Transforming Work with Sophie Wade

Jen Fox, Director of People Experience and Culture at Justworks, discovered her passion for training and developing people early on. She shares learnings from her experiences at Nordstrom and Starbucks as well as working independently as a coach. Jen continues her journey at Justworks supporting new individualized career pathways, navigating new work arrangements, and empowering employees to help figure it out.   KEY TAKEAWAYS   [03:04] Jen starts out as an entrepreneur.    [04:12] The business reaches an inflection point and they have to make a decision.   [04:40] Jen joins Nordstrom and gets moved in Learning & Development.   [07:35] At Starbucks for five years, Jen benefits from many different experiences.   [08:57] Leadership’s commitment to the employee makes a difference—including transparency and openness.   [10:20] Jen hones her HR skills at Getty Images.    [11:30] Early understanding and observations about company culture.   [13:01] An impactful learning moment when having to lay people off after an acquisition.   [14:22] Jen’s lasting takeaway is the human-centric core.   [10:35] Despite not wanting to go, Jen moved to New York City to pursue her career.    [15:20] After having three kids, Jen transitions organically to freelancing, consulting, and coaching.   [17:42] Jen deliberately doubles down on her strengths.   [18:20] Why Jen wanted to go in-house at Justworks.   [20:20] The important focus on supporting small business.   [22:05] Jen delights about employees craving development resources.   [23:36] Driving the Wellness Program, Jen plans out through 2025.   [25:10] Being proactive, not just reactionary.   [25:58] Becoming more data driven and integrating DEIB.   [27:38] How Justworks pivoted in March 2020 as they were providing important support for their client companies.   [28:49] The core value is camaraderie.   [29:15] The tension about how best to build interpersonal relationships with new work arrangements.   [31:36] Being intentional about learning how to optimize remote working.   [32:31] Empowering teams to figure it out, working their way along their own journeys.   [34:59] How Jen tactically acts and reacts to support employees’ well-being.   [36:32] The four pillars of Justworks’ Well-being Program.   [37:03] Creating meeting boundaries.   [37:24] Financial well-being is a key focus.   [38:18] Now Jen purposefully shows her commute on her calendar.   [39:13] The importance of managers in creating a positive and productive team environment.   [40:17] Partnerships for resources help develop managers.   [41:18] New interest in role playing and learn new skills.   [42:51] New efforts to understand individual talent and create personalized career paths.   [43:48] Jen needs a pause button and intentionally to block time for herself.   [45:54] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: Remember your why. In the hardest times, it’s a pause to remember why you are doing this work. It’s different for everybody. Get in touch with your why.   RESOURCES   Jen Fox on LinkedIn Justworks.com Justworks on Twitter JustWorks on Instagram   QUOTES   “It’s a privilege being at a company where our employees are at the center of it all.”     “If you take care of the people and yes, there's a lot of process and logistics and paperwork. But if at the end of the day, these are just people. How can we help and support them?”     “What I realized more so for myself was that doubling down on my strengths gave me more fuel, more energy. The more I did it, the more confident I became. And then the more people wanted to hire me.”     “We were able to pivot and get our stuff together essentially so quickly because we had to. Because we, our customers, all those little companies were now looking to us to help them keep the lights on.”

