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The Right Leader: Understanding Your Leadership Style with Robert Jordan

We all have to deal with leadership roles at some point in our careers. Whether we are in charge of a little project or an entire department, we ultimately have to mobilize a group of people to solve an issue.

While there are fundamentally right and wrong ways to lead, no single style is suitable for everyone. There are various methods available to lead a group, and you should pick the one that best suits you and your objectives.

Robert Jordan joins us in this episode to discuss the four leadership styles. He also reveals the greatest failure in his business career and how it helped him become a better entrepreneur and establish his company, InterimExecs. Finally, he explains why there is no one better way to lead and why collaboration is essential in building a successful business.

If you are an entrepreneur interested in developing your leadership skills, this episode is for you!

3 Reasons to Listen

Determine your leadership style.
Learn why hiring interim executives may be the next big thing in business.
Discover why your leadership style is comparable to your DNA.

Resources

Coach: A Story of Success Redefined, a novel by Tim Winders
Know more about InterimExecs
Right Leader, Right Time, a book by Robert Jordan and Olivia Wagner
How They Did It: Billion Dollar Insights from the Heart of America, a book by Robert Jordan
Discover your leadership style at Right Leader
Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, a book by Stephen R. Covey
Visit our YouTube channel
Episode’s full-length episode
Episode’s short clip

About Robert

Robert Jordan is an entrepreneur, mentor, and public speaker. He is currently the CEO of the Association of Interim Executives. For the past 20 years, he has founded and expanded businesses and assisted other entrepreneurs.

His first firm, Online Access, was named one of the 500 fastest-growing companies. After selling the said business, Jordan founded RedFlash, a management company that focuses on business development work.

Apart from being an adept businessman, he is also the author of How They Did It: Billion Dollar Insights from the Heart of America, which talks about the inspiring stories of billionaires in America. In support of his mission to spread authentic leadership for the greatest good, he recently co-wrote Right Leader, Right Time, explaining the different leadership styles and so much more.

You can connect with Robert through InterimExecs or at the Right Leader.

Episode Highlights

[03:30] Robert, The Matchmaker

Robert is a matchmaker who helps companies find the exemplary leadership they need.
He started to delve into leadership training and entrepreneurship at a young age.
Leaders are wired in different ways.

[06:12] “Leaders are wired in an infinite variety of ways. And that doesn't mean that everyone is going to end up being the next CEO of Google.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[08:05] Leadership Roles

Robert dabbled in student leadership during his time at the University of Michigan.
Outstanding and principled leadership can solve problems.
Leadership should not be associated with government and politics only.
Taking responsibility for someone within an organization is what leadership entails.
There are four leadership styles: Fixer, Artist, Builder, and Strategist.

[09:27] “Our definition at its broadest of a leader is if you're in an organization, and you have responsibility for someone else, you're a leader. And so whether that someone else is literally an employee, or is it a client relationship, you're evidencing leadership.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[15:43] The Current State of Leadership

There are still many challenges in leadership today.
When people don’t understand their company’s mission, it indicates a failure in leadership.
Technology cannot entirely measure leadership.

[18:50] Sense of Spirit

While there are still significant challenges in leadership, others have made it their goal to address these concerns.
Leadership trainers and developers have the same life mission, which gives them a shared sense of morality and spirit.
Leaders fail because they miss the foundational principles of leadership.

[23:04] Robert’s Leadership Experience

At the age of 28, Robert filed for bankruptcy.
While he considers the failure of his first business as the lowest point of his life, Robert is still thankful for the experience.
People who survived failed ventures become tougher and more knowledgeable.
Business school cannot help you solve all the challenges you encounter in the business world.

[26:27] “When you've already gone to the worst point you can in business, which is to say you've gone bust and you come out the other end of it, what I found was that no matter the situation that the client was in…it's a little like someone surviving battle, that you get battle hardened.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[29:38] The Interim Executives

The concept of Interim, Project, Contract, and Fractional executives started in Europe.
Businesses developed the concept of interim executives when companies discovered they were constantly recruiting outsiders who were uninvested in the business.
Many professionals wouldn’t stay in the company for their entire careers. Businesses should adapt and accept this trend.

[35:34] The Billion Dollar Insights from the Heart of America

Robert was fortunate to have partners that built their firm into a high-revenue enterprise within five years.
He realized that publishing a book detailing the remarkable stories of billionaires would be his way of giving back to the community.
Tune in to the entire podcast to know why Robert was captivated by the story of David Miller, the proponent of artificial hips and knees.
The best leaders are committed to achieving the “highest and best use.”

[41:28] Right Leader, Right Time

Robert and Olivia discovered the four distinct leadership styles while observing their clients at InterimExecs.
Their discovery immediately led to the publication of the Right Leader, Right Time.

[43:50] “But the concept of bringing great accountable leadership to organizations needs to be based on fit and situation and not on what timing is.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[44:47] Results of a Bad Match

Leaders cannot cater to all people.
Collaboration is necessary.
Each team member has complementary skills that may benefit the organization.

[47:41] Styles as DNA

Leadership styles are like DNA.
Each individual possesses the four styles of leadership, but one is dominant.
Leaders must be accountable. Being otherwise could result in the four D’s: Dilution, Delusion, Detours, and Downfall.

[48:28] “All great leaders have elements of a fixer, an artist, a builder and a strategist. Everyone does. It's just that successful people have a dominant trait.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[51:26] The Four Styles

Fixers are motivated to save organizations.
Artists are driven by creativity and view their clients as blank canvas.
Builders have market domination over the brand. They think of repeatable processes for success.
Strategists operate at a scale. The company’s mission and vision are central to what they do.
Listen to the entire podcast to discover your leadership style!

[56:02] The Next Step

Discuss your leadership style with your coworkers.
Society thinks that technology can measure performance, but on the contrary, it's humanity's greatest desire to be acknowledged.
It's crucial to have a deep conversation about discovering oneself.

[58:30] Coming Up With The Title

Robert and Olivia’s editor suggested the title: Right Leader, Right Time.
People must not be hesitant to learn more about themselves.
It is incorrect to believe that successful individuals excel in all parts of their lives. You must learn to work with others.

Wrapup

Everyone has their way of managing people, whether they are the head of a family, an entire business, or somewhere between.

Robert began this episode by emphasizing the importance of recognizing your leadership style. Knowing whether you're a Fixer, Artist, Builder, or Strategist allows you to explore the behaviors that assist or prevent you from achieving your goals. At the same time, he also reminded us not to be afraid of examining our true selves. After all, a deep awareness of oneself results in a better management style.

Finally, after figuring out who you are as a leader, the process of growth should not end there. You must communicate with your colleagues properly and learn to collaborate effectively. You cannot succeed in business alone, just as you cannot thrive in any other aspect of life on your own.

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