Building a Positive and Productive Workplace Culture | Marc Lesser | Episode 256

Apr 13, 2023

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Marc Lesser is a speaker, facilitator, workshop leader, and executive coach. He is known for his engaging, experiential presentations that integrate mindfulness and emotional intelligence practices and training. He is the author of 4 books, including Seven Practices of a Mindful Leader: Lessons from Google and a Zen Monastery Kitchen, and CEO of ZBA Associates, an executive development and leadership consulting company. His podcast Zen Bones: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times features cutting-edge interviews, supportive tools for creating more meaningful work, and potent mindfulness practices to develop yourself, influence your organization, and change the world.

Marc helped develop the world-renowned Search Inside Yourself (SIY) program within Google – a mindfulness-based emotional intelligence training for leaders which teaches the art of integrating mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and business savvy for creating great corporate cultures and a better world. He founded and was CEO of 3 companies, and has an MBA degree from New York University. Marc was a resident of the San Francisco Zen Center for 10 years, and director of Tassajara, Zen Mountain Center, the first Zen monastery in the western world. He leads Mill Valley Zen, a weekly meditation group.

Timestamped overview

[00:00:37] Accountability is about aligning values, aspirations, success, leadership, and trust with compassion.
[00:04:14] Building great cultures by creating purpose and meaning, utilizing trust, and building character and well-being.
[00:08:53] Businesses provide goods/services to serve people, allowing them to live.
[00:09:59] "Asking "How are we doing?" to create healthy workplaces and effective, difficult conversations requires self-awareness and a contemplative practice to avoid blame and defense."
[00:15:50] Tendency to blame when threatened; reflex to blame without conscious thought; story of accidental email; skillful creating of safe space to remove blame; blame prevents connection and solutions.
[00:19:42] Teaching Google engineers self awareness through mindfulness and feedback to control emotions during times of tension.
[00:25:18] Ask teammates how to make team/relationship more effective and listen.
[00:27:48] Team building through conversation and improv activities.
[00:31:57] Listening and self-awareness are essential leadership skills.

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