The Dáil - Irish Houses of Parliament

It was a great experience touring the House of Parliament, witnessing several live debates.  However, I regret to say that no pictures were allowed to be taken inside...

Iveagh House - Department of a Foreign Affairs and Trade

We were able to tour the Iveagh House, where the Department of a Foreign Affairs and Trade is located.  It was built in 1736 and inaugurated in 1939.  It was originally donated by the Guinness family; and it was absolutely incredible inside. 

We were also able to sit down with Searle Brennan at the Department of International Affairs and Trade and disguss Ireland's current strategy regarding foreign affairs and international trade as to grow their economy.  Ireland is continually striving to increase international trade and implement policies that attract new businesses, with a focus on startups.  A few of the efforts mentioned were tax policy favoring businesses, streamlining the visa process to make it easier and quicker, and expanding their Embassy Network.  Ireland, being an island, greatly depends on international business, and with the US contributing to 72% of foreign investment, Ireland's next US-based Embassy (Consulate) is planned to be located in Austin, TX. 

There are definitely similarities in both business and government.  Research and collaboration leads to strategies.  Once strategies are in place, it takes time to identify if the desired results are being received, then adjustments are made, if necessary.  In both cases, you don't always get it right the first time, but you keep trying until you do.  Moreover, the surrounding environments are continually changing, so strategies must be adjusted, as needed.

Bewley's Cafe

Bewley's Cafe for breakfast. 

Relocating to University College of Dublin and Leader Presentations

I was very impressed with each leader's presentation and enjoyed hearing about their experiences of both successes and failures.  An observation I made, was that each of them are successful because they learned from their mistakes and failures and were determined to keep trying.  There are some very valuable lessons learned when a person fails, and are usually not repeated.

They advised to be selective when choosing partners, investors, and employees.  Moreover, they recommended recruiting people for their passion, expertise, and opinions.  This same advice includes selection of investors; that is, choose investors that will provide a value to the company as a board member.  Otherwise, they may solely be there to protect their investment.  Board members should be proactively engaged and willing to challenge the CEO in order to help steer the company in the right direction.

As a CEO, it is important to have a trusting, ally type relationship with the chairman of the board.  By doing this, the chairman can help prepare the board for bad news, if needed, prior to the CEO informing them.

In addition, as a leader, whether it be a CEO or some other type of leadership position, you must communicate with those you lead.  This includes time of good news, bad news, or no news.  By saying nothing, you are communicating something...  

Openness + Honesty = Loyalty

Out the dorm window. 

My own bedroom! -Dorm room

One of the leaders speaking. 

We had a little finger pointing going on, but we made up :P

Went for a stroll around the campus. 

Irish Football Game

Enjoyed a little Irish Football (Soccer) game!  The group has a great dynamic and we have all seemed to meshed well.

Howth Harbor

Ireland is such a beautiful, scenic country.

 

Ireland's Eye from Howth Harbour. 

I thought the "Broncos" orange algae was fitting :)

I talked the group into checking out a church in Howth by the name of Church of the Assumption, Howth. 

This may have been inappropriate, but thought it would be fun to get a picture of me coming out of the confession booth.

Guinness Factory Tour

The tour of the Guinness Storehouse was really cool.  However, as a non beer drinker, I cannot tell you how good the Guinness actually tasted, or how good it tasted in comparison to a bottle of it in the States. :)

Who is the guy drinking the diet coke at the Guinness Factory? :)

Kilmainham Gaol

Kilmainham Goal is a former prison in Dublin that was built in 1796.  Public hangings took place out front of this prison.

Stop in London, England

I scheduled my flights with an 8 hr. flight delay in London so that I could spend a few hours site seeing downtown.

Big Ben

Buckingham Palace - getting ready for changing of the guards. 

London Eye

Trafalgar Square

Leadership Traits

I found Jan Rutherford's book, The Littlest Green Beret, inspirational on many levels.  I think that each of us have aspirations and insecurities and through our experiences and trials, we have the opportunity to overcome our weaknesses and become extraordinary leaders.

I believe identifying and studying leaders allows us to identify the character traits that set leaders apart from the pack.  Then the hard work beings... requiring discipline, determination, and sacrifice as we ask ourselves the hard questions and make the changes within ourselves.