Team Orrin Woodward

Orrin Woodward: The Value of a Team

"Even the sharpest thinkers need teams of sharp people around them. And these high-performing teams develop over time. It is one of the basic laws of attracting talent: the more talented people you have, the more talented people you can attract. You get the highest level of input in decision-making and the best critique of things you should or should not undertake when you are surrounded by such individuals. Once you reach that critical mass of talent, there's literally nothing you can't undertake."

Robert Johnson, founder, Chairman, and CEO of BET (Black Entertainment Television)

Orrin Woodward has espoused this ideal since day one when creating his team. The results he has obtained are due to his leadership and his ability to attract and develop key leaders from various industry backgrounds to compliment that team. Those who have earned a spot on the Round Table or Policy Council boards bring their varied backgrounds and skill sets to the table allowing the critical mass of talent to be assembled and brought to bear on a variety of tasks and issues. Success is not something that happens by chance. When you study leadership characteristics from different leaders in a variety of different industries many of the principals of their success are the same. Orrin Woodward knows what Robert Johnson knows…that great teams can tackle great issues and there is nothing you can’t accomplish once that critical mass has been focused on the task at hand.

Orrin Woodward: Keynote speaker at Michigan State Leadership Event

Requests continue to flow into our office for the DVD of Orrin Woodward giving his keynote talk at the Michigan State Breslin Center. It was a sold out crowd Saturday night packing the arena which provide a unique and challenging way to address the crowd from a podium in the middle of what generally is the Spartan basketball court. Orrin did a masterful job addressing the crowd in 360 degrees panoramic view of leaders from around the country. The DVD of his talk will be released in early 2007.

Other news of interest is the national release of his book Launching a Leadership Revoluion. This book has a release from Time Warner Books set in September 2007 and a national book signing is being prepared by their media staff. This highly anticipated book from Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady will be promoted at all Borders, Barnes and Nobles, and other leading bookstores around the country. Check back on this site in mid 2007 for a book signing schedule near you.

Orrin Woodward: Why Leadership Matters!

I had an interesting conversation yesterday with someone who asked the question, “Why does leadership matter in building a business?” To be honest, I was taken aback with the pointed question and even more so when I realized they were seriously questioning whether leadership was relevant at all and they were a so called “industry expert” qualified in business matters.

Orrin Woodward’s famous quote is that “Everything rises and falls on leadership!” It is the quintessential building block for success in any organization, business, or endeavor. If you have goal and a leader helping you get there then you have a shot at achieving success. If you have a goal but no leader you are destined for failure. Warren Buffet has proven this point over the years as his investment strategies have always been to invest in companies that have strong leadership and stay away from any company that have poor leadership, no matter how good the opportunity might look.

I can only speculate that this individual I mentioned earlier probably thought that in business one should focus all energies on issues like product offerings, distribution, market saturation, profit margin, inventory control, and a litany of other related areas. These are all important and must be studied but in the proper order. Just as you have to lay the foundation before you can build the house, you must start with leadership and then move into the other areas if you really want to build a successful business or organization. The Orrin Woodwards and Warren Buffets of the world focus first and foremost on leadership and then worry about the rest. Why? Because leadership dictates success!

Leaders provide the vision, the dream, the goal, and the motivation to achieve against all odds. A leader with a goal and a vision is what makes a world class restaurant different from an average restaurant. Good leaders spawn new industries that are successful while poor leaders run old industries into bankruptcy and failure. A leader can take a great sports team and win a championship while teams full of talented players with no true leader get left behind. Business is no different!

Orrin Woodward has an example of the difference between a business with a leader and one without. A business or organization without a leader is like a stagnate pool of water. Slowly over time it gets dirtier and filled with filth. It stinks, there is no movement of the water and bacterial starts to grow. So to, an organization without a leader providing a vision, goal, and direction and the motivation to achieve it will start to stagnate and problems will eventually arise. Standards will slack, people will have problems, quality will drop, and performance will suffer. The business is doomed to suffer until a leader comes in to fix the problem.

The opposite is true as well. An organization with great leadership is like a flowing stream or river. There is a current that keeps the water fresh and moving in the right direction. The leader is that current. They provide the direction that everyone else follows. They provide a vision, goal, and the motivation to get there. If you are following along you get swept away by the current. Achieving success is easier because the leader is helping by being the current and pulling and pushing everyone along and keeping everyone focused on the end result.

