Brad Lomenick has been a friend for a few years. He is great at connecting people to action, and he is the guiding force behind the Catalyst movement! Brad released a new book that I am sure you heard about entitled: THE CATALYST LEADER. In his spare time from jet setting with tastemakers and producing live events, he sat down for a little interview on his book, creativity, and what is next for his life:
1. As the president of Catalyst, you have been instrumental in helping position people as thought leaders. You have been a somewhat behind the scenes supporter to some of the premier leaders in our culture. What made you decide to step out and write this book?
- I wrote this book primarily for 4 reasons. First, I have a passion for leaders, especially the next wave of leaders who are stepping into places of influence, those primarily in their20’s and 30’s. Second, while leading the largest leadership movement that gathers young career aged Christian leaders in America, I noticed that many of these young leaders desired to lead right now, but they didn’t know how to ultimately lead well. We have a generation of “called but not yet equipped leaders.” Leaders who are passionate about making a difference and having influence now. Called leaders who want to change the world, a generation ready to action, ready to influence and ready to lead, but not yet equipped for the task. They need the tools, the roadmap, the guide for leading well and getting that done. So many of my peers at 25, 30, 35, 40 years of age are flaming out and need a resource to help them finish well. Third, I noticed that the leaders who were leading well shared several common traits and characteristics. What I’m calling the eight essentials. The book lays out those 8 essentialcharacteristics for becoming a change maker, and ultimately a Catalyst Leader. Fourth, we’ve been handed the reins to lead. I just turned 40, and I believe it’s my generations turn and time to stand up, take the reins, and lead. We are now in the drivers seat, and it’s up to us. We need to step up, those of us in the “in between” of leadership generational transfer. I want to see leaders, my peers, finish well. And I have a responsibility to help the “called but not equipped” generation be well equipped. Too many leaders are crashing early and often right now. Just like me, tons of leaders in their 20’s and 30’s are facing great opportunities that they feel a deep calling and passion for, and willing to take on, but not altogether equipped to handle. These peers of mine need a roadmap, a guide, a handbook for leading well and tools for the journey forward.
- Our generation needs a roadmap for leading well. Some of my best friends currently sit atop great organizations but are failing to shepherd their teams and lead these entities well. I’ve begun to see a disappointing pattern among young leaders. They achieve liftoff with a rocket start but quickly fizzle out. With each instance of short lived success, I grow further convinced that we need to nurture leaders who will not just lead now, but also lead well. Ultimately, I’m writing a book that I wish would have been available to me 20 years ago when I was first starting my career and vocation life
2. What is the one thing that you feel like younger leaders need to know today that they seem to be missing?
- That overnight success and instant influence is not the reality, even though our culture tends to push us all in that direction because of the on demand culture we live in. We have to fight against this mentality and the idea that if it doesn’t happen for you within a couple of weeks, or a month, or even a year, that you should just give up and move on. We need to lean in to perseverance and a stick with it posture.
3. In turn, what is one thing that more seasoned leaders should be paying attention to today that they are not?
- Let young leaders on your team actually lead. Give them responsibility early and often. Not just making copies, but actually push them into roles that will challenge and stretch them, and have significance within the organization.
4. One of the chapters in your book is on authenticity. I am sure you have been around some of the most authentic leaders in the world and them some who are maybe a little less authentic. What are 2-3 sure signs that someone is an authentic leader?
- 1. It’s not about them- they reflect the attention in the room towards others.
- 2. They honor their team members.
- 3. They laugh at themselves and are very comfortable with others laughing at them.
- 4. They don’t take themselves too seriously.
5. It’s been said that a book is a mirror for its author and a good book is also a mirror for its readers. What is the most personal part of this book for you? Was there any section that was hard for you to write because you have wrestled with the content so much?
- The chapter on authenticity was tough for me to write because I tend to struggle with this essential. Mainly because I’m around some pretty amazing leaders and my tendency is to want to be like them instead of just being myself. I end up investing energy into creating a false version of myself with lots of bells and whistles, vs the real and true version of myself that is great but may not have the sizzle that I want. I have to realize that until I’m truly being me, I can’t truly lead others.
6. If someone was to only take one thing away from your book, what would you want that to be?
- We can all be change makers, a force for good that when put in play, it creates a spark, a change, and makes a difference, has an impact, but ultimately leaves no residue of itself. That is a change maker, and ultimately a Catalyst Leader.
- We all are responsible to lead well, and lead now. It’s our turn, and we can do this. We can make a difference, we can change the course of our organizations, we can be Catalysts for good in our world. I’m incredibly hopeful about this generation.
7. Shifting gears a little bit, how important is creativity to the Catalyst organization?
- It’s vital. It’s one of our distinctive and one of the things we take great pride in and put lots of energy into- creating a culture and DNA that is all about creativity. It’s something we are constantly working on.
8. I know it is a long process, but can you break down what the creative process for an event like catalyst might look like? (just a quick summary, don’t feel the need to be to in-depth) .
- Tough to break it down, but we create and consider and vet hundreds of ideas for every event- probably close to 500 ideas. Of those, we’ll end up doing due diligence on about 100 of those, and then maybe implement 20-30 that actually get used at an event or in the lead up to an event, maybe for a website or for promo materials. We have folks who serve on our creative team, most of which don’t work for us on a full time basis, and they constantly are thinking about new ideas or sending new concepts for consideration.
9. How do you personally refuel creatively?
- I look for inspiration everywhere. And I learn from everyone. Leaders who want to inspire a creative organization have to be willing to look outside their normal circle for inspiration and ideas. Every TV show I watch is a chance to spark a creative idea. Every road trip is a chance to see something new. Every visit to You Tube or vimeo or even to other organizations websites is a chance to find a new artist or musician or concept. Look everywhere constantly without bias.
- And the key on being refueled and constantly inspired is to make sure and write it down. When you see something, or run across something that fuels or refuels your creativity, write it down. Capture it. Take a picture of it. Put it on evernote. Whatever your system is- make sure you actually capture it somewhere.
- Also- I get refueled creatively by giving myself permission to dream and dream big. Many type A ambitious leaders are so focused on moving things towards the finish line that they have to intentionally create space to dream.
10. What is the biggest lesson you have learned about creativity and how did you learn it?
- Creativity takes work. Most of the time I find that the most creative ideas are created from layers and layers of ideas that have been built upon each other. The process many times is what sparks the most creative end result. So allow ideas to have a life and breathe a bit. Don’t just automatically say no.
- Many of our most creative ideas and concepts or programmatic moments at Catalyst were actually finalized at the last minute, when everyone was frustrated and it seemed like we weren’t making progress.
- Many creative teams and leaders I know give up too quickly on an idea because they feel like being stuck is a sign of a lack of creativity. But I think points of being stuck are actually mile markers towards greatness.
- Another big lesson- Creative sessions and meetings should always have a “yes, and” rule of engagement, and never a “no, but”. Leave out anyone who can’t live by this rule. If someone is immediately thinking about “how much will this cost?” or “there’s no way we could ever pull that off” then ask them to leave the meeting and never return again…!
Bonus: I hear there are rumors of a “Catalyst Leader” rap album with you as the premier artist. Can you confirm?
- I can neither confirm nor deny these reports…. But I will say this- the powers that be in the music industry are mixing up something pretty amazing that involves a former rapper only known as “Crème L.” That’s all I say….
Get more info about the book HERE.
So so SO GOOD!!!
Thanks for the interview-