Paul McKinlay, VP of Communications and Remote Working at Cimpress and Vista (prev. VistaPrint) had a series of transformative experiences working in management, L&D, and Communications, working for ASDA and Walmart in the UK and US which set him up to take the lead role in implementing the strategic “Remote First” initiative at Cimpress and Vista. Paul shares his insights about the importance of transparency and alignment with employees, as well as a mindset of ongoing feedback and co-creation.     KEY TAKEAWAYS   [03;15] At the start of his career, Paul ran large supermarkets in the UK.   [03:34] Managing teams of up to 1000 people, Paul learned fast and transitioned to L&D.   [04:27] The experience of a major transformation at ASDA.   [06:19] Paul has to adapt to a very different culture when Walmart acquired ASDA.   [07:11] Paul’s unusual experience the first time he visited Walmart’s headquarters.   [08:50] Walmart takes a different approach to Learning and Development.   [10:10] Paul is persuaded—unwillingly—to change role and discipline.   [10:40] Paul’s epiphany about his new position in communications.   [13:42] There was very little remote working prior to 2020.   [15:36] When the pandemic hit, the business was hit hard, but they noticed employees were executing well.   [18:14] Many people wanted to work remotely long-term.   [19:05] Paul asks to lead the remote work strategic initiative. [20:02] CEO Robert Cain gives Paul a new lens for understanding his role and goals. [20:48] “Remote First” is not “Remote Only” and what that means. [21:16] Operating principles and “Remote First” practices using new Collaboration Centers. [23:06] Paul stresses the importance of having a team dedicated to optimizing remote working. [23:39] How on-boarding happens at Cimpress and Vista now. [24:52] Paul’s intention is for working at Vista be a master class in remote working. [25:38] Great success attracting talent by focusing on employees’ workplace taxability and work/life harmony. [27:32] Looking at ways to improve fixed-site workers’ experiences. [30:19] The importance of involving everyone when developing new solutions. [32:02] How to deconstruct resistance to remote working—trust is at the core. [33:07] Paul’s expectations that shareholders will also push for remote working. [33:31] “Shybrid” – the undermining subterfuge. “Mybrid” - I choose to come to work wherever I want to work from. [34:36] Paul describes the major initiative building remote working expertise and extensive resources. [36:13] IMMEDIATE action tip: To be an effective remote leader, collaborate with your team by getting extensive feedback and input on a regular basis—making the team experience about co-creation and trusting team members to get on with their jobs. Ask team members for suggestions about how to establish norms that will make working remotely much more effective—such as having fewer meetings!     RESOURCES   Paul McKinlay on LinkedIn Cimpress.com Vista.com Vista.io Cimpress on Instagram Vista on Instagram     QUOTES   “Comms [Communications] at a strategic level is about aligning people against the mission, helping them to execute against that, understanding the context of the decisions they make day today.” “The role of Communications is to be the radar and compass of the organization and the drive.” “The headwind that we were facing really energized the team and really brought the team together.”  “Giving people a real focus on flexibility and work/life how many is cited with our job applicants as a number one reason why they apply to us. It is because they are interested in the remote working, flexibility, work/life harmony. “ “We call what we do “mybrid” which is I choose when I come to work from wherever I want to.” 

Robert Keane, Founder and CEO of Cimpress and Vista (formerly VistaPrint) built a multibillion-dollar business from scratch starting more than 20 years ago. He transformed the original analog operations through digitalization in order to scale rapidly. Robert explains how this strategic move also set them up to go “remote first” in August 2020—listening to employees’ preferences—with the intent of building and maintaining competitive advantage for the business.     KEY TAKEAWAYS   [02:22] Robert identified the need and developed the business plan for Cimpress at INSEAD business school.   [03:38] Cutting edge (at the time) technology was essential to provide the services.   [04:45] The core customer proposition and need have not changed over 27 years.   [06:30] Pushing the early envelope for browser-based software.   [07:49] After raising venture capital money in ’99, the company turned profitable by 2003 and reached US$1 billion in revenues by 2011.   [10:30] End-to-end integrated digitalization allowed them to achieve significant growth.   [11:55] Robert’s purposeful approach for capturing competitive advantage through automation.   [13:53] To build the business, new recruits were selected who were intent to transform industries.   [14:45] Post the 2000 crash, the emphasis is “digital first”.   [15:20] Robert recognizes the digitization emphasis needs to be rebalanced with more customer focus.   [16:31] How Cimpress operated as a global distributed business pre-pandemic.   [18:57] Robert’s direct reports in China and Italy rang alarm leading to early contingency planning.   [20:00] The decision to go “remote first”.   [20:56] Management could compete for talent, and give certainty and guidance to employees.   [23:24] Employees were asked regularly about their interest in remote work which started shifting.   [23:53] Management respectfully addresses the minority of people who didn’t want to go fully remote   [25:36] People accept the fact that remote is not perfect.   [26:22] How has Robert’s changed his leadership style going fully remote?   [27:26] The importance of systemizing communication to inform, align, and connect people.   [29:35] Investment in asynchronous documentation is essential for “remote first” companies.   [31:09] Hiring people to lead Cimpress businesses who have entrepreneurial/founder mindsets.   [32:26] Robert is open to making mistakes and not believing there’s only one way forward.    [35:10] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: To integrate remote working effectively, run a thought experiment. If you started a company today, how would you architect it and incorporate remote working? Whatever percentage of time employees would be onsite and remote at this company, they would need clarity and certainty. Putting theory into practice for your current organization cannot happen overnight, but listen to team members to make choices about the direction you need to go.     RESOURCES Robert Keane on LinkedIn Cimpress.com Vista.com Vista.io     QUOTES   “Our engagement scores, which we've tracked for years, are at all time high because people can combine their life and their work in ways that fits their personal needs.”   “People embrace the fact that remote is not perfect.”   “It’s important to constantly reiterate the importance of that nimbleness, that ability to take action and the willingness to fail, to fall down and get bruised and pick yourself up and pivot and move.”   “We started believing that the way we were doing things was the only way to do things. They just happened to be the right way to do things at a certain moment in time.”  

