Win Before You Begin

This week let’s step to the starting line, and learn how great leaders handle beginnings. How do they begin in ways that lead to extraordinary results? One key might be how they win before they begin… 

Table of Contents

• THE ULLMEN INSIGHT: Simple daily math for you as a leader: Subtract the minus, add a plus.

• THE ULLMEN TRIO: Guests: Agatha Christie and Luciano Pavarotti

• THE TRIO TAKEAWAYS: Lessons learned

• THE TRIPLE PLAY: An exercise to sharpen our leadership skills

THE ULLMEN INSIGHT

John Wayne offered a way to look at beginnings, by reminding us they happen every day:

I love how he combines a fresh start with constructive continuity, remembrance with renewal. 

The lesson: let go of what has hindered, but hang onto what has helped. 

Don’t lug old baggage.  Travel light - and with “motive to grow” as a carry-on. 

It’s simple daily math for you as a leader: Subtract the minus, add a plus.

Even if yesterday didn’t go well, finish its chapter with a cliffhanger: “Sure, THIS went wrong, and despite everything, I can’t wait to try THAT tomorrow.”

Your THAT is a realization, a tool, a lesson, a different strategy, a new idea. 

To make today a little better than it would have been, add something to the same old thing.

I’m trying it now, by sharing The Duke’s advice. 

It’s easy, it’s motivating, it’s fun. 

So… begin with a win! Apply yesterday’s lesson today. Then today’s, tomorrow. 

Make this practice a daily ritual, and a way to improve your other beginnings too: How you start a meeting, a presentation, an interaction. A new project, job, or career. How you begin the week, the month, the year. 

And it all starts…yesterday.

THE ULLMEN TRIO

Every week, John holds an imagined conversation on our theme. This week’s carefully selected guests: Agatha Christie and Luciano Pavarotti

John Ullmen:

Welcome Agatha, Luciano. You are both luminous leaders of your fields. Tell us, in what ways are beginnings important to each of you?

Agatha Christie: 

For me, as a storyteller, a beginning has the weight of the entire tale resting upon i!. If you don’t intrigue your reader or your audience straightaway, you've lost them—and there's no recovering from that. A mystery is only as good as the way it begins. If you can make them lean forward on the first page and in the first chapter, you’ve done half your job.

Let me share an example that still sticks with me. When I began writing The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, I had this rather revolutionary idea: what if the narrator—someone the reader instinctively trusts—was the murderer? It was daring for its time, and, truth be told, I had my doubts. Would it work? Would it even be fair? But before putting pen to paper, I delved into every possible way to make it fair to the reader. The clues would be there, the logic would be flawless. Once I had that, I could write with confidence. 

Why was that beginning so important? It taught me that preparation doesn’t just mean knowing where the first step will land. It means understanding the broader picture—a structure that enables you to take risks. Preparation gives you courage. And with that, I found a sense of liberation as a writer. That lesson has followed me in every story since then.

Beginnings are also personal. When I’m not writing mysteries, I like to think of life as a series of small reinventions—each day a chance to start something new. My travels on archaeological digs taught me that. You arrive in an unfamiliar place, start afresh, and piece together fragments of another world. And isn’t that the essence of all great starts? Piecing together a vision, a foundation—and then leaping into the unknown.

Luciano Pavarotti:  

I must say, Agatha, I love that idea—the importance of clarity, foundation, and boldness. It touches something universal. For me, a beginning is power. The first notes out of my mouth set the tone for every note that follows. In singing, the first breath, the first sound—it is everything.

Let me tell you a story of where I learned this the hard way. Early in my career, when I was just starting to perform internationally, I was invited to sing Rodolfo in La Bohème. It was my debut in London, and I felt the pressure. I rehearsed endlessly, focusing on every note in the first aria, Che gelida manina. It’s such an iconic moment; if you don’t nail it, the magic is gone. But the problem wasn’t technical—it was emotional. I was so terrified of failing that my heart wasn’t in it. It was … mechanical, sterile. Afterward, my mentor said, “Luciano, the greatest beginning is not perfect. It is honest.”

From that day on, I shifted my preparation. Before stepping onto a stage, I have a ritual. I hold a moment of stillness—an inner silence—and remind myself to surrender to the music. I focus on one thing: connection. Not perfection, connection. And when I opened my heart to audiences from the very first note, that is when my career truly began. The music resonated not only in my voice but also in theirs.  

Good beginnings demand care, yes, but they also demand vulnerability. To prepare well, you must prepare to feel—and to trust that what you have inside will carry you through. That is where the extraordinary begins…

John Ullmen:  

Thank you both for that.  Tell me, how can we get better at beginning things, in ways that lead to more success specifically as leaders?

THE TRIO TAKEAWAYS

THE TRIPLE PLAY

As an exercise to sharpen our leadership skills here every week, we draw inspiration from and explore three things from experiencing our Trio Guests.  Great Leaders always seek to identify:

1. Similarities

2. Differences

3. New creative possibilities

Here’s my take this week:

1. Something THEY SHARE:

They both understood the power of "brand" even before it was a mainstream concept. Christie carefully cultivated her "Queen of Crime" persona, maintaining a certain image and mystique. Pavarotti, with his signature handkerchief and booming personality, became a global icon, instantly recognizable. They both intuitively grasped the importance of a strong, consistent public image.

2. Something THEY SEE DIFFERENTLY:

Preferred form of Storytelling. Christie preferred a tightly woven plot driven by logic and deduction defines her excellence storytelling. Pavarotti favored emotional expression through music, e.g., arias, high Cs, and dramatic performances, can tell a more powerful story beyond the words on the page.

3. Something new THEY MIGHT CREATE TOGETHER:

Give it a try! What's something great they could do together?

To help you exercise your own leadership creativity, imagine these two guests were alive today and joined forces to create something new. 

What would it be?

I’ll share one of my favorites next week, and I welcome yours in the meantime!

Send me your thought at [email protected]

Here, for example, is a possibility created from last week’s guests: Nelson Mandela and Georgia O’Keeffe:

An imagined collaboration:

Virtual Reality Experience: “Walk in Their Shoes.” An VR simulation where people can step into Mandela’s Robben Island prison cell, hear his reflections, and then journey into O’Keeffe’s desert landscapes to learn how connecting to creativity and resilience can change one’s perspective on the world. It’s an immersive experience in how different types of creative courage can inspire positive change. 

Until next week…

Let’s make things better,

John