Unleashing Social Change

  Unleashing Social Change Podcast has a featured episode for you this week! High Tech High Unboxed, hosted by  Alec Patton. In this Episode, Stacey interviews Brandi. Stacey Caillier talks to Dr. Brandi Hinnant-Crawford about what Improvement Science looks like when equity and liberation are embedded in the PROCESS, not just the hoped-for result. This interview is rooted in two things, how improvement science can be a tool for our collective liberation and what we do in the meantime before that liberation comes about. Hope you enjoy this week's Bonus episode.  Show Resources:  HTHunboxed Podcast: https://hthunboxed.org/podcast-home/ Order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Nicki Roth and I met back in 2003 working on the 100,000 homes campaign. She is currently heading the executive leadership coaching offered to all MBA students at MIT Sloan School of Management. She has published two books on leadership and is the co-founder of The Messy Truth Leadership. I am honored and SO grateful that Nicki listened to the entirety of Season Four and brought her wisdom and expertise to this debrief.  Nicki is unafraid to call a spade a spade, or an asshole, and for that I love her. Unapologetic in her mission to develop leaders that are able to lift and progress teams rather than exhaust them with tone deaf egos, Nicki has decades of experience working in leader development and has her pulse on what leaders across sectors need.  In this episode we unpack the magnitude of the season. We discuss the threads of leadership lessons we saw woven throughout decades of service and the most prominent characteristics of authentic leadership.  To sit down in conversation with my old friend was a treat. Enjoy the last episode and then start all over again.  Show Notes: The difference seeing leadership development as a profit generator versus a necessity. There is more clarity of purpose in mission driven organizations. Commonalities between nonprofit, military, and corporate leaders. The journey from being externally motivated to developing intrinsic self worth.  The opposite of humble leadership is “I'm in charge” The nuance of navigating ego as a non-dominant group leader. How ego driven leadership limits careers and exhausts staff.  Never underestimate how honored a leader will be if they are asked to be a mentor.  People in non-dominant groups must have internal mentors to advocate for them, to help them navigate systems, see them, hear them, experience them, and help develop their talents.  Leadership isn't about the leader, it's about the group.     Show Resources Nicki's Projects The Messy Truth Leadership  Sloan's approach to leadership  Private audio coaching    Nicki's Books  The Messy Truth About Leading People Beyond Passion: From Nonprofit Expert to Organizational Leader   Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

My last mentor of the season is one who has known me since before I was born, my Aunt and Godmother, Sharon Kanis of the School Sisters of Notre Dame.  Taking her vows at the age of 19, Sharon has since gotten a degree in chemistry, a masters in applying Jungian theory to biblical archetypes, and a PhD in how people experience their spirituality in their bodies. When asked if I could introduce her as Doctor Sharon Kanis SSND she scoffed and said the phd was just a thing she did a while ago.  Sharon is a truth teller and willing to question her own assumptions with enduring humility. She has traveled the world to pay witness and be of service. An educator through her decades of service, she brings people and their shared experiences together in community. Sharon has rooted her service in the interconnectedness of the web of life and is unwavering from the oneness of the universe.  In this episode, you'll hear that the thing Sharon attributes her progress to is also the biggest obstacle she's faced as a leader - mutual accountability; showing up, consistently, willing to meet someone where they're at, to get the work done. And although sometimes inconvenient, it is necessary and rooted in justice.  Show Notes: The lesson I taught her at three years old. The difference between community and communion.  Theology isn't about answers, it's about questions.  Our identities are not reasons for division but markers for community.  How to stay in communication with people when egos inflate the room. Consensus is not always efficient but it is necessary.  The philosophy of mutual availability. The web of life and what it means to be interconnected. Making time for contemplative practice.  What happens to one of us happens to all of us.  Weaving together common experiences as a mode of operation.    Order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Description: A few years ago I received advice that every leader should have a mentor who is 20 years younger than them. In the reckoning of June 2020, I found mine in Noah Winnick and Josue Barnes. The duo founded Claremont Change and have been representing the voices of marginalized people in the community since the inception of the organization.  They are fearless advocates who are relentless in their commitment and vision in creating an antiracist Claremont and I will follow them, quite literally in peaceful protest, to the ends of the earth.  The synergy between these lifelong friends is animating to witness. Somehow they are able to make the daunting and often draining work of social justice joyful and approachable. They authentically show up for their hometown and I am so proud to be in arms with them as I do my part in shaping the city where I have rooted my family.  I hope you enjoy this time with “The Rom-Com Boys” as much I did.  Show Highlights:    Fostering fearlessness and Cat's The Musical  The weight and responsibility of speaking out in a town that you were raised in.  How to bring humor and irrepressible joy to the daunting journey that is social justice advocating.  Learning how to hold your own as the baby of the family. Trusting instincts and accepting that just because someone knows more than you doesn't mean they'll be helpful.  Navigating trust in politically charged strategies. Learning that knowledge does not imply truth or helpfulness.    Show Resources:  Claremont Change Order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

