Transformative Leadership Conversations with Winnie da Silva

Hi, Welcome to Season Two of Transformative Leadership Conversations, with me, your host, Winnie da Silva.

As an Executive Coach and Leadership Strategist for over twenty years, I believe leadership matters. I believe stories make a difference. And I believe we could all use some help and inspiration as leaders ourselves.

So, I’m thrilled to be back with you for another amazing line up of conversations with everyday leaders who are willing to share their stories of overcoming difficult challenges and the hard-earned wisdom and insight that can only come from experience.

Let’s get a peek into who we’ll get to hear from in Season 2 which kicks off on May 12th! 

· Jeehae Lee: is the Deputy CIO at Bridge Investment Group who is determined make room for people who might be perhaps less visible – her story about coming to this country as a kindergartener made me cry 

· Andy Stern and John Rigos: Seasoned Entrepreneurs who went from tech start-ups to putting their energy and passion into reinventing the hospitality fast casual restaurant industry 

· Kerel Cooper: the CMO of Live Intent AND the host of the podcast Minority Report which highlights people of color, women & LGBTQ+ community within business, media, and tech talks about his own career trajectory and the barriers he overcame.

· Christina Callas: the CDO of Total Wine talks about how the pandemic impacted her team and her family.

· Colin Hunter: the CEO of Potential Squared, the author of the upcoming book Be More Wrong and the host of the upcoming podcast with the same name – which both highlight success in failure and how it really does make you a better leader. You can imagine what we talked about Being Wrong - including his own stories and why this topic is close to his heart.

· Jeff Harry: is on a mission to build psychologically safe workplaces through positive psychology and play – you won’t want to miss this one – he becomes my play therapist right in the middle of our conversation! And you guessed it – our conversation is really fun!

· Guy Geier: the MP of FXCollaborative, an architecture firm in NYC; he reflects on his journey as a leader through many catastrophic events over the past 20 years.

· Ethan Frisch and Ori Zohar: Social Entrepreneurs who started Burlap & Barrel, the first comprehensive single origin spice company in the United States. You know what that means? The spices they sell are sold directly from the people who grow them – and they are AMAZING. My daughter Aradhana and I have used these fresh spices in our own cooking. 

· And lastly, but certainly not least, I talk with Gina L. Osborn: an Army Veteran and former FBI special agent and the host of the podcast Lead Like a Lady where she talks with other amazing women like her who have emerged as leaders in primarily male dominated fields. She’s a powerhouse of wisdom and boldness for women certainly – but really for everyone.

And somewhere in there, I’m also going to have a surprise “guest”; my grandfather. He died 35 years ago when I was in high school. But last year, I did some research with my Dad and I want to share with you his story too. And I’ll also offer some reflections sprinkled throughout the season.

I can’t wait to share these people and their stories with you. 

Thank you for supporting me and this podcast! 

As you listen to these conversations and felt its impact, could you tell someone about Transformative Leadership Conversations with Winnie da Silva? You can forward them this episode, post about it on social, or text someone who might be interested in listening. If you could share just once, I’d be grateful. 

Also feel free to reach out to me at https://www.winniedasilva.com to learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness.

Lastly, if you have your own story of overcoming a leadership challenge you’d like to share, please email me at [email protected] – maybe I’ll even have you on my show!

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Episode 11: Tell Me What You Really Think with Peter Axelson

Peter Axelson leads Garnet Consulting and has worked as an external consultant in training, coaching and organizational development for more than 35 years. Clients tell him that they bring him back because of his high standards for client service, his focus on behavioral change and business results and his very practical approach to helping people learn and grow. 

As I close out Season One, I wanted to take a look back and go a bit deeper on two important leadership themes that emerged from my previous guests: the stories we tell ourselves and asking for feedback.

In today’s episode we’re going to continue my conversation with Peter and talk about asking for feedback – the foundational tool for uncovering our blind spots, whether we are just starting out managing one person or especially as we advance in our career the feedback we receive usually declines just when we need it most. 

