634: Tom Nolan (CEO of Kendra Scott) - 2% Moments, Setting Big Goals, Being Unbalanced, Moving Fast, Coaching High Performers, & Going Through Hard Things Together

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Ryan Hawk

Careers, Management, Business

4.8 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 11 May 2025

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Learning Leader Show with Ryan Hawk

Go to www.LearningLeader.com for full show notes.

This is brought to you by Insight Global. If you need to hire 1 person, hire a team of people, or transform your business through Talent or Technical Services, Insight Global's team of 30,000 people around the world have the hustle and grit to deliver. Go to www.InsightGlobal.com/LearningLeader

Notes

"Average players want to be left alone. Good players want some coaching. Great players want the truth."
It is not a company’s job to give work-life balance to someone. And he is not balanced. He’s on 24/7. It was refreshing to hear the real story from someone who is running a company. As Dr. Julie Gurner said on episode #538, “People will tell you in books that you have to live a 'balanced life,' but if we are completely honest, almost all great things are born from periods of imbalance.”
Make the most of your 2% moments. 98% of the time, life is just happening… But every once in a while, you’ll have the 2% opportunities. Like when he met his wife, or interviewed with Kendra Scott. It’s on us as leaders to be ready to make the most of those 2% moments.
Tom's relationship with Kendra: “We’ve been through so many hard things together.” Those hard times can forge a strong relationship, or they can break you. Remember that the next time you’re going through something tough with someone else. It’s an opportunity to fortify a relationship.
Hiring - Play your position well. Know what you're good at. Don't have to like teammates, but do need to love them. Learn from mistakes.
Work is like family. But you don't fire your family... Discipline comes from a place of love.
Read: The Way of the Shepherd
Goal maniac - After failing at his first job interview, he asked for another shot and showed up the next day with pages of goals.
Tom's Strengths - immediate urgency, insatiable need to win, good problem solver, better when things are hard.
How do you navigate slow walkers? It's hard. Need patience and thoughtfulness too.
What are the must-haves to be hired as a leader with Tom? Good human. Win + Kindness + Compassion.
Tom claims that he is not a good interviewer. Gets help from the team. It is a rigorous process.
- He wants people who have gone through hard things. "Living through struggle makes people better." Grit.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This episode is brought to you by my friends at Insight Global. Insight Global is a staffing and
0:07.2	professional services company dedicated to providing amazing people to their clients and
0:13.3	taking great care of them. If you need to hire one person, hire a team of people, or transform
0:19.5	your business through talent or technical services,
0:23.9	Insight Global can get you the people you need and help you develop them to reach their full
0:29.7	potential.
0:31.2	Developing your people can be tough, but having productive employees can be magic.
0:37.5	Visit Insightglobal.com slash learning leader.
0:41.6	That's insightglobal.com slash learning leader to learn more.
0:49.8	Welcome to the Learning Leader Show.
0:53.5	I am your host, Ryan Hawk. Thank you so much for being here.
0:57.9	If you'd like to see the show notes for this and all episodes, go to learningleader.com.
1:03.7	Now on to tonight's featured leader. Tom Nolan is the CEO of Kendra Scott, a leading jewelry and accessories brand based in Austin, Texas.
1:14.2	With over 20 years of experience in brand building, management, and strategic planning,
1:19.8	Tom oversees the day-to-day business and strategy of the 3,200 employee, multi-billion dollar company.
1:29.0	During our conversation, we discussed why Kendra Scott specifically
1:33.8	chose Tom to be the CEO of her company.
1:37.6	Then Tom talks about 2% moments in life
1:40.7	and how to make the most of them.
1:43.3	And then he shared, potentially a spicy spicy take why a company is not responsible for work
1:50.6	life balance.
1:51.8	And then he shares the impact that setting ambitious goals has had on him and what they
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