SPRING LEADERSHIP SERIES – Featuring David Burkus

Last fall, I featured an inspiring series here on my blog called, "Fall Back to Reading Series." Nearly 30 leadership, marketing, and customer experience experts participated and shared their favorite books and their thoughts about the importance of reading.

Joseph Lalonde, one participant, wrote a book entitled, REEL LEADERSHIP, which focuses on nontraditional ways to think about leadership. After I read the book, the seeds for this "Spring Leadership Series" were planted. Today, I’d like to introduce David Burkus, and following a brief introduction, David shares some nontraditional ways to think about leadership.

Dr. David Burkus is an organizational psychologist, keynote speaker, and bestselling author of five books on leadership and teamwork. His forward-thinking ideas and books are changing how companies approach leadership, teamwork, and collaboration; and his insights on leadership and teamwork have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, CNN, the BBC, NPR, and CBS This Morning.

QUESTION: Which TV show or TV series showcases leadership in a memorable way? This could be due to a specific character and their actions, a series of events, the plot of one or several episodes, or a specific time reflected in history.
DAVID BURKUS: I really enjoyed (at least the first season) of Keifer Sutherland’s character in DESIGNATED SURVIVOR. Sutherland plays a man who becomes US President due to a massive terror attack and does not want the mantel of leadership but responds to the call with grace, humility, and also a powerful vision for unifying a divided country.

QUESTION: Which film showcases leadership in a memorable way?
DAVID BURKUS: It’s an incredibly violent film, but I’m still a sucker for Mel Gibson’s BRAVEHEART. William Wallace does not just join a rebellion but casts a vision of what a free Scotland looks like that inspires the entire country. And he does so by joining the fight and leading from the fight, in the middle of the battle.

QUESTION: Which work of fiction showcases leadership in a memorable way?
DAVID BURKUS: I honestly don’t read enough fiction (that isn’t turned into a movie or TV series) to say something original here.

QUESTION: Which product, or product line, stands out as a symbol of leadership?
DAVID BURKUS: I’ve always been fascinated with little green army men. It’s not the military thing (although I remember as a boy setting up massive “battles” with dozens of figurines on either side.) But it’s the way in which they never sold individual ones. You had to buy an entire team. And I think there’s a leadership lesson there. If leadership is lonely, you’re doing it wrong. It takes a team to make a dent in the universe.

SHARE THIS: If leadership is lonely, you’re doing it wrong. It takes a team to make a dent in the universe. ~@DavidBurkus #SpringLeadershipSeries #DebbieLaskeysBlog

QUESTION: Lastly, which brand is the best embodiment of an industry leader, and why?
DAVID BURKUS: Péla Case. The folks at Péla recognized that the constant upgrading of new phones was creating a massive amount of plastic waste. So, they worked to invent a cellular phone case that could bio-degrade if composted in order to be waste-free. Not satisfied with that, the same founders went on to create the world’s easiest-to-use home composter to eliminate even more waste.

Did these questions open your eyes to thinking about leadership in nontraditional ways? That was the hope. My gratitude to David for appearing on my blog, and for sharing his leadership insights.


Image Credits: Debbie Laskey, iStockphoto, Amazon, and Classroom Clipart.

Connect with David at these links:
Website: https://davidburkus.com
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/davidburkus
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidburkus/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidburkus
Subscription to free weekly newsletter: https://davidburkus.com/all-resources/

Check out posts on this blog featuring David's books:

8 Business Books for Your Winter and Early 2024 Reading List (December 2023)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2023/12/8-business-books-for-your-winter-and.html

Summer Reading Recap: Business and Fiction (August 2018)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2018/08/summer-reading-recap-business-and.html