H3 Leadership: 5 Questions with Brad Lomenick

Recently, my friend Brad Lomenick, who formerly led Catalyst as the president and lead visionary, released his second book – H3 Leadership: Be Humble, Stay Hungry, Always Hustle.

Here’s a Q&A interview that I did with him to learn more about his book.

1. What are the 10 Keys to H3 Leadership?

1. It’s a habits book
2. 20 chapters, 20 habits- the 20 habits all great leaders have in common
3. H3- Be Humble, Stay Hungry, Always Hustle
4. Humble, Hungry, Hustle is my own personal leadership mantra
5. Book is Based on my own failures and learnings
6. All birthed from a leadership crisis – walking away from Catalyst, turning 40, leadership was stale, and needed a reboot
7. Incorporates thoughts from other thought leaders
8. Short chapters with easy to implement action steps
9. Practical and application driven- dirt under the fingernails book
10. Leadership is hard, so leadership must be habitual

2. What is your goal with the book?

My hope is that H3 Leadership will serve as a leadership habits “manifesto.” As soon as you create habits, you’ll see these principles start to show up in your leadership on a day-to-day basis. It’s one thing to talk about it and know about it, but it’s another thing to put a process in place and go do it- which is H3 Leadership. One must be intentional to see something change. This is a process book.

I want H3 Leadership to be your daily playbook of influence, leadership and impact. The practical guide to apply leadership habits that will sustain your leadership over time and help you not only lead well, but also lead now, and ultimately finish well. Making things happen and getting things done is possible because of leadership habits put in place that will sustain your leadership over time.

So often, leaders begin with strength but don’t finish as strong because we lose momentum. Habits put discipline in place – daily discipline and a system that hopefully is second nature like brushing your teeth.

3. You’re very open and honest about how you’ve led, especially Catalyst? Why did you decide to include so much about, frankly, what you feel like you did wrong?

It was important to me to shoot really straight in this book. The very nature of this book required a bit more transparency. But I would also say that I believe the leaders who will have the most influence and impact are the ones who are willing to be vulnerable and talk openly about their struggles and failures.

And that’s a hard thing for a lot of leaders to do. Many times, when we get to a point where other people are listening to us, and we’ve got something to manage––something to lose––we sort of go into the default mode of “Okay, make sure everything looks perfect.”

Today, people crave authenticity. This need has even influenced the way we shop and purchase our products from organizations. Today, customers buy from those we feel are trustworthy. Equally, we want to invest in people and companies that we can trust, not necessarily because they’re well known or largest or leaders in their industry.

Really, the first couple of chapters of the book are about defining and setting this foundation of “Man, you’ve got to be willing to be real with people around you if you want them to follow you.”

So often, leadership, especially self-help leadership and personal growth literature, can feel very pie in the sky––very esoteric. You’re philosophizing constantly.

Readers need a practical example that they can wrap their arms around––actually feel and see and experience the very specific thing that somebody has gone through. It’s one thing to tell others to be willing to share struggles and to talk about failures. It’s another thing to say, “Here’s what I’ve failed at.”

But the leaders I respect the most are the ones who continue to run the race well until the gun goes off, whether that’s because their life is over or they retire. That’s the posture of hungry: the idea that you constantly are learning and getting better. That’s the kind of leader I want to be. I think that’s the kind of leaders we need today.

I think it’s important for people to realize this is an ongoing journey.

4. You say innovation should be a habit, too, and that leaders should be change agents. Why is innovation- specifically, continuous, persistent innovation- so important for leaders?

Innovation is pushing yourself. When I say change agent, I’m referring to someone who is not just willing to put up with change, but someone who’s willing to embrace it. They see change as a friend and recognize that without change, things die.

Innovation is all about being intentional. It takes courage, stamina, and spark to be intentional, but it also takes failure. You have to know that you’re going to fail, over and over again.

We tend to automatically associate innovation with creativity––and that’s not wrong. It does require creativity. But it’s more about intentionality––the mindset of constantly pursuing something better, of pushing the boundaries and never sitting still.

Healthy things grow, and growth requires change. Leaders who don’t change––don’t innovate––are going to be left behind.

5. What does the world need most from leaders today?

That’s a tough question because I think the scorecard for leaders is cumulative. I mean, you can live out a few of these habits well, but if you’re not pursuing and embracing all of them, then you’re still missing pieces of the puzzle. Your leadership will feel incomplete, both to you and to others.

That said, I think the most important thing for leaders today is to understand their individual identity and calling, and to be authentic.

We don’t need perfect leaders. We need realness over relevancy. That’s the good news. The pressure is really off if leaders are willing to lead from their authentic selves. There’s such a hunger for realness today. If you’re willing to embrace that, people will follow you.

I have a deep passion for helping leaders lead well. It’s what drives me. I believe it’s my stewardship, and my responsibility to help these leaders do their jobs well- all over our country in our churches, businesses, and all organizations to lead well. And ultimately finish well. And I’m incredibly optimistic about the next wave of leaders who are now stepping into leadership roles. It’s a generation of leaders willing to work their guts outs for something bigger than themselves, and also willing to work together to accomplish the big vision.