The Leadership Habit

Organizational psychologist Joshua Washington discusses mission-critical conversations and the importance of defining the mission, objectives, and key drivers of your organization. He emphasizes the need for continuous conversations to reach objectives and addresses the significance of mood and emotional intelligence in critical discussions.

On this week’s episode, Jenn DeWall welcomes Nancy Lyons to The Leadership Habit podcast to talk about how to work like a boss!  Meet Nancy Lyons, CEO and Co-Founder of Clockwork Nancy understands that humans are the hardest part of work. She’s been building teams and leading clients through culture change and evolution for over 20 years by challenging people to harness the human side of business.  Nancy’s mission is to help everyone activate their inner change maker by showing up differently and controlling the one thing you can– yourself. She’s the author of the Amazon bestseller Work Like A Boss: A Kick In the Pants Guide to Finding (and Using) Your Power At Work. She has also been recognized with a selection of past award titles, including Most Admired CEO, 100 People to Know, and Business Owner of the Year. Nancy lives in Minneapolis and is the co-founder and CEO of an experienced design and technology consultancy called Clockwork and a smaller agile studio called Tempo. Tempo serves small to medium-sized businesses and startups that need technology solutions. Clockwork does a lot of technology consulting strategy and customer experience. Her company works with clients like Ameriprise, Mercury Marine, Optum, UnitedHealth, Ecolab and General Motors building “big, complex, gnarly technology systems for their businesses.” How Did Nancy Learn to Work Like a Boss?  As the episode opens, Jenn asks Nancy to explain how she started her career in technology. Nancy explains, “It was out of the ordinary. I was actually a theater major in college, and I thought that if I translated any of that to work, I would end up being a producer or director of industrial videos. Or maybe I would pursue filmmaking.  I started on that path, but what I saw was a lot of men in the driver’s seat, and there were very few women behind the cameras. There were very few women who were leading the charge, and you know, we know that’s true. If you just look at the Oscars and the mainstream film industry, we know that when women win an award for excellence, it isn’t just unusual that they won the award. It’s also unusual that they were up for it to begin with– because there are so few of them. That’s been the case for a really long time… So, I started to look around to see where else I could put my creative energy. At the time, I was just wrapping up college, and I had just graduated from college when all of it started to come together, and I started to teach myself how to code. I was really curious about the internet, really curious about what was happening there.  I made it my life’s mission to find a company where I could essentially apprentice because, at the time, there weren’t a lot of formal programs in college. There weren’t a lot of formal grad programs. The internet was just– you know– this is the nineties. The internet was just coming into mainstream existence, and I was looking for a place where I could learn the business, and I did. I found it and built my career from there.” What Does “Working Like a Boss” Mean? Later, Jenn asks Nancy to explain what she means by “working like a boss.” Nancy explains that sometimes, when we think of a boss or an entrepreneur, we will romanticize the concept, looking at the big success stories like the Elon Musks and Mark Zuckerbergs of the world.  However, when Nancy talks about working like a boss, she means having courage, adaptability, and a connection to your purpose. Working like a boss is possible whether you start a company or work for a company. Unfortunately, she is often amazed that anything gets done at larger organizations because people start their careers thinking about the wrong things.  People start their careers thinking about how to get ahead, how to be better than everyone else, and how to get noticed before anyone else. Nancy explains that “working like a boss requires actually being more mindful of your impact on the broader organization.”  The Importance of Mindset Then, Jenn and Nancy discuss the importance of having the right mindset. If you want to work like a boss, you must have some ownership, whether you own the company or not. How are you impacting the culture, your teams, your division, or your deliverables?  She explains, “With that ownership comes the ability to take initiative, the ability to make decisions, the ability to take risk, the ability to fail and learn from it, the ability to understand other people have emotional intelligence.  There are all these qualities that get wrapped up in the idea of being a boss in our culture, but you don’t have to be an executive or a founder to actually bring those qualities to the workplace. And when I say that, I don’t mean brick and mortar. I mean, wherever it is that you work, whether it’s at, in a home office, in a restaurant, in a corporation, whatever it is.  Bringing those qualities with you every day and holding yourself accountable for showing up with them and engaging with other people, with that spirit of innovation and interest and purpose. That is what’s going to prepare all of us for the future of work. And that’s what it means to work like a boss.”  The Role of Emotional Intelligence Later in the episode, Jenn and Nancy discuss the role of emotional intelligence at work. Nancy shares that people can feel lost within a large organization and think there is not much just one person can do to make an impact.  However, thinking like a boss means being aware of the microcultures you are part of. She shares that you have significant influence over your team, your department, and your close colleagues.  Nancy explains, saying, “I think that’s important, and you can be the champion. You can show up with this desire to shift energy. So I think emotional intelligence is when you recognize you have to have boundaries around what you can control. But this right here, this immediate space that I exist in, and these people that I interact with every day, I can have frank conversations with them about how I experience this team. So we can share some positivity. We’re gonna check in about challenging things that are happening so we can understand what you’re going through, what I’m going through, and also see how we might be able to help each other and then move into the agenda, having celebrated something, having aligned with each other, but moving into the agenda with an action mindset, you know, an action-oriented mindset.  Maybe that’s something we agree to, but I think first and foremost, you know, emotional intelligence shows up when you work to cultivate authentic relationships with your teammates, whereby you can have difficult conversations that are solution-oriented and work toward that solution together.” Learning to Thrive at Work Next, they discuss how people learn (or don’t learn) to thrive at work. Nancy shares, “I often say, you know, we put so much emphasis on higher education in this country, and yet we don’t teach people how to thrive at work, how to show up with the right energy.  We teach ’em how to get papers in on time, but mostly we teach ’em how to shut up, sit down, get in line, do what they’re told, do you know, get an a because there’s only one right answer be perfect because there’s only one way to deliver, right?  And then we throw ’em into the workplace, which is like a giant melting pot of experimentation and failure. And we don’t understand why they immediately clam up. And, you know, only some of them will succeed. And it’s because we raise young people in a certain way of thinking, and then work requires a totally different set of tools.” Nancy believes that a lack of professional development on the front end creates issues. She explains, “And so people kind of move through the workplace with fear, sort of guiding how they show up. They’re afraid of conflict. So feedback is a tough thing to give and receive. You know, we take things personally, so feedback is really rough to receive. We’re afraid of what others will think of us. We don’t wanna look dumb. We don’t wanna look like we don’t know what we’re doing. You know, those things are why most humans resist change. I don’t wanna try that. I don’t even know what I’m doing. I’m not gonna do that in front of people. Why would I do that? I’m not gonna do it.”  She goes on to say, “So fear actually prevents us from working like a boss! And we believe that there are people like you or maybe me, oh, you must not be afraid of anything! Knowing you for the 10 minutes that I’ve known you through the 30 minutes cumulatively. I bet you’re not afraid of anything. That would be my assumption.  The truth is we know better. Of course, you have fear. Of course, I have fear. We’ve just learned how to operate with it, how to move through it, right? Nobody is fearless, but we can all learn how to fear LESS.” Where to Find More From Nancy Lyons Nancy shares so many more insights than we could include in this post, so be sure to check out the full episode on your favorite podcast streaming service! If you would like to learn more about Nancy and her work, here is where you can find more:  Connect with Nancy on LinkedIn Visit her website here: NancyLyons.com Learn about her company here: Clockwork.com Learn about the Agile studio, Tempo, here: MadeByTempo.com Get her book:  Work Like a Boss: A Kick-in-the-Pants Guide to Finding (and Using) Your Power at Work   The post How to Work Like a Boss with Nancy Lyons appeared first on Crestcom International.

