Coaching For Leaders

Annie Duke: How to Decide Annie Duke is an author, corporate speaker, and consultant in the decision-making space. As a former professional poker player, Annie won more than $4 million in tournament poker before retiring from the game in 2012. Prior to becoming a professional player, Annie was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship to study Cognitive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. She is the co-founder of The Alliance for Decision Education, a non-profit whose mission to improve lives by empowering students through decision skills education. Annie is the author of Thinking in Bets* and her newest book, How to Decide: Simple Tools for Making Better Choices*. Key Points Better decision-making aims to reduce resulting and hindsight bias. Avoid using a pro/cons list in decision-making, as it tends to reinforce biases you already have. Use a decision tree to document potential decisions, possible outcomes, and the likelihood those outcomes will occur. More people being involved

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 is the author of The Productive Online and Offline Professor: A Practical Guide*. Listener Questions Rajat asked us about the best ways to create management structures in his organization. Cathy wondered how we let things go in moments of personal frustration. Janet asked advice for forming and sustaining business partnership and alliances. Resources Mentioned Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box* by The Arbinger Institute Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It...and Why the Rest Don't* by Verne Harnish Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business* by Gino Wickman Clockwork: Design Your Business to Run Itself* by Mike Michalowicz Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make

Kwame Christian: Negotiate Anything Kwame Christian is the Director of the American Negotiation Institute and business lawyer at Carlile Patchen & Murphy. His popular TED talk is titled Finding Confidence in Conflict. Today, he’s working extensively with organizations to help them improve their skills on negotiation and conflict resolution. Kwame hosts the top negotiation podcast, Negotiate Anything and is the author of the book Finding Confidence in Conflict: How to Negotiate Anything and Live Your Best Life*. Key Points Use the compassionate curiosity framework: Acknowledge and validate emotions Get curious with compassion Joint problem solving If a difficult situation needs to be discussed, giving a heads up to the other party in advance helps them to work through the initial, emotional reaction and reset for a more productive conversation. Separating conversations about the content or service being offered from the deal itself can be useful to focus energy in the right places at the right ti

Andy Kaufman: People and Projects Podcast Andy is a keynote speaker and author on leadership and project management. He’s President of the Institute for Leadership Excellence & Development and works with organizations around the world, helping them improve their ability to deliver projects & lead teams. He’s also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP®) and a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI®). Andy is author of Navigating the Winds of Change: Staying on Course in Business & in Life, Shining the Light on The Secret and an e-book entitled How to Organize Your Inbox & Get Rid of E-Mail Clutter and he’s the host of the People and Projects Podcast. Key Points Change is inevitable — and should not be viewed as the enemy. Often, our training and education tends to lead us towards not thinking in the terms of quick wins. Agile is about incremental delivery. Frequency is valued. Our bias should be towards shorter intervals. Quick wins ultimately help you generate much faster feedb

Stephen Hart: Trailblazers.FM Stephen is the host of the podcast Trailblazers.FM, helping entrepreneurs and leaders build amazing personal brands that are impactful, relatable and profitable. He features the stories of brilliant Black men and women – to help teach actionable strategies, valuable tactics and innovative tools that they can use on the journey to becoming transformative trailblazers. He’s also the creator of Brand You Academy* which helps busy, heart-centered entrepreneurs and leaders through a proven step by step process to build an amazing personal brand that is authentic, impactful and profitable. Use coupon code CFL200 if you decide to dive in on Stephen’s course. In this conversation, Stephen and I go beyond creating a LinkedIn profile and discuss how to be more proactive on LinkedIn. By writing articles, creating short videos, or even streaming, you can gain organic attention on LinkedIn that isn’t always as accessible on other social media platforms. We discuss some of the key strategies

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 is the author of The Productive Online and Offline Professor: A Practical Guide*. Listener Questions Liz wondered how a manager can empathize with an employee while continuing to uphold the businesses needs. Chris asked about fostering innovation while maintaining business efficiency. Colette wanted to know what activity was most helpful for us to decide the next direction of our careers. Dave and Bonni asked each other about what is giving life right now, and what is taking life away. Resources Mentioned 7 Habits of Highly Effective People* by Stephen Covey Design Thinking Methods: Affinity Diagrams by Matthew Weprin Related Episodes How to Lead Part-Time Staff, with Chris Defer

Jason Weeman: Upwork Jason Weeman works to build meaningful relationships by creating experiences that are inspiring and transformational. He has worked for some of the top brands in the world, including Apple, LinkedIn, and Upwork. Today, he is the head of corporate learning and development at Upwork. One of the key areas of focus for his team and him is building a coaching culture. In this conversation, Jason and I discuss how his team was a catalyst for coaching culture at Upwork. We discuss what worked to influence culture in this way, what didn’t work, and the lessons they learned along the way. Key Points Be lazy, be curious, be often. -Michael Bungay Stanier Organizations are trying to create a culture for coaching, but not giving the feedback. The stronger that we develop a sense of common language on feedback, the better we get on quality. People sometimes don’t believe it should be so simple…so they try to make coaching development too complicated. Resist the urge to focus too much on data a