In this episode, you'll meet Rosanne Haggerty, winner of the 2001 MacArthur “Genius Award.” Having worked for her for 11 years I can say with no doubt: she really is a genius, although she'd never tell you that herself. Super humble and one of the most relentless leaders I've ever known, Rosanne's work speaks for itself.  Last year the organization she founded, Community Solutions, was awarded the prestigious $100 & Change grant from the MacArthur Foundation, a global competition for a $100 million to fund a single proposal that promises “real and measurable progress in solving a critical problem of our time.” I am so confident Rosanne and her team will deliver on this in spades.  Back in 2003, when Rosanne hired me to reduce street homelessness in two-thirds over three years in parts of Manhattan, NYC, all I knew was that I wanted to throw myself into work where I felt zero ambivalence. Rosanne took me under her wings and taught me that there's no such thing as a problem that can't be solved. Why she hired a former Army officer to lead an effort to tackle street homelessness is a mystery that she attempts to answer in this episode, and her answer sheds light on her knack for disrupting business as usual.  Everett Rogers estimates 2.5% of the population are innovators for any given area. Rosanne is one of those rare 2.5% who cannot help but generate fresh insights into entrenched problems. This leader was put on the planet to shake things up!  In this episode, you'll hear us talk about our time working together on the 100,000 Homes campaign, the challenges we faced, and the power of active listening. You'll also hear some of the behind-the-scenes stories from my book, Impact with Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself.  As always, enjoy the show and please share far and wide.    Show Notes: Thinking outside the box when it comes to hiring. Mobilizing accountability in complex problems. Homelessness is the collective failure of other systems and structures. Stepping up for the people who need it. Why solving short-term crises doesn't work and where we need to start.  The challenge is not sinister or mysterious - it's solvable.  Learning how to engage people in a way that's not overwhelming for everyone.  Matchmaking genius and what it can do for an organization. Allowing space for what needs to come next.  Finding the balance between keeping an organization afloat while keeping it equitable and innovative.  Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Holly Craig Silkman, aka Adele Adler, aka my college roomie, joins us from her horse ranch in Montana to talk about her experience narrating the audio version of my book, Impact with Integrity, and her experience as a leader for more than three decades.  Our time as roommates at West Point was much like this episode, a hoot and a half with tons of laughter. Holly was one of the first people I ever came out to and her compassion in that moment forged a friendship that changed both of our lives for the better.  Throughout this episode, Holly's perseverance, great personality, and candor shine through. A truly authentic leader who leads with compassion, courage, and a heart for service - there is never a dull moment when Holly is in the room. Even in the lowest moments of her incredibly successful career, she found a way to make things better for others.  I am so grateful to embrace this ray of sunshine as my lifelong best friend. I guarantee she'll have you laughing along within the first few moments of the show.    Show Notes: “It's not woo woo if it works.” Breaking free from toxic social conditioning. Becky's favorite Holly story involving a special kind of bird. “If you don't seek to be compassionate first, it won't work.” How Holly went from being an Army Colonel to narrating books.  Never start to believe your own press.  The price one pays when pride overshadows intuition.  What graduating from Airborne school at the age of 45 looks like.  You can't be a leader without being a servant.  Navigating the repercussions of sexual assualt from a four star general. The importance of healthy masculinity and the influence good fathers can have on fostering unwavering leadership.  Good ole cowboy logic: never miss a good chance to shut up.  It's hard to speak truth to power but people need to hear it, especially from your unique perspective.    Show Resources You can check out Adele Adler's other audio recordings on Amazon here.  Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Join me this episode as I sit down with my mentor and friend, retired Colonel Howie Cohen, to discuss leadership, community, standards, and perseverance. We reminisce on the unconventional methods Howie used to instill cohesion in every one of the dozens of organizations he led, from being one of the first officers ever to sign into the Third Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment to commanding the White House Communications Agency.  Woven throughout our conversation you will notice the profound joy of cameraderie forged by the shared experience of selfless service to something bigger than ourselves alongside the heartbreak that comes with the difficult challenges that life brings our way.  Howie embodies the essence of the word excellence and his commitment to learning, growth, and contribution shine through in all his stories. He is a prime example of someone who is a leader's leader, never asking someone to do something he isn't willing to do himself, always looking for the developmental moment. Willing to hold himself to a higher standard not because he has to, but because he believes it's the right thing to do.  I had the privilege of working for Howie two separate times during my nine years of service, first when he was the Battalion Commander of the 112th Signal Battalion (Special Operations) (Airborne) and again when he commanded a Special Mission Unit that we both served in. I'm so grateful to share the heart and humor of this amazing leader - this amazing human being - whom I'm honored to call my mentor and friend.  Please check out Howie's current project on Mental Fitness and preventing veteran suicide in the show notes below and help spread the word to everyone you think might benefit.    Show Highlights:  What it looks like to enforce high standards and how doing so creates a high accountability, high performing organization  Excellence becomes contagious when you lead by example  The experience of community creates an essential bond of an organization and is an essential ingredient for success The caliber of the team goes up when the accountability of each individual on the team goes up How to create a self-regulatory culture in an organization  Even if you don't win, you win when you're committed to excellence Finding meaning in sadness. Asking yourself ‘what am I doing right now to develop my leaders and what can I do better?' Prioritizing leadership development even when others haven't  The gift of letting go of something you're not good at so you can pursue your passion How to find your resilience even when you suffer from a difficult setback  Show Resources:  Pivotal Moments Media: https://www.pivotalmomentsmedia.com/ Charlie Mike Channel: https://www.pivotalmomentsmedia.com/charlie-mike/ Army ETS Sponsorship Program: https://etssponsorship.com/ Dept of Veteran Affairs TASC: https://www.mentalhealth.va.gov/transitioning-service/index.asp Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Today Jan Hicks is living her best life as a farmer, mother, and doting grandmother. When she retired as a two-star Major General in 2013, she was serving as the Commanding General of the United States Army Signal Corps. I had the tremendous good fortune of serving under Jan when she was the Battalion Commander of the 125th Signal Battalion in Helemano, Hawaii. Leokani Okauwila - a Hawaiian phrase that translates into Voice of Lightning - was the motto of our unit that provided tactical communications support to the 25th Infantry Division.  If you've read the first chapter of my book, you'll be familiar with the story about my boss poking me in the chest with some salty language. Jan Hicks was that boss. She was also one of the most inspiring, authentic, and deeply kind leaders I have ever had the privilege of serving under. By the way, if you haven't read the first chapter of my book, what are you waiting for? I'm giving the first chapter away for free here, so please check it out!  As a freshly minted Lieutenant, I was doubtful that I would ever be able to succeed in the army while at the same time being my authentic self. Though we never spoke about it directly, Jan embodied authenticity and kindness so thoroughly that I have known for the rest of my life that it is 100% possible to be myself and be effective as a leader.  I have to confess, I got a little more emotional than usual recording this episode. I didn't realize until we were speaking the full extent of Jan's impact on me all these years later. I'm so grateful that I had the opportunity to serve with this incredible human being who knows in her bones who she is and what she stands for. I hope that listening to this episode strengthens your own conviction to be true to yourself and kind to others.  Show Notes: How to handle a man mansplaining to you that he can't work for you because you're a woman.  The “rest of the story” behind Becky's infamous “unfuck this, Lieutenant” moment. What it was like being the first General Officer in the Army who was also a mom.  The profound gift of life-long friendships.  You can opt out of being miserable.  How life's pendulum will eventually swing back in your favor.  The ripple effect of embodying goodness and kindness. It's okay to make mistakes, just make sure you're making new ones.  Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Thirty years ago I met Jane Hall Lute while she was my professor at West Point. Since our time together she has gone on to be the Assistant Secretary General for Peacebuilding Support at the United Nations, the former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security for the United States, and is now the Director at SIPCA. As she mentions,” Jane Hall does not move backward”. Her illustrious career is cornerstonesd with humility,curiosity, and a commitment to learn something new from every conversation. Jane has always been able to distill the most complicated processes and ideas into comprehensible action steps. She is able to shift the context through humor and simplification, on the dime, and even does so a couple of times in this recording.  In this episode, you'll hear what leadership means to Jane and how we must show up as leaders, not to be praised or because it's being asked of us - but rather because it is our collective duty as humans.  Jane's ‘what you see is what you get” demeanor is funny, sharp, and inviting. I'm so grateful for the time we spent together. Enjoy the show! Show Notes: What happens to your presence when you realize you've become a role model. Human beings don't need to earn respect, they deserve respect. Presence as the most important attribute of a leader. How being a “spectacular failure” can work out for the good. Leading by example stays with people for life. Leaders need to be the weight bearing capacity for the waste of an organization sometimes. What's meant to be on your path will find a way to make its way there.  Navigating toxic people in organizations without compromising the mission. An example of setting boundaries and not suffering in silence. One of the most important choices we have is choosing who is in the sandbox with us.  Jane's insights on Ukraine and the Western World. Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

If you're a frequent listener of this podcast you've probably heard the name Jay Parker. Jay is currently the distinguished professor and Major General Fox Conner Chair of International Security Studies in the College of International Security Affairs at the National Defense University. We met back in the 90's when I was at West Point and he has been a trusted confidant ever since.  When Jay Parker says to do something – you do it. From an impromptu trip around the world to working for Rosanne Haggerty to help end homelessness – I've heeded his advice and been better off for it. In this episode you'll hear us reminisce decades old memories of the adventure that formed our lifelong friendship (including a thespian performance which shines a light on Jay's loveable affability) and the written memometos from him that have influenced the course of my life.  I can speak from experience when I say Jay Parker wraps his mentees in unconditional support and provides us with connections and protections, sometimes even at his own personal risk, in order to help people and organizations reach their highest potential.  I hope this episode sparks some of your own kindling. Show Notes: How Becky and Jay ended up on a three week trip around the world together within weeks of meeting one another  Becky's appreciation of Jay How Jay got to be so invested in mentoring others  What's Plutarch got to do with this?  Why leadership is not like Christmas morning or the Easter Bunny leaving extra chocolate Coping with burnout and seeking the ever elusive work-life balance  Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Join Becky as she interviews her Tactical Officer from West Point, Retired Army Officer and Defense Contractor Mimi Finch, and listen to their conversation about the seminal moments that molded Mimi into the leader and person she is today.   A champion of the underdog in her decades-long career, Mimi Finch has consistently stood up to misogyny, racism, and homophobia in situations that required a whole heap of courage. Even when the backlash was harsh and jeopardized her personal safety, her career, or her social status, Mimi spoke up.    Through some harrowing experiences, Mimi became the fearless feminist leader she wished she had herself when she went through the fourth class of women to graduate from West Point.    Mimi's story highlights the power and strength that can be found in radical vulnerability. Consider this a primer on questioning the status quo and making waves. May we all be inspired by her story and her willingness to disrupt oppression!   Trigger warning: contains discussion of sexual violence    Show Highlights:    Being true to yourself and standing firm in your values, no matter what the consequences  Working through the internal struggle of whether or not to say something when someone has done something wrong  Dealing with the backlash of calling out criminal sexist behavior Reckoning with the realization that people in power can cause harm Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Like many of Becky's mentors, Army Veteran Brenda Sue Fulton's list of accomplishments is longer than a CVS receipt and chock full of lasting impact. Weaving her activism with community building, she has been a key player in ending the military's discriminatory “don't ask, don't tell” policy and ending the military's ban on openly serving transgender people. A graduate of West Point's first class to admit women, Sue shares her insights on how to muster the personal courage to keep going in the face of massive resistance. Show Highlights:  Stories can be more effective and more important that raising money  How Becky and Sue founded Knights Out together and inspired dozens of West Point graduates to come out of the closet in support of ending “don't ask, don't tell.”  How Sue inspired SPARTA to pursue ending the ban on openly serving transgender people a decade sooner than anyone thought was possible Knowing your true north is where you find the personal courage to keep going even when you are scared - and you will be scared. You can't change minds until you change hearts.  Once you change hearts you just have to clear the friction.  Show Resources: TransMilitary Documentary  “Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.” - Maya Angelou   Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