The 7 Keys of Engagement with Speaker, Consultant and Trainer, Paul ter Wal On this week’s episode of The Leadership Habit, Jenn welcomes Paul ter Wal to the podcast to discuss employee engagement. Together, they explain the importance of having an engaged workforce– from increasing employee satisfaction to increasing the bottom line. Be sure to listen to the full episode to learn about Paul’s free engagement survey!  Meet Paul ter Wal, International Employability Researcher Paul ter Wal is an international employability researcher. He has been working as a speaker, consultant and trainer for managers, HR directors and employees for more than 25 years. He was President of the Global Speakers Federation 2019-2020. As a speaker and consultant, Paul helps organizations improve their results by implementing sustainable employability strategies based on enthusiasm, shared core values and a clear mission and vision. Enthusiastic employees are more innovative, creative, and productive and make a major contribution to your results. What Does Engagement at Work Look Like?  As the episode opens, Jenn welcomes Paul ter Wal to the show and asks him to tell the audience about himself. He explains that he actually started his career as a lawyer working in labor law. In that career, he found himself wondering why business leaders were not taking care of their employees. Instead, they just wait until things are so bad lawyers are involved! So, he quit his job and became a consultant to help organizations drive employee engagement.  Then, Jenn and Paul discuss the struggle with employee engagement. Paul explains that first, leaders must know what it is. He breaks it down into 4 components:  Energy – If your work is draining, and you feel tired and mad all the time, you are not engaged at work.  Belonging – When you are engaged at work, you feel like you belong to a team and that your work matters to someone else.  Competencies – To be engaged at work, you need to have the right skills, and you should be learning and training throughout your entire career.  Purpose – You must find purpose in your work to be truly engaged. If you can’t find any meaning or purpose in your job, you will not be engaged.  Why are People Quiet Quitting? Then, Jenn cites the 2023 Gallup State of the Workforce Report , which revealed that 59% of people are quiet quitting at work. She asks Paul why employee engagement is so prevalent.  Paul explains it comes down to core values or non-negotiables. “That’s those gut feelings that are part of your decision-making. So you have that feeling, this is right for me.  And what I see is that a lot of human beings have lost that connection with their core feelings, with their core values. So if you start working for an organization and you see their core values, and you are not aligned with them, then it’ll go wrong.” The 7 Keys of Engagement Next, Paul explains the seven key indicators of employee engagement.  Sick Leave: When people are disengaged at work, they tend to call in sick more often. However, when engagement improves, employers can see sick leave reduced by 81%.  Attrition: If there is an engagement issue within an organization, employee retention will suffer. However, if employees are engaged, attrition can go down as much as 43%.  Wellbeing: Individual well-being increases when someone is engaged at work. When employees feel supported at work, they will be more engaged.    Productivity: Productivity falls when employee engagement is low and increases when it improves.  Profitability: When employee engagement is high, productivity goes up, and that will lead to better profitability throughout the organization.  Customer Loyalty/Satisfaction: A business with a high level of engagement will enjoy more customer loyalty. The customer experience and the employee experience are intertwined. Employees who are engaged are more professional, helpful and pleasant to customers.  Mistakes: Mistakes are another key indicator of employee engagement. When employees are disengaged at work, they are less careful and more likely to make mistakes. Depending on the job, mistakes can cost money or even cost lives. However, an engaged workforce will see mistakes reduced by as much as 60%.  How Can Leaders Improve the Employee Engagement?  Later, Jenn and Paul discuss employee engagement strategies. Paul suggests starting with his “traffic light” method. He explains that leaders should determine if employees are red, yellow or green. Red Light Employees  A “red” employee is one who is fully disengaged. They may be constantly complaining, calling in sick, or worse. He advises having a frank discussion with these employees to determine if there is a path forward. Otherwise, it is best to part ways.   Yellow Light Employees However, you may have employees that are “yellow” on the traffic light scale. Paul suggests reaching out to these somewhat unengaged employees by asking questions.  He explains, “The question is, are you okay? How can I support you? Start asking questions. Instead of telling people what to do, ask them, as a leader, how can I support you? And I love the story that I heard that a leader went outside with his employees. If he had to do a tough conversation and they said, let’s drink a coffee somewhere in the neighborhood. And then they walked outside, and they were walking side by side. And then the leader asked, are you okay? And the employees started talking because you don’t have to look in someone’s eyes.  Ask that question. So don’t make it a high-level conversation. Keep it simple. Just say, let’s have a coffee, let’s have a chat. How are you doing, doing? That’s the first step. You can do it tomorrow. We don’t need to change the organization. We need to develop the organization. If you want a culture change, well, you need to start asking questions.  It doesn’t cost you any money. It’ll give you a lot of information. And we hope that you inspire and motivate people so that they’ll be more engaged. Right. And it’s free!” Final Thoughts about the Keys of Engagement As the episode closes, Jenn asks Paul for his final thoughts about increasing employee engagement. He closes by asking leaders to take a close look at their organizational values. Are those values on your website where people can find them? Do your employees know what those values are? He reminds the audience that it is important that the leaders’ values align with those organizational values.  He closes by saying, “If you don’t work from your core value as a leader, people are not going to trust you. So take a step back, take a deep breath, and look at your core values and those of the company. That’s the first step.” He then tells the audience that if they would like to learn more, he has a free engagement benchmark tool with 16 questions that can help leaders asses how their team is performing. If you answer the questions, you will receive a free report with insights into your team’s engagement.  Where to Find More From Paul ter Wal?  Connect on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/paulterwal/ Visit his website: paulterwal.com Use his FREE Employee Engagement Survey Tool: Benchmark Your Employee Engagement  Thanks for listening to The Leadership Habit! The post The 7 Keys of Engagement with Paul ter Wal appeared first on Crestcom International.

