Captain’s Notes for Young Leaders

"Be careful what line of work you get into - you'll be stuck with it your entire career."

How many of us received this wise "counsel" from workforce veterans as we neared college graduation or prepared to enter the workforce?

There's a pervasive myth out there that says "your first job dictates what your last job will be." "If you start in retail, you'll end in retail." "Find a place you want to stay for 30 years." Sound familiar?

Wrong.

In today's business environment, it is much more valuable, both personally and to employers, for professionals to have varied, multi-disciplinary experiences that allow them to pull from a larger pool of experiences and perspectives. The "one-trick pony" era is over.

Join us for this episode as we invite Brett Dioguardi, current VP of Impact at Summit Coffee, sustainability leader and professional learner, to discuss how to cultivate a diverse, multi-disciplinary, sustainable career path.

In today's world of buzzwords like "speed-to-market," " efficiency-gains," and "high-speed, low-drag," the concept of stopping the madness to smell the roses seems...out-of-place.

But guess what - that's where magic happens.

We owe it to ourselves to take a moment from time-to-time, look around us, and take a tactical pause. This can be for as long or as short as you need it, and should provide an opportunity to be present, drink everything in, and clear your mind before moving forward. You may take a tactical pause for a few minutes before making a big decision, for a few hours to attend a child's sporting event at the end of a long work day, or (in my case regarding this podcast), for a few years while you figure out who you want to be in this life.

I'm thrilled to be back in the saddle after my own two-year tactical pause. But as with all pauses - there comes a time to push play again.

The saying "mind over matter" may be one of the most commonly-used in the English language. The general intent behind this famous adage is that, no matter the challenge, your mental attitude towards a problem can usually help you overcome it. 

With this in mind, I'm thrilled to be back on the show with Erlan Martinez Castro discussing the power of a maintaining a positive mental attitude. This is an important aspect to succeeding through the challenges of every day life, but has especially powerful applications in the context of being a successful leader. 

Erlan is a marketing professional based in Charlotte, NC, with a fascinating background. Have emigrated to the United States from Honduras in 2012, Erlan has used the power of positivity to earn college degrees, pursue entrepreneurial endeavors, and develop deep personal and professional relationships.  

And, he has his own podcast dedicated to positivity. Check out Erlan's show, "A + Perspective," on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and anywhere you get your podcasts.  

Link to his spotify channel below. Stay tuned, stay POSITIVE, and stay hungry! 

A + Perspective: https://open.spotify.com/show/7fdKpQWZHmuPbt14A04V2N?si=2CXdnQv2RRCdgNKIlIzUxw  

Captain's Notes for Young Leaders is back and better than ever with Season 2!

On this episode, we invite Brian Helfrich, CEO of Summit Coffee in Davidson, NC to the show. Brian is a true servant-leader who is passionate about developing young talent and allowing his team members to blossom within his organization. Join us as Brian gives us insight into his leadership style, his perspectives on youth in the workforce, and his thoughts on investing in people for team success.

Bottom line: Culture and fit can often be more important that experience. Look beyond the linear path to find the true potential of your team members; you'll never know what you're missing unless you give them the opportunity to grow.

Stay tuned, and stay hungry.

Brian's contact info: 

E-mail: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-helfrich-6b338b29/

Successful leaders not only raise the game of those around them; they also build off of the foundation of those that came before them.  

Rarely in any industry will you find yourself "alone and unafraid"  without inheriting some history. As a Marine, I inherited the 235+ years of valor and courage that preceded me. In healthcare, I inherited the centuries of medical device advancement that has led up to modern medical technology. 

This can be applied to either the micro (small team) or macro (large team) context.  As such, who better to discuss "Standing on the Shoulders of Giants" than Mark Owens, the President and CEO of Greater Winston-Salem, Inc., in Winston-Salem, NC. GWSI functions as the region's Chamber of Commerce; a region that includes nearly 1.4 million total residents. 

At this macro scale, the economic and cultural development that Mark is driving has real implications on a massive amount of residents in his region.  

And his region is only growing.  

Join us as Mark walks us through how he leveraged the wisdom and momentum of his predecessors to propel Winston-Salem into the future.

Whether in a professional or a personal setting, nobody exists in a vaccuum.  

As such, it should come as no surprise that a key part of success for anyone, no matter their age, is their ability to build, maintain, and leverage relationships. 

Join us as we invite Chris Clunie, the Athletic Director at Davidson College in Davidson, NC, to the show as he discusses his meteoric rise from student athlete, to NBA executive, to the second-youngest AD in Division I athletics. One major key to his success: the relationships he has made along the way, and his approach to maintaining them. 

Chris, a former teammate of NBA superstar Stephen Curry, is a true leader in every sense of the word: at his school, in his community, and in his industry. As a resident of Davidson myself, I can attest to his impact first-hand. 

Enjoy and remember: Age is a mindset, but leadership is a calling.

Note: This is the final episode of a four-part series with the fantastic Wayne Worthington, an executive recruiting VP at Raines International in Dallas, TX.  

This week, we're excited to bring back Wayne Worthington for the finale of our "How to Attract Recruiters" series.  

Over the last several episodes, we've discussed how to manage yourself, your leaders, and your external network to promote your attractiveness to leadership recruiters. 

This episode, we'll bring it all back home and discuss how to apply these lessons to what's most important: your ability to lead your teams.  It is IMPORTANT to market yourself appropriately, and leverage your talents and resources to further your career, but it is IMPERATIVE to lead your team successfully.  

Join us as we wrap up this fantastic series, and a huge thank you to Wayne for guiding us through these murky waters.

Note: This is the third episode of a four-part series with the fantastic Wayne Worthington, an executive recruiting VP at Raines International in Dallas, TX. Follow-on episodes will be released on a weekly basis. 

Welcome back to the third installment of our "How to Attract Recruiters" series, featuring Wayne Worthington.  

In this episode, we discuss the most crucial aspect of building your attractiveness to recruiters...your ability to create an external network. We dig deep into the "dos" and "don'ts" of networking, how to leverage social media platforms such as LinkedIn to its fullest capacity, and how to create a profile and professional presence that stands out to corporate recruiters and talent professionals.  

Enjoy, and tune in next week for our final chapter of this series as we bring it all back home, and focus on using these talents to empower your leadership abilities with your most important asset - your team!  

Note: This is the second episode of a four-part series with the fantastic Wayne Worthington, an executive recruiting VP at Raines International in Dallas, TX. Follow-on episodes will be released on a weekly basis.

Welcome back leaders! In this episode, we continue the "How to Attract Recruiters" series featuring Wayne Worthington with Part 2.

Last week, we discussed managing yourself and "winning today" as the natural first step towards increasing your attractiveness to recruiters. In this episode, we'll continue the discussion and focus on "winning tomorrow" by managing up.

We will discuss in-detail how to set realistic expecations for your bosses, how to advise and report on both your successes and opportunities, and how to showcase your wins without being arrogant or self-serving.  Ultimately, these skills are crucial to pave the way for both your future successes within your organization, and your self-branding externally to your network.

Enjoy, and tune in next week for Part 3 as we peek further behind the veil of corporate recruiting!