In this episode, I sat down with one of my first mentors, Marie Connor-Glenfield, who I met when I was sixteen. In our first encounter, she held space for me to process profound loss. She identified my pain and didn't try to push me through it, but rather sat with me as I sat with it. Since that first meeting, she has continued to be there for me in seminal moments of my life. When I was lost, when I was celebrating, and when I wasn't sure what my next move would be, Marie accompanied me.  I have witnessed Marie bring healing energy to many people and organizations over the decades I've known her. I am so happy she was generous enough to share her deeply personal stories of listening to muses and grounding herself in the interconnectedness of life with all of us.  Her creativity and commitment to be of service has always inspired me to stay true to that part of myself. I hope you get as much from this conversation as I did! Show Highlights:  Holding deep emotions through presence brings healing Listening to the inner voice when it says “I know I can help, so I'm going to” Being of service so that others don't have to experience the same pain we did; or, if they do, they don't have to do it alone When we're fully present, we're connected to everything and everyone  How do we stay in our truth when we're having a bad day, week, or month?  Judgment is not useful. It is a way to avoid the truth The importance of creating a daily practice of paying attention  The struggle between ego and presence and how to differentiate between the two Our circumstances are not our story Sometimes it can be terrifying to get clarity on your purpose Acupunture as a “legitimate front” for being a healer  Taking responsibility for the change you want to see in the world without burning out  Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

This week I sat down with Mark Lipton who I met when he was the Department Chair of my graduate program in Organizational Change Management at The New School. He has since moved on to Professor Emeritus status, which has freed him up to consult with Fortune 500 companies and write awesome books, so be sure to check out Guiding Growth: How Vision Keeps Companies on Course and the award-winning Mean Men: The Perversion of America's Self-Made Man.  I learned that Mark and I had all kinds of things in common in this episode. For example, we bonded over the fact that both of us entered higher education entirely on a whim. And I was absolutely fascinated to listen to Mark's thoughts about what he calls Emotional Fortitude - a signature attribute of “undisruptable CEOs” that he defines as, “the art of examining one's own thoughts and emotions surrounding a decision in order to consider those thoughts and emotions themselves as inputs to the decision-making process.” Though we have traveled different paths, the fact that we are both so keen on helping leaders know themselves and do the inner work of mining their emotions confirmed for me that this is someone I was so lucky to have as a mentor and teacher so many years ago.  Mark's reflections on purpose and vision are something everyone leading anything needs to listen to. This wonderful human being has a great big heart to match his great big brain. Everything he shares is oozing with humility and thoughtfulness. I hope you enjoy listening to this show as much as I enjoyed recording it with Mark.  Show Highlights:  “Knocking out a phd” could alter the course of your life The leadership superpower of Emotional Fortitude  How do organizations set up feedback loops? And how can leaders actively listen?  What is trust and how do we gain, sustain, and lose it?  Why knowing what you are feeling in the moment is one of the most important skills you can build as a leader What is left when we let go of the notion that we have something to prove to others or ourselves Understanding your feelings, in the face of a challenge, will let you know what you truly want to do about it Thoughts on (not) retiring  Vision. Is. Everything. Show Resources:  Mean Men: The Perversions of America's Self-Made Man  Guiding Growth: How vision keeps companies on course.  The Group Laboratory    Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Mentorship is often thought of as unidirectional - flowing from the mentor to mentee. In this upcoming season, I interviewed a baker's dozen of my mentors - people who were there to guide me through some of my biggest leadership challenges - to find out about their biggest leadership challenges.  If my military mentors taught me anything, it was this: leaders don't ask the people to do anything they aren't willing to do themselves. That goes for cleaning toilets, answering the phones, or disclosing your biggest leadership challenges to your podcast listeners. So we're launching season four with my dear friend, Dr. Susan Rivers, Executive Director and Chief Scientist of iThrive, who agreed to interview me about the hardest challenges I've faced as a leader.  Susan invites me to go behind the scenes into some challenges I've shared a hundred times before and she draws out some new stories I've never shared before. I'm so grateful to Susan for her generous listening, her keen insights, and her ability to help me make sense of some of the hardest moments I've experienced.  Show Highlights:  The pain of not being able to tell the truth about my sexual orientation while I served in the military  Why authenticity is so important to me now How I worked through my fears by being humble and letting go of the need to be blameless Reckoning with decades of socialization as a white person in the United States and the negative impact that has on showing up fully in community Differentiating between impact and intent to take responsibility for my actions The big question: How do I take healthy responsibility for the whole web of life?  Learning to listen to what my body is trying to tell me   Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

Anyone who has attended our workshops on how to design large-scale change is familiar with Playworks, a nonprofit organization based in Oakland, CA. With their permission, we present a case study of their plans to go to scale as a way to teach people how to set compelling aims for spread/scale. So we thought we should check in on Playworks and their progress toward their truly ambitious aims.    In this episode, we sit down with the CEO of Playworks, Elizabeth Cushing, and dive into the rollercoaster ride of leading an organization through an astonishing transformation and all the lessons learned along the way. Elizabeth has some edge of your chair stories about the thrill of victory and agony of defeat in the day to day adventures of leading large-scale change during a global pandemic.    We learned so much in this conversation and we know you will, too.    Show Highlights:    The difference between scaling the organization and scaling the solution (hint: one has more impact than the other) Major pivots Playworks accomplished during the pandemic  Setting an aim invigorates organizations and galvanizes donor support, and is well worth doing, even if the aim is not achieved What's next for Playworks  Show Resources:  Recesslab.org Game Library    Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

On this episode we welcome back Nicole Hockley, a dear friend and force of nature, for a conversation about how Sandy Hook Promise scaled their proven prevention programs through a pandemic.    Nicole generously talks us through SHP's focus on scale, equity, and adaptating their programs and internal practices. We are deeply honored to get to spend some more time with this brilliant human and grateful for her insights as CEO of an immensely impactful organization. Enjoy the show and please share the below resources as far and wide as you can.    Show Highlights:    Nicole's thoughts on the stunning fact that the number one cause of death for children under the age of 19 in the United States right now is gun violence Why parents cannot assume that their kids' mental health is ok Nicole's insights into the phenomenal growth trajectory of Sandy Hook Promise and an update on their impact to date How Nicole's thinking on the need to balance mission accomplishment with employee well-being has evolved over time Nicole's thoughts on bridging the C3 and C4 arms of Sandy Hook Promise to advance programs and legislative policies.  Show Resources:    Make the promise Know the signs Donate to SHP   Say Something Anonymous Crisis Line: To get the reporting system at your school/ district reach out to programs@sandyhookpromise.org    Sandy Hook Promise PSA  How To Overload A Circuit: https://youtu.be/GLapIiOq__Y  How To Make A Homemade Bomb: https://youtu.be/A45mBBsrhG4  How To Perform A Disappearing Act: https://youtu.be/hafbxfHMTKg    Pre-order Becky's Book Impact With Integrity: Repair the World Without Breaking Yourself

We did something a little different this time. We're giving you an almost completely unedited podcast recording because you need to hear every single word Chris said, including those before and after the official "podcast" part of the podcast. This episode is everything to us. Chris has a profound ability to convey meaning and heart through story. We literally cried through half the interview. We learned. We grieved. We grew. We are better humans for listening to his story. And we want to share every moment of it with you. Chris is a gift to this world and we are so grateful he took the time to tell us his story and for the person he is. We hope you'll take a moment when you're done listening to share your learnings too.   

40: Dr. Christine Ortiz, “Equity is a Verb, not a Noun.”   Listen in on this episode for an insightful and deeply personal conversation about why equity is a verb with our friend, Dr. Christine Ortiz, Founder of Equity Meets Design. Christine invites us to get curious about the ways philanthropy and the nonprofit sector can be overly focused on spreading solutions at the expense of actually solving problems. We at the Billions Institute are proud to be partnering with her and Equity Meets Design on a new course called Solutions Worth Scaling.    Show Highlights: Racism and equity are products of design and thus can be redesigned The difference between Capital D Designers and lower case d designers and why the little d counts! Why process is everything Christine’s adventures as a serial entrepreneur and how the most important thing she learned at Harvard was not in the classroom   The pros and cons of working with the philanthropic sector The problem with jumping to solutions What it means to embody equity   Resources: equitymeetsdesign.com The Problem with Problems Course: https://courses.equitymeetsdesign.com/p/the-problem-with-problems  Decolonizing Wealth by Edgar Villanueva

39: Dr. Julia Colwell, “Shifting from Reactive Brain to Creative Brain”   In this episode, we talk with our friend, the brilliant and insightful psychologist Dr. Julia Colwell, about the physiological experience of shame and why it’s so important that we learn how to shift out of our reactive brains - and the hierarchy that comes with it - back into our creative brains where collaboration, connection, and creativity are possible. Join us for this fascinating conversation about how our brains work and how we can use our brains - and our bodies - to advance love and justice in our world. You’ll want to download this handout (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JBoMQtVGNGMW33BLfKIIz1h_cybZ0E4E/view?usp=sharing)  to follow along with the show.    Show Highlights: The evolutionary purpose of shame is to dominate another person into submission How, as Tema Okun says, “Shame is a place to visit but not to stay.” The difference between power versus force  How the energy of shame is close to death  How pride and contempt can lead to violence The difference between blaming and non-blaming anger The two problems with staying in reactive brain The importance of realizing when you are in fear and a persona so you can minimize any harm you might do from that place  Reactivity is useful for survival, but not for thriving Getting unstuck from the “I’m not bad, you’re bad” narrative and shifting to appreciation Moving from “It shouldn’t be this way” to the neutrality of “this is what is” Anchoring yourself in ways that generate energy Repairing relationships by engaging above the line Implications for scarcity versus abundance from your brain state   Connecting the dot with reparations and creating the world we want to live in Fuel, rest, move - getting out of the stress mode and taking care of our bodies Resources: Evolutionarypower.org https://juliacolwell.com/inner-map Stephen Porges, Polyvagal Theory Dr. David Hawkins, “Power vs. Force” Caste by Isabel Wilkerson Fear Melters - Gay and Katie Hendricks john powell - Linked Fate The Open Focus Brain by Les Fehmi and Jim Robbins

