What do I mean when I say be an Undeniable Leader? Not too many months ago I was catching up on some of the Joe Rogan podcasts and I watched Joe discuss the idea of being undeniable with comedian Bert Kreischer. They talked about how success is not determined by external validation, but rather by how you feel about yourself and how you approach life. They discuss the importance of having a positive outlook, taking risks and just putting the work in to become undeniable. Apparently this conversation stemmed from a previous conversation where Joe told Bert that he needed a Netflix special. Bert didn’t know where to start with that so Joe told him to just start putting in the work so he would be undeniable and they would have to give him a Netflix special, which they did. They also discuss the importance of embracing failure and never being afraid to fail. Finally, they discuss the importance of being authentic, staying true to yourself, and being relentless in the pursuit of your goals.
This sparked something in me as I have given similar advice for the last 20 years. In my role as a Human Resource Executive and an Executive Coach, I get asked often “How do I become a leader, executive or CEO? My answer has always been the same. You have to make it an undeniable decision for the company. You must put yourself in a position of knowledge, competencies, behaviors, skills and desire for which they will have no choice but to put you in the leadership position you are looking for. Simply put, you need to be willing to do what most leaders or aspiring leaders are not willing to do to succeed. It is really that simple. The process of doing it is really freaking hard but the plan is simple.
It has been clear to me for years that a very high percentage of people are not willing to put in an extraordinary amount of time or effort to elevate themselves to an elite status in anything. This goes for leadership, engineering, athletics, academics, music, or any other field you can think of. There are many reasons for that but one of the top reasons is that this approach is unbelievably hard. Most people hate things that are unbelievably hard. It is easier to complain about how unfair things are or blame the company or the boss for not promoting you than it is to do all the work to where they would love to put you in that role. The fact that most people don’t want to put the work in is good news for you. This means that you can be a success in leadership or anything else your heart desires if you just commit to putting in the hard work.
One of the people that reference a lot in my coaching practice is David Goggins. David is a former Navy SEAL, ultra-endurance athlete, and best-selling author who has become a major inspiration for people looking to push their limits and achieve things they thought to be impossible. His feats of strength and endurance have earned him the nickname “The World’s Toughest Athlete”. He is well known for his concept of "Being Uncommon amongst Uncommon People", which is a way of approaching life that emphasizes next level discipline, hard work, dedication, and an unwavering commitment to personal growth. The concept of “Being Uncommon amongst Uncommon People" plays right into the idea of making yourself an Undeniable Leader. Make yourself stand out in a room full of other good or great leaders.
If you make the decision to do the work, you will win. You will be successful. The level of success is up to you but you will be undeniably successful. This means that you will need to work harder, learn more, be better prepared, hang around the right people, do things that you don’t want to do, make hard choices, change bad habits, and build your level of resiliency. If you are willing to do that, you will be an undeniable leader.
If you are interested in Executive Coaching, please reach out to see how I can help with your transformation.