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Scott
This is an iHeart podcast.
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Scott
Loans subject to approval in available locations what about Oprah? You describe Oprah as a true identity leader. Why is Oprah a true identity leader?
Stedman Graham
Well, she's so smart, so bright, very kind, just given so much to the world. It's just unbelievable what she's been able to do. I can't even believe it myself.
Scott
Today. It's great to have educator, author, businessman and public speaker Stedman Graham on the podcast. Many people have heard of Stedman as the longtime partner of Oprah Winfrey, but he's much more than that. And as we discussed in the episode Today, Stedman's groundbreaking work has really unearthed the importance of identity leadership, which is based on the philosophy that if you can't lead yourself, you can't lead anyone else. According to Stedman, successful people know who they are, are clear what matters to them, and create value for themselves and others. Stedman's life dramatically changed when he began centering all that he does around his own talents, strengths and passions. As you'll see in this episode, we both share a great love of self actualization. I hope I was also able to shine a light on Stedman as a human and that you get to know him a little bit better as well. So without further ado, I bring you Stedman Graham. Stedman Graham, thank you so much for being on the psychology podcast.
Stedman Graham
Scott, thank you for having me. I appreciate all the work that you're doing and it's great to learn about, you know, all that you're planning to do in the future.
Scott
Oh, thank you. That's really kind of you. You know, we have a lot of interest, including your life mission, which, as you've said, I've dedicated my life to this work of teaching people throughout the world how to self actualize their potential as human beings. Wow, that's a pretty exciting, exciting dream. But I want to actually start with the question of who is Steadman? Graham, I want to get to know you a little bit better first.
Stedman Graham
Well, I'm an author. You know, I love education. I'm a veteran. I have worked in this field for a long time. I've kind of dedicated my life to identity, teaching people how to find out who they are, how to organize your life around themselves, how to, you know, take information and make it relevant to their, to their development, their personal professional development, teaching them how to learn how to learn. And you know, I, I, I enjoy that work. I don't know what else to do. You know, I love athletics, I love to travel, so all of that works.
Scott
You have a master's degree in education, right?
Stedman Graham
Yes, yes, from Ball State University. I really enjoyed my time at Ball State, and even though I went to school over in the European campus over in Germany, it was, it was a great experience for me.
Scott
What, what now? What sports did you play? You're a good athlete, right?
Stedman Graham
If you let me tell it.
Scott
Yes, I am letting you tell it.
Stedman Graham
Yeah. So I, I enjoyed, you know, playing basketball and tennis and I'm a big golfer now, so I enjoyed a lot of sports.
Scott
So now, when did you get interested in the idea of self actualization?
Stedman Graham
Well, I think I got really interested in it at an early age, trying to. I didn't know what it was or what the, the name of the name of it, you know, name of it, what I would call it back then. That's what I'm trying to say. But, you know, I think everything's about self actualization and self development. You know, people are looking to try to figure out who they are and they don't really have a name for it. So, you know, early on in life, you know, I was trying to figure out again, you know, what my purpose was and all of that and, you know, and trying to do the best I could possibly could do based on my circumstances.
Scott
Yeah, because you say, quote, my life dramatically changed for the better when I began centering all that I do around my talents, strengths and passions. Well, what was your, your life like before that?
Stedman Graham
Well, I mean, you just told basically, Scott, to get a job, go to school and go to work and all of that. That's pretty much what you do. And so I tried to do all of that. I worked in the prison system, you know, a while. I worked in public relations and marketing. I served in the US Army. I played ball in Europe. You know, I tried to do all the things that, that I needed to do to just like everybody else. And, and you really kind of focus on the outside world as a way to define your existence because you really don't know who you are and you're looking for it on the outside. And it took me a long time to realize that, you know, if you're looking for freedom on the outside, you'll never find it. Freedom is only on the inside.
Scott
There's a great truth, but I don't think a lot of people really have gotten, have gotten that memo. You played basketball in Europe, is that right?
