text: HIGHLAND, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES, May 17, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Retired Brigadier General Tom Kolditz is redefining the role of leadership. With over 35 years in leadership roles on four continents, Tom Kolditz founded Saxon Castle to offer leadership education for corporations and individuals worldwide. Clients have included Ford, GE, Google, Mercedes Benz, Boeing, All State, Goldman Sachs, as well as thousands of exceptional individuals.
  According to Tom, identical leadership skills are required in both the military and in business. “People are people,” explains Tom. “Leadership is less about the qualities and characteristics of the person in charge and more about meeting the needs of the people being led. One of the terms I hear a lot is leadership style. When you think about a style, it means leaders behave in a consistent way across different circumstances. Anywhere else, you’d call that a failure to adapt. What matters is addressing what your people need. They don’t care about your having a style.
  “Sometimes they need a kind sympathetic leader who will listen and be generous. Other times, they need a boot in the ass. As a leader you have to be flexible and adaptable to the needs of your group. The only style to have is adaptation. This is important because if you cannot see the world through the eyes of the people you’re trying to lead, how can you possibly find the right words to motivate, inspire, empower them? You can’t.”
  That leaders see themselves through the eyes of their people is vital to success. “Sometimes this is called self-awareness, but it’s much more than that. One way to cultivate self-awareness is to go directly to the people and ask what they think. Ask what kinds of things, as a leader, you should continue and what you should stop. You’ll be surprised what people share—and sometimes, some will not feel safe answering truthfully, which is where a leadership coach comes in,” explains Tom, “Before I even meet a client, I ask similar questions to 10 to 20 of their stakeholders. I pull the answers together anonymously, find the major themes, and connect to the results of an emotional intelligence questionnaire given to my client.”
  Most coaches are either highly educated (professors, clinical psychologists) or highly experienced as leaders themselves (retired CEOs), or full-time coaches with exceptional training. Saxon Castle offers all three. “I have a Ph.D., have been the principal leader of many organizations, I’m a trained and certified coach, and am a retired flag officer. Having run over 15 organizations, I made every mistake in the book. Working with clients, a leadership problem seldom comes up that I hadn’t already personally experienced and solved.”
  Those 3 qualities are all good on their own, but when you combine them, the combined whole becomes far more effective than the individual qualities. “In statistics, this is called an interaction effect, which means the whole is greater than the sum of the individual effects. My coaching always uses a blend of all 3; I cannot pull them apart. That’s what makes my approach unique and, I believe, effective.”
  Tom’s 2007 release, In Extremis Leadership: Leading As If Your Life Depended On It, addresses another aspect of Tom’s expert knowledge—leadership in crisis and in dangerous circumstances. “When people feel that they are in danger, everything that we refer to as ‘management’ gets stripped away. Nobody cares; they will write any check to get out of the situation, will break rules and policies. In fear situations, it’s all pure leadership based on trust. Building trust is essential for good leadership.
  “I learned this lesson as a child in school. As a popular kid and accepting of differences, I was able to hang out with almost everyone, and I’d find myself talking to some kids with real problems. Instinctively, or perhaps because my aunt was a school psychologist, I understood that by asking the right questions, I could help them solve their problems. I had no idea what a coach was at the time, and thought I was just helping by understanding their issues are and how to face them.”
  Knowing how to face issues during crisis is an essential leadership skill. “The worst crisis I ever faced, I could do nothing to avoid,” shares Tom. “My oldest daughter was diagnosed with heart failure at 23. Although only 8 years later she received a heart transplant and she’s now living a great life with a wonderful family, the crisis put me on my knees. That’s how I learned the importance of asking for help. Trying to ride it out alone is a big mistake. That’s why I coach differently—most coaches solely on an agreed upon schedule. Well, the crisis never occurs during the session. In addition to planned sessions, I give my clients access to me 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. They can call whenever they need to talk. I can do this because I take small number of clients, who quite frankly, for the most part, are too busy to call excessively. I give myself to my clients, all my education, experience and training—when you work with me, you own all of that.”
  For a flat monthly fee based on income, Saxon Castle clients receive 2 scheduled sessions/month. “If a client would rather have 4 sessions, that’s fine, no extra charge. And if you are having a problem at three in the morning, no problem, call me. I work with clients worldwide, their time zone is my time zone.”
  Tom admits that his ideal clients are individuals, and his favorites are relatively young leaders with minimal experience, preferably running a company that’s success will help the world. As a teacher and professional competitive skeet shooter, he has seen how the best learners start knowing very little. “New leaders have few bad habits,” quipped Tom.
  “I find tremendous satisfaction influencing leaders to help them make the world a better place. I am a true believer in the time value of coaching. If I can help a young leader, she or he will be a better leader for the rest of their lives. It’s like the time/value of money. When you make an early investment, it grows. That’s what I’m doing, investing in young leaders who are doing something good.”
  Close Up Radio will feature General Kolditz in an interview with Jim Masters on Tuesday May 21st at 1pm EST and with Doug Llewelyn on Tuesday May 28th at 1pm EST
  Listen to the show on BlogTalkRadio
  If you have any questions for our guest, please call (347) 996-3389
  For more information about General Kolditz and Saxon Castle, please visit http://tomkolditz.com/
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  May 17, 2024, 13:00 GMT
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