Meet Instigator David M. Dye

Each month in our newsletter, we feature an interview with one of our Instigators. Recently we featured an interview  with David M. Dye, who works with leaders, managers, and supervisors who want to get more done, build teams that care, and achieve results. He is a leadership speaker, consultant and coach as well as the the founder and President of Trailblaze, Inc. Connect with David via his Lead Change member profile, his website and blog, LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook.

What is your background in leadership?

My earliest leadership memory is being the oldest of six children. I was frequently given responsibility. One example I refer to in my presentations is that my father gave me instructions to get the house clean by the time he got home – so my “brilliant” solution was to lock my brothers and sisters in the basement until they got it clean.  That misadventure started me on a journey to understand influence and how people work together.

Since those early days I’ve had the privilege to serve in many different leadership roles from small team leader to executive leadership to elected city councilman. I’m passionate about helping others to lead effectively and have developed leadership curriculum for high school and college students, created leadership development programs for managers and supervisors, and have coached leaders in over 2000 sessions.

Now, as a speaker, consultant, and coach I work with leaders, managers, and supervisors who want to get more done, build teams that care, and meet their goals.

What do you do to engage in leadership?
This is an interesting question. The first thing I do is listen – both to myself, and to the people I’m working with. I listen to myself to identify that values and personal mission that are relevant to the situation. I listen to the team to discover their vision, values, and desires. That is the beginning engagement…to listen.

Do you have a book or person that particularly influenced you?
Wow – there are so many. I’ll list a few:

Books:
The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner
Crucial Conversations by Patterson et al
The World’s Most Powerful Leadership Principle by Hunter
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Lencioni
The Oz Principle by Connors et al
The Effective Executive by Drucker

That’s a short list – I’ve got a full list of book reviews on my website.

People:
Gary Pratt was my Scoutmaster when I was 11 and 12 years old. I learned many leadership fundamentals from him…particularly gratitude.

I’ve also worked with many leadership coaches and mentors over the years - too many to list.

What would you like to get out of your membership with the Lead Change Group?
I am a strong believer in Jim Rohn’s maxim that you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.

Lead Change Group provides a community committed to influence-based leadership grounded in character and focused on people. I learn from everyone in LCG, the quality of my thinking is improved, and it’s encouraging to work alongside people who are committed to a character-based leadership revolution.

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