Jeremy Dunlap Interview: Thoughts for Young Leaders Part Two

Taking from our Communicate Today blog:

Jeremy Dunlap, known to many as Jer Dunlap, is a national speaker, trainer, and now author. Jeremy Dunlap recently answered some questions for Communicate Today concerning youth and leadership. This question and answer entry with Jeremy Dunlap (Jer) is two parts.
CT: Jeremy Dunlap
Jeremy Dunlap: Call me Jer. “Jeremy Dunlap” sounds so darn formal.

CT: (laugh) Very well, Jer, in Part One, we spent some brief moments talking about listening, learning, and good coaching as fundamental to young leaders. What is your next advice?
Jeremy Dunlap: The feeling to sound or look important can actually make a young leader look foolish. First off, a young leader may not have all the information and knowledge about the situations at hand. They may have no idea the number of conversations, meetings (sanctioned and unsanctioned), and years of process that have gone into that one meeting, or one situation! You may be speaking to issues already solved, discussed, or that do not need to be mentioned! I return to what I said earlier...

CT: Which is asking more questions?
Jeremy Dunlap: Correct. Questions equal information. And in all reality, questions control conversations. When it boils down to it, the need to show your knowledge is a need and search for significance. Please here the grace. I have been there! I have felt the need to show my knowledge or state my resume. You walk away feeling - weird, dirty, or ineffective.

CT: What do young leaders need to do if they struggle with that issue?
Jeremy Dunlap: Stop it. (Laugh) But seriously, stop it. Young leader, your significance will never be in your resume, your dreams of success, or the words you share.

CT: Where do they find personal significance?
Jeremy Dunlap: I can’t speak for them. For me, and I can only speak for me, my significance lies in my faith in God. My significance is found in the fact that He created me in certain ways, with certain talents. My significance is not in my opinion or knowledge. And if you believe what I believe, He gave me any wisdom I have to start with.

CT: Sounds like that is powerful.
Jeremy Dunlap: It is. But those words have come with great pain. And I have found that people will care more about what you have to say and respect you at deeper levels - by the life you live; far more than the opinions you hold.

CT: You are in training and development.
Jeremy Dunlap: I am.

CT: How important is training for young leaders?
Jeremy Dunlap: It’s extremely important. And the great thing if an employer sends you to training, you can learn so many life skills that translate beyond the work place. But here is the thing about training. Only skill can be trained, not will. Did you catch that? We can train skill level. We cannot train will level.

CT: For young leaders, don’t you think they have to be willing to learn, no matter the training?
Jeremy Dunlap: No brainer. In fact, Aristotle believed he needed to bring a person to their point of ignorance, admitting it, before they could be taught.

CT: Jeremy Dunlap, I mean Jer, thank you for your time. Any final thoughts to conclude our two part interview?
Jeremy Dunlap: First off, a special thanks to CT and any CT readers. Leadership is tough. Leadership is a journey. Leadership is influence the lives of people. And best of all, leadership does not require the leader to have all the answers; only the willingness to find or discover the needed answer.