Episode 38: Nancy Stubbs, Kolbe Certified™ Consultant, Big Leap Coach and Founder of Hire Resonance - “Aligning Team Talent to Maximize Impact” In this episode we interview Nancy Stubbs who helps the Billions Institute make fantastic hiring decisions and optimize our genius as a team. We love her so much that we also bring her in to work with all of our Fellows. Bottom line: we think Nancy is genius at helping teams optimize genius! While most companies look for experience and education for hiring decisions, Nancy emphasizes the importance of motivation, intrinsic interests and how people actually get things done. These are the factors that drive job satisfaction and these are the key ingredients for creating a team that thrives. Tune in to see how you can build a team that maximizes impact by aligning the talent.   Show Highlights: Don’t work on weaknesses; maximize joy and productivity instead  Why it is essential that everyone on your team knows not only their genius, but also their “not genius”  The gift underneath those aspects of yourself that you’ve been told are “too much” or “not enough”  Why we’ll never hire again without the help of Nancy and the Kolbe A Assessment   The Billions Institute is partnering with Nancy to offer a new course called Unapologetic Genius. Enrollment is open and the course will include your very own Kolbe assessment, an individual coaching session with Nancy, and a six-week deep dive into uncovering and fully expressing your genius in the world.    You can learn more about Unapologetic Genius here: https://billions-institute.mykajabi.com/unapologetic-genius

Episode 37: Mike Thompson, Billions Institute Faculty, “Finding Common Ground in Community”   We kick off Season 4 with a candid discussion between Becky and her dear friend, Mike Thompson. Mike has been a nonprofit Executive Director several times over, and seven people who have worked for him have gone on to become exective directors themselves. In this candid conversation between two old friends, Mike shares his secrets for bringing out the best in each person he works with and each organization he leads. Mike is especially passionate about creating a context where people feel safe and supported to bring their whole selves to the work, and creating impeccably clear agreements with his colleagues, especially his board members! Anyone who serves on a board (or answers to a board) will want to listen to this one. Becky and Mike reflect on the importance of community because this work can be lonely and exhausting. Magic and inspiration naturally flow when leaders come together to form authentic community, something both Becky and Mike are passionate about doing.    Show Highlights: The ways your identity and experiences of privilege and marginalization shape how you lead Creating safe spaces so that your people can bring their authentically whole selves to the work The importance of clear agreements between Executive Directors and their Boards Why we need to slow down and make time for deeper relationships The difference between consulting and coaching to support professional growth The antidote to the loneliness that can come with leadership   Sign up for our newsletter: billions institute.com/awesome

Season 4 Teaser

36: Meredith Shockley-Smith and Elizabeth Kelly, “Reducing Infant Mortality by Following the Lead of Black Women”   Over the past several years, Hamilton County has moved from having one of the highest rates of infant mortality in the United States to being in the lower 25 percentile. While there is still so much work to be done, this staggering improvement deserves our attention. In this episode we check in with Dr. Meredith Shockley-Smith and Dr. Elizabeth Kelly with Cradle Cincinnati who attribute their stunning progress on this progress to deliberately following the lead of Black women in the community. In too many sectors, racial equity is given lip service. We can learn so much from these two powerful women who didn’t just redistribute resources, they also redistributed power.    Dr. Meredith Shockley-Smith, Director of Community Strategies and Dr. Elizabeth Kelly,  co- founder and Director of Systems Strategies, Cradle Cincinnati   Show Highlights: Why humility is a “must-have” quality for any social change leader  The initiative to hear, see and celebrate Black women How a recurring potluck dinner became the basis for powerful community organizing The importance of building bridges and forging authentic relationships across difference Leading large scale change is really about letting go, but letting go is easier said than done What happened when Cradle Cincinnati recognized that it wasn’t just a health care problem, it was a justice problem    Links: Cradle Cincinnati: http://www.cradlecincinnati.org/   Articles: SSIR Collective Impact model https://ssir.org/articles/entry/collective_impact   Start Strong Avondale https://www.cradlecincinnati.org/2018/04/12/the-neighborhood-of-avondale-develops-a-promising-model-to-save-lives-as-hamilton-county-infant-mortality-improvement-levels-out/   Stay up to date and receive exclusive offers: www.billionsinstitute.com/awesome 

35: Melissa Rodgers, “Community Always Trumps Cruelty: Inside the New Americans Campaign to help 500,000 Green Card holders become US citizens.”   The goal of the New Americans Campaign is to help 500,000 - out of the 9 million Green Card holders who are eligible - become citizens by 2021, the Campaign’s 10th anniversary. There are many barriers and obstacles to meeting this ambitious aim, but Melissa Rodgers and her colleagues at the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, together with the Campaign’s non-profit partners across the country, are forging ahead with courage, empathy, and wicked smarts! Join us for a conversation about the current state of immigration in the US and why it’s so important that we reform this broken system.    Melissa Rodgers, Director of Programs, Immigrant Legal Resource Center, and Director of the New Americans Campaign   Show Highlights: How difficult it is to become a naturalized citizen of the US, even when you’re eligible The ways the Trump Administration is making it even more difficult  The systemic cruelty of our immigration system How community is a protective factor when facing such cruelty Law as a collaborative profession and co-creation The New American Campaign’s  5 principles for doing this difficult work How the New Americans Campaign quadrupled their network of local non-profit partners across the country  The profound benefits of equality under the law What can happen when we believe something is really doable Why, for many people, immigration is literally a matter of life and death Links:   New Americans Campaign  https://www.newamericanscampaign.org/   https://www.newamericanscampaign.org/about/   Stories From New Americans: https://www.newamericanscampaign.org/from-new-americans/    Immigrant Legal Resource Center: https://www.ilrc.org/    Stay up to date and receive exclusive offers: www.billionsinstitute.com/awesome 

34: Peter Fitzgerald, “Honoring Our Elders: Providing Voice & Choice So People Can Grow Old at Home.” As we grow older and our ability to live independently diminishes, we may find ourselves contemplating an assisted living facility or a nursing home. The thought of giving up your home, where all your memories live, can be heartbreaking. What if we could make it easier for people to grow old in their homes? Enter PACE (Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly). PACE currently helps almost 55,000 older Americans stay in their homes by bringing the care to them. They have ambitions to grow to 200,000 clients by 2028 and their services couldn’t be more timely as during COVID their mortality rates are half those of nursing homes. Listen in on Becky’s conversation with Peter Fitzgerald, Executive Vice President of Police and Strategy for PACE, as they discuss the challenges of expanding something that’s already working pretty good.    Peter Fitzgerald, Executive Vice President of Policy and Strategy, National PACE Association Show Highlights: What’s the “just right” amount of expansion so that you don’t overwhelm people?  How PACE originated their program model with the Chinese community in San Francisco How the UK’s adult day care model also informed PACE’s development The importance of interdisciplinary teams in delivering care Links: https://www.npaonline.org/  

LaShawn Routé Chatmon and Kathleen Osta, Executive Director and Managing Director of the National Equity Project, are unapologetic about advancing equity from a place of love. Join us for this inspiring and thought-provoking conversation as they discuss a unique form of leadership that is called for in these times, what Francesca Gino calls “Rebel Leadership.” This kind of leadership invites us to stand firmly in the midst of persistent injustice and racial reckoning without giving up on our collective humanity. This kind of leadership requires us to be courageous and humble at the same time. Becky has witnessed LaShawn and Kathleen demonstrate this kind of leadership many times over the years they’ve known one another, and we are so delighted to hear them speak about it here. We need more of this kind of leadership in the world.   LaShawn Routé Chatmon and Kathleen Osta, National Equity Project Highlights: What is the National Equity Project? Three questions you should yourself before you say something you might regret Why it takes training and preparation to not restrain your humanity as a leader Why they say, “The soft stuff is the hard stuff.” Why we need to dissolve the boundaries between community and school Standing in the “not knowing” instead of jumping to “we have this under control” A glimpse into the 20 year and going strong friendship between LaShawn & Kathleen Links: National Equity Project Twitter: @equityproject Nationalequityproject.org Books: Francesca Gino - Rebel Talent Video: Mo Cheeks video: 