Ali Azeem, the Global Head of Growth at Ipsos Strategy3, has always believed in making an impact through involvement across the three professional realms--corporate, government, and charity. He shares his career journey as he has developed greater insights into human behavior—from customers and constituents to business colleagues—leading to his increasing focus on and interest in creating organizations that are “human first”.     KEY TAKEAWAYS   [02:40] Ali is raised by entrepreneurial parents.   [03:09] Ali’s early interest in business models through video games.   [04:37] Going through a turnaround after the credit crunch.   [06:45] Learning the importance of communication with colleagues, especially during times of stress.   [08:47] Ali believes in making a positive impact across three parallel streams – business, politics, and charity.   [10:18] How Ali found being involved in politics exciting.   [11:39] The human realities of government—good and bad.   [15:30] Working at an innovation agency, Ali began empathizing with customers to tap into their experiences.   [18:54] Recognizing cultural differences when exploring new ideas.   [22:09] Ali joins Ipsos which emphasizes human insights using a design-thinking approach.   [24:22] Discussion involving people and empathy converging into a new type of organization.   [26:50] Initiatives that must accompany diversity efforts to demonstrate inclusive leadership.   [30:20] The challenges measuring inclusion.   [31:38] How business leaders can shift their mindsets to be more inclusive.   [35:20] The importance of recognizing that employees bring very different backgrounds and cultural contexts and how to enable them to be successful.   [39:42] Ali’s insights after analyzing data on gender pay gaps.   [43:07] Insight 1 – The pay gap in the UK relates to mothers rather than women in general.   [44:21] Insight 2 – Women aren’t achieving as many of the higher paid senior positions.   [45:21] Career choices many women make in corporate roles don’t often have enough flexibility.   [47:24] What many men thing of as “the proper life’ and the consequences.   [49:05] How motherhood impacts women’s earning capacity.   [50:08] New positive UK legislation regarding parental leave.   [51:05] The mindset shift supported by the legislation.   [53:40] Ali recommends we create more prosperity by making better machines and focusing on a people-maximizing approach.   [55:58] Thinking about meaningful corporate purpose.   [58:10] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: Start with the right mindset. The biggest unlock will come if you take ownership of making your life better, your customers’ lives better, and the lives of people impacted indirectly by your company.     RESOURCES   Ali Azeem on LinkedIn Ali Azeem on Twitter Ipsos.com Game Over by David Sheff Nudge by Richard H. Thaler and Cass R Sunstein     QUOTES   “Often companies are talking about diversity, focusing more on the diversity side, because it’s easier, it’s measurable.”   “Hiring these [diverse] people is quite an easy job relative to the much harder thing which is to make them feel included.”   “Let’s start building better machines.”   “We need to evolve from what we’ve been doing before and that means moving away from this profit-maximizing approach to a people-maximizing approach.”

