Every organization has or should have core values in place.  However, just writing them down and displaying them on a poster isn’t enough.  The hard part comes in living them.

Today, I’m talking with Buddy Teaster, CEO of Soles4Souls. Buddy talks about his organization, what they do and how their core values have been integral to Soles4Souls’ success. We go in depth about what it means as a leader to put your core values into practice and how that benefits not only your organization’s bottom line, but also provides meaning to everyone in the organization.

Key Topics:

• Buddy Teaster is the CEO of Soles4Souls. His organization collects unwanted shoes and clothing and puts them to good use – providing relief, creating jobs and empowering people to break the cycle of poverty
• Buddy is based in Nashville. He speaks to the devastation recent tornadoes left behind and how the community came together to help one another 
• He also speaks to how recovery efforts are affected and other challenges they’ve faced due to the Coronavirus
• Buddy gives actionable advice to leaders when a crisis hits 
• Meaning and Transparency are two of Sole4Souls core values. Buddy goes in depth about how these values have been so powerful for the organization
• How a leader can deal with being riled up due to frustration from constantly defending their position and why that is so important
• Buddy discusses his path to becoming the CEO of Sole4Souls
• How long it took to reconcile with his father after choosing to take his own path
• Kevin goes over his moments of sheer clarity during this episode
• Buddy gives his 23-year-old self some advice