He was six-foot-three, 225 pounds, and the starting quarterback on an 0-6 football team. There was just one problem: He couldn’t throw the football.
So when his coach, Dr. Grable, called Rich Steinmeier into his office and told him he was being benched, Rich was crushed.
At practice that day, he made sure everyone knew it. He sulked through drills and jogged his sprints at the back of the pack, determined to make a point.
But then something happened that changed his perspective forever.
“A tenth grader who rarely got the opportunity to play beat me in a sprint and ran off celebrating because he’d finally beaten me at something,” Rich shared with me on the Corporate Competitor Podcast. “It was that moment I learned that your effort doesn’t just impact you. It impacts everyone around you.”
It was a lesson in leadership Rich never forgot.
Today, Rich is CEO of LPL Financial, where he leads an organization supporting more than 32,000 financial advisors and approximately $2.6 trillion in brokerage and advisory assets.
And while the stakes have certainly changed since his high school football days, Rich still believes leadership is about the impact you have on the people around you.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
RESOURCES
As a Hall of Fame keynote speaker, longtime Associate Editor for Sports Illustrated, and 14-time New York Times Best-Selling author, Don Yaeger is one of America’s most provocative thought leaders. From walking into Afghanistan with the Mujahadeen to living with football legend Walter Payton, Don has spent three decades embedded with the world’s greatest "Greats." Now a sought-after executive coach and host of the Corporate Competitor Podcast, he translates the lessons of sports and business legends into actionable strategies for building a culture of greatness.
"Don is one of the best storytellers I’ve ever met. I’ve known him for a long time and every time we talk I walk away wiser and more inspired. He is the best in the business at teaching you a skill – storytelling – that will last you a lifetime.”
“The ability for athletes to get hired is carried on through you because you are putting out the message that lessons learned from sports are important in life. It is embedded in this podcast, what you’re doing is significant.”
We speak the same language. I am inspired by the stories you tell, the people you have met, and the things you’ve done. Those of us that are competitors like to follow others that have been down that journey, so it is always fun talking to you!”
“Many of the leaders I have worked with were excellent athletes, and I think there is a direct correlation. You’re one of the few people that really has pursued this study, Don. Keep up the great work. What you are doing really makes a difference.”
“Don, you have mastered the skill of interviewing and asking great questions. That is a great skill all leaders need in order to understand their team members’ thought processes.”
Sign up to receive Don Yaeger’s weekly leadership contributions, and be the first to listen to new Corporate Competitor Podcast episodes.