Disrupt Yourself Podcast with Whitney Johnson

In this podcast, Whitney Johnson discusses the top 5 reasons to disrupt yourself and what disruption truly means. She explores the concepts of personal disruption, embracing change for growth, and the importance of continuous learning. The podcast also delves into subconscious reprogramming, empowerment through action, and navigating the learning curve for personal growth.

Today we discussing the new book called Missing Each Other: How to Cultivate Meaningful Connections, with its co-authors Edward “Ted” Brodkin and Ashely Pallathra. In Missing Each Other, they argue that we need to tune back into each other. Especially now. Because of COVID, we’ve all been pushed to a new S Curve, one that increasingly involves digital forms of connection, making it possible to miss each other even more. Ted is a Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania and has been named a top doctor in America for over a decade. He holds his MD from Harvard Medical School. Fun fact: he attended the pre-college division of music at Julliard where he studied the clarinet. Ashley is a Clinical Psychology PhD Candidate at The Catholic University of America; p previously she was the Clinical Research Coordinator at the medical school at the University of Pennsylvania. In this episode we learn about what Ted and Ashley call attunement, an elevated form of human connection – one that considers not just connecting with another person – but considering our state of body and mind as part of that connection. And we discover the value of meeting people where they are can foster unique and genuine opportunities to connect. The authors provide a helpful framework and useful tools that can help us all to be more tuned into our conversations professionally and personally. For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: http://www.whitneyjohnson.com/tedbrodkin-ashleypallathra/

In this episode we talk with Roger L. Martin, Professor Emeritus of Strategic Management, and former Dean at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. In 2017 Roger was named the world’s #1 management thinker by Thinkers 50, a global ranking of management thinkers. He’s written 28 articles for the Harvard Business Review and has published 11 books. Roger’s latest book, When More Is Not Better, analyzes society’s increasing inequality and the impact it has on democratic-capitalism. Today, we discuss: The idea that we are actually better off with things not being perfect. He’s talking about this from an economic perspective, but I believe this also applies to the individual. How over-emphasizing efficiency drives unequal distribution of the benefits of growth. How we as individuals can modify our behavior to influence how our economy looks and operates in the future. Roger and I discuss this from the perspective of citizens, consumers and educators. This is an episode that will get you thinking and talking – calling into question many of our societal and structural assumptions. For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: https://whitneyjohnson.com/roger-martin/

Our guest this week, Sandy Stelling, is fluent in the language of growth. She started her career with Boeing, fresh out of college. After nearly eight years and rising to the level of Senior Engineer, Sandy took a leap and accepted a position with Alaska Airlines as a Project Manager. Twenty years and six titles later, she became the Vice President of Strategy, Analytics and Transformation. This may seem like an unexpected rise for someone who was hired on to manage projects, but Sandy’s approach to every role she takes tells a different story. In this episode… We hear a true insider take on how the airline industry has been navigating the pandemic and how the power of choosing optimism – despite it all – has helped Sandy and the organization weather this storm. We learn how the ability to operate in ambiguity can help you support and lead. We talk about grace and space – the power of expressing radical forgiveness in the midst of exceptional circumstances.   For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: http://www.whitneyjohnson.com/sandy-stelling/

Our guest this week is Ryan Westwood, the CEO and founder of Simplus. Ryan, a serial entrepreneur and disruptor, began creating a bit younger than most – and he has never looked back. At just eleven years old Ryan discovered he had an ability to create wealth. Several years and a few tough lessons later, he is a wildly successful creator. Simplus, his most recent venture co-founded with his brother, has grown to 600 employees on four continents and was recently acquired by Infosys. In this episode we discuss Ryan’s approach to his employees S curve journeys, his views on partnership and how the power of saying no transformed his leadership. This is a conversation you do not want to miss! For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: http://www.whitneyjohnson.com/ryan-westwood/

Our guests this episode are Bettina Hein and Andreas Goeldi, a husband and wife duo. Bettina is the founder and CEO of juli Health, a company that helps people manage their chronic diseases with an AI powered app. Andreas is a partner in btov, a European venture capital firm. This couple understands the s curve of learning™ uniquely well and are gracious enough to share their learnings with us. In this episode we discuss their approach to running companies and their marriage. We learn about Bettina’s passion for starting technology companies and hear Andreas' journey of self-discovery that led him back to his passion for coding. In addition to founding juli Health, Bettina is the founder of Pixability, a company that optimizes video on social media. She is currently an investor in Dragons Den, Switzerland's version of Shark Tank. Andreas is also a serial entrepreneur. He's formerly the co-founder and CEO of Namics, Switzerland's leading e-business services firm and was the Chief Technology Officer at Pixability. As impressive as all their credentials are and as you have heard, they are impressive, this only scratches the surface of what makes Bettina and Andreas so fascinating. Join us for a journey into the life of these unique and talented individuals. For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: www.whitneyjohnson.com/bettinahein-andreasgoeldi/