Is leadership important in business? Absolutely! Orrin Woodward and Warren Buffet have proven this and have the results to back up their analysis. Leadership is the core building block of success no matter what occupation, business, or industry you find yourself in. Those who think otherwise are destined for failure or at best mediocrity and everyone knows if you are not moving forward you are getting stagnate!

Orrin Woodward: Leadership equals greater responsibility…not greater privileges!

A guiding principle that Orrin Woodward has instilled within his organization is that with greater leadership roles come greater responsibility, not more perks and special treatment. This is hard for some people in today’s society to understand. Many feel that once they reach a certain position within the a company, achieve a certain rank in the military, or in the case of many of some of our political leaders...get elected to office...that they now have special perks and privileges that allow them to roam free unchained by the laws and regulations of the common man.

Look at the Hollywood elite that seem to live above the law endlessly getting a slap on the wrist for things that the common citizen would do jail time over. Some of our politicians think they can break the law, take bribes, and operate totally independent of the judicial system with impunity. It has become so reckless on both sides of the aisle in congress that many are now saying we need a good house cleaning from top to bottom for both parties. With the recent arrests and investigations of Congressman Duke Cunningham of California and Congressman Jefferson from Louisiana we are seeing the very abuses of power in our nation’s capital that a few years ago we witnessed in some of the board rooms of major companies like Enron, Global Crossing, and Arther Anderson.

Americans have become disenfranchised with their leaders and heroes because of this behavior. They are tired of the dirty deals the politicians finagle for themselves. These “special deals” the politicians dole out to friends, family, and lobbyists profiting from this while at the same time trying to act like there is integrity within the political system and they are following the law. They are tired of the scandalized sports heroes testifying before congress that they are clean only to be caught red handed testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. Through these dishonest acts, the athletes gave themselves a “special deal” over the rest of the competition. Thus, they made the playing field unequal and disgraced the hallowed records of the game. Everywhere you look you see so called leaders and heroes disgracing themselves by engaging in dishonorable behavior.

Orrin Woodward has a famous article he wrote titled, “Where have the heroes gone?” which explores this multi faceted question by looking throughout American history and our development as a nation and what has changed over that time. He states that for the greatest part of our history that the true measure of man was of his character and integrity and not his worldly possessions. Yet, sadly times have changed.

Looking at the heroes we exalt today one can see we have strayed far off track. Our politicians give great election speeches but disgrace themselves in scandalous activities. Our sports heroes tell children not to do drugs as they participate in public service announcements yet those same athletes get caught cheating the game and the fans by using steroids.

Orrin’s question rings loud and true, “Where have all the heroes gone?” More importantly than the question is his answer….we need leaders who will stand tall and stand for what is right. We need men and women of character and integrity that take responsibility for their lives and their actions. America needs people that no matter what profession or calling they are in commit themselves to make America a better place to live and work.

Orrin teaches that everyone acting together as a team can foster change in their communities, schools, churches, local, state, and federal governments. With everyone working together doing their part, everyone can develop into a leader who can be make a difference in the world and be a hero in someone’s life.

Orrin Woodward is respected within his industry and highly sought after to speak at leadership and business meetings around the country because of his passion to make a difference in America and because he is a man of principle who stands for what is right. He teaches and even more importantly abides by timeless principles of leadership that are admired and respected, yet are so hard to find in many of our so called leaders today. There are many people who love to talk the talk but at the end of the day it all boils down to who actually lives the life they preach and teach. Orrin is respected because he teaches the principles he actually lives.

It has been said many times that “those who can’t do…teach.” Unfortunately many leaders today espouse certain beliefs yet in their private lives fall short of the principles they ask others to follow. Orrin Woodward continues to live each day following the principles that inspired him and Chris Brady to write their best selling book, Launching a Leadership Revolution. By doing so, he has achieved a great deal of success and is also changing America in the process by helping other leaders make personal changes and grow in their business as well. It is time to create some heroes in America we all can be proud of and that our children can look up to as a true example. Whether an athlete, politician, or business leader, anyone can be a true American hero if they commit to doing what is right and making a difference in their community.