Before we dive into my conversation with Peter, let’s look back on a few episodes where my guests highlighted the importance of asking for feedback during their own leadership journey…

Kevin Halleran the EVP and CFO at Donahue Schriber

“I never realized how defensive I was and from there on out - I can't say I do it every time but it's certainly something I focus on; I've got to be willing to hear it, and not react. I’ve got to take what they say and I’ve got to digest it. And if I do that, I've taken time to reflect I've realized, there’s really truth to this. There’s something I've got to think about versus just giving them that gut reaction. If I'm defensive all the time and I don't let people give me feedback, they don't want to give it to me. They're saying, Oh yeah, everything's fine. How does that help me grow if I'm not getting the feedback?”

Kelly Jankowski is a Managing Director at MSL

“When you're open to feedback, people give you really good feedback. And there's a lot of different ways to be open. There's something to learn everywhere and especially as you get more senior and more established. I wake up some days and I'm like, today, I'm going to figure out what I needed to learn that I haven't yet.”

Marcel Botha is the Founder and CEO of 10XBeta

“They don't speak to investors that they don't like with feedback that they will only want to speak with people who understand their visionary message. And I think, with the exception of a few, most people fail if they can't quantify or receive feedback in a meaningful way. I have failed many times, because I didn't listen to feedback in a timely manner, or I was too excited about something that I thought was meaningful, but others didn't.”

Elliot Felix is the CEO & Founder of brightspot (which has just been acquired by Buro Happold)

“When we have a question, we don't stew over it internally. We get on the phone with a client and we figure it out with them. That's what has given us more certainty in this crazy time is acting on that instinct. So, we've been talking to our clients more, not less and learning from them and trying stuff out and getting feedback - this is helpful, this isn’t helpful, let's do more of this, less of this.”

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

· Asking for feedback uncovers blind spots we have no matter where we are in our career

· Asking for and receiving feedback contributes to healthy, trusting, respectful, collaborative relationships

· The importance of exploring why asking for feedback will be beneficial to you

· Don’t forget to focus on strengths – don’t just focus on areas for development

· Create your own feedback culture by consistently asking for feedback

· Be clear about what you want to know, ask open ended or specific questions which will elicit good feedback

· Safety is critical: we explore why safety is so important and how to successfully create safety

· The beer sign: do people think you really want feedback?

· There is no such thing as a wrong perception, you don’t have to agree with people’s perception, but you do have to be curious about how they got that perception

· Different people have different perceptions of the same behavior 

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].  

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show; look below for some instructions on how to leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

I look forward to sharing another transformative conversation with you next week!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

How to leave a rating or review in Apple Podcasts (on an iOS device)

1. Open the Podcasts app.

2. Choose “Search” from the bottom row of icons and enter the name of the show (i.e., “Transformative Leadership Conversations”) into the search field

3. Select the show under Shows (not under Episodes)

4. Scroll down past the first few episodes until you see Ratings & Reviews

5. Click “Write a Review” underneath the displayed reviews from other listeners. You’ll then have the option to rate us on a 5-star scale, and write a review if you choose (you can rate without writing, if you’d prefer)

Episode 11: Tell Me What You Really Think with Peter Axelson

Peter Axelson leads Garnet Consulting and has worked as an external consultant in training, coaching and organizational development for more than 35 years. Clients tell him that they bring him back because of his high standards for client service, his focus on behavioral change and business results and his very practical approach to helping people learn and grow. 

As I close out Season One, I wanted to take a look back and go a bit deeper on two important leadership themes that emerged from my previous guests: the stories we tell ourselves and asking for feedback.

In today’s episode we’re going to continue my conversation with Peter and talk about asking for feedback – the foundational tool for uncovering our blind spots, whether we are just starting out managing one person or especially as we advance in our career the feedback we receive usually declines just when we need it most. 

Before we dive into my conversation with Peter, let’s look back on a few episodes where my guests highlighted the importance of asking for feedback during their own leadership journey…

Kevin Halleran the EVP and CFO at Donahue Schriber

“I never realized how defensive I was and from there on out - I can't say I do it every time but it's certainly something I focus on; I've got to be willing to hear it, and not react. I’ve got to take what they say and I’ve got to digest it. And if I do that, I've taken time to reflect I've realized, there’s really truth to this. There’s something I've got to think about versus just giving them that gut reaction. If I'm defensive all the time and I don't let people give me feedback, they don't want to give it to me. They're saying, Oh yeah, everything's fine. How does that help me grow if I'm not getting the feedback?”

