And why that’s important to your future.
How would you feel if you laid your life and soul bare in front of thousands of your fellow business associates? Would it be a good thing? Or?
I recently was honored with a chance to speak at the IT Nation conference as part of a 2-person panel. One of the keynote speakers for the event was Marcus Lemonis, star of the CNBC reality show, The Profit.
It was an event where thousands of business owners in the business software and managed services provider industry gather to discuss the latest issues. It was held in Orlando, and although the weather happened to be better in Illinois at that time, I looked forward to it for an opportunity to see some really great speakers.
In past events, I’ve enjoyed getting to see people like Jim Collins, author of the book, Good to Great, a book I’ve credited as a core influence in building Mavidea’s culture. I’ve also heard Rudy Reuttinger, Notre Dame football star and subject of the sports movie classic, Rudy.
I always get a ton of value, but this year I got to see the best of them all, and I had no idea that would be the case going into it.
There’s something about Marcus
In his show, The Profit, Marcus invests in fledgling and oftentimes-hopeless small businesses. He contributes the money, time and strategy to turn that business around.
As a business geek, I’ve always been fascinated about what he knows about a wide variety of industries. I’ve also been impressed with how on point his ideas are and the results that they drive.
But as I’ve watched the show for a couple of seasons, I realized there was something different about Marcus that wasn’t yet clear to me…
…until I got to hear him speak at IT Nation.
Marcus Lemonis stands up to speak – and the unexpected begins
Marcus opened his 2-hour talk by telling us that not even the event sponsor, Connectwise, or its CEO knew what he would be talking about. Marcus purposely kept that a secret.
Imagine when somebody says something like that at the start of a presentation to thousands of people! The anticipation grows and you can’t help but sit at the edge of your seat knowing you’re in for a wild ride.
Marcus then proceeded to come down off the stage, and over the next 20 minutes, he paced through the crowd as he told his personal story.
Marcus shares a dark and difficult beginning
He opened up by saying, “Today’s going to be a business conversation unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. We’re not going to talk about spreadsheets. We’re not going to open up PowerPoints. And we’re not going to talk about strategy.”
He continued, “I believe what we’re going to talk about is going to be much more important to your business. I’m going to talk about me.”
It was 20 minutes of things you would never anticipate hearing from a speaker at a national event and the star of a hit reality show.
Why honesty is important
He told us that it was important that we, the audience, know about him as a person. He wanted us to have the opportunity to connect with him in an emotional manner.
He was transparent. He was vulnerable. And he was honest.
The entire audience was tuned in and connected to him at this point, hanging on every word.
He stated that as a leader, it’s important that people develop a connection with you and understand that you’re a person too, with your own struggles and pitfalls.
He then said, now it’s your turn. He pointed to microphones set up and scattered throughout the audience. We knew at that moment that we were in for something we never experienced before.
Don’t miss what happened next. Look for my next post coming soon.
Honestly, I was floored. I can’t wait to tell you about it.
Check back to this blog for Part 2 of this blog series. I promise you, it will be worth it.
