Posted on 10/08/2003 8:00:25 AM PDT by CSM
RETIRED NEW YORK MAYOR RUDY GIULIANI SAE Global Leadership Conference Saturday, October 04, 2003
- Hoarse from cheering for the New York Yankees. - Thanks, auto industry, for your help and support after 9/11 - Thanks Jeff Immelt. Donate money to families of police and firefighters - $10 million donation - Doesn't replace loss of a father or son.
LEADERSHIP:
- Just in California campaigning for Arnold Schwarzeneger. - Called me and asked me to do it – and I was afraid not to. - American people are desperately looking for leadership. - True in government, business, religion. - Individual leaders make difference in critical times. - Qualities that you can work on. - Leaders are made – mostly – they have to be born first. - About education, development, learning and study. - Greatest way to learn leadership is to play or watch a team sport. - When I got prostate cancer, I decided that I wanted to write a book. - I was considering running for the Senate, and I was ahead in the polls. - Thought I had been through every possible crisis that I could face.
SIX PRINCIPLES OF LEADERSHIP
1. Adopt strong beliefs & define your philosophy … Know who you are and what you believe in. (Ronald Reagan was the greatest influence on me in that regard. During dispute with Air Traffic Controllers, Reagan stood his ground. Knew what he believed and he spent a tremendous amount of time developing those beliefs as a young man. A lot of people disagreed with him. He didn't change himself because he wanted power so badly. An assertive leader with simplistic but optimistic approach. That's why his presidency changed the world so much – more than presidents before or after. European leaders still talk about Reagan and his determination to bring down Communism.
Martin Luther King was another great leader with strong beliefs. He didn't take a poll. Studied Christianity and Judaism and took his idea of nonviolent protest forward. Had strong beliefs. The change that occurred would not have happened as quickly without Dr. King and his strong ideas.
Two strong ideas got me through 9/11. (1) Religious beliefs. (2) If you study history – recent or a long time ago – "People who live in freedom overcome people who live in oppression because they have something more to die for – and not just something to live for.
2. Be an optimist – You must be an optimist to be a leader. "What if I had come out there and had said, "Things are bad and they're likely to get worse. Now, come, follow me!" People are drawn to solutions to their problems. Ronald Reagan and Dr. King were optimists. People need visionaries who see things getting better. "I have a dream."
Winston Churchill is another example!
Train yourself to be a problem-solver. Bring people together – and brainstorm 10 possible solutions – before you shoot them down.
3. Courage – Be willing to take risks. If you aren't willing to take risks, nothing will change. Courage isn't reserved for the super hero. New York police, after heroic actions, were often petrified in meeting with the press. They had trained themselves to be courageous in rescuing people or pursuing criminals, but not in giving press conferences. You have to train yourself to be courageous. Give yourself and your people the courage to take risks.
4. Prepare relentlessly – Think about all of the things that can go wrong – and prepare for them. Lawyers tell me it takes at least four hours of preparation for every hour in court. Keep this in mind as you prepare for meetings with executives – or presentations with your people. Leadership is all about knowing your subject matter. The best football coach is the one who understands football better than anyone else – and knows how to communicate that to his team.
After 9/11 … as I saw people jumping out of windows at the World Trade Center, my first reaction:, "We're seeing something that we're not prepared to address. So, we started reacting: If you anticipate everything else, you'll find that you're even prepared for the unanticipated. Be ready for whatever you think is the worst thing that can happen to you.
5. Understand the importance of teamwork – If you're in charge – or put in charge – express humility. Ask yourself: what are your weaknesses? Good leadership means balancing weaknesses by moving around the people on the team.
6. Be an effective communicator – In emergencies, you must be out there visible – front and center! Communication is the natural outgrowth of the earlier five principles. Have an overall view/vision. Ask people what they want; tell them what you want; be clear.
My philosophy: Weddings discretionary; funerals mandatory. It's more important to go to funerals than to weddings. You need to be there for people when things go wrong.
President Bush came to New York soon after 9/11. Secret Service didn't want him to go there. There were 2,000-degree underground fires in the city, and there were concerns there would be flare-ups. Bush stayed their longer and longer – and he created a real bond with people there on the ground.
People he talked to most were the construction workers.
Q & A
MCELROY: I understand that you were knighted by the Queen.
GIULIANI: Yes, also got a Freedom Award from the Reagan Administration.
MCELROY: Some in Germany are theorizing that this whole 9/11 thing was concocted.
GIULIANI: I've been to Europe, and there's some anti-American and anti-Bush feelings. We have to remain consistent in our approach. You have to confront it; you can't put in under the rug like the governments of Europe have done for the past 2-3 decades. We look at an evil, and we believe it's better to confront them rather than to negotiate with them. We have a difference of opinion on how to deal with terrorism.
You can't imagine how popular we are in Eastern Europe. They're the recipients of our thinking on freedom.
MCELROY: Has America lost its way?
GIULIANI: Paradise and Power describes this best. We have military power; Europe doesn’t. That's the core of what's happening.
At a recent conference in Florida, Former President Gastaing (France) said U.S. should be willing to be equal partners with France and Germany and Russia. I explained: That won't work. If I put in 90% of the capital, we cannot be equal partners.
LIN CUMMINS: Are we more prepared today? Are you advising Michael Bloomberg?
GIULIANI: We were more prepared that we thought. The danger that we face is not invasion. No one can directly confront the U.S. They'll try to think of an attack that we haven't anticipated.
MCELROY: What are your views on the Democratic presidential candidates?
GIULIANI: I'm a big Bush supporter. The president did a masterful time of getting us through our worst time. It's hard to handicap the Democrats; it's too early. Howard Dean appears to be capturing the philosophical lead for Democrats. He's saying the things that people ultimately vote for. General Clark is the outside hope. Others haven't caught on.
Like the race in California, people are looking for something other than the usual Washington background.
MCELROY: You've made tremendous contributions. Can we look for more contributions?
GIULIANI: I'm going to run for office. I'm chairman of the GOP convention in New York. I'm making sure that's successful. After we get President Bush reelected, I'm going to run for office. Won't start thinking about that until 2004 is over. The country is pretty evenly split between Democratic and Republican philosophy.
Thanks for these notes! I greatly appreaciate reading his thoughts on leadership and also his opinions on the mood of the country.
It wouldn't bother me at all if the first woman and first Black to become President was a Republican.
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