The What, Why And How Of Learning

In his book, Education is Freedom, author James W. Keyes recaps his learned business lessons for top management and CEOs at companies of all sizes. He covers:

Discovering what customers truly care about. It’s convenience, not products.
Leading during times of turmoil.
Developing the confidence to try again after a failure, and to maintain composure in the face of critical media coverage.
Forming strategic collaborations to rescue a dying company.

Plus, Keyes states that Education Is Freedom provides the “what,” “why,” and “how” of learning. He outlines the importance of education for all humankind and the power of education to change our world.

Because of his lifelong commitment to education, Keyes founded the Education is Freedom Foundation, which provides college scholarships for hard-working young students. In over 20 years since its inception, the foundation has helped nearly hundreds of thousands of students find their path to higher education.

Keyes also served as chairman and chief executive officer of Blockbuster, Inc., from 2007 to 2011. And in his book, he shares much about his time at Blockbuster and that company’s journey, including this important insight in response to my question to him:

Question: Fair or not, “Don’t become another Blockbuster” is often a phrase used to warn business leaders to not let their business become obsolete or to not miss an opportunity to change their business model. What do you want business leaders to know about why that phrase may be unfair or why Blockbuster’s journey is misunderstood?

Keyes: Fair…but for all of the wrong reasons. Most people leap to the conclusion that Netflix killed Blockbuster…or that the company’s inability to change caused its demise. Both are incorrect. Within the Blockbuster story is a rich set of lessons for every businessperson but it has nothing to do with the change to streaming technology.

The real story of Blockbuster is a story of the importance of cash flow and balance sheet management during times of macro financial disruption.

“You’ll find...in Education is Freedom...personal anecdotes from my own journey, and the experiences of friends and those throughout history who have successfully used education to change their own life and to enrich the lives of others,” shares Keyes.

“The book is not a memoir, but instead intended to provide examples from my life journey to show what is possible even with seemingly impossible odds. It is intended to inspire others to accomplish the impossible and to use education as their path to freedom.”

Keyes calls his “C-Suite Learning” as the heart of his book and a valuable road map to help readers form a path to his/her own learning journey. The C-Suite Learning is:

What to Learn

Change: embracing change and growing from adversity.
Confidence: the inner strength that makes us believe in ourselves.
Clarity: making the complex simple through communication.

How to Learn

Critical Thinking: the algebra of thought.
Curiosity: discovering the joy of wonder.
Creativity: enabling our inner child; this is intelligence at play.

Why We Learn

Collaboration: leveraging the power of others working together.
Cultural Literacy: growing from the richness of diversity around us.
Character: establishing trust in ourselves and integrity among all.

One of the key takeaways from the book for me is where Keyes explains that companies must find ways to have everyone embrace open and honest communication. He states that building a culture of success also requires:

Engagement – Team members must be in or out. Even those on the sidelines for any given play must be engaged, at least mentally if not physically. The team must be fully vested in collective success.
Communication – from the top, from the bottom, and from peer to peer—is fundamental to the collective success of the team. Team members must feel comfortable communicating openly. They must feel safe expressing their ideas and trusting each other to fulfill their respective roles.

“Information sharing and the proactive dissemination of knowledge among the team will contribute to the culture of mutual benefit. This environment will reward competency and the open sharing of best practices. These behaviors result in a culture that those on the outside can see and feel. They will notice a group, a company, and a team, that can accomplish any task,” explains Keyes.

Thank you to the book’s publisher for sending me an advance copy of the book.

