Disrupt Yourself Podcast with Whitney Johnson

Innovation doesn't have to be world-changing. In fact, Garry Turner says it's crucial, even if you’ve been doing the same job at the same company for decades. Garry is a fierce advocate for internal disruption: Challenging the status quo within an organization (and within yourself!) to get better results. And for Garry, better results doesn’t just mean efficiency and profit. It means sustainability, equity, fairness, diversity and more. Garry’s work at a global chemical distribution company touches nearly everything in our lives – the products we buy, the food we eat, and the global supply chains that keep everything moving. For Garry, it’s not a question of whether to innovate. He feels it’s his responsibility.

A wise man once said, “ Listening is the ultimate mark of respect, Listening is the heart and soul of engagement.” On the commemoration of our 300th episode, the Disruptive Advisors team would like to thank you for your respect, as we strive to provide you with engaging content.  Our guest this week is management icon  Tom Peters. Tom, the aforementioned wise man, has a new book out titled ,” Tom Peters' Compact Guide to Excellence. “ Join me as I talk to Tom about the new  book, lessons he’s learned through the years and the power of listening.

Sometimes the business landscape can be a battlefield, but this week's guest puts all that in perspective. General Stanley McChrystal is a highly decorated U.S. Army veteran who is no stranger to real battlefields. He’s a retired four-star general, and commanded an enormous contingent of U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. He’s also an avid student of history, who acutely observes how the great successes and failures of the past are so deeply intertwined with risk management. His latest book is called Risk: A User’s Guide, and it documents the unsuspecting factors that undo successful organizations, and provides a framework of preparedness so you can weather the storm.

A healthy amount of stress is so important for personal growth, but chronic stress that demands our attention 24/7 can disconnect us from our work, colleagues, and purpose. This is burnout, and Jennifer Moss observes that we are facing an epidemic. She's an award-winning journalist, columnist, and author of The Burnout Epidemic: The Rise of Chronic Stress and How We Can Fix It. But contrary to popular wisdom, making time for that bubble bath or movie night isn't the solution. Burnout is a "we" problem, and the root causes are at the organizational level. Jennifer shares her surprising research on where burnout comes from, why it's worse than it's ever been, and why we need a system of preventative care.

Even when our best laid plans are rock-solid, life (and the marketplace) has other ideas. Some surveys suggest that 70% of successful businesses end up doing something they never intended in the beginning. For career and personal growth, being prepared for a big pivot isn't easy. Steve Arntz learned this all too well. He's been developing technology products and their marketing for more than 15 years. His current company, which he co-founded, is called Campfire. The platform was on a mission to connect people. The tech was good and the team was right. But its true value came from an unexpected place. Steve shares valuable lessons about leadership, including the importance of getting out of the way: of yourself, and those you care about.

Will Ahmed and this podcast have a mission in common: To maximize human potential. For Will, it’s all about the data of health. He’s the founder and CEO of WHOOP, which makes wearable tech-like fitness bands that track things like heart rate, exercise, sleep, stress levels, and more. It's beloved by pro athletes and CEOs alike, and its holistic view became a secret weapon in the early fight against Covid. He is the child of immigrants, who taught him the value of "showing up" for life, and his journey as a startup founder has put a lot of things in perspective for him.  

What is a board of directors? What is its purpose, and what makes for a good board member? And how can you get value from a board, especially if you're a startup? This week, we have another tactical learning episode to answer these questions and much more. Brad Feld and Matt Blumberg – together with Mahendra Ramsinghani – recently republished and vastly expanded the second edition of their book: "Startup Boards: A Field Guide to Building and Leading an Effective Board of Directors." Brad has been a venture capitalist since the ‘90s, with a special focus on technology companies like Zynga and Fitbit. Matt has been a VC and a start-up founder, having created and sold numerous companies, and worked for larger ones like AOL and General Atlantic Partners. They both agree there’s no better time to discuss the value in building a great board, than when you first start a company.

Jesse Iwuji is a first-generation Nigerian-American, U.S. Navy reserve officer, college football star, and if that’s not enough: an accomplished and beloved professional NASCAR driver. So, how did he become a racing star? He just … wanted it. And one day, he decided to go for it. Along the way, many people told him he'd never succeed. He didn't have the money. He didn't have the connections. No sponsorships. People even said that "African Americans don't race cars." Jesse's entrepreneurial savvy allowed him to self-fund his own outside-the-box training and compete with far more established racers. Today, he's on TV in the professional circuit, despite all the naysayers. How he got there is incredibly inspiring.

Many successful people at the top of their field hit a certain age, and the excitement of work starts to diminish. It may seem counterintuitive: Wouldn't mastery lead to satisfaction? Social scientist and author Arthur C. Brooks thinks of it another way: That there are two S Curves of life. If you're starting to feel restless (especially after age 39), perhaps it's time to stop fighting the first curve, and embrace the second. His latest book, "From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life," goes in depth on how to reap the well-being you've spent your early career cultivating. Overcoming "success addiction" and resisting the urge to constantly add things is a big part of the equation.