Coaching For Leaders

Tom Henschel: The Look & Sound of Leadership Tom Henschel of Essential Communications grooms senior leaders and executive teams. An internationally recognized expert in the field of workplace communications and self-presentation, he has helped thousands of leaders achieve excellence through his work as an executive coach and his top-rated podcast, The Look & Sound of Leadership. Recently, I’ve received a number of questions about “managing up” and “coaching up.” In this conversation, Tom and I discuss the art and practice of managing up, how it is different than coaching up, and where to focus your mindset and time for the best results to influence effectively. Key Points Managing up happens when you want to influence how you’re perceived by your manager. Coaching up happens when you want to create change in the relationship with your manager. A useful phrase to start with when speaking truth to power: “I think differently about that…” Set aside the emotion when addressing a business issues and lead w

Denice Hinden: Managance Consulting & Coaching Denice is the president of Managance Consulting & Coaching, a firm that helps transform organizations with provocative strategic planning and coaches leaders and leadership teams. She was lead researcher and co-designer of Executive Transition Management (ETM), a now widely used methodology for effectively supporting nonprofits through leadership transitions. Denice is the author of The Nonprofit Organizational Culture Guide: Revealing the Hidden Truths that Impact Performance* and Taking Leadership to the Next Level: A Year of Stimulating Essays to Discover More Joy in Leading & Inspiring Others* has a tremendous amount of experience helping leaders and boards find alignment and succeed. In this conversation, Denice and I discuss the purpose of a board and how leaders can build relationships with board members. We explore the importance of transparency, how to keep initiatives moving forward, and the practice of regularly providing context. Key Points Six p

Nir Eyal: Indistractable Nir Eyal is one of the most respected experts on the intersection of psychology, technology, and business. The MIT Technology Review has called him, “The Prophet of Habit-Forming Technology.” He previously authored the Wall Street Journal bestseller Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products* which received tremendous traction in the technology and entrepreneurial communities. Now, he’s turned his attention to how we can control our attention in a world of complexity. His new book, Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life*, challenges some of the traditional misconceptions about distractions. In this conversation, Nir and I discuss the practical steps on how to align your calendar with what matters most. Key Points Being a professional is doing what you say you’re going to do. Most people don’t know what they are going to do. Research shows only a third of Americans keep a daily schedule. If you don’t plan your time, someone else will plan it for yo

Rita McGrath: Seeing Around Corners Rita McGrath is a best-selling author, a sought-after speaker, and a longtime professor at Columbia Business School. She is one of the world’s top experts on innovation and growth and is one of the most regularly published authors in the Harvard Business Review. Rita is consistently ranked among the top 10 management thinkers in the world and was ranked #1 for strategy by Thinkers50. Rita is the author of the bestseller The End of Competitive Advantage*. Her newest book is titled Seeing Around Corners: How to Spot Inflection Points in Business Before They Happen*. In this conversation, Rita and I explore how it feels like change happens overnight, but why that’s not usually accurate. We detail four basic stages of inflection points, why it’s critical to be present at the edges, and what leaders can do practically to see around corners. Key Points Strategic inflection points feel like they happen overnight, but in reality there are many indicators over time that inflect

Amy McPherson: Advisors for Change Amy McPherson is the managing partner and founder of Advisors for Change. Since 2007, Advisors for Change has developed financial management systems for non-profit organizations so they can spend more time on their mission and less time on their administration. Amy is also a member of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. After discovering this podcast three years ago, Amy sought a practical way to implement the leadership ideas she was discovering. In this conversation, Amy and I discuss how her aim to create more margin for her family has driven more intention for staff development, coaching, and transparency. We also discuss what she’s discovered from expert guests and how she utilized the framework of the Academy to create movement. Key Points The seven questions from The Coaching Habit provided a framework for the kind of culture that would best serve the non-profit partners of Advisors for Change. Shifting focus from lagging indicators to leading indicators helped z

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 In this episode, Bonni and I celebrate Coaching for Leaders recently passing the milestone of 10 million episode downloads since we began airing this podcast in 2011. Today, this podcast is regularly ranked as a Top 50 business show on Apple Podcasts. The growth of the show has been the direct result of listeners like you who have put your trust in us to support your development. As a result, we invited listeners to be featured in this episode by telling us what they’ve gained from the show. Thank you for supporting Coaching for Leaders and for sharing it with others in your professional network. There is no greater compliment to our w

Pete Mockaitis: How to be Awesome at Your Job Pete Mockaitis is an award-winning trainer and coach who helps professionals perform optimally at work. He hosts the How to be Awesome at Your Job podcast, a show that has been downloaded eight million times and consistently ranks as a top business show in Apple Podcasts. Pete facilitates training for organizations on enhanced thinking and collaboration to increase clarity and reduce rework. He helps teams save an average of 1.4 hours per person per week. In this conversation, Pete and I explore some of the key mindsets and questions that are helpful when getting alignment with your boss. We explore the areas you’ll want to generate clarity, as well a few key questions to consider. Key Points Six areas where clarity is critical: Deliverables Timing Process Resources Audience Motive Questions you may consider when getting alignment with your boss: How do you want this to look when complete? What does the organization value on metrics and delive

Ginger Hardage: Unstoppable Cultures Ginger Hardage is the former senior vice president of culture at Southwest Airlines. She led a team responsible for building and sustaining the organization’s legendary culture and communications enterprise, resulting in 23 consecutive years on Fortune’s list of Top 10 Most Admired Companies in the World. Today, Ginger leads Unstoppable Cultures, a firm designed to help organizations create and sustain cultures of enduring greatness. She facilitates the annual Unstoppable Cultures Fellowship to help leaders of all kinds take practical steps to create the culture that will help their organization thrive. In this conversation, Ginger and I discuss the five lies she’s seen come up again and again in her work with leaders who are struggling with culture. Perhaps most importantly, Ginger emphasizes that leaders need not accept the default culture, but should work to define the culture. Key Points The five lies Ginger has uncovered about culture: Culture is someone else’s j

Leonardo Baumworcel: Hospital São Lucas Leonardo Baumworcel is the director of Hospital São Lucas in Brazil. He oversees a 200-bed hospital and emergency room seeing 10,000 patients a month. He also oversees the work of 2,500 staff. He is a cardiologist by training and a recent alum of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. Key Points One way to utilize the podcast is to leverage if for staff training to get the entire team on the same page. Resilience is key when working to achieve your vision through change — beware of giving up too quickly. Leaders need to establish the frameworks and limitations for what to do — and then help people to have the freedom to work within it. Peer mentoring allows both leaders to learn from each other, instead of limiting the professional development to one person. Resources Mentioned Leading Change* by John Kotter Our Iceberg Is Melting* by John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber Related Episodes The Power of Vulnerability in Leadership, with Jason Brooks (episode 385)

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