Comments

How To Become Your Best-Self Leader Everyday

“By focusing in specific ways on five key leadership elements— Purpose, Process, People, Presence, and Peace —you can increase your time, capacity, energy, and ultimately your leadership impact,” explains Amy Jen Su , author of the book, The Leader You Want To Be: Five Essential Principles for Bringing Out Your Best Self—Every Day . Su shares both Western management thinking and Eastern philosophy to provide a holistic yet hands-on approach to becoming a more effective leader with less stress and more equanimity. She draws on rich and instructive stories of clients, leaders, artists, and athletes. And, she focuses on three foundational tenets: s elf-care, self-awareness, and personal agency . Most important, Su explores in depth, chapter-by-chapter the Five Ps : Purpose – Staying grounded in your passions and contributions, doing your highest and best work that has meaning and is making a difference. Process – Relying on daily practices and routines that honor your natural energy rhyt...

Learn The Power Of Probabilistic Thinking

Dive in for a fascinating read as you discover the life-changing power of probabilistic thinking, taught by Kyle Austin Young in his book, Success Is A Numbers Game . “Every goal that you’re pursuing has two hidden numbers attached to it—a probability of success and a probability of failure,” explains Young, “If you can make the first number bigger and the second number smaller, you can rewrite your predicted outcome.” “Whether you’re trying to start a business, run a marathon, get a promotion, earn a pilot’s license, grow a bumper crop of tomatoes, or sign an acting deal, these two percentages are always lurking in the shadows predicting what is going to happen.” But, adds Young, "Most of us never think about them. We assume our odds are unknowable and unchangeable. This dangerous lie leads millions of people to fail at goals where they were perfectly capable of succeeding. You can choose a smarter path,” encourages Young. In Success is a Numbers Game , ...

The Five Critical Roles You Need To Build A Winning Team

The book, Team Players , by leadership expert and New York Times bestselling author, Mark Murphy , explains why a team needs more than strong leaders—it needs the right mix of five roles and talents to succeed. In addition, Murphy reveals that the secret to extraordinary teams isn’t making everyone the same—it’s embracing and leveraging fundamental differences through those five distinct team roles. No amount of teambuilding, trust, or cohesion can overcome having the wrong mix of people in the room. The five essential roles and talents are : The Director assumes a leadership role within the team, guiding its direction and making important, difficult, and even unpopular decisions. The Achiever immerses themselves in the details of accomplishing tasks and getting things done, with a keen eye for delivering error-free work. The Stabilizer keeps the team on track with meticulous planning, processes and procedures, clear timelines, and organization. ...

Daily Intentions For Leaders

Everyone can benefit from the book, Dear Friend , which features bite-sized, daily notes for contemplation, inspiration, connection, and clarity. Busy and stressed business leaders can particularly benefit from the 365 profound, heartfelt reflections from author Michelle Maros , founder of Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life and cohost of the podcast, Life Happens with Barb and Michelle . Dear Friend invites readers to go deep and use the notes as a daily practice that compounds over time, nurturing strength, resilience, and clarity. In just a few minutes each day, this book will offer you a daily reprieve when you feel burned out, beaten down, or overwhelmed by the strains and stresses of modern life. The heart of Dear Friend began in the quiet mornings Michelle shared with her mom, Barb. Every day, they would sit together, reading affirmations or passages from Barb’s beloved books. These small rituals—simple but powerful—set the tone for each day, grounding them in g...

Effective Listening: Do's And Don'ts

Here are some great tips from Michelle Tillis Lederman's book, The 11 Laws of Likability . They are all about: what to do and what not to do to be a leader who's an effective listener : Do : Maintain eye contact Limit your talking Focus on the speaker Ask questions Manage your emotions Listen with your eyes and ears Listen for ideas and opportunities Remain open to the conversation Confirm understanding, paraphrase Give nonverbal messages that you are listening (nod, smile) Ignore distractions Don't : Interrupt Show signs of impatience Judge or argue mentally Multitask during a conversation Project your ideas Think about what to say next Have expectations or preconceived ideas Become defensive or assume you are being attacked Use condescending, aggressive, or closed body language Listen with biases or closed to new ideas Jump to conclusions or finish someone's sentences

