A Team Who Believes
“Do we have a vision that is anchored in purpose and is somewhat tangible, that is larger than any member of the team and the team in its entirety”? [7:39] Inspired by the recent NFL tragedy and ongoing medical recovery of Damar Hamlin, Rob and Marcel draw a comparison to the feeling of believing in something larger. As players, coaches, and spectators banded together to pray to someone higher regardless of religious beliefs, it speaks to the fact that leaders have the power and the obligation to create this feeling of belief within their teams and the positive impact it will have.

Believing in Potential
“The essence of leadership is being able to care for one another, develop their skills, meet their needs…but what if you added an extension to that and began to see the potential in each person.” [10:32] Marcel extends this idea of belief in something greater than yourself, as a belief in the potential of those surrounding you. He calls it a mindset of trust, and an extension of trust and faith as a gift!

Mail Bag
In this co-host segment, Marcel and Rob answer a question that has been sent in by a listener. John asked in relation to a new leadership position, how can he connect in the first week. “Spend that first week asking more questions than trying to give answers”[14:55], Rob drives home the point that even though as a leader has a lot to offer, they should take it easy and remain the ‘student’. Marcel goes further with some advice for specific questions to ask: What are your strengths? What are your interests? How can I help support you and set you up for success? If you want to send in your questions, you can visit Marcel’s website for the information!

A Culture of Kindness
“A study by the University of California at CocaCola’s Madrid site, researchers there found that workers who were the receivers of kindness reported experiencing 10 times more prosocial behaviors than the control group...examples of prosocial behaviors include activities such as empathy, altruism, sharing, cooperation, self-sacrifice, and helpfulness.” [23:11] Marcel quotes this study and explains how great it is to receive kindness, but that the givers of kindness have an even more durable effect, including great life and job satisfaction.

Cyclical Kindness
“Kindness, when you encourage it as a corporate value and norm, it creates virtuous cycles within teams benefiting recipients and givers alike, but especially the organization as a whole.” [24:58] When one random act of kindness is initiated in an organization it creates a cycle that continuously benefits the team and even the company. This is a reference from the manuscript of Marcel’s book in the works!

Mentioned in this episode:
Robb Holman
Marcel Schwantes on LinkedIn
Marcel Schwantes

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048. Mind and Soul - Lunchtime Thoughts