How to Make a Resilience Plan with Dr. Marie-Helene Pelletier On this week’s episode of The Leadership Habit, Jenn talks to Dr. Marie-Helene (MH) Pelletier about resilience. This topic is incredibly important as people are struggling with resilience in a way that they haven’t been before.  Meet Dr. MH Pelletier Throughout her career in business, Dr. MH Pelletier earned a Ph.D. in psychology and later also an MBA. She has spearheaded an international dialogue and the importance of leadership, resilience, and workplace health as key pillars of overall health. She’s a bilingual practicing psychologist with over 20 years of experience in clinical psychology and advisory workplace psychology.  Marie-Helene, or MH as she is often called, is a member of the Global Clinical Practice Network of the World Health Organization. She has presented, authored and co-authored a number of industry and academic publications and has won numerous academic and industry awards.  Now, MH is coming out with her first book, The Resilience Plan: A Strategic Approach to Optimizing Your Work Performance and Mental Health (MacMillan), in February of 2024. In this book, she debunks the myths of resilience, how to adopt a holistic approach to mental health, and offers practical strategies for people to make real changes.  Are You Struggling with Resilience?  As the episode opens, Jenn and MH talk about the importance of resilience. Jenn mentions that she read a statistic recently pointing out that people think they are more resilient than they are. She feels that people have been really trying to push through the challenges of the last few years and feeling burned out and overwhelmed. However, now they are wondering why they are not as resilient as they used to be or as they thought they were.  MH agrees and replies that often, people are told they are resilient or they are “the rock” for a team or their family. Then, resilience is a demand rather than something positive. She points out that demands can be positive or negative, but they take a toll on mental health.  The Demands of Life  MH explains, “So whether it’s a new promotion that you’ve wanted, so it’s positive, it’s a demand. You’re going through a change in your relationship, you’re going through a divorce. Maybe you wanted that, maybe you didn’t, but it will be a demand as well. When we’re thinking about our overall resilience, we want to look at all the demands we’re facing.  In the past few years, we’ve all continued to have our individual demands. And as life goes on, we all tend to have more demands with life. And therefore, that also takes a toll.  And it continues today, there are what I call chronic demands that are part of the world. The pandemic was one example. There are other things going on that weigh on us either more directly or more indirectly at times. But they’re going on, and they contribute.  Then there are economic situations. That will mean that many people’s employers are going through a lot of uncertainty and a lot of changes. That adds to it as well. And so, at some point, yes, we will feel it even more, which makes this topic even more important. In fact, resilience is a skill that many organizations see as the one skill will need moving forward.”   Why is Resilience Important in the Workplace Later, Jenn and MH discuss why leaders should be concerned about resilience in the workplace. MH explains that a higher level of resilience increases employees’ ability to navigate increasingly complex challenges. Building resilience is the key to managing stress, solving problems and staying healthy enough to do the work.  Defining Resilience MH defines resilience as the ability to go through adversity and come out even stronger. She says that if we want to build resilience, we have to become self-aware. We have to be proactive in recognizing when we are struggling with resilience. Being able to cope with stress in a healthy way requires self-awareness.  She reminds the audience that our resilience is not entirely in our own hands. We can work to increase it so we are ready for challenges and demands. However, sometimes the environment brings a level of demand that is impossible to meet.  In those cases, there will be an imbalance. But if we have built our resilience, we can make decisions to protect ourselves and manage the situation.  Why Do People Struggle with Resilience?  Later, Jenn asks MH for examples of how or why people may struggle with resilience in the workplace. MH explains, “One of the ways I see it happen, as we were saying earlier, is the assumption that we are the rock. Very capable, very efficacious. We can say yes to even more, and it will all work out, right?  So it comes from that mindset. Then additional demands happen, usually from both the workplace and our personal lives. They tend to happen this way. They happen all at the same time. And then the person continues to make the assumption that I can do anything, I am that rock.  So they work to meet all the demands over here, all the demands over here. They start feeling it. They start having signs that their resilience is not staying as solid as it used to be. But, they ignore the signs because they say to themselves, I can do this. I am the rock.  So they keep going, they ignore the signs, they put their head down and get whatever needs to get done, they get done. They are absolutely not doing the care part of self-care. That is not happening. Zero. Because they say I don’t have time and I’m here to take care of others.  And so, at some point, they end up in my office. And they say I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I used to be able to handle everything right now. I am feeling levels of anxiety I’ve never experienced. They’re experiencing burnout, different things. And they’re like, I, what’s wrong with me?” The Signs You Need to Make a Resilience Plan Next, Jenn and MH discuss the need to pay attention to the signs you are struggling with the demands of life. She lists 5 telltale signs:  Problems with sleep.  Trouble concentrating.  Struggling with decision-making.  Becoming impatient or irritable.  Feeling numb or feeling flat.  If you experience the above symptoms for more than a day or two, it is time to take care of yourself by making a resilience plan.  How Do You Make a Plan for Resilience Then, Jenn asks MH how people can start to make their own resilience plan. MH explains that a resilience plan is much like a business plan. When you launch a new product or service, you don’t just have the idea and immediately start doing it. You have to make a plan, make a SWOT analysis, etc.  MH explains that we have to do the same thing to plan for resilience. In her book, The Resilience Plan, she lays out short exercises to help clarify your plan. First, she guides you to identify your values. Then, the positive and negative demands on your life.  Then, she helps you create your realistic action plan. She recommends starting with one small action that you can commit to. Something you can do in the next one or two days is ideal. Start small, so it is not another overwhelming task on your list.  Then, Jenn and MH go through an example of creating a resilience plan for an imagined scenario. MH walks through identifying values and then looking at our supply of energy and our demands. She then outlines creating pillars of action to start rebuilding your resilience to cope with demands.  Strategic Resilience As the episode closes, MH offers her final advice:  “I would say we want to keep in mind that, yes, you are fabulous! But you’re not a rock, you’re a human. There is a lot of control to be gained by taking a deliberate strategic action plan for our resilience.  And so that’s the angle we want to make sure that we are on the proactive side of things and taking action. And we want to do it from a strategic perspective. All we need is to stay curious about what that looks like.  And know that we will need to be agile. Another word we hear a lot, but it’s true with this plan, just like a strategic plan in a business is not set forever. It gets reviewed, and it evolves over time. Same thing. Your strategic resilience plan will evolve over time.  And then your number one, celebrating everything that you’ve accomplished and then turning to, okay, what’s the next phase for me? So we want to stay curious and remind ourselves we do have that control and opportunity for us to take, to be strategic.”  Where to Find More from Dr. MH Pelletier Pre-Order Her Book:  The Resilience Plan: A Strategic Approach to Optimizing Your Work Performance and Mental Health Connect on LinkedIn Visit her Website: https://drmarie-helene.com Thanks for listening to The Leadership Habit Podcast!   The post Making a Resilience Plan with Dr. Marie-Helene Pelletier appeared first on Crestcom International.

