

Unlabeled Leadership
Gary DePaul
Unlabeled Leadership is a volunteer-led service that shares stories about leadership. Rather than using labels that mystify and obscure the meaning of leadership, Gary DePaul and guests share personal leadership stories. Listeners are from 90 countries and 1,030 cities (or territories). 32 podcast platforms broadcast Unlabeled Leadership episodes.
About Gary A. DePaul, PhD: https://www.garyadepaul.com
About Gary A. DePaul, PhD: https://www.garyadepaul.com
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 27, 2021 • 16min
011: Jack Bucalo and The Limitations of Leadership Development Programs
On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology. I invite guests to share their expertise about small or big acts of leadership.
In Episode 11, I invited Jack Bucalo, a leadership development expert, who characterizes traditional leadership development programs and describes their limitations. He explains what these programs need that’s different from the traditional approach.
00:00 Prologue: Evidence-based Leadership Development
Jack Bucalo has authored more than fifty detailed and actionable articles about HR and leadership development. When Jack was the Corporate Senior VP of Human Resources and Chief HR Officer for Fiserv, he partnered with the Chief Executive Officer and the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee to develop the first Fiserv executive development leadership center.
02:12 Part 1: Skills Addressed in Traditional Leadership Development
Jack explains that traditional leadership development programs are about training management about soft skills, including leadership styles, behaviors, and interpersonal skills. Yet, CEOs and line executives fail to mitigate leadership performance gaps.
06:37 Part 2: Why Have Traditional Leadership Development Programs Failed?
Leadership development programs need a mix of hard and soft skills. Jack shares some reputable research studies that described specific skills that should be included in leadership development.
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How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Jack’s LinkedIn Profile
Jack’s articles
Leadership Development Dilemma: Priority on Soft or Hard Skills?
Leadership Development – The Urgent Need for A Major Paradigm Shift
A New Path Forward to Leadership Development Success
Article with links to research studies: Leadership development is creating a dilemma
HR Exchange Network
BIZCATALYST 360°
Gary DePaul’s website
Gary’s books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
01:52 Bring the Fun by pinkzebra
06:17 Blues Background by AudioZen
14:14 Uplifting Acoustic Summer by pinkzebra
14:51 Fun and Flirtyby BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 26, 2021 • 28min
010: Dave Best and Integrity without Reward
I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode Ten, Dave Best talks about ways to connect with one another, what it means to encourage growth, and urges us to practice being genuine.
00:18 Prologue: Givers Put Others First
I’ve known Dave for about ten years. We met at Lowe’s. Since then, Dave has worked at Wal-Mart and now is a senior manager at The Home Depot. To learn more about Dave, you can view his LinkedIn profile (link below).
01:26 Part 1: Connect with Others
Core to leadership is how we interact with people at different levels. Dave shares a story about Mike Abrashoff, a leadership author, that illustrates the challenge of connecting with others.
06:43 Part 2: Encourage Growth
Leadership is not about you, but it is about other people. Practicing leadership is about helping others develop their mental and moral qualities, capabilities, and behaviors. In other words, leading people involves building character.
21:08 Part 3: The Real Deal
One of the themes of these episodes is being genuine. Dave discusses what this means and how crucial being genuine is when leading.
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How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Dave’s LinkedIn Profile
Navy Captain MIKE ABRASHOFF: People Don’t Come to Work to Fail [00:03:50] (monkey story video)
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
01:05 At Jazz by EightBallAudio
06:25 Comedy Pizzicato by Praded
20:50 Softly Building Lite Rock by pinkzebra
27:26 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 21, 2021 • 17min
009: Tanae Wolfman Leverages Collaboration
I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode Nine, Tanae Wolfman describes how she leads without authority, how she collaborates to build trust, and what she does to keep herself grounded in her guiding principles.
00:21 Prologue: Stewardship through Small Acts
I tend to think about stewardship as big acts. Tanae’s stories teach me to reconsider the practice of stewardship. The word means to take care of something, such as a group or property. I tend to think of it as the act of giving back to strengthen a profession. Tanae does this through multiple small acts at the individual level.
01:55 Part 1: Don’t Hesitate and Learning Outside Your Comfort Zone
Tanae explains how a Human Resource director’s advice to not hesitate encouraged her to act in unfamiliar ways. Doing so meant accepting a level of discomfort that enabled her to learn and develop professionally. To develop substantially, we need to step outside our comfort zones.