Jenn DeWall is a leadership development strategist, workshop facilitator, and coach working mostly with and on behalf of her Millennial peers. She also hosts The Leadership Habit podcast. Focused on supporting rising Millennial leaders’ progress, Jenn shares her own experiences—successes and struggles—that have shaped her perspectives and approach to leadership development in the new era of work. She explains the goals, mindsets, and concerns of many Millennials and suggests productive, sustainable ways for us all to advance and grow.     KEY TAKEAWAYS   [02:49] After college, Jenn’s initial enthusiasm about leadership soon wanes.   [03:30] Despite good results, Jenn gets an unexpected, negative review.   [04:34] Jenn is devastated. “Why didn’t somebody tell me?”   [06:21] Jenn loses confidence and gets conflicting direction about how to act at work.   [08:33] After some struggles, Jenn is asked to start training and mentoring her peers.   [10:20] Organizations need diversity across many dimensions, allowing people to show up as themselves.   [12:04] How Millennials were not prepared at college for the rules of work or to know their value.   [13:40] Jenn interviewed senior leaders to find out where Millennials are getting it wrong at work.   [14:55] Issue 1: Millennials want to have fun at work.   [15:42] Issue 2: Millennials yearn to develop and understand the big picture.   [16:49] Issue 3: Millennials desire for flexibility and work/life integration.   [18:46] Initial confidence about their potential and future is dulled for those not falling into line.   [20:12] As Millennials become leaders, how are they fulfilling their needs for external validation?   [22:01] Lacking conditioning for internal validation to know “I am enough” “I have the skills I need to succeed.”   [23:20] Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Our fundamental need to be connected.   [23:58] Millennials ask themselves “What is my life really worth?”   [25:02] The working environment has affected Millennials – such as 9/11 and the Great Recession.   [25:49] How technology has expanded Millennials’ worldview, footprint, and decisions.   [26:53] Jenn discusses how her peers think through “What do I want work to feel like?”   [28:42] Resignations often happen when employees assume/fear their employer will not be open to making accommodations.   [29:25] How the need for external validation affects workplace confidence and behaviors.   [31:59] Jenn shares Millennials’ confusion: Why can’t I have fun at work? And why can’t I also work hard?   [33:31] As such a large generation, Millennials are not afraid to stay and be the voice of change.   [34:52] How rising leaders benefit from being intentional about soft skills and behaviors they promote.   [38:25] Jenn advises leading with curiosity and empathy and assuming positive intent.   [41:20] You can’t hang your hat on stereotypes as everyone’s lived experience is different.   [42:46] Non-linear career paths are now the norm, requiring different consideration and allowing different possibilities.    [44:55] Reacting to “What is my life worth?” leads to disruption with new work configurations.    [47:12] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: Find the common ground. We all carry an invisible suitcase that is the collective experience of our hopes, dreams, fears, and pains, and there is commonality within. Be intentional and find that commonality so we can work better together.   RESOURCES   Jenn DeWall on LinkedIn Jenn DeWall on Twitter JennDeWall.com Jenndewallcoaching.com Jenn DeWall on Instagram     QUOTES   “Through hardship comes great outcomes.”   “If we want a homogenous workforce where we are more alike, what does that do for innovation?”   “I never wanted millennials to feel less than, I just want them to feel empowered. You deserve to be recognized and seen for who you are.”   “This is where the helicopter parenting didn't set us up well because you need to have confidence at a foundational level to influence, to make a decision. And Millennials were very much conditioned for external validation.”

