Podcasts about business change

What AI tools do you use as a BA? Business change consultant Mick Brian is an early adopter and expert on the subject. In this thought-provoking BA Brew, he discusses the challenges and rewards of introducing an LLM (Large Language Model) into a large organisation. Topics covered include: why the input of BAs is essential when introducing AI tools; the intangible benefits of LLMs; why you need to prompt AI to your level of expertise; the government's ‘AI Playbook' and more.As promised in the BA Brew, Mick Brian has shared these useful links for BAs with an interest in using AI tools. AI Playbook for the UK Government The Leader in Agentic Process Automation System | Automation AnywhereLucidchart | Diagramming Powered By Intelligence Process Intelligence and Process Mining | CelonisRory Sutherland Podcast Mick also recommended the book ‘Alchemy' by Rory Sutherland. If you liked this BA Brew, you may also enjoy the following articles and blogs:AI Alchemy: Turning Change into Gold - based on the presentation by Mick Brian and Will Izzard at the Business Change and Transformation Conference Europe 2024. BOOK REVIEW: Hello World by Hannah Fry AI and the Business Analysis Role The following BA Brews may be of interest: BA Brew 63: The AI BA Brew (Hosted by Chat GPT) BA Brew 75: Business Analysis and AI (Feat. John Wisner) BA Brew 81: The Benefits, Risks and Opportunities of AI in Business Analysis (Feat. Donald Farmer)

What's all the fuss about cybersecurity? And why do business analysts need to understand it? Cybersecurity and business analysis expert Bindu Channaveerappa is the special guest on this week's BA Brew, where she argues that an understanding of cybersecurity is now integral to the work of the BA. “When we create the value, why leave the security to someone else?” Bindu Channaveerappa is a highly respected author, trainer and international speaker on business analysis and cyber security. Her book, ‘Cyber Security and Business Analysis: An essential guide to secure and robust systems' is available from BCS Publishing. AssistKD runs a 1-Day Cybersecurity and Business Analysis workshop for Business Analysts and Business Change professionals. In this article Embracing a Security Mindset: The Next Frontier of Business Analysis cybersecurity expert Mark Cross urges BAs to focus on security against cyber threats. You may also enjoy this AI focused BA Brew, hosted by ChatGPT. #cybersecurity #cyberthreats #businessanalysis #businesschange #digitalsolutions

Real change isn't just about new tech. It's about people and how they work. For over 10 years, Pragati Sinh has helped companies across diverse industries make big changes with business and digital transformation projects. Prior to striking out on her own, she has worked with brands like Google, Sophos, Dunkin' Brands, Victoria's Secret, and Manulife Financial. As a Business Change Strategist, here's what she does: ✅ Look at the whole picture ✅ Help people get on board ✅ Make sure the changes stick ✅ Use numbers to show the change is working And I get to share space with another incredible guest at the Love Learning You podcast! Connect with Pragati on LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pragatisinha/

This has got to be one of the toughest decisions Farley has had to make, building a business that has developed into supporting her local community has been so rewarding. Unfortunately, in business we need to look at the facts and figures and make decisions that are heart-breaking. In this Episode, Farley explains why she has had to make the smart business decision - that will help her to continue and improving the support that the Breakout team offers to countless small businesses. By pivoting the business to operate more remotely, whilst still holding meetings in person or online with her clients, Breakout is going to be more effective and more productive. As we mentioned, this hasn't been an easy situation to face. But in business, sometimes you need to make the right decision to ensure you survive. If you need support in weighing up the options and deciding if you need to pivot, to have a sense check then we are right here for you! Reach out and book a call with Farley today to help you make the most of your business. Enjoyed this episode and keen to become a Breakout Business Bestie?Pick a plan that suits your needs, from support group access to help you answer questions, service discounts, reminders and accountability, to our premium packages that allow you to take advantage our our coaching and virtual office services. Find out more breakoutservices.co.uk/breakout-business-subscriptionsSupport the show

"Are they really set up for success? And part of that, a huge part of that is that there are systems and processes in place."Fiona highlights the importance of regularly reviewing and updating these systems to ensure they remain relevant and effective. She warns against complacency and encourages listeners to assess their current processes critically. Whether you already have a team or are planning to hire, Fiona's insights will help you create a more efficient and resilient business.For those looking to improve their business systems, Fiona recommends the "How to Set Up Your Systems in Seven Steps" course, available at mydailybusiness.com/courses. This episode is a must-listen for any small business owner aiming to maintain stability and growth, even amidst staffing changes. Get started on a more successful and sustainable small business with our range of free tools at mydailybusiness.com/freestuff Want to know more about AI and how to harness it for your small businesS? Join our new monthly AI chat for small business owners, starting at the end of November 2024. You can join anytime at www.mydailybusiness.com/AIchat Ever wanted to write your own book and build your brand authority or start your own podcast to connect with and grow your audience? Check out our How to Start a Podcast Course or How to Get Your Book Published Course at our courses page. Connect and get in touch with My Daily Business via our shop, freebies, award-winning books, Instagram and Tik Tok.

Welcome to Episode 206 of The Numbers Game. In this episode we are joined by Adam Diamond from Juno Advisory. With over 15 years of experience in the SME space, Adam brings a wealth of knowledge from his background in HR and business growth. He shares his own journey of building Juno Advisory over the past three years, offering practical insights on leadership, accountability, and the power of consistent effort in business success. Discover how your business can overcome growth challenges, make the most of expert advice, and build your dream team.On this episode, we discuss:Adam Diamond's Background and Business Philosophy Challenges and Successes in Business Growth The Importance of Implementing Advice and Collective Intelligence Operational Reporting and Time Management Investing in Staff and Overcoming Growth Challenges Recruiting and Supporting Leadership The Importance of Accountability Embracing Change in Business Stages of Business Growth Clear Direction and LeadershipConnect with Adam Diamond on LinkedIn or you can visit their websiteCheck out the free resources from Inovayt here.Send us an email: hello@thenumbersgamepodcast.com.auThe Numbers Game is brought to you by Future Advisory & Inovayt.Hosts:Nick ReillyJason RobinsonMartin VidakovicThis podcast is produced by VIDPOD.

Karen Davies is a graphic designer, branding expert, and online course coach, helping business owners to create new revenue streams with online courses.When she was moving her business into the field of course creation, networking really helped her get her new offering established.Sign up to Karen's free'Digital Creators' Hub through her website:www.pink-lemondigital.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/karendaviesco/

Whether you want to change to scale up, become more profitable, win more new clients or attract better employees there are four obstacles you ALWAYS have to overcome. We see it all the time. The owner of a recruitment company is keen to develop their firm but it just doesn't happen. Or it does for a bit, then it peters out and they go back to solely working “in” their business. If you only overcome 3 out of these four obstacles your chances of success are still very remote.  Beat them all and it's harder to fail than succeed. So here they are: - Focus: no clear idea of what you want the business to look like and no plan to achieve it Knowledge: lacking the detailed know-how of what to change and how to change it Time: lack the time to work “on” your business to make the necessary changes Discipline: little or no accountability so discipline wains over time. In today's #MARShow we explore these in detail and how you can beat them all. Having a change framework means you'll build a “habit of change” so the results you want will eventually come. Remember, the more you work “on” your business today, the less you need to work “in” your business tomorrow. 

MASKED IS ENROLLING -- DEETS SHEET HERE: Click This!THIS WEEK ON THE POD:If you have been feeling INVISIBLE AF in your business lately, this episode was recorded for you. There are times when you feel like you are doing everything 'right' in your business but you feel like you are at a Visibility Stand Still. However, you may not have considered THIS aspect before and it may be what is keeping you from calling in the clients that light you TF up right now. I promise it is something you can adjust starting immediately. And, of course, I gave you a few different solutions to try because I adore you and want to see you winning!I hope you take this episode to heart and know that you can shake shit up and propel yourself out of the stand still starting NOW. xx Karrie Ways to connect with me: • On Instagram and Threads: @karrieoutloud• Become an INSIDER -- The Love Note delivered to your inbox weekly (I don't do boring newsletters -- not in my DNA, bb!): https://www.karrieoutloud.com/the-love-note-subscription-page • ADHD ENTREPRENEUR OFFICE HOURS: Join this community OF ADHD entrepreneurs created BY an ADHD entrepreneur. It includes hot seat coaching, networking with other ADHD entrepreneurs, Mini-Masterclasses, and more is being added! Click here for the full details: https://www.karrieoutloud.com/adhd-entrepreneur-office-hours • Work with me 1:1: Step one is to book a connection call. I am not willing to work with someone if we are not a match and I hope you aren't either! This is why I don't just let people sign up with me all willy nilly. Also IT IS A BRIEF AF CALL to make sure we jive as humans and so I can ask you a few questions. I refuse to hard sell. I've been around long enough to know that people know what they want. Book your call here: https://calendly.com/karrieoutloud/30-minute-coffee-talk• My Website: www.karrieoutloud.com

$ support this podcast $In the final installment of Practical Ministry, Tracy takes a moment to reflect on the foundational aim of the podcast: to document her spiritual journey and celebrate the divine guidance along the way. She acknowledges that while this mission was fulfilled, the narrative began to inadvertently shift towards a more personal focus. With heartfelt thanks, Tracy recognizes the unwavering support and encouragement from her listeners, which has been a cornerstone of the podcast's success.Looking back, Tracy contemplates the personal evolution and valuable lessons learned through the process of podcasting. She extends her gratitude to the vibrant community that has formed and cherishes the uplifting feedback from her audience. Drawing wisdom from John Mark Comer's “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry,” Tracy underscores the importance of decelerating, streamlining our lives, and prioritizing what's genuinely important. She shares an epiphany that some endeavors may stray from the true essence of tranquility and contentment. To guide listeners towards embracing transformation and rejuvenation, Tracy outlines actionable steps, imparts motivational verses from the Scriptures, and concludes with a heartfelt prayer.May you be blessed!

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the E3 Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E3 Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/--

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the E3 Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E3 Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/

https://linktr.ee/Bassey_SolutionsThank you for listening to the newest episode of the E3 Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E3 Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the E3 Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E3 Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the E3 Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E3 Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the E3 Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E3 Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/

$ support this podcast $In this episode of Practical Ministry, Tracy explores the impact of the Holy Spirit in guiding individuals through difficult and uncertain times. She highlights the Holy Spirit's role as a comforter, counselor, and advocate in believers' lives, offering peace, reassurance, and comfort in times of adversity and turmoilTracy delves into the essence of the Trinity and unravels the mystery of the Holy Spirit's identity to shed light on its transformative power in bringing hope, redemption, and spiritual renewal. She encourages listeners to deepen their connection with God through heartfelt prayers and reflections, relying on divine support and guidance in times of need and uncertainty.Tracy's insights offer a subtle reminder of the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. By embracing this presence, we can navigate life's challenges with faith, resilience, and a renewed sense of purpose, finding hope and strength even in the darkest of times. Discover how the Holy Spirit serves as a beacon of light in a world marked by adversity and uncertainty.---Head to BorntoFly.faith to find out more about the Platform & Community for Christ-driven Solopreneurs. And leave a review if this episode blessed you :)! Head to BorntoFly.faith to learn more about the Platform and Community for Christ-driven Solopreneurs. And leave a review if this episode blessed you :)!