Kelly Jankowski is a Managing Director at MSL

“When you're open to feedback, people give you really good feedback. And there's a lot of different ways to be open. There's something to learn everywhere and especially as you get more senior and more established. I wake up some days and I'm like, today, I'm going to figure out what I needed to learn that I haven't yet.”

Marcel Botha is the Founder and CEO of 10XBeta

“They don't speak to investors that they don't like with feedback that they will only want to speak with people who understand their visionary message. And I think, with the exception of a few, most people fail if they can't quantify or receive feedback in a meaningful way. I have failed many times, because I didn't listen to feedback in a timely manner, or I was too excited about something that I thought was meaningful, but others didn't.”

Elliot Felix is the CEO & Founder of brightspot (which has just been acquired by Buro Happold)

“When we have a question, we don't stew over it internally. We get on the phone with a client and we figure it out with them. That's what has given us more certainty in this crazy time is acting on that instinct. So, we've been talking to our clients more, not less and learning from them and trying stuff out and getting feedback - this is helpful, this isn’t helpful, let's do more of this, less of this.”

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

· Asking for feedback uncovers blind spots we have no matter where we are in our career

· Asking for and receiving feedback contributes to healthy, trusting, respectful, collaborative relationships

· The importance of exploring why asking for feedback will be beneficial to you

· Don’t forget to focus on strengths – don’t just focus on areas for development

· Create your own feedback culture by consistently asking for feedback

· Be clear about what you want to know, ask open ended or specific questions which will elicit good feedback

· Safety is critical: we explore why safety is so important and how to successfully create safety

· The beer sign: do people think you really want feedback?

· There is no such thing as a wrong perception, you don’t have to agree with people’s perception, but you do have to be curious about how they got that perception

· Different people have different perceptions of the same behavior 

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].  

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show; look below for some instructions on how to leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

I look forward to sharing another transformative conversation with you next week!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

How to leave a rating or review in Apple Podcasts (on an iOS device)

1. Open the Podcasts app.

2. Choose “Search” from the bottom row of icons and enter the name of the show (i.e., “Transformative Leadership Conversations”) into the search field

3. Select the show under Shows (not under Episodes)

4. Scroll down past the first few episodes until you see Ratings & Reviews

5. Click “Write a Review” underneath the displayed reviews from other listeners. You’ll then have the option to rate us on a 5-star scale, and write a review if you choose (you can rate without writing, if you’d prefer)

Episode 10: The Stories We Tell Ourselves with Peter Axelson

Peter Axelson leads Garnet Consulting and has worked as an external consultant in training, coaching and organizational development for more than 35 years. Clients tell him that they bring him back because of his high standards for client service, his focus on behavioral change and business results and his very practical approach to helping people learn and grow. 

On this podcast, we’ve listened to a really interesting variety of leaders sharing their stories about a particular leadership challenge they’ve faced, how they’ve overcome that challenge and what drives them forward during times of change and adversity. 

The next two episodes of Transformative Leadership Conversations with Winnie da Silva are going to be a bit different. This next conversation will be divided into two episodes and they will also be the final episodes for Season One. 

I wanted to take this opportunity to take a look back, reflect and go a bit deeper on a few themes that have emerged from Season One. The first one is about stories and how the stories we have running in our heads can either propel us forward or get in the way of our success.

But before we get into unpacking the concept of stories and its impact on behavior and results, let’s look back on a few episodes where my guests pointed to the ways stories have impacted their leadership journey…

Dilip DaSilva the Founder and CEO of VDX.tv and Exponential sums up his experience of stories this way…

“I've realized that often the hurdles you personally have just things in your own mind.”

Nathan Knight the Director of People Development at Better explains how stories can mislead us…

“The other part was this myth I had created in my mind we tell ourselves stories to make sense of situations. And sometimes those stories are not productive.”

Sanjit Sethi the President of the Minneapolis College of Art & Design talks about reframing our stories…

“The goal is to take a disability or take what seems like a disability and reframe it as an asset.”

Mandy Pulliam the Chief Medical Officer at Renovia, Inc. gives a vivid example of rejecting someone else’s story about her…

“I wanted to apologize so many times during that surgery when he was making me feel bad, but I decided that I was only going to apologize if I had done something wrong.”

