Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast #192 Rob Paterson Flip and Decide

Flip And Decide

On this episode of the Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast, Craig Johns speaks with Rob Paterson about Flip and Decide, working his way from the ground up to becoming a CEO, the art of decision making and being a decisive leader.

We also dive deep into the hospitality industry, the influence of sports in leadership and decision-making, Grind Academy, and the highs and lows of being a leader.

Rob Paterson – Flip And Decide

Rob Paterson is the former CEO of Best Western Hotels in Great Britain, founder of Grind Academy, a leadership evangelist, and the best-selling author of the book Flip and Decide. He honed his craft over a remarkable 25-year career in the hotel industry working with global brands such as InterContinental Hotels Group, Accor Hotels, De Vere Group, Malmaison and Hotel Du Vin, Village Hotels & Best Western Hotels Group GB.

Having launched multiple technology platforms, he possesses a wealth of entertaining storytelling and practical business advice. He was the 2020 Industry Titan by Boutique Hotelier Magazine, founder of headwear brand Cody Spice, and was featured on the renowned UK’s Channel 4 docuseries “Inside Best Western.

Rob talks about:

• Taking on a natural evolution of being mentored and mentoring as a child
• Growing up taking on a leadership style of play and style of camaraderie in a sports team
• Moving from the sport of AFL to hospitality
• Working from the ground up as a cleaner, moving from one department to another, until reaching the top as a CEO
• Flip and Decide
• The impact of playing sports earlier in life on his leadership style and decision making
• Moving to the UK and becoming CEO of a large organisation
• Hospitality at its heart is about people
• Humanity driving real success
• Finding joy and satisfaction in helping others
• Grind Academy
• Training your mental scales
• Leaders who make quick decisions

Tweets

“Simply flip a coin. It’s a form of metacognition, is what psychologists call it. It short circuits your doubt.” Rob Paterson on stopping that vicious cycle that reduces your chance of making a decision on the Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast. 

“You either destroy the play off the field or you get destroyed, which happened plenty of times to me. But I like that I drew a lot of confidence from being able to make those really quick decisions, snap decisions, and feel confident about it and go with it and brought that into my life inadvertently.” The impact of sports on his leadership skills with Rob Paterson on the Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast.

“I did cleaning bathrooms and clean the floor and I spent a year there moving through various departments in the housekeeping space … I think that helped me in good stead throughout my career because there was probably never anything I asked anyone to do that I hadn’t done myself.” Humble beginnings working his way through to the top with Rob Paterson on the Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast. 

Resources Mentioned in this show:

Rob Paterson www.therobpaterson.com
Rob Paterson Linkedin
Craig Johns www.craigjohns.com.au
Craig Johns craig@nrg2perform.com
Craig Johns LinkedIn
Craig Johns Facebook
Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast
NRG2Perform www.nrg2perform.com

Book:

Flip and Decide With Confidence Book Link