In this feature Drew Morahan, Head of Business Change and Design at Codec, one of Ireland's leading IT companies, explores the importance of understanding the human factor in digital transformation projects and how change management could be the key to unlocking success. Digital transformation is a complex and sometime fraught undertaking. With so many elements to consider, it can be a mammoth commission. When rolling out a new technology or way of working, one element that is often underestimated is the human factor. If those undertaking the transformation project are not fully bought into the project from the outset, digital transformation will not be successful. In fact, a study by McKinsey in 2021 reported that 70% of digital transformation projects fail, with one of the key contributing factors being organisations failing to get employees onboard. How to achieve successful Digital Transformation A great example of this oversight was a project I worked on a few years ago as part of a team tasked with implementing a new company-wide technology solution for a major retail bank which included updating all their computer systems. However, a change management consultation with staff, and with customers, revealed the biggest challenge for the bank was customer wait times. No amount of technology implementations or upgrades to systems was going to help address the queues within branches, or the frustration of customers waiting to access a kiosk to undertake their banking requirements. On the back of this consultation, it was concluded that having handheld tablets that staff could use around the branch would resolve much of this problem. They could attend to customers swiftly and move around rather than having a long queue of customers on their feet, waiting for prolonged periods of time. Without consulting the people at the heart of the business, the new technology roll-out would have had limited success. Upon implementation, staff and customers alike would have found that their pain points still existed and the investment in the new technology would have been largely wasted. It's easy to forget that humans are at the centre of technology; they design it, they pay for it, and they are the ones that use it. But so often, organisations fail to consult the people involved and can blindly implement fantastic, state-of-the-art solutions that still fall short of their intended outcome by underestimating the human factor in digital transformation. Stakeholder Analysis Humans are hard-wired to resist change. It's coded into our DNA as a safety net and for many people, it's hard to override. When it comes to digital transformation, we encounter different groups of people all with their own approach. In these instances, stakeholder engagement is key. To be able to engage with stakeholders, it's vital to fully understand who your stakeholders are within a project, and the various categories that they fall under. Working out who within the business are your 'allies' and who are the 'lifers' is crucial. Those dedicated to the current state of play, can help when going through change management, as well as those who are reticent to change in the design process. Workshops are crucial to better understand their needs and concerns and have an open dialogue on ways to overcome these. A stakeholder analysis sounds very formal, but it's simply an opportunity to look at the human side of the project; getting to know those people who might be impacted by the project to gain a better understanding of their nuances can be the difference between a successful adoption and a failed project. Decision-makers are vital for every part of the transition. Rather than having one senior member of staff that needs to approve all decisions or be part of every conversation, having 'boots on the ground' team members who are empowered to make decisions that will impact their part of the business is invaluable and increases the likelihood of a smooth and on-schedule ...

Pepsi special markets sales manager Ed Boyd is forced to lay off half of his sales team, as changes at the top of the company leave Ed questioning whether his division has any future at all, and a new front opens in the “Cola Wars” with arch-rivals Coca-Cola.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

$ support this podcast $In this episode, Tracy delves into the inspiration behind her choice of Galatians 5:22-23 as her theme for the upcoming year. She explores the Biblical concept known as the "Fruit of the Spirit," which consists of nine virtues: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Toward the end of the episode, Tracy provides guidelines to help apply these virtues in practical ways, enabling you to become a better version of yourself. In the conclusion, Tracy ends with a heartfelt prayer, seeking God's guidance and strength. She also asks for help in developing the nine virtues and becoming a source of love and encouragement for others.In the outro, Tracy offers a glimpse into the next episode, (airing on March 15th) which will build on this episode's references to the Holy Spirit, taking a deeper dive into His significance.If you are not familiar with the Holy Spirit and would like to gain a better understanding, we recommend watching a 4-minute video from the Bible Project. This video will provide you with a concise overview of the topic.Join Tracy on this enlightening journey as she explores how these virtues can positively shape and influence our lives!---Head to BorntoFly.faith to find out more about the Platform & Community for Christ-driven Solopreneurs.Head to BorntoFly.faith to learn more about the Platform and Community for Christ-driven Solopreneurs. And leave a review if this episode blessed you :)! Head to BorntoFly.faith to learn more about the Platform and Community for Christ-driven Solopreneurs. And leave a review if this episode blessed you :)!

Are you asking the question how do I grow my business? In this episode, Stephen lays out just that in 4 simple steps. 1 You have to make a commitment to personal growth Matthew 25:14: “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one, he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability.2 What is the outcome that you are driving towards? Episode 73: The Power Of Creating A Vision To Run Towards! With Mike Howerton3 What are the habits that will drive me towards my vision?Book- “How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big” by Scott AdamsEpisode 9: Don't Set Goals! Do This Instead4 Accountability Join The Blue Collar Business Academy Get The Successful Entrepreneurs Blueprint!Join The Blue Collar Business AcademyJoin our Facebook group, The Blue Collar Business Academy Stephen's email connect@stephencapps.comWork with Stephen 1 on 1Stephen's website: https://www.stephencapps.com/Pull Up And Thrive storeServant Warrior T-ShirtInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/_stephencapps/Stephen's Youtube channelStephen's LinkedinStephen on TikTokTX Gates' website www.tgates.comHandyman website www.calltxgates.com

To get your free copy of Zach's Ebook “Handmade Business Secrets”, Please click here - https://www.zachvaught.com/handmadebusinesssecretsbook   If you're trying to grow to $5-10k/mo with your woodworking or handmade business- steal all the same strategies & systems Zach used to break the $10k/mo barrier - Please click here - https://www.zachvaught.com/HHA   If you're a woodworker doing at least $8k/mo consistently in sales and you're ready to scale to $20k/mo+, you need to apply for the Woodworking Accelerator Program. Please click here - https://www.zachvaught.com/WWBAP   All Zach's top choices that power his business   SHOPIFY - Launch your new woodworking or handmade website today for just $1! It's easy to get started. https://shopify.pxf.io/c/2544769/1061744/13624   INCFILE - Setup your business the right way & in minutes! Be sure to use this link for your discount! - https://incfile.grsm.io/c6ymnwkoo5hv   QUICKBOOKS - Save 30% For 6 Months & Finally Get Your Business Finances In Order - https://quickbooks.intuit.com/partners/qbba/?cid=par_qbppnr_zachvaught9472&gspk=emFjaHZhdWdodDk0NzI&gsxid=YZeRn3iY57Ni   PIPEDRIVE - Follow up with leads, keep track of clients, and close more sales! Try for free for 30 days! - https://aff.trypipedrive.com/fh34hhfppt9k   SIMPLETEXTING - Implement SMS & Text Messaging Marketing Into Your Business Today To Sell More, Make More, & Grow More! Get started for free today. - https://simpletexting.stptnr.net/bvgs1y2ouqwn   LUCID CHARTS - Get Strategic & Plan For Growth. Use These Charts To Map Out Marketing Strategies, Org Charts, Shop Flows, & More! Sign up for free today. - https://try.lucid.co/rhuf1awoigan

Hear how to create a workplace where people love to work I first had the pleasure of interviewing Konstantinos (Kon) Apostolopoulos for this podcast in July 2020 as the pandemic was raging around the world. He and Dr. Elia Gourgouris had just co-authored the book, 7 Keys to Navigating a Crisis: A Practical Guide to Emotionally Dealing with Pandemics & Other Disasters. Now Kon has written another book due out next year, called Engagement Blueprint: Building a Culture of Commitment and Performance. And what is so fascinating about his new book is that it focuses on business culture change and employee engagement as the keys to business success. Kon and I are both culture change experts and so as you can imagine, I'm excited to learn what he has to tell us today, as I think you will be too.  Watch and listen to our conversation here People seek out environments where they feel valued and their needs are being met. Some keypoints from today's discussion: An engaged workforce looks for things that need to get done because they feel appreciated and value helping the company move forward. They're connected and understand clearly what the goals are, and they're looking for opportunities to support their teammates in meaningful ways and make contributions that will make a difference for the organization and for themselves. They look at their daily activities as opportunities to learn, to grow, to capitalize on that, to invest in themselves. When that happens, work becomes learning, work becomes play, work becomes exciting. That's the kind of place where engagement really thrives. People want something more than just financial success. They want, and need, to be valued and appreciated in what they do. We all do. How to reach Kon You can connect with Kon on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and his website Fresh Biz Solutions, or email him at kon@freshbizsolutions.com. Also, take the online version of Kon's self-assessment questionnaire to learn what your organization can do differently to really soar. Want to learn more about  Podcast: Richard Sheridan—Joy in the Workplace Podcast: Maria Colacurcio—Stop The Revolving Door. Help Your Employees Embrace A Diverse And Equitable Workplace. Blog: Change Is All Around Us But It's Terrifying. So How Do I Make Change My Friend? Additional resources for you My two award-winning books: Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business and On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights My third book, Women Mean Business: Over 500 Insights from Extraordinary Leaders to Spark Your Success, co-written with Edie Fraser and Robyn Freedman Spizman  Our website: Simon Associates Management Consultants Read the transcript of our podcast here Andi Simon: Hi and welcome to On the Brink With Andi Simon. Hi I'm Andi Simon. And as you know, my job is to get you off the brink. And I love to do it by bringing you interesting people who are going to help you do something important. You're going to see things through a fresh lens. You're going to feel things differently. And remember, we decide with how we feel and then you're going to think about it. Because if you can see it and feel it, then your brain says, Oh, that's what we're talking about. And today, this is really a great opportunity, particularly coming out of the pandemic, still not being sure or certain about work and life and hybrid and all kinds of things. It's time for us to think about that organization we want to build. So today, somebody whom I interviewed earlier for this podcast, in July 2020, is coming back because he's writing a new book, a solo book: Kon Apostolopoulos, who is a really wonderful gentleman who works with organizations to help them, like I do, change. Let me read you a little bit about his background. He's founder and CEO of Fresh Biz Solutions, Fresh Like That, and Human Capital Management Consultancy, which provides performance improvement and training solutions to help organizations develop their people, improve business results, and reap the benefits of a comprehensive talent management strategy. During the pandemic, he and Dr. Elia Gourgouris published a book called 7 Keys to Navigating a Crisis: A Practical Guide to Emotionally Dealing with Pandemics & Other Disasters. That was terrific and very timely. He's a regular contributor to Thrive Global and Achievers Engagement. I think what you're going to love today is that he has had time to develop a new book on employee engagement. He calls it Engagement Blueprint: Building a Culture of Contribution and Performance. Is that the title? Did I get it almost right? Kon Apostolopoulos: Almost right. Almost right. Commitment and Performance. Both of those are things we're going to talk about today. And hopefully I put down a half a word and then I had a figure. The other half was on. So good thing we can laugh together. Andi Simon: What I think for our listeners and our viewers is so important is that Kon brings both research and experience and expertise to this engagement question. And I love when he talks about it because you're going to begin to think about that blueprint that you need, which lays out a pathway to change what's maybe a little chaotic today into something where employees believe in the place and really want to participate and belong. Kon, thank you so much for joining us. Kon Apostolopoulos: It's such a pleasure to be with you again, Andi. Thank you for having me. Andi Simon: Our problem is going to be to only stay within a half hour or so because we love to talk. There's nothing better than getting together with people who share your passion and your purpose. I want you to talk a little bit  about your background so they understand who's Kon. And then we'll talk about the origin myth of this new book, which is so important. Please share with them. Who is Kon? Kon Apostolopoulos: Thank you. It's a pleasure. Kon is right now a 30 year veteran of the Adult Learning Performance Improvement Change Leadership space. I essentially work with people. The company I founded about a dozen years ago, Fresh Biz Solutions, is focused on helping organizations, the kind of organizations that you and I know, Andi, that spend a lot of time and money building, developing very intricate business plans. Where I come in and help is that I ensure that they have the right people in the right place, ready and willing to execute those plans because without them, the organization really has a plan that's not worth the paper it's written on because it needs its people at their best to be able to execute those plans. And a lot of times that comes through workshops and development. A lot of times that comes through one-on-one or group coaching efforts to enhance the commitment that people have as well as their competence. Sometimes it comes with tailored events that need to be facilitated to bring people together and aligned with the goals that we're striving for, and ultimately working with my clients on their systems to make sure that every dollar that they invest in their people is a dollar well spent and it aligns to something that they target that is very purposeful rather than a “nice to have.” So I've been doing that for a long time now and I've had the pleasure of working in a number of industries across the spectrum with a number of different types of organizations: public, private, smaller and now much more of that mid- to large-space organizations that have enough people where we can make a difference and truly create the kind of workplace that people can find themselves, they can really align themselves, see themselves achieving their goals, and, oh, by the way, helping the organization be successful as well, because we all deserve that kind of a workplace. Andi Simon: Engagement, though, is always a strange word. People talk about it wishfully. I'm not quite sure they would know it if they saw it. And then I couldn't be sure how they would feel it if it was there. So let's start off with, you know, you've moved through the 30 years into working with organizations large and small, and now you're beginning to really find ways to make a difference. Why? Why should we even think about this thing called employee engagement? Why does it matter? Kon Apostolopoulos: Well, let's approach that from a number of different angles. Let's look at our protagonists in the story. Let's talk about, first and foremost, the employees themselves. People seek out environments where they can feel like their needs are being met. And when we talk about engagement needs, we talk about the need all of us have, first and foremost, to be valued and appreciated in what we do. Second of all, to feel like they belong in that environment, that they're part of a team, part of a tribe. These are basic needs, fundamental needs that we all have. In addition to that, in our workplaces, in our careers, we all seek to feel like we are making a meaningful contribution, that we are able to be productive in what we're doing. So at the end of the day, we feel like we've accomplished something. And ultimately most of us want to know that we are operating in an environment that invests in us, supports us so we can continue to learn and grow so we're not remaining stagnant. So from that perspective, from an employee standpoint, these are basic needs that employees are looking for in their organizations. Now, the book that I'm writing is actually written from the perspective of the employer, the leader, the leader in all of us that now has to try to win the hearts and minds of their people and try to address those needs that people have. And from that perspective, employers are looking at it and saying, “You know what, I put out a lot of things. I spend a lot of my money, my resources, my capital towards my employees. I want to know that that investment is being reciprocated and that there is value for me investing in that.” Otherwise, most employers will just settle for what they can get. They'll settle for a situation where they'll think, okay, I'll just pay the basic minimum because I'm not going to get much more than that. Whereas the companies that are truly performing at the highest levels, the brands that we have come to know and appreciate, they do things a little bit differently. They truly capture that engaged spirit of their people. They capture that discretionary effort, that commitment that people can bring to their work that want to see the organization succeed. That's the magic that we're trying to capture and that's the environment that we all deserve to operate in. Andi Simon: Assuming that one who's listening or viewing is beginning to visualize an engaged organization with high levels of employee engagement. And I do this with my own clients, visualize. You can see it. You can become it. So what will a highly engaged workforce feel like or look like? Because while we say the words that they want value and they really want to be connected and productive, how will I see that? Will I know it? What will it feel like? And, what are the actions of the behaviors, not just the spirit that's going to be demonstrated here for an organization to know I'm moving them into an engagement. Tell me, how do I see it? What will it feel like? Kon Apostolopoulos: Well, first and foremost, the feeling is a different level of energy. There's a certain heightened level of energy. There is an excitement, an urgency about the place. There is an environment where you notice that there are leaders at all levels of the organization, people taking personal accountability and ownership of activities. They're not sitting around waiting for people to tell them what to do or not. They aren't just taking advantage of the fact that, Well, guess what, my boss hasn't really contacted me, I'm just going to sit here and play solitaire. Engaged workforce looks for things that need to get done. Why? Because they feel appreciated and value moving forward. They're connected and understand clearly what the goals are, and they're looking for opportunities to support their teammates in meaningful ways and make contributions that they understand and know will make a difference for the organization and for themselves. And ultimately, they look at each one of their daily activities as opportunities to learn to grow, to capitalize on that, to invest in themselves. Because truly, work becomes learning, work becomes play, work becomes exciting. That's the kind of place where engagement really thrives. So as I work with one of my clients and we talk about how to build engagement, I'd probably say something like, Today, people wait to be told what to do. And in an engaged organization, they individually take the autonomy and accountability to try and solve a problem before they have to be told what to do rather than wait to have an idea come from someplace else. They bring the ideas elsewhere so they can see it manifesting into new ways of doing things rather than coming in and punching a clock. They want to see what else. They wake up in the morning, put their feet on the ground and say, How can I do something better today? Is that the kind of thing you're looking at? Andi Simon: Yes, absolutely. Because what you're describing manifests itself with a very different attitude towards work. People are excited to be there. People are looking forward to the opportunity to engage, to see their partners out there because they truly see them as partners. There is a level of ownership, again, that thrives in this environment where people will step forward and say, How can I support you? It's very easy to put your ego aside because you don't feel threatened when you feel like part of the team, like you belong, like you are allowed to be there when you are valued for what you bring, small or large to this to the table. Kon Apostolopoulos: Different people will contribute in different ways. But if you can see that connection between your job, your work, your output and how this moves the organization forward, that's an important part. I mean, we all want to know where we belong and how we fit into this. It's no different than I explain it to a lot of the leaders that I work with. I say, If you have a group photo, Andi, what's the first thing you're going to do when you get it in your hands? You're going to look for…where am I in this picture and how do I fit in. That's right. That's exactly the picture that we need to paint for every single one of our people. So they know clearly in no uncertain terms what they do, where they belong and how they contribute to this and that. That contribution is truly valued and appreciated. Andi Simon: You said something very important because there are times when that picture is of a toxic team and the need to belong overwhelms the need to do well. And consequently, we've all had clients where every department is toxic to the others. You know, finance won't talk to marketing and marketing can't talk to sales. And they all are on a different agenda. And somehow the organization's supposed to thrive. They're all engaged, but not in what you should be. So is there some wisdom you can bring to us today about how you take apart that kind of silos? I'm thinking of a client I had in Mexico where everything was so siloed that nobody wanted to work there. Kon Apostolopoulos: Right. Well, think about what drives a lot of that when we have a scarcity mentality, when the people that are incentivizing the work, that are driving the work, that are directing the work, say, Okay, there's only so much accolades, so much reward to go around for what I'm looking for. You guys fight amongst yourselves who's going to get it. But if I come at it from the perspective of abundance and I say, There's enough gratitude and appreciation, there's enough acknowledgement for all of us to be successful, that takes away the need for us to fight over scraps. And that's a big part. That's a fundamental, visceral reaction we have when we are in an environment where our very safety is threatened because that's what a toxic environment does. Different levels of our physical, mental, emotional well-being are threatened by that. There is a scarcity out there. There's not enough of that. That's why we strive to kind of rise to the top. But it's the collusion of mass mediocrity. It's the crabs in the bucket. Every time you try to rise above the rest in an environment like that, the rest of them are going to pull you down because it's not even about them getting out there desperate enough that they will pull you down to climb all over you to get away. And that's not a healthy environment, that kind of workplaces are condemned. It's just a matter of time. They're dead and they don't even know it. Andi Simon: It was interesting in that particular client, they were struggling to expand and become more innovative with a workforce that believed that the old ways were the way we do things, we can't change. And I'm listening to you. They were each engaged in a different story. And we're storytellers. And I always tell my clients, you live the story that's in your mind. So what's your story? And as I'm listening to it, it's that they see the world around them in this company for their benefit, not for them serving a larger purpose. And I think that higher level purpose is what will create engaged employees, or is that not what you see also. Kon Apostolopoulos: Well, I totally agree with you, but in order to get to that higher purpose, those fundamental needs will need to be met. There needs to be a “we need to create the kind of environment where people don't have to worry about those things, where if you're talking about a company that's trying to innovate, you know it better than I do.” Innovation demands risk. We cannot hope to innovate, to change, without risk. Well, in an environment that you're describing that's that toxic, where people are holding on to the norms and to the old ways, the legacy ways of doing things. Why are they doing that? Because they know it's safe, because stepping outside of those boundaries has always perhaps been chastised, perhaps has been penalized, perhaps it's been seen as evil. So they want one thing, but they're rewarding or creating consequences for that thing. They're rewarding the opposite behavior and thus creating those consequences for that. You can't ask me to take risks if you're not allowing me to make mistakes. Andi Simon: Well, and it is particularly difficult. I sometimes have been working with companies, going through transitions with new leadership, and while they can say the words, I want you to be a more self-empowered entrepreneur, and the old person was directing and controlling the people who are there who don't know what the words mean and they don't know how to be self empowered. It's so interesting. Let's go back to your book, though. You've structured this book in a way to create a blueprint, and that becomes an interesting metaphor for what you're trying to set up. I want to give you enough time to talk about the blueprint and how somebody might enable it or execute on it, because you clearly have a methodology here you want to share. Kon Apostolopoulos: Thank you. And yes, indeed, what I found is that I started this project about 18 months ago. It was, as you mentioned, Dr. Elia and I had the opportunity to write a book together right at the dawn of the pandemic. And we got it out early on because we knew that people needed help. And that book was the 7 Keys to Navigating a Crisis. And it was a roadmap on how people can emotionally deal with change, drastic change in their lives. What evolved from that, Andi, was an opportunity to take that same roadmap to my clients and to large organizations and really show them how what applies to the individual can apply, expanded out, and scaled out to large organizations as well. Well, once we got past that point now into 2022 and my clients are looking at what's next, how do I get my people back in here and on board to work? So we started the discussion about how we win back that commitment from our people so they want to come back to the workplace, either physically or even through this hybrid or virtual model that we exist, but still truly gaining that commitment. And that started the discussion based on that need. And I started researching. I started looking at the data that was coming out of very reputable sources, whether that be Harvard and their Business Review documents, through Gallup, through the Pew Research Center, through Deloitte, through all of them, various big names. And looking at the data and the trends that I was seeing, what I discovered are essentially that there are those four key elements, those four key drivers that we need to satisfy: the need that people have to feel valued, the need that people have to feel like they're connected, the need that people have to be productive, and ultimately the need to feel supported to learn and grow. And then in looking at my history, I realized, Andi, that that's the work that I've been doing with my clients the last 30 years. And so the realization just hit me that the very framework that I've used over the years to support my clients is the same framework that answers those questions of how we create that environment. So essentially four drivers, and I have four pillars of the work that I do, that essentially each one of those pairings of my pillars addresses one of those needs. So it's almost like an overlap, if you will, and it fits so well in the sense of when I talk about how do we show people that we value them well beyond an equitable and honest paycheck, where people can feel like they are being rewarded equitably for the work that they do. Well, if you invest in people and you build their competence and their abilities and their commitment, they can and want to do the job. When you start connecting that commitment through coaching and the team building pieces, the elements now, people can feel like they are connected. When I work with people on the competence and the systems that will support that, that allows them to be productive. And then when I take the systems that I built, the people systems and the team building, the teamwork part, we balanced both the output of task and the relationship pieces to now show people in a transparent way how they can build their careers and how they can achieve their goals through the organization, and grow and learn and expand their career so they no longer seek other places, other avenues outside the organization. They can reach all their goals within the organization. And that whole packaging allowed me to really bring the data and the information, the science on one side and my 30 years of experience on the other, and put them together in such a way that now I have a very clear framework that is proven to be successful. And now I've got the stories behind it to show and illustrate in the book along the way, the case studies that will allow us to really illustrate each one of these points. Andi Simon: Is there a case study or two that you can share? Because it's always the stories that people remember. And as you and I were talking in preparation, I thought there were a couple of great ones. Kon Apostolopoulos: Yeah. And there's one particularly that I think illustrates the complete package that I'm describing right now. And I have that, I've published that as a case study for the industry itself, and it involves one of my main clients, one of my nearest and dearest clients that I've worked with almost from the beginning when I started my venture. They are a construction company and basically I work with one of four regions of this large billion dollar construction company. But when I started working with them almost a decade ago, they weren't a $1 billion company at the time. The region that I was working with was about pushing close to 200 million in revenues for this area. Over the years, as we've partnered, their goal for their strategic priorities for the five year plan was to double their revenue to reach 400 million in the time that we worked together and reaching up to last year. And this is basically, 2022 was their end of their fiscal year, they achieved 600 million in revenue. So when I was sitting down with the president, the regional president and his team, he acknowledged that this would not have been possible without the work that we have done together, developing the systems and the people and creating a talent management plan that really supported their business strategy. Now, that's not in itself the most extraordinary thing, because we can say that, you know what, we contributed. But I will bring a little bit more evidence to the story here. I mentioned to you that this is one of four regions. The other three regions are equal opportunity, equal size with this region. They in themselves only did 400 million collectively. So not only are we showing the proof of what works for this particular region against their competitors here in this market, but we're also showing it against the other control groups within the same organization, same structure, same hierarchy, same policies in other areas. We do things a little bit differently here. We modified some things and we're able to really showcase that difference profitability wise, far exceeding the collective of the other three regions. Satisfaction, employee engagement numbers, retention, promoting ability, all of the key performance indicators that show that you are operating in a way that you have a healthy workplace where people can thrive and they want to stay and they can grow their careers. All of that was evident and present in this case, Andrea, so that's the point that I point to, that is the example that I point to where everything has come together and all of this suite of offerings has been presented to them and utilized. Andi Simon: Don't forget to send me the link to that and we'll include it on the blog where we put the podcast because it becomes concrete as opposed to abstract, but it's also data demonstrated and evidence based and it says, Oh, this could really help my business turn from good to great, huh? Kon Apostolopoulos: Correct. It's the difference maker because at the time when all the companies were hemorrhaging and bleeding people, they couldn't keep their people there with the Great Resignation and people were abandoning their jobs in droves and millions in the millions. This company, we not only did not lose any of our top people, we actually became a destination for people leaving their other organizations. So when you can become that employment brand that others seek out, when you become that employer of choice, how much easier is your job? How much does it save your bottom line, knowing that you can attract the best and brightest and retain them within your environment? That is a competitive advantage that will help you truly differentiate yourself from the competitors. Andi Simon: Well, and it's not just salary, is it? It's all the other, I'll call them, I don't want to call them soft. They are the kind of human stuff that people are looking for. It's true. They work for a paycheck, but they really do want to belong to an organization that values them and helps them get valued. It allows them to be productive and creative and really connected to others in a way that leads to better results.  And so we're coming back to describing that kind of an engaged environment that we're talking about. I mean, that's truly what we were trying to picture for our audience here. And to understand when you are confident that your top performers, even if they pick up the phone and somebody says, Come work for me, I'm going to give you X amount more, and they say, Thank you, but I'm very happy where I am. Yeah, I can see myself here. This is my home. This is my workplace. This is where I find I'm at my best. That's a tremendous, tremendous asset to an organization that you can't put a price on that. No, there is no price because it is the differentiator for life, not just for a company. As for an individual's life where it has meaning and purpose, it's pretty cool. So let's go back to your engagement blueprint. When you have a client map out where they are and where they're going and how they're going to get there, can they do it on their own? Do they need your support? Are there steps that are simple to follow? Kon Apostolopoulos: There are. And that's what I'm trying to capture with the book. I'm trying to show people an easy way for them to first and foremost, assess which one of these drivers are strengths for them in their current environment, which areas they need to pay special attention to. And I outline each one of these areas, certain elements that should be present and available for them to consider. But I still don't dictate which way they want to go. I make the recommendations of these areas that they should focus on, provide some examples of my own, but also case studies, many case studies in there. And oh, by the way, we are also interviewing industry leaders across the spectrum, people that have been there, done that, and can speak to each one of these elements from their own organizations, people like Jamie Simpson, that is the hotel director I lead for a Jumeirah property that just had their 20 year anniversary, the first one of Jumeirah property meeting on Salam in Dubai. And they won the most prestigious team award in their area from Hotelier magazine. And she and her team showed what it looks like to be able to operate. Now, think about that. We're talking about a wonderful, talented leader operating in what many would consider a culture that is very male dominated in an industry that is full of male executives. Yet this powerful individual, this talented woman, has brought together in her own way, using her own talents and skills, brought together and created an engaged workplace where people can thrive. And her team can vary, can succeed with proof because that is not a small thing to achieve that award. Andi Simon: No, And it is an acknowledgement of something more than just financial success. It's about something much bigger than this. This is really an interesting time. You know, Kon, you're a giver and you are a person who wants to help others grow. I know as we were talking about this book, what you have a whole lot of things that you'd like to share with our listeners and viewers and maybe their organizations to help them get going before the book comes out. You want to share? Would you share some of those things? Kon Apostolopoulos: Absolutely. And thank you, Andrea. First and foremost, we've developed with my team an online version of our simple questionnaire that will allow anyone to kind of answer some basic questions and get a feel for where are we strong, where do we need to focus on, which one of these drivers do we find present in our environments, which one we might want to pay some attention to, with some very simple guidelines and simple examples of what they can do differently. So I'd like as a first gift to offer that to you or to our audience here today, Andrea. And we can add that in. We can provide a link for them. They can simply go online, complete their questionnaire and have the opportunity to get some quick answers on the spot. Beyond that, if people are interested in finding out more, I'd love to welcome them into our growing community. And in this community we talk often about tips, ideas, examples of how to really engage our workforce, how to really create that environment for our people. It's also the place where I'll be sharing a lot of excerpts from the book, early previews of some of the interviews that I've been doing. Wonderful, valuable information that people can immediately turn around and apply, and if they so choose, to be part of this community, this growing community, and have first access to the insights and the information that we're sharing. Even before the book is published. Andi Simon: This is so exciting. So we can start with the self-assessment, and begin to become familiar through this group of the kinds of things you're doing. And then the book is expected to come out by when? Kon Apostolopoulos: 2024. We're putting the final touches on it. We're wrapping up some of our interviews and we'll have some what I hope people will find as wonderful little surprises and nuggets in there for them. Andi Simon: I can't wait. There's my crackerjack box in my little nugget in there. This has been such fun. Now, if they want to reach you, where's a good place to get a hold of you? Kon Apostolopoulos: Well, the easiest place for those people that embrace the LinkedIn platform is to look me up under Koach Kon. I spelled with a K on purpose. Andrea, I don't want to mislead people. I want to make sure that they know. So Koach Kon on LinkedIn and they can also visit my website freshbizsolutions.com where they can find additional information about perhaps how we can help them or how they can readily find resources to help themselves really create the kind of environment where people can thrive. Andi Simon: I love it. Do you have a team of people who work with you, or is this mostly stuff you're doing as a solopreneur? Kon Apostolopoulos: A lot of it is myself. I do reach out to trusted partners at times. I have a team that helps me with my marketing, with some of my strategic planning, perhaps with creating and building a lot of the assets that are of high quality that I can offer to my clients and to those listeners that we have here today. But periodically it's always a pleasure to be able to partner with people that I respect in the industry like yourself, Andrea, and people like we can work together. We offer each other our insights and our support, but for the most part, yes, there would be me. Andi Simon: I think that's pretty good because if you've just been hearing Kon talk, he knows what he's talking about and he and I share a whole lot of the same challenges as people who work with organizations that need to change or want to. And I can't say it often enough, but change is pain and your brain hates us. And how many times have companies said to me, Well, that's not the way we do it. I said, Well, that's the problem. It's the way you do it. Yeah, but that's the way it's done and I say, But it doesn't have to be. Behaviors can change and if you change the behaviors, then your mind comes along and makes it sensible as well. So it's not simple, but it is doable and it is doable with, I think, this engagement blueprint on how to build a more inclusive company that can really, really produce at a level that you're looking for. So I've had a great time here today and this has been absolutely a wonderful conversation. I will make sure it's up on our blog and we push it out when it's time. And I know my listeners and my viewers are going to say, Can I learn more? And I have a hunch you want to learn more. So I'm going to say goodbye to everybody. Thank you for coming. And so it's a pleasure to help you get off the brink. And the only way you can do that is to see things through a fresh lens and feel them in new ways like we've done today. And then give some thought to, Do I need a blueprint? Do I need to begin to put together a process for change? And then we can together or alone begin to help you do just that. I will tell you that changing behavior is very doable. You just need new habits. And if you think of that that way, you need to stop doing what you've done and start new habits and practice and practice and practice until they become the way we do things. And it's not hard. It just needs to be done. And so these are changing times that require new things to happen. So with great pleasure, thank you for coming. Please keep sending me your friends and people you want me to talk to and people to listen to the podcast and share it. It's always a pleasure. Have a great day.Take care now. Bye bye.

I believe every business needs to have a brand. A brand is more than just a logo and pretty colors… It's the personality behind your offers, the way you make your clients and customers feel. And as we grow, change, evolve, and enter new life seasons, or pivot our mission, it is crucial for your brand to pivot with you so your audience stays along for the ride for the next iteration of your business (and life). They are sticking around for YOU, after all! My brand has changed massively over the years and I have managed to maintain AND grow my audience even through over a decade of shifts. And in today's episode, I want to share with you how your business SHOULD evolve and how you can do it thoughtfully and successfully as you, the brand, or the mission changes.  So come along this ride with me as we break down how to successfully evolve your brand as you and your business change!  GOAL DIGGER FB COMMUNITY: https://www.facebook.com/groups/goaldiggerpodcast/ GOAL DIGGER INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/goaldiggerpodcast/ GOAL DIGGER SHOW NOTES: https://www.jennakutcherblog.com/brandevolution  GET 20% OFF JOI'S CURATED SELECTION OF COMPREHENSIVE LABS: https://www.choosejoi.co/goaldigger

In 1985, Warren Buffett had to make an incredibly difficult decision. Which was whether to shut down the textile business Berkshire Hathaway — the original business Warren acquired, which was where Berkshire Hathaway got it's name. In today's episode, I break down that decision and why the ultimately closed the business with a summary of Warren Buffett's Annual Letter from 1985. Why cover this? Because it's a fascinating look at how Warren went about making a phenomenally challenging decision — one that was close to his own heart. And I think it offers a lot of insight into how we can all go about analyzing and ultimately making difficult decisions in our own work and lives. Here's a quick excerpt of that letter: Over the years, we had the option of making large capital expenditures and the textile operation that would have allowed us to somewhat reduce variable costs. Each proposal to do so looked like an immediate winner. Measured by standard return on investment tests, in fact, these proposals usually promised greater economic benefits than would have resulted from comparable expenditures in our highly profitable candy and newspaper businesses. But the promised benefits from these textile investments were illusory. Many of our competitors, both domestic and foreign, were stepping up to the same kind of expenditures. And once enough companies did so, their reduced costs became the baseline for reduced prices industry-wide. Viewed individually, each company's capital investment decisions appeared cost-effective and rational. Viewed collectively, the decisions neutralized each other and were irrational, just as happens when each person watching a parade decides he can see a little better if he stands on tiptoes. After each round of investment, all the players had more money in the game and returns remained anemic. Thus we faced a miserable choice. Huge capital investment would have helped to keep our textile business alive, but would have left us with terrible returns on our ever-growing amounts of capital. After the investment, moreover, the foreign competition would still have retained a major continuing advantage in labor costs. A refusal to invest, however, would make us increasingly non-competitive, even measured against domestic textile manufacturers. I always thought myself in the position described by Woody Allen in one of his movies. "More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness, the other to total extinction." Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1985, Warren Buffett had to make an incredibly difficult decision. Which was whether to shut down the textile business Berkshire Hathaway — the original business Warren acquired, which was where Berkshire Hathaway got it's name. In today's episode, I break down that decision and why the ultimately closed the business with a summary of Warren Buffett's Annual Letter from 1985. Why cover this? Because it's a fascinating look at how Warren went about making a phenomenally challenging decision — one that was close to his own heart. And I think it offers a lot of insight into how we can all go about analyzing and ultimately making difficult decisions in our own work and lives. Here's a quick excerpt of that letter: Over the years, we had the option of making large capital expenditures and the textile operation that would have allowed us to somewhat reduce variable costs. Each proposal to do so looked like an immediate winner. Measured by standard return on investment tests, in fact, these proposals usually promised greater economic benefits than would have resulted from comparable expenditures in our highly profitable candy and newspaper businesses. But the promised benefits from these textile investments were illusory. Many of our competitors, both domestic and foreign, were stepping up to the same kind of expenditures. And once enough companies did so, their reduced costs became the baseline for reduced prices industry-wide. Viewed individually, each company's capital investment decisions appeared cost-effective and rational. Viewed collectively, the decisions neutralized each other and were irrational, just as happens when each person watching a parade decides he can see a little better if he stands on tiptoes. After each round of investment, all the players had more money in the game and returns remained anemic. Thus we faced a miserable choice. Huge capital investment would have helped to keep our textile business alive, but would have left us with terrible returns on our ever-growing amounts of capital. After the investment, moreover, the foreign competition would still have retained a major continuing advantage in labor costs. A refusal to invest, however, would make us increasingly non-competitive, even measured against domestic textile manufacturers. I always thought myself in the position described by Woody Allen in one of his movies. "More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness, the other to total extinction." Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this podcast, Steve Farrell is joined by acclaimed leader in conscious business and leadership development, Dr. Larry Clay, to discuss the Humanity's Team Conscious Business Change Agent certification and Master's program, where you will discover the invaluable wisdom that this powerhouse training has in store for you —whether you are a business owner, entrepreneur, or someone who is passionate about revolutionizing business practices.   In this podcast, you will discover… How to live into Oneness—despite the illusion of separation  How to cope with tension and conflict What is in store for your approach to strategic business plans  How to Build Conscious Professional Networks    Being a practitioner of sustainable practices  And much much more…  ***Note: this is a special rebroadcast, and any websites, links, programs, or events mentioned may no longer be active (or dates may have been changed). Thank you!*** To get started on your Conscious Business journey sign up to watch ‘Putting Business at the Forefront of Change' here Explore Humanity's Team and the timeless truth that We Are All One.  Learn more about the Humanity's Team free education programs.

When Jack's company was taken over by another firm, they closed down their branch offices in Boston and Denver, and laid off all the staff. After two years, the company was doing so well, they started to branch out and take on new staff. Today's lesson is all about change in the business world, with phrasal verbs.Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcriptVisit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/Get TOEIC Mastery: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/TOEIC-Mastery-Online-English-CourseThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5900997/advertisement

In this episode, SAP's Martin Barkman discusses the value of Cloud ERP solutions and the need to deploy a clean core strategy to be on the latest releases of a product, to keep up with the latest governmental, regulatory, and compliance rules and regulations, and innovate to keep up with the latest business trends and initiatives. Martin explains how to “move to the cloud with confidence” and get to the cloud efficiently with SAP migration center, SAP and expert partners.

In corporate settings, sometimes not conforming can be a good thing. Here, to talk about making bold decisions and the importance of human communication, is Helen Philpot.   In this Episode 124 of The Legendary Leaders Podcast, Helen talks about how she manages to remain flexible and successful, the benefits of taking risks, and why a diverse CV may help further your career. She also shares about being conscious of our interactions with others, building equitable teams and workplaces, and knowing when it is time to go. Ready to learn more?   Episode Timeline: [07:56] What creates Helen's superb wellness? [10:07] Managing to remain flexible. [24:43] Embracing risks. [33:21] How Helen has inspired others. [40:42] Turning trauma into learning. [45:20] How to manage our expectations. [49:19] Coming to terms with awkwardness. [52:01] Understanding modesty. [60:48] The chimp paradox. [64:16] Knowing when it is time to go. [67:48] Helen's legacy.   Key Takeaways: How to remain flexible. Why should we embrace risks? How to be present in communicating with others. How to manage our expectations. Why not conforming can bring out the best in ourselves and others. How to build an equitable workplace.   Notable Quotes: “We can do our best work if we are allowed to thrive in a way that's optimal for us.” – Helen Philpot [11:40] “When you take risks, every time you take one, the next one becomes less risky.” – Helen Philpot [25:12] “It's so important that you gather experience.” – Cathleen Merkel [28:50] “Just ask more.” – Helen Philpot [32:08] “We mustn't lose sight of our humanity.” – Helen Philpot [36:30] “Awkwardness is not a bad thing.” – Helen Philpot [49:38]     Connect: Find | Helen Philpot Business: helenphilpot.co.uk LinkedIn: uk.linkedin.com/in/helen-philpot-a0118511 Instagram: instagram.com/helenphilpot Twitter: twitter.com/oiphilpot       Bio: Helen is Managing Editor of The Sun, previously serving as the Regional VP of Media Industry at Salesforce. She has a hugely successful track record of digital transformation and a unique mix of editorial, tech, and commercial experience. Throughout her career, she has served as a TV reporter for the MoD, as Director of CPO Media, as Managing Director of Immage Studios, Director of Business Change at News UK, Head of Transformation and Governance at dmg Media, and Director of her own Ltd company.     SUBSCRIBE TO THIS PODCAST ON APPLE PODCASTS.

Picture this: You've just sent your youngest off to college, your nest is empty and you're suddenly left questioning, "What do I do now?". That was my reality, and it led me to a profound realization. I needed to commit, not just to my physical health, emotional well-being, and business success, but to myself. This episode is all about that journey, about recognizing the importance of prioritizing ourselves, especially as we navigate the challenging terrain of midlife.What if prioritizing ourselves wasn't an act of selfishness, but an act of self-love and commitment? We're exploring this radical idea and how it's essential for our mental and physical health, and even our business success. I share about pushing through the second half of the year, the struggle, the burnout, and how dedication to self can prevent that. Join us as we unpack this concept together, examining the need to take time for ourselves without guilt, and discovering the transformative power within commitment and self-love.The TikTok FYP is a dream for marketers. Are you on TikTok? If so, follow me!TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@therealsocialsarahNeed help? Hire me to audit your profile and help you! https://sarahmagnoni.kartra.com/page/auditFree Hooks: https://sarahmagnoni.kartra.com/page/50hooksContent Creation Tool:  https://sarahmagnoni.kartra.com/page/simplecontenttool

