Leading Matters #44 Brock Weatherup

Episode 44 of Leading Matters features CEO, entrepreneur, and angel investor Brock Weatherup. He is managing partner of Atai Ventures, the co-Founder of ICONYC, an NYC-based early stage Israeli accelerator, and currently heads the Philadelphia located startup PetCoach, which connects pet owners with the veterinarians.

In this wide-ranging chat with Brock Weatherup, we cover everything from the importance of the words that make up our mission statements to the importance of understanding that the technology we choose is only as good as our willingness to work towards the eventual solution. You are going to pick up some great motivation and ideas from Brock’s insight. Some of the value that you are sure to pick up will be ideas for improving your level of employee engagement, how to better manage the younger demographic of your workforce, and what techniques will best serve to help you develop the talent of your team

What We Can Learn From the Startup World
Self-awareness is the common denominator of successful leaders and helps one to focus their passion towards the purpose of your professional efforts.

Can We Have an Entrepreneurial Spirit Even if We Are Not Entrepreneurs?
The idea of ‘being the CEO of our own functional area of the business’ can work, but frequency does not because leadership rarely wants to embrace the value of failure. Avoiding failure limits the growth opportunity that can only be gained when we are not able to achieve goals with our current experience and skill set.

The Company You Keep Has Much Impact
From how you interact with your family to whether or not your professional network includes people that can teach you a thing or two, the people close to you have a significant impact on your personal and professional growth. This is a constant necessity of great leadership; carefully consider your crowd and the influence it has on you and your efforts.

The Way We Treat People Determines Our Ability to Lead and Serve
Finding our passion beyond just money or power is important. We can uncover the purpose of our passion by placing a high priority on service.

Know When To Be Angry And When To Listen
Emotional intelligence and empathy go a long way to helping us exercise our strengths. There are times when we need to show a little anger, but there are also times when we need to shut up and listen to those that have entirely different perspectives and skills than us.

The Words of Our Mission Matter but They are not Written in Stone
Brock believes that mission statements are important, very important. The words that make up our mission have to mean something, and they have to communicate the emotional reality of what the mission states we are trying to achieve. One pitfall, however, of the mission statement is that we are sometimes duped into thinking that the mission can never change. The mission must evolve with the evolution of the entire organization.

We Help Employees Adopt Values By Living Them
Our values cannot just be smart words on the wall of our office. They have to represent the way we behave and lead.

Show Notes
PetCoach
ICONYC Labs
Very Apts
United By Blue
Podcasts I mention in the intro: Unthinkable and Podcast Answer man by Cliff Ravenscraft