Disrupt Yourself Podcast with Whitney Johnson

What does it mean to have a friend? What does it mean to be a friend? Someone you can rely on. Someone who understands you, not just the “you” that you project into the world. A friend is someone who knows they can rely on you, too.  How many times a week, a day, do you lean on your friends when you feel like you can’t stand on your own? Our guest today has built his career on the power of those friends – and being a friend, too. Ken Woolley is the founder of Extra Space Storage, those ubiquitous blocky buildings you always see from the highway. He’s managed airlines, developed apartments, even flipped vintage cars. But to hear him say it, none of it would be possible without that true spark of trust that comes from the friendships he’s built.

Jennifer McCollum, CEO of L..., discusses the burden of expectations on women in the workplace. Topics include the double bind women face, embracing authenticity, entering a CEO role, transforming organizations with a story, and normalizing the presence of women in male-dominated fields.

There’s an allure around the idea of sales. It’s the same allure they packaged so neatly in the show Mad Men, all confidence and charisma. But take it from the other perspective – have you ever had such a pushy car salesman, that you just left the lot? Our guest today says that’s because charisma isn’t a sales strategy. There’s no room for building trust in your solution when you’re focused on the close. Scott K. Edinger is a sales consultant to Fortune 50 companies, including AT&T, and he’s out with a new book – The Growth Leader. With such a disconnect from their company leaders, Scott says, sales teams are left to fend for themselves in their calls with clients. So how do you bridge the gap between the sales department and the C-suite?   

Growing your people to grow your organization – it makes sense, right? But what about approaching the problem from the other direction – growing your organization, to grow your people? When’s the last time you looked at the state of your org chart? And how willing are you to experiment with it? Today, I want to bring back an old episode. In 2020, we spoke with Alex Osterwalder about his idea of an invincible company – one that is constantly reinventing itself to stay on the bleeding edge of disruption. Alex, along with his mentor Yves Pigneur, is one of the top-ranked management thinkers in the world – as of Thinkers50 2023, which just wrapped up, the duo is number 8 on that list. I hope you enjoy.  

Scott Osman and Jacquelyn Lane, co-authors of Becoming Coachable, discuss topics such as receiving transformative messages from coaches, the power of feedback, different leadership mindsets, and the impact of their book on everyday leaders.

It’s just the nature of our show that we often talk to folks in the mastery part of their professional S-Curve. It’s easy to talk to a CEO about leadership. It’s also another fact that our guests tend to be older – at least, out of college. But it is rare that we come across an entrepreneur in that very first launch point of their career. A person that put college on hold to pursue an idea, a person willing to put their dreams on hold for an hour to talk to us. Austin Hillam is the co-founder of ZipString, a handheld toy that keeps a string in constant motion.  It's easier to just watch than explain, here. And we’ve got Austin today for a rare look at the phase of professional life that a lot of our guests can only reflect on – starting that first business.   

Dr. Bill Kapp discusses the need for a more holistic and preventative approach to healthcare. He highlights the importance of early detection of chronic diseases and explores advancements in medicine and technology. The podcast also emphasizes the significance of mental, spiritual, and physical health and encourages taking control of one's health through proactive management and seeking multiple opinions.

Melissa Werneck, Chief HR Officer for Kraft-Heinz, discusses coaching and growth in navigating change. She shares her surprising career transition, the global presence of Craft Heinz, and a heartwarming story of providing meals to those in need during the pandemic. The challenges of coaching and managing a large number of employees are explored, along with practical applications of the S curve framework for career management. Melissa emphasizes the value of career coaching for personal and professional growth.

We throw around this term a lot in the management profession, in the coaching profession, really everywhere in business – top thinker.  But how often do we really interrogate that title? Because, really, wouldn’t we all like to think of ourselves as top thinkers? In politics, it’s the journalists that hold politicians to account. In the world of management, there are two former journalists who are holding these top thinkers to account as well. Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove used to write columns for The London Times, when they realized they could have a bigger impact connecting these thinkers directly. As the founders of Thinkers50, an organization that comes together every two years to celebrate the true top thinkers, Stuart and Des have brought their skills of commentary and curation from the front page to a much larger audience. So what makes a top thinker, truly?   

Guest James E. Dixon, who overcame personal challenges, discusses embracing his prosthetic leg after hiding it for 45 years and how it inspired his mentorship for other amputees. He shares his experience at the gym with music as motivation and reflects on discovering purpose through loss. James also talks about his leadership role at General Motors and the therapeutic process of writing his book, which became an international bestseller.