Dean Fealk on Becoming a Citizen Statesperson - Chief Influencer - Episode # 009

Dean Fealk is the Co-Managing Partner of DLA Piper, founding member of the Halifax International Security Forum, Co-Founder of Transatlantic West, and Co-author of the Wall Street Journal Best-selling book Impact the World, a motivational guide to becoming a superpowered individual committed to improving your community―and the world―through your values and actions. Dean shares how he defines being a “citizen statesperson” and how everyone can make an impact on the world by adopting this framework.
Takeaways: A citizen statesperson refers to a civic-minded person that wants to drive change and use the incredible technological tools at their disposal to do more. They want to affect meaningful change both at home and abroad. Anyone can raise their hand and decide that being a citizen statesperson is a role that they want to play in their community and in the world. And it's not something you have to wait for someone else to bestow upon you. You don't always have to be the expert in the room. If you're the one who listens and synthesizes what the experts say that sometimes is one of the most valuable things that you can contribute to a conversation. If you notice that there is not a group focused on fixing a specific issue, it’s up to you to start that initiative. Even if you’re not an expert on a topic, you still have valuable experiences and insights that you can bring to be part of the solution.  There is immense value in being the person that brings leaders together, no matter the size of the group. For example, Dean shared how bringing together Bay Area CEOs to meet the Mayor of Seoul, South Korea led to the start of many new initiatives.  Seek out young voices and listen to them for inspiration as they have a different way of viewing the world. 
Quote of the Show:“It's never too late to be a citizen statesperson.” - Dean Fealk
Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dean-fealk-79a611/  DLA Piper Website: https://www.dlapiper.com/en-us  Impact The World: https://www.impacttheworldbook.com/book