Dominic Price, Work Futurist at Atlassian, first explains unlearning. He discusses the excitement and challenges of his work ensuring his company keeps adapting to stay ahead of competitors as it grows rapidly year on year. Focused on anticipating, exploring, and improving ways of working, Dom offers suggestions to specific questions that we are all currently trying to answer such as about hybrid work models, burnout, transformation challenges, and more, sharing his lived experiences, experiments and refined solutions.   KEY TAKEAWAYS   [03:10] Starting as a chartered accountant, Dom found a “job for life” wasn’t his vocation.   [03:54] Not wanting to fit into a box, Dom had to accept uncertainty and unlearn structure.   [05:34] How to be happy with career progress when “learning” is the key measurement.   [07:47] When Dom joined Atlassian it was one of the “best places to work”, but he hated it.   [08:31] Applying his skills very differently, Dom was confronted reframing his “firefighting” role.   [11:58] Dom’s boss challenges him to adapt and grow 40% each year to stay in his current role.   [14:10] We go back to old thinking because it was certain, not because it was valuable.   [15:22] Dom’s fascination with technology ends up with him focused on people.   [17:48] Question 1 – How to tackle the complexity of hybrid models?   [19:24] Underlying question – How do we become place agnostic?   [20:24] When we are place agnostic, how can we find effective ways of working?   [22:18] Question 2 – How does work “work” now?   [23;15] Underlying question – What more can we understand about what it is to be human?   [21:45] You can offer flexibility to your on-site workers. Dom explains how.   [24:23] The importance of psychological safety.   [26:14] Dom experiments and gives an asynchronous workshop.   [28:12] We have to experiment and explore our way forward in the Future of Work.   [29:11] Question 3 – How do you learn a growth mindset?   [30:14] Dom’s Five Ls exercise that he practices regularly.   [32:55] The importance of role modeling behavior as leaders now.   [36:03] Question 4 – How to embrace change and stop people resisting change?   [37:50] Breaking down transformation into “what’s one thing we can do today?”   [39:40] Celebrating “the good old days” in a positive way to be able to move forward.   [42:41] Question 5 – How to get rid of so many meetings?   [46:19] Questions 6 - How do we reduce burnout?   [47:15] Question 7 – Should I leave my employer?   [48:55] Be the change you seek. Feedback is a gift, but only if you give it!   [51:28] Question 8 & 9 – How can you help employees think through how to live their lives differently? How can their boss support this process?   [52:00] Why Dom thinks we are obsessed with perfection and we should focus on progress.   [52:45] Systems thinking—we can block progress if we only see the boundaries of the system.   [53:51] Learning organizations don’t exist, but learning loops do.   [55:42] Dom believes the organization chart is damaging—hindering progress in organizations.   [57:33] Leadership is based on competence, not level.   [59:37] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: If you’ve been taking mental or written notes listening to this episode, don’t sign up for more knowledge obesity, find ONE thing you are willing to try, and put a date on it.     RESOURCES   Dom Price on LinkedIn Dom Price on Twitter Domprice.me Atlassian.com Atlassian’s Team Playbook   QUOTES   “I need to unlearn all these things I got taught early on in my career, about “you must have a career plan”.”   “If you wanna be great, you're gonna have to evolve how you work, how your teams work, how you influence. You're gonna have to adapt to everything constantly.”   “How do we get those teams in a distributed fashion to work effectively together? Once we solve that everything else is done, right? Everything else is gravy.”   “How can we work human to human? How do we amplify that with technology? Technology isn’t the answer, it’s the amplifier.”   “How do I build a balanced life and where does work fit into that?”   “If you've got an hour, spend five minutes reminiscing on the good old days, spend the other 55 building better days tomorrow.”   “Leadership is based on competence, not level.”  