Hear how you have a huge say over how and when you work. I just love the fascinating people I have the pleasure of bringing to you. One of them is Marcey Rader. She first appeared on our podcast in March of 2020 as pandemic lockdowns were just beginning (doesn't that seem a long time ago?) and I found her insights on wellness and selfcare so important that I had to have her back. What struck me during today's conversation was how companies need to reexamine the overwhelming workloads and abundance of tasks they're giving their workers without the resources to do them. Yes, it's great to have wellness apps, fitness benefits, meditation rooms, and all of that, but in truth, what's better for employees is not to need them in the first place because they're not all stressed out. For all who work, listen in! Watch and listen to our conversation here For more on rethinking wellness and work, we recommend these 3 podcasts: Podcast: Diana Wu David—Are You Truly Happy With How You Work, Not Just Where? Podcast: Maura Carlin and Christie Derrico—Isn't It Time For Us To Solve The “Balance Dilemma” For Working Women? Podcast: “Work PAUSE Thrive” with Lisen Stromberg Additional resources for you My two award-winning books: Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business and On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights Our website: Simon Associates Management Consultants Read the transcript of our podcast here Andi Simon: Welcome to On the Brink with Andi Simon. I'm Andi Simon, and I'm here to help you get off the brink. And I love doing that by bringing you great people to hear so that you can see, feel, and think in new ways about yourself, your business, where you're going, the world around you. Remember, everything is in context. I learned as an anthropologist many years ago that out of context, data has no meaning. And so now the question is, what is the context of the world we're living in today? And how is it changing and changing fast? And I often teach in my leadership academies how to adapt to fast-changing times. It's just the times they're all moving and you might as well hold on tight. It's going to be fun. So today I've brought back to hear from Marcey Rader. Now, Marcey was on our podcast back in 2020, and I love talking to her. She opens my mind to all kinds of things. She has a great podcast that you should listen to, and we'll put her information on the blog when we're done. But Marcey, thank you for joining me today. Marcey Rader: I'm so happy to be back, Andi. Andi Simon: Well, let me tell the listener, or the viewer, about Marcey, and I'm going to read her bio and then let her tell us about her own journey. It makes it come alive better than words can. So who is Marcey Rader? I believe she says that “health powers productivity” and the answer isn't work-life balance, but tech-life balance. And I think that's just a brilliant opening for what we're going to talk about today. She had a case of high stress, high performance, and corporate burnout which triggered severe health issues in her thirties. It was an early burnout, and she founded RaderCo to rethink and revitalize productivity for leaders, teams and organizations at RaderCo. By the way, they take off Fridays, so don't try and reach her on Fridays. Our little email comes back and says, “We believe that you need a day for yourself,” and I love it. She founded Rethink, Revitalize Productivity for Leaders, Teams and Organizations. And she helps the executives and their teams banish burnout. What a great idea! Now keep good people and move forward through coaching, consulting, training, and speaking. And her speaking is centered on practical tailored tools, health, sustainable habits, and accountability. She's one of only 850 certified speaking professionals worldwide, a certified virtual presenter, and a certified digital wellness practitioner. I'm going to pause there because while I enjoy reading it, it really is nowhere near as interesting at what's Marcey's going to tell you about a post-burnout person who thrives by helping people never burn out, which is a strange thing for us to do. Burn up and burn out. Marcey, thanks. And tell us about your journey. Who is Marcey? Marcey Rader: Andi, I am celebrating my 10th business anniversary this year. Woohoo! So I am very excited about that because when I came from the pharmaceutical and biotech clinical research industry, and when I started my business, I had no idea what I was doing. I was very naïve, which in some ways is very good. I didn't know that I wasn't supposed to be a spokesperson my second year of business. I didn't know that I wasn't supposed to have this business model that other people hadn't thought of before. But then, those things turned out to be good. But then there are also, of course, other things, many, many mistakes that I learned, many lessons from along the way. But the burnout piece is really important to me because I was very young. I was in my mid-thirties. I lived a very high-stress lifestyle. I traveled up to 48 weeks a year for about a decade. I was an athlete and I competed in triathlons, Ironmans, ultra-marathons, and so on. I was very high achieving. Every promotion was not enough. Every step up was not enough. I just kept making the goal higher. And I triggered, for lack of a better term, a functional menopause for 12 years. It was related to stress and that is not, not, not good when you are 35 years old. And also I have Hashimoto's disease [autoimmune disorder]. All of these things. And when I look back, those are things that could have been fixed. Those are things that I could have prevented. And so much of it was about not realizing what I could say no to, or not feeling empowered to say no. And striving for what I look back now to see as the wrong things. And when I'm speaking with, especially with women, but also with men, when I talk, especially when I talk about that every goal I just kept setting higher, they can almost always relate. Andi Simon: Yes. But, you know, nobody was making you set higher and higher goals, were they? Marcey Rader: Oh, no, it was all me. And I do think, I emphasize that when I'm working with people, whether as a coach or in training programs, that nobody's making you do anything. The question is, how do you want to live your life? And how do you take charge of it in a way that feels comfortable? Andi Simon: That point about not saying no or saying no…No—it's not a four letter word. And how does it fit into, and remember, we live the story in our mind. So the question is, what story do you want to live? Because nobody's framing that story. You've created it, you believe it to be true. My favorite quote is, “The only truth is there is no truth.” And so once you understand that, you realize, oh, that there's another way. You discovered another way, and now you're helping others do the same. Tell us a little bit about that transformation you went through starting a business, figuring it out, and now it's at a really interesting time. Where is it? 10 years into it, you have really hit your stride. Marcey Rader: We have. It's really exciting. We are a combination of speaking, training, and coaching/consulting, and we are productivity focused, but always with health centered around it. So it doesn't matter how many boxes you check, Andi, if you're staying up all night to do it, it doesn't matter how many emails you answer if you're answering them at dinner with your family, and so it's always with the health focus, but we have different subject matter experts that we pull in. So productivity is the umbrella. But we have people, leadership experts, mindfulness, cultures of belonging, communications, presentations. We have these different experts that we can bring in so we can be more of like a one-stop shop. And we've worked with companies as small as one person tech companies to Delta Airlines. We have seen many iterations of what works and definitely what doesn't work, and what we're about at is 50-50 training and coaching/consulting, and we like that. I like having that split because like when Covid happened, it worked out very well for us. Our business didn't suffer at all. We actually had more business than we can handle. That was already a specialty of ours. I've worked remotely since 2001. So I've been training individuals to work well remotely for about 15 years. So when the pandemic hit and everybody was going out of their minds, how are we going to do this?, you know. We have so many, so many people that would contact us and say, I don't know how we found out about you, but we need training tomorrow. And so, that kind of transition as a country that we are shifting into now, we're kind of figuring out how we work hybrid. How do I work differently at home three days a week and in the office two days a week? And so it is always shifting. I am never what our director of marketing…she started with us a couple years ago and is very new to all of this…and she said, “Every time I feel like, oh, you know, we can kind of cruise, then something changes.” There's not a lot of cruising. There's always going to be change. Andi Simon: Well, and her point about we're going to cruise, not with Marcey anyway, maybe not the company. But if you have a fixed mindset, you're in the wrong place. This is a time for growth. In fact, your job is to bring innovative ideas in, because people need them and you need them as well. But the interesting part is that we have a good relationship with Washington University. We were out there last weekend for a reunion, and the athletic director and his team were very concerned about their athletes competing to see how little sleep they could get. And he started then putting them into meditation, yoga. And we have a room that we have dedicated in the athletic facility for study, and turned it into a wellness center. And he said, “You have to start early because their whole value is on an unrealistic life where it's not good for their athletics or their academics.” But when he said that, I went, “Man, I didn't imagine that it goes right down into elementary school where the ability to balance the different demands on us are trained.” But this is interesting for people in business. You know, you and I both work among very successful business folks who can't quite figure out how to balance all of the options that they have in their day so that it is a doable day. And, the number of young people when they faced the pandemic, asked the big question, If you only live once, how do I want to live it? And they have now started to draw a line among companies to say, No, I'll only work with you if… And they're not quite sure what the if is, but they know that it isn't what it was. You know: “I drive to work, I spend an hour in the car, I work eight, nine hours, I drive home an hour in the car, and I'm supposed to have a life.” And I have one client whose employees all said, “Nope, we're perfectly happy working anywhere and we'll be very efficient.” So now we have an interesting time of rethinking what comes next? What do you see coming next? Because you are out there watching, talking, and helping them really design the future. And someone once said, the future is here already, it's just not widely distributed, and you're trying to distribute it. What do you see? Marcey Rader: Well, first I just have to comment that that makes me very sad that they're wearing that sleep badge, that lack of sleep badge so young. I wore it as well. But, I'm hoping that it's becoming less and less of a thing, that wearing that badge that I get such little sleep, but also, I work x amount of hours and bragging about that. I work 60 hours, 70 hours a week. I used to do that too. It's not anything to brag about anymore. What I see is that more people looking for jobs are going to be looking at companies that don't have an “always on” culture. Because as you said in the intro, it's really not work-life balance. It's like a teeter-totter work and personal life, and your work is part of your life. So I don't really like that term. It's really when people say they want more work-life balance, a lot of times they're talking about tech-life balance. And because it's our technology that is infiltrating our personal lives, it's that we're getting emails at night from our boss or our team members. We're getting pinged on the weekends, and we have this always-on culture. And part of that came from Covid, you know, and it wasn't our fault. A lot of companies didn't know how to work remotely. They were thrown into it without policies. There were parents that were just working whenever they could, when their kids were asleep or when they had two hours of babysitting a day. It was just people working whenever they could. And, you know, it's hard to untrain yourself from bad habits. And we've gotten into really bad habits as a culture. And so these companies that have this always-on culture, what they don't realize is that it creates micro-stresses for their employees. And these micro-stresses build up over time. And even if you are a boss and you say, “If I send you an email at night, I don't expect you to answer it,” that doesn't matter if you are in a position of hierarchy, most people will feel compelled to at least check. And there's actually a stress called anticipatory stress. And when people are just expecting, “Maybe I'll get an email,” they're anticipating that stress. And what we've recently learned is that anticipatory stress actually filters into your family. So it's this digital wellness, which is kind of a new term, but not in my world, but for companies to think about investing in a digitally well culture. And actually, I'm certified by the Digital Wellness Institute and I'm one of the few practitioners that have partnered with them in their digitally well workplace certification. I mean, there's actually certification now. And what I am promoting to the companies that I work with is that you could be one of the first to be a digitally well workplace. And while it may seem like it doesn't matter as much now, a few years from now, it's going to matter a lot because it's going to be one of those things that employees look at, just like when they look at the B Corp symbol or things like that. Is this company that I'm going to invest part of my life in, do they care? Do they really care about how things are for me outside of work hours? Andi Simon: You know, to some degree, the companies themselves should be talking and working with those employees to create a company for the future, because nobody really knows. The youngsters are trying to devise something that makes some sense. But you have so many variables coming in and the elders have been there a long time. The habits are the way we do things. Every time I get hired to help a company change, we start with, “Well, no, that's the way we do things. That's the way it's done.” I say, “I know, but it's not working anymore.” “But I don't know what will work.” And I say, “That is the interesting question. It's a time for exploring, experimenting, collaborating, going out and seeing what others are doing that might work. But most of all, think about the customer and the employee as if they're collaborators in co-creating the work of the future.” It's no longer, “I make it, you buy it.” It's no longer, “You work here. I'll tell you what to do.” Everything that we did is gone. If not in your company, it should be, because now the collaboration will create really rich possibilities. I did some work with one fellow and his head of sales said, “Well, I got three phone calls from folks who wanted things that we don't do.” I said, “So what did you do?” He said that he said, “Well, we don't do that.” I said, “Well, they are looking for a solution. Can you help them?” You can be a general contractor. There are all kinds of opportunities for folks who are saying, “I need this, who can help me?” It's not, you make this, I'll buy it. Change the mind. Remember the words we use: change the worlds we live in and now it's fine. I love the digital bot, ChatGPT. I can't tell you how many folks say, “Oh, I'm not going to use that.” I said, “Oh, yes, you are. Because it's absolutely fascinating.” And then I did a bunch of podcasts on blockchain. And one of the women in my book has created a whole blockchain company for the supply chain. And a city in Switzerland is completely on blockchain. What are we fighting? It's so fascinating. Now, are there any cases you could suggest to the audience that might illustrate what you're seeing? I sometimes like to make the abstract a little concrete. Marcey Rader: For ChatGPT or digital wellness? Andi Simon: Digital wellness. Marcey Rader: Wellness. Just one correction: at RaderCo, we do work on Fridays. We just don't do email! We also have No Task Fridays. And the reason why, Fridays are used to finish up what we're doing so that we can go into the weekend and not be given something to do as we go in. And so we might be finishing up tasks, but we're not assigning them to each other. Andi Simon: Pause for a second because you just defined a workplace of the future. I asked you for an illustrative case, but that's as good as any that you can share. Now you've done this by design. Marcey Rader: Yes. And it was an experiment. I believe we tried something else first. What we settled on was that we liked Fridays to catch up. I've not lost any business. On a Friday, nobody's getting dumped on because it's actually called, there's a name, it's called the Friday Dump when somebody sends somebody something on a Friday afternoon. And even if it's not due til the next week, it's that anticipatory stress. It's that knowing like, now I have this coming up. And you know, we have a very detailed out- of-office that we started on Thursday at five o'clock or whatever. And it's fun, but it gives everybody a link to our manifesto, which is an email manifesto to let people know how we communicate. And for companies that feel very, and I know this is not for all companies, like if you're a pest control company and people are trying to reach you to remove their pests, I'm not saying this works for you. It could work for some roles within your company, but you know, so much of it is communication expectations. And so that people aren't caught off guard. And if people know, like when somebody signs up with us and they get the contract and they get their first email from us, their next steps, it says at the bottom, “This is how we communicate. Here's the link to our manifesto. Here's how you communicate with us, in case of an urgent matter, and so on.” And as long as you communicate that to your vendors, your clients, your customers, there's no problem. We've never had anything but envy or happiness for us. And, we've had companies that are starting to consider or shift into No Meeting Fridays or no emails after 1:00pm on Fridays. You know, people are just taking steps. But then, the easiest solution is, if you do work off hours, just schedule your emails to send later. Andi Simon: Well, and now, so there are tools you can use, schedule those emails to go later. There's a mindset that says, there's not work and life. It's a balance. And you are in charge. If you can take that expectation management is really fascinating. There's nothing wrong with saying, “My expectation is that I'm going to work really hard for four days, then on Friday, I'm going to get reorganized, get everything into place so that I can relax and my weekends are mine. I had a great editor who simply said, “No, I don't do anything on the weekends for the publication because it's my time with my family. Mm-hmm. And I said, interesting. Now I've been a consultant for 22 years, I've been in my own business. And over the years, the creep on Friday became onerous. And in recent years I've just made Fridays by and large my day. Anything that I want to do for myself, I try to do that on Friday, that doesn't mean I can't do it other times. I put 3 million miles in my body, so I needed a little bit of my time. And I urge people who are in the consulting business, you'd be amazed how other people begin to say, that's a good idea. I can have my time also. And, it becomes…the pandemic did something very interesting. My husband and I both traveled a great deal for business and then we would travel for vacations every 90 days. We took a trip, the pandemic brought us together. We didn't travel, and we went. This was fun. Now how do we get it done with a little time anyhow, because you can work all the time. Marcey, I could talk to you all day because I think that you're on the brink of something quite transformative for our audience. Give them two or three things you don't want them to forget. Often the listener remembers the end even better than the beginning. We've talked about so many really important things about the future, both of your life and work, some things you don't want them to forget now. Marcey Rader: What you said was very important about we choose to have the life that we want to live. And yes, while I agree with that, it's up to you. If you are the one checking your email at night, that's on you. And on the weekends, that's on you. However, I also go back to, if you are a leader and you're sending those at night and they know you are, then you're still creating that culture of anticipatory stress. And so it goes both ways. We are the owner of our time, but we also as leaders have to be considerate of that. Something else that I want people or companies to rethink is the benefits they give for self-care. The wellness apps, the fitness benefits, the meditation rooms, all of those things. I think they are wonderful. I commend companies that are doing it. However, it puts the responsibility on the person to fix the reasons why they need these things in the first place. If companies would look upstream at the overwhelming workloads, or the abundance of tasks that they're giving people without the resources to do them, they wouldn't need all of those apps and benefits downstream. And so while self-care is our responsibility to take that time, just like going back to the communication after hours, it is also the responsibility of the company to determine why we need it so much. Andi Simon: This isn't going to get easier. It's going to get more complicated. And because the companies are looking for role models among other companies, they're mimics and they imitate each other. And unless so-and-so is doing it, well that can't be a good idea. So now we've got to find those who maybe they are the companies of purpose who really begin to see this as a bigger opportunity. Or maybe they're good companies that see the benefits for themselves and others. I think this is going to be the next few years that are going to be transformative in ways that I hope lead us to a better, healthier life. The last thing you want to do is find yourself back in a feudal society and sometimes I get this kind of weird thing that it feels that way. This is always so much fun. Where can I reach you? What kind of stuff do you do for folks? Marcey Rader: We are at helloraderco.com and we work with all size businesses, from speaking to keynotes, conferences, but also training. And our three most popular trainings, one is around email, one is around focus and attention, and another one is around time. And it's not really managing your time, it's using your time effectively and your attention effectively. They go together. Managing your time and attention go together. And then we also do the coaching and consulting piece around that. Andi Simon: This is such fun. Thank you for joining me today. It's always a pleasure to see you. This is virtual or real, I'm not sure, but it's delicious. Thank you again. It's fun for our listeners. Remember, our job is to help you get off the brink and soar and so On The Brink with Andi Simon is my way of sharing wonderful people who I've met. People say, you haven't monetized your podcast? I say, no, I've joyfully shared great people so that you can see, feel, and think in new ways, which is really what I hope you have seen today. Remember, we decide with the eyes and the heart. And today has felt all about feeling a life that's worth living, that you can create with the tools to do it. Remember, every day is very long and every year flies by. And so take care, be careful. My books are available on Amazon. They're here to help you. My new book comes out in September. It's called Women Mean Business. You can pre-order it on Amazon, which I hope you will do. Amazon loves pre-orders and you can even order a bunch of them there to share. Women Mean Business has 102 women in it, all of whom want you to see their wisdom, understand it. And one that I loved is, “You don't have to believe everything you're thinking.” Another one is, “Your network of course is your net worth,” and then one that I just love is that what you see is, you can create this hope. There's really powerful women in there who are ready to help you become the woman you always wanted to be. Like Marcey. I think this is such fun. I'm going to wish you all a good day. Please stay safe. Stay healthy, and enjoy life. Bye-bye now.

