https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QqhcslLAWs&t=6s
Summary
In this insightful conversation, Anthony Weido, a seasoned entrepreneur and turnaround CEO, shares his profound perspectives on leadership, business growth, and team management drawn from his extensive experience revitalizing major companies such as Ovation Brands. Starting from humble beginnings in a working-class entrepreneurial family, Anthony emphasizes the importance of foundational leadership principles, including integrity, hard work, and multitasking, which he learned early in life. He distinguishes leadership from management, highlighting the necessity of passion and commitment in inspiring teams rather than merely commanding them. Anthony reveals that true leadership blends both heart and mind, where emotional engagement must align with intellectual direction to foster genuine followership. He discusses the challenge of replicating leadership qualities and stresses self-management as the starting point of leading others. Mental discipline, he explains, is partly innate but can be refined through experience and mentorship. The conversation delves into the practical aspects of building successful teams, including the strategic acquisition of talent and the ongoing development of leaders within an organization. Anthony underscores the critical role of aligning individual goals with the enterprise’s mission, emphasizing that personal ambition must be subordinated to collective success. A significant portion of the dialogue addresses common pitfalls in leadership, such as self-importance and lack of courage, which can derail organizational missions. Anthony advocates for honest, direct feedback to keep teams aligned and the necessity of leaders maintaining courage to make tough decisions. He also highlights the importance of executive coaching, mentoring, and continuous development to prepare future leaders, characterizing leadership development as an earned privilege rather than an entitlement. Throughout the conversation, Anthony reflects on the parallels between parenting and leadership, noting that actions speak louder than words and that genuine care is fundamental to gaining trust and loyalty. His “12 Leadership Commandments” serve as guiding principles that integrate his life lessons and professional insights, ultimately aiming to cultivate passionate, disciplined, and mission-driven leaders who can navigate the complexities of modern business successfully
Highlights
- Anthony Weido transformed Ovation Brands from bankruptcy to growth with 18,000 employees.
- Leadership is about inspiring people to follow willingly, blending heart and mind.
- Multitasking and hard work, taught from childhood, are foundational leadership skills.
- Success requires putting the enterprise’s mission above personal ambitions.
- Mental discipline is partly innate but can be refined through experience and mentorship.
- Honest, direct feedback is essential to keep teams aligned and focused on the mission.
- Leadership development is earned through performance and continuous learning, not entitlement.
Key Insights
Leadership Roots in Early Life Shape Core Values: Anthony’s upbringing in a working-class entrepreneurial family ingrained in him essential values such as integrity, hard work, and multitasking. These early experiences shaped his leadership style, proving that foundational personal traits often outweigh formal education in business success. This insight underscores the importance of experiential learning over purely conceptual knowledge.
Distinction Between Management and Leadership: While business schools often focus on management skills, Anthony highlights a crucial gap—true leadership involves emotional engagement and inspiring voluntary commitment. He stresses that leadership cannot be taught solely through textbooks; it requires passion, authenticity, and the ability to motivate others through example rather than authority.
The Magical Blend of Head and Heart: Anthony’s leadership philosophy hinges on uniting intellectual clarity (head) with emotional commitment (heart). Leaders who demonstrate genuine care and passion create stronger followership than those who rely on logic alone. This dual engagement fosters trust and aligns teams behind shared goals more effectively.
Mental Discipline: Innate Trait and Skill to Develop: Anthony believes mental discipline—a leader’s ability to focus and execute—is partially a genetic trait but can be honed through deliberate practice and experience. This insight explains why some individuals naturally excel at leadership while others struggle, but also offers hope that leadership capacities can grow with the right environment and mentorship.
Talent Acquisition vs. Talent Development: When building teams from scratch, Anthony emphasizes the importance of recruiting the right talent aligned with the mission. However, he stresses that ongoing development, mentoring, and exposure to broader organizational roles are key to refining leadership capabilities and ensuring long-term success. This balanced approach optimizes both immediate performance and future leadership pipeline.
Putting the Enterprise’s Mission Above Self-Interest: A critical leadership commandment Anthony shares is the necessity of prioritizing the organization’s mission over personal ambitions. Leaders who fail to do this risk fragmenting their teams and undermining their collective goals. His approach advocates for selflessness and alignment as the glue that holds teams together and drives sustainable growth.
Courage and Honest Feedback as Leadership Pillars: Anthony identifies courage as a rare but vital leadership quality, especially in today’s environment where many leaders avoid difficult conversations. Providing honest, direct, and thoughtful feedback helps realign individuals who stray from the mission. This insight reveals that leadership is an ongoing process of course correction requiring bravery and clear communication.
Parallels Between Parenting and Leading: Anthony draws an analogy between raising children and leading teams, emphasizing that people follow what leaders do more than what they say. Authenticity and care build trust and loyalty, a reminder that leadership is relational and deeply human, not just transactional or strategic.
Leadership Development as an Earned Privilege: He advocates a meritocratic approach to leadership development where ongoing performance and personal behavior earn the right to grow and receive coaching. This counters entitlement culture and encourages a growth mindset, where leadership is a continual journey rather than a static position.
Mentorship as a Critical but Undervalued Tool: Anthony laments the decline of mentorship in modern business but underscores its power in accelerating growth and providing role models. Mentorship demands selflessness from leaders and creates a multiplier effect on leadership quality across the organization.
Balancing Passion with Rationality to Avoid Mission Distortion: Anthony warns that excessive emotional attachment to a mission can lead to ego-driven decisions that harm the enterprise. Leaders must balance heart-driven passion with rational assessment to maintain objective focus on what is truly best for the organization.
Work Ethic Over Intelligence: Anthony reiterates a timeless truth imparted by his father: outworking others often trumps outsmarting them. This ethic of relentless effort remains a cornerstone of his leadership and business philosophy, emphasizing discipline and persistence as keys to success.
Leadership as Service and Responsibility: Throughout the conversation, Anthony conveys that leadership is not about personal glory but about serving others and taking responsibility for their welfare. This mindset shift is crucial for creating healthy, mission-driven organizations where everyone thrives.
Conclusion
This conversation with Anthony Weido offers a rich, practical blueprint for leaders seeking to build resilient organizations, cultivate authentic followership, and navigate the complex realities of growing and sustaining successful businesses.
Contributor:
Nick Vaidya, MS, MBA, PhD (c)
Email:
nick@8020strategy.com
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/in/nickvaidya
YouTube:
youtube.com/channel/UC9OPMJeujF-ImmsFV1OfrHg
Nick Vaidya is a Wiley Best-Selling author and a regular columnist for Forbes India and The CEO Magazine. He has worn many hats — from University Faculty to CEO/CXO roles across startups, SMBs, and a unicorn — and has also led Strategy and Pricing teams for $8B product line at a Fortune 10 company. Today, Nick helps SME CEOs scale their businesses using his proprietary framework, which focuses on transforming the way meetings are conducted — driving cultural shifts and accelerating organizational growth.
