I had the pleasure of interviewing Andrew Horberry, a Toastmaster and leader from Toronto Ontario Canada. I first met Andrew when he reached out to personally invite me to be a Toastmasters Area Director for District 60 when he was serving as District 60 Director.

Stepping Into Leadership

In our interview we discussed leadership and what it means to Andrew. We also discussed his first foray into leadership. What Andrew told me is that his first leadership position was when he became second in command when he was in Cubs as a kid. He also told me that he didn’t want to continue on as a Scout, but someone came to his house to convince him to be a Scout.

The main thing I learned about Andrew from his stories of his early leadership experience is that he doesn’t seek leadership, but he will step in to fill a gap. This means that Andrew is a real leader because he is not concerned with power or prestige. Instead, he leads when he feels it is necessary to support others.

Overcoming Challenges

I asked Andrew what his greatest challenges have been as a leader. He immediately said that self doubt is his biggest challenge. I understand this completely. I too doubt myself and question my effectiveness as a leader. By owning up to this it tells me that Andrew is a self-aware leader and that he doesn’t let self doubt stop him.

Another challenge Andrew mentioned is that in the past he has thought that working in teams was rather odd. He was used to individual work, not teamwork, but Andrew has now served as a district leader for Toastmasters, including serving as District 60 Director, and he is currently serving as a Toastmasters International Director. This tells me that Andrew now understands the value of teamwork.

Leadership Growth

Another topic we discussed was what has contributed to Andrew’s growth as a leader. His answer is that a past marketing job he had in London England contributed significantly to his growth.

One way that this job impacted him was that he had to work in several different departments in just three months, and he got to focus on strategy while working for this company. This job also had him as an observer taking minutes during meetings, where he got to listen carefully and to understand what was being discussed while not having the opportunity to speak himself.

Another significant growth event for Andrew was moving to Canada. He moved to Canada as a member of the company he was working for, where he was tasked with starting a new branch of the company in Toronto.

Continuing to Grow

We also talked about what Andrew is currently doing to grow as a leader, and the biggest way he is currently growing as a leader is by serving as a Toastmasters International Director. This has Andrew contributing beyond his district and it means he has more of a global impact on the Toastmasters organization. It also gives him a better understanding of the global organization that is Toastmasters International.

Andrew also learns and grows by serving as honorary secretary for the St. Andrews Society of Toronto. This is an organization that has been celebrating Scottish culture and supporting local charities since 1836.

Andrew is also an active volunteer for Concerts in Care Ontario. This is an organization that delivers professional concerts to Canada’s most vulnerable aging population – a sector society consistently undervalues and neglects.

Advice for Other Leaders

I asked Andrew what is the best piece of advice that he would have for someone who aspires to be a leader. His answer is that you need to understand there are different types of leadership, and that you need to identify your own style of leadership. He also talked about how different people have different thinking styles and that you need to adapt your leadership style to each person or group you are working with.

For example, he shared how he has found that managers, accountants, and creative people see value in different things. What a manager could focus on and see as important could be entirely different from what a creative person values. This means that you need to adapt your leadership and communication approach with each person based on how they see the world.

As for his own leadership style, Andrew told me that he is a pace setting leader. I asked ChatGPT to define this leadership style for me, and it says that the pace-setting leadership style is a leadership approach in which the leader sets very high standards for performance and expects others to match their level of speed, quality, and productivity. Rather than directing every step, the leader leads by example and demonstrates what excellence looks like.

Choosing Leadership

When I asked Andrew what made him enter the field in which he is successful in, he said it was because he was fascinated by what makes people change their minds. I understood this to mean that he finds it deeply interesting when people change their minds about some deep held beliefs. An example he mentioned is that slavery used to be an expected norm in society, but society changed and now slavery is unacceptable.

I also asked him about any mentors he had, and he mentioned how a university professor had a significant impact on his career trajectory. This professor, who was the head of the Social and Economic History department, saw value in Andrew and suggested that Andrew pursue a joint honors degree in politics and social economic history. This helped to shape Andrew’s path at university and it has impacted who he is today.

Daily Learning and Self-Improvement

We concluded the interview by discussing what daily learning and self-improvement habits that Andrew has. He told me that he has his schedule on his computer as the first thing he sees when he signs on to his computer every day. This helps him to stay focused on what matters most.

Andrew also believes in the importance of health. He exercises for an hour every day, which includes group exercise. This helps to give him a strong foundation of health to lead from.

Andrew also enjoys exercising his mind by reading books. He also enjoys playing Wordle, which is a game that challenges you to identify words from a small set of clues.

Books that have shaped Andrew’s leadership journey include “Collaborative Intelligence” by Richard Martin, which focuses on working with people who think differently. He has also read “The Visual Display of Quantitative Information” by Edward Tufte, which explores effective ways to present data visually. Another book, “The Culture Code” by Daniel Coyle, examines the elements needed to create high-functioning teams. And a fourth book, “Bowling Alone” by Robert Putnam, discusses the decline of social groups and community engagement in modern society.

Conclusion

Andrew Horberry is a great leader and a supportive Toastmaster. He doesn’t pursue leadership titles. Instead, he steps up to fill a gap when he sees one and he serves as a leader to support people and organizations he cares about. This makes him a true leader and someone worth knowing.