What does it take to shift from a rigid, high performance environment to leading with authenticity and emotional intelligence? Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chief of Defence Force Australia, Ken Robertson, shares his powerful story of personal growth - from chasing success through discipline and ego, to realising the true strength in vulnerability, self-awareness, and human connection.
In this episode, Andrew May, Angela Poon, and Ken unpack the leadership lessons learned over decades in Defence - including how to manage your competitive edge, the role of feedback (even from people who don’t like you), and how the military is evolving to embrace emotional intelligence alongside discipline.
In this episode Andrew, Ange and Ken discuss:
2:05 Why Ken felt the need to put up a tough front and ego will only get you so far.
5:55 The great culture work the New Zealand Defence Force is doing and how you can make similar changes in your life.
13:00 How Ken sees his life turning out without the intervention he received and healthy conflict is a key part of any workplace.
22:00 Uncomfortable feedback is the most true and that even applies to the military.
29:00 The shifting culture in defence allowing for more feedback to superiors.
33:00 Learning to take control of your emotions and practising mindfulness.
38:35 What Ken was like growing up and being drawn towards joining the military.
43:45 What joining the defence force is like now and the change in values through the years.
49:45 Using social media to have a positive impact on people.
55:00 Finding ways of communicating with younger generations and what Andrew and Ange think the defence force could do better in their recruiting.
1:05:00 The defence force has changed a lot in the past 30 years.
You can find Ken at his Twitter: https://x.com/seac_adf
Or at the Defence Website: https://www.defence.gov.au/about/who-we-are/leaders/senior-enlisted-advisor-cdf
Use Code "PQPODCAST10" to get 10% off your Lumo Coffee order:https://lumocoffee.com/
Interested in sharing your story? Email Producer Shannon at support@performanceintelligence.com today with your story and contact details.
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