I met Cam on my first consulting project. The project was a massive post merger integration in the Middle East and Cam was leading the program. I knew I’d learn lots from Cam the moment I met with him. While we only managed to make time for 2 meals (i.e. 2 one-on-one conversations!), we went on to stay in close touch. I owe Cam a big thank you for many learnings over the years – the biggest of which was undertaking a journey to understand myself better and be comfortable with myself.
Cam has influenced many a point of view over these years and I’ve learnt a lot from his questions. (He’s also been the “wiser friend” on more blog posts than I can count!) I enjoyed this interview as it gave me an opportunity to ask him questions!
Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Full transcript as usual on Realleaders.tv.
My favorite parts –
“The one that I run into and have to remind myself of most often is to not assume. Don’t jump to conclusions; don’t be too quick to judge. Just pause. Always give the other person the benefit of the doubt. It’s about human interaction. There’s no need to usually rush as much as most of us do. That one I run into every day and have to remind myself of a hundred times a day.”
“I also believe that no matter how many times I’ve been told in my life that we’re all different, and we need to respect our differences, that we are more similar than we sometimes are willing to accept. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t respect the differences, but sometimes we get obsessed with them. Eighty percent of us are essentially the same. We’re the same people with the same motives, the same drives, and the same needs regardless of our religion, our ethnicity, or our profession. That’s been a good guide for me as I’ve ventured into many different types of organizations to see if I can help.”
“It’s often not about overcoming weaknesses. We spend so much time, especially in western culture, trying to fix what’s broken with us. I think we have to manage those things. We have to make sure we’re mitigating risks or severe damage but more and more know who we really are and what our strengths are and let those flourish. “
Enjoy!
A Learning a Day 