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

• Our stories directly influence our behavior which drives results
• Stories fit into two categories: stories about me, stories about other people and stories about how things are
• When there is a result we’re not happy with (our performance, a relationship that’s gone sideways, a conflict within the organization) we need to look back on what behaviors have contributed to that result and from there what are the stories or beliefs we have that are driving those behaviors
• Ask opened ended questions to uncover the stories influencing our behaviors
• It boils down to self-awareness – you need to catch yourself in your stories as they happen
• To achieve a different result, our behaviors need to change and therefore we must adopt new stories
• Tap into curiosity to uncover your stories
• Stories are usually deeply unconscious and sometimes reflect what we have always fundamentally believed
• Assumptions and prejudices about people who are different from us can unconsciously shape our stories

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show.

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Episode 10: The Stories We Tell Ourselves with Peter Axelson

Peter Axelson leads Garnet Consulting and has worked as an external consultant in training, coaching and organizational development for more than 35 years. Clients tell him that they bring him back because of his high standards for client service, his focus on behavioral change and business results and his very practical approach to helping people learn and grow. 

On this podcast, we’ve listened to a really interesting variety of leaders sharing their stories about a particular leadership challenge they’ve faced, how they’ve overcome that challenge and what drives them forward during times of change and adversity. 

The next two episodes of Transformative Leadership Conversations with Winnie da Silva are going to be a bit different. This next conversation will be divided into two episodes and they will also be the final episodes for Season One. 

I wanted to take this opportunity to take a look back, reflect and go a bit deeper on a few themes that have emerged from Season One. The first one is about stories and how the stories we have running in our heads can either propel us forward or get in the way of our success.

But before we get into unpacking the concept of stories and its impact on behavior and results, let’s look back on a few episodes where my guests pointed to the ways stories have impacted their leadership journey…

Dilip DaSilva the Founder and CEO of VDX.tv and Exponential sums up his experience of stories this way…

“I've realized that often the hurdles you personally have just things in your own mind.”

Nathan Knight the Director of People Development at Better explains how stories can mislead us…

“The other part was this myth I had created in my mind we tell ourselves stories to make sense of situations. And sometimes those stories are not productive.”

Sanjit Sethi the President of the Minneapolis College of Art & Design talks about reframing our stories…

“The goal is to take a disability or take what seems like a disability and reframe it as an asset.”

Mandy Pulliam the Chief Medical Officer at Renovia, Inc. gives a vivid example of rejecting someone else’s story about her…

“I wanted to apologize so many times during that surgery when he was making me feel bad, but I decided that I was only going to apologize if I had done something wrong.”

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

• Our stories directly influence our behavior which drives results
• Stories fit into two categories: stories about me, stories about other people and stories about how things are
• When there is a result we’re not happy with (our performance, a relationship that’s gone sideways, a conflict within the organization) we need to look back on what behaviors have contributed to that result and from there what are the stories or beliefs we have that are driving those behaviors
• Ask opened ended questions to uncover the stories influencing our behaviors
• It boils down to self-awareness – you need to catch yourself in your stories as they happen
• To achieve a different result, our behaviors need to change and therefore we must adopt new stories
• Tap into curiosity to uncover your stories
• Stories are usually deeply unconscious and sometimes reflect what we have always fundamentally believed
• Assumptions and prejudices about people who are different from us can unconsciously shape our stories

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show.

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Episode 9: Creative Cultural Leadership with Sanjit Sethi

Sanjit Sethi has been an artist and cultural academic leader for the past twenty years and is currently the President of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. He has also served in leadership roles at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design at George Washington University, Memphis College of Art, the California College of the Arts and the Santa Fe Art Institute – among others. Additionally, he has taught at prestigious art schools such as the Srishti School of Art, Design, and Technology in India, MIT; and the Art Institute of Chicago. As an artist and curator, his work has spanned different media and geographies. Past works include the Kuni Wada Bakery Remembrance; Richmond Voting Stories; and the Gypsy Bridge project. Recent curatorial projects have included Spiked: The Unpublished Political Cartoons of Rob Rogers and 6.13.89 The Cancelling of the Mapplethorpe Exhibition. 

Creative Cultural Leadership

• Creative Cultural Leadership is a philosophy that embraces artistry, innovation and empathy as fundamental to understanding and working with individuals and communities.
• The words creativity and innovation have taken on definitions which are too limiting.
• Creativity, experimentation and collaboration involves listening and decisiveness but also an embrace and an elevation of your own voice alongside the voice of others; it’s not a solitary activity.
• All problems have a cultural aspect to it.
• The creative and the poetic mindset go hand in hand when building communities.

