On January 26, 2019, the local company representatives of the Maxwell Team rebroadcasted the 2018 edition of LIVE2LEAD Global Leadership simulcast at the Cinemas Curaçao. LIVE2LEAD is a half-day leader-development experience designed to equip attendees with new perspectives, practical tools, and key takeaways. The main objective of this event was learning the art of shift, how to make changes you need to make as a leader to ensure personal and organizational growth. With the pace at which business and leadership are changing, it is essential for leaders to understand how to keep up, and what today is all about.

Barbara Leigh from the company “Influential Energy Curaçao” who is a certified John Maxwell Team Coach, Trainer and Speaker welcomed the attendees and officially started the simulcast. Tracy Morrow, certified John Maxwell Speaker, Coach, Mentor and MC of the event, also offered some welcome words to all host locations globally and immediately presented the first speaker, John Maxwell, bestselling author, and owner of the John Maxwell Company, the John Maxwell Team, EQUIP, the John Maxwell Leadership Foundation. He discussed the importance of growth.

Growth is about making changes and seeing opportunities. A small shift can create big possibilities but why has it become important to change? It is required to keep up with new ideas, as fast is becoming faster and looking forward is becoming shorter, from a 5-year plan to a 2-year plan for example. Daily there are new technologies on the market that are disrupting the status quo. It is important to continue learning, being able to unlearn and relearn new ways of working. Keep in mind that what you learn in school will become outdated and needs to be updated later on. Going into uncharted territory means we are going to fail. Failure should be considered as a given when you have a business as part of the cycle of success:

• Test your new idea;
• Fail and identify your weaknesses;
• Learn from your mistakes;
• Improve your idea;
• Re-enter the market with your improved idea.

“Curiosity doesn’t kill cats. It kills the competition”

-John Maxwell-

Good leaders according to John see the picture bigger and quicker. They learn to begin positive changes at the right timing. Leaders should constantly move forward and grow. If as a leader you are still excited about what you did in the past, then you are on the wrong path of leadership. Leaders should be constantly evolving. Going back to the old days is a regressive step to take. One of the characteristics of a leader is to be able to move forward courageously in the midst of uncertainty. The attitude of “I’m not going forward until I know all the answers” will make it difficult to move forward. A good leader also realizes that today’s best won’t meet tomorrow’s challenges.

“Leaders must be willing to let go of what worked yesterday and learn new ways of seeing, doing and leading”

-John Maxwell-

Up next John talked with Tyler Perry, world-renowned producer, director, actor, screenwriter, playwright, author, songwriter, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, about his experiences with leadership. He shared his journey on becoming a successful businessman. What we learned from him is that great successes have small beginnings. Starting small can help you connect with your future employees and helps you develop a better understanding of the job that needs to be done. Another important lesson that we learned is focusing your energy on your path and run your own race instead of running against others.

“Run your own race at your own pace”

 – Tyler Perry-

Carly Fiorina was named the “Most Powerful Woman in Business’ by FURTUNE Magazine and was the first woman to lead FORTUNE 20 company as the CEO of Hewlett-Packard. Fiorina has also headed the external Advisory Board for the CIA under President George W. Bush and was a 2016 U.S. Presidential candidate. She sees leadership as an opportunity. According to her leaders are “made” not “born”.  From her point of view people closest to the problem know how to solve the problem.  Leaders are able to identify those people and provide them with the platform to implement their solutions.

Leaders are different from Managers. Managers do the best they can with the way things are. Leaders can change the way things are but need the courage to face criticism from people who rather have things left the way they are and be open to receive feedback from people who want you to do better. Most importantly a leader should learn how to collaborate with people who are different and sees things differently in order to make progress and be humble enough to ask help from others.

“The growth and development of people is the highest calling of a leader. Good leadership isn’t about advancing yourself. It’s about advancing your team”

-John Maxwell-

The next presenter Daniel Pink, best selling nonfiction author, talked about how our cognitive abilities don’t remain static over the course of the day and how you can determine when you are most productive based on your chronotype that can be determined based on how much you sleep, the time you wake up and your midpoint of sleep. The best time to perform a task is based on the task and your chronotype. For most people during afternoon hours is the time when the brain power is at its lowest. Therefore it is recommended not to perform any difficult tasks and to perform administrative easy tasks during this time.

Debrah Searle, a professional adventurer, public speaker and founder of Shoal Projects Limited and Mix Diversity Developers Limited, shared her story of what shaped her into the leader she is today. She had no intention of becoming a businesswoman but after facing a big challenge in her life she decided to apply what she learned from her experience in business. She shared some attitude tools that helped her achieve her goals successfully:

• Run the Movie (Imagine successful performances)
• Have Contagious Passionate Belief in what you want to do
• How bad is it? Use a scale to measure where you are
• Use Memory Songs to help you go through the day
• Shift Comfort Zones
• Imagine the Arrival Scene (ultimate success)
• Choose your attitude (use brain triggers to help you stay with the right attitude)

John closed the event reminding everyone to be open for growth and embrace change. Make a growth plan with a timeline without a finish line. Shift from goals to growth. Instead of putting numbers put actions. The more you love to grow the less the fear of failing.

“Make sure your love for learning is greater than your fear of failing”

– John Maxwell-

Curaçao can prosper even more when we develop creative and inspirational leaders and entrepreneurs. The 2019 edition of LIVE2LEAD hosted live in Atlanta on October 11, 2019, and will be broadcasted at several host locations globally including Curaçao. For more information contact Mrs. Barbara Leigh at influentialenergy@gmail.com