Monte Wood

In my very early days, probably at the age of 16, I had a young mentor. And that mentor actually gave me a formula. about being successful. And part of it was just believing that I could be successful. And then part of it was living a good life, being a generous person. And I believed him. So at a very early age, I had very high aspirations.

In my very early days, probably at the age of 16, I had a young mentor. And that mentor actually gave me a formula. about being successful. And part of it was just believing that I could be successful. And then part of it was living a good life, being a generous person. And I believed him. So at a very early age, I had very high aspirations.

I grew up in a small town called Milton-Freewater in Oregon. Only about 3,500 people in the town. And yet I believed at that point I would someday run a company that was over $100 million in revenue with hundreds of employees. And I believed it right from the very beginning. To augment that, interestingly enough, my mom... is one of the most generous people that you will ever meet.

I grew up in a small town called Milton-Freewater in Oregon. Only about 3,500 people in the town. And yet I believed at that point I would someday run a company that was over $100 million in revenue with hundreds of employees. And I believed it right from the very beginning. To augment that, interestingly enough, my mom... is one of the most generous people that you will ever meet.

The combination of my kinkle, my mentor, and my mom as my mentor in generosity led me to this simple formula that I would become successful by making other people successful. It's pretty simple, but I will tell you is magic and it worked. I had tremendous success and my goal is really to pass it on and help others do the same because not only was it very good formula, it was a lot of fun.

The combination of my kinkle, my mentor, and my mom as my mentor in generosity led me to this simple formula that I would become successful by making other people successful. It's pretty simple, but I will tell you is magic and it worked. I had tremendous success and my goal is really to pass it on and help others do the same because not only was it very good formula, it was a lot of fun.

It's a great question because there is a lot of exchange, as Adam Grant talks about in leadership, where I do something for you and I expect you to do something for me. But great leaders, great servant leaders, care about the person, not just the work being done. They care about the person's family. They care about the person's life. They help them grow, in many cases, themselves.

It's a great question because there is a lot of exchange, as Adam Grant talks about in leadership, where I do something for you and I expect you to do something for me. But great leaders, great servant leaders, care about the person, not just the work being done. They care about the person's family. They care about the person's life. They help them grow, in many cases, themselves.

I helped employees grow out of our company because the best path for them was to go do something else. They outgrew the jobs they were in and the potential they had within the company. And I took great pride when they left and did something else. I'll give you a simple example. I have a very good friend who owns many franchise stores, Taco Bell franchise stores. He cares about his employees.

I helped employees grow out of our company because the best path for them was to go do something else. They outgrew the jobs they were in and the potential they had within the company. And I took great pride when they left and did something else. I'll give you a simple example. I have a very good friend who owns many franchise stores, Taco Bell franchise stores. He cares about his employees.

He actually hired somebody to come in and train his employees how to change their tires, how to balance their checkbooks. It has nothing to do with how to make a taco or how to service their customer. It's about caring for the person. And when you care for somebody, you create a connection. And that connection is really important in everyday life, but even more so in business.

He actually hired somebody to come in and train his employees how to change their tires, how to balance their checkbooks. It has nothing to do with how to make a taco or how to service their customer. It's about caring for the person. And when you care for somebody, you create a connection. And that connection is really important in everyday life, but even more so in business.

I'll give you a much grander example. Mark Benioff of Salesforce, the founder, CEO of Salesforce, started the company with the idea of giving a certain percentage of profit to charities. He supported many different organizations. But I will tell you. The most generous thing I ever saw was he could walk through a crowd of his employees and he always remembered their names. He showed them respect.

I'll give you a much grander example. Mark Benioff of Salesforce, the founder, CEO of Salesforce, started the company with the idea of giving a certain percentage of profit to charities. He supported many different organizations. But I will tell you. The most generous thing I ever saw was he could walk through a crowd of his employees and he always remembered their names. He showed them respect.

He let them know that he cared for them as people. We would have an event with 2,000 people and I swear somehow he knew all of their names. I'm sure he studied before he ever got there. But he truly cared about the individual, not just the job they did. And because of that, they worked very hard for him. They created tremendous success. Andy Grove at Intel is another individual that I worked with.

He let them know that he cared for them as people. We would have an event with 2,000 people and I swear somehow he knew all of their names. I'm sure he studied before he ever got there. But he truly cared about the individual, not just the job they did. And because of that, they worked very hard for him. They created tremendous success. Andy Grove at Intel is another individual that I worked with.

I loved this man was so humble. You've heard stories probably of the great leadership and he literally reinvented the semiconductor industry and rejuvenated Intel, but he worked out of a cubicle. He drove an old Toyota truck and he didn't consider himself any better than anybody else in the company. And he treated everybody as important as

I loved this man was so humble. You've heard stories probably of the great leadership and he literally reinvented the semiconductor industry and rejuvenated Intel, but he worked out of a cubicle. He drove an old Toyota truck and he didn't consider himself any better than anybody else in the company. And he treated everybody as important as

as the next person, whether they were a vice president or whether they were somebody in the fab making chips. And that is, that's not just doing generous acts. That's being a generous person. And I think they're two different things.

as the next person, whether they were a vice president or whether they were somebody in the fab making chips. And that is, that's not just doing generous acts. That's being a generous person. And I think they're two different things.