How to Adapt and Lead When Times Get Tough with Resilience Expert Jason Shen On this week’s episode of The Leadership Habit podcast, Jenn DeWall talks to Resilience Expert Jason Shen about how to adapt and lead when times get tough! Setbacks are a natural part of life, but they can throw us off track and make us lose confidence. Join Jenn and Jason for a heartfelt conversation about how great leaders can get through challenging times by learning to adapt and pivot their strategies! Meet Resilience Expert Jason Shen Jason Shen is a resilience expert and executive coach who works with unconventional leaders and organizations that want to chart a course through change and swing big at work that matters. As a three-time founder, former NCAA athlete, and product leader at companies like Facebook and Etsy, Jason knows the challenge of leading in competitive and rapidly changing environments. His latest book is called Path to Pivot: How Startup Founders Can Reboot Their Business and Get a Second Chance At Breakout Success. Grit, Pivot or Quit – What Do You Do When Times Get Tough? As the episode opens, Jenn introduces Jason to the audience, and they begin by discussing Jason’s latest book, Path to Pivot. Jason explains, “Path to Pivot is a playbook for startup founders who’ve raised venture capital money who have hit maybe a wall or a sort of difficult time in their business, and they’re wondering what they should do. And so one of the big things that come up for entrepreneurs in this situation is whether you grit, pivot, or quit, right? And grit is all about sticking with it, pushing through.  And it’s, it’s that thing that we sort of hear all the time. You know, winners never quit. Pivoting is what I think a lot of entrepreneurs should do because sometimes, just running your head into a wall isn’t going to work out. And quitting is that four-letter word that we’re all super scared of, but sometimes it can be the right move to get you to that other side of your next endeavor. Because this one just isn’t it.” What Do People Usually Do in Tough Times?  Jenn points out that sometimes quitting is the right choice, but it can feel like a failure. She asks Jason about his perspective on how people handle these choices when things aren’t working out. Jason explains that sometimes people get stuck in survival mode and try to just keep trucking even when things are not going to work. He agrees sometimes quitting is the right choice, but also, there is often some middle ground.  Jason points out that many times we simply need to adapt and make a change in the plan to set things back on track. However, he sees many entrepreneurs wait too long to make a change, and they miss their chance. So, Jason wrote his book to explain an approach that allows you to make changes earlier in the process in order to work through the problems and pivot to a better outcome.  Lowering the Stakes Jason’s first tip is to lower the stakes so you can fix the bugs in the system. He explains, “So the key is to lower the stakes. And we lower the stakes by saying, you know what? We’re gonna dedicate a certain amount of time to exploring some new directions. We’re gonna put our current business in what I call maintenance mode.  I work with a lot of software companies. And this idea of putting software in maintenance mode means you fix the bugs. You know, if any critical issues are coming up, you keep doing what you need to do to keep the system operational. But maybe you turn off any big marketing campaigns, maybe you turn off any new customers.  If you’re onboarding, it takes a whole bunch of effort, but you keep the ones you have, you don’t fire them, you deal with the support that comes up, and then you just sort of leave it alone, and then you spend the rest of your energy in this expiration period. But you do it for a limited amount of time.  It’s kind of like if you were thinking about moving to another state or another country, you might book a four-week trip there first, right? You have to see what it’s like to live there. You don’t sell your house immediately and then just, you know, move over. You spend some time in that other place.”  What Happens When Leaders Don’t Adapt?  Later, Jenn and Jason discuss the consequences of not adapting to new circumstances as a leader. Jason explains that failing to change course in times of crisis can harm relationships with your team members. When leaders simply keep trying to push through, it can create a lack of trust in teams. When what you are saying and doing is obviously not working, it creates a disconnection.  He explains that the ability to adapt requires emotional intelligence and courage. It takes courage to admit when something isn’t working and to take a pause to reset and take a new approach. Effective leaders can’t let the fear of being wrong stop them from making difficult decisions.  Jason then shares an example of a company that had a powerful “wartime” CEO during it’s startup phase. His approach was great for raising capital and launching the business. However, as the business grew,  his blunt and aggressive leadership style began to cause the staff to turn over. So, at a critical point, the co-founders of the company decided to ask the CEO to step down so they could rebuild trust with employees.  Self Awareness is Key  Then, Jenn and Jason talk about the leadership skills needed to encourage adaptability in the workplace. Jason points out that self-awareness is a crucial skill for leaders at every level. Knowing your strengths and weaknesses, along with your personal style and passions is crucial to success.  He says, “I like to say that every person has a shape. You can adjust your shape a little bit, and you can build new skills to kind of change your shape, but you already start out with kind of a shape. And certain shapes work for certain organizations. A pointy place is not gonna work in a round, you know, environment and vice versa. And so you have to go and find that, and you have to know what your shape is. And sometimes, it’s hard to see that phrase. It’s hard to read the label from the inside of the bottle, right? We can’t always see what our shape is from the inside, which is why it’s helpful to have a coach. But then, to put yourself in that right environment. And the same is true for an organization. You know, an organization, a startup that has a lot of creative people and is really in touch with the cultural zeitgeist, might be not suited for A B2B business where you gotta kinda be a little bit more buttoned up, a little bit more boring. You gotta do this sales process, you gotta hire salespeople and spend a lot of money on paid advertising. They might be not going in the right direction because they were told that that was the right thing to do. But actually, their shape might be more fit for a consumer-facing business and vice versa, right?” Finding the Courage to Adapt  As the episode wraps up, Jenn asks Jason what advice he would give to someone that is afraid to pivot despite having new information. Jason explains that though it is difficult to let go of the path you thought would lead to succeed, you have to be honest with yourself. He tells the audience to remember that having the courage to step into a new direction is more likely to find success than staying stuck in the same spot.  Where to Find More from Jason Shen:  Visit his website: JasonShen.com Connect with him on LinkedIn Find him on YouTube As always, thanks for listening to The Leadership Habit Podcast! If you liked this episode, please remember to leave a review and subscribe to never miss an episode! The post How to Adapt and Lead When Times Get Tough with Jason Shen appeared first on Crestcom International.