Stedman Graham
Yeah, I did. What position? I was a small forward, so I like to, you know, shoot the corner, and that was my main shot. And I played in school, of course, in college, and then when I got to in the army, I went over to. They sent me to Europe and I got a chance to play ball for the service as well as being picked up by a team over there and started playing ball with them and traveling around throughout Europe and all of that. So it was a great experience for me.
Scott
That's so cool. I love basketball. What is like one other thing that people about you, something about yourself that people might be surprised to hear?
Stedman Graham
I, I think probably how dedicated I am to the work that I, that I do now, which is identity, leadership, and I mean, I am. And the self actualization work that you talk about a lot in that you're involved in, I think being able to do this work, as you know, it's a 24, 7 job. I mean, I spent all of my time really trying to build these programs. And we're in the schools and we have a college program and we have a corporate program, and we train people all over the world. And now we have the ability to virtually train people, which is fantastic to be able to use technology as a way to deliver this message. So I'm excited about all of that.
Scott
I'm excited too. That is very exciting. You say identity leadership is self leadership, and it's based on the philosophy that if you can't lead yourself, you can't lead anyone else. Anything else you want to add about your definition of identity leadership?
Stedman Graham
Well, I think that's a pretty good definition. Self leadership is everything. You can't lead anybody else until you first lead yourself. And most people don't know how to do that. They're kind of stuck in the box doing the same thing over and over every single day. You know, they wake up in the morning, they wash their face, you brush your teeth, they get something to eat, they get the kids off to school, work all day, come home in the afternoon, they spend time with the family, they watch tv, they go to bed, and maybe they dream. And then they repeat that same cycle over and over, you know, every day. You know, if you did the same thing you did yesterday as you would do today, as you will do tomorrow, what have you done? The answer would be probably nothing because you've done the same thing. You're not thinking, you're not developing, you're not creating, you're not designing your own future. And then you go to school, and school teaches you how to memorize and take tests, repeat information back, you get labeled with a grade. Two weeks later. If I asked you what you learned, you'd probably say, I forgot or I don't remember. And so, you know, I often tell my audiences and people that I train nothing from nothing is nothing. So the most important thing that you have, the most important question, anyone, wherever I ask you, is, do you know who you are? And, and that requires some real internal thinking, requires you, you know, having some self discovery about what your talents are, what your abilities are, what you love, what you care about, what your interests are, so that you can begin to, as you say itself, actualize your potential as a human being and have a foundation for production and excellence and opportunity and to be able to organize the global marketplace. And now we have access to technology as a way to define our existence. It's really a gift. I mean, you couldn't have a better time than today to probably be alive because you have access to content and resources and opportunities globally. And you're able to take that information, which is, you know, teaching people to learn how to learn, which is what I try to do, change the learning system around, where they make everything relevant to their personal professional development so they can grow, so they can create opportunities, so they can expand their ability to be an expert in their field and then serve the world based on what they create for themselves.
Scott
That's beautiful. Yeah. There are a lot of things in your book that really resonated with me. One thing was that you said, don't wait for others to define who you are or what your potential is. Man, I really resonate with that. I was in special ed as a kid for an auditory disability, and there was a point where I was like, I'm not going to let that define me anymore. And it really changed my life. So I think there's a really deep, profound truth there to that.
Stedman Graham
Well, it's great that you say that because, I mean, you know, again, I grew up with two special need brothers in my family, so. And they had a lot of opportunity and, you know, focusing on their talents and their skills and their ability. I mean, that is what it's all about, is just take what you have, take your strengths, take what you do well, take what makes you happy, begin to organize that, be conscious of what that is, and then. Then apply information to that. And so if you have people that can help you do that, especially in that particular segment, special ed segment, boy, they. I mean, they could do much more than they're doing now with the right kind of program. So I. I think that's. That's a great statement.