Episode 32: Kas Guillozet, “The Complexity of Living in Right Relationship with People and the Earth”  The wildfires that are devastating the West Coast are all the evidence we need that we cannot continue as we have been. Ecosystems cannot recover on their own without human beings seriously changing course. Listen in as Kas Guillozet, Program Director of the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, shares her inner thoughts and her life’s work with Becky and together they explore how complex it can be to strive to live in ‘right relationship’ with people and the earth. Highlights: The intersection of trauma and harm to the environment The history of racism and sexism within the environmental field Being in right relationship When do you need to be willing to fight? Beyond the Green New Deal, the many ways we can support initiatives Avoiding overly simplistic solutions and virtue signaling by embracing complexity How “Promise the Pod” just might save Southern Resident Orca Whales from extinction   Links: www.promisethepod.org http://www.b-e-f.org/ Documentary: The Biggest Little Farm

In this episode, we sit down with Katie Hong for a candid conversation about money, power and identity. Having worked in philanthropy for over 15 years, Katie knows the sector can be a significant catalyst for social change. She reflects on how essential it is for those working on the grant-making side of things to face into their own relationship to power and money. Katie and Becky also discuss what people working in philanthropy can do to be most helpful to non-profits in these times. Listen in to learn how those working to give away other people’s money can more effectively show up and partner with others in advancing a more just and equitable world.   Katie Hong, Raikes Foundation, Director of Special Initiatives   Show Highlights: Katie’s honest reflections on what she’s learned as a White House Fellow and working for the Gates and Raikes Foundations What it’s like to have a job that is about giving away other people’s money How being an immigrant and a woman of color has shaped her and her world-view Challenging paternalistic assumptions that sometimes arise in her field  Philanthropy as risk capital that can either help or harm Getting over solution-itis and looking at what happens after “We don’t have a knowledge problem, we have a power problem.” The difference between positional power and personal power   Links: katie.hong@raikesfoundation.org   Forbes article, “What is Power, Really?” https://www.forbes.com/sites/rickmiller/2018/10/25/what-is-power-really/#357362ef42a7   Books: Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World by Anand Giridharadas Just Giving: Why Philanthropy is Failing Democracy and How it Can Do Better by Rob Reich Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance by Edgar Villanueva

Join us for an important and eye-opening conversation with Vera Institute Executive Vice President and Special Counsel, Kevin Keenan, as we peel the onion of mass incarceration - and learn what Vera is doing about it.  Highlights: The extraordinary harm caused by our system of mass incarceration Facing into brutality and racism of our criminal justice system The importance of treating everybody with dignity  The importance of proximity for really being able to tackle complex social problems What Vera Institute is doing to create a more just society Links: https://www.vera.org/ Twitter: @verainstitute @kevinkeenan Justin’s Story:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PUPQrF5Qlk Bar Chart from PPI:  https://www.prisonpolicy.org/global/2018.html JustLeadership USA/ Glenn Martin Quote, “Those closest to the problem are closest to the solution, but furthest from resources and power.”:  https://jlusa.org/our-goal/ On Movement Ecology, AYNI Institute:  https://ayni.institute/movementecology/    

Recorded shortly after the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, Michelle Molitor, Founder of the Equity Lab, joins Becky for a vulnerable and raw conversation about the double whammy of racism and the COVID-19 pandemic.    Little did we know that soon after we recorded this interview, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd’s murders at the hands of police would spark one of the largest social movements in US history. Michelle reminds us that even through our grief - if we are brave enough - now is the time for us to transform the world forever. How we show up in this moment matters.    Show highlights:   Michelle Molitor - Executive Director, The Equity Lab   Why we must seed disruption The link between personal and organizational and societal transformation The importance of decolonizing our spaces and creating equity of voice in every space We need to slow down and create space to grieve How allowing ourselves to grieve creates the possibility for connection with others   Links:   The Nexus Fellowship: https://www.theequitylab.org/nexus The Equity Lab blog: https://www.theequitylab.org/blog Why Everyone Loses When We Don’t Talk About Race and Equity: Q&A with Michelle Molitor https://www.educationpioneers.org/blog/why-everyone-loses-when-we-dont-talk-about-race-and-equity-qa-michelle-molitor

If you are fortunate enough to live a long life, it is all too likely that you will experience ageism. Sadly, older adults are sometimes viewed as a liability versus the tremendous asset they are. In this episode, Eunice and Becky discuss the importance and power of intergenerational work and Encore’s bold reimagining of what it means to be an older adult.  Show Highlights:   How Eunice’s identity as an Asian American woman shapes her work How the Gen2Gen project is mobilizing 1 million older adults to show up for kids Why innovation is not just for the young The wisdom that can come from living through dark times Why you shouldn’t say, “Ok, Boomer.”  Why young people need older people in their lives.   Links:   https://encore.org/ www.iamgen2gen.org Eunice’s twitter handle: @eunicelnichols Nuns and Nones: https://www.nunsandnones.org/ Adam Horowitz Poem, “To Our Elders” http://www.adamhorowitz.org/writing/2020/4/12/whats-your-star-news-a-few-poems-amidst-pandemic Experience Corps: https://www.aarp.org/experience-corps/ EnCorps STEM Teachers Program: https://www.encorps.org/

In this episode, listen in on an intimate conversation between Billions Institute Co-founders Becky Margiotta and Joe McCannon as they talk about the adventures along the way of their 11 year friendship.    Joe will discuss his perspective on large-scale change and the power of inviting people to be part of something bigger than themselves. Becky and Joe will also talk about how non-profits can be more innovative and create environments that are exhilarating to work in.    Imagine what kind of world can we create together when we believe we can share power and bring solutions to everyone who can possibly benefit. In this episode, we’ll hear about what it takes to build a “fear free army” that can lead change.   Show Highlights: The history of Becky and Joe’s friendship including the 100,000 Lives an 100,000 Homes campaigns that brought them together  How to take what you do and make it work in a lot of different environments Why an outsized experience can be addictive How do shift your mindset from a bad question to a good question What it really takes for large-scale change to happen Why the size of a soccer team might be the optimal size for a work team, too Creating a joyful and unambivalent work environment  How to transcend the struggle for organizational survival and double-down on your purpose The root of many of the world’s problems: fear, ignorance, greed and inequity What it means to create a “movement of movements” How to keep optimism alive in 2020   Links: Follow Joe on Twitter: @cjmccannon

Episode 26: Susan X Jane, “During These Pandemic Times, What Wants to be Unveiled?”    Susan X Jane, Principal of Navigators Consulting   In this fascinating episode, DEI expert and Billions Institute Coach Susan X. Jane shares her insights with Becky about the pandemics given her background in media, culture and apocalyptic studies.    Apocalypse is often misconstrued as “end times” but is really about “unveiling.” All apocalyptic movies invite us to question, “What kind of person would you be in that situation?” So in times like today, given our dual pandemic crisis, Susan asks us the same question: who are we, and who do we hope to be, and what do we want to change before the natural tendency to revert to the “way things were.” What things can we genuinely change during the pause and collective grieving?   All this and more will be explored as we listen in on Becky and Susan’s enlightening conversation. There may never have been a more opportune time to think as social leaders about what how we can re-imagine the world and then get started with taking the steps to make that happen.   Show highlights:   How the dominant culture always asserts itself in the narratives we see in television and movies and all media we consume Recognizing the liberatory counter-narratives revealing themselves as well Key questions that arise in apocalyptic stories such as “How would we face an existential threat?” And “What is being currently revealed within us during the double pandemic of covid-19 and racism?” What is the post-apocalyptic world we can envision during these times? What are the questions we should be asking ourselves? Such as “Who is putting themselves at risk right now so I can be safely at home?” Shifting out of the dichotomy of “you and me” how do we get to a more harmonious place of both/and, “you AND me”?   Links:   Susan’s blog at smntks.com Culturenavigators.com Twitter: @susanjane19

In this episode, Becky interviews her favorite person, her amazing wife Christine! They’ll discuss everything from how they met 10 years ago (working on homelessness) to learning more about Christine’s current work funding grassroots social justice efforts in Los Angeles. You’ll hear how Christine’s journey has led her to serve as the Executive Director of Social Venture Partners Los Angeles, where she is working on shifting philanthropy from a charity mindset to one deeply rooted in justice.  Over the years, Christine has been working deep on systems change while Becky has been working broad on spread and scale. This combination makes for an interesting conversation to eavesdrop! Listen to them discuss some of the key moments that have shaped Christine into the leader she is today and how she envisions all of us creating a more just and loving world.  Show Highlights: How Christine and Becky met working on homelessness Collective impact and how to bring philanthropy, business, non-profits, government and voters to tackle big problems together The importance of doing iterative and deep root cause analysis  How to create a liberatory non-profit culture with your employees The moral dilemma of accepting funding from companies that are perpetuating harm How SVP Los Angeles is working to disrupt the field of philanthropy   Links: svpla.org

