Hardcore Soft Skills Podcast

In this episode we talk about Curiosity. This time we talk about the scientific research on Curiosity with Dr Alison Hostmeyer (https://www.dralisonh.com/). She is a humanistic researcher and talent development consultant. Her research focuses on curiosity and associated mental, emotional, and motivational attributes. Dr Hortsmeyer is also adjunct faculty for USC Marshall School of Business Executive Education and the inaugural Research Fellow appointed to USC Annenberg Center for Third Space Thinking. Today we talk about science says on curiosity and what can we do to cultivate this skill. You can read some of her work here https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WZvA_lhtY8GoXzkFrS1fUa4vlop8wmLeq8os2s9yl8s/edit If you want to receive more information, subscribe to my newsletter via https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

Today our focus will be not on the concept of skills but attributes. If you are a frequent listener of this podcast you know I really enjoy talking with current and former members of the military because they have great insights learned on the field which we can apply basically anywhere. I was very happy to have this guest on the show to share his lessons as a Navy Seal Commander and which he captures in his book The Attributes (https://theattributes.com/buy/) Rich Diviney draws upon over 20 years of experience as a Navy SEAL Officer where he completed more than 13 overseas deployments – 11 of which were to Iraq and Afghanistan. Since retirement a few years ago, Rich has worked as a speaker, facilitator, and consultant with the Chapman & Co Leadership Institute and Simon Sinek Inc. We talked about attributes and you will learn how he differentiates these from skills. The attributes he talks about are quite similar to those we address here These are grouped into the categories of mental acuity, drive, leadership, teamability and grit. You can take the Attributes Assessment here: https://theattributes.com/blog/about-the-assessment/ You can get in touch with Rich via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richdiviney/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rich_diviney/ If you want to receive more information, subscribe to my newsletter via https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

In this episode we talk about one of the skills most difficult to master: good writing. My guest is Leslie O'Flahavan is a get to the point writer and experienced instructor. She is the owner of the company E-write (https://ewriteonline.com/) and she has provided customized writing courses for Fortune 500 compnaies, government agencies and non-governmental organizations. She is also a LinkedIn Learning instructor with courses on writing for social media, chat and others. This is one of the episodes where we will really delve into some tips we can use right now. We also talks about why she is not a fan of the term "soft" skills. You can get in touch with Leslie via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslieoflahavan/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LeslieO If you want to receive more information, subscribe to my newsletter via https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

Tech- savviness or being Tech-Savvy is not just about knowing a 'how to,' but about cultivating the desire to always be learning more. This is what we will talk about today with my guest Bob Fabien Zinga (https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobfabienzinga/) Fabien is a cybersecurity executive and US Navy Reserves Commander with 23 years of experience in Information Technology and areas such as leadership, business operations, and project management. He is also part of the Forbes Technology Council of Experts panel. You can see his contributions here: https://profiles.forbes.com/members/tech/profile/Bob-Fabien-Zinga-Head-Director-Information-Security-Information-Warfare-Commander-Directly-Inc-U-S-N/fcf91616-0afb-4518-94aa-93103b562d3c I invited him because he is always sharing great information both to the tech experts about the latest trends and about the fields we must learn more about. We talked about his fascinating life story, and his views on why we should educate ourselves in business. If you want to receive more information, subscribe to my newsletter via https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

Today we will talk about Grit and our expert is former Army Colonel David Fivecoat (https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-fivecoat-b5860b75/ ), who served twenty-four years as an infantry officer, leading men and women during contingency operations in Kosovo and Bosnia, three combat tours in Iraq, and a combat tour commanding a battalion in Afghanistan. He culminated his service by overseeing the gender integration of the US Army's Ranger School. David is now retired from military life but has now launched the Fivecoat Consulting Group (https://www.thefivecoatconsultinggroup.com/) with the mission of helping leaders, managers, and organizations be the grittiest leaders that they can be. We will be talking about some of the key lessons from his book Grow Your Grit: Overcome Obstacles, Thrive, and Accomplish Your Goals (https://www.thefivecoatconsultinggroup.com/books) Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