Scott
Yeah, I think so, too. I mean, as a leader, how can you see this potential in others before, you know, they even see it in themselves? I mean, I think that's one aspect of being a great leader is kind of having that strength spotting ability, Right?
Stedman Graham
Well, people have to be trained, I think, and have to be aware of what's possible. And so oftentimes you don't know that yourself, you know, which is why relationships are so very important and having mentorship is so very important. I've had a lot of mentors in my life, and being able to understand how to put the pieces of the puzzle together, you might have a picture of who you want to become, a vision of who you want to become, but you actually don't know how to put that together. And a lot of times you need help. You know, you need to have a team of people or support system. You know no one makes it alone. No man or woman is an island to themselves, so you can't make it by yourself. You need a team of people that can help you do that.
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Scott
Yeah, absolutely. I mean I think that's really important to mention that because a lot of people might think like oh, self leadership, it sounds so devoid of context or devoid of support systems. But these are not either or things, right? I mean you can have self leadership and also really require a strong support system.
Stedman Graham
Well, you know, you, you, you attract who you are. So your ability to work on yourself allows you to have more access and more opportunity with people who are, who are like minded with you based on where you want to go and who you want to become. You know, I know who you are. You know, you're doing the same thing over and over, which represents about million people in the world were pretty much stuck who are not thinking of developing a building. So when you start to really focus on your own value and realize that the value that you give yourself is the value the world gives you, the world sees you as you see yourself. And so how do you begin to change and grow, which is what you have to do today in the 21st century because the world is moving forward. Everybody's talking about AI and you know, futuristic things. And so you got to be able to adapt to that. And the way you adapt is like Einstein said, you cannot solve a problem with the same mindset that caused it. You got to be able to change the way that you think. You got to be a reader, you have to be a learner, you have to be a developer of your own life and so that you can adjust, change, grow, build, create, design your future and flow with the way the world is going, which is, you know, globally it's going. Globally it's going, you know, you can create a lot of networks and you build, build a lot of relationships and you know, you've got to constantly be a learner and self directed and lifelong. You got to be a lifelong learner. So it's continuous.
Scott
Yeah, for sure. Well, we can double click a little bit on the main aspects of self leadership. Self awareness, self management, other awareness and other management. Where did you kind of come up with that framework?
Stedman Graham
Well, you know, I mean I was defined by race and defined early on in my life and the and so that was a label. And you know, when you don't know who you are, you buy into the labels. It's socially constructed design labels that define your existence and you know, defined by basketball, sports and defined by family and defined by of course my relationship with Oprah being defined by that. And so you don't know how to define your own existence. And the world defines you and they put you in a box and they label you based on that box. And you know, you buy into a lot of that. And so you know, there's no tools to self actualize your own potential or to define your own existence because it's not in the curriculum. You don't have a curriculum. So you know, so I spent my life a lot, a lot of time in my, in my journey to be able to figure out how to organize a process which is what I teach a nine step success process. It teaches you how to organize your life around yourself. Self actualize your potential as a, as a human being. Find out who you are, discover who you are, create a vision for yourself, organize plans and goals and be able, able to kind of be a, you know, a strong dreamer, a strong self actualization. Be able to self actualize your dreams that you have, you know, or your thoughts or your, your ideas. And so you know, those things are very important as opposed to just kind of doing the same thing over and over, getting stuck and really not being able to grow, develop, build or create your own opportunities.
Scott
You know, you, you place these in order for a reason. There's a certain priority. So you say you have to be self aware before you can learn how to be a self manager and nurture your abilities, emotions and leadership capacities. And you need both self awareness and self management before you can be aware of others needs and potential. And you need, and you need that other awareness before you can grow the potential in others. I think that makes a lot of sense.
