Submitted by: Katelyn Duarte, Norma Ferriz, and Brendon Freeman
The Leadership Seminar for Leadership Napa Valley Class 33 was held on September 20, 2019, which was highlighted by a riveting presentation from John Glaser and Ashley Halliday. Both presenters demonstrated masterful command of a key leadership skill; problem solving through collaborative negotiations. They were both extremely knowledgeable, amicable, and driven to help others develop their own leadership skills. The fact that Mr. Glaser showed up to present – and did a tremendous job – with a recently broken arm is a testament to the Leadership Seminar team’s dedication to serving others.
Perhaps the most impactful lesson learned during the day relates to problem solving and specifically how essential and powerful it is to bring all interested parties to the table to collaboratively discuss shared interests, data, options, and tasks. If this step is skipped, trust erodes and negotiated agreements are far less likely to be reached. Absent negotiated agreements, we fall back onto our BATNAs (Best Alternatives to Negotiated Agreements) which are oftentimes poor choices or simply chosen poorly. For example, war is the BATNA when international agreements are not reached, and we all know how that story ends.
We want to sincerely thank Mr. Glaser and Mr. Halliday for their insightful and impactful presentation. These gentlemen are an inspiration to LNV Class 33’s group of aspiring leaders. It would be an honor to take what we learned from Mr. Glaser and Mr. Halliday, and turn that into benefits for the entire Napa Valley community and beyond.