Transformation During Crisis | Simon Leslie | 465

Imagine running a $100,000,000 company that produces airline magazines. Great, right? But then came the Covid era in 2020. When the world literally brings your company to a standstill, how do you move forward? Today, I'm talking with Simon Leslie, the co-founder and CEO of Ink Global, a media company that connects brands with global audiences. Simon is also the author of several books, including, There is No F in Sales: A Book About Selling in Every Market Condition and Equanimity: The Diary of a CEO in Crisis. We start our conversation by talking about Simon's first book, There is No F in Sales, which shines a light on his years of sales experience. Publishing the book brought a new level of credibility to his thought leadership, allowing Simon to take bigger steps in telling the story of his business to wider audiences. As if the world wanted to put his book to the ultimate test, the pandemic ground his business to a halt. Still, that didn't stop Simon. He shares how a series of conversations with other business leaders, meant to inspire his team, caused the spark that turned into his third book, Equanimity. Like many good stories of hardship, Simon's ends with an epic comeback! With courage, Ink Global made a huge transformation, heavily investing in digital technology and leading the way to new horizons. Now their content can be found on screens at gates, bars, and restaurants of airports around the world. Plus Simon explains how they feed their content into passengers' social media, based on their travels, to connect brands with audiences in an all-new way. Three Key Takeaways: * Being a visible thought leader for your company allows you to tell the story of your brand on stages you might never get invited to. * Don't look at your business and think "we are doing ok". A handful of good or bad deals is all that separates failure and success. * Have the courage to keep moving forward and transform when needed.