617: Adam Galinsky - How To Inspire Others, Build a Team, Speak Up For Yourself, Thrive Through Adversity, & Become Their Favorite Boss

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Jan 13, 2025

Adam Galinsky, a social psychologist and professor at Columbia Business School, shares insights on inspiring leadership. He discusses the importance of composure during crises, referencing the calm demeanor of pilot Tammy Jo Shults during a critical flight incident. Adam emphasizes building personal connections before challenges arise to enhance team trust. He also explores the philosophy of Kaizen for continuous improvement and stresses that genuine care and emotional intelligence are vital in leadership, shaping a positive workplace culture.

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ANECDOTE

Tammy Jo Shults' Composure

Pilot Tammy Jo Shults kept her composure during the Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 emergency.
Her calm demeanor and communication reassured passengers and crew amidst chaos.

ADVICE

Building Confidence

Reflect on experiences to prepare for future challenges.
Recall past successes to build confidence in high-pressure situations.

ANECDOTE

Pre-Flight Connection

Before takeoff, Tammy Jo Shults used pre-flight time to connect with her crew.
This fostered teamwork which proved crucial during the later emergency.

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Go to www.LearningLeader.com for full show notes for episode #617 with Adam Galinsky

Notes:

10 Words - “We are not going down. We are going to Philly.” The composure of pilot Tammy Jo Shults after the side of her airplane exploded. Leadership is needed most when things go bad. How do you respond when adversity strikes? Those are the moments when we must be prepared to share the vision and help our team stay the course.
- EMTs asked, "How did you get through security? You have nerves of steel. You don't even have an elevated heart rate."
The 1992 cockpit study of pilots. Did more errors happen at the beginning or the end of a 19-hour flight? You’d assume the end because of exhaustion. However, more errors happen at the beginning of the flight because the crews don’t know each other yet. How does this translate to your team? It’s imperative to genuinely care and get to know the people on your team. Host barbeque parties, ask questions, and genuinely LEARN about the people you’re leading. Those aren’t soft skills, those are essential skills.
What did Adam learn from his parents? The idea of Kaizen, is a Japanese business philosophy that promotes continuous improvement through small, incremental changes. Kaizen means "good change," "change for the better," or "improvement."
Transactional leaders are infuriating. Transformational leaders are inspiring.
Great leader exercise: "Tell me about a leader that inspired you..." What qualities do they possess? "Courage, Optimism, Generous."
Inspire - the universal path for leading yourself and others
Build habits - floss teeth before brushing. Write thank you notes.
Moments of Greatness -- Elks basketball
Team thank you notes - Rob Kimbel
Columbia football coach -- "Who can I yell at?" Need to know who can handle it.
Ron Ullery -- Share the vision early. 1:1 conversation, bring your leaders in.
Adam did not get tenure when most thought he deserved it. They messed up by not sharing the vision until after, but then they made it better by sharing and showing him love. He then turned down Harvard to stay at Northwestern because of it.
Vision - Big picture. Put context for behavior. Why is consistency important?
The Great Gatsby and his dad. Greenlights.
When you're thinking about trying to persuade others, you persuade yourself.
Parenting -- When you flip out, they do too. We set the tone.