Podcast host, Sophie Wade, checks in to discuss the current challenges, frustrations, and fatigue we are all dealing with as we emerge from the pandemic. From resisting or rolling out new work arrangements, to managing supply chain disruptions and rising costs, facilitating business and workforce transformation at the same time is not easy. Sophie explains how empathy works to enable the necessary shift to a human-centric orientation in technology-driven Future-of-Work environments leading to successful, sustainable progress and growth. She also reads short excerpts from her new book, Empathy Works: The Key to Competitive Advantage in the New Era of Work.     KEY TAKE AWAYS   [01:16] Acknowledging the challenges moments and issues we are all experiencing.   [03:08] The current discord between conventional power and progress.   [04:43] Why it’s necessary and practical to embrace the reimagining and redesigning of work.   [06:18] How the First Principles approach is useful, incorporating learnings from the last two years.    [07:10] The human-centric counterbalance to a technology-driven business world.   [08:02] The human-centric framework that elevates the Customer Journey and the Employee Journey.   [08:50] Sophie‘s new book Empathy Works is “An insightful and practical must-read for leaders focused on the future” -- Kirkus Reviews.   [09:32] Examples of how we experience empathy at work.   [10:32] Does everyone have empathy?   [11:31] What is soft about empathy as a skill?   [12:37] The neuroscience of empathy and its role at the core of human relationships.   [14:31] The connections between trust, oxytocin, social comfort, and the ability to read someone’s emotions.   [17:00] How to think through designing a suitable work model for your organization.   [19:30] Should your company have an office? If yes, what for?   [21:26] Workplace flexibility is a mindset first and a policy second.   [22:45] Why the effective mindset is open, inclusive, and empathetic.   [23:53] Leaders are transitioning from commanding to coaching and giving more autonomy to their team members.   [25:25] Why decentralizing decision-making is necessary now.   [27:46] PURPOSE: The importance of leaders articulating purpose.   [28:44] CULTURE: The role of leaders in modeling corporate values and how culture determines employees’ actions.   [30:29] TRUST: Trust is essential for workers to feel a sense of belonging and to increase their engagement.   [31:55] CONTROL: Empowering employees to support decentralized decision-making.   [33:30] WORKFLOW: The importance of understanding how work is accomplished and flows through your organization.   [35:21] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: Buy Sophie’s book to understand more about how to infuse your company’s culture and mindset with empathy and get practical help to establish daily empathy habits.     RESOURCES   Sophie Wade on LinkedIn Sophie Wade’s website Sophie’s new book “Empathy Works: The Key to Competitive Advantage in the New Era of Work” Sophie Wade’s company Flexcel Network     QUOTES   “We all have to make our way through the messiness of transformation.”   “We have the opportunity to get to a much better place.”   “This IS the moment to be making the necessary and powerful transformation to ensure your business can progress and succeed.”   “Empathy is closely associated with trust, respect, and inclusion which together can create a solid foundation for your company and culture.” “Empathy is at the core of all human relationships.”

Pascal Dulex, Culture Coach and Creative Director at Freitag in Switzerland, has been one of the people instrumental in implementing holacracy—a “self-management practice for organizations”—within the company. Pascal discusses the essence of leadership, provides insights about the role of managers, and explains how work processes were affected as the company prepared for and adopted holacracy. He also describes their ongoing internal discussions as he facilitates and supports continuing integration.   KEY TAKEAWAYS [03:19] Pascal’s core connections to the field of creativity.   [04:50] Pascal is less enamored with the traditional communications career.   [06:55] Stumbling upon a job description at Freitag that was different.   [08:28] Pascal finds one of the founder brothers very authentic when interviewed.   [10:54] The company is navigating a turbulent period when he joins.   [12:39] Pascal changes from communications to become Head of Innovation.   [13:37] A fundamental shift in the leadership role to becoming an enabler.   [14:48] The close link between product development and communications at Freitag.   [16:43] Working with “circle materials”.   [18:27] Over extension was a key trigger leading to holacracy’s implementation.   [19:15] The second trigger was reassessing leadership and decision-making.   [19:56] How hierarchy and conflict between departments was undermining outputs.   [21:29] The first step in the process was to “kill the management”!   [22:03] Organizing like a city at first—as senior leadership needed to make space for others.   [22:49] They develop a vision of their ideal organization.   [24:00] Discovering holacracy and getting expert help to explain it and support execution.   [25:55] How is leadership linked to hierarchy?   [27:07] Initial efforts were focused on understanding exactly what managers “do”.   [29:30] “Organizing away” managers’ roles.   [31:20] Clarifying roles and updating processes.   [33:13] Self-organizing companies need to communicate more.   [33:50] Decision-making driven by responsibility not consensus.   [35:27] Holacracy allows for continuous improvement.   [37:52] How do they explain the organization and management system when recruiting?   [40:29] Are there really no job titles?   [43:04] What holacracy does not address that Freitag has to work on.   [44:46] What does leadership mean? How do I want to be led? How do I want to lead myself?   [47:35] The struggles of self-organization.   [50:06] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: Trust is fundamental in every organization in the way you approach others. Starting with trust, people feel better because they realize you believe in them—and their positive intentions—and that’s a good starting point wherever you work.   RESOURCES   Pascal Dulex on LinkedIn Pascal on Instagram Freitag’s website   QUOTES   “The first step we made was making space for others to unfold their potential that was by getting rid of management.”   “You should feel like investing your time for a purpose that you believe in.”   “It [holacracy] has a radically different way of approaching power or authority hierarchy.”   “Managing is a very unclear term, right? If I say I’m a manager, what does that mean?”   “One of the fundamental things in every organization is trust—the way you approach others.”   “I firmly believe that every person who shows up for work is actually here to do something good, to achieve something.”  