Mikaila Ulmer: Bee Fearless Mikaila Ulmer is a 15-year-old social entrepreneur, bee ambassador, educator and student. She founded her Me & the Bees Lemonade business when she was just four years old, and over the past decade has sold over 1 million bottles across 1,500 stores in the United States. Her appearance on Shark Tank at age nine scored a $60,000 investment from Daymond John. Mikaila has established herself as a voice of guidance for others, appearing on Good Morning America, The Today Show, 20/20, ABC World News Tonight, and many other venues. She was selected as one of Time magazine’s 30 Most Influential Teens and for Ebony Magazine’s Ebony Power100 #Black Excellence. She is the author of the new book, Bee Fearless: Dream Like a Kid*. In this conversation, Mikaila discuss what inspired her to start her business and the importance of a larger mission behind work. She talks about the importance of passion, balancing her work with her schooling, and how to support kids in doing great things. Plus, sh

Guy Raz: How I Built This Guy Raz is the creator and host of the popular podcasts How I Built This, Wisdom from the Top, and The Rewind on Spotify. He’s also the co-creator of the acclaimed podcasts TED Radio Hour and the children’s programs Wow in the World and Two Whats?! and a Wow!. He’s received the Edward R. Murrow Award, the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize, the National Headliner Award, and many others. In 2017, Guy became the first person in the history of podcasting to have three shows in the top 20 on the Apple Podcast charts. He’s the author of the new book, How I Built This: The Unexpected Path to Success From the World’s Most Inspiring Entrepreneurs*. In this conversation, Guy and I discuss what he’s discovered from interviewing the world’s most successful entrepreneurs on How I Built This. We profile a few of the insightful stories that he’s captured in his new book and dispel some of the common myths. Plus, we explore how happiness and kindness play such an important role in building something

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 is the author of The Productive Online and Offline Professor: A Practical Guide*. Listener Questions Dustin asked us about how to handle going through a merger or acquisition. Melanie wondered what our biggest learning curve was when we were new managers. Taryn wanted to know the best ways to track goals and progress when doing internal coaching. Resources Mentioned Difficult Conversations by Seth Godin (Akimbo podcast) Productivity Tools by Bonni Stachowiak Monday.com OmniFocus Related Episodes The Path of Humble Leadership, with Edgar Schein and Peter Schein (episode 363) How to Build Psychological Safety, with Amy Edmondson (episode 404) Appeal to the Nobler Motive (Dave

Joseph Getuno Joseph is finance director based in Mauritius. He’s a longtime listener from the show and a member of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. In this conversation, Joseph and I discuss how he captures ideas from audio podcasts and motivates himself to implement what he’s discovered. We also highlight the value in establishing team guidelines, zeroing in on self-awareness, and the power of consistency. Plus, he highlights the work of key experts that have sharped his own leadership development. Key Points Listen to an audio podcast one time through. Then, review a second time at higher speed to capture the key ideas from the conversation. Insights and ideas are a starting point, but of little value without action. Find a way to support daily action in your development. Establishing team guidelines can change the entire dynamic of culture in the organization. Consistency isn’t a flashy word, but it’s a key factor in how much movement you’re able to create as a leader. Related Episodes How

Keith Ferrazzi: Leading Without Authority Keith Ferrazzi is the founder and CEO of Ferrazzi Greenlight, a management consulting and team coaching company that works with many of the world’s biggest corporations. A graduate of Harvard Business School, Keith rose to become the youngest CMO of a Fortune 500 company during his career at Deloitte, and later became CMO of Starwood Hotels. Keith is a frequent contributor to Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Fortune and the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Who’s Got Your Back* and Never Eat Alone*. He’s the author of the new book, Leading Without Authority: How the New Power of Co-Elevation Can Break Down Silos, Transform Teams, and Reinvent Collaboration*. In this conversation, Keith and I discuss the importance of co-elevation in leadership. We also explore the six deadly sins that leaders should avoid — and discuss why it’s all on you, especially at the start. Key Points Six deadly excuses leaders should avoid: Ignorance: there’s no excuse to sit ba

Elizabeth Cousens: UN Foundation Elizabeth is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the United Nations Foundation, leading the Foundation’s next generation of work to support the United Nations. She is a diplomat and thought leader who has worked on the frontlines of peace processes, played an influential role in UN policy innovations from peacebuilding to the Sustainable Development Goals, and helped build public-private partnerships to solve global challenges at scale. Before joining the Foundation, Elizabeth served for several years at the U.S. Mission to the UN in New York. She was Principal Policy Advisor and Counselor to the Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations and later served as the U.S. Ambassador to the UN Economic and Social Council and Alternate Representative to the UN General Assembly. In this conversation, Elizabeth and I discuss the short and long term goals of the UN Foundation. In addition, we explore how Elizabeth’s team raised $200 million in the fac