How to Create a Conscious Development Leadership Cultures in the Workplace with Ed Offterdinger & Catherine Allen  In this week’s episode, Jenn welcomes TWO guests to The Leadership Habit podcast! Ed and Catherine are the Co-Founders of AO People Partners, a conscious leadership and people development firm specializing in creating successful, world-benefiting businesses. They also co-authored the well-received book Conscious, Capable, and Ready to Contribute: How Employee Development Can Become the Highest Form of Social Contribution. Meet Ed & Catherine Ed and Catherine have a combined 50+ years of experience working collaboratively with elite business and nonprofit leaders to successfully scale their business and mission objectives. Ed helped launch Baker Tilly, now one of the top ten consulting and CPA firms in the US. As AO’s CEO, Catherine writes and speaks regularly on leadership development and why people development in the workplace should become a recognized and incentivized form of social contribution. What is a Conscious Development Culture?  As the episode begins, Jenn asks Ed & Catherine what “conscious development” means. Catherine explains, “A conscious development culture is really an intentional or conscious way of operating as an organization that cares about and supports the many ways that employees can learn and grow every day in their workplace.  It’s really important to help bridge the work that people perform every day and their developmental journey because growing their capabilities at work is really where adults have access to learning about self-awareness and a growth mindset, or what it means to think critically, empathy and compassion. All of these people skills or mind skills that we need in addition to our technical skills. And we believe that the workplace really needs to have a culture that enables people to grow and develop in a safe and productive way every day.” What is Conscious Capitalism?  Then, Ed explains that conscious development cultures and conscious capitalism go hand in hand because they share important values. Ed defines conscious capitalism for the audience, “John Mackey and Raj Sisodia published a book probably 10 years ago called Conscious Capitalism. And it lays out four basic principles, and I’ll just rattle through them reasonably quickly for your audience. So, first and foremost, conscious capitalism starts with the premise that business done well elevates humanity. So, I like to say capitalism’s not the problem. We’ve got some bad capitalists, but fundamentally, capitalism is about lifting humans because we all want or need to live, earn fair wages and create jobs. People wanna work. So it starts with that.  And then the first tenant is a higher purpose. And so people wanna work at companies who actually have big missions and goals. Jim Collins, you know, he’d say that higher purpose is the fundamental reason for existence beyond just making money. What’s the why? And if you think about the two most predominant generations working today, millennials in the next generation, they ask a lot about why. So as a business, being able to articulate that and have a big vision and mission and a “why” is very attractive.”  The Role Conscious Leadership Later, the three leadership experts discuss the role of conscious leadership in creating a strong company development culture. Ed explains that conscious leaders have integrity, they live a higher purpose. They typically have high Emotional Intelligence, which they have worked on and honed. Jenn agrees and highlights that a conscious culture starts with trust, accountability and caring about people. They discuss the importance of living the values you state on the website and embedding those values into your culture.  Why is People Development Important?  Next, Catherine discusses the need for development in today’s fast-paced business world. She emphasizes the importance of developing effective leaders to face the challenges of the world. If we are going to address big issues like the environment, social issues or global disasters, we need a higher level of intellectual, emotional and social intelligence. She explains that the need for development has three important implications:  We must start to see people development as a core purpose of the workplace.  We have to get better at developing people in the workplace.  We must begin to design organizations that are intentionally better at developing people.  The Advantages of a Conscious Culture Then, Ed provides some data points that show that conscious companies have higher returns than most companies on the S&P 500. Conscious workplaces also enjoy lower levels of turnover. Additionally, a large percentage of employees say they would be more likely to stay with an organization that invests in their personal development or provides learning opportunities.  An organization’s culture is the key to employee engagement, and effective leadership builds trust. Creating a strong culture will make employees feel safe and valued. Ed believes that creating a conscious development culture is the key to business success, especially in today’s challenging business environment.  Four Ways to Build a Conscious Development Culture Catherine then explains four basic steps to setting the foundation for a conscious development culture.  Make business development part of your business strategy.  Ensure leaders understand their role in owning, modeling and driving the development agenda– and are held accountable for it.  Identify the most important skill sets for your organization. Create a common language of development throughout the organization by letting employees know the core competencies they need.  Integrate development messages and practices into the employee life cycle. Messaging around commitment and expectations around development should begin at onboarding and continue throughout their career at the organization.      Where to Learn More From Ed & Catherine As the episode wraps up, Jenn, Ed & Catherine discuss so much more, so be sure to listen to the entire episode! If you would like to find out more from Ed Offterdinger and Catherine Allen, check out the links below! Visit their Website Get Their Book:  Conscious, Capable, and Ready to Contribute: How Employee Development Can Become the Highest Form of Social Contribution. Connect on LinkedIn: Catherine Allen Ed Offterdinger Thanks as always for listening to The Leadership Habit Podcast The post Conscious Development with Ed Offterdinger and Catherine Allen appeared first on Crestcom International.