How do we help balance the desire for our kids to know the truth and yet also wanting to shield them from the pain and horrors embedded in history? Dimitry Anselme from Facing History opens this episode’s conversation with an interesting provocation that youth enter the conversation about history through moral and ethical terms. It is how we engage them in learning and help them locate themselves within the stories.  When we start with, “Your ideas matter, your culture matters, whatever you are bringing into the classroom matters, and instead of trying to erase or assimilate it, we will build upon it,” then we have them engaged. Dimitry’s own history of growing up in Kinshasa, where the teaching style was to see the teacher as a beacon of all knowledge and it was disrespectful to ask a question, to building a community of students around him now asking the tough questions is a beautiful journey we explore in today’s episode. Our democracy is fragile and if we wish to protect it, we need to continue to nurture the critical thinking of our students.     Show Highlights: What is Facing History and Ourselves and their mission Dimitry’s personal story for how he came to this work from teaching and could not find resources as a young Black teacher on how to help his students think critically and their place in history Expanding from Holocaust to emergence of racist thinking, the eugenics movement and race membership, Civil Rights movement and the Reconstruction Era Social Emotional Learning – more kids are now able to identify racism, homophobia, and are attuned to it happening Pedogogy of the Oppressed – valuing what you think. Your questions are valid is incredibly affirming. Practices we can adopt to become better teachers and the mindset shift to create lifelong learners which can be tough when emphasis is on numbers and grades and passing a test How do we bring equity in more fragile communities? Do the students feel like they are rightful contributors of society? Resources varying from one school to another - Brown vs. Brown was not about segregation and integration, it was about equal access to resources, textbooks, etc. The idea is it is always a march towards progress – teaching history is really teaching how we’ve taken five steps forward, 2 steps back Re-dedicating yourself to the mission of building the society you hope to have Navigating organizational change over time. What is the rationale for changing something that is going well?  Why do we want to work at a particular scale? Diffusion of Innovation Curve. Slowing down and letting early adopters teach you and get it right so that it is easier to get to the late adopters because concerns and tests have been addressed prior.  The scaling plan of Facing History developed during two Skid Row Schools to now 100,000 educators Willingness and tolerance for failure and changing the culture for this Building tolerance for “I don’t know if this is going to work” You can build up a system where you will know fast if it is not working In leadership, imagining who will be and where we will be in 20-30 years requires steady discipline Links: Facinghistory.org Diffusion of Innovation Curve

Episode 23: Jason Marsh, Greater Good Science Center, “Advancing Well-Being and Happiness through Research” How do we advance and spread something that is so essential yet seemingly difficult to grasp as “happiness” and “well-being”? Jason Marsh joins us today for an engaging discussion about how The Greater Good Science Center at Berkeley is doing just that with their open source method of sharing their research. What they have found is building happiness and well-being is about the cultivation of relationships, how we expand our concept of the “in” group, how we make the distinction between empathy and compassion, and how we can improve the conditions to make each and every contact with the people we interact with more positive. In this episode, Jason discusses how outcomes can change when we know what is expected of us, like when children play “The Wall Street Game” vs. “The Cooperation Game.” And how the Bridging Differences study breaks down the barriers between those we see as different. Human beings have an innate draw towards kindness and compassion yet also the pervasiveness to dehumanize people we disagree with. How do we stimulate the positive natural impulses so we can bridge that gap between what we hope to see in the world vs. what we do see in the world? Listen in on this fascinating discussion so we can build a happier and healthier world. Show highlights: Shrinking the change, clearing the path and making research accessible Making research more applicable to people’s everyday lives Combatting the pervasiveness we have to dehumanize people we disagree with How we expand the “in” group so we can be more generous and kind Knowing what is expected of us and how that impacts behavior Conditions that make contact more positive: 1) Equal Status 2) taking cues from leaders 3) common goals and seeing my fate as linked with other’s fate Evidence that health outcomes and other outcomes are poorer when there is a larger disparity between people Defining suffering and the difference between empathy and compassion Studies on kindness and compassion out of Harvard – seeing an 18-month old observe an adult drop something and need help What is result of entire lifetime of cues that child sees, even subtle ones and cultivating mindfulness Pro-social vs. anti-social behavior and the impact of having just one positive relationship with an adult at school The Greater Good Science Center method of open source as an end game for spread (Gugalev and Stern) and thinking though sustainability with open source model Pyramid of Engagement for sustainability – professional products and experiences for those who want to go deeper and funneling (the both/and model) Is human nature good or bad? The deeply rooted instincts we have both for care and to do bad things as well. But how do our environments elicit one or the other?  We become more self-interested when we feel scarcity and feel threatened or scared We often think that the world has become more violent but the historical look shows that violence is actually significantly lower than centuries ago     Links: https://ggsc.berkeley.edu/ https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/ https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/bridging_differences/definition https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/episode_57_why_shared_goals_can_bridge_divides Steven Pinker – “The Blank Slate”

What could we all accomplish if we could put relationships first and primacy in shared purpose? In this episode, Kate Hilton shares how her view of leadership has shifted over the years starting with her own experience of being told to get out of her own way.  From discussing the shift from “power over” to “power with” and discovering that the joy in work comes from what matters to people.  When you start with who people are vs. what you want to do and listen to what people’s biggest dreams and assets are, your strategy only gets better. Kate has an insatiable curiosity around how to help people make change on the basis of activating their agency, power and courage.  She also dances her face off with zero inhibition. As a lover of people, Kate is a studier of the human conditions for social change and we have a lot to learn from her so you won’t want to miss this fun and engaging conversation!     Show highlights: Kate’s circuitous career path that led her to where she is today Her love of people and of finding out their values and what drives them The experience of having Marshall Ganz as mentor Evolving as a leader and the hardest thing to let go of The value of breathing and getting perspective Mental failure exercise Psychology of Change and what are the things that get in the way of effective leadership Understanding power as a relationship MLK, Jr. definition of power as, “The ability to achieve purpose.” Combining resources together to create new power out of shared values Power as malleable because you have to build the relationships How to help one another through fears and motivations How you keep what matters front and center Are there enough people moving in the right direction vs. being at the effect of… Psychology of Change Framework: 1.  Unleashing people’s intrinsic motivation 2. co-designing with people most impacted by the change 3. co-producing in authentic relationships 4. distributing power and 5. adapting in action. Recognizing and mapping the system by people Shifting from what matters to me to what matters to other people Appreciative inquiry and motivational interviewing Power as being fundamentally about people Activating people’s agency is at the heart of the psychology of change and the ability to act In democratic societies, knowledge of how we combine to create is the basis of our commitment If not now, when? We can’t learn what we need to learn without getting into action Links: ihi.org/psychofchange Psychology of Change Framework http://www.ihi.org/resources/Pages/IHIWhitePapers/IHI-Psychology-of-Change-Framework.aspx   https://healthequity.atlanticfellows.org/   https://hbr.org/2019/05/how-one-health-system-overcame-resistance-to-a-surgical-checklist   The Uninhabitable Earth book https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/586541/the-uninhabitable-earth-by-david-wallace-wells/ Donella Meadows, “Thinking in Systems” http://donellameadows.org/systems-thinking-resources/

As co-founder of the Billions Institute, Joe McCannon says, when you invoke the John Cusack rule of taking the fear off the set, that’s when amazing things happen. In this episode, Helen Smith, a forensic psychiatrist, tells stories of some of the creative solutions that have arisen in her sector through freeing the front lines to improve the system and the joy that comes from experiencing these changes and sharing them with others. She also unpacks some of the language of “looking after” and walking alongside people vs. “treating” patients. We’ll also discuss how returning to curiosity is the key in openness to discovery and how to nurture the liberating structures that can change the relationship between staff and patients to bring healing. When hierarchies are flattened and the environment of humility and humanity are elevated, there can be beautifully simple solutions that aren’t learned in textbooks. Listen in on this beautiful discussion out of which uncovering purpose and joy can produce remarkable results.  Show Highlights: Background into what forensic psychiatry is and those Helen and her team serve Accessing compassion and humanity when working with those who are deeply distressed The importance of identifying each individual’s genius and redefining success The mental model of walking alongside someone and helping them manage their own mental health vs. doing it for them which does not help them when released Helen’s experience of being released to her own genius and what brings her deep joy The SCARF Model and how they activate personas Helping others improve the things they want to improve and see how much joy they get from experiencing it and sharing with each other Weaning people off of you and give them one another is how to create large scale change Advice for leaders to not sit at the back on computers, but be in the mix and flatten the hierarchy and participate as your authentic self Allowing mistakes as learning experiences and the importance of having fun with one another and test out new structures Modeling and communicating to others as a leader that mistakes are learning experiences and expected The specific goal of their practice of reducing restrictive interventions – restraints, seclusions and reducing rapid tranquilization Remarkable results they are getting through the Breakthrough Collaborative model Changing the relationship between staff and patients Two successful interventions that arose from deeply understanding what irritates patients LINKS: SCARF MODEL https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/SCARF.htm   Liberating Structures App: https://www.liberatingstructures.app/en/

