071: I Like Folks That Don’t Think Like Me!

George Geissler is a Certified Forester and has been a member of the Society of American Foresters since 1987. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Forest Management from Louisiana State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard University. George currently works as a State Forester and is the Director of the Forestry Services Division in Oklahoma. On today’s show, George offers some words of wisdom on what he wished he had learned sooner in his career, why he decided to get his MBA, and why he loves to hire those who think much differently than he!

 

Key Takeaways:

[:55] A message from Leadership Nature.

[1:40] A quick intro about George’s background.

[4:10] How did George become interested in forestry?

[6:30] Despite the many years George has been in forestry, he still gets family members not understanding 100% what he does!

[8:50] How does George educate others about Oklahoma’s diverse forestry?

[10:55] What makes Oklahoma’s forest so unique?

[16:25] Why did George decide to get an MBA at Harvard during his forestry career?

[18:50] What is the leadership like on a corporate level?

[23:30] What is the hardest part about having a job like this?

[25:35] You need to look at things with a different perspective and you do that by hiring people who don’t think like you.

[28:20] What is George most proud of in his career?

[34:25] Great communicators are often truly passionate people in what they’re doing.

[35:00] What does George wish he’d learned sooner in his career?

[39:05] What advice does George have for young professional foresters?

[41:40] George and his team make it a priority to maintain and enhance a learning department in their office. Learning never stops.

[43:40] George shares his favorite quote!

 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Forestry.ok.gov

Apollo 13