Where do I start with this extraordinarily rich conversation on Tuesday afternoon between a former Colorado governor and the future governor?
Phil Weiser will be sworn in as governor in January, of course, and he was posing the questions to Roy Romer, the governor from 1987 until 1999. The agenda at the gathering, which was held at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, called for Romer to provide advice to Wieser about leadership.
Romer, who is now 98, told Weiser that one of the most crucial things a good leader can do is honor criticism, even solicit criticism, and to listen, listen, listen. He also said that it was important to be open to new ideas. “You’ve got to be open to new truths,” he said. To illustrate that, he told about how, at the age of 60, he opened himself up to gay people…