Keep Your Rolodex Well Tended

     I had the privilege of introducing Mr. Earl Leonard to my leadership class a few days ago. Upon receiving his biography, I knew that we were in for a special treat. Mr. Leonard is a UGA grad, has founded and held leadership positions in many organizations, and worked at Coca-Cola for 35 years, 16 of which he headed the Corporate Affairs Division. Not too shabby, huh? The coolest part of his bio was that he is the original benefactor for the leadership certificate program that I am a part of. He gave us do's and don'ts of life and leadership. I took a whole page of notes, but here are the most important things that I took away from his time with my class. I had to share, because the list below is full of great reminders and insights for life. Enjoy!

• God is in the details of all you do, so focus on the details first.
• Nothing is worth doing if it's not done with integrity.
• Never miss an opportunity to tell people how important they are.
• People will forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.
• Listen more. You can never learn is you're doing all the talking.
• Life is a one act play. There are no encores. 
• Never center your life around a job. Who will you be when that job is gone?
• Don't be a workaholic. Have fun in life.
• It's nice to be important, but it's far more important to be nice.
• Ask yourself, "Am I happy? Or am I just pretending like I am?"
• Make a list of the things you want to do in life and remember to actually do them.
• Ask yourself, "What is my responsibility to the less fortunate?"
• Remember that it's not what you take from life... It's what you give.
• Know a little about a lot of things (language, religion, etc.)
• Consciously create a different, special, and better persona. Be interesting! 
• Ingredients of success: ability, having people who want you to succeed, and luck.
• Your boss already knows your abilities/successes. It's the other people you should get to know.
• Add 2-3 contacts to your rolodex every day. Keep in touch and really care about every contact you've made. Send them cards, call them, etc. 
• Never underestimate someone.
• Dedication and determination are important to succeed, but you have to have some fun too.
• Things that should endure have a way of enduring.