08:44 Part 2: Creating Opportunities for Others to Lead
Improving how people work together should be a shared responsibility. Tanae describes how she created opportunities for anyone to voice how teams and cross-functional groups evolve.
13:45 Part 3: How Will You Show Up Today?
At the beginning and end of the day, Tanae reveals the technique that enables her to reflect and revisit her guiding principles.
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How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Tanae’s LinkedIn Profile
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
01:40 A New Door Opens by pinkzebra
08:27 Make Me Smile by simming
13:27 This Cool Jazz by EightBallAudio
18:05 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 20, 2021 • 29min
008: Ronald Graves Differentiates the Coaching Role
On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology. I invite guests to share their expertise about small or big acts of leadership.
In Episode Eight, Ronald Graves, a certified coach, distinguishes the meaning of coaching from the popular notion and from other roles. He explains how professionals can leverage coaching to strengthen in their current positions. Also, Ronald describes his Five Levels of Listening.
00:23 Prologue: Disclaimer: He’s my Coach and Friend
Ronald has more than 35 years of business consulting experience, in which he served in leadership roles for 20 years. He is well versed in organizational performance improvement and leadership, and he is a certified coach. For the past year, Ronald has coached me as I work to refuel my entrepreneurial spirit!
01:32 Part 1: Coaching Does Not Pour Information into You
Depending on the situation, managers function as teachers, trainers, consultants, leaders, or mentors. The commonality of these roles is the act of giving information.
05:41 Part 2: Inside->Out Rather than Outside->In
Your potential is internal, and coaching helps you discover your potential. Coaching is a partnership with you as the focal point.
21:11 Part 3: Asking Questions and Listening at Five Levels
Except for one type, coaching is about asking questions and listening. Ronald describes five levels of listening.
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How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Ronald’s LinkedIn Profile, Bio, and Website
Graves’ Five Levels of Listening can be found in DePaul’s book, Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership.
Gary DePaul’s website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
01:12 Acoustic Colors by pinkzebra
05:23 Hopeful Piano by AudioChoice
11:14 Inspiring Emotional Cinematic Piano and Strings by pinkzebra
20:53 Chic Funk by BrownHouseMedia
27:52 Fun and Flirtyby BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 19, 2021 • 24min
007: Felix Nater Instills Creativity and Ideation
I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 7, Felix Nater reveals how one superior influenced him in practicing lifelong stewardship. He scrutinizes the misuse of authority and encourages us to work continuously on our congruency.
00:00 Prologue: The Threat Assessment / Kindness Paradox
Felix Nater has consulted hundreds of organizations about preventing workplace violence. He served in the Army and later in the U.S. Postal Services as a Postal Inspector. Felix has completed hundreds of threat assessments. He has investigated mail theft, burglary, armed robbery, and even violent crimes. More notable, though, is Felix’s kindness towards others.
02:10 Part 1: Fostering Stewardship
I’m unclear what can trigger people to shift from focusing on themselves to stewarding others. Maybe some make the transition after an accomplished career, but that isn’t always the case. Felix explains what someone said to move towards stewardship.
09:15 Part 2: Scrutiny Reduces Capability
When some people meet with a team, teammates immediately begin generating ideas. I know a few managers who can change their environment to bring out the best from their direct reports. Felix’s story, however, is not about such people.
17:03 Part 3: Congruency Strengthens Character
We tend to behave differently when interacting with different people. How we talk to our boss, friends, family members, children, customers, and even people we dislike can vary. Felix challenges our behavior variability as a way to build our character.
_________________________________
How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Felix’s LinkedIn Profile
Felix’s bio
Nater Associates, LTD.
Felix’s Twitter
Institute of Management Consultants (imc usa)
imcusa Carolinas(Felix is the Chapter Secretary and a Past President)
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
01:52 Confident Country by pinkzebra
08:55 Detective Cinematic Funk by AudioZen
13:50 Smooth Jazzby R-Production
16:45 Rock and Fashion by MusicAura
23:39 Fun and Flirtyby BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 14, 2021 • 27min
006: Peter Popovich and the Pickled Lifelong Journey
I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode Six, Peter Popovich challenges how we consider our capacity to affect our circumstances. He characterizes what giving up control means, and he recommends that we begin incorporating a simple but powerful habit into our daily lives.
If you ask Peter what he does, he might tell you that he’s an executive coach, consultant, franchise owner, and entrepreneur. However, the best way to describe Peter is a lifelong learner.