Imperfection is OK

• Failure is an iterative process: Try, Fail, Learn – this is easier to see in art than it is in leadership.
• The world is asymmetrical in nature; very few things actually fit in neat tidy boxes.
• Our focus on symmetry allows us to avoid the real issues that exist in the world; oftentimes we're stymied thinking the system has to be perfect before being able to fix something.

Leading a Team During a Crisis

• It’s powerful to check in with your team about how they are doing – and yet be surgically efficient in how we use our time.
• Make space for visioning because you can't simply turn it on; inspire vision, create a visual palette cleanse to prepare the mind to vision.
• Push your team to not just solve current problems, but also to think about the future.
• Keep the team motivated: give credit, celebrate accomplishments, thank people in surprising ways, also there is no such thing as a dumb idea.

Leadership Is…

• Leadership is how someone is able to judge when to leap from one moving freight train to another moving freight train and how to keep your hat during that leap. You have to know when to leap and when to wait.
• Leadership is asking what you know to be true that you think no one else in your field believes in; because you've got an idea everyone else thinks is absolutely bonkers.
• Leadership is being ok with the unease everyone feels which can be isolating.
• Leadership is showing empathy by showing a little bit of yourself.
• Leadership is vulnerability and contemplation which are two leadership qualities that are overlooked.

Leading with Panic

• Check out Sanjit’s article called Leading with Panic. Why Leaders Need to Talk More Openly About Anxiety.
• How do you take a disability or how do you take what seems like a disability and reframe it as an asset for communication and for greater empathy?

Code Switching

• Working through leadership as a person of color
• Code switching can be exhausting and it’s ok to acknowledge that
• Navigating white privilege
• Microaggressions can still exist even when have similar political perspectives

Other References

• Jamie Bennett the Executive Director at ArtPlace America
• Ken Strickland who was the Dean at the Memphis College of Art
• Jean-Pierre Larocque a ceramicists and Associate Professor at Concordia University
• Ben Vinson, Provost and Executive Vice President at Case Western Reserve University
• Association for Independent Colleges of Art and Design

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show. 

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Episode 9: Creative Cultural Leadership with Sanjit Sethi

Sanjit Sethi has been an artist and cultural academic leader for the past twenty years and is currently the President of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. He has also served in leadership roles at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design at George Washington University, Memphis College of Art, the California College of the Arts and the Santa Fe Art Institute – among others. Additionally, he has taught at prestigious art schools such as the Srishti School of Art, Design, and Technology in India, MIT; and the Art Institute of Chicago. As an artist and curator, his work has spanned different media and geographies. Past works include the Kuni Wada Bakery Remembrance; Richmond Voting Stories; and the Gypsy Bridge project. Recent curatorial projects have included Spiked: The Unpublished Political Cartoons of Rob Rogers and 6.13.89 The Cancelling of the Mapplethorpe Exhibition. 

Creative Cultural Leadership

• Creative Cultural Leadership is a philosophy that embraces artistry, innovation and empathy as fundamental to understanding and working with individuals and communities.
• The words creativity and innovation have taken on definitions which are too limiting.
• Creativity, experimentation and collaboration involves listening and decisiveness but also an embrace and an elevation of your own voice alongside the voice of others; it’s not a solitary activity.
• All problems have a cultural aspect to it.
• The creative and the poetic mindset go hand in hand when building communities.

Imperfection is OK

• Failure is an iterative process: Try, Fail, Learn – this is easier to see in art than it is in leadership.
• The world is asymmetrical in nature; very few things actually fit in neat tidy boxes.
• Our focus on symmetry allows us to avoid the real issues that exist in the world; oftentimes we're stymied thinking the system has to be perfect before being able to fix something.

Leading a Team During a Crisis

• It’s powerful to check in with your team about how they are doing – and yet be surgically efficient in how we use our time.
• Make space for visioning because you can't simply turn it on; inspire vision, create a visual palette cleanse to prepare the mind to vision.
• Push your team to not just solve current problems, but also to think about the future.
• Keep the team motivated: give credit, celebrate accomplishments, thank people in surprising ways, also there is no such thing as a dumb idea.

