Coaching For Leaders

Scott Anthony Barlow: Happen to Your Career Scott Anthony Barlow is the founder of Happen to Your Career. He’s been featured on CNBC, Yahoo, CareerBuilder, Fast Company, and Huffington Post and various colleges and universities as a top expert on career happiness. He's held executive roles in human resources, business development, and career coaching. Scott is the host of the Happen to Your Career podcast, featuring the career stories of many successful professionals. He and his team have worked with over 25,000 people to help them stop settling, find their signature strengths, and start doing meaningful work they are enamored with. Key Points Many people frame career choices only as, “Should I take this offer or not?” or, “Should I quit this job and go and get another?” Skills are not necessarily strengths. People who are successful and happier are spending more time in their strengths. Gallup’s StrengthsFinder assessment (now called CliftonStrengths) is a useful tool for getting clarity. Change to

Bonni Stachowiak: Teaching in Higher Ed Bonni Stachowiak is the host of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast, a professor of business and management at Vanguard University, and my life partner. Prior to her academic career, Bonni was a human resources consultant and executive officer for a publicly-traded company. She joins me monthly to respond to listener questions. Listener Questions Samantha asks about how to confront an employee who is not willing to take direction for her. Cathy is wondering how she can lead on a team where she does not have formal authority. Amir is seeking advice on how to step into a director role with confidence and managing former peers. Kelly asks about responding to stakeholders who give suggestions when it doesn’t align with organizational strategy. Resources Mentioned Let's Get Real or Let's Not Play* by Mahan Khalsa, Randy Illig, and Stephen R. Covey Working Wardrobes* Related Episodes How to Manage Former Peers, with Tom Henschel (episode 257) How to Actuall

Sandie Morgan: Global Center for Women & Justice Sandie Morgan is the director of the Global Center for Women and Justice at Vanguard University of Southern California. She is recognized globally for her expertise on combatting human trafficking and working to end violence against women. Sandie is professor, researcher, and partner to many organizations and agencies across the globe including governments, law enforcement, and non-profits. Since 2011, she has hosted along with me the bimonthly Ending Human Trafficking podcast which was recognized by The National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth at the Department of Health and Human Services as a great way to “get up to speed on human trafficking.” Key Points Culture often changes from the top down. Engage “elites” who are outside of the centermost position of prestige. Find avenue of agreement instead of focusing on differences. Influence happens in exciting ways when the networks of elites and the institutions they lead overlap. Change will mean co

Pooja Agarwal: Powerful Teaching Pooja Agarwal is an expert in the field of cognitive science and is passionate about bridging gaps between education and the science of learning. She is the founder of RetrievalPractice.org and Assistant Professor at the Berklee College of Music, teaching psychological science to exceptional undergraduate musicians. She also serves as a consultant and facilitates professional development workshops on the science of learning around the world. Pooja is the author with Patrice Bain of the book Powerful Teaching: Unleash the Science of Learning*. In this conversation, Pooja and I discuss the key strategies that leaders can use in order to maximize their effectiveness as teachers. Since almost every leader is responsible for talent development in some capacity, becoming a more powerful teacher will help you develop others more successfully. Key Points The three stages of the learning process are encoding, storage, and retrieval. We tend to focus too much on getting information

Johanna Nalau: Climate Adaptation & Everyday Leadership Johanna Nalau is an adaptation scientist researching the ins and outs of climate change adaptation. She is an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow and the Adaptation Science Theme Leader at Cities Research Institute at Griffith University. She’s also the lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 6th Assessment Report, Working Group II. Johanna writes about climate adaptation and everyday leadership on her own blog and is an alum of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. In this conversation, Johanna and I discuss how she found her voice as a developing leader and how she took action through her writing and other professional activities to help others. Key Points Never underestimate the importance of having a group you can just bounce ideas off of. The most transformative way to build leadership is to start with the people below you who are the future leaders. Blogging is a great way to synthesize you thoughts while also being

