The greatest motivating force in the lives of great leaders is to make a lot to share a lot. They are not driven by materialistic greed, but they are fueled by the highest values such as love, compassion, servitude, gratitude, empathy, accountability, effective communication, and contribution spirit. Leaders driven by such high values can do more for the world than those who are simply motivated by materialistic greed. David Meltzer is one such business leader who is driven by such highest values. He is the Co-Founder of Sports 1 Marketing and Founder of David Meltzer Enterprises. His life’s mission is to empower over 1 billion people to be happy! This simple yet powerful mission has led him on an incredible journey to provide one thing — VALUE.
Living by Values and Empowering others
In his 30’s, when David experienced a lot of success, he became entitled and lost touch with the values that had helped him to be successful in the first place. It wasn’t until he was forced to declare bankruptcy and nearly lost his family that he puts a renewed focus on the values of gratitude, empathy, accountability, and effective communication. And he has made it his mission to connect to others through those values and empower them to be happy. Every project that David Meltzer Enterprises take on is aligned with its values, which are gratitude, empathy, accountability, and inspiration, and that is something that is very attractive for potential partners.
Building Positive Habits
The biggest challenges that David has faced throughout his career all boil down to one thing: human nature. He says that our nature is to live with an ego-based consciousness, something that we all have to work to combat. He says that we are also inconsistent by nature, which is why David is an advocate of creating a “habit machine,” or a system to help one build positive habits. He says that when one can do something consistently and persistently, one will be exponentially more successful.
Being Consistent and Transparent
David states that consistency and transparency are what separate a leader from an impactful leader. He says that when leaders are consistent, their team knows what to expect every day in the office (or working remotely). David says that when leaders are transparent, particularly in times of change, their team does not feel as much stress and are more likely to be effective communicators. He considers another aspect of making an impact on others comes from being willing to plant trees that one will never sit under, which means empowering others with no expectation of getting something in return.
Ability to Adapt to Unprecedented Times
2020 was a time of forced innovation and adaptation, which has certainly been true of David and his brand. He has seen his personal brand skyrocketing in recent months, in large part due to David’s understanding of traditional and digital marketing. Apart from the many accolades that he has earned recently, such as being named one of the Best Employer in Sports 2019 by Front Office Sports, a Top 100 Business Coach by renowned executive coach Marshall Goldsmith or being recognized at the Super Bowl as the MVP (Most Valuable Philanthropist), some of his biggest recent successes have been because of his ability to adapt to the pandemic. In 2020, David launched several new livestreamed shows during the pandemic including 2 Minute Drill, which evolved into a television show on Bloomberg and Amazon Prime that airs in more than 100 million homes around the world and is preparing to film season two.
Empowering Entrepreneurs Worldwide
David’s team was quick to adapt to a virtual working environment that pandemic has fostered, and, in fact, David would say that his organization’s productivity and efficiency has increased over the past year. He states that the organization adapted some of the things it was already doing (such as his podcast “The Playbook” and organization’s Friday Training sessions) for the digital realm in order to provide as much values as possible to others for free. David Meltzer Enterprises also launched new online coaching groups and even created David’s new TV show on Bloomberg and Amazon Prime, called 2 Minute Drill, to help empower entrepreneurs worldwide to master the art of the pitch.
Approach of Kindness
It may seem unusual, but David believes that kindness is one of the keys for any business or leader to thrive. He states that what’s most important is to be kind to one’s future self, meaning that one’s actions today will have an impact in the future, so it is best to approach every situation one is faced with from a standpoint of kindness.
Giving Back to Society
As David mentioned, he is on a mission to empower over 1 billion people to be happy, and giving back is a large part of that. He serves as Chairman of the Board for the Unstoppable Foundation, which works to bring sustainable education to children and communities in developing countries, and even had 50 birthday parties around the world for his 50th birthday to raise money for Unstoppable to build leadership and community centers in Africa. In addition, David serves as Chief Chancellor for Junior Achievement University, and JA is one of the world’s biggest non-governmental organizations, empowering aspiring entrepreneurs worldwide.
Ensuring to Evolve Continuously
David states that the most important thing for any business leader is to ensure that one’s business’ doors open tomorrow. He adds that succeeding in business is about evolution and not revolution, and it is impossible for one’s organization or idea to evolve if one is not operating.