In California, only about 30% of children are being taken care of by formal licensed daycare centers while their parents go to work. This means as many as 70% are being taken care of by informal options such as family, friends and neighbors. These FFNs as they are called are going above and beyond to be the “village” for the love of children and desire to build up this next generation. However, they often lack the support and respect that helps them to leverage the important role they have in society. How is Vision y Compromiso validating their critical place in our communities and increasing the training for this large group of caregivers to grow in their role? In this episode, we talk with Gerry and Hugo and their vision for the leaders in their communities, the Promotores, who have the ability to gather people and to increase the trust in these uncertain times, so that these tremendously important community members can thrive. Often these caretakers are raising kids during long and unpredictable hours and providing so much more than physical care, they are the emotional supports and cultural influencers. This is organization at the grassroots level and you’ll want to listen in! What are Promotores and what do they do Engaging family, friends and neighbors, especially when they may be wary of government  The importance of self-care and self-validation when not always appreciated or recognized in the wider society Why network of informal caregivers are so pivotal in our society Involvement of the families and feedback they give and how they need to be supported Importance of valuing the culture and feeding into cultural traditions Training on multiple intelligences so that caregivers feel validated in all the ways they are building into the children Training providing empowerment and authority to speak about their education related to child development Overlay with the immigrant community and the fear of providing information in current times of changing immigration laws The role of Promotores in building trust Rural vs. Urban areas and the difference in working with the different communities Learning from the insight gathered from within Links: Visionycompromiso.org

Episode 19: Sasha Rabkin, Equal Opportunity Schools, “Working the Muscle to Change: Bringing Equity to AP/IB Classes” All across the country, there has been a long history of students being overlooked due to race or economic factors for the classes that will get them into college, the AP and IB courses. Equal Opportunity Schools is working with schools to personally identify students and de-segregate access to these academic pathways. The way they do this is partnering with districts to look at new ways of identifying “readiness” because if this is the rung in the ladder to get to college, shouldn’t we be increasing the opportunities to access this rung? In this episode, Sasha breaks down how Equal Opportunity Schools and their partner school districts are leveraging new data analytics and creating social change in schools to increase the number of kids of color being accepted into these classes. Among these, key ideas are that social change is a relational play and not based in the assumption that change happens merely by being invited. The second is that person specific by name data about the students and teachers in real time creates both accountability and new insights. Change is hard and we need not only the will to change, but to exercise the muscle to change these deeply ingrained systems and mental models to not revert back to old ways. You won’t want to miss this important conversation. Show highlights: A history of segregation in school opportunities in this country and the “tragedy of 20ft” How organizations find space to be creative and experiment The role of student insight cards and using person specific by name data to see the whole picture Finding new ways to identify student strengths and readiness for advanced courses Through trust and strong relationships, also being a provocative voice Identifying the headwinds and gatekeeping structures that have been in place The importance of seeing the leverage point as the schools, not seeing them as “poor” students The sins of commission and omission that started in the 1950s under the guise of competing against the Russians The power of holding up a mirror to the system Changing the behavior and habits of the system first to bring about the consciousness and systems change Exercising these muscles of change so they become strong and the system doesn’t revert back to the old ways The funding model of EOS that allows for sustainability along with flexibility and experimentation Tableau as a means of changing the way we think about data Social change as a relational play The need for the appropriate technology to bring new levels of scale Technology shifting from answering the why vs. the how questions How to not merely tinker with change but tear down systems and re-build Tolerance for risk and failure is what will make the biggest difference in social change   LINKS: https://eoschools.org/ Stand and Deliver trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG-Cxs8eYkI America to Me trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fbfx9OpcUoc   Data analytics www.tableau.com  

For over 30 years, Tema Okun has devoted her life to dismantling racism and oppression of all forms. In this episode, Tema discusses her own evolution as an anti-racist white person and some of the hard-earned lessons she’s learned along the way. As she mentions in the episode, racism is not something that can go away through a half day workshop, it is a long and winding road of facing into oneself and the systems and structures in the air that we breathe. Doing this work will inevitably activate guilt and shame, feelings we are all socialized to avoid. But the cost of not facing into these feelings is too great. She says, “The cost of racism to all of humanity is our ability to be fully in community with one another.” The most radical thing we can do is understand when we feel it; to DEEP DIVE into it and recognize below that there is love. White dominant culture has such deep levels of denial and is behind disconnection from ourselves and other people. White dominant culture hinders authentic connection between people by placing a premium on being right, on pretending we are ok, on niceness, and reinforcing the good/bad binary. Doing the work of anti-racism requires a lot of practice in being in a state of not knowing and that can be uncomfortable for many of us. White dominant culture teaches that you if you make a mistake, you are a mistake but we don’t have to buy into that. We are ALL harmed by injustice, white people, too. Let’s create something new by focusing on what we want and not just fighting against something we don’t want. Join us for this important conversation! Show highlights: How does my racial indoctrination get in the way of how I am in relationship to myself and others? Why “allies” is no longer the right term.  Having the best of intentions but still hurting people. The danger of self-righteousness, of believing “I’m not like that…” How shame is keeping racism going The gift of people telling you an uncomfortable truth vs. writing you off The gift to ourselves of confronting our own racism Who is benefiting from racism?  The difference between those who should know better and those who have no reason to know better We are all in it together. The problem with the good/bad binary The role of the sense of belonging How do we work through fear and instead show up in a way that is deeply loving  The problem with needing to be right The inevitability of hurting one another but being in relationship means we also show up in constructive relationship and heal one another, too. Revisions Tema is currently working on to her White Supremacy Culture article Tema’s take on the most common white dominant culture norms that show up at the Skid Row School Trying to fix it quickly only adds to the problem. Let us slow down to go faster. Links: https://humanrights.fhi.duke.edu/teaching-for-equity-fellows-program/ http://www.dismantlingracism.org/ https://conference.ncnonprofits.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/DEI_AddressWhiteDominantCulture.pdf https://resourcegeneration.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/2016-dRworks-workbook.pdf

Episode 17: Parvathi Santhosh-Kumar, StriveTogether – “From Proof Points to Systems Transformation”   The myth is that systems are broken but every system is in fact perfectly designed to get the results it gets. So in order to get different results, and true equity, you’ve got to change the design. StriveTogether came to Skid Row School many years ago and met and even exceeded their goals, but then their second goal was not about growth but about changing more deeply and actually achieve systems transformation. Sometimes the numbers keep growing and they may look impressive, but are they reflective of the deeper, longer term changes you seek? In this episode, Parv discusses changing from proof points as an end goal to a milestone along the way. Every child should be put on the path to their fullest potential. In involving everyone in the system, sometimes there are the unusual suspects who also need to be engaged in bringing about change. In the end it is the collective movement of all of these parties to create lasting transformation.   Learn about the Cradle to Career movement Changing the paradigm to the entire community working together Identifying the gaps and racial disparities we are trying to close Being impatient, results based leaders Values changing from being implicit to operationalizing them in theories of action The importance of collecting the correct data Ensuring that values are both internal and external facing Having a constellation of bright spots From proof points to the goal posts moving to systems transformation In most places your vantage point of who needs to be involved opens up if you truly explore what is needed for children to succeed Challenges are way bigger than any one sector can address so aligning toward a common agenda is what brings about the results The collaborative improvement approach Involving those close to the problems in designing solutions How StriveTogether uses Dan Heath’s rider, elephant, path  Leveraging different levels of policy change through the community infrastructure Coaching, convening, codifier of learning and investor roles within StriveTogether to build capacity The role of positive peer pressure, creating cohorts and learning from each other Not jumping to solution-itis but truly using some time to identify what are behaviors, mental models or systems problems How to stay comfortable in the uncomfortable Activating and motivating others to create ripple effect of change     Links: https://www.strivetogether.org/   http://www.unleashingsocialchange.com/2019/09/10/09-dan-heath-a-primer-on-behavior-change/   Video: https://www.strivetogether.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Theory-of-Action-Poster_052019_Final.pdf   Articles: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/11/globalization-4-means-harnessing-the-power-of-the-group/  https://ssir.org/articles/entry/its_about_results_at_scale_not_collective_impact