David Hutchens: The Storytelling Leader David Hutchens help leaders find and tell their stories. Stephen M.R. Covey says, “David has the ability to convey key messages in a way that is both simple and profound.” He has taught the Storytelling Leader program all over the world at some of the most influential organizations — and he’s written many books, including most recently the Circle of the 9 Muses* and The Leadership Story Deck*. He is the co-creator with Susan Gerke of the GO Team program. In this conversation, David and I explore the importance of storytelling, especially during uncertain times. David teaches us the framework of the kinds of stories leaders can tell for continuity, novelty, and transition. Leaders can use one of all of these frameworks to help connect and inspire during difficult times. Key Points The continuity story highlights identity, values, and founding principles — things that will never change. Example: What’s a time we held our values, even though it came with a cost? The

Michael Byrne: Silverman Shin & Byrne Michael is an attorney and partner at Silverman Shin & Byrne in New York, one of the largest minority owned law firms in the State of New York. Michael’s primary areas of focus include tort and commercial litigation defense. He serves clients in a broad range of matters, including attorney malpractice, personal injury torts, insurance, business formation, securities and cyber liability claims. He is a member of the New York State Bar Association and of several committees. Michael is also a member of the Puerto Rican Bar Association and the Defense Research Institute. He provides legal advice to various civic associations and youth ice hockey organizations in Long Island. He’s also a member of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. Key Points Trying to do everything yourself in leadership is like mowing a lawn with a pair of scissors. A critical shift for leaders to make is “time of possession” in the conversation. Work to have the other party speaking more. The answers

Robbie Kellman Baxter: The Forever Transaction Robbie helps companies leverage subscription pricing, digital community and freemium to build deeper relationships with customers. She has been quoted on business issues in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Consumer Reports, and many others. She has created and starred in eight video courses in collaboration with LinkedIn Learning on business topics ranging from innovation to customer success and membership. She is the author of The Membership Economy*, a book that has been named a top 10 marketing book of all time by BookAuthority. She recently released her new book, The Forever Transaction: How to Build a Subscription Model So Compelling, Your Customers Will Never Want to Leave*. In this conversation, Robbie and I discuss the shift to subscriptions and memberships in many industries in recent years. We address implications for leaders who are considering strategy on making changes to how they do business — as well as some of the tactical steps. Fin

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 is the author of The Productive Online and Offline Professor: A Practical Guide*. Listener Questions Kierstin asked for suggestions (books, individuals) for starting her leadership journey — and also how to navigate leading people who are older than her. Bridgette wondered if we had suggestions on funding priorities, vision, and bringing others into leadership roles. Michael asked our advice on handling confrontations between departments. Resources Mentioned The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations* by James Kouzes and Barry Posner How to Win Friends and Influence People* by Dale Carnegie The Empowered Manager: Positive Political Skills at Wo

Michael Hyatt: The Vision-Driven Leader Michael is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Michael Hyatt & Company. He has scaled multiple companies over the years, including a $250M publishing company with 700+ employees and his own leadership development company that has grown over 60% year over year for the past 4 years. Under his leadership, Michael Hyatt & Company has been featured in the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing companies in America for three years in a row. He is also the author of several New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling books, including Platform*, Living Forward*, Your Best Year Ever*, and Free to Focus*. He enjoys The Double Win with his wife of 40+ years, five daughters, and nine grandchildren. He recently released his newest book: The Vision-Driven Leader: 10 Questions to Focus Your Efforts, Energize Your Team, and Scale Your Business*. In this conversation, Michael and I discuss where to start once you’ve created an initial vision. Michael invites u

David Burkus: Pick a Fight David’s work is changing how companies approach innovation, collaboration, and leadership. He is the award-winning author of four books and offers a fresh perspective on how to improve our organizations and build better teams by blending the most current research in psychology, sociology, economics, and network science. His books have been translated in more than a dozen languages and his work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, USAToday, Fast Company, and more. He has consistently been named one of the world’s top business thought leaders by Thinkers50 and his TED Talk has been viewed over 2 million times. He is the author of the audiobook, Pick a Fight: How Great Teams Find a Purpose Worth Rallying Around*. In this conversation, David and I discuss why picking a fight is a powerful motivation, but important to do with wisdom. Most organizations won’t benefit from starting fights with rivals. Instead, discover one of three fights that will support a

Laura Huang: Edge Laura Huang is an associate professor at the Harvard Business School. Her research examines interpersonal relationships and implicit bias in entrepreneurship and in the workplace. She is the creator of #FindYourEdge, an initiative dedicated to addressing inequality and disadvantage through personal empowerment. Her award-winning research has been featured in the Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Forbes — and she was named one of the 40 Best Business School Professors Under the Age of 40 by Poets & Quants. She’s the author of the book Edge: Turning Adversity into Advantage*. In this conversation, Laura and I discuss the value of constraints, why hard work isn’t enough, and the reason you’re not selling out when reclaiming an awareness of yourself. We also explore why it’s essential for you to be able to tell your story. Key Points “Be yourself” is sometimes bad advice. You’re not selling out when you reclaim an awareness of yourself. Bring value — and also be s