Mindy Pankoke, Jeff VandenHoek, and Andrew Mugford On this SaturdayCast, longtime listeners Mindy, Jeff, and Andrew join Dave to discuss how they’ve worked together to support each other in their leadership development. They share the importance of setting expectations in advance, getting external perspective, and celebrating key milestones. Key Points Getting people together outside of the organization/industry is helpful for objective perspective. “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” -Jim Rohn There’s the temptation to think, “What could I possibly offer?” Almost always, each person is able to offer a lot more than they expected. Say “thank you” when someone offers something, even if you’re not sure it’s useful. It is important to celebrate significant milestones. Resources Mentioned The Coaching Habit* by Michael Bungay Stanier Related Episodes These Coaching Questions Get Results, with Michael Bungay Stanier (episode 237) How to Create Meaningful Gatherings, with Priya Parker (episode 395) How to Make Your Work More Visible, with John Stepper (episode 397) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Lisa Cummings: Lead Through Strengths Lisa Cummings is the founder and CEO of Lead Through Strengths, a firm that exists to help people find and use their strengths at work. Lisa and her team serve large teams and organizations to help them leverage the results of the CliftonStrengths (formerly StrengthsFinder) assessment. She is also the host of the popular Lead Through Strengths podcast. In this conversation, Lisa and I discuss the value of bringing continual learning into existing team meetings. Key Points Consistency of team learning over time, each if for only a few minutes in each interaction, can make substantial progress. If possible, begin a meeting with a learning component. Help connect the dots for people between their natural talents and the work in front of them in the organization. When you ask people to think of others who they admire, be specific. Resources Mentioned CliftonStrengths (formerly StrengthsFinder) assessment Activity: What Do You Want to Be Remembered For? in PDF format (free membership required). The Ultimate Guide to Using Your Strengths to Get Hired Related Episodes Five Effective Ways to Train the People You Lead (episode 31) How Teams Use StrengthsFinder Results, with Lisa Cummings (episode 293) How to Lead Meetings That Get Results, with Mamie Kanfer Stewart (episode 358) One Alternative to Standing Meetings Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Bonni Stachowiak: Teaching in Higher Ed Bonni Stachowiak is the host of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast, a professor of business and management at Vanguard University, and my life partner. Prior to her academic career, Bonni was a human resources consultant and executive officer for a publicly traded company. She joins me monthly to respond to listener questions. Listener Questions Robert asked how he could support other leaders in his organization to do better, while also supporting his own career. Harrison was wondering how he could handle a situation with a difficult client. Gregory wanted to know how to support team members when they are on-site with a customer and not available to connect. Chris asked what he could do to get more feedback on what should happen with training and development activities. Resources Mentioned How to Stop Worry and Start Living* by Dale Carnegie The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People* by Stephen Covey Related Episodes How to Listen When Someone Is Venting, with Mark Goulston (episode 91) Performance Measurement That Gets Results, with Stacey Barr (episode 419) Tie Leadership Development to Business Results, with Mark Allen (episode 435) Keep Your Ideas From Being Stolen (Dave’s Journal) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Tasha Eurich, an organizational psychologist and New York Times best-selling author, discusses the importance of self-awareness for leaders. She explores the different types of self-awareness and the tendency to avoid delivering difficult feedback. Tasha shares research on self-awareness unicorns and provides a self-awareness assessment tool. The host expresses gratitude and recommends related podcast episodes on accepting feedback, accountability, and seeking therapy.

