Have you ever met
someone who connects with people in a way that seems natural and without
effort? When you find someone who
listens to (the physical act of absorbing sounds) and hears (paying attention
to what is being said or left unsaid) those around them with greater clarity
than others, are you inspired to make a personal connection? David Telford is one of these people. He is the kind of guy that endeavors to understand
people and makes a lasting impression with every interaction.
When discussing
what it means to succeed, David draws on both definitions of the word; turn out
well or have a favorable result, and come next after or follow after
another. To David, succeeding isn’t the
completion of a journey but rather the achievement of a progression of goals,
each serving as a mile marker along the way.
As these goals are reached, the path is laid for others to follow. “Success is never an individual pursuit.”
In a recent, real
life example, David shares about preparing for a 28.3-mile hike to raise money
for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He jokes
that his goal was originally to just survive.
He started with small hikes and progressed further with time. He set goals to hike 5, 7, 12, and then 21
miles as part of his training. Three
weeks before the date of the Make-a-Wish hike (28.3 miles in one day), he was on
a 21-mile training hike when around mile-17, he hyper-extended his knee and had
to stop. He was determined to proceed
with the Make-a-Wish hike and committed do what he could, although completing
all 28.3 miles was unlikely. He even
made a deal with his wife, if they both finished the hike, they would get
Make-a-Wish tattoos to celebrate. When
the day of the hike arrived, he could still feel the pain in his knee. At mile-17 the pain in his knee was
compounded by growing heat exhaustion.
At mile-21, he knew his struggle to continue was actually holding his
wife back from completing the hike. So,
David stopped his own hike and encouraged his wife to finish (which she
did).
One of the
biggest lessons David draws from this event was, a leader needs to understand
when their direct leadership is not needed anymore, and the person they have
been guiding is ready to go on without them.
A leader often has to lead from behind, driving others to find their own
path, and provide encouragement and support to empower them to succeed. David states it is important for managers who
are leaders, to remember they work on behalf of their subordinates. That is how a leader’s success is
measured. Are those who you are
responsible for successful? Are you
clearing obstacles to enable their success?
Are you giving them a means to thrive and step up as leaders
themselves?
David cites Jim
Anderson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-anderson-a32859/), who was David’s manager at JD Edwards,
as an example of such a leader. David
recognizes he, himself, is often unmanageable, by which he means if you try to
manage him, he will often rebel, but if you provide leadership and support, he
will find ways to succeed. He credits
Jim Anderson with both empowering him in that capacity, as well as teaching him
the benefits of this approach. With Jim
as a role model, David eventually found himself in the Critical Account
organization at Oracle where he worked with customers throughout the world to address
challenges with their JD Edwards implementations. This is where those listening and hearing
skills became his greatest asset.
David says the
best tool available in a consultant’s toolbox is the ability to listen and hear
what is being said. The physical act of
absorbing sounds is not enough, a consultant needs hear with empathy to
understand the pain, and uncover things which may be left unsaid. “You guys have to fix this problem now!”
might be what is said, but “Or else I will lose my job!” is implied even if not
spoken. David learned this early in his
career, which had a significant impact on his ability to handle critical
accounts for JD Edwards. Through
experiencing different cultures and situations, he found a primal desire in all
people is to be heard. He said, “During my time with Critical Accounts, I found
9 times out of 10, the problem with a project was communication. Everyone was speaking, some people were
listening, but nobody was hearing. Day 1
of any escalation was always an opportunity for everyone on the team to say
what they had to say, point fingers where they wanted to point, and deflect
blame. Day 2 was about moving forward.”
Critical Accounts
is where David met the second person he credits as having a significant role in
his leadership approach; Carlos Barradas. David shares it was Carlos who helped
him understand, in troubleshooting, the focus needs to be on solutions not blame. As David traveled around the world helping to
diffuse critical situations, he realized finding a workable solution to fixing
problems was far more important than finding the best solution. He says, “There might 50 solutions to a
problem, and they will all work, but there might be 2 that get the job done now,
even if they are not the most elegant way to do it.” During times of difficulty the important
focus is to get past the thing holding back progress. There will be time to reflect on root cause
and lessons learned after the critical issue is resolved. You have to keep things in perspective.
Keeping
perspective is where David shares he has learned some valuable lessons in
leadership. Remember, the hike? After quitting at mile-21, David felt like he
had failed. Amy Brindley (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-matlock-brindley-7b7b2953/) the President and CEO of Make-A-Wish
Central and West North Carolina reminded him hiking 21 miles in one day is a
big deal even if you have two good knees. He had walked farther than he
believed he could before he started training. He had exceeded his own expectations.
Amy has become
not just a friend to David but also a source of inspiration and a continual
reminder to keep perspective. “She has an
incredible passion for these kids in medical jeopardy, as well as their
families,” he says. “It is hard to
imagine how someone can sort through and connect with all these emotions
experienced by these hundreds of families and continue to wake-up each day and
do it all again – with a huge, infectious smile on her face.”
When discussing
his ability to work diverse groups of people, David points to two books which
have influenced his method for understanding; The Tao of Pooh, and The
Te of Piglet, both written by Benjamin Hoff. He shared, these books helped him frame an
understanding of how people behave by understanding how they emulate different
characteristics of those lovable characters from Christopher Robbin’s
neighborhood. David also took some
college classes on Zen and regularly meditates.
He is a lover of languages (human and computer) and endeavors to learn
something new each week. These traits
form the foundation of David’s ability to understand problems from the perspective
of those facing issues.
In business, as
many professionals progress, there comes a time when an “Exit Plan” begins to
form. Often, this “Exit Plan” includes
planning when and how one will retire to enjoy the fruits of their years of
labor. David’s view on this is
different. He believes we should all be
enjoying the benefits from our hard work as we live our lives, and the “Exit
Plan” should be about training and mentoring others to fill the role he will eventually
leave. “That’s when the real work, and
the real living begin.” A true leader ensures a successful organization will
continue to thrive well beyond the leader’s tenure.
David’s
leadership style, and success in the workplace is built upon learning from the
experiences of many great leaders in his life.
David is also a foundation for numerous other leaders who have worked
and are working with him. He serves as
an inspiration and motivator to those with whom he has come in contact. Thank you David for taking time with me to
give me insight into your life.
Footnote:
