Notes from John C. Maxwell Presentation

Jun 15, 2024

Notes from John C. Maxwell Presentation

Key Speaker Information

  • John C. Maxwell
    • Multiple time New York Times best-selling author
    • Written over 100 books
    • More than 31 million copies sold
    • Worked with over six million leaders worldwide
    • Translated into 50 languages
    • Coached presidents, fortune 500 executives
    • Recipient of Horatio Alger Award and Mother Teresa Prize for Global Peace and Leadership
    • Named the number one leader in business by the American Management Association
    • Multiple non-profit organizations aimed at positive leadership impact

Main Leadership Concepts

Becoming an Expert in Leadership

  • Earl Nightingale's Concept: One hour a day on a subject for five years makes an expert.
  • John C. Maxwell’s experience:
    • Spent one hour daily for five years on leadership
    • Realized the value of growth over goal-oriented approach
  • Growth Mindset: Shift from questioning time to questioning potential growth.

Definition of Leadership

  • Influence: Leadership equates to influence; it is not just about titles or positions.
  • People Business: Valuing people and building connections is crucial.
  • Daily Practice: Invest an hour daily in leadership; read, converse, practice.

Building Connections

  • Value everyone’s role in making a program successful
  • Demonstrate genuine interest and value in people
  • Influence is built by adding value to others consistently
  • Set daily intentions to add value, look and act on ways to do so

Power of Consistency

  • Do five things daily:
    1. Value people
    2. Think of ways to add value
    3. Look for ways to add value
    4. Do things that add value
    5. Encourage others to add value

Leadership in Adversity

  • Everything Rises and Falls on Leadership: Importance across all sectors (business, government, education, etc.).
  • Learning from Failures: Key to building character and resilience.
  • Competency and Practice: Competency in leadership comes with practice and mentoring.

Developing Other Leaders

  • Ensure leaders build other leaders
  • Three Essentials:
    1. Example: People do what they see
    2. Intentionality: Have a development process
    3. Empowerment: Let others practice leadership

Evaluating Experience

  • Reflection: Essential for turning experience into insight
  • Awareness: Self-awareness is developed through feedback from others

Leadership in Organizations

  • 360 Degree Leadership: Influence at all levels, even without positional authority
  • Learning Lunches: Develop leaders through regular, intentional learning opportunities
  • Practical Application: Experience is the best teacher through application and evaluation

Handling Tough Conversations

  • Upfront Expectations: Prepare team members for tough conversations from the start
  • Transparency: Share weaknesses honestly to foster trust
  • Promotions: Encourage leaders to prepare their replacements for seamless transitions

Personal Leadership Stories

  • Claude’s Influence: Highlighting the importance of recognizing and leveraging the true sources of influence
  • Critical Leadership Transitions: Ensuring incoming leaders understand the dynamics of influence

Values and Transformation

  • Values and Transformation Tables: Facilitating values-based discussions to promote community transformation
  • Global Impact: Large-scale training and development initiatives with transformational goals (e.g., 1.3 million people in round tables).