Willie Jackson Willie Jackson is a diversity, equity, and inclusion consultant and facilitator with ReadySet, a boutique consulting firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a frequent writer and speaker on the topics of workplace equity, global diversity, and inclusive leadership. Willie founded an online magazine for black men called Abernathy in 2015, growing the publication from initial concept to over 400 articles and thousands of subscribers. He also served as Technical Lead of Seth Godin’s altMBA program. In this conversation, Willie and I discuss getting started on the journey with diversity and inclusion, what leaders can do to be more mindful, and some of the missteps that I’ve made along the way. Key Points Most of us have good intentions — and intentions alone do not ensure we make the impact we want. We don’t rise to the level of our ambition. We sink to the level of our training. You will make mistakes, regardless of how mindful and intentional you are. Bonus Audio The Language of Inclusivity Resources Scene on Radio podcast White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism* by Robin DiAngelo Fatal Invention: How Science, Politics, and Big Business Re-create Race in the Twenty-first Century* by Dorothy Roberts The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration* by Isabel Wilkersons Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America* by Ibram Kendi How to Be an Antiracist* by Ibram Kendi Related Episodes How to Handle Workplace Bullying, with Jill Morgenthaler (episode 172) How to Tame Workplace Incivility, with Sharone Bar-David (episode 210) How to Make Inclusion Happen, with Deepa Purushothaman (episode 307) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Jim Mattis: Call Sign Chaos Jim Mattis served more than four decades as an infantry officer in the United States Marines, rising to the rank of 4-star general. In 2017, he was nearly unanimously confirmed as the 26th Secretary of Defense of the United States, a position he held for almost two years. Today, he is a distinguished fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and the author of the new book with Bing West: Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead*. In this conversation, Jim and I discuss his career in the Marines and the leadership lessons that emerged during combat. Jim shares the mistake he made in soliciting support for his plan to capture Osama Bin Laden in Tora Bora and discusses how he handled disagreements on strategy in Fallujah. Finally, Jim recommends three books and reflects on the greatest threat to America today. Key Points Creating “focused telescopes” outside the normal chain of command were useful in discovering concerns that might not otherwise have become known. Keep key stakeholders in the loop with these three questions: What do I know? Who needs to know? Have I told them? “You cannot order someone to abandon a spiritual burden they’ve been wrestling with.” Even in a war zone, command was only a small portion of the daily tasks. Most of the time was spent coaching. “History teaches that we face nothing new under the sun.” Books will help you take advantage of the accumulated experiences of leaders who came before you. Resources Mentioned Meditations* by Marcus Aurelius Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant* by Ulysses S. Grant and Mark Twain Long Walk to Freedom* by Nelson Mandela Book Notes Download my highlights from Call Sign Chaos in PDF format (free membership required). Related Episodes The Way to Stop Rescuing People From Their Problems, with Michael Bungay Stanier (episode 284) Develop Leaders Before You Leave, with David Marquet (episode 405) Influence Through Overlapping Networks, with Sandie Morgan (episode 422) How to Start Seeing Around Corners, with Rita McGrath (episode 430) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Bonni Stachowiak: Teaching in Higher Ed Bonni Stachowiak is the host of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast, a professor of business and management at Vanguard University, and my life partner. Prior to her academic career, Bonni was a human resources consultant and executive officer for a publicly traded company. She joins me monthly to respond to listener questions. Listener Questions David asked about how to replace his manager who’s had 20 years of experience. Said wondered what he should do to overcome the fear of leading someone smarter than him. James asked about the best ways to prepare how more opportunities to influence others. Resources Mentioned Leaders Need “User Manuals” – and What I Learned By Writing Mine What If You Had to Write a "User Manual" About Your Leadership Style? Business Model Generation* by Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur Related Episodes Seven Principles for Leading People Older Than You, with Bonni Stachowiak (episode 59) An Astronaut’s Guide To Life On Earth, with Chris Hadfield (episode 149) Do This for a Productive Week (episode 180) How to Create Team Guidelines, with Susan Gerke (episode 192) How to Actually Move Numbers, with Chris McChesney (episode 294) The Path to Start Leading Your Team, with John Piñeiro (episode 349) Develop Leaders Before You Leave, with David Marquet (episode 405) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Lori Gottlieb: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone Lori Gottlieb is a psychotherapist and New York Times bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone*. In addition to her clinical practice, she writes The