Hi There!
My name is Ben Steinberg. I am currently an intern at WatchMojo working and writing on the Context Is King Website. I will be publishing articles daily and looking forward to sharing my insights with you!
Welcome to a brand new segment on the Context is King website where I ask WatchMojo CEO and founder Ashkan Karbasfrooshan questions daily on Career Advice and what is happening in the news. Hope you enjoy hearing Ash’s insights first hand!
Today, I asked Ash about leaders and what makes them successful in today’s fast-paced world. Here are the questions asked, and his responses.
- What are some of the most important attributes of leaders today?
There are several good qualities that differentiate good leaders from bad leaders. However, Ash said that some of the biggest themes of success focus on Psychology, such as Balance, Gestalt Psychology, identifying comparative advantage, and balancing ego with essence. Furthermore, he stated that some of Context’s most important tenets are trustworthiness, teamwork, truthfulness, and transparency. He referenced these themes to the Course to Success book he wrote back in 2002.
You can read more from the article here: https://contextisking.com/2021/01/24/a-call-for-conscious-capitalism-holding-people-in-platforms-of-power-accountable/
- How do you keep your team motivated despite obstacles and conflicts?
Ash referred to Alexander the Great by using Force and Finesse to help deal with internal conflict. He referenced 4 key points from his article: Finesse meets Force: The legend of the Gordian Knot on what he told his employees on dealing with conflict:
You don’t have to “stay in your lane,” if you see a problem or have a suggestion, it’s not only OK to speak up, it’s encouraged… but:
2. If you’re gonna chime in, respect the chain of command (i.e. speak to a fellow VP than confusing their reports)
3. If and when you will give feedback, be direct but remain diplomatic…
4. But if someone isn’t diplomatic, you can politely ask people to speak respectfully, but if not… have a thick skin. To succeed means overcoming criticism, ridicule, second guessing and so on.
To summarize, it is always important to be polite with employees and it is always encouraged to speak up. However, if someone is not treating you respectfully, then you must show a thick skin.
More on that article here: https://contextisking.com/2021/05/23/finesse-meets-force-the-legend-of-the-gordian-knot/
- What is the most important risk that you took and why?
Bet on yourself. As simple as that sounds, lots of people are afraid to take the risk. Ash referenced Plato’s Principle of Specialization which focuses on comparative advantage. He also referenced WatchMojo’s beginning days, where he talks about WatchMojo’s experiments in the early stages of the brand, to as recently as COVID. He also mentioned that what he has learned since founding WatchMojo is “Focus is a tricky concept for entrepreneurs, who need Vision, Ambition, Execution, Persistence, Resiliency, Luck, Timing, and Focus to win (expanded from the original 6 ingredients). But focusing on something only makes sense once you find your product/market fit.”
More on that article here: https://contextisking.com/2020/10/31/comparative-advantage-positive-outcomes/
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