What do you do when the door won’t open? For Lintao “LT” Lu, the answer changed his life: you build your own building. In this episode, Kate sits down with LT, founder of NAVAC and author of In Through the Window, to talk about resilience, humor, and leading across cultures.
LT traces his path from a childhood during China’s Cultural Revolution to a career spanning engineering, marketing, and the C-suite in both the US and China. He shares how humor defuses the pressure cooker of corporate life, why laughing at yourself is the fastest way to build trust on a team, and how a closed door taught him to stop waiting and start building something new.
Themes covered: leadership development, resilience, cross-cultural leadership, workplace humor, authentic leadership, and humor in leadership.
About Lintao Lu
LINTAO (LT) LU is a multilingual global executive, a successful entrepreneur, and a trailblazer in the industry. Born in rural China during the Cultural Revolution, he rose from poverty to lead international businesses, secure seven US patents, and build industry-leading brands in both B2C and B2B businesses. With deep expertise in product innovation and cross-cultural leadership, Lu brings a rare global perspective to both business and mentorship. He resides in New Jersey.
Connect with LT: Website | LinkedIn | The Book
Free Private Podcast Series: Boundaries Over Burnout
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- Two Truths and a Lie: How Heart-Led Leadership Beats Burnout with Isabelle Tremblay, for the shared thread of resilience and what happens when you keep waiting at a door that isn’t opening
- Work Happy: Why Humor is the Gateway to Mental Health at Work with Greg Kettner, given the overlap on humor as the pressure valve in corporate life