Stedman Graham
Yeah, yeah. I mean you, you know, we put them in sequence. So sequence is very important because you follow a process. And when I learned how to process, you know, you, you basically I learned how to think and organize. Order is the highest level of development. So you're, you're constantly trying to put things in place so that they actually work. You know, you, you paint the picture with a vision and then what you do is you build backwards with the pieces and you put the pieces in place to, you know, kind of like a puzzle. You know, they come together over a long period of time. But the challenge is, is organizing the pieces of the puzzle. And putting them in place so that you can actually paint the picture and you know where you're going. And you're also clear, you have the confidence and the ability to be able to communicate exactly what, what your, your, your role is going to be and, you know, what you're trying to achieve to other people, which aligns you with, you know, other relationships. And, and you, you continue to develop a process of improvement all the time because you're working on yourself. You're working on yourself. And then the internal turns into external, turns into all the external things that you are trying to, to get in your life to, you know, add more value to what you're doing.
Scott
Yeah, you know, I, you got me thinking a lot about this idea of identity because I feel like we're in a culture that's, you know, a lot of people play identity politics where they. Folk, when they say, use the word identity, they're really focusing like demographics or focusing on like skin color or gender identity. You're using identity in a much broader way to, to focus on people's talents and passions. And I just wonder what would happen if our conversation in our country was more. A more expanded idea of identity. Have you put any thought into that?
Stedman Graham
Yeah, you know, it's be very interesting. I, I think identity is for all of us. You know, it's not. Not. I think it's for all of it. It is for all of us. Wouldn't make a difference where you're from, what language you speak, or what country you're in. You know, everybody's trying to figure out how to create value in their life. The value that you give yourself is a value of the work the, the world gives you. The world sees you as you see yourself. So everybody's focused on self, you know, whether they admit it or not. And so you can't, you know, drink from an empty cup and you can't give what you don't have. So to be able to figure out how to be the best self that you can and then turn that into leadership for yourself first and then leadership for others because you're so passionate about your work. You're so, you love what you do. You, you know, you're not mad at other people based on their accomplishments because you're able to again, you know, you're happy with who you are as a person. And so identity is like, I don't even know how you do it today without having an identity. I really don't. So your ability to, again, utilize content and information and make it relevant to who you are is. That's really a kind of. That's a gift.
Scott
Oh, absolutely. I'm just saying that when you use the term identity, I think you're using it a little bit different way than how a lot of people. What people are focused on right now in a day, you know, skin color and things like that and where you're from and how poor you are. And what I see is your way of using identity just feels very empowering to me. It feels like the opposite of a victim mindset. You know, you're saying this is just my observation of reading your work and why it. Why it resonates with me. Because you are talking about creating a life based on your passions and strengths. I think that should be available to everyone. And I'm sure you agree with that.
Stedman Graham
Yeah, you know, that's what we're trying to do, is get people to understand the value of themselves and not be stuck on, you know, labels and all the external things that define them oftentimes. And, you know, all of this is based on. On the word love, the most powerful word in the world. You know, being able to choose love as a way to organize your life around what you love. So we put it more in practical terms in terms of changing the energy around so that you could be more productive and achieve more. Because you're focusing on what you can do as opposed to what you can't do. Looking at the glass half full as opposed to half empty. You know, I know when you focus on negative, negative comes back to you. The law of attraction says whatever you put out comes back. So to be able to transform yourself, you know, has to. Has to happen with loving yourself and caring for yourself.
Scott
Yeah, absolutely. And also, I'm going to. Yes. And that you also talk about. About the importance of changing the way you think and feel about yourself.
Stedman Graham
Yeah. So, I mean, changing the way you think and feel about yourself. Again, I go back to what Einstein said. You cannot solve a problem with the same mindset that caused it. So your ability to be able to read more, learn more, experience more, allows you to have a different perspective and to apply that to your own personal professional development, man. To be able to, you know, read content, think about it, you know, figure out new ways to apply it to your own development. That's. I mean, it changed my. My life changed when I learned that. When I learned how to learn.