Leadership Is…

• Leadership is how someone is able to judge when to leap from one moving freight train to another moving freight train and how to keep your hat during that leap. You have to know when to leap and when to wait.
• Leadership is asking what you know to be true that you think no one else in your field believes in; because you've got an idea everyone else thinks is absolutely bonkers.
• Leadership is being ok with the unease everyone feels which can be isolating.
• Leadership is showing empathy by showing a little bit of yourself.
• Leadership is vulnerability and contemplation which are two leadership qualities that are overlooked.

Leading with Panic

• Check out Sanjit’s article called Leading with Panic. Why Leaders Need to Talk More Openly About Anxiety.
• How do you take a disability or how do you take what seems like a disability and reframe it as an asset for communication and for greater empathy?

Code Switching

• Working through leadership as a person of color
• Code switching can be exhausting and it’s ok to acknowledge that
• Navigating white privilege
• Microaggressions can still exist even when have similar political perspectives

Other References

• Jamie Bennett the Executive Director at ArtPlace America
• Ken Strickland who was the Dean at the Memphis College of Art
• Jean-Pierre Larocque a ceramicists and Associate Professor at Concordia University
• Ben Vinson, Provost and Executive Vice President at Case Western Reserve University
• Association for Independent Colleges of Art and Design

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show. 

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Episode 8: Give Away the Glory with Nathan Knight

Nathan Knight believes that most people want to - and certainly can - find purpose and create value at work which is why he’s passionate about leading teams in the learning, talent and organizational development space. He is currently the Director of People Development at Better which is rapidly redefining the homeownership process through faster and more efficient technology. Previous companies he’s worked with include Casper, Sony Music, Equinox, WW and Home Depot.

Learning to Lead a Team 

· Stress, fear or embarrassment can make it that much harder to address the real issue @5:45

· Be the coach off the field, enable the team to self-manage, spot potential, help when needed @9:47

· Make the tough calls with compassion and integrity, knowing you’re doing the right thing @11:31

· People will self-select in or out when presented with a clear vision @17:44

· High performers still require leadership in moments of transition and change @18:50

· People and teams require clear roles tied to intrinsic motivation @20:33

· Play back what you see, let people use that to make decisions to improve their performance @22:07

· Create self-sustaining performance to give you room to be strategic, set the direction and strategy, be sure the team is in lock step with where the company is going @22:14

· My job isn’t to come up with the answer, instead create a team approach with trust, listen to your gut, get other perspectives and then use that to propose the best answer at this time @29:01

· You have to view managing as a huge part your work, others can probably do the content part of your job, but no one else can do the leadership piece @30:00

· Give away the glory @31:54

Taking Your Own Medicine

· Perfection doesn’t exist, sometimes you need to stumble to get comfortable with leadership @6:50

· Feeling like I should know how to be a leader already @4:42

· You may not be able to change what happened, but you can apologize or address it @7:12

· Believe people when they tell you there's a problem with your leadership @12:35

· Getting a coach is not like sending people to a spa – it’s real work, you have to do the work @14:02

· Realizing there are many dimensions to the challenge and understanding each layer @ 15:00

· Once you remove some complexity, they become smaller problems you can solve @15:36

· Little shifts in mindset and behavior can make a big difference @15:47

Being an Empathic Leader

· Developing empathy and understanding for leaders because this work is challenging @5:32

· True leadership is having a high bar for performance while being compassionate @7:28

· Work is hard, show that you’re there for people @8:10

· Don’t jump to you’re doing a bad job, check to see what else might be going on @8:50

Personal Growth

· Changing myths and stories that get in your way @15:56

· Hold on to your integrity, don’t be fake, don’t change your core @24:24

· Nathan’s personal passion behind D&I @25:31, 26:48, 28:26

· When energy goes to trying hard not to be yourself, it takes away from your ability to be great @25:55

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show. 

I look forward to sharing another transformative conversation with you next week!

Episode 8: Give Away the Glory with Nathan Knight

Nathan Knight believes that most people want to - and certainly can - find purpose and create value at work which is why he’s passionate about leading teams in the learning, talent and organizational development space. He is currently the Director of People Development at Better which is rapidly redefining the homeownership process through faster and more efficient technology. Previous companies he’s worked with include Casper, Sony Music, Equinox, WW and Home Depot.