This is the final episode of the season two. This season we have featured mini master classes from well-known experts so listen to the previous episodes from Season 1 and Season 2 to learn more. In this episode we discuss Emotional Intelligence. In my IO Psychology classes this semester we talked a lot about this concept which was by the coined by Peter Salovey and John Meyer, but popularized by Daniel Goleman. It refers to the idea that just as we have cognitive intelligence or IQ, we also have EQ or ability to manage our emotions and those of others. My guest today wrote a book which addresses EQ and other non-technical skills like self-awareness using a highly technical approach. Gilbert Eijkelenboom wrote the book People Skills for Analytical Thinkers (https://www.mindspeaking.com/book). What I love about this book is that it uses very relatable language for those of us who work in tech and provides very pertinent advice. Gilbert is a former Data and Analytics Consultant and founder MIndspeaking (mindspeaking.com), a company which helps data scientist and analysts develop soft skills for business . We talked about his career as poker player, his own journey to become more emotionally intelligent and he gives specific steps you can apply as well. You can view some free training here: https://www.mindspeaking.com/free-course Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

In today's episode we will talk again about the skill of Creativity. (You can listen for the previous episode here: https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/creativity-natalie-nixon-phd/) Noah Askin (https://noahaskin.com/) is an Assistant Professor of Organizational Behavior at INSEAD business school, located in France, where he teaches Organizational Design and Leadership. Noah is interested in social and cultural networks, creativity and innovation. His current research is focused on areas such as music chart and industry dynamics, and what factors contribute to creativity. I met Noah during one of his 15-minute office hours (https://noahaskin.com/office-hours/) Since the pandemic started, he decided to open the calendar to anyone to chat about anything for 15 minutes. We will talk about this experience, his research in music and elements for creativity. For bonus materials of this and other episodes, subscribe via the website https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ You can see her TEDx Talk here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTS95OchFOE Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

We consider creativity as a territory that belongs to the people in music and art, but creativity is a skill we all have and can cultivate. My guest today helps people build what she calls creative confidence. Natalie Nixon is a creativity strategist with a background in cultural anthropology, fashion, and service design, who now focuses on helping companies innovate. She is also the author of the book The Creativity Leap: Unleash Curiosity, Innovation and Intuition at Work where she discusses how to apply creativity tools and techniques with real-world stories of innovative people and businesses. In this episode we talked about specific techniques for creativity, the importance of rigor, and wonder. You can find more information about Natalie via https://www.figure8thinking.com/about/ Download the Wonder Rigor Tip Sheet via: https://creativityleap.figure8thinking.com/wonder-rigor-tips For bonus materials of this and other episodes, subscribe via the website https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ You can see her TEDx Talk here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTS95OchFOE Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

Storytelling is not an art reserved for authors. Regardless of your job, you need to start integrating the art of telling stories either if you are selling a product or if you are selling yourself. In this episode, Amy Blaschka has made a career offering stories as a service. From her degree in film to her three decades spent branding products, places and people, Amy has understood the power of weaving a compelling tale. She is asocial media ghost writer, and also a longtime contributor for Forbes (https://www.forbes.com/sites/amyblaschka/) We speak about her work, what makes a good story and some techniques to create good stories. To get in touch with Amy, visit her website: https://www.amyblaschka.com/ For bonus materials of this and other episodes, subscribe via the website https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com

The book Getting Things Done, by David Allen, was published over 20 years ago and today is it as relevant as ever. The book, has which been published in 30 languages, has turned into a whole methodology called GTD and it is now being taught by coaches all over the world. I spoke with David about the origins of GTD, and he shared specific actions you can take now to enjoy your life. For more information about GTD go to https://gettingthingsdone.com/ For bonus materials of this and other episodes, subscribe via the website https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/ Connect with me via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/ or email me at yadi@hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com