As I pondered the concept of a leader of leaders, I realized it had brought me to an important “aha!” moment. It addresses many events that have taken place in my entrepreneurial life. Much of what follows you may already be aware of.
A small day camp I opened in Chicago in 1957 closed when I left Chicago for Los Angeles & UCLA. In 1948 I opened another small Day Camp in Malibu Canyon, which grew into a large organization. It closed when we left for Northern California and opened Camp Shasta. Later, we built complex children’s programs in Las Vegas, Colorado, and planned for others throughout the U.S., including Hawaii and Fiji. Major corporations employed us to create programs for them, and we did studies for our government—all this from 1947 to 1974.
Not a vestige of a single program remains—maybe buildings, but a legacy remains. Our staff for every program was made up of well-educated people, almost all of them headed toward professional life. During intensive training, we left no stone unturned via detailed discussions. Dialogue was always free and easy. It is what we sought from everyone. With few exceptions, many of these former staffers became leaders themselves, making remarkable achievements in their chosen fields. There’s no mystery as to why that happened.
It was our outstanding staff who actually helped me launch another chapter in my life by getting me invited to speak about resolving personnel problems in the workplace. I quickly became attracted to the idea that I could help professional offices, be paid a handsome fee, and prove that we knew what we were getting famous for. My work with the best and brightest people changed my life. And in many cases, I changed theirs.
Dialogue, my way—How else do we speak to each—This is our best way
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