05/06/2026
Been a week since participating in the Jesse Itzler led leadership conference at Duke University . There were a ton of standard leadership takeaways from Tom Brady, Mike "Coach K" Krzyzewski, Jay Williams, Kirby Smart, Gary Wojciechowski, Jon Sheyer and Kara Lawson - daily grind discipline, principles over policy, culture is king, ALWAYS go for greatness, win as a team, simplify the complex, communication is important, etc.
The top 3 takeaways that you can never get from any leadership book or a large conference (only 50 participants):
1) Authenticity and vulnerability make you human
- nobody said this specifically, but EVERY speaker shared some very difficult times, and the showed emotion…it made everything they said 1,000x more real, believable
- leaders can be perceived as invincible and having all the answers…sharing and showing humanity makes you relatable, then make the decision and move forward to greatness
2) If you don’t have passion for what you’re doing, nobody will follow
- faking it is short-lived
- leading by example with actions, emotions and time shows what you stand for
3) We are human…connections are everything and take care of yourself
- being present, face-to-face, building trust is what builds a great team
- invest in the people you believe in - drive, passion, willingness to learn, work ethic, personal integrity…build your team for where you want to grow vs who you are today
- a great reminder that you personally need to be physically and mentally healthy; otherwise, you’re no good to lead anyone (great Jesse post attached)
HUGE credit to Jesse Itzler, and thanks to his team, for pulling this event together.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DXKR-pEjq5u/?igsh=eXlpMHloM2Q5YXNt