Learning to Lead a Team 

· Stress, fear or embarrassment can make it that much harder to address the real issue @5:45

· Be the coach off the field, enable the team to self-manage, spot potential, help when needed @9:47

· Make the tough calls with compassion and integrity, knowing you’re doing the right thing @11:31

· People will self-select in or out when presented with a clear vision @17:44

· High performers still require leadership in moments of transition and change @18:50

· People and teams require clear roles tied to intrinsic motivation @20:33

· Play back what you see, let people use that to make decisions to improve their performance @22:07

· Create self-sustaining performance to give you room to be strategic, set the direction and strategy, be sure the team is in lock step with where the company is going @22:14

· My job isn’t to come up with the answer, instead create a team approach with trust, listen to your gut, get other perspectives and then use that to propose the best answer at this time @29:01

· You have to view managing as a huge part your work, others can probably do the content part of your job, but no one else can do the leadership piece @30:00

· Give away the glory @31:54

Taking Your Own Medicine

· Perfection doesn’t exist, sometimes you need to stumble to get comfortable with leadership @6:50

· Feeling like I should know how to be a leader already @4:42

· You may not be able to change what happened, but you can apologize or address it @7:12

· Believe people when they tell you there's a problem with your leadership @12:35

· Getting a coach is not like sending people to a spa – it’s real work, you have to do the work @14:02

· Realizing there are many dimensions to the challenge and understanding each layer @ 15:00

· Once you remove some complexity, they become smaller problems you can solve @15:36

· Little shifts in mindset and behavior can make a big difference @15:47

Being an Empathic Leader

· Developing empathy and understanding for leaders because this work is challenging @5:32

· True leadership is having a high bar for performance while being compassionate @7:28

· Work is hard, show that you’re there for people @8:10

· Don’t jump to you’re doing a bad job, check to see what else might be going on @8:50

Personal Growth

· Changing myths and stories that get in your way @15:56

· Hold on to your integrity, don’t be fake, don’t change your core @24:24

· Nathan’s personal passion behind D&I @25:31, 26:48, 28:26

· When energy goes to trying hard not to be yourself, it takes away from your ability to be great @25:55

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show. 

I look forward to sharing another transformative conversation with you next week!

Episode 7: Feedback Helps You Grow with Kevin Halleran

Kevin Halleran has over 15 years’ experience in the real estate industry and is currently the EVP and CFO at Donahue Schriber. He works closely with the CEO and the Executive Committee to direct the company’s strategic vision and daily operations. Donahue Schriber is a private real estate investment trust (REIT) with a portfolio of high-quality shopping centers in the Western United States. Previous positions he’s held include the CAO at Starwood Retail Partners and Senior Manager at KPMG.

Leadership Tips

· What the family bowling alley business taught me about being the boss @19:05

· You have three times to tell me your opinion about something – at that point I either change my mind or you have to accept my decision @17:24

· When we do something well it's the team that did it, when something goes wrong, it's my fault @21:50

· Start slow when building success to create buy-in and convince skeptics @8:17

· Show rather than tell @3:09

· What you love about your boss, do with your own team @18:21

· Not everyone wants to be a problem solver and that’s ok @7:32, 8:04

· People starting their careers: take on projects, even if you’re not interested, and crush it – show your boss that you can operate outside your comfort zone @22:13

Leading Teams

· Collaborating with cross functional teams without direct authority @4:12

· Help your team to take ownership in fixing their own challenges @5:22, 6:01, 7:00

· Keep an eye on your team and know where they are challenged and give them support @20:28

· We’re all one team, create a culture where different teams support each other @20:37

· Benefits to helping different teams: you get help, you learn different parts of the business @20:55

Benefits of Feedback & Honest Conversations

· Being honest and building trust is important in getting to know people @10:43, 10:55

· A difficult conversation can create a close working relationship @12:23

· Getting feedback means being open to it, asking for it and not being defensive @14:43

· Reflection is the key to absorbing feedback @15:02

· If your defensive and you don't let people give you feedback, they won’t want to give it to you – and how does that help you grow? @15:11

· If you want feedback, you’ve got to ask for it – even better set up time to get it @15:43

To learn more about my work in executive coaching, leadership development and team effectiveness check out my website, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

Reach out and tell me what was helpful about today’s episode or any suggestions you have for my show.

Please leave a review and tell someone else about this show. 

I look forward to sharing another transformative conversation with you next week!