Pushing through the fear of the unknown is a challenge, but what if you could navigate it with ease, especially when it affects your business? Get ready, as I, Rhonda Delaney, The People Gardener, take you on a journey through the labyrinth of change - a necessary and crucial element for growth in every organization. We tackle not just the concept of change, but also how to plan for it, evaluate its impact, and how to communicate effectively with your team, ensuring seamless transition. In this insightful episode, we also discuss how to anticipate and manage resistance to change, a natural human reaction, offering you strategies to validate your team's concerns, and include them in the change process. Cultivate a culture of continuous improvement and make change less intimidating - all this, by understanding the importance of transparency, communication, and empathy in leadership. This episode is a treasure trove of insights for new business owners, seasoned leaders, or anyone looking to successfully navigate change in their organization. Trust me, you wouldn't want to miss out on this one.

Today on our show, we're launching a special summer mini-series recorded live from the Cannes Lions 2023 International Festival of Creativity. frog was an official partner of the event, where we hosted a cabana along the famed croisette. What ensued was four days of programming that included on-stage panels from our sunny beachside terrace and interviews with expert guests from leading brands in our on-site recording studio. Day One in the frog Cabana, we focused on the theme ‘Innovation in a World of Flux" and discussed everything from avoiding the pitfalls of so-called ‘innovation theater' to real company journeys driving transformation and whether brands can ever truly be authentic or are more often guilty of smoke-and-mirror tactics. Special thanks to this episode's guests: Gagandeep Gadri, Managing Director, frog; Véronique Bruhat, Head of Digital Health for Specialty Care, Sanofi; Dr. Moira Gilchrist, VP & Director of Scientific & Strategic Communications; Russell Parsons, Editor-in-Chief, Marketing WeekBrought to you by frog, a global creative consultancy. frog is part of Capgemini Invent. (https://www.frog.co) Visit us to learn more and stay in the loop of our partnership with Cannes Lions . (https://cannes.frog.co/) Find transcripts and more from our conversation. (https://www.frog.co/designmind/design-mind-frogcast-bonus-episode-voices-from-cannes-day-1/)Download the new frog Chief Challenges 5: Banking on Invisibility report. (https://go.frog.co/banking_on_invisibility)

