John F. Bates, Esq. is the most influential man in my life. He gave me his name, and along with my Mom, he gave me what I believe is a great foundation for life. A number of people have told me he's the best contract attorney in Utah, where he practices, and he's got a deep commitment to fairness and justice. At 17 years old he enlisted in the Marine Corp. and the rest, as they say, is history.
He was deployed to Vietnam in April 1965 and medevaced to Okinawa in August 1965, where he was appointed the non-lawyer legal officer for FMFPAC (forward) until being released to the US in December 1965.
After being temporarily medically retired from the USMC in 1968, he subsequently received an honorary medical discharge. I personally remember how sad he was because, as he said "I'd rather carry the garbage for the Marine Corp than be the most powerful CEO in the world!" But, even as he dealt with the great physical challenges from his Vietnam experience, he went on to get his law degree. He graduated from the University of Utah in 1971 at age 30, with gratitude to the GI Bill.
He then worked in the oil and gas industry, running the legal department for a large multinational company until he decided to hang out his own shingle and go into business for himself. He got his MBA in 1993 & LLM in 1997.
In this episode, we discuss the many lessons he took from his time in the service and the many ways those lessons shaped his leadership style and philosophy.
I know I'm biased, but this is a very fun ride and I hope you enjoy hearing from the most influential hero in my life.
Here is a link to the poem we discuss in the podcast. Enjoy!
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John Bates provides 1:1 Executive Communications Coaching, both in-person and online, as well as large and small group training.
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