Scott
Yeah, me too, man. Me too. Yeah, I went, you know, going from a. Wasn't even college bound to, you know, I actually love learning was such a huge Shift for me. And looks like it was for you, too.
Stedman Graham
Well, obviously, you're very bright and very smart. I, I, I'm so glad you discovered it, because what you're doing now is you're empowering people and you're writing books, and that would never have happened if you hadn't discovered, you know, how to organize content and make it relevant to your personal and professional empowerment.
Scott
Absolutely. And it also took, you know, the support of, of a few, a few people. You know, one, one person who asked me in special ed, a special ed teacher, what are you still doing here? And just that one question, man. Isn't it so powerful how just like one question from someone can completely change your whole life?
Stedman Graham
Oh, my goodness. It's all about the questions. You know, who are you? What's your vision? What's your plan? You know, what are your rules of the road? What are your barriers to success? You know, it's all about answering the questions.
Scott
Yeah, but even just like the support of one other person can be so powerful.
Stedman Graham
Yes.
Scott
I want to talk about some examples of, you know, kind of make this come alive. You talk about someone called Sydney Weinberg who went from janitor. I love stories like this. So I, you got me all excited when I read the, these kinds of stories. These are, these are the stories I love. So talk a little about Sydney Weinberg and his journey from janitor to top boss at Goldman Sachs.
Stedman Graham
Well, you know, the beautiful thing about that is he learned the process of success and how it worked. And, and he also believed in himself. You know, he had a great belief and belief in his ability to get things done. And if you could do it at a early age, you know, or at a, I don't want to say low point in life, but if you can do the fundamental things, the things that get you to understand the process of success is the same for everybody. You just keep working and you have that drive would make a difference what kind of job you have. You're able to, again, keep growing and, and know that you can do better and apply those same principles, regardless of what, what level you're operating at. So he was, he was that kind of person.
Scott
What about Oprah? You, you, you describe Oprah as a true identity leader. Why is, why is Oprah a true identity leader?
Stedman Graham
Well, number one, she knows who she are. She is, excuse me. And she knows who she is. And she's one of the greatest communicators in the world. She's been doing this a long time. She certainly is a great speaker, and she's been speaking, you know, in, in church at an early age. So she carried those same communication skills. Boy, she's so smart, so bright, very kind. Just given so much to the world. It's just unbelievable what she's been able to do. I can't even believe it myself. She's, you know, given scholarships to folks at Morehouse. She's opened the school in Africa. Well, she's trained these young girls and they've gone to major schools all over the. The country, major universities. And she's changed her life and she's done that over and over with her show for so many years. I think people kind of forget what she's been able to contribute. It's just fascinating who she is and if she doesn't do another thing in her life. She's done so much. She's always trying to help people and give back. And she's done that over and over and over and over again. And with her humility and her ability to really just kind of know what she's capable of doing. And oftentimes sometimes she's, she might get out of her lane every once in a while, but for the most part, she's always trying to help and always trying to serve humanity all over the world. And what she's done for women and the way she's empowered women and young girls and. And just such a unbelievable leader. I, I just can't say enough about it. It's amazing to watch her throughout these years.
Scott
Stadman, it sounds like you're in love with this woman.
Stedman Graham
Well, she's a, she's a very special person. She's just extraordinary.
Scott
I know, I know. And you've had a really unique window on that whole development. So you've really seen this some one of the highest levels of self actualization a human can achieve. You've, you've had like a front row seat to it for how many years? 30 years?
Stedman Graham
Well, I, I've, I've been, you know, around, so it's been. I mean, I would not be here. I would not be able to do what I'm doing without the influence of not just her, but many people. I could go on and on. Bob Brown, who I worked for, and we traveled to South Africa. First American to ever see Nelson Mandela in prison. Only American that I know of and worked with him a while and he was one of the. Mrs. King called him when Dr. King was assassinated. Assassinated to help pick up the body, you know, and I had the privilege of working with him. He was special assistant to to one of the presidents and so, you know, help open up the Nigerian government, help build that. So I've had some great experiences, you know, all around that that adds a lot of value to, you know, support systems and, and having great people around you who you can just watch and learn from because you know, you're green, you don't know anything, you're trying to figure it out and you need support systems and mentors who can help you.
