Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Shelby Scarbrough. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Shelby, thanks for joining us today. The more we talk about good leadership the more we think good leadership practices will spread and so we’d love for you to tell us a story about the best boss you’ve had and what they were like or what they did that was so great?

A girl couldn’t get more lucky. My very first boss was Ronald Reagan. Of course, I had more immediate supervisors at the White House who were equally impactful because they embodied the concept that we were there to represent the president of the United States and the Presidency, not our own.

What a fantastic laboratory to learn to be a professional. Some of Ronald Reagan’s character traits profoundly affected me and how I look at the world. He had a saying on his desk that was actually a quote from a previous president that said, “There’s no limit to what a man can do or how far he can go as long as he doesn’t care who gets the credit.”

As a human, sometimes it might seem hard to live up to that motto, but really, it’s a great way to live. I try to do what’s right for the right reasons and not worry about whether I’m getting credit for it. In fact, I make it a point to give credit away as often as possible. In business, we are worried about ROI. Return on investment. I think it’s a way to think about life and work as a return on our personal investment in what we do, and in what drives us.

The return is far greater when we haven’t asked for a pat on the back. Sometimes the acknowledgment is only intrinsic. And philosophically speaking, isn’t that ultimately the best form of validation? We know that we did a good job whether anybody else says so or not.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

These days I call myself an author, a speaker, and an entrepreneur. I guess that’s sufficient. I like to do a lot of different things. I’m not somebody who has one job title or one interest. I’ve written a couple of books, and I speak about leadership and civility and the pioneering spirit in all of us that can be found in all of us. I also love to travel and visit with friends that I’ve made all over the world. There’s so much joy in visiting with these magnificent people, trying their best to improve the world. I like to try to bring joy to the world – to your world and my own. Do you believe in bringing JOY to the world?

I try to help my niece, nephews, goddaughters, and children of my friends whenever I can if they want it. People helped me along the way, and it’s a nice way to give back, be involved in the future, and pass on the learnings of the past. I usually bounce between Napa Valley, Diablo Valley, and Washington, DC. with occasional trips to more exotic places.

My life on this planet is an amazing, evolving experience, and I try to cherish the fantastic new things that are happening all around us.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

Over the years, I’ve had several partners in different businesses. My first partner was my husband at the time. We decided to go into business together. The company survived, the marriage did not. However, we are still business partners after 30 years, and I am very grateful and respectful of his role in my world. I couldn’t have a better partner for that business.

The second partner I had was a little older than I was and taught me so much about how aspects of the world worked. We were a global company. Small, but we did business everywhere. I’m very grateful for that partnership because helped me learn and grow in ways I might never have had he not been my partner. He has a heart of gold and would help anyone anytime. Especially children.

My current partner is a fantastic person who has survived a liver transplant due to a rare liver disease and started a nonprofit – The Living Liver Foundation. Together we started the Global School of Entrepreneurship www.gse.mba, an accredited MBA program for entrepreneurs by entrepreneurs, I couldn’t be more proud of him. He is a stellar human being of great character and the perfect yin to my yang.

So looking back, I think I’ve been pretty fortunate to have picked people who have enriched my life in so many ways, always unexpected and ever appreciated.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

You know, reputation is really important. But I’m a little bewildered by the artificial nature that we build reputations these days. I like to think I did it the old-fashioned way. Hard work, good work, kindness, respect, and integrity.

There are so many ways to appear that way through social media, but my clients and my work have always come through a referral network. The most valuable network anyone can have. Friends, colleagues clients, who worked with me and know whether I am worth working with.

It keeps me on my toes to always do the best I can do because that reputation is very important to me. How many likes do we get, and how many followers do we have? I know that those metrics matter in certain arenas, but in my experience and in the work that I do, that’s window dressing.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.gse.mba
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shelbyjs/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shelbyjoyscarbrough/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/practicalprotocol/
• Twitter: @Shelbyjoy

Image Credits
personal photo and gloria touchet Photography (by the tree)