Hear how changing your perspective can lead to a great idea For today's podcast I had the pleasure of interviewing Nathan Richter, CEO of Nature's Key, his medical marijuana company. Nathan shares his personal journey with using medical marijuana as a sleep aid and a supplement for his workouts, and how it led him to become a leader in this emerging industry. We also discuss the fear of change and the importance of embracing it as a way of exploring new solutions to old problems. Nathan's journey with medical marijuana serves as an example of how innovation and adaptation can lead to success. Much to learn here! Enjoy. Watch and listen to our conversation here Many people hear marijuana and think "stoner" but that's no longer accurate According to Nathan, medical marijuana can be an important alternative to harmful coping mechanisms like alcohol or hard drugs. Listen in as he shares his personal experience using CBD, as well as the potential benefits of medical marijuana for sleep, exercise recovery and overall health. Nathan predicts that hemp and cannabis will become disruptors in modern-day industry by promoting sustainability and regenerative farming practices. He believes that as more people become educated about the benefits and safety of these products, the culture will shift towards acceptance and normalization. Sounds like a Blue Ocean model! To connect with Nathan, visit his LinkedIn page or his website, Nature's Key. Want more stories about embracing change and finding innovations? Try these: Blog: Change Is All Around Us But It's Terrifying. So How Do I Make Change My Friend? Blog: Everything Is Changing. Is This A Great Time For A Blue Ocean Strategy? Podcast: Michael Tate—Are You Terrified Of The Pain Of Change? Additional resources for you My two award-winning books: Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business and On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights Our website: Simon Associates Management Consultants Read the transcript of our podcast here Andi Simon: Welcome to On the Brink With Andi Simon. As you know, I'm Andi Simon, and my job is to help you get off the brink, to help you see, feel, and think about things in new ways, and to find people who are going to help you open your mind to possibilities when you may not be really aware of them, or even paying attention to what you know already. Often, I find that the fear of the unknown, the fear of failure, is so overwhelming that humans just fly the other way. That old part of your brain says, don't touch it, don't do it. Don't please make me do it. I'm happy where I am, but maybe I need something to help me change. So today I have with us a wonderful person, Nathan Richter from Kansas City. I met Nathan at a workshop I was doing on culture change. This was a very interesting group of people who really got into the whole idea of what is culture, the essence of who we are and how do you change? And out of that, Nathan reached out and said, "I have a story to share. I'd like to share it with your audience and let's see if we can help people do something that they may be afraid of." Remember your brain hates change. The pain of it is really painful. And today you're going to be a little bit painful, but not much because now you are going to learn something new that's going to help you really perhaps solve a problem. Nathan, thank you for joining me. Nathan Richter: Good morning, Andi. It's so great to be here and thanks for having me. Andi Simon: Well, it's so much fun to share with you, so that's my pleasure. Let me read you a little bit about Nathan's background to set the stage, and of course then I'll let him tell his own journey. It's a great story. He was born in Oklahoma City, as he says. He's a graduate of Mustang High School, which I always enjoy sharing, and the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma City University School of Law. He began as an attorney, but before he began his legal career, he was a geneticist and he also served in the Oklahoma Army National Guard and was deployed to Afghanistan to support Operation Enduring Freedom in 2003, where he received the Joint Forces Commendation Medal and other awards. Doesn't surprise you, wait till you hear his story. He's served in a variety of leadership positions and he's currently serving as CEO of Nature's Key. But I do think that today's story is about Nature's Key, and because he has a particular interest in helping you understand the problem or challenge he faced and how something called medical marijuana, which you've heard about, became a solution that might not have been something he would've gone to out of Ordinary Nathan. I truly enjoyed listening to your story. Share it with our listeners. And who is Nathan, what has your journey been like? Nathan Richter: Well, Nathan is Nathan. Nathan's another human being that just likes to serve other human beings and I appreciate you reading a little bit of my background and frankly, setting the frame for your podcast, because it's one of the most beautiful things about life is that change is constant. It's a given and there's nothing we can do about it, so we might as well embrace it. And that scares a lot of people because we don't understand the unknown. And if we don't know what we're facing, then we're afraid of it. But life's full of it, right? Life's full of changes. It's full of twists and turns and pivots. And my story is kind of one of those that I hope might help some of your listeners. I was by and large your rule-following kid growing up. I grew up in a small town in Oklahoma, raised in the church, and you know, by God, we were rule-following law-abiding citizens. And, medical marijuana, which didn't even exist at the time, was one of those taboo things. By and large, on every Saturday morning between every cartoon, we saw the commercial about the frying pan and the egg, and this is your brain on drugs, and it goes in the frying pan. It made an impression and I would have never, ever tried this particular plant or this particular product for any reason. Because of that, I went through school, went through college, was always gravitated towards leadership and leadership positions, serving on boards and serving on committees and things like that, and was fascinated by science. So, I got my bachelor's degree in genetics and worked  initially on the Human Genome Project. The lab that I worked for at the time was sequencing human mouse and plant genome DNA. They were mapping that, this was the late nineties, so you know, now you think about companies like 23andMe and you go, Wow. But they were working on stuff back then. I served in leadership positions in the military. You mentioned I was deployed in 2003. So early in the war Operation Enduring Freedom, my unit was deployed to Afghanistan and life-altering experiences there. Then, I served as a trial lawyer, which also gave me a lot of life-altering experiences and things that I saw and people that I represented. All of it led to, about four or five years ago, a situation where I had moderate PTSD. I was having problems sleeping. I  struggled to sleep following my return home from Afghanistan. But, by and large,  I managed it fairly well until, frankly, the stress of life and everything caught up to me. I began coping with alcohol, things of an unhealthy nature. I was prescribed some sleeping aids to try and, you know, help me overcome my sleep habits. Ambien was one of them. I will never take that drug again. I took it and had the worst hallucinations I've ever had. I didn't sleep. It was awful. So a friend of mine, my brother actually, said, "Look, medicines aren't for you. We all know that you're not an over-the-counter or really even a prescription medicine guy. You never have been. I know this is also not for you. You're not an illegal guy, but we want you to try medical cannabis to sleep." So I did. I I took his advice. I took a low dose edible and learned how to manage my sleep without the escapism that most people associate with cannabis and CBD, and it was a life-altering change for me. Literally, I believed in the change so much because of the experiences I had, the positive experiences. I went from sleeping two hours a night, Andi, to sleeping eight, nine hours of the night. And it wasn't just the amount of time, it was the quality of sleep. And I'm one of those data geeks. I wear this little fitness device. I track all my sleep, I track my workouts, I track my health, my fitness, my heart rate, all of that stuff. And so, not only did I feel the change in my sleep, quality of sleep, quantity of sleep, I saw it in the data. I was getting better sleep and I felt more rested. I was more productive, so much that I invested early on in a business. I believed in it that much. And then ultimately, a couple years ago, took over and started running my company. We have a CBD company and we have a medical cannabis company. What we do now is educate and try to help people understand that the world of cannabis is not one of escapism. It's not partying. It can be. There's certainly that side to it, but there's also another side to it. And that is that really high functioning people that have stresses and normal sort of aggravations in their life who don't necessarily ascribe to things like pharmaceuticals and narcotics, can find an alternative to cope with those without the harmful coping mechanisms. We've come to know, like alcohol, other hard drugs, things like that. And so that's my pivot. That's the change that happened in my life. I will tell you and your listeners that it was not an easy decision to pivot and go and lead a company versus practicing law. I had my own practice for about 15 years. So shutting that down and transitioning to the business world was scary, terrifying in many regards, especially to move into a startup and an emerging industry that's very volatile and very unknown. But it's been one of the most exhilarating changes. I've been fortunate enough to help over 60 kids and hundreds and hundreds of adults understand how they can use purpose-driven products, which I call it, purpose-driven products, to live a better quality of life. Whether it be through a workout, whether it be through sleep, they're finding a better way than using or leaning on man-made pharmaceuticals that have really terrible side effects that they end up having to take another pill for the side effect. So it's been very exhilarating. It's very fulfilling in this change and had I been scared, had I been worried about the unknown, I probably wouldn't have the joy I have in my life right now. Andi Simon: Did you know, Nathan, we always preach if you want to change, have a crisis or create one. You had reached crisis moment, had you not? Nathan Richter: I had. Andi Simon: What is most disturbing as I look at our society today is the percentage of people who are full of anxiety, depression, and not having fun in life. You know, we know that life is a gift, and if you can't sleep well at night, your mind doesn't go through its regimen to reorganize itself, to get your stories. The mind is extremely important. And if you can't sleep, you wake up and you can't really function. And after a while, you're dysfunctional. Your body is dysfunctional. And sometimes we don't even know what the catalyst is for that mind that's running away. But it's not an uncommon phenomenon without people knowing what to do about it. As we were talking before, and I'm listening to you, I think our listeners need to understand where and when to use medical marijuana. You know, what is it? Is it smoking something? Is it eating something? I always hear a friend of mine who went up to a town in New England, a college town, pulled up to a little place to get lunch only to find out that all the food was imbued with marijuana. And she really didn't know what she was looking at or buying. The age differences certainly cut in there, but it's becoming not quite ubiquitous, but it is becoming more available in different ways. And, for listeners who may have a bit of a crisis or want to know how it could apply to their lives, how do you begin to educate them? Your point about, I've educated dozens of kids and dozens of adults. We're in the top 3% of podcasts globally. Educate my listeners. What do we, what should we do? Nathan Richter: Well, so what I'd like to tell people about the medical cannabis world is that it's not your grandpa's weed. It isn't the stuff that you bought or that your grandpa got from his buddy in the sixties. In the world that we play in, medical cannabis is incredibly potent. It's highly concentrated, it's highly, I hate to say refined, but it's grown in such a way that the strains and the percentages and the content is very, very high potency. So what I would tell people is, I think the stats show that mental illness has more than tripled since the pandemic. A lot of people are looking for something to escape their problems. I don't like to tell people to use medical cannabis to escape. You don't need to drink to get drunk. You don't need to consume to get "high." So what I like to tell people is, you know, microdose your relationship with cannabis. Start low, start slow and layer it with a lot of CBD. So if you're a non-user, you've never been introduced to it, you're not familiar with it, you really don't know where you're looking for CBD is where I would start. I would start with a very, very low dose amount of THC. We call it full spectrum CBD, that is, a CBD that comes from the hemp plant that contains the lesser amount of THC that makes sure it's compliant with the 2018 farm bill. The United States government passed that and carved out the definition for it. So you're looking for a full spectrum CBD product that would be where most people should start. If you're an ordinary, or a regular, I should say, cannabis user, and you're familiar with the industry and you know kind of what's going on, I would say people need to look for, those folks already know kind of what works for them. But if they don't, CBD, which is a cannabinoid, minor cannabinoid, and low dose amounts of THC. The entourage effect works really well to help people sleep. When I say low dose, what I mean is less than two milligrams of what's called Delta Nine THC. That's the chemical that most people associate with cannabis. When you hear the word cannabis, most people think Cheech and Chong. That's Delta Nine. That's where the brain goes. If that's two milligrams or less of that, we call that a microdose. So you want to make sure that whatever you're consuming has a lower dose of that. If people are looking for sleep, which it's a billion dollar industry, most everybody I talk to says. I'm tired and I'm busy. Those are the two biggest things I hear. How are you? Well, I'm tired and I'm busy. Okay, well, why are you tired? Well, I didn't sleep well last night. Why didn't you sleep well? Can't turn the mind off? I hear this all the time, a common problem. And so what I try to explain to people is with a base amount of CBD, let's say 25 milligrams of CBD at night in an edible format, so a gummy, and then lower than two milligrams of THC. So two milligrams or lower of THC is going to create an effect in your body that's going to allow the THC to turn your mind off. And then the CBD causes your body to relax and go to sleep, and you stay asleep longer and you get a better quality of sleep. But it's the synergy between the THC molecules turning the brain off, and then the CBD allowing your body to relax that causes you to get really great sleep. If you have too much THC, so if you go to the 5 milligram or the 10 milligram, that's going to create some anxiety. So I try to tell people, stay low and slow. Then once you learn your dose, anywhere between one to two milligrams of Delta Nine, 25 to 30 milligrams of CBD, and you start to feel that sleep, you can dial it in and you'll know when you're there because you'll have the best sleep of your life. That's how we tell people, start low, start slow. But 50% or more of Americans have tried cannabis at some point in their life according to some studies. So everybody's at a different place in their journey with it. So the