I owe a huge bear hug to Charlie Rose for introducing me to more incredible people and ideas over the past several years than I can possibly count, but this week Charlie went the extra mile. A few days ago I was going through the interview archive on his website and came across a man who has inspired me to such a degree that I am this close to making a banner reading “Dov Seidman Is My Personal Hero” and hanging it off the side of my building.
Dov Seidman‘s story begins with his incredible educational armor: a bachelor’s and master’s in philosophy (summa cum laude) from UCLA; a B.A. with honors in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University; and a degree from Harvard Law School (with honors no less). His career has focused on how companies and their people can operate in both principled and profitable ways. That’s the inspiration behind his book, HOW: Why HOW We Do Anything Means Everything…In Business (And In Life), which was recently expanded and now includes a Foreword from President Bill Clinton. Dov is the CEO of LRN, and since 1994, LRN has helped to shape winning organizational cultures inspired by sustainable values in hundreds of companies with over 20 million people working in over 100 countries (LRN is also the exclusive corporate sponsor of The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity Prize in Ethics). Fortune magazine called Dov the “hottest advisor on the corporate virtue circuit,” and The Economic Times named him a “Top 60 Global Thinkers of the Last Decade.”
I have covered a huge range of topics since debuting FEELguide in September 2010, but few ideas have resonated with me as deeply as Dov Seidman’s philosophy has. If there is one common element to the stories I share with my readers — whether it’s a captivating new insight from Sam Harris, or a brilliant new Active Child song, or a mindblowing Tilda Swinton performance, or an update on the James Webb Space Telescope — it’s this: each one of these gems contains a seed of inspiration for me (and hopefully for you as well), and as with any artist or thinker, it’s the collection of these seeds which contribute to a richer, more meaningful life and world. Imagination, dreams, and inspiration are manifestations of hope, and a life without hope is a life on pause.
In his foreword to Dov’s book How: Why How We Do Anything Means Everything…in Business (And In Life), President Bill Clinton writes: “My friend Dov Seidman has dedicated his life’s work to studying how people conduct their business and their lives. As we settle into the twenty-first century with all of its unique challenges…it’s clear that people worldwide will rise or fall together. Our mission must be to create a global community of shared responsibilities, shared benefits, and shared values. This new focus will require all of us to think about the how, and to find new ways to take action to solve the global issues that none of us can tackle alone.” I can’t recommend Dov’s interview with Charlie Rose enough, and hope you watch it by clicking on the link below. I was so inspired by Dov’s words that I’m applying for a position in his company (fingers crossed!). For years I have been searching for a way of taking what I’ve learned in the world of architecture (especially the “critical path” towards a final result), moral philosophy, and my passion for creative thinking, and maximizing this coalescence to create positive change in the world around me. The zeitgeist of our modern world is falling in line with the value-based philosophies of Dov and his team faster than one could have ever imagined just a few short years ago, and I want to know HOW I can help. To learn more about the work of Dov Seidman be sure visit his website HowsMatter.com. For your own copy of Dov’s book simply head over to Amazon. You can also follow Dov on Twitter, and read his regular column which he writes for Forbes.
BE SURE TO WATCH CHARLIE ROSE’S INTERVIEW WITH DOV SEIDMAN BY CLICKING HERE (AND CLICK ON DOV’S IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO PLAYER).