Orrin Woodward: Life Lessons Through Golf

Orrin Woodward is an incredible teacher because he has this innate ability to extract life lessons out of every day events.  The more time I spend with him the more I notice these lessons in other activities that I am engaged in.  In particular, my passion for the game of golf has taught me many life lessons outside of giving me needed relaxation on a brisk Saturday morning.   

The game of golf parallels life in so many ways.  It is a sport where everything rests on your shoulders.  Win or lose, everything rides on your particular performance during the match.  There are no teammates to blame if a shot is not made and no referees to make a bad call late in the game.  As Bobby Jones said, every man must play the game the same and the hardest part of every course is the “six inches between your ears.”

After a long cold winter, there is nothing I enjoy more than going to the driving range to hit some golf balls.  Working out the rusty swing and getting all the fundamentals back into place is generally a chore.  However, once you hear the glorious sound of the “PING” from your titanium driver as you stroke the ball in the sweet spot and watch that ball take flight, you are hooked.

For us nonprofessionals, more often than not we make too many errant shots between the good ones which cause torment when on the golf course and down right frustration when on the driving range.  This happened to me the other day as I hit shot after shot, slicing them to the far right of the driving range instead of down the center.  Knowing the results I wanted…. a shot to fly straight and true…I started to adjust things to try to obtain the result I wanted. 

Since I was landing to the far right of my target, I started to aim to the far left to compensate. I also started to close the face of my golf club as I addressed the ball to compensate even further.  I then started altering my swing.  Before long I had adjusted so many things that it would have been impossible for even Tiger Woods to hit a straight shot using my discombobulated methods.

Orrin Woodward is famous for saying that you have achieved your results in life based on your efforts and the information you have.  Therefore, if you want different results you need to have different information.  The hardest part for many people is admitting this and then seeking the proper information.  There are tried and true methods to achieve success and the key is to use those methods and not tinker with them.  Personally regulating and adjusting to achieve success without mentorship or coaching generally will produce the same results that I achieved on the driving range. 

For the particular issue with my golf swing, I was too close to the problem.  To be honest…I was the problem.  However, I did not know how to change or what I was doing wrong.  I needed someone to watch me and then provide guidance.

Luckily, the next time I went to the range I took a close friend, Gary Brimmer, who watched my swing.  Once again I was trying to compensate and my adjustments made my swing worse.  Gary said, “Bob, go back to the basics and let me watch it from there.”  At that point he analyzed my swing and saw that I was breaking down my back swing too early.  He made one pointer and the next drive I hit was straight as an arrow 250 yards on the fly. 

I’ve written a number of articles discussing the aspects of mentorship that I have been taught by Orrin Woodward.  Orrin has shown me how valuable it is to have outside guidance and feedback from others around you to achieve success.  This golf lesson just highlighted that point even further. 

I was trying hard.  I was practicing.  But I was the problem.  Since I was not getting the desired results, I felt like I could tweak things with my swing and compensate for it.  I would aim differently and address the ball with a different angle but nothing worked.  All my efforts without proper coaching just made my swing worse.  Once I admitted I needed help and asked for an outside perspective Gary was able to offer pointers that put me back on course.

Far too often in life we think we can make things happen on our own.  When we are not achieving the results we want in our marriage, jobs, etc. we often forget the basics and start tweaking things as we blindly work harder but often achieve even worse results.  Orrin Woodward says the key to success in any endeavor is to seek proper counsel and get outside perspective and feedback. 

Had I done this earlier with my golf swing, I would have saved myself a couple of frustrating trips to the driving range.  It is so important to have a coach or mentor who can provide valuable feedback on different aspects in your life to be able to help you course correct.  Often it is much easier for others to see what we are doing wrong than for us to see the problem.  The hardest part many times is asking for help and then following through on the advice that is given.  However, those who do this generally have greater success in life than those who refuse help and keep trying to do it on their own.

Altering a golf swing is easy.  Trying to make changes in our relationships with others or how we conduct business is much harder.  No matter what the area is, if you are not achieving the results that you desire….don’t try to do it alone.  Seek advice, perspective, and coaching from someone who can help.  You will be able to achieve the results you want much quicker than trying to struggle on your own through trial and error.

