There are hundreds of great communicators in today's world who speak on the subject of leadership.  Everyone has their own preferences as to who and what style they enjoy hearing.  I personally enjoy those who speak in the following fashion:

• Concise Language. They pack a lot of information into as few a words as possible.  I love leaders who are Tweetable.
• Clarity. This makes their thoughts understandable and easily transferrable to others I may be leading.
• Intensity. I enjoy leaders who convey a sense of urgency.
• Focus On Results. I want to listen to people who help equip me to accomplish my God-given calling and assignments.
• Timeless. Trends come and go but truth is timeless. I enjoy leaders who if I read their thoughts in 10 years, the principles are still relevant.

John Maxwell is my spiritual hero and favorite all-time leadership speaker. However, the following are currently the 10 people to whom, when they speak on leadership, I listen:

Pastors

• Bill Hybels. To read Bill's thoughts from the last two Leadership Summits, click here, here and here.
• Bryan Loritts. If you are unfamiliar with Bryan, click here to receive his amazing session notes from Catalyst '13.  I feel Bryan will be the next great national Christian speaker on the subject of leadership.
• Carey Nieuwhof . Carey writes the finest Christian leadership blog on the web.  He is also an amazing speaker which you will learn by clicking here, here and here.
• Perry Noble. Perry is one of my favorite speakers because of the sheer transparency in which he deals with leadership issues. Click here and here to see what I am talking about. Warning—fasten your seat belt and get ready to be challenged.
• Andy Stanley. Andy is the world's greatest communicator of leadership principles.  Click here, here and here and see if you don't agree.
• Rick Warren. My favorite Ted Talk ever was conducted by Pastor Rick (shown above). Click here to read his comments which impacted the lives of thousands of business leaders across the globe.

Sports

• Tom Brady. If this name surprises you, read the hotlink on his name as well as the 9 leadership quotes listed below from his July 25th ESPN interview.
• Urban Meyer. Coach Meyer motivating style is absolutely captivating.  Click here and here to read what I am referring to.
• Louis Riddick. This ESPN studio analyst is my favorite leadership communicator currently.  If you are not following Louis on Twitter, do so today.  Click here for the most unique and insightful leadership insights I have come across this calendar year.
• Nick Saban. Arguably the greatest recruiter in college football history, this four-time national championship head coach is obviously a master communicator.  Click here for his comments from this past week's SEC media tour.

Bonus – Business

• Seth Godin. Seth is never short on brilliant insights.  Click here and here for examples.

ESPN July 25th Interview with Tom Brady:

1. The World Is Run By Tired Leaders. "The hard part about training camp is once you wear down it's hard to recover because you're at it six days a week."
2. Leaders Must Continually Improve. "Every year has its challenges in different ways...You always got to work on something."
3. Leaders Constantly Evaluate. "It's a real benefit to our offense knowing what guys are capable of, knowing the skill set they have to compete at an NFL level."
4. A Leaders' Confidence Flows From Their Memory. "That's the difference between a rookie year and a second year. Guys have done it, proved it, and now you have confidence going into the next season that we're actually good at some things. And those are the things you want to build on. "
5. Leaders Are Dealers Of Hope. "Everyone's got a lot of hope this time of year."
6. Leaders Must Be Disciplined And Work Hard. "Everyone's always in the middle and you really don't know what kind of team you are until November or December when the mental toughness of the team, the discipline, the work ethic of the team has taken ahold."
7. Leaders Sense And Seize Opportunity. "The most important one (year of your career) is this year, because that's all we have."
8. Leaders Prepare Or Repair. "A lot of luck and a lot of great education from some really important people in my life that have taught me how to take care of myself, how to prepare myself mentally and physically for what we're up against. It's probably not what a lot of people do. It's probably not the norm for most players. But it's what's worked for me." – on keeping a high level of commitment
9. The Most Successful Leaders Have A Deep Passion For What They Do. "I made a commitment to myself because I love the game; I want to play for a long time. There's nothing else I'd rather do. I make a commitment in the season and the offseason to do that. It's a fun thing for me. It's not like working out is a very hard thing, coming out and playing football in the middle of May is a hard thing. I love doing it."

Now you know why Tom Brady is on the list ... as well as the other 10 leaders listed above. What leaders inspire and equip you the most?

Brian Dodd's daytime job is as a generosity architect and leadership consultant for INJOY Stewardship Solutions. During the last 10+ years, he has spent each day having one-on-one conversations with many of the greatest church leaders in America. He also also has over 25 years of church volunteer and staff experience. Check out his blog, Brian Dodd on Leadership.

For the original article, visit briandoddonleadership.com.

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