Stacey Barr: Practical Performance Measurement Stacey Barr is a specialist in strategic performance measurement and evidence-based leadership. She is the creator of PuMP®, a performance measurement methodology that routinely transforms measurement cynics into its greatest advocates. Stacey is also the author of two books, Practical Performance Measurement: Using the PuMP® Blueprint for Fast, Easy, and Engaging KPIs*, and Prove It!: How to Create a High Performance Culture and Measurable Success*. In this conversation, Stacey and I discussed some of the common mistakes that leaders and organizations make with performance measurement. We also explore what well-formulated performance measures have. Plus, Stacey has kindly made her book available for free to our listening audience. Key Points Common mistakes in performance measurement: Initiatives are not performance measures Events or milestones are not performance measures Measures of activity completion are not performance measures Sources of data a

Safi Bahcall: Loonshots Safi Bahcall is a second-generation physicist and a biotech entrepreneur. He co-founded a biotechnology company developing new drugs for cancer, leading its IPO and serving as its CEO for 13 years. He worked with President Obama’s council of science advisors on the future of national research. Safi is the author of the book Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries*. In this conversation, Safi and I discuss how leaders can work intentionally to nurture new ideas through three key practices. If you are an innovator (or leading an innovation team) and hearing the voices of the naysayers, this framework will help you begin nurturing new ideas more successfully. Key Points A loonshot is a neglected project, widely dismissed, its champion written off as unhinged. The ice cube is an analogy for the soldiers and artists in the organization. This is called phase separation. The most effective leaders view their work as gardeners,

Bonni Stachowiak: Teaching in Higher Ed Bonni Stachowiak is the host of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast, a professor of business and management at Vanguard University, and my life partner. Prior to her academic career, Bonni was a human resources consultant and executive officer for a publicly traded company. She joins me monthly to respond to listener questions. Key Points Don’t spend time feeling guilty about things you have to cut. Focus on quality over quantity. Your priorities will change over time. Sometimes even good things can crowd out what is really important. Resources Mentioned The Checklist Manifesto* by Atul Gawande Getting Things Done* by David Allen TripIt PackPoint Ending Human Trafficking podcast Related Episodes How Storytelling Helps You Lead, with Sandie Morgan (episode 51) Getting Things Done, with David Allen (episode 184) How to Reduce Drama With Kids, with Tina Payne Bryson (episode 310) How to Be a Happier Person, with Neil Pasricha (episode 334) Dis

Kwame Christian: American Negotiation Institute Kwame Christian is a business lawyer and the Director of the American Negotiation Institute. His TEDx Talk, Finding Confidence in Conflict, was the most popular TED Talk on the topic of conflict of 2017. Today, he’s working extensively with procurement departments within companies to help them make better deals. Kwame hosts the top negotiation podcast, Negotiate Anything and is the author of the book Nobody Will Play With Me: How to Find Confidence in Conflict*. In this conversation, Kwame and I discuss walking into a negotiation situation when someone else has more leverage, power, or authority. Yes, there are still many things you can do to influence a positive outcome for both parties — and we detail several practical actions almost anybody can take. Key Points Preparation before entering into negotiation is essential. Research supports that you will do better, even if the tables are tilted to one side. Finding what is publicly available about the othe

Chris Deferio: Keys to the Shop Chris Deferio is a cafe quality specialist who has dedicated 20 years of his life to working in and studying specialty coffee retail. He is also the creator and host of the industry leading podcast, Keys to the Shop, which gives listeners insights, inspiration, and tools to grow as specialty coffee professionals. Chris previously appeared on the show to help us get more perspective on managing part-time staff. In this conversation, Chris and I explore some of the practical steps that small business owners and general managers can take in order to support employee retention. Key Points Be mindful of the realities of turnover in a small business, but don’t let it stop you from thinking about the future and investing in people. Yes, hire for attitude — and also have an eye to future potential as the business grows. Ask people this question in interviews: “Where did you contribute to dysfunction in your prior organization?” Make an investment in people beyond the paycheck