Orrin Woodward: The Importance of Association

As I mentioned in my previous post, mentorship is a key element in the development of a leader.  Orrin Woodward has taught me this importance of mentorship among leaders and those around them.  He calls this “iron sharpening iron” as the mentor is able to coach and pass knowledge and experience on to the protégé.  At the same time the protégé is also able to expose the mentor to new ideas and through dialogue and discussion both parties learn and develop together.

As a leader, no matter what type of organization you are involved in, the principle of mentorship should be at the very core of your leadership responsibilities.  It is the leader’s responsibility to groom, educate, and develop those around them so they can achieve greater success for the organization and do a better job in their assigned tasks.  The role of mentorship can and should be used in every organization. 

For example, senior clergy members of churches use this tool to mentor and develop young men of the cloth who have decided to serve in that role.  The role of a clergy member is an arduous task and to be able to support and serve the members of their church the young clergy need to be developed to handle all the questions and problems they will certainly face.  The mentor effectively instills valuable lessons that college or seminary could not teach.

Anyone wanting any level of success knows that mentorship is imperative.  For those who wish to be mentored this can sometimes be a difficult task.  Although they may wish to choose the best and brightest in their field of study to mentor them, that individual may not be available to do so.  Imagine how many young businessmen and software developers would like to be mentored by Bill Gates?  He could not possibly handle everyone who approached him with this request.  I noticed this in the military as aspiring officers would jockey for time with certain generals in hopes they could be personally taken under their wing to be mentored and coached.

If you can not spend personal time with your mentor of your choice this does not mean that you can not learn from them.  As a pastor there are certain men that my father highly regards in his field of study and he has made a point to read every volume of literature about those men.  That literature ranges from biographies, autobiographies, books they authored, and even letters of personal correspondence that have now been published.  He has thoroughly studied their lives and by doing so has developed a keen sense of awareness about these men, what they stood for, how they served, their belief systems, and areas of acute expertise.  By doing so, he is able to experience a facet of mentorship by learning what they espouse.

The power of association can not be understated when discussing mentorship.  Everyone knows that you will become like the people you associate with the most.  Those who can not associate with their chosen mentor in person can do so through study and education.  I would speculate that many of the great physicists of our day have not been personally mentored by Albert Einstein but would agree that through reading and studying his work, they have been profoundly impacted and thus “mentored” by him to take those ideas and further expound on them.

Orrin Woodward and other leaders of the Team understand they do not have the ability to personally mentor everyone.  However, Orrin knows that through the power of association, he and others can mentor and coach through media.  The training and education system developed by the Team allows Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady along with select other leaders to help mentor those who have the desire to learn from them.  Along with two best selling books (Leading a Consumer Rebellion and Launching a Leadership Revolution) and a host of DVD and audio material, the training system of the Team allows proven leaders in multiple industries to mentor in a host of different areas concerning business, finance, relationships, and leadership development.

The training system of the team harnesses the power of mentorship and association together to effectively create an environment in which those who choose to develop a certain skill set are able to do so.  The skills that are taught can then be translated into successes in a wide variety of business and personal endeavors.    

Orrin Woodward on Mentorship

As I have transitioned from military to civilian life, one fascinating aspect that I have witnessed is the important role of mentorship in both sectors.  This critical element of leadership development crossed boundaries and divides in such a remarkable way thus prompting me to investigate it further. 

As a second lieutenant in the Air Force, I often heard of the importance of having a mentor.  For all the talk and fanfare both in the military and corporate America regarding this topic, there are many who have no clue what it is really all about.  I was fortunate in my first assignment as a young second lieutenant to have an incredible boss teach me what a true mentor was. Lt Col Springer modeled not only what a mentor should be but also taught me that those who wish to be mentored have responsibilities as well.

I learned more from Lt Col Springer over lunches and late afternoon office calls than I did from any other officer I served under in the military.  It was evident that he took mentorship seriously and truly cared for all the second lieutenants in his command.  He did everything he could to teach, coach, instruct, and chide us to be the best we could be.  He set high standards and would not lower the bar for anyone, yet stood side by side with us as we developed, learned, failed, and succeeded as new officers in the military.  It was truly an exciting chapter of my life and the lessons he taught me were invaluable.

