John Mackey is the co-founder and longtime CEO of Whole Foods. But at the starting of its activity it was called in a different way. And it wasn’t meant as a compliment: Wacky Mackey.
The name was coined by one of its co-founders to mock Mackey’s lifestyle. To his doubters, Mackey gave the look of an unserious leader in an increasingly serious business. He began his company at the age of 24, having never taken a business class. He meditated, took psychedelics, and had many spiritual pursuits. He looked like a long-haired hippie. And while Mackey liked who he was, skeptics ate him up. He wondered if he could grow into a fully respected leader while still remaining himself.
In the end, of course, he won – he built and ran Whole Foods for 44 years until his retirement in 2022. His rude co-founder had left the company a long time earlier. Mackey describes all this and more in his recent book: The whole story. “I wanted to convey to other entrepreneurs that this is a journey,” he says. “You have to grow each personally and as a leader, as fast as the business. If you do not do it, they may throw you out.” Here, he explains the best way to turn out to be the leader your organization needs – without compromising your values.
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