Most people spend their lives trying to figure out their path. Some people, like De Ann Letourneau, land on that path early and then spend the rest of their lives navigating how to make that journey bigger … better. Growing up in the Midwest, De Ann was indoctrinated to music young, first playing the piano by ear picking up sonatas that her mother would play. It was the violin, though, that captured her attention in 3rd grade and has captivated her ever since. Something of a child prodigy, music became her voice, taking an otherwise shy young girl and setting her on a path where she’d win myriad award and competitions and finally end up as concertmaster of the Las Vegas Philharmonic. In addition to her role with the Philharmonic, De Ann also teaches kids, a role in which she has influenced not only many professional musicians but also people who have gone on to lead companies around the world. Her most important role, however, is mother and the journey she’s taken with her three children has been one that has taken her leadership to entirely new heights.
So what about dogs? Simple. Her mother trained them and from birth, she was around dogs and not just household pets. Her mother trained for and won the very first utility dog title in Wisconsin and through De Ann’s entire life, dogs have played a central role – including learning the importance of breaking bread with others, and how in her world today music does the same thing.
What motivates people? Why do they do what they do? What does leadership actually mean in today’s world? Good questions, right? That’s what Cathy Brooks, thought. And it’s why she created Talk, Unleashed – a new podcast of entirely candid conversations with fascinating people doing remarkable things. This weekly podcast will feature guests from arts and entertainment to business to technology to food to activism to politics (well, we’ll see on that last one). Talk Unleashed invites these influencers to consider the things that have led to them to where they are, the lessons they’ve learned and how all those things can come together to create a better world.
