Reading over the transcript from my Business of Strength Podcast, the answer below jumped out at me. I was asked if I could do anything differently, what would I do. I usually sidestep this question, but didn't this time.
I have regrets. There's no doubt about that. I hate people that say "no regrets," because they're fucking liars.
I would have treated my wife better when I was competing. I wouldn't have been as big of a selfish asshole as I was. I almost lost everything because of that. That's the biggest one.
I would have learned to listen to my employees sooner and be able to differentiate between what is a legitimate problem, and what is an ego-based selfish problem. Not every complaint has to be dealt with. Not every complaint is in line with the vision of the company. There are complaints and people that need to be treated differently. They're motivated differently. Some people are motivated by feeling significant. Others by feeling secure in their position. Other people are motivated by big tasks and challenges, uncertainty. Some are driven by growth. They want to see the company, or they want to look at their position grow. The point is people are motivated by different things and it took me to long to figure this out; I burnt bridges, ruined relationships, kept some people in my life too long and others not long enough.
I understand that leadership is not a popularity contest but its also not about poor communication and shitting on those who have always been there.
My ego was too big. I thought it was all about me, and it's not. It's the people who represent the brand that matter the most. I'm just the dude that happened to put a couple of the pieces of the puzzle together. They're the ones that built it and created the story. They deserve all the credit, not me. Anything that goes wrong, that's on me. When you go into business, you own no credit, but you own all responsibility.
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