“Disruption,” as a word, has always had an explosive sound to me. Disruption causes your world to shift and change—an earthquake in the making. However, every once in a while, I’m reminded that disruption does not have to be earth shattering. Sometimes, the smallest changes can have a long-lasting impact on your life, especially when those changes become habits. Our guest this episode is James Clear author of the New York Times bestseller, Atomic Habits, An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones.  James advocates that the way to build habits is to try and get just one percent better each day—something that sounds almost too easy to do, and yet builds a firm foundation for continual improvement. In this episode we learn practical and manageable tips for improvement… Habits are the “compound interest of self-improvement”. The two-minute rule – be wary of going big. Point and call, an audible habit builder. Implementation intentions; be specific! Track your habit – seeing is believing. Repetition is a form of change. Never miss twice.   For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: www.whitneyjohnson.com/james-clear-encore/

Few things are as terrifying as vulnerability. Yet, when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable, we allow ourselves to be free. Free from shame, free from fear and free from the untrue stories we tell ourselves. That is why I am excited for this episode. Our guest, Dr. Brené Brown has spent the past two decades studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy and is the author of five #1 New York Times bestsellers: The Gifts of Imperfection, Daring Greatly, Rising Strong, Braving the Wilderness, and her latest book, Dare to Lead. In this episode Brené shares what first inspired her to dig into research on vulnerability and how that decision changed her life. We discuss the stories we tell ourselves and how to deal with the negative effects of working in the public sphere. Brené shares her views on scaling up versus keeping things slower and closer, and we discover a new way to lead when someone leaves our organization. Brené is a research professor at the University of Houston where she holds the Huffington Foundation – Brené Brown Endowed Chair at The Graduate College of Social Work. She is also a visiting professor in management at The University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business. Brené hosts the Unlocking Us Podcast and the Dare to Lead Podcast. Her TED talk – The Power of Vulnerability – is one of the top five most viewed TED talks with over 50 million views. She is also the first researcher to have a filmed lecture on Netflix; The Call to Courage debuted in April 2019. For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: https://whitneyjohnson.com/brene-brown-encore/

At just 20 years old, Marcus Whitney was a young father with another child on the way. He had dropped out of college, was working as a waiter and living in an efficiency hotel. But as Marcus, a now successful Entrepreneur and Venture Capitalist explains, what you do when your back is against the wall makes all the difference. Listen as we discuss: Overcoming poverty, depression and past trauma to become a thriving individual and successful entrepreneur. How success can camouflage unaddressed trauma, showing up as Marcus teaches, in the form of some dysfunctional behavior that you probably don’t love about yourself. Marcus' book, Create and Orchestrate, an elegant and fresh business framework applicable across industries.  Honestly evaluating the "ROI" of your educational dollars.  Marcus Whitney is a self-taught software developer, was the head of technology at Emma Email Marketing, is the co-founder and co-owner of Jumpstart Foundry, one of the most active healthcare venture capital firms in the United States; is the CEO of Health: Further, a healthcare strategic advisory firm; and is co-founder and a part-owner of the Nashville Soccer Club, Nashville, Tennessee’s Major League Soccer Team. 

This week, our guests are Syd and Shea McGee of Studio McGee. This power couple run and are the sole owners, no outside capital, of one of the most successful and fastest growing interior design businesses in the country. Shea graduated from college with a degree in public relations but quickly realized that her passion was to create… she wanted to be an interior designer. Syd started his career building a startup for digital marketing but found himself unfulfilled in the mechanics of the business. Then, the light bulb went off and Studio McGee was born. Now, with more than 1.4 million followers on Instagram, a popular YouTube channel, a newly launched brand with Target, a new book titled Make Life Beautiful, and a Netflix show Dream Home Makeover – Syd and Shea are climbing the S curve of their dreams. Join us as Syd and Shea share the beautiful and messy stories of building a thriving business with your significant other. For a complete transcript and links from this episode, please visit: http://www.whitneyjohnson.com/syd-shea-mcgee/