Become Boundless with Vala Afshar

10/10/23 • 51 min

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1. Who is Vala Afshar?

Vala Afshar is a prominent figure in the world of technology and digital transformation. He currently serves as the Chief Digital Evangelist for Salesforce, a leading international CRM software company. Vala has a remarkable life story that began with the Iranian revolution in 1979. At the age of 10, he and his family needed to immigrate to the United States as refugees, separated from his father. Vala's journey to this influential position is marked by his resilience and dedication. Today, Vala Afshar is renowned for his thought leadership, digital presence, and storytelling abilities. He has nearly one million followers on Twitter (now X), over 600 published articles, and is the author of two books: The Pursuit of Social Business Excellence and his newest book Boundless: A New Mindset for Unlimited Business Success. Afshar is also the co-host of DisrupTV, a weekly podcast show covering the latest digital business and innovation market trends.

2. What Can you learn?

Vala's journey to success is characterized by his resilience and social skills. Despite earning his undergraduate and graduate degrees in electrical engineering, he only ventured into social media, writing, and book authorship in his early 40s. Vala's path led him to Salesforce, where he is now known as a prolific thought leader and the company's chief storyteller. Here are three pieces of advice he shares:

Develop Your Personal Brand: Vala emphasizes the importance of building a personal brand and a positive digital footprint. He believes that your online presence, coupled with what you share, can reveal a lot about you. He encourages avoiding negative criticism on social media and being mindful, especially when representing a public company like Salesforce.
Build Better Habits: Drawing a parallel to athletes, Vala stresses the need for executives to establish habits that promote resilience, confidence, and adaptability. He underscores that building a strong brand, fostering communities, and nurturing trust requires consistent effort and commitment.
Leave People Better: As a leader, Vala suggests leaving a positive impact on others as a hallmark of effective leadership. He believes that helping others succeed and adopting a beginner's mindset are key traits of a successful leader. Additionally, he underscores the importance of continuous learning, unlearning, and relearning as a fundamental aspect of achieving boundless goals.

Join us to hear Vala Afshar’s valuable insights on developing our personal brand, building healthy habits, and improving people’s careers and lives.

Thought Leadership Spotlight

Dr. Mohammad Odat serves as the President and CEO of Dale Carnegie of Jordan. Beyond his professional role, Mohammad is a respected thought leader within his community. In this episode, he illustrates the art of "Speaking in terms of the other person’s point of view" through a practical example. He shares valuable insights on taking command of communication, and fostering stronger relationships, and emphasizes that these efforts yield tangible results in both our personal and professional spheres

Show Notes and Links:

Boundless: A New Mindset For Unlimited Business Success by Vala Afshar

The Pursuit of Social Business Excellence by Vala Afshar

Vala’s Twitter

DisrupTV Podcast

Take Command Book by Joe Hart and Michael Crom

A Minute in Leadership by Dr. Mohammad Odat

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1. Who is Vala Afshar?

2. What Can you learn?

Develop Your Personal Brand: Vala emphasizes the importance of building a personal brand and a positive digital footprint. He believes that your online presence, coupled with what you share, can reveal a lot about you. He encourages avoiding negative criticism on social media and being mindful, especially when representing a public company like Salesforce.
Build Better Habits: Drawing a parallel to athletes, Vala stresses the need for executives to establish habits that promote resilience, confidence, and adaptability. He underscores that building a strong brand, fostering communities, and nurturing trust requires consistent effort and commitment.
Leave People Better: As a leader, Vala suggests leaving a positive impact on others as a hallmark of effective leadership. He believes that helping others succeed and adopting a beginner's mindset are key traits of a successful leader. Additionally, he underscores the importance of continuous learning, unlearning, and relearning as a fundamental aspect of achieving boundless goals.

Join us to hear Vala Afshar’s valuable insights on developing our personal brand, building healthy habits, and improving people’s careers and lives.

Thought Leadership Spotlight

Show Notes and Links:

Boundless: A New Mindset For Unlimited Business Success by Vala Afshar

The Pursuit of Social Business Excellence by Vala Afshar

Vala’s Twitter

DisrupTV Podcast

Take Command Book by Joe Hart and Michael Crom

A Minute in Leadership by Dr. Mohammad Odat

Please rate and review this Episode!

Previous Episode

The Power of Learning: A Lifelong Journey with Aarash Darroodi

Who is Aarash Darroodi?

Aarash Darroodi is General Counsel, Executive Vice President, and Corporate Secretary of Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, one of the world’s global leaders in manufacturing instruments and amplifiers.

He grew up in Iran with his grandparents and was able to move to his parents in the USA at the age of 7. His background and experience with immigration to the US shaped who he is today. With a background spanning over 19 countries, he connects cultures across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and beyond. His endeavors resulted in Fender's largest acquisition of PreSonus Audio Electronics. Darroodi attributes his success to several factors, including taking a Dale Carnegie course while he was a teenager.

What will You Learn?

