Jeff Brown
I met Jeff Brown as a guest on his podcast, Read to Lead, in which he interviews authors and luminaries in leadership and related fields.
Jeff Brown is a podcaster, mentor, and speaker. His goal: to help you bridge the gap between intention and implementation.
Jeff does this by sharing his professional insights, and the insights of successful people all over the world, on leadership, personal development, productivity, entrepreneurship and more through his blog, his podcast, and through personal consulting and speaking.
Before beginning Read to Lead, he spent 26-years in radio. He even co-hosted an award-winning and nationally syndicated morning show from 2002 to 2008.
Since January 2014, he has leveraged his radio background to coach numerous podcasters, helping dozens create, launch, grow and monetize their shows. He has consulted with the US government and several multi-million dollar companies the last few years.
He lives outside Nashville, TN with his wife of 16 years, Annie, and their three Dachshunds, Fritz, Frank and Charlie Brown, where he is developing a recycling program, as you’ll hear on my podcast.
065: Jeff Brown, part 4: Inspiring others through action
This podcast continues to break ground.
Jeff Brown returns for an unprecedented 4th time. We dive deeper into his work with his home owners association (HOA)—how he created a team of people from his community, how he’s making things happen, and his results.
We talk about how it need only take a simple decision, a few conversations, and some work—but work you enjoy that creates community—to change this world.
Jeff’s success inspired me to talk to my co-op board to start creating a sustainability committee. I hope it inspires you too.
056: Jeff Brown, part 3: The joys of leading a movement
Can you enjoy leading a movement to change a neighborhood?
In this episode we dive deeper into Jeff’s experience leading the charge to bring recycling amenities to his housing association.
His voice reveals and exudes the emotional reward the challenge creates for him and how he’s creating relationships with his community.
I don’t think there’s any question that this activity is not the end but the start — of action, connection, and fun.
As a leadership author, I can’t help but repeat that Jeff has reviewed hundreds of leadership books. He could have taken this leadership role at any time, but books about leadership don’t develop leadership skills, experience does, which is why my book and podcast teach leadership experientially.
051: Jeff Brown, part 2: Changing a community through leadership
Can a small change lead a community?
Our conversation with Jeff Brown shows how a small action on what you care about can inspire and lead a community. Even small actions, when based on your values—what you care about—can make big differences because humans are social and share many values—for example, clean air and water. Helping his neighborhood recycle acts on those shared values.
Jeff likes business ideas and leadership—enough to start a podcast on it. You can hear the potential he anticipates in being a leader to help people around him. Acting on the environment starts the process. Helping others and himself make it more meaningful, at least as I hear it.
Jeff shows that simple beginnings, acting on your values, can change your life, your town, and the world.
044: Jeff Brown, Conversation 1: Leading means more than reading and writing
Jeff has interviewed authors of leadership books since before I started writing mine. I enjoyed being a guest on his podcast.
This time he’s on mine, and it’s a landmark event, as the next section describes.
If you’re here for leadership, Jeff is a great example of turning an interest into becoming an important person in a field.
If you’re here for environmental leadership, listen for Jeff’s project—one of the biggest of any guest so far in terms of leading himself and others. I’ll let you listen to find out the details, but I’ll mention that he takes a leadership role in his community to help people achieve something they all want but no one else has done.
Later episodes will reveal how his project goes, but already you can hear his interest in acting over just waiting.
Why I’m proud
I note that Jeff has read hundreds of leadership books and spoken to hundreds of leadership authors. My book, Leadership Step by Step, and this podcast are the first that led Jeff to lead—not just to talk, read, or write about leadership but to act.