Scott
Absolutely. I completely agree with that.
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Scott
What is the relationship between fear and potential? I think that's a big, big part of your book.
Stedman Graham
What is the relationship between fear, potential? I think, you know, one is what you can't get to potential that you'd overcome the fears. So what are the barriers to success? And sometimes, you know, you, you, you're, you can self sabotage yourself a lot because you, you, you doubt yourself and there's a lot of fear there. And you know, if the foundation, your existence is fearful or negative, then you know, even when you're comfortable, you, you kind of look at the glass half empty as opposed to half full. So the transformation is always potential. The transformation is always what you can do, not what you can't do.
Scott
Yeah, Abraham Maslow has that great quote that in any moment we can choose to move toward growth or stay in safety and we have to keep choosing growth again and again and overcome our fear again and again. And yeah, beautiful. I love that you talk about that in there. In terms of your own identity development, were there moments where you struggled to show who Stedman Graham is, you know, apart from Oprah, apart from all these other things, but just who you are in terms of, and this is what I'm trying to do today with you is trying to show the world the awesome work you're doing. But has it been a struggle at any point?
Stedman Graham
I think just do the work. I think if you just do the work and do what you authentically can do based on who you are, I mean, that is the work. And so that's, that's should be part of the journey and that should be what, what, what, what defines your existence? You know, so you got a lot, you're connected to a lot of other things. But the most important thing is you just do the work every day. I mean, everybody's equal because everybody has 24 hours. So the question is, what do you do with your time? And so, man, if you can find your passion and purpose in life and what you love and what you care about and you're lucky enough to be able to work at that, that's that's enough. That will take you to wherever you need to go and you just keep building. And if you understand the value of now technology, which we're using right now as a way to enhance your value and your abilities, you know, and you can align that with your vision and you're able to set goals and you have a process for continuous improvement. And you don't quit every time you fall down. You get back up. And you get back up, you get back up. You know, then, then that is, that's plenty right there and, and not really worry about the rest of the, what's happening around you.
Scott
Oh, I agree. I was just asking you a human, just vulnerable question, like did you ever struggle with that in your life?
Stedman Graham
Yeah, I mean, I struggle every day, you know, with it. You know, it's all, it's not going anywhere. It's always there. You know, it's dependent on again how you see the world and what your makeup is and what your background is. You're still dealing with inadequacies and struggle and doubt and all of that.
Scott
Thank you. Thank you. I think that like the more you humanize yourself as well, I think it really, it can inspire a lot of other people. You know, we're all kind of trying our best in this world. You know, you talk a lot about an action plan, creating an action plan. Right. And how to bring it to fruition. Do you have any advice for people on how to turn that into kind of make their dream into a reality?
Stedman Graham
Yeah, I think, you know, having a base, a strong based on what you love. I mean the thing I ask people to do is write down everything they love in their life and then apply information to that and then develop goals around that, develop a vision around that, kind of organize a value system around it. You know, find out what your, what your barriers are, what your success are. Find out how to build a team around it and read about it, learn about it, become an expert in it and then just write things down. I mean, you gotta be able to have a plan because those things that you write down you could go back to and figure out how to create an ecosystem around all of that together. It really just makes a huge difference when you start to plan and write, write things down because you know, you got 50,000 thoughts going through your mind every single day. You're not going to remember everything. So you got to be able to write it down and organize.
Scott
And also you talk about committing to self actualization. Talk a little bit more about that.
Stedman Graham
Well, working on yourself, trying to Improve yourself. Again, being clear on how you're going to spend your time. Eliminate all the time wasters. Focus whatever you focus on, on expands, you know, being able to focus and, and, and, and stay on track. You know, all, all those things are important in terms of self actualization.