Bar Schwartz: Bring Your People Along Bar Schwartz is a member of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. She’s a software engineer by training and today a consultant and coach who lives and works in Berlin. Bar helps leaders to look differently on how they lead people to create meaningful work — and building structures that put people first. When Bar joined the Academy last year, she quickly set a goal to capture a few ideas in writing. This goal led to her writing a book in just a few short weeks. More importantly, she discovered the power of consistent movement in creating future opportunities. Bar has graciously made her book, Bring Your People Along, available as a free download for our listening community. If you decide to download the book, please reach out and let her know what was helpful to you. Key Points Your team will be more productive if it feels connected. It’s not hard to find questions if you listen. Small, manageable steps are more likely to lead to long-term success. Bonus Audio How

Hassan Osman: Effective Delegation of Authority Hassan is a project management office leader at Cisco, where he leads a team of over 150 project and program managers on delivering complex projects across the world. He’s also served as a management consultant at Ernst & Young (now EY), where he led projects and programs for the largest enterprises. He’s the author of Effective Delegation of Authority: A (Really) Short Book for New Managers About How to Delegate Work Using a Simple Delegation Process. In this episode, Hassan and I discuss the three stages of delegation, the critical importance of planning, and how to leverage delegation as a development opportunity. Also impressive is the ten books Hassan has published while working full-time as a manager at a Fortune 100 company. He teaches others how to do it on his Writer on the Side podcast. Key Points Before you begin the delegation process, decide on the outcomes you need and the right person to get you there. Set expectations for goals, not action

Bonni Stachowiak: Teaching in Higher Ed Bonni Stachowiak is the host of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast, a professor of business and management at Vanguard University, and my life partner. Prior to her academic career, Bonni was a human resources consultant and executive officer for a publicly traded company. She joins me monthly to respond to listener questions. Listener Questions Elizabeth asked about a tricky issue with an underperforming team member she inherited. Gordon wondered what he could do to support resilience during a time of massive change. Leona asked how she might think about the disconnect from what her organization espouses and what she sees in practice. Anthony was curious about when it’s appropriate to ask “why” and when it’s not. Resources Mentioned Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It … and Why the Rest Don’t* by Verne Harnish Scaling Up Growth Tools Analyzing Performance Problems* by Robert F. Mager and Peter Pipe Related Episodes How to Succeed with Leadership

Dave Stachowiak: Coaching for Leaders I am often asked about the tools and technology behind our work. As we’ve updated our systems over the past year, I’ve identified seven tools that may also be helpful for you in creating more margin. Used thoughtfully, tools like these help us automate the things we can automate so we can spend more time doing the things we should never automate. Here are seven that may help: Technology Tools to Create Margin Acuity Scheduling* powers our all our calendars and serves as a 24/7 scheduling assistant. Automated reminders, time zone adjustments, rescheduling, and video meeting integration happen seamlessly. TextExpander* saves us tons of time each day to quickly populate documents, emails, forms, and other repeatable typing so we can respond to others faster and with more accuracy. The link above will provide you a 20% discount. 1Password* helps us create unique and strong password for every account. Plus, there families and teams programs allow us to share passwords with

Ron Williams: Learning to Lead Ron Williams is a veteran business leader, turn-around expert, and advocate for value creation. Today he is chairman and CEO of RW2 Enterprises and also a member of the board of directors for American Express, The Boeing Company, and Johnson & Johnson. Ron is the former chairman and CEO of health insurance giant Aetna. When he joined Aetna in 2001, its loss from continuing operations was $292 million, with earnings per share at a loss of $0.46. In 2011, the year he stepped down as Chairman, Aetna’s full-year operating earnings were $2 billion, with operating earnings per share of $5.17. In this conversation, Ron shares wisdom from his book, Learning to Lead: The Journey to Leading Yourself, Leading Others, and Leading an Organization*. Ron discusses his own leadership journey and how he asked the right questions to inspire a successful turn-around at Aetna. He also shares the reason for avoiding “why” questions and the value that knowledge maps provided at Aetna. Key Points Ro