Aarash offers key pieces of advice that are core to his success and ingrained in his philosophy of life:

Become a Storyteller: Uncover the art of crafting impactful stories that resonate with people's emotions and drive engagement.
Navigate Cross-Cultural Teams: Gain strategies for fostering understanding and collaboration across diverse cultural backgrounds.
Execute Innovative Leadership Strategies: Explore unconventional yet effective approaches to leading teams and driving innovation.
Grow Through Networking: Learn how building authentic connections can be a catalyst for personal and professional growth.
Make Strategic Decisions: Explore methodologies for making informed decisions that lead to strategic outcomes.
Apply Adaptive Learning Techniques: Discover techniques for adapting your learning style to various contexts and challenges.
Be Resilient in Adversity: Explore ways to cultivate resilience and thrive in the face of adversity and uncertainty.

Leadership Style & Story Summary

Unleashing Hidden Potential: Darroodi believes in humans' hidden potential. Often, external encouragement is needed to tap into greatness beyond imagination. He believes people are more capable than they think, and we all need someone to push us to go out of our comfort zone. When building a team, he seeks those who have a story, not just a great resume, those who overcame difficulties & challenges and showed resilience.

The Power of Learning: Daarrodi advises us to embrace constant discovery and to engage with novel concepts and people. He treasures wisdom from mentors, focusing on punch lines & pivotal phrases engraved in memory.

Nurture Growth: Darroodi champions empowering leadership. He promotes intercultural understanding, values GenZers, and dismantles hierarchical structures. As a guide, he aids individuals in pursuing their distinct North Star goals. He advises working with team members and learning from them. Leaders and employees should learn about cultures and make a conscious effort to engage with the GenZers. When he works with individuals, he immediately asks them to figure out what they want to achieve in their lives and empowers everyone to have the freedom to share their ideas.

Leadership Style: His role as a leader is to guide, advise, and help teams achieve and reach where their North Star is. Aarash helps his team to get closer to whatever that North Star goal is. ”I see it more as a guide. That's how I see leadership.”

Join us and listen to Aarash's leadership insights about unleashing hidden potential, lifelong learning, and nurturing personal and professional growth.

Thought Leadership Segment

In today's Thought Leadership Spotlight segment, we welcome the President of Dale Carnegie of Arizona, Ken Beyersdorf, and highlight the core value of aligning actions with goals by applying one of the Dale Carnegie principles: "If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically”. Like Aarash, our guest emphasizes the importance of having a clear vision and evaluating actions to achieve that vision.

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Next Episode

Empowering Change, Confidence, and New Opportunities with Deena Ghazarian

Who is Deena Ghazarian?

Deena Ghazarian is a former retail executive at Macy's who has transitioned into a tech executive and is currently the CEO of Austere, an award-winning technology accessories company. She is also the co-founder of Chloe Nickie, a women's shoe business that provides higher-end brands at reasonable prices and donates a significant portion of its profits to support autism spectrum disorders

What will you learn?

1. The Value of Listening and Collaboration: Deena Ghazarian highlights the importance of actively listening to others before making significant decisions. Takeaway: Actively engaging in conversations and seeking input from others can lead to more informed and successful choices.

2. Building a Strong Professional Network: Deena emphasizes that her network has consistently led to career opportunities and advises against burning bridges. Takeaway: Nurturing and maintaining professional relationships can open doors to various opportunities and should be treated as an asset.

3. Being a Servant Leader and Mentor: Deena promotes mentoring others regardless of their age or experience, fostering a culture of mentorship. Takeaway: Mentoring not only fulfills but also helps individuals become better leaders and peers, fostering personal and professional growth for both mentors and mentees.

4. Embracing Leadership and Entrepreneurship: Deena's journey from fashion to technology leadership illustrates the transformative power of leadership and entrepreneurship. Takeaway: A willingness to adapt and seize opportunities, even in different industries, can lead to personal and professional growth, as well as the creation of innovative ventures.

Story Summary:

Deena Ghazarian's career journey took her from the fashion world as a retail executive at Macy's to becoming a tech executive and the CEO of Austere, a technology accessories company. She co-founded Chloe Nickie, a women's shoe business that supports autism spectrum disorders through its profits. Deena emphasizes the significance of listening to others, building a strong network, and being a mentor, regardless of age or experience, to achieve personal and professional growth. She encourages individuals to embrace the power of leadership and entrepreneurship.

Join us and listen to Deena’s experience and insights about the importance of open communication, networking, mentorship, and adaptability in our career journey.

Dale Carnegie Thought Leadership Segment:

Melissa Marshall, President of Dale Carnegie North Dakota & Northwest Minnesota, embodies servant leadership and resilience, drawing inspiration from a profound Dale Carnegie quote: "Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all." Much like Deena, Melissa emphasizes that during difficult times, we can overcome adversity and positively influence both ourselves and those around us. Adopt a positive mindset, accept adversity with confidence, and look for opportunities.

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