Any entrepreneur worth their salt has dreamed of becoming a public figure. Even considering they are slow to the stage, the majority of entrepreneurs do not wish to toil behindRead More
The post 7 Essential Steps to Becoming A Public Figure appeared first on The Entrepreneurs Library.
]]>Any entrepreneur worth their salt has dreamed of becoming a public figure. Even considering they are slow to the stage, the majority of entrepreneurs do not wish to toil behind the curtains forever. Since the turn of the century, we have been graced with the presence of a variety of entrepreneurs and visionaries that have been able to deliver lasting changes in a wide range of different fields.
From the many well-known authors we have had on The Entrepreneurs Library, I have come to learn that any entrepreneur who is thinking about becoming a public figure will excel quickly by learning from other leaders that have found tremendous amounts of success. Here’s a closer look at the essential steps that many leaders today when they first started becoming a public figure.
Andrew Carnegie is one of the first entrepreneurs that we are taught about. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth and grew up in a lower class household. His poverty stricken family left his native Scotland to come to America and raise their quality of life. Carnegie used his impoverished childhood as motivation.
Once Carnegie became wealthy, he was not content to sit on top of his stack of money. He reached out to those who were less fortunate, donating tens of thousands of dollars to fund hospitals and libraries. He was also one of the first entrepreneurs who wrote a book about his success, imparting his secrets to others who were in the same position he used to be in.
Unless you have been living under a rock for the past 20 years, you have heard the name Oprah Winfrey. Oprah is a testament to what you can achieve if you have the willingness to overcome the bad things that have happened in your past and continue to work towards your goals.
Oprah has become an influential public figure because of her eloquence and her ability to speak passionately about the experiences that shaped her. Because of this, people do not see her as a billionaire who is above them, she is seen as a peer, which makes more people want to purchase her products.
No matter who you are or where you are from, you have heard of Steve Jobs. While Jobs may be a polarizing person to many, there is no question that he is an influential public figure. Even in death, his quotes and philosophies are still discussed. The main lesson to be learned from Jobs is to always be yourself.
Jobs has been criticized for his sometimes abrasive approach, but he was able to command respect and become an important public figure because of his honesty and unwavering commitment to his own personal principles.
The Social Network was more than just a movie about the creation of Facebook, it also displayed Mark Zuckerberg‘s best and worst tendencies. While some entrepreneurs would be reticent to allow themselves to be portrayed in an unfavorable light, Zuckerberg gave Hollywood the permission to tell his story, warts and all.
Every entrepreneur is not going to receive the opportunity to tell their story on the big screen. By telling your whole story, you allow your audience to relate to you on a whole new level. It has the effect of humanizing you and showing people that you are far from invincible.
The Huffington Post has become one of the Internet’s most trafficked websites, making a star out of the site’s creator, Ariana Huffington, in the process. Because she provides an important publication service and educates her readers about current business, political and entertainment issues, Ariana Huffington has developed a much higher profile in recent years.
When an entrepreneur provides people with more than a simple product or service, it increases their appetite for knowledge about the person, which eases their transition into a public figure. She has gone from unheralded blogger to the pages of Time magazine, without having to pander to the lowest common denominator.
Martha Stewart is a name known throughout the world and even a prison stint could not deter her businesses. She has been able to endure as a public figure because she has successfully diversified her portfolio. While some may know Stewart from her television persona, others may know her because they purchase her linens or her magazines. Martha even makes appearances on shows like The Apprentice and Comedy Central’s Justin Bieber roast.
Martha’s media presence is varied, which gives her the unique ability to speak to a plethora of different audiences and ensures that her shelf life as a public figure is not artificially shortened. Some entrepreneurs are content to live a low profile life, working in the same field, but to become a public figure, you must be able to reach different segments of the population.
Some may know Mark Cuban as the man who was smart enough to cash out before the tech bubble burst, while others may know him as the outspoken owner of the MBA’s Dallas Mavericks franchise. Mark Cuban is able to remain in the spotlight because of his transparency and ability to tell it like it is.