Jim Harter: It’s the Manager Jim Harter is the Chief Scientist for Workplace at Gallup. He has led more than 1,000 studies of workplace effectiveness, including the largest ongoing meta-analysis of human potential and business unit performance. He is the co-author with Jim Clifton of the new book, It’s the Manager: Gallup Finds That the Quality of Managers and Team Leaders is the Single Biggest Factor in Your Organization’s Long-Term Success*. Key Points Millennials and Generation Z have influenced the changing nature of work. Six key findings from Gallup: People don’t just work for a paycheck — they want a purpose. People are no longer pursuing job satisfaction — they are pursuing development. People don’t want bosses — they want coaches. People don’t want annual reviews — they want ongoing conversations. People don’t want a manager that fixates on their weaknesses. People say, it’s not my job — it’s my life. Resources Mentioned It's the Manager: Gallup Finds the Quality of Managers and Team

Oscar Trimboli: Deep Listening Oscar is a mentor, coach, speaker, and author. He was a director at Microsoft for over a decade and headed up the MS Office division in Australia. Today, he works with leadership teams and their organizations on the importance of clarity to create change, how to embrace the digital economy, and the role values play in the achievement of your purpose. He is the author of Deep Listening: Impact Beyond Words*. Key Points Listen beyond the words that are said and try to determine what the speaker is really trying to say. The more senior you are, the more listening you’ll do. Ask the speaker: “Tell me more” or “What else are you thinking?” or “How long have you been thinking about that?” To be a great listener, you have to create a space where you’re available to listen. For every hour you listen, you need to spend another hour in action. Leaders often are not great at hearing all the opinions in the room. Bonus Audio Three tips to becoming a better listener Resourc

Bonni Stachowiak: Teaching in Higher Ed Bonni Stachowiak is Dave’s life partner and best friend, business professor, past executive leader, and the host of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast. Listener Questions Brad asked about supporting a team member who’s being taken advantage of by someone else in the organization. Mark is wondering about how to help an existing team move on to being a high-performing team. Ashish asked about how to determine more in the interviewing process. Craig wanted perspective on how to be more visible. Resources Mentioned The Empowered Manager* by Peter Block Essentialism* by Greg Mckeown Related Episodes How to Deal with Opponents and Adversaries, with Peter Block The Path to Start Leading Your Team, with John Piñeiro Develop Leaders Before You Leave, with David Marquet How to Work With an Executive Recruiter, with Becky deSouza Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Becky deSouza: Conexus Talent Acquisition Solutions Becky is a partner with Conexus Talent Acquisition Solutions and has dedicated her career of 20+ years to developing effective solutions for Talent Development and Recruiting. Becky spent 11 years running DreamWorks Animation’s Corporate Recruiting team. Today she leads the human resources recruiting practice with Conexus. Key Points Recruiting firms can be regional, industry-specific, or functional. Look to your network for leads, but be careful when networking with your colleagues. Work to fully engage with your recruiter. Be honest with your recruiter, even if you aren’t totally ready to commit. Always keep your LinkedIn profile updated since it can serve as a type of resume. Make sure your web and social presence is consistent with the expectations of your desired job. Check your privacy settings on social media. Resources Mentioned Becky deSouza on LinkedIn Related Episodes How to Figure Out Your Career, with Scott Anthony Barlow

David Marquet: Turn the Ship Around! David Marquet is the former commander of the U.S.S. Santa Fe, a nuclear-powered attack submarine. Under David’s command, the ship had an impressive turnaround, achieving the highest retention and operational standings in the Navy. David is the author of the bestseller Turn the Ship Around: A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders, a book USA Today called one of the 12 best business books of all time. Key Points Accomplishment is the production, leadership is building production capacity in your team. Understanding the purpose of the organization is the key to unlocking empowerment. You’ll suffer the consequences of your behavior if you couple the behavior with the outcome. Resources Mentioned Turn the Ship Around: A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders* by David Marquet The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People* by Stephen R. Covey Book Notes Download my highlights from Turn the Ship Around! in PDF format (free membership required). Related Episod