Responding to Customer Outrage with CEO David Ewing In this week’s episode of the Leadership Habit Podcast, Jenn DeWall talks to David G. Ewing about how to respond to customer outrage. In today’s challenging business environment, customers are more demanding than ever. When it comes to customer service, it can feel like it’s Us vs. Them. Join us for an important discussion of how to approach customer service to turn customer outrage into customer loyalty! Meet David G. Ewing, CEO of Motiv David G. Ewing is the innovative CEO of Motiv. He has revolutionized the realm of customer service since 1998. With a keen understanding that altering customer attitudes drives ideal behaviors, David has transformed this insight into substantial revenue growth for over 500 clients. A Harvard cum laude graduate in Engineering, his leadership acumen has not only propelled Motiv to the Inc 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing companies but has also generated millions in additional revenue for their clients.  Beyond his professional prowess, David’s leadership extends to the community as the president of The Entrepreneur’s Association, Austin Texas Chapter, where he’s committed to unlocking every entrepreneur’s potential. Outside the boardroom, David is the proud coach of his son’s robotics team and cherishes his 19-year marriage, considering it his crowning achievement. What is the Real Challenge with Customer Service Today?  As the episode opens, Jenn DeWall introduces David Ewing to the audience, and they dive right into discussing the challenges of customer service in today’s competitive business environment. Jenn notes that David has more than 20 years of experience in the realm of customer experiences and asks for his thoughts on what has (or hasn’t) changed since he began.  David explains that people try to reduce customer service experiences down to numbers, units or anything other than an emotional connection. That’s where it goes wrong. Customer service is all about emotions. Excellent customer service is truly about making an emotional connection, it’s about creating a human experience.  David gives an example of the pet products delivery service, Chewy.com. He had learned from someone that when their dog passed away, they stopped ordering dog food from Chewy. Chewy then figured out that the dog had passed away and sent flowers and condolences to that customer. He notes that this was probably deduced by an algorithm or AI, but Chewy used that data to show empathy and compassion. By doing so, that customer will always be loyal, and when they tell their story, they become an ambassador for the brand as well.  Customer Support in the Age of Outrage Jenn then brings up a recent article in the Harvard Business Review about Managing in the Age of Outrage. The article points out that many people are feeling uncertain about the future, unable to prosper financially, and socially divided in a number of ways. She notes her own feelings of being just a number to most businesses. For example, we’ve all been left frustrated by automated phone trees and trying to get help from chatbots.  Meanwhile, customer service representatives often face angry or impatient customers, verbal abuse and difficult working environments. With customers feeling neglected and representatives feeling abused, how do we overcome the outrage to create a great experience?  The Passion Paradox David replies, “Here’s the beautiful thing about the outrage moment, is that it is a, uh, the what’s called the passion paradox, right? Because the love and hatred of, uh, of a situation is really just, it’s just at one end of what I would consider extreme emotion as opposed to the other end, which is apathy.  There are so many things in life that we’re apathetic about, but when you go find people who are outraged about something, what you find is that they really care. And every time you’ve got somebody in a situation where they really care, you’ve got an opportunity to swing that outrage into absolute adoration.”  He gives some examples of making something unpleasant into something beautiful and explains that with sensitivity and creativity, you can change an angry customer into a loyal customer.  You Can Get a Customer– But Can You Keep Them? Later in the episode, Jenn and David discuss the importance of creating lifetime customers to increase the value and sustainability of your business. David explains that leaders must put the right systems in place to set their employees up for success. He has 2 suggestions for leaders struggling with customer retention.  First, every business owner needs to implement a system for tracking customer problems and bad experiences. Once you have that data, you can get to the root cause and prevent issues going forward. Jenn notes that one of the most demotivating things for customer service workers is having to solve the same problem over and over without being able to prevent it from happening.  The “Dim Sum Budget” Second, David suggests giving your team a “Dim Sum Budget.”  He shares a story, “No matter how strategic you are about stomping out problems, you’re gonna have new ones, right? You’re gonna be innovating, you’re gonna be creating new things, new offerings, new services, and sooner or later, you’re gonna disappoint customers.  So what do you do at the moment of disappointing customers? That is where you really have to make sure that you’ve got a playbook for your team. The team has to have an understanding of what they need to do. I’ll give you an example that inspired us at Motiv. We were at a dim sum restaurant, and we were watching the dim sum carts go around, right? So at a dim sum restaurant, you know, they just come around with carts, and you decide, you just pick and choose which ones you want.  Well, we noticed that occasionally people were dissatisfied with either their service or what happened or whatever the problem was. And each dim sum cart operator had a little coin box where they could essentially give you free stuff. By giving you the food, and then moving one of their coins from one coin box to the other so that they had like a little budget for the amount of free food they could give just to smooth over kind of any problems with delivery. It was a great simple little system. It’s just the dim sum budget.”  He explains that they took that idea back to his company and empowered their consulting team with a budget and the authority to fix customer issues in the field without consulting anyone first. This way, they have their “dim sum budget”, and they can smooth over problems right on the spot.  When Can You Dump the Customer?  Later in the episode, Jenn asks David to discuss a difficult challenge: knowing when to dump the customer. She brings up the unpleasant truth that sometimes the customer is not only wrong– they are a jerk about it. She shares an example of someone she knows who is struggling with a client who brings in a lot of business but is incredibly rude and disrespectful to the staff. Now the company is facing losing some valuable employees because they don’t want to deal with this client’s behavior anymore. She asks David how to know when it’s time to fire your customer to keep your talent.  David replies, “That’s a great question. It is an absolute gut-check moment for the leadership team. And I can tell you that more than once, we have sat around our table and we have uttered this one line that comes from Ben Horowitz’s book, the Hard Thing About Hard Things. And that is: ‘Take care of your people, take care of your customers, and take care of your profits– in that order’.  That is the north star at Motiv. Take care of your people, take care of your customers, and take care of your profits in that order. And that does mean that your people come first.”  He shares a personal story about how he learned that lesson the hard way and lost some very talented people on his team by not getting it right. He now pays closer attention to similar situations and reminds the audience that if it is a top client, it is the leadership’s responsibility to handle the problem. Bottom line– difficult resolutions come from the top, or they just don’t happen.  Final Thoughts As the episode wraps up, Jenn asks David Ewing for his final thoughts. He shares that the number one thing for leaders and customer service teams to remember is the importance of self-forgiveness. Everyone is trying to innovate, to do something new, to provide a great experience. Sometimes things go wrong. Don’t give up. You can fail a hundred times, and no one will remember once you get it right! How to Connect with David G. Ewing Connect with him on LinkedIn  Visit MotivCX.com to learn more about David’s company.  Thanks as always for listening to The Leadership Habit! Be sure to listen to the whole episode to learn more!   The post How to Respond to Customer Outrage with CEO David Ewing appeared first on Crestcom International.