For instance, Mark was one of the first major entrepreneurs to harness the awesome power of Twitter. His official, verified account now boasts nearly 3 million followers, many of whom do not even follow basketball. He gives his followers valuable insights into the business world and as a result, he has become a beloved public figure.
Top Dog: How To Impress and Influence People Around You by Andy Bounds
Credibility by Jim Kouzes
Powerhouse by Mike Clayton
Pocket Man by Scott Jordan
Charisma on Command by Charlie Houpert
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]]>What are the characteristics of a great leader? Exceptional leaders should have exceptional qualities because ordinary traits are not going to help them achieve greatness in one way or theRead More
The post 5 Characteristics of A Great Leader appeared first on The Entrepreneurs Library.
]]>Exceptional leaders should have exceptional qualities because ordinary traits are not going to help them achieve greatness in one way or the other. You can easily find many competent leaders, but only few of them eventually qualify as exceptional leaders. Of course, there are leaders who seem to have great ideas, but when you ask them to execute them in real life, they fail miserably. One might look like a great leader in ordinary circumstances, but once you get them out of their comfort zone, you will get to see who they really are. When the going gets tough, when the money is tight or the stakes are high, it is only the great leaders that live up to the expectation; ordinary people just quit it.
So, if you want to separate great leaders from ordinary leaders, you need to have a detailed understanding of the qualities that a great leader possesses.
Sometimes, it just happens that we have great ideas in our head, but when we try to communicate those ideas to the people who are going to implement them, we face the inconvenient truth that they are not getting it. Most leaders met with a blank expression from people when they try to communicate their ideas.
The ideas may seem great on paper, but making people act on it depends much on how you are communicating it. So, if you wish to be a great leader, you need to have great communication skill. There is no way around it.
How on earth the team is going to achieve its goal if the leader fails to communicate his ideas in plain and simple English.
A great leader should encourage fun at workplace because nobody wants to work in a dull and boring environment. It is important to keep your head high even when things are going wrong. There will be times when things will go horribly wrong like the funds may run dry, the client may stop responding or the company may incur heavy loss; but you need to take them as challenges without pressing the panic button.
As a leader, you have to accept the challenges as they come along; try to use humor to inspire other people to face the challenges. People make mistakes, but rather than crying a river over those mistakes, you need to face them with a smile in your face. This will create a positive vibe in the workplace and all you have to do is to encourage it.
Honesty is certainly one of the main characteristics of a great leader. Since everybody around you follows your order blindly, you need to be honest and straightforward. A leader needs to accept his faults if there are any; blaming others for your fault can demoralize people working with your team. Moreover, you will lose all the love and respect of employees working with your team. You should not do anything that can make people doubt your integrity.
If you want every member of your team to work really hard, you need to set an example first. Preach what you practice. You simply can’t expect people, working under you, to arrive at the office early if you are a late comer on a regular basis. There is nothing in the world that motivates the workers than seeing their leader working hard alongside. By showing your commitment towards the company, you will be able to earn the respect of the team members and also will be able to encourage them to deliver their best.
Sometimes, you will have to deal with problems that demand a different kind of solution. No, not the usual approach is not going to help here anymore. You will need to take some drastically different decisions to deal with those problems. This is exactly where the importance of creative decision making comes into play. A great leader needs to think outside the box, otherwise he will never be able to offer cool and creative solutions to complex problems.
The Front-Line Leader by Chris Van Gorder | Click here for a detailed summary according to Chris Van Gorder
Leaders Open Doors by Bill Treasurer | Click here for a detailed summary according to Bill Treasurer
MOXIE – The Secret to Bold and Gutsy Leadership by John Baldoni | Click here for a detailed summary according to John Baldoni
The Best Place To Work by Ron Friedman | Click here for a detailed summary according to Ron Friedman
Lead To Succeed by Chris Roebuck | Click here for a detailed summary according to Chris Roebuck
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