How Leaders Lead
Three Crucial Aspects of Leading in Change
Tom Weeks lost a business. Not because the 2008 financial crisis hit—lots of businesses survived that. He lost it because he wallowed. For about a year, he stayed head-down, working massive hours on things that turned out to be counterproductive, refusing to ask for help because he needed to be seen as smart and capable, making decisions as a "kind boss" that ultimately hurt everyone—employees, company, family.
Ten years later, he found himself at Arbinger. And when COVID hit, he watched leadership respond to an existential threat in a completely different way. If they gave themselves more than half a day to wallow, he'd be surprised. "Seemingly the very next day, they had a plan and were executing on the plan." Eight weeks later, Arbinger was "in a very real sense, a different company."
The difference wasn't circumstances. It was mindset.
This webinar frames twenty years of career lessons around three crisis-tested principles: Get Clarity (build a map of understanding through the people in your orbit, not just news sources), Stay Honest (recognize when your "need to be seen as" boxes are driving counterproductive behaviors), and Be Bold (radically reshape what you do to deliver more helpfully). Tom introduces the Biggest Headache tool—a five-minute team exercise that surfaces real challenges and generates offers of help—and walks through the four inward mindset styles that pull leaders into unproductive places during crisis.
The closing request isn't a suggestion: Don't wallow. "The one thing that will be lost is the time spent wallowing. So don't do it."
Learning Objectives
- Get Clarity – Build a map of understanding through the people in your orbit (colleagues, reports, managers, clients) rather than relying solely on external news sources
- Stay Honest – Recognize when inward mindset styles (Better Than, I Deserve, Worse Than, Need to Be Seen As) are driving counterproductive behaviors
- Be Bold – Ask "How can I radically reshape what I do to deliver in a more helpful way to those I serve?"