Megan Gluth-Bohan, CEO of TRInternational, Inc., shares her inspiring success story. She overcame poverty, addiction, and personal tragedy to become a successful entrepreneur. Megan now helps others embrace their current situation to reach their goals. Topics discussed include self-acceptance, positive mindset, and breaking free from negative thought patterns.

How to Win the Battle Against Imposter Syndrome with Lisa Hinz In this week’s episode of The Leadership Habit Podcast, Jenn DeWall talks to Lisa Hinz, CEO of The Confidence Track, about how to win the battle against imposter syndrome. Lisa has 25 years of corporate leadership experience. She’s led large teams spanning across the U.S. and Canada and overseen change and organizational management. Having seen and experienced the challenges that professionals navigate throughout their careers, she decided to start her own coaching company called The Confidence Track.  What is Imposter Syndrome? As the episode opens, Jenn DeWall introduces Lisa to The Leadership Habit audience, and they both share their passion for the topic of imposter syndrome. It is estimated that about 80% of people struggle with self-esteem or confidence at some point in their careers, so this is a topic that affects everyone!  Lisa defines imposter syndrome as “a false and sometimes crippling belief that one’s successes are due to luck or fraud rather than skill. So they believe that they really don’t deserve the success that they’ve achieved, and they feel like a fraud.”  Signs You Are Struggling with Imposter Syndrome Next, Jenn and Lisa discuss how to recognize if you are struggling with imposter syndrome. Lisa provides three signs that you may be experiencing it: Crediting good luck or good timing for your successes Feeling like people are mistaken or lying when they compliment you for being smart or talented.  Fearing that others will find out you are a fraud or find out you aren’t really right for the job.  Imposter Syndrome Isolates Us One of the worst aspects of imposter syndrome is that it isolates you from other people. No one talks about struggling with imposter syndrome, even though so many people do. We tend to not talk about it because when you feel like you are a fraud, the last thing you want is to bring attention to it, so people struggle in silence.  The Cost of Imposter Syndrome The cost of imposter syndrome is quite high, both individually and organizationally. Struggling with imposter syndrome increases the incidence of anxiety, depression, burnout and overwhelm. It can prevent you from trying to get that promotion or asking for that raise, costing you lifetime earnings.  It also impacts organizations. The increased stress, anxiety and burnout increase health costs and decrease productivity. It also reduces innovation and creativity, which can lead to poor performance across the organization.  Who is Vulnerable to Imposter Syndrome?  A Crossover Health study of imposter syndrome found that it truly affects everyone. The study found that men and women are equally affected by it, although they cope with it differently. They also found that age is not a predictor, so it affects people at all stages of their careers.  What Causes Imposter Syndrome?  Lisa explains that there are many triggers for imposter syndrome, “It originates differently for so many people. There’s not just one cause. It could be anything from how you were raised. Maybe you are in a household where you had these amazingly, incredibly high standards set on you for getting the perfect grades and doing everything perfectly.  It could be from being the first of one. And when I say that, I mean, for example, maybe you are the first and only woman that is in a meeting or within a division or task force, and you’re surrounded by people who are not like you. So that can dredge up feelings.  It’s not uncommon for a lot of people to experience it when they do achieve success. When you get a promotion, and you become a first-time manager, when you take on a lot more responsibility, even becoming a first-time parent can cause one to have imposter-like thoughts.”  How to Combat Imposter Syndrome Later in the episode, Lisa provides some tips for battling imposter syndrome.  1. Track your triggers. Lisa suggests tracking the events that trigger your imposter feelings. When it happens, make a note in your journal or your phone notes, whatever works for you. This builds awareness of your emotions and thoughts.   For example, it might be when you are asked a question you aren’t prepared to answer, especially in a meeting or in front of people. Or, it might be when you are tasked with something you have never done before.  It might be when you are in a room with very smart or successful people and wonder if you actually deserve to be there. It may also be when you spend time on social media. Are you constantly comparing yourself to others and find yourself experiencing those imposter feelings?  2. Take action.  Once you have identified your triggers, instead of going down the rabbit hole of negative thoughts, what is one simple action you can take? Creating a plan of action when you experience a trigger will help you counteract those negative thoughts and feelings.  For example, if you were tasked with something you have never done before, you might reach out to someone who has to get some advice. Or, if your trigger is being in a room with people who are smart or successful, you might prepare some conversational questions to learn as much as you can from those people.   3. Remind yourself, “I’ll figure it out.” Another powerful tool is to remind yourself that you will figure it out. Try to remember other times you have solved problems or learned new things. If there is something you aren’t sure you can do, repeat to yourself, “I’ll figure it out.” This cognitive technique prevents those negative imposter thoughts from taking over your mind.  4. Let Go of Being Superhuman. Lisa explains, “I think we have unrealistic expectations of ourselves for the most part. And I think what we tend to forget is that, for example, the CEO of your company, that person has made mistakes. They’ve overcome challenges. They haven’t always had the answers, nor are they expected to always have every answer. And that’s why they hire very smart people to put around them who can make up for maybe the strengths that they don’t have. It’s using your resources and just knowing that no one can possibly know every single answer. It’s not humanly possible. And I think sometimes we have to remind ourselves of that and also have a little grace and compassion with ourselves. Think about how you are talking to yourself and your mind right now. Would you talk to your best friend that way? Would you talk to a coworker the way that you talk to yourself? Probably not.” 5. Make a Record of Your Successes and Strengths. Take the time to write down your successes and strengths. What accomplishments have you had? What accolades? What awards? What opportunities? This will become physical evidence of your abilities, talents and successes. So when you are feeling like you are not good enough, you can look at this list and prove to yourself that you are. How to Win the Battle Against Imposter Syndrome Finally, Lisa and Jenn agree that the key to overcoming imposter syndrome is to talk about it. Knowing that you are not alone in this struggle is the most powerful way to battle imposter syndrome.  Lisa shares, “When I speak in public about imposter syndrome, I always ask the audience to stand if they’ve ever experienced it. And typically, 95 to 100 percent of people are standing. So that goes to your point again, how many people around us could be the person we work with every day? We have no idea. And, I will not promise that imposter syndrome goes away completely because it doesn’t. There are ways to manage it, to help minimize it so that it just doesn’t overpower you to the point where you feel stuck and you can’t take any action.” Where to Find More from Lisa Hinz If you would like to find out more about Lisa or connect with her online:  Connect on LinkedIn Visit her Website Download Lisa’s Free Imposter Syndrome Guide Thank you for listening to The Leadership Habit Podcast! The post Win the Battle Against Imposter Syndrome with Lisa Hinz appeared first on Crestcom International.