Scott
I meant to ask this earlier on, like how do you even, how do you define self actualization? How do you define it? Personally.
Stedman Graham
I define it by just working on yourself. I mean, right now it's, you know, most people focus on the outside world as a way to define their existence and so they never really get to work on self. So when you start to turn it around and now everything is about what your program is going to be for that day. You know, what's your routine going to be, how are you going to improve that? You know, what are you trying to get accomplished, who you want to become. Looking at that, putting all of that together just gives you the opportunity to be able to organize a process for, you know, self actualization. And again, going back to working on yourself. So that really is based on the fact that the more you have, the more you can give the other people. Again, I think that's a great way to be of, you know, be a servant leader to a lot of folks outside of your own, you know, interests.
Scott
I love that, you know, and it's just, there's not, there's not that much of a focus on self actualization these days. So it's just so refreshing to see that, you know, a lot of people, they may focus on happiness or they focus on achievement, but neither of those things are self actualization necessarily. So it's really refreshing to see it. Is there anything else you want to add about your work on it, your really groundbreaking work on identity leadership?
Stedman Graham
Well, it's just that it's continuous. It doesn't stop. You continually evolve. I like the fact that you're able to improve. You know, you fall down, you get back up, you, you relearn information, you learn things from other people, from your experiences. And it's constant, you know, it's constant production, it's constant work, it's constant. Constantly, you know, you know, working on yourself and figuring out how you can do it better. And you know, we live in one of the greatest countries in the world, so to be able to have access to systems and the experiences we have and you know, America just provides so many opportunities for us. And now we have the global marketplace. You know, again, we couldn't live in a better time than now because we have access to so many resources and you know, so much information and you can learn on your own and so, you know, being able to have an identity as a foundation for development, creativity and learning and, and understanding to me is just really, you know, exciting.
Scott
It's really exciting. And I want to end with some word of encouragement from Stedman Graham, who wrote, quote, you are well on your way to furthering your potential as an identity leader. Keep on going. It's a journey that no matter how hard at times, is well worth it. It's a journey that leads to the satisfying and fulfilling life that you have deep down envisioned for yourself. My best wishes to you as you continue your journey. Steadman, I want to just give best wishes to you on your journey as well. I really made it my aim today to get your work out there to my audience and have them know a little bit more about who Steadman Graham is. So thank you.
Stedman Graham
Thank you so much. I appreciate the opportunity, Scott, and, and congratulations to you and all that you do for so many other people.
Scott
Thank you so much. It means a lot.
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JP Morgan, Chase bank and a member FDIC, subject to credit approval. This is an iHeart podcast.
Host: Scott Barry Kaufman
Guest: Stedman Graham
Date: December 5, 2024
Podcast by: iHeartPodcasts
In this inspiring and deeply insightful episode, Scott Barry Kaufman sits down with educator, author, and identity leadership expert Stedman Graham to delve into the concept of self-leadership, or as Graham calls it, “identity leadership.” The conversation centers on the vital importance of knowing and developing oneself as a prerequisite for truly leading others and unlocking one’s full human potential. The discussion traverses personal stories, leadership frameworks, the pitfalls of external validation, and the lifelong process of self-actualization.
Sydney Weinberg: From janitor to Goldman Sachs top executive by believing in himself and applying success principles.
Oprah Winfrey: A “true identity leader” who knows who she is, communicates with power and kindness, and continuously gives back.
Stedman Graham's approach to leadership starts at the root: self-knowledge and self-management. Everyone’s capacity for contribution begins with their willingness to know, nurture, and believe in themselves. His call to action is simple but profound: work on yourself unceasingly, seek mentorship and support, transform limiting beliefs, and orient every step around what you love and find meaningful. In doing so, you open the doors to not just your own potential, but the ability to lead and inspire others.