I have been equally as fortunate in my transition to corporate America to be under the tutelage of Orrin Woodward.  He has shown me once again what it means to be a mentor and as I have written in previous posts, I have learned more from him over our many lunch meetings or office calls than I did in all my years of college education. You can not place a price tag on that kind of real world experience.  Both Lt. Col. Springer and Orrin Woodward imparted to me incredible knowledge in two drastically different fields but their approach to mentorship was very similar. 

Whether in the military or in business, I have learned that accomplishing any amount of success depends on the leadership that is present on a project or task.  Failure is a sure sign that a leadership void was present.  Orrin often says that “Everything rises and falls on leadership” and he truly believes this as I have seen him spend more time in mentoring and developing other leaders than in any other aspect of his business.  It is obvious that he values and understands the importance of mentoring leaders around him.

In the military, the best performing organizations I witnessed were the ones that had strong leaders at the top who understood the meaning of mentorship and thus mentored leaders down the chain of command to be able to handle their various tasks.  Organizations that had a leadership void anywhere in that chain of command flat out failed.  You see this in the business world as well.  Jack Welch, the CEO of General Electric is renowned for being one of the toughest CEOs in American history but he also knew how to develop and mentor leaders and to this day General Electric’s leadership training programs are some of the best in the nation.  Leaders who emerge from that company have gone on to become CEOs of many other companies around the country. General Electric flat out knows how to train, develop, and mentor leaders and companies around the country recognize this by trying to hire them into their companies.

Orrin Woodward has done the very same thing with the mentorship and training of leaders within his team.  Records have been set, goals achieved, and industry standards and benchmarks made every year based on his devotion to developing and mentoring world class leaders around him and through out his company.  As a former military officer, I participated in many leadership seminars and sat in on numerous closed door sessions for the generals and other senior leaders within the military.  I honestly think that many of the bench marks Orrin Woodward has developed should be implemented within those vaulted corridors of military leadership development.

No matter what organization you work for there is always room for improvement.  I think the role of mentorship is often misunderstood both in the military and in the private sector and since this is a critical aspect of the success of organizations the proper roles within mentorship need to be taught. Mentorship is a two way street. You have to be willing to be mentored and then you have to find a willing mentor.  You can not have one without the other.

First, you must be an eager student and place yourself under the teaching, tutelage, and guidance of someone wiser than you.  As the old adage goes, “When the student is ready, the teacher will arrive.”  Far too often people resist mentorship because they refuse to admit they need help.  Some are so arrogant to think they know everything and thus will not take advice from anyone.  Some may not want to take advice from someone younger.  Some can not admit they need help and thus miss out on the great opportunity for advancement and learning. 

Once you are ready to be mentored it does you no good to listen to the advice but not implement it into your life.  It is the student’s responsibility to be willing to institute and practice what is being taught.  If they fail to follow through with the advice given, they are wasting the mentor’s time and effort along with their own.

The second part of the equation is the mentor.  He or she must be willing to mentor the student.  This a sacrifice that must be a conscious decision made by the leader.  It is truly an unselfish act for someone to take their own time to help coach another person to success.  If you are a supervisor in any capacity it is a wise investment to spend time mentoring those under you.  It is by this mentorship that you help develop your organization to achieve their goals and accomplish greater tasks.  If you study the greatest leaders in the military or in business, each and everyone had a mentor who helped coach, teach, and instruct them to their greatness.  Show me someone who refused to receive instruction in their life, who never took the advice from those who had success in their field of study who had gone before them, and I will show you a person who did not accomplished anything of noteworthiness.  Success is gained by those who seek out mentorship and advice from people in life who as Orrin Woodward says “have fruit on the tree” or the results to prove they should be a mentor.

For those who wish to be mentored and want to seek out someone who can teach and coach them I would offer a word of caution, we become like the people we associate with the most.  You will take on the work ethic, character, personality, and behavioral traits of those you spend the most time with.  Make sure you choose a mentor who is an individual that you would be proud to be associated with and more importantly, someone that you would be proud to be like!  In essence, the mentor must choose wisely the person they want to invest their time with as the student will one day be a reflection of the teacher.  So too, the student must choose wisely the mentor they submit to as they will most certainly take on many of the traits and characteristics of that person.

