80: Julie Adam: How to Be Imperfectly Kind

Julie Adam didn't set out to be a high-ranking media executive. In fact, her early experience with leaders turned her off to the idea of being a boss. But she eventually learned that becoming a leader didn't mean she had to abandon her goal of being a good person. Now, with thousands of people in her organization, she tries to make every decision with kindness at the front of her mind. And she's written a book about how to do just that. Julie talks about how kindness touches every aspect of leadership – including both hiring and letting someone go – and how, even if you have the best players on your team, you won’t retain them if kindness isn't part of your management style. Julie talks candidly about one of the biggest mistakes she ever made, the lessons she learned from that, and how she ultimately reversed it. We talk about the importance of knowing when to move fast and when to slow down, getting rid of rules that exist for no reason, and why we should be nice to people even when they don’t have anything we want. And more than anything, Julie makes you ask yourself: why wouldn’t I be kind? Why does anybody need to be anything but kind?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.