Critical Questions To Ask New Hires

In Paul Falcone ’s book, 75 Ways For Managers To Hire, Develop And Keep Great Employees , he recommends asking new employees the following questions 30, 60 and 90 days after they were hired: 30-Day One-on-One Follow-Up Questions Why do you think we selected you as an employee? What do you like about the job and the organization so far? What’s been going well? What are the highlights of your experiences so far? Why? Tell me what you don’t understand about your job and about our organization now that you’ve had a month to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. Have you faced any unforeseen surprises since joining us that you weren’t expecting? 60-Day One-on-One Follow-Up Questions Do you have enough, too much or too little time to do your work? Do you have access to the appropriate tools and resources? Do you feel you have been sufficiently trained in all aspects of your job to perform at a high level? How do you see your job relating to the organization’...

Business And Life Lessons My Father Taught Me

On this Father's Day , I thank my dad for teaching me the following business and life lessons : Listen - Growing up, I thought my Dad was perhaps shy or quiet. Really, he was just a great listener. I believe that's what made him so wise. He would listen to anyone. Young or old. New acquaintance or friend. Provide - My Dad provided for me. Music lessons. Vacations. Summer camp. Boy Scouts. He gave. He put others' needs first. Today, I find in volunteering likely the same satisfaction he felt when he provided. Educate - My Dad's passion was education. He loved to learn. He loved even more to teach. He lived to help other people learn. In the workplace, providing learning opportunities is one of the most powerful things you can do for an employee. Mentoring is equally powerful. Train & Prepare - All those years of hearing, "Have you done your homework?" and "practice your trombone," served me well....

Six Leadership Actions To Leverage Employees' Differences To Strengthen Teams

The new book, All The Difference: Six Leadership Actions To Bridge Perspectives, Strengthen Teams, and Create Value , teaches how leaders can turn their team's individual differences into deeper trust, greater creativity, and winning results. “The greatest risk of unmanaged difference isn’t conflict: it lies in the ideas, insights, and opportunities that may never surface,” explain the book’s authors, Susan MacKenty Brady , Stuart D. Kliman , and Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Leslie C. Smith . They suggest that you look around your team to fully see people with different communication styles, perspectives, cultural norms, and capabilities. These differences are expressed in all kinds of ways, such as casual gestures in a meeting, a colleague's opinion on a current event, or an intense work style. Often, those differences can lead to friction, even conflict. You may try to manage around them. But, for you and your organization to fully leverage the strengths of your team’s diffe...

The Enemy Of Engagement - Book Highlights

" Frustration in the workplace is a silent killer," claim authors Mark Royal and Tom Agnew in their book, The Enemy of Engagement . Further, "in an organizational context, frustration is not as simple as failing to get something you want. Rather, it involves the inability to succeed in your role due to organizational barriers or the inability to bring the bulk of your individual talents, skills, and abilities to your job." Royal and Agnew further explain that a staggering number of highly motivated, engaged, and loyal employees quit trying--or quit, period---because they feel frustrated . And what's causing all that frustration? It's lack of enablement . According to Royal and Agnew, as employees grow in experience in their roles, they begin to focus less on learning the ropes and more on achieving desired results . In the process, they are increasingly confronted with enablement constraints...

How To Lead In An Era When Everything Is Being Displaced

Today, leaders are caught in a cascade of contradictions. The technology that promises unprecedented capability also delivers unprecedented doubt. Artificial Intelligence (AI) makes everything faster, cheaper, and more capable. It also makes the most fundamental question of leadership unavoidable: what are humans actually for? You did not choose this moment. But you are responsible for who you and your organization become in it. In Re-Placed: Answering The Call Of Leadership In The Age Of AI , leadership strategist and CEO Kari Zeller offers something rare in the AI conversation: a leadership book that starts with the human, not the technology. “The arrival of artificial intelligence doesn't have to displace us,” explains Zeller. “But it will, unless we learn to re-place ourselves first—to consciously reposition who we are, how we lead, and where we create value in a world where intelligence is no longer ours alone.” “Being re...

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

Search This Blog