Tom O’Neill lives and breathes The Nerdery core values. They are integrated into the work culture and are role modeled in everyday decisions. Like no other innovative leader I’ve met, Tom has received remarkable mentoring from The Nerdery co-founders. He says, “I was set-up for success”.

This podcast mentoring conversation with Tom changed me. In a world where ruthless, reckless, and combative leadership is part of the daily news cycle, I have found refuge in this mentoring conversation with Tom. Humanity in the workplace. Core values put into practice.

Tom put together a video acknowledging what he learned from Mike Derheim, Mike Schmidt, and the late-Luke Bucklin as the baton is now in his hands as CEO of The Nerdery. The Nerdery is an example of how leading with core values front and center are the glue in any organization. 

Tom’s inviting laugh and passion to facilitate others’ success, tempers the uncompromising challenges he has faced in his life. Discover how he grew up and what he learned from other ventures he started during his college years at Winona State University, Minnesota. His family life. His passion. Our mentoring conversation is filled with valuable insights about life and leadership. Tune in.

Download this episode. (right click to download)

Mentoring Tips

• Answer the following questions after listening:
  • What was Tom’s entrepreneurial experience before joining The Nerdery?
  • Based on what you heard, why do you think The Nerdery is successful?
  • The entrepreneurial lifestyle is highly unpredictable and vulnerable to change on a dime. How did surviving co-founders, Mike Derheim and Mike Schmidt, lead after the death of Luke Bucklin? What was Tom’s role in the transition?
  • The Nerdery core values are – Constantly Push Boundaries, Integrity In All Circumstances, Be Humble, Win By Empowering People, and Solve Problems Pragmatically. How have these values influenced the development of The Nerdery’s vision to be the best place in the world for NERDS to work?

• Identify your core values and practice them every day.
• Read Good-to-Great by Jim Collins.
• Implement Level 5 Leadership by Jim Collins in Good-to-Great
  • “You might assume that the leaders behind the great companies are high-profile, well known individuals. However, the study found the good to great leaders shared a common set of characteristics: They set up successors for success, they are extremely modest, they have unwavering resolve. Ultimately, they cared and focused a lot more on their companies, than their own personal profile or success.”
  • “Level 5 leader—an individual who blends extreme personal humility with intense professional will”
  • These leaders are ambitious about the company, not themselves.
  • Humility + Will = Level 5.
  • “It is very important to grasp that Level 5 leadership is not just about humility and modesty. It is equally about ferocious resolve, an almost stoic determination to do whatever needs to be done to make the company great.”
  • “Level 5 leaders look out the window to apportion credit to factors outside themselves when things go well (and if they cannot find a specific person or event to give credit to, they credit good luck). At the same time, they look in the mirror to apportion responsibility, never blaming bad luck when things go poorly.”

Trust and Faith in NERDS, Episode 66   www.nerdery.com

Next Monday’s Mentoring Conversation

A third mentoring conversation with James Eder of Causr.co. We continue to explore the entrepreneurial software landscape in London, England.