Episode 16: Arfon Williams, General Practitioner in Rural Wales – “When Crisis is the Mother of Invention” Around the world there has been a crisis shortage of rural doctors. How did Arfon completely transform his practice when he became the “last man standing” in his community of 4500 patients? At the time, the GP surgery was topping the charts for all the wrong reasons, such as being named as “most likely to fail in North Wales” by a senior Health Board member. Dr. Williams had a choice to either call it a day, risking bankruptcy and the jobs of his staff, or finding a new way to provide a safe, comprehensive service to patients. He chose the latter. In this episode, hear the story of Dr. Williams and his staff about how they are not just surviving but thriving, managing a practice that is now more efficient than it was prior to the crisis. The “turkey sandwich” in the practice, the “one phone call rule” Adapting and pivoting until you get to the right idea and components that are required to make it work The importance of getting all staff and patients also on board to continue moving forward Upskilling the staff for sustainability but also for growth, retention and increase in morale The importance of a true open door policy  The advantage for both patients and staff in building capacity Finding the genius in each of the staff and leveraging their gifts Necessity of freedom to try new things and having no stigma in recognizing what you are good at or stigma in needing to ask questions or not knowing Being humble, not being tribal and being brave to ask for help and living with risk The path to create a succession plan Links:     https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/out-here-its-just-me/2019/09/28/fa1df9b6-deef-11e9-be96-6adb81821e90_story.html    https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/the-follow-up-appointment/2019/08/17/1be5ded6-b936-11e9-a091-6a96e67d9cce_story.html

In this episode, Peter O’Driscoll discusses the transformational change that can happen when the whole system is in the room. When you change one part of a system, it has a ripple effect on the whole, but if you if want it to be sustainable, you need everyone in the room. For centuries, getting food on the table meant slavery, share cropping and “disposable” labor where workers have not been compensated fairly for their skills and hard work. Cesar Chavez began the work with collective bargaining to protect these workers, but to make the changes long term, the Equitable Food Initiative sought a values proposition that would appeal also to suppliers and retailers and consumers too. What would be the common denominator? Food safety.  Find out how the Equitable Food Initiative has created a model for improving worker conditions and increased wages, while making food safer for the consumer and reducing costly recalls in stores like Costco and Whole Foods. And find out how you can spread the positive changes to your other favorite retailers as well! A look into the food produce supply chain Historically how has produce arrived on our tables Cesar Chavez and collective bargaining moving now towards the ripple effect of all stakeholders 48% of food borne illness is from fresh produce Making it safer for workers and incentivizing them and passing on the saved costs from legal issues and food recalls benefits everyone Other issues are being solved on the side as well including recruitment and retention and efficiency, workers feeling valued and sharing in business ideas Driving scale with both quantity and quality at the same time Getting curious about where your food comes from and valuing the skill it takes to get those fresh foods to your table How you can help spread the word to other retailers       https://equitablefood.org/cultivating-voices-a-video-series/ https://equitablefood.org/wp-content/uploads/EFI-2018-Annual-Report_e-version.pdf https://equitablefood.org/wp-content/uploads/2019-Impact-Evaluation-Report-e-version.pdf https://equitablefoodinitiative.app.box.com/s/qyezv1jxpjcu8t9ovwy3h5dq7y2sts03

Bruce Nilles, Rocky Mountain Institute – “Climate Change as a Profound Equity Issue” Shortly after meeting Bruce through the Climate Breakthrough Project, the Margiottas were convinced and began making changes to their home to go all electric. In this episode, Bruce and Becky talk about  the climate crisis, and that it is not just about what is happening outside, but what is happening inside our homes. And that in fact, one of the most dangerous places is the most sacred place for many of us, our kitchens. So we can avert climate catastrophe not just by waiting on the government but by making changes to our homes. It may be shocking to know that the levels of pollution inside our homes would actually be illegal outside! This being true, the ability to change the infrastructures of our homes relies also on having the financial means to do so which illuminates that even climate change is a profound equity issue. Tune in to hear more about how you can make changes over time in your own home and advocate for those unable to afford to do so in this week’s episode. The hope that Bruce has in the movement arising from youth around the globe The history of some of the work of the Rocky Mountain Institute Rather than feel paralyzed about the slow response of the government to avert climate crisis, what we can do also in our homes as we continue to advocate How asthma and other respiratory issues continue to rise due to the level of pollution inside our homes Navigating the incremental changes we can make to avert climate catastrophe Advocating for the changes also among those without the financial means to do so   Links: Rmi.org https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9TUTdMvJsw https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/01/opinion/climate-change-gas-electricity.html https://rmi.org/insight/the-economics-of-electrifying-buildings/  

In this episode, Christopher Chatmon, Founder and CEO of Kingmakers of Oakland shares his personal experiences growing up in the education system, having his desk relegated to the coat closet, to finally being acknowledged and apologized to by a coach and teacher in 11th grade. Inspired to become a teacher to change the experience for young Black men in America, Christopher became a teacher and in this time recognized that history and world history curriculum and textbooks only acknowledged the stories and contributions of white men. So he had his students throw their textbooks out the window. Now, it is Christopher’s hope and work that in all subjects, not just during Black history month, the stories and contributions of Africans, Indigenous groups, and all people are taught as part of the collective contributions to math, history, arts and sciences. In this podcast Chris will discuss one of the Many Ways to Many that Becky speaks about in the Skid Row School, the wedge and spread need to include cross sections of all stakeholders, from the superintendent to the principal, to the office staff, teachers, parents and students. He also discussed how centuries of a system cannot be undone in the typical 3 to 5 year time bound aims of most philanthropic work. So the measurement must change and the process needs to also be the product. Listen to how Kingmakers of Oakland aims to spread the work and how you can be involved in this episode! Bringing those furthest away from opportunity into the center Recognizing it is not about changing Black boys but changing the structure and conditions of the system Recognizing the systemic oppression lens and racial equity lens so you can discern the conditions that perpetuate the advantage of some and disadvantage of others The power of curriculum that is indigenous or less Euro-Centric and the power of stories Healing the fish while treating the toxic ecosystem When you understand the history of public education, it was not created at that time for everyone, only certain people had access and the system reflects that still Getting all of these stories accredited and meeting the learning objectives of math, English and all subjects and having the will to lift up these narratives Knowing who you are and whose you are and the values and integrity to align yourself with The idea of an actualized human being also about giving back How Kingmakers of Oakland have achieved accreditation of courses in each state and co-constructs content and trains teachers Drivers: Class and curriculum is necessary but not enough, need to look at funding formula and other factors and recruiting, training and retaining teachers of color Getting out of the practice of deficit to practice of promise The sweet spot is coming together as a learning network, not calling people out but calling people in Wedge and spread – everyone is a leader, not just the superintendent and principal but every level to the office staff, parents, teachers, student, engaging all stakeholders Innovations are accelerated through the power of relationships If the culture is not healing, it will undermine and sabotage the policy, and everything else you have been working on. The cure is in the culture Process is product. The systems work is legacy work and takes time Centuries of harm cannot be done in the immediacy of a lot of philanthropic time constraints Three to five year strategic plan is insufficient because it is legacy work and the long game Preparing for progress and setbacks to keep up the fluidity and not feel defeated when the system self-corrects When internal and external strategy aligns it is the wind beneath your wings   www.KingmakersofOakland.org   Vimeo - https://vimeo.com/kingmakersofoakland Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/kingmakers   Kingmakers of Oakland Spring Symposium: http://kingmakersofoakland.org/devsite/what-we-do/spring-symposium/

12: Jake Maguire, Community Solutions – “From 100K Homes to Built for Zero” What happened after the 100K Homes Campaign? Becky reunites with Jake who was on the Community Solutions team to talk about what came after. Instead of counting up, it was time for some cities to count down. Now the Co-Director of “Built for Zero,” Community Solutions has partnered with 11 cities who have reached functional zero on chronic and veteran homelessness. This episode is full of wisdom about getting to the next aim, identifying leverage points, re-evaluating teams, and the importance of data and the right infrastructure, and the idea of compound protagonists. Becky and Jake reminisce about Jake’s path to joining the Community Solutions team while still in school and catch up on what has happened since What it takes to get people to join the movement on the shared aim, even when you don’t know how you’re going to get there Going smaller and more committed vs. going bigger to meet the next goal As the work evolves, recognizing that the innovation changes and defining what that innovation is to get to the next goal Defining the leverage point: Do we have a homelessness problem or an outflow or inflow problem? How to shift how you will solve the problem by making sure you have adequately identified the problem in real time Learning over time and creating goals in the right order Effective data and infrastructure and improvement science to make sense of the problem you are trying to solve The critical need to zoom all the way in and all the way out Sutton and Rao’s “Scaling Up Excellence” principle of not having a team bigger than two pizzas could feed Re-imaging during the evolution and innovation of what an effective team looks like The balance of being consistent and flexible, “not always being graceful, but gracious” The importance of distributing credit and recognition The idea of not having one hero but “Compound Protagonists” Belonging as a powerful leverage point https://www.joinbuiltforzero.org/ Are you a Zero Hero video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHkrLOyJ48k