Don’t miss this leadership interview with Neen James, @neenjames. Neen is the author of Folding Time™ and her latest book Attention Pays™ is available at bookstores around the world. Over the past two decades Neen has been advising some of the coolest companies in the world, including Viacom, Comcast, Paramount Pictures, and even the FBI, on how to improve their strategic planning, communication, and leadership development. When she is not speaking on stage, you might find her on the back of a Harley Davidson. Originally from Sydney Australia, now a proud new US citizen, Neen is a speaker, an author, and an insanely slow runner (she told us to reveal that for folks), we were incredibly grateful for the time we were able to spend with Neen to produce this interview.

Her leadership podcast interview with TheSchoolHouse302 was fun, energetic, and practical. There is tons of advice for a better focus, paying crystal clear attention to others, leadership, and much more. Check it out below.

• You have to hear her incredible insight on how we can prioritize our priorities and how 15 minutes a day can truly make all the difference in the world. She talks about the common mistakes that we tend to make regarding time management, and she reminds us that it’s our attention that we manage, not our time.
• The one person she mentions that we could all benefit from following is her dear friend and mentor, Matt Church. He is the founder of Thought Leader Global with a true desire to add value for leaders around the world. He offers amazing free resources to those interested in leading more effectively.
• She tells us that the one thing that adds perspective, something we should all do regularly, is quite surprisingly very simple–put others first. If you want to be more effective as a leader, truly pay attention to someone you care about.
• Neen indicated the one thing she would love to be is funnier. She mentions good friends who “think funny” and how that adds a unique dynamic to their skill set and ability to lead effectively.
• Without mincing any words, she lets us know that energy is everything and that we can literally grow our energy when we decide to do so. Don’t miss what she says about it.
• Lastly, Neen opens up about her early beliefs and ideas regarding herself. She discusses a time when she first started speaking professionally to groups of leaders and how her mindset limited her. She believed, then, that she had to be “super polished” and perfect. She’s come to realize that what she actually needed was to be her own version of perfect, which she calls, “fun and fabulous.” We couldn’t agree more.

Neen’s interview is filled with practical advice for leaders, and really connects with our purpose of controlling our attention to focus on what matters most. She definitely provides great advice for how to get to simple to lead better and grow faster. Be sure to get your copy of Attention Pays: How to Drive Profitability, Productivity, and Accountability, and let us know what you think. You can find sample chapters here.

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Joe & T.J.