Mentorship requires a very close and personal relationship between mentor and protégé.  It requires time and effort from both parties.  The teacher must patiently instruct and the student must be willing to submit and learn.  In the movie Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi makes a very poignant comment about commitment when he says to his student, “Daniel-san, must talk. Man walk on road. Walk left side, safe. Walk right side, safe. Walk down middle, sooner or later, get squished just like grape!”  Mentorship takes full commitment from both parties.  To achieve success, you need a dedicated mentor and student working together.  A half hearted attempt on either party or worse yet, an unwilling participant will yield poor results.  However, with two fully committed individuals, the mentor and protégé will both learn a great deal, strengthen their relationship, develop greater skills in the field they are studying, and the time invested on both parties will be rewarding for both.

Orrin Woodward's Favorite Quotes

“Leadership is the capacity and will to rally men and women to a common purpose and the character which inspires confidence.”

Bernard Montgomery, British Field Marshall

“No person was ever honored for what he received.  Honor has been the reward for what he gave.” 

Calvin Coolidge, American President

“Success seems to be connected with action.  Successful people keep moving.  They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.”

Conrad Hilton, Hotel Executive

The Rising Tide of Capitalism

The topic of economics has been an underlying theme during discussions with Orrin Woodward when conversing on business and politics.  On more than one occasion we have discussed the disparity of results in a capitalistic society and the resulting outcome that it produces both economically and socially.  Some with a socialist mindset see disparity within America and fail to see progress but rather social injustice. 

I read an article this morning on ABCnews.com that had an alarmist ring as it stated that “The disparity between the rich and the poor is growing in America.”  I realize that fear and sensationalistic journalism helps sell a news story, so I knew why they led with such a volatile opening line.  This immediately enlightened me as to the direction the author was heading.  If you want to have an honest discussion on this subject, you have to approach this topic from a different point of reference or as I highlight in my last post, with a different world view.

Is there growing disparity between the rich and the poor?  This is not the important issue.  We must ask an entirely different question. Where are the “poor” today in relation to where they were last year and twenty years before that?  The fact of the matter is, with capitalism we have been raising the living standards in this great country generation after generation. The “poor” in America have cars, homes, televisions, and enjoy a level of subsistence that in most any other country around the world would be considered a lavish lifestyle well above the poverty line.

Actually, the current mandated poverty line established by our government dictates that anyone at that current mark, although considered poverty stricken by US standards, lives better than 80% of the rest of the world’s population!  Now this is not to say that we do not have disadvantaged people who need help. I am merely arguing that when mainstream media focuses on the disparity gap between the rich and the poor, they are not talking about the man on skid row sleeping in a railway car or under a bridge, but rather a family of four that makes around $20,000.  While poor compared to Bill Gates, they have won the lottery in life when compared to 80% of the world’s population.

A socialist might argue that the rich are getting richer.  I’d argue that EVERYONE is getting richer and if the wealthy grow at a faster rate that is to everyone’s advantage! It is the wealthy who invest in new technology, start companies, open factories, create industry, and invest in housing and development. By doing so, they facilitate further economic growth, job creation, and more wealth that millions of Americans profit from.  This is capitalism.  Be wary of anyone who wants to level the playing field and make all outcomes equal.  They advocate taking away the opportunity to get ahead and the ability to create personal wealth.  That my friend is socialism and it has failed in Russia, Cuba, North Korea, and a host of other countries where there is a mass exodus as opposed to immigration.

President Ronald Reagan once used the analogy that the tide of economic prosperity from capitalism raises all the boats in the harbor.  Whether rich or poor, the rising tide of capitalism affects everyone the same.  Is there disparity in America?  Absolutely!  One of the principles on which our country was founded was so everyone would receive equal rights, NOT that we would all enjoy equal outcomes. Disparity and the ability to achieve disparity is a founding tenant of this great nation.  Long gone are the days of the aristocracy and landed gentry where wealth and privilege were bequeathed on a few. Those who lost out on the lottery of birth never had the ability to ascend the social ladder to achieve a different place in society.   

One only has to look at the wealth created by entrepreneurs and business people of our generation to see the greatness of this country.  Michael Dell, Bill Gates, Sergey Brin, Oprah Winfrey, Orrin Woodward, and Chris Brady are just a few noteworthy examples of entrepreneurs who through hard work and determination rose from the masses to achieve the lofty heights of success.  Once considered common Americans, they now sit at the pinnacle of their respective fields.  Is there disparity between us in terms of wealth?  Certainly! I take heart however that as an American I have equal rights and opportunities to allow me to achieve those heights if I work hard and strive to succeed.  Should I feel upset and incensed with their success and wealth?  Since I have common sense, I do not.  I realize that they through their business endeavors have helped raise the economic tide of Americans all across this nation.  The previously mentioned entrepreneurs have employed thousands and made life better for millions of Americans because of their hard work.  As I write this, I am using a Dell computer, MS Word from Bill Gates, and search links on Google made possible by Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and I currently lead an international company started by Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady!  By merit, they have achieved disparity with their former peers and in the process have made America and the world a better place.  This is all possible through capitalism. 

You do not see this type of economic achievement or development in Cuba, North Korea, or the former USSR.  How many people in those countries have donated millions like Bill Gates to combat AIDS or bring health care to Africa?  Ted Turner was a poor boy from the south that became wealthy enough to donate a billion dollars to the United Nations for humanitarian programs!  Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady have built medical clinics and education facilities in India.  How many stories like this can be told of business people who live in nations that practice socialism?  Capitalism is the engine of economic prosperity that makes things like this possible. 

One reason America is great is because under our economic system anyone regardless of race, creed, religion, or family background, has the same opportunity to achieve success.  As the CEO of the Team, I am most proud of our profit-sharing program with our business owners because it is based on this very principle.  The Team co-founders, Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady, are famous for saying, “As you perform, so shall you bonus!”  Everyone enters the Team with equal rights and equal opportunities and will be rewarded based on their individual performance. This is a founding tenet of this great nation and Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady made sure this was how this Team would operate. Everyone starts equal but has the ability to prosper based on their hard work and determination and thus obtain disparity based on their merit. 

Dinesh D'Souza really encapsulates this premise in his book, The Virtue of Prosperity, when he says, “The prime culprit in causing contemporary social inequality seems to be merit.  Today it is the differences in skills, effort, and earning capacity, and not arbitrary factors such as inheritance or favoritism, that appear to be responsible for producing large differences in earnings and wealth.  The guy who is worth little has probably produced little of value.  By the same token, the guy who’s earning twice as much as you is likely – perish the thought- twice as good as you are.”  America was founded on equal rights but never on equality of outcomes, thus arguing that there is disparity between the rich and the poor is pointless.  In a merit-based society, people will work hard to obtain disparity.  As Dinesh D’Souza states, “…government itself exists to guard citizen’s rights to accumulate unequal fortunes.”  James Madison in The Federalist Papers spoke quite clearly that the founding fathers viewed, “The first object of government is the protection of different and unequal faculties of acquiring property.”  People around the world come to America to have this opportunity.

A perfect example is of business man I know in California.  I had the good fortune to spend some time at his picturesque mansion in the hills above Los Angeles one memorable night in 2004, we sat on his veranda above the pool watching the city of LA bask in the glow of capitalism.  After an extravagant dinner with some friends, he recalled his personal story of fame and fortune.  He came to America as an immigrant from India and started working as a dish washer at a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant.  He and his wife saved enough to buy their first restaurant and over the years continued to expand making him one of the largest restaurant owners.  He has developed a net worth in the hundreds of millions of dollars and his fortune now spans multiple industries with investments around the globe.  Where else in the world could one have risen from a poor immigrant to one of the wealthiest men in the country?  This is only possible in American! This opportunity does not present itself in the caste system of India, the socialistic system of Cuba, or the former Soviet bloc countries. 

Disparity in America is not a problem, it is actually a benefit. Through the encouragement of people to go out and create disparity, men like Michael Dell, Orrin Woodward, and Chris Brady rise up and form companies and industries that employ thousands and aid in the continual rising tide of economic opportunity that all Americans benefit from!

Orrin Woodward On Capitalism: This is a Win/Win Game!

One of the many things I learned from Orrin Woodward in our lunch meetings is how my Masters Degree in Business was empty in terms of real political and economic discussion on the value and true importance of capitalism in our society and world as we know it.  When discussing with Orrin business principles and economic and political viewpoints, I have been thoroughly amazed at his depth of knowledge and experience and have quickly been able to fill the gaping holes of my so called “education.” 

My wife continues to prod me to write a book about my lunch meetings with Orrin and the topics of our discussion in the same manner as the critically acclaimed Tuesday’s With Morrie, openly sharing the dialog we have over a cup of hot coffee.  She too shares my admiration and respect for Orrin Woodward as a businessman and leader.  I feel like a young student again under the tutelage of a Dr. George Reisman or Ludwig von Mises, gleaning everything about business and capitalism that had been left out of my masters program.  Orrin Woodward’s pithy commentary always leaves me quietly pondering what was just said as he rapidly progresses from topic to topic with passion and vigor.

My educational background taught me that there is always a winner and loser in business and in life. In some circumstances I guess this is true and this win/lose conundrum is evident in many aspects of life, like the military for example.  As an officer sworn to defend the nation you are taught to win at all cost.  Orrin taught me that this attitude, although great on the battlefield in the defense of our country, can have disastrous consequences in the boardroom and in business.  This win/lose mentality, although practiced in some business circles by ill-informed individuals, does not reflect the reality of business and capitalism.  Pure capitalistic intent fosters economic growth, development, and prosperity ensuring a win/win for all those involved!

In my earlier writings I highlighted the abhorrent conduct of men like Dennis Kozlowski, the CEO of Tyco, Bernard Ebbers the CEO of WorldCom, and Jeffery Skilling the CEO of Enron who walked through the doorway of disgrace because of the lack of integrity and character in which they operated their companies.  To take this a step further, one can easily see they had the viewpoint that the world operated on a zero-sum game where some win and some lose.  By their dishonest deeds, they made sure they won as they robbed shareholders and the employees of their respective companies out of millions while they fleeced their pockets in the process.  Had they been men of character and integrity and operated with a win/win worldview one can only imagine how much different the outcome of their companies and the fortunes of millions of Americans could have been.

In Jim Collins best selling book Good to Great, one reads of the exact opposite in leadership as David Maxwell the CEO of Fannie Mae and Ken Iverson the CEO of Nucor Steel transform their companies because of their character and viewpoint in which they made their success a win/win both for the employees and shareholders.  The public is drawn to leaders like this.  The tumultuous times of the late nineties cast a dark shadow on the win/lose leadership style of many leaders who had been taught at the nations most critically acclaimed educational institutions.   Many of these leaders lacked morality and any real understanding of the true nature of capitalism.  Their education contained a critical void that would haunt a nation as the devaluation of the stock market plunged on the announcement of one scandal after the next.  Men like Orrin Woodward are needed now more than ever…shareholders demand it as their retirements are on the line!

The viewpoint of the true entrepreneur is that business and life is a win/win situation.  Over these many business lunches which soon proved to be more valuable than my expensive and vaulted business degree, I learned that Orrin Woodward was able to build and maintain a large international organization because of his business approach.  As a true capitalist and entrepreneur he holds the view that everyone can succeed and that all situations should be approached with the win/win mindset. 

As I read Forbes magazine yesterday I saw an article that articulated these exact thoughts and view points on this very subject.  Titled World's Worst Disease, Rich Karlgaard hits a home run with his insightful analysis that wealth and the prosperous economy do not operate on a zero-sum game and that having the correct information and mind set in business makes all the difference in achieving both. 

There will always be charlatans who in business or in education circles sell themselves on the treatise that winning at all cost is the only manner in which economic endeavors can be met and that the zero-sum game of life is a predetermined natural law.  They will be the harshest critics on both sides of the fence when discussing economics or politics. 

You will have those who think they can only profit if others lose and thus they will push for anything that adds value to their stock portfolios even if destruction of companies and lost jobs are left in the wake.  You will encounter the opposite as well as some spectators view the success of the economy with their eye bent in mistrust that success no matter how great or small must have been achieved by some dishonest deed or insider deal.  For how else could one have achieved success if someone else did not fail?  

A person of character and integrity, who is a true student of capitalism and understands that everyone can succeed, will look for the win/win situation in every business encounter they have.  Orrin Woodward and others have proven this is the best way to conduct business and the stock holders and American public are demanding it.  After all, history proves capitalism works best this way!