Understanding the Subconscious Mind to Transform Your Life with Leo Howson In this week’s episode, Jenn DeWall interviews Leo Howson to learn how understanding our subconscious mind can maximize our potential and transform our lives. Leo Howson is a seasoned entrepreneur with a decade of multi-business expertise, a certified hypnotherapist and a human potential coach.  Leo’s approach to coaching draws from his diverse business background, centering on high performance and human potential. He emphasizes building a solid foundation for exponential impact, followed by targeted work on areas like flow state. Leo guides individuals towards balance, productivity and passions, enabling them to set and conquer their significant goals.  By leveraging hypnosis, mindset and flow state techniques, Leo drives profound subconscious transformations. We hope that you enjoy this conversation about how you can build more success and happiness for yourself by understanding your subconscious.  Meet Leo Howson, Entrepreneur, Human Potential Coach & Hypnotherapist As the episode opens, Jenn welcomes Leo Howson to the show and asks him to tell the audience about himself. Now 35 years old, Leo started his first company when he was just 23. In his 30s, he found himself struggling with energy and productivity after the birth of his daughter. He was tired more often and had fallen into some bad habits like skipping the gym or neglecting nutrition.  Once he made this realization, he decided that it was time to take a closer look at getting his energy back and becoming a high performer once again. Along that journey, he learned more about harnessing the power of the subconscious mind. It worked so well for him he wanted to share that information with others. So, he became a performance coach hypnotherapist and has been helping others reach their goals ever since.  Hypnotherapy & NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) Later in the episode, Leo explains that hypnotherapy is nothing like what you see in a magic show or stage performance where volunteers are made to cluck like a chicken. He clarifies that those performers would likely call themselves a hypnotist. However, Leo is a hypnotherapist and helps clients bypass the conscious mind to work on subconscious issues leading to problems like anxiety, lack of motivation, or poor performance.  Jenn then asks about the use of NLP or Neuro-Linguistic Programming. Leo explains that it is a process used to change how we perceive the world. He uses it as a supplement to hypnotherapy, calling it a “user-manual for the mind”.  Understanding the Subconscious Mind Then, Jenn and Leo define and discuss the subconscious mind. Leo describes it using Freud’s definition, saying, “If you imagine an iceberg– it’s really easy to understand. Imagine an iceberg where a small bit of the iceberg is above the water, but the majority of that iceberg is underneath the water. You cannot see it. So that top small bit of the iceberg we would look at as our conscious mind, and then that huge area underneath the water, that big part of the iceberg would be our subconscious.  They’ve proven that around 95% of our mind is made up subconsciously. So we underestimate the power of it because we’re always thinking and talking as we are now consciously. We then get stuck in a conscious mode and don’t realize the power of the subconscious. I mean it also controls breathing, digestion habits, and emotional reactions.  There’s a lot going on subconsciously that if we’re not aware of it, we are missing out on a huge, huge opportunity to generate change, influence the way we do things, and ultimately break the habits that we don’t want and start walking in the steps that we’d like to take.” Removing Subconscious Obstacles Later in the episode, Jenn and Leo discuss how working with the unconscious mind can help improve our performance. Leo shares that he works with entrepreneurs, leaders and athletes to uncover the root cause of their stress, lack of motivation, or other issues. By understanding the root causes, they can change their mindset and improve performance.  He reminds the audience that while we live in a modern world, our mind is constantly interpreting things as if we were cavemen. But the stress reaction that was helpful to avoid being attacked by a bear in the past isn’t as helpful when you are trying to give an important presentation.  The subconscious mind holds information from our earliest moments of life. Many times people are triggered by something stored in their subconscious thoughts but aren’t aware of it. That can turn into negative thoughts or hypervigilance or manifest in unwanted habits or behaviors. By bringing conscious awareness to the root cause, we can begin to re-program our minds and our reactions to those triggers.  Tips for “Hacking” Your Mind Towards the end of the episode, Leo Howson shares his tips for managing your mind even if you don’t have a hypnotherapist. He recommends learning more about hypnotherapy and NLP, but also suggests starting with mindfulness practices and meditation. He especially recommends a meditation practice that originated in Hawaii, called Hakalau, or “open eyes” meditation. In this practice, you keep your eyes open, finding a focal point that allows you to blur your main vision and focus on your peripheral vision while following a set breathing pattern.  He also recommends being very conscious of how you use your phone. He begins each day by not going on social media or checking the news. He often recommends a digital detox for clients, explaining that the dopamine rush and negative messages from social media cause distraction, stress and negative thoughts.  Where to Find More from Leo Howson Connect with Leo on LinkedIn  Follow Leo on Instagram  Visit his website: leohowson.com   The post Understanding the Subconscious Mind with Leo Howson appeared first on Crestcom International.