Atlantic’s weekly Dear Therapist advice column and contributes regularly to The New York Times and many other publications. Lori has written hundreds of articles related to psychology and culture, many of which have become viral sensations. She is a sought-after expert in media appearing on The Today Show, Good Morning America, and NPR’s “Fresh Air.” In this conversation, Lori and I explore what to do with our feelings, how make the transition from idiot compassion towards wise compassion, and where a therapist can help. When a therapist is the right resource, Lori teaches us how to gain the most from therapy by stepping into both vulnerability and accountability. Key Points It’s important to make the transition from “idiot compassion” to wise compassion — and to find others who can do that for us. Sometimes people say they want to stop the difficult feelings, but you can’t mute some feelings without muting all of them. We keep secrets from our therapists — and we keep secrets from ourselves. The more we are able to be vulnerable, the more that people are able to help ourselves. Insight alone is not valuable without accountability to do better with new insight. What matters most in the success of therapy is the relationship with your therapist, more so than any other factor or credentials. Resources Mentioned Maybe You Should Talk to Someone* by Lori Gottlieb Dear Therapist in The Atlantic Related Episodes How to Tame Your Inner Critic, with Tara Mohr (episode 232) Four Steps to Get Unstuck and Embrace Change, with Susan David (episode 297) The Way to Have Conversations That Matter, with Celeste Headlee (episode 344) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Art Markman: Bring Your Brain to Work Art Markman is the Annabel Irion Worsham Centennial Professor Centennial Professor of Psychology and Marketing at the University of Texas at Austin. He is also the Founding Director of the Program in the Human Dimensions of Organizations, which brings the humanities and the social behavioral sciences to people in business. Along with Bob Duke, Art hosts the radio show Two Guys on Your Head for KUT Radio in Austin, also available as a podcast. He’s the author of many books, most recently: Bring Your Brain to Work: Using Cognitive Science to Get a Job, Do it Well, and Advance Your Career*. In this conversation, Art and I explore the science behind what we know and how we can both better recognize what we don’t know and increase our knowledge in that area. Research shows that others are one of our best sources of knowledge and we discuss how to make intentional connections through mentoring to accomplish this. Key Points Metacognition is the awareness of one’s own knowledge. The Dunning-Kruger explains how sometimes feels like we know more about something than we actually do. The success of expert generalists demonstrates the value of leveraging connections with others in the organization and industry. The most powerful source of knowledge is the people around you. Traditional mentoring programs aren’t ideal since they are inorganic. Seek these five kinds of people when building a team that can mentor you: coach, superstar, connector, librarian, and teammate. Resources Mentioned Bring Your Brain to Work: Using Cognitive Science to Get a Job, Do it Well, and Advance Your Career* by Art Markman Book Notes Download my highlights from Bring Your Brain to Work in PDF format (free membership required). Related Episodes How to Find a Mentor (episode 105) How to Grow Your Professional Network, with Tom Henschel (episode 279) What You Gain By Sponsoring People, with Julia Taylor Kennedy (episode 398) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.

Michal Holliday: United States Air Force Mike is a 26-year career military officer and colonel in the United States Air Force. He’s been a commander at the squadron and group level. Today, he is chief of engineering overseeing design and construction across the entire Pacific theatre. He’s also a longtime listener of Coaching for Leaders. In this conversation, Mike and I discuss how his view of leadership has changed over time and how he’s used personal leadership to guide his journey. We highlight how he’s inspired vivid visions in his organization, created team expectations, and embrace a culture of more immediate coaching and feedback. Key Points “Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” -Viktor Frankl “The unexamined life is not worth living.” -Socrates Vision statements often end up in a drawer. The vivid vision process taught by Cameron Herold has helped the vision to come alive. Giving coaching and feedback more immediately is essential for learning and cultivating the right culture. “When I see something, I do something.” There is a time and place for order-giving. Spending more time coaching, giving feedback, and listening well helps build trust for orders to be followed when that time comes. Resources Mentioned Man's Search for Meaning* by Viktor Frankl Vivid Vision* by Cameron Herold Radical Candor* by Kim Scott Related Episodes How to Create Team Guidelines, with Susan Gerke (episode 192) The Way to Make New Behaviors Stick, with Marshall Goldsmith (episode 196) How to Make Deep Work Happen, with Cal Newport (episode 233) How to Challenge Directly and Care Personally, with Kim Scott (episode 302) The Power of Solitude, with Mike Erwin (episode 308) How to Create a Vivid Vision, with Cameron Herold (episode 345) The Way to Stay Grounded, with Parker Palmer (episode 378) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.