Ask “Who” Not “How”

In a recent Dan Sullivan podcast, Sullivan stated that many small entrepreneurs stay small because they take on every task for every aspect of their business. Essentially, they get stuck in the “How?” mindset. They have an excellent idea and then get bogged down with the implementation details.

Conversely, small entrepreneurs that break this mold to grow into successful large companies don’t get bogged down like this because they have a “Who?” mindset. When they have an excellent idea, they ask themselves, “Who would be the best person to implement this great idea?” They spend their time finding the best person to execute on the idea and they then enable that person to be successful!

Without a doubt there are times when every entrepreneur needs to get their hands dirty and do the work needed to become or to stay viable. Bill Gates coded, Steve Jobs designed and Michael Dell assembled. However, there came a point in time where these guys realized that to remain viable they would need to find people to take on these roles so they could step up and lead their organizations.

Essentially, they were able to make the change from a How person to a Who person.

So, how do you become a “Who” leader?

Captivate

The Science of Succeeding with People

The book review for this week is Captivate by Vanessa Van Edwards.

Van Edwards takes the reader through a detailed study of the art and the science of networking. She explains the power and benefits of building your network and covers many of the aspects of starting and building genuine relationships.

My takeaway from this book is the fact that anyone can be a great networker. You do not have to be an extrovert. In fact, Van Edwards herself is an introvert and provides quite a few humorous examples to prove this!

Follow her 14 networking hacks (below) and your skills will improve dramatically!

The Connection Algorithm

Take Risks, Defy the Status Quo, and Live Your Passions

This week’s book review is The Connection Algorithm by Jesse Tevelow.

Tevelow explains how important it is for each of us to expand our networks. Establishing a solid network will allow our personal growth to expand exponentially because we will be able to leverage the experience and contacts of the people in our network. One of the best ways to expand your network is to establish connections with people that he calls Connectors – “thought leaders, experts and influence in a given discipline or range of disciplines.”

My takeaway from this book is Tevelow’s formula for personal growth:

Red Notice – High Finance and Treachery in Russia

As a new feature of Thinking Business Blog, I plan to publish a brief, one paragraph summary of the business books that I am reading. This will be a very high level synopsis of the book and what I gained from it. I will publish these summaries as I complete the books and not on a predetermined schedule. I trust you will benefit from them.

The first book I reviewed was Procrastinate on Purpose.

The second review is Bill Browder’s book, Red Notice

This is Browder’s amazing story of how he made billions of dollars as an early investor in Russia for his Hermitage Fund in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. Eventually, Putin and the oligarchs took notice and targeted him, his company and staff. The story switches gears from a documentary of Browder’s investment exploits to a documentary of Browder’s attempts to get justice for his Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, who was illegally arrested and then beaten to death by guards while being detained in a Russian prison.

Who Is In Your Library?

Last week I wrote about the importance of setting up your Advisors Network and I listed a number of my Advisors Council members that have really helped me over my career. This weeks post will list some of the books or references from these icons that I have leveraged over the years. In many cases I have multiple books from each of these authors but I will limit the list to the one source from that individual that made the biggest difference in my professional development.

Business