Dr. Amanda Crowell, a university professor, cognitive psychologist, and coach, developed a time management system that helps people be productive without burning out after she experienced severe burnout herself. Amanda explains how to transform outcomes and avoid burnout by recognizing our own expertise, shifting focus, and discovering what key elements to do differently. When we reconfigure “how” we work, we can produce the results we want and feel more fulfilled without changing our lives. Amanda is the author of “Great Work” and podcast host of “Unleashing Your Great Work”.   KEY TAKEAWAYS   [02:50] After a stormy start in life, Amanda had an intense academic career.   [04:32] Amanda realized that she wanted to make a difference and it would mean a different pathway.   [05:02] The surprise of finding how different (chaotic) work process is outside academia.   [05:55] Amanda starts to burn out working around the clock.   [07:39] The three key indicators of burnout.   [08:46] Amanda reaches a mental and physical breaking point.   [10:50] How Amanda decides she wants a very different life for herself.   [12:34] “How did I let it get this bad?” resulted from holding onto beliefs that were not true.   [13:45] Unpacking and understanding unhealthy and undermining beliefs.   [15:13] How “self expertise” awareness is essential for effective collaboration.   [17:31] Considering how to configure your life differently utilizing newly-acceptable options.   [19:06] Resetting expectations and the illusion of what is “non-negotiable”.   [20:11] Amanda explores what she could do with less intensity that nobody will notice.   [21:34] Changing the relationship dynamic when you respond differently.   [23:10] Amanda’s focus is improvement science or quality improvement to help people work more effectively.   [23:58] How workflow analysis can increase productivity and reduce burnout.   [24:30] Focusing on key small details can make a significant difference.   [26:40] Making all the pieces of your life fit your self expertise.   [27:09] Despite (deliberately) delayed responses from Amanda, her boss gives her a great evaluation.   [27:41] Optimizing focus and workflow results in more satisfied clients.   [29:40] How to set employees up for success so they can perform well.   [30:49] You cannot be in solid relationship with someone else if you don’t know what matters to you.   [33:10] We must develop skills as enterprises and employees to recognize better what work matters.   [34:54] Without leaving your job or getting a new manager, you can improve your work experience.   [38:24] The hierarchy of ideas can be reframed to help people feel satisfied today while also feeling connected to their big goals that they want to keep making progress towards.   [41:47] When we feel like we have agency and advancing something that matters the experience is very different.   [43:22] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: Think back to when you felt angriest as you listened to my interview with Amanda. What triggered the biggest emotional reaction? Focus on that aspect of your work to start to address your burnout. Second, don’t forget self care, and, third, for a particular task you don’t want to do consider “what would it require for me to get rid of this task?”   RESOURCES   Amandacrowell.com Dr. Amanda Crowell on LinkedIn Amanda Crowell on Instagram Amanda’s new book “Great Work” Amanda’s podcast “Unleashing Your Great Work”   QUOTES   “Nobody loved the fact that I was being pulled away from the family like that. And nobody loved the Amanda who was left by behind living on those fumes.”   “I’m not going to miss my kids growing up. I’m not going to miss a good relationship with my husband. Like for what? For email?”   “You can’t be in a real relationship with another person if you don’t know what matters to you, and you must honor what matters to that person too.”   “If you hate your job so much, I would address your burnout.”   “I would just say ‘Open the door, just a crack’ that what I’m saying might actually be true.”

