Paul McCartney and John Lennon
On July 6, 1957, a 15-year-old Paul McCartney attended a garden party at St. Peter’s, Woolton’s Parish Church in Liverpool. While there he had a chance-encounter with a 16-year-old lad named John Lennon. They formed a friendship and even more historic, a rock band known as The Beatles. This groundbreaking group would go on to sell more than 600 million albums and literally change the world.
Harrison Ford
Per Box Office Mojo, the new Harrison Ford film Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny has made $169,119,059 domestically as of this writing. Furthermore, it has made over $358 million globally. A simple Google search reveals Ford’s films have made an astonishing $9.3 billion. But success did not come quickly or easily for Ford.
In 1964, Ford was just like many people moving to Hollywood. He had dreams of becoming a major movie star. But during the interim, Ford needed something stable to provide for his growing family. So he became a carpenter. Ford said in this article, “Through carpentry, I fed my family and began to pick and choose from among the roles offered. I could afford to hold out until something better came along. But I never gave up my ambition to be an actor. I was frustrated but never felt defeated by my frustration.”
By working as a carpenter for many celebrities in town he stayed connected to the right people. Meanwhile, he also landed several small acting roles to work on his true passion. Ford eventually landed a carpentry job for a production company named American Zoetrope. Little did he know how much his life was about to change. American Zoetrope was owned by producers and directors George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola.
Ford caught Coppola’s attention and casted him in small roles in his films The Conversation and Apocalypse Now. Afterwards, he landed the role of a character named Hans Solo in the Lucas film Star Wars and the rest is history.
The Lesson
So what can leaders learn from Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and Harrison Ford?
Leaders cannot be successful unless the put themselves in positions to be around other growing, successful leaders.
Birds of a feather flock together. Like attracts like. Leadership is the people business.
Great leaders are never fully-formed in isolation. They develop skills and habits in isolation but never achieve their full potential without being around other leaders.
Iron sharpens iron. Other leaders challenge you, stretch you, make you think new thoughts, and improve you. They will also laugh, cry, and celebrate with you.
Let me address something you may be thinking right now. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “A man cannot help another without also helping himself.” You should never hang around other leaders for the purpose of getting something from them. That will be a by-product but should not be your intention.
Leadership is always about serving others. This is the difference between prospecting and networking. Prospecting is about getting something from others. Networking is about serving others. There is no sustainable model of leadership other than servant leadership.
Conclusion
Emerson, McCartney, Lennon, and Ford would advise you to find some ways to hang out with more leaders. You can’t be as successful as possible without doing so.
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