93: Garry Ridge — How He Built an Incredible Culture of Purpose and Engagement at WD-40

August 12, 2022 by Cal Walters

Garry Ridge has 25 years of experience as Chairman and CEO of WD-40 Company. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego, where he teaches the principles and practices of corporate culture in the Master of Science in Executive Leadership program.

Garry’s philosophy on company culture is based on Aristotle’s quote – “Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.” Turning that into action, he believes that all leaders can create a workplace where you go to work each day, make a contribution to something bigger than yourself, learn something new, feel safe, are protected, and are provided freedom by a set of values and go home happy!

He is passionate about the learning and empowering organizational culture he has helped establish at the WD-40 Company. In 2009, he co-authored a book with Ken Blanchard outlining his effective leadership techniques, titled “Helping People Win at Work: A Business Philosophy Called ‘Don’t Mark My Paper, Help Me Get an A.” A native of Australia, Mr. Ridge holds a certificate in Modern Retailing and a Master of Science in Executive Leadership from the University of San Diego.

Learn more about Garry's work at https://thelearningmoment.net

His top book recommendations:

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

Infinite Game

To Be Honest

Helping People Win at Work

The Unexpected Learning Moment

Follow Garry on LinkedIn here!

If you’re interested in growing in your leadership practice and being inspired to think differently and unlock greater personal potential, we want to give you a gift. Just click the link below and tell us where to send you 12 Ideas That Will Make You A Better Leader In 2022.

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92: Stephen Drum — Getting through Navy SEAL Training and How to Perform under Intense Pressure

July 29, 2022 by Cal Walters in Servant Leadership, Intentional Living

Stephen Drum is a combat-tested Retired Navy SEAL Master Chief with 27 years of experience leading and developing high-performance teams. He recently co-developed and taught “Warrior Toughness” training for The U.S. Navy, which fundamentally changed the culture of the Navy in how it trains and prepares young sailors and officers.

An in-demand speaker and consultant, who helps individuals and organizations develop leadership and performance strategies, so they can plan, prepare, and execute at the highest levels when it matters most. He has trained and led U.S. and foreign partner special operations forces on high-risk and strategically vital missions across the globe, including combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. During his Navy career, Stephen has personally trained thousands of elite military soldiers and Navy SEAL candidates, helping them succeed in severe training courses and overseas combat operations.

We dive into:

his journey becoming a SEAL,
who doesn’t make it through SEAL selection,
his view of discipline,
how to perform under pressure,
his book “Life On the X” and what that means, and
specific ways he leads himself

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91: Sabrina Dalton — Leadership as a Mom & The MMoment II (An Event with Military Mentors))

July 08, 2022 by Cal Walters in Intentional Living, Leadership

Sabrina Dalton is the Director of Programs for Military Mentors. Military Mentors mission is to elevate, educate and facilitate mentorship for the military and beyond. In her capacity as the Director of Programs, she oversees the eMMissary Program, a leader development fellowship, and the MMoment, a one-day, intensive leadership conference in the DC area.

Sabrina is a graduate of the University of Colorado, Denver and is currently pursuing a Legal Assistant certificate through the University of Oklahoma Law Center. Most importantly, Sabrina is a military spouse, homeschooler and a mother. She is married to Tyler, a US Space Force Officer, and together they have 3 children that bring light and joy to their lives.

On this episode, we discuss an exciting live event on Saturday, July 23 in the DC area. If you’re interested in attending this powerful event, please click on the picture below.

We also discuss:

the backstory to her joining Military Mentors
the inspirational leadership of Dr. Chevy Cook (the Executive Director of Military Mentors)
her decision to be a stay at home mom
some of the tough (and controversial decisions) that carry guilt and shame as a mom
some of her key principles for success as a mom

This is Dr. Chevy Cook, the Executive Director of Military Mentors, with his lovely family

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90: Joe Byerly — What's in His Green Notebook and How to Capture Life Lessons

June 10, 2022 by Cal Walters

Joe Byerly is a military officer and founder of From the Green Notebook. He’s a graduate of the University of North Georgia and Naval War College. Over the years, Joe’s been a contributing writer to multiple professional journals and magazines and a contributing author to two books. He’s also a Non-Resident Fellow at the Modern War Institute.

If you’re in the military, you’ve probably heard of From the Green Notebook. It has become the go-to resource and platform for military leaders to share their lessons learned and grow in community. Joe also has a killer podcast, From the Green Notebook, where he interviews leaders from all sectors. We dig into the original story of From the Green Notebook, how military leaders have reacted to Joe’s work (some not so supportive), his “why” for doing this work, some of his practices for reading, reflecting, and capturing lessons learned, and stick around to the end where Joe shares his top takeaways from working closely with GEN H.R. McMaster, GEN Scott Miller, and GEN Chris Donahue, some of the top military leaders of this generation.

Also, check out Joe’s new book to help you reflect during a moment of career transition, My Green Notebook: Know Thyself Before Changing Jobs.

My Green Notebook: Know Thyself Before Changing Jobs

By Byerly, Joe, Crosby, Cassie

Listen to some of our most popular podcast episodes here!

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89: Cal Walters — Reflections on 3 Years of Podcasting, Setbacks, and Self-Leadership

May 25, 2022 by Cal Walters in Intentional Living, Leadership

We're celebrating 3 years of podcasting!

Thank you to all of you that listen to and support this show!

I want to specifically thank two groups of supporters, our Patreon members and those that have left a rating/review on Apple Pocasts or Spotify. Your support goes a long way!

Want to become a Patron of Intentional Leader? You can support the podcast by donating $1, $2, $5 (or whatever you like!) on Patreon. Sign up here!

Want to help us continue to get great guests and grow this community? Please leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts here or on Spotify here.

Today I get the mic flipped on me by my good friend Wes Cochrane. Wes joined me on Episode 84 when we interviewed his brother, Graham Cochrane, and as you’ll hear during this conversation, Wes was part of the reason I started this show in the first place.

So why am I doing this unique format today? Well, three main reasons.

First, I’ve had many of you ask when I was going to get behind the mic like I did the first 20+ episodes and share what I’ve been learning.

Second, this is a natural point of transition for me as my family and I are packing up to move in the next month and I’ll be changing jobs. It’s a natural moment of reflection.

And, third, we’re approaching the 3 year anniversary of this podcast starting, and it seemed appropriate to take a moment to celebrate and discuss highlights from the past 3 years.

On this episode, I get a bit vulnerable about some of my struggles over the past few years, some key lessons I’ve learned interviewing 65 or so leaders from all walks of life, I try to define what self-leadership means to me and how it’s different than self-help, I answer some listener questions at the end, and much more. I hope you enjoy this. Let me know what you think please! And whether you want more episodes in this format.

If you’re interested in growing in your leadership practice and being inspired to think differently and unlock greater personal potential, we want to give you a gift. Just click the link below and tell us where to send you 12 Ideas That Will Make You A Better Leader In 2022.