Deepa Purushothaman shares the experiences of many Women of Color, including herself, in the corporate world and their challenges to rise as leaders—including loneliness and not seeing themselves represented. Deepa talks about the importance of co-conspirators speaking up as well understanding they will make mistakes. Deepa is the author or “The First, The Few, The Only: How Women of Color Can Redefine Power in Corporate America” and co-founder of nFormation, a company that provides safe spaces for professional Women of Color.     KEY TAKEAWAYS   [03:11] An overview of Deepa’s career at Deloitte.   [04:23] Deepa started by studying policy and politics.   [05:54] Ageism from clients was the discrimination Deepa felt most after being made partner early on.   [06:27] As the first Indian female partner, Deepa didn’t see herself represented in leadership positions and had questions about belonging.   [07:55] Deepa had support and sponsors and pulled from different leaders to see what worked for her.   [08:23] As a Woman of Color, Deepa had some challenges giving feedback to people older than her.   [09:32] Deepa had a particular data-driven approach that worked with clients.   [10:06] Without a role model, you are to need creative ways to find your voice.   [11:35] How the issue of confirming and performing—two to three times harder than others—came up repeatedly with the 500+ Women of Color Deepa interviewed.   [12:10] White male CEOs have been picking up Deepa’s book—not Women of Color—wanting to get smarter by asking questions.   [13:06] The extra burden Women of Color have educating others.   [13:43] There weren’t (many) conversations about race at work in the US until 2020.   [14:55] Deepa finds there aren’t safe spaces for Women of Color to tell their truth.   [16:31] Many Women of Color have ignored or been taught to ignore racism.   [16:55] How so many Women of Color have physical manifestations of the challenges—including trauma—they have been internalizing.   [18:30] Women of Color need people—allies/co-conspirators—to be involved, not bystanders.   [18:56] Co-conspirators need to realize and accept they will make mistakes.   [19:46] Most Women of Color Deepa interviewed did not talk about race at home.   [20:35] Women of Color and co-conspirators should be prepared and practice what to say when someone says something inappropriate.   [20:58] The shock and shame Women of Color have after something racist is said in the workplace.   [22:20] Deepa’s three recommended things to say to recognize that something inappropriate was said.   [23:32] Responses depend on the context and how well you know the people present.   [24:50] Deepa picks her battles and waits 10 minutes to see how she feels before saying anything.   [25:55] How Deepa got ill and took a sabbatical to heal.   [27:30] Now success is tied to health for Deepa.   [28:33] The genesis of Deepa’s book and company was a series of dinners with many Women of Color.   [29:42] The issue of loneliness for many Women of Color in senior positions.   [31:15] The shared experiences of Women of Color were shocking and freeing.   [32:05] The reaction of white male CEOs has been “we can’t deny this is happening [at my company].”   [33:58] nFormation focuses on Women of Color and holding spaces for conversation.   [35:09] Women of Color have been finding their voice and their power by just seeing each at nFormation.   [36:15] IMMEDIATE ACTION TIP: For co-conspirators - practice empathy--don’t assume, instead listen differently to understand others’ different experiences. Use your power in the moment to support others—amplifying, pausing for space, giving room, speaking up or about someone. For Women of Color – how do you want to show up? What do you want to say and how do you want to use your full voice?       RESOURCES   Deepapuru.com N2formation.com DeepaPurushothamanon LinkedIn DeepaPurushothamanon Twitter Deepa’s book “The First, the Few, the Only: How Women of Color Can Redefine Power in Corporate America”     QUOTES   “I was the first Indian female partner we made so there weren't a lot of examples or role models before me and, and it's a pretty large firm. To not see yourself represented, I had my own questions around belonging.”   “When you don’t see yourself in leadership positions, there’s a lot of narrative rewriting that you have to do in your head.”   “You don’t have to see it to be it.”   “When you don't see yourself or don't see an exact role model, that looks like you, what I really coach women on is to kind of try different things out.”   “It's hard to find your voice when you don't see yourself on television when you don't see yourself in the media when you don't have a teacher that looks like you, and then you go into an organization and there's hardly anybody that looks like you. Like, what is your voice?”