The Leadership Moments Podcast

I talk with Ingrid Messner about her book, Naturally Successful: How Wise Leaders Manage Their Energy, Influence Others and Create Positive Impact. Ingrid shares her inspiration from traveling and learning from indigenous elders about how to connect, care and commit to have the positive impact we want in the world. We have a great talk about self-awareness, our relationship with others, understanding the bigger picture and how it all fits.

Adam Davids is a proud Aboriginal man and leader who spent four months in the United States in 2019 on a Fulbright scholarship. Adam's research into programs that have delivered sustained benefits for minority groups identified six attributes. Adam shares these attributes and how the research expanded his own thinking about social, political and economic justice. We cover a lot of things including wealth disparity, systemic racism, and diversity and inclusion. Adam also talks about what reconciliation means for him and shares his own family's experiences and how he chooses to put his energy into developing the future indigenous leaders - who, he is sure, will start to solve these wicked problems. This is a great discussion that is worth taking the time to listen to.

I talk with Tom Loncar, an executive coach, writer and researcher on leadership psychology and mindset. Tom has written an in-depth paper that explores the history behind the concept of embodied cognition, the research that's been done into it, and the controversy around its validity.

Like his books, Michael is clear, engaging and uplifting as he explains why giving advice leads to poor outcomes and how to tame the advice monster that resides in all of us to be more coach like with better outcomes for everybody. He talks eloquently about the need to find the balance between the brain’s need for certainty and the power of curiosity, in a world full of uncertainty and the importance of strong, clear leadership and leaves us with a powerful final question.

More teams are coming together to reconnect, harvest the learnings from the last 12 months and talk about the shift they have to make to move from managing through to taking control and moving forward. With this in mind I thought it timely to look into the archives and remind ourselves of the conditions for success in teams. Pia Lee explains a really simple, but as she explains, not always easy model, the 3 Cs - Clarity, Climate and Competence, the conditions that must be present for a team to succeed. Pia also engages in a great talk about the leadership moments we have every day and gives us the three fundamental questions that help leaders prioritise.

Dr Suzi Skinner, Managing Director of Roar People is a positive leadership expert and global executive coach who works with clients to create cultures of positive leadership at every level. We talk about the why and how of tapping into the innate leadership that everyone has and explore leader identity. We reflect on the lessons of 2020, the importance of authenticity and why it's important in 2021 to create the space for reflection and learning. This lively chat will give you new insights and lots of ideas to strengthen your own as well as your team's leadership.

Thank you for listening to Leadership Moments through 2020. This last episode for the year is a 4-minute message to say thank you for your support and offer you a simple reflection to close the year and get set for the challenges and opportunities of the New year by thinking about what you might want to STOP – START – CONTINUE - because what got us to here will not get us to there! Wishing you a restful, merry, and above all safe Xmas and a great start to the New Year.

Firdaus is a social entrepreneur who produces behaviour change mass communication on significant international issues including disease prevention, sexual and domestic violence. Named as one of the world’s 50 most talented social innovators, the multi award winner shares his insights about creativity and how his realisation that by appealing to our commonalities as human beings he could communicate messages across the globe to encourage people to change their behaviour.

Paul shares his insights into systems thinking and how to lead change in a complex world. He talks about collective resilience, how coaching supports change and shares his leadership moments.

Peter is experienced in coaching, organisational development and culture change. He is passionate about helping individuals, teams and organisations find new forms of thinking. Peter believes leaders and their teams need wisdom now more than ever to successfully navigate the dilemmas of our times. We talk about the psychology of wisdom, complexity and what Peter calls System 3 thinking and the six related competencies. Peter also shares his WISE framework, a checklist to help leaders avoid biases and assumptions to make wiser decisions.

The Reshape and Relaunch complete the team Reset process. We talk through the different elements of how a team works together including: team membership, decision making, operating rhythm, roles and skills required. In the Relaunch we explain the importance of getting the communication right first time, the power of compelling stories and the need for consistency and feedback.

The Rethink is the second phase of the team reset process. Hear how to bring the team together to look ahead, open up the thinking, understand the key stakeholder needs and get commitment to a clear picture of success. We explore possible obstacles and give ideas on how to get the most out of your time together.

We continue the discussion of the Team Reset process today as fellow coach Mark Powell and I talk about the ‘Regroup’ phase of the Team Reset Process. We explain what we mean by ‘regroup’ and why it's so important for leaders and their teams to process what's been happening. We explore some of the science behind it and more importantly, give you some ideas on how to run this with your team.

Together with fellow coach Mark Powell, Murray Wright explains a simple four step process that will help you bring the team together, take a step back and reset for what’s next.

A pep talk and energy boost for you! Keith is a professional presenter and author whose work with clients is about engaging people, developing leaders and generating massive growth. He talks about how to engage with your team and your clients and make yourself so unique that you are the standout choice. This is a great discussion, full of energy and practical approaches for everyone no matter what business you're in. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

David shares his experiences and learning from the US Military and study of lean manufacturing processes. He explains how process can be part of human learning to engage and motivate team members. We have a great talk about how leaders can lead and learn through the current situation to adopt the best of new practices and avoid going back to ‘normal’.

Like his books, Michael is clear, engaging and uplifting as he explains why giving advice leads to poor outcomes and how to tame the advice monster that resides in all of us to be more coach like with better outcomes for everybody. He talks eloquently about the need to find the balance between the brain’s need for certainty and the power of curiosity, in a world full of uncertainty and the importance of strong, clear leadership and leaves us with a powerful final question.

We continue the theme of teams with Jason Treu, Executive Coach and host of the Executive Breakthroughs Podcast. Jason explains how asking the right questions can build long-lasting, trusting relationships and lays the foundation for psychological safety that is so important to team success. He also gives us examples of the questions we can ask and a great way to build more effective one-on-one relationships.

In my first podcast of 2020, I referred to the story of a midwife from Edinburgh who made a huge difference in the lives of expectant mothers and children in Malawi. Today I talk with that midwife, Linda McDonald, who shares her story about what moved her to action, how she grew a charity that raised over £600,000 over 12 years and her leadership moments.

A lot has changed over the last few months. As a new future emerges, the only thing for certain is relationships within and around teams will continue to change and evolve. This special edition podcast is designed to help you take a step back and reflect on different perspectives as you plot a route through a very different world. My fellow coaches stand in the shoes of key stakeholders – team members, the wider team, clients and the business - and give voice to what they need from leaders over the next 6 months and beyond to be successful and stay relevant.