00:21 Prologue: Learning and Staying Curious
Through each career shift, Peter’s continuously leverages his ability to learn. Peter has multiple career experiences. He has been a sales representative, marketer, manager, professor, engineer, athletic Foundation director, and realtor. Peter is a tennis champion and a senior games gold medalist in three sports. You can read more about his career by accessing Peter’s website in the link below.
01:38 Part 1: Who will write to me?
In our youth, we tend to believe our results are caused by forces outside of us and out of our control. Peter hints at this belief when revealing a conversation between him and his sister.
11:52 Part 2: One of the Oldest Managerial Mistakes
Whether a new supervisor of a team or an executive managing a business, those in charge want to take charge. Being effective at taking charge may be what led us to such roles and may feel instinctive. Peter talks about a Chief Executive Officer whose powerful problem solving drags the company’s productivity.
22:56 Part 3: The Mirror Enables Consideration and Serious Thought
Peter tasks us to build and strengthen a specific habit until we leverage it throughout our day.
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How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Peter’s contact: Peter@PeterPopovich.com
Peter’s website (includes a bio page)
Peter’s LinkedIn Profile
Peter’s Facebook Profile
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
01:19 Cool Customer by simming
11:34 Rainy Day Chillhop by simming
22:37 Smooth Sound by BrownHouseMedia
26:22 Fun and Flirtyby BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 13, 2021 • 16min
005: Believing in Others
On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology.
In Episode Five, I discuss the first of seven leadership principles, Believing in Others (or, believe in others). I explain how a concept can appear simple but isn’t. I describe a baseball analogy to illustrate how managers can behave as if they seem to not follow the principle. Finally, I talk about how learning relates to the principle.
00:00 Prologue: It’s about Principles
Rather than focusing on leadership qualities or values, I prefer talking about leadership principles. After analyzing 16 leadership books, I identified seven principles. The focus of the show is on the first one, believing in others.
04:49 Part 1: So, Why Did You Hire Me?
Hiring managers search for job candidates who are the most qualified and have the right credentials and experiences. An assumption that hired candidates make is that the manager chose them because of their capability to execute their job tasks. Unfortunately, too many managers behave as if they don’t believe in the new employee’s abilities. Instead, they prefer to tell employees what to do and think for them.
09:15 Part 2: Play Ball!
I use a baseball analogy to illustrate how managers tend to take more control of how we perform tasks than necessary. If a player is competent, a manager might ask the player to hit the ball without dictating anything more than a few broad guidelines.
13:46 Part 3: People Can Learn
While believing that people can learn seems obvious, some managers don’t treat their employees as if they can learn. Because of something called neuroplasticity, scientists discovered that people continue learning well into old age. Again, this might seem obvious, but managers might unconsciously act as if they don’t believe this.
_________________________________
How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Leadership Principles and Related Beliefs
16 leadership books that I analyzed to derive the seven principles
Hilary Scarlett’s book, Neuroscience for Organizational Change: An Evidence-based Practical Guide to Managing Change
The Chrysler Pacifica (no, I don’t own one nor have a relationship with Chrysler. If however, Chrysler gives one to me, I’ll let you know.)
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
04:31 Experimental Piano Flickering Light by marcobellonimusic
08:56 French Rag by AndySlatter
13:27 Summer Dreams by pinkzebra
00:00 Fun and Flirtyby BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 12, 2021 • 30min
004: Judy Hale and the Brown Suit
I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode Four, Judith Hale talks about how her parents’ words and actions contributed to developing guiding principles.
Judy consults with organizations across all industries. Much of her current work focuses on assessment for qualifying people. Judy earned her Ph.D. from Purdue University and has various certifications. You can find her full bio on her website at the link below.
00:06 Prologue: Behind the Curtain
When you meet Judy Hale for the first time, you might underestimate who she is and what she has to offer. Anyone involved in performance consulting, international standards, a corporate training function, or school administration should get to know Judy. I might be so bold to suggest that when you look up stewardship in a dictionary, the definition should include Judy Hale.
02:33 Part 1: Innovation is the New Currency
Companies need a brown suit in the room. Why? Judy’s father explained to her how the brown suit at a company symbolized the openness to divergency.
04:54 Part 2: Is it Lip Service or Genuine Commitment?
Like her mom, when Judy observes discrepancies between what is said and what is done, she speaks up. Doing so is part of Judy’s character. A word of caution: there’s an art to calling out incongruent behaviors while not antagonizing.
12:13 Part 3: Raising Our Awareness about Opportunities
Opportunities are around us, but we mostly don’t see them. It’s like walking down a long corridor full of doors that are locked, unlocked, cracked open, or fully open. Yet, we don’t see them until something happens in your life. Judy has advice for finding opportunities.
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How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Hale Associates Center
About Judith Hale
Two webpages from Ben and Jerry’s:
Why Black Lives Matter
We Must Dismantle White Supremacy
Black Musician, Former Imperial Wizard of the KKK, and Great Friends (includes a link to Daryl Davis’ TEDxNaperville talk)
Baldrige Performance Excellence Program
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
03:22 Lovely Gipsy Jazz Ballad by Remstunes
09:15 One in A Million by pinkzebra
20:20 Mystic Desert by JBlanks
29:14 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 7, 2021 • 22min
003: Ajay Pangarkar and The Responsibility to Shine
I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode Three, Ajay Pangarkar models what happens when you lead by example, empathize with the people you work with, and focus more on listening than talking.
Ajay does more than consults with organizations about employee performance strategies and balanced scorecards. He teaches talent development courses through LinkedIn and for his clients, and he has co-authored three books. Not to be outdone, his expertise includes business and accounting, and he is on the faculty at the Sprott School of Business. You can find his biography in the episode links below.
00:17 Prologue: Stewardship in Two Fields
I know several professionals who transitioned from operations to human resources or learning & development. Ajay is the only professional I know who practices stewardship in two fields. He’s the only person I know that teaches about the foundations of corporate training while teaching a course about accounting!
02:45 Part 1: Mentoring Is Bidirectional
Mentoring others can trigger your own learning and growth. Ajay explains something a mentee said that affected his beliefs about how crucial continuous development is.
07:43 Part 2: Unaware of Our Acts of Leadership
While we often plan what they do to lead, we aren’t fully aware of how our words can lead others. Similar to being skilled at driving, we lead automatically and unaware of the nuances. Ajay describes how we can be surprised when people talk about how we helped and influence them.
17:13 Part 3: Rethinking Our Conversations
Ajay would like us to reflect on how we communicate. His advice can improve our ability to learn from our dialogues with teammates, colleagues, direct reports, and even family and friends.
_________________________________
How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Ajay’s biography
Ajay’s websites
Central Knowledge
Learning Source Online
Ajay’s LinkedIn Profile
All of Ajay’s articles through eLearning Industry
Ajay’s courses through LinkedIn
Gallup’s State of the American Workplace Report
Gary DePaul's website
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
02:30 Sentimental Acoustic Guitar & Piano by pinkzebra
07:29 This Is that Cool Jazz by EightBallAudio
16:56 Upbeat Advertising by pinkzebra
21:26 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!

Jan 6, 2021 • 18min
002: The Difference Between Management and Leadership
On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology. For Episode Two, I break down the management and leadership concepts.
00:06 Prologue: What Experts Get Wrong about Management and Leadership
When I searched for videos about how management and leadership differ, I found several experts who don’t get these concepts.
02:33 Part 1: What is management?
I define and discuss the types of management. Then, I share a definition by Mary Parker Follet. I conclude by making the case that there is no similarity or overlap in meaning between management and leadership.
04:54 Part 2: What is leadership?
I admit it: I messed up. Starting Part 2, I say I’m going to explain how traditional and contemporary leadership differ, but I don’t talk about traditional leadership. I should have said that traditional leadership is like management with several assumptions that tend to be harmful. In other episodes, I’ll talk about these assumptions.
In this part, I explain what leadership is. I share a story about two cashiers to distinguish the difference between process and practice (the difference is relevant and worth knowing, especially if you ever create process maps). I end by sharing how L. David Marquet explains what leadership is.
12:13 Part 3: The critics
There is no standard or agreed-upon definition of leadership, and I have some notable critics. I explain and respond to some of their arguments.
_________________________________
How You Can Support the Show
Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support
No transcript available (future enhancement)
Episode links
Gary DePaul's website
Gary's books:
What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?
Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership
Related blogs by Gary DePaul
“What is Leadership?” Is the Wrong Question
Leadership No Longer Means Leadership!
The Real Difference between Leadership and Management
What I Didn’t Learn about Leadership in Graduate School
Background Music
You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.
00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer
02:21 Simple Piano and Orchestra Background by pinkzebra
04:36 Quirky Accordion by pinkzebra
07:22 Simple Piano and Orchestra Background by pinkzebra
12:00 Market Day by simming
17:16 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia
Lead on!


