–I didn’t apply. Until I saw another tweet two weeks later still asking for intern applications. Then I did something I never had to do before–I created a resume and sent it over. We talked a little bit after via email, then I thought that would be it.
Until I got the call.
Right around Memorial Day–I got a call from Steve’s wife Veronica. We talked for about 10 minutes–then she was like, “Well, you want to talk to him right now?” Uh, sure. We got along, he gave me a test run. And we met in Austin a few weeks later when he was keynoting with Angela Maiers–and the rest has been history.
Since 2010, I’ve been Steve Farber’s “Twitter Elf“. I’ve been a researcher for Steve–looking for leadership quotes and people to help him connect with online. I’ve helped grow his followers to now over 12,000. And it’s been an amazing experience to be behind the curtain–learning how to curate a platform and build an outpost. And yes, I think being a Twitter Elf is hilarious!
The Summit
Steve has been extremely busy this year. He launched his first ever Extreme Leadership Workshop in March, which was a huge success. And this week–he will hold his first ever Extreme Leadership Summit. All in the sunny, idyllic confines of San Diego. And thanks to Steve’s generosity–I get to attend and support him in pulling this event off.
Steve Farber’s Inaugural Extreme Leadership Summit
This idea of a summit is the new normal. Other bloggers/social communities have had incredible experiences using summits/annual conferences to energize their audience (like Mark’s Daily Apple and the Art of Non-Conformity). I think this is the future of conferences–not only the mega-events where it’s too hard to find anyone, but these smaller, more intimate events where like-minded professionals meet, engage, debate, and reinforce a community.
I can’t wait for my own Bit Thinking summit in 2015 or 2016.
This is absolutely the future of blogging–and I’m honored and humbled to help Steve pull off this first event. Here’s to many more!
I’ll be liveblogging my experiences here, at extremeleadership.com, & stevefarber.com. And I’ll do a recap email in my weekly newsletter (signup at my home page). But before all of that–it’s time I’ve reflected on my experience as an apprentice to Steve’s expert platform and position. I’ve learned so much in the last few years–but what’s affected me the most?
Community and Movement
You can’t have a movement without a community–so you need to build a community first. Working for Steve has allowed me to see how an expert builds a community, and makes that energy and organization become kinetic through engagement. Like I talked about above–2012 has truly been the year of making Extreme Leadership a movement. Starting with the updated “Radical Leap Re-Energized“–Steve has been getting out and keynoting more. And he’s putting on these awesome workshops. He’s also grooming a generation of ambassadors of his philosophy, perspective, and mindset.
Startup of You talks about this idea of Network Intelligence–though I like the idea of people having a “network proficiency”. Steve has been a role model to emulate in growing my own network proficiency. Growing a community and starting a movement are our purposes to be online. They are what all of us must do to succeed. Those 1000 true fans must not only support you, they must amplify you. As I continue as a writer and consultant, this is probably the most important lesson I’ve taken to heart.
Keep a Wake-Up Pad (WUP)
If you’re not keeping notes or a journal to record your thoughts, ideas, and insights–you’re limiting yourself. As a young cadet–we were taught to always keep a pen and pad handy. But as an older performance consultant–Steve’s advice makes keeping a pad an active, full-contact sport. During the course of the day–you have these small, flashes of brilliance. Where do you put them? Or do you let them fade away?
Having a WUP has been critical for me starting this blog. If I didn’t regularly take and store my notes and insights, I wouldn’t have anything to write. I’ve also read elsewhere that the muse shines on those that listen, but quiets on those who don’t invite her presence. In other words–having a WUP lets me capture ideas I would have otherwise lost. As a result–I am open and available to more ideas.
Inspiration and initiative are perishable. Using my WUP allows me to extend and store both like a battery, refine my ideas, challenge my assumptions, and seek a higher meaning in my craft.
Chief Energy Officers
“The Extreme Leader is a generator, a powerful force for action, for progress, and an enthusiastic believer in people and in their capacity to do the awesome”
Amen.
The header comes from Tony Schwartz–but it’s just as applicable to Steve’s principle “Generate Energy”. The belief a leader must Generate Energy was the ultimate reason why I applied to be Steve’s intern. I never thought about a leader as a source and barometer of team energy before–but it clicked. And in my California assignment–I’ve been forced to account for my own ability to generate, maintain, or drain the energy of my team in the face of significant change. It’s an admirable and humbling challenge.
As leaders–we should be honored everyone around us has chosen their current position. I mean–why else work at a desk for 30-40 years? And what value is that work if we come home drained, tired, and frustrated? There’s a huge reason the four-year mindset is the new normalcy–workplaces eventually drain everyone. In the military–this is the unspoken benefit of the four-year assignment. You’ve outgrown your position, you’ve learned enough, and you need the novelty and excitement of a new experience to put your energy into. Time to move.
If the leader sucks the energy out of the room or the conversation–employees will go out of their way to avoid any interaction. Probably to the point of leaving the company. If you come home tired–how will that affect your family?
Love and Leadership
“Love is the ultimate motivation of the Extreme Leader”
This has been the hardest for me to understand and accept–especially after my 15 years of being in the military. I’ve never heard an Officer talk about “love” in the way Steve talks and tells stories about it. It’s a little too “soft” for our business of uniforms and protocol. But–there is a place for it. And maybe we don’t call it love–compassion, respect, and engagement are probably more appropriate examples.
But it’s there.
Steve says cultivating love is the first step in making the LEAP–and I was a little apprehensive of that, but he’s right. And the longer I stay in–the more I interact with the shipmates I’ve worked with over the years, the more I realize that. For example–someone who used to work for me wanted me to preside over his promotion ceremony to Chief Warrant Officer. I felt honored by being there and putting his boards on–but I didn’t realize how much the experience meant to him until his wife pulled me aside and told me.
I almost cried.
Then it all made sense to me. If you can’t love what you do, who you’re with, or what you’re trying to accomplish–either find something in you work you can love, or move on. Life is too short to not love every single moment. You can work at that desk or take that job knowing you’re only going to be there a specific time–or it’s a stepping stone/holding pattern for something else–but don’t lose the love. You don’t turn your heart off when you go to work–or you’ll never be able to turn it back on when you get home.
Taking the LEAP
As I prepare for Steve’s Extreme Leadership Summit–I look back on the past two years, and I never realized our relationship would last this long, or that I would learn so much. Steve is a huge part of the composite persona that is Bit Thinking–where he is now is part of the future I am creating as a performance designer, consultant, and writer.
Steve, thank you.
What about your mentors? What about them inspires you and enables you to become better?