Team Orrin Woodward

Orrin Woodward Information

At many of the meetings and public events that are apart of my daily schedule I am routinely asked where one can gain further information on Orrin Woodward. Great interest recently has been expressed to know more about his best selling book Launching A Leadership Revolution. Given this intrest I would like to include a number of sites that I think will be of great intrest to the public and those wishing to gain more insight on Orrin Woodward.

Orrin Woodward. Co-Founder of the Team

Orrin Woodward: Team

Orrin Woodward: Perspective

Orrin Woodward: Insight

Orrin Woodward: Personal Articles

Orrin Woodward: Leadership

Orrin Woodward: Leadership and Business Review

Orrin Woodward: The Value of Picasso

I was reminded the other day about a story I read regarding the world renowned Picasso. Apparently, Picasso was in a restaurant when a woman approached him with a napkin and asked him to scribble something on it for her. She added that she would be willing to pay whatever he deemed appropriate for this. Upon completion of this impromptu sketch, he gave it to the lady and said that it would be $10,000. The lady was aghast retorting that this artwork took under a minute to produce. Picasso stoically replied that it took him over 40 years to produce.

This story holds true in so many aspects of life. Picasso knew the value of the many years of hard work, practice, and study to hone his craft to the point that allowed him to create great works of art on napkins within minutes. To the eye of the beholder it may seem ridiculous asking $10,000 for artwork produced on a napkin by Picasso. However, we know today that napkin would garner far more at a Christie’s auction in New York. Also, the fact that a lady would seek out this artist in a busy restaurant and ask for a sample of his work seems to prove that he was more than some “starving artist” and thus his renderings should hold much greater value.

Experts in any career field are valued for their knowledge because they have honed their craft to an art form. Not only are they able to produce value greater than their counterparts, but their advice is priceless for those who wish to know what it takes to achieve success in that arena.

I love this story because I have been able to see a modern day rendition of this as business leaders, politicians, and civic leaders have flocked to mid Michigan to discuss a wide range of topics with Orrin Woodward, Chairman of the Board for our company. His business savvy and engineering expertise have been noted in best selling books around the country and his exploits include numerous registered US patents currently in production in the auto industry. As a high paid public speaker and former consultant to Fortune 500 companies, his market value is worth its weight in gold. Just like Picasso, he too has used a lifetime of education, practice, and real world experience to hone his skills which allow him to bring value to the market place. However, the true test in a free market is how the market responds. Businessmen, politicians, and civic and corporate leaders travel from all over North America to meet with Orrin Woodward because they value his knowledge and expertise. They are simply seeking answers and insight that can only be gained by someone who has perfected their trade to an art form over a lifetime.

Orrin Woodward's prediction supported by US census data!

Orrin Woodward has openly discussed for years the changes on the horizon in America today, explaining the metamorphosis from an industrial age to an information age based economy and the effects this has on all American workers.  Through his extensive research and analysis, he challenged the logic of the industrial age mantra which seemed to be, “go to college, get good grades, and get a good job.”  Orrin said that the new economy developing across the nation would contest this notion and a paradigm shift was underway.  A recent article in Fortune Magazine now supports this very claim.

Geoffrey Colvin, in the March 20th issue of Fortune Magazine, explains in his article titled The Poor Get Richer that blue collar workers are making some gains in earnings and that the gap between the rich and poor is actually closing.  This data was extracted from the 2000 to 2004 census report, which showed that blue collar workers incomes gained 1.6% while their white collar counter part’s salaries actually fell by 5.2%.  Essentially, incomes of the poorest 20% in our country increased while the incomes of the richest 20% declined. 

This data supports my earlier post in which I opined that capitalism in America has steadily increased the standard of living for everyone but most importantly the poorest in the country.  The report also supports Orrin Woodward's long held belief that the standard method of achieving success in America during the Industrial age might not hold true in the new economy.  He spoke openly of these economic changes starting back in 2001 when he stated that to be successful in the new economy you need to have the right information at the right time and the conviction to go against the grain. Proper education is important but more imperative is having the courage to follow your dream instead of conventional wisdom.  This is the hallmark of innovators and entrepreneurs.

Past conventional wisdom said a college degree insured success.  Geoffrey Colvin states, “Higher education still confers an enormous economic advantage.  Just not as enormous as it used to be.”  Today many more variables have entered that equation.  Having the proper information and education is important. However, to have a tested and proven system that is attached to industry on the transformational edge of the economy is more likely to produce success.  Preliminary data from the US census support Orrin Woodward's predictions.

Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady's best selling book, Leading a Consumer Rebellion, highlights many of these trends in our changing global economy and the opportunity that e-commerce provides to change many of the rules of the industrial age.

Orrin Woodward Favorite Quotes

“The best vision is insight”

Malcolm S. Forbes

“The creation of thousand forests is in one acorn.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Try not to become a man of success.  Rather become a man of value.”

Albert Einstein

Orrin Woodward Favorite Quotes

“The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

“There are risks and costs to a program of action.  But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction.”

President John F. Kennedy

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

Martin Luther King Jr.

Orrin Woodward's Favorite Quotes

"Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy."

General Norman Schwarzkopf

"It is only as we develop others that we permanently succeed."

Harvey S. Firestone

Founder, Firestone Tire and Rubber Company

Orrin Woodward's Favorite Quotes

"Credentials are not the same as accomplishments."

Robert Half

President, Robert Half International

"Perceptions may count in the short term, but substance always prevails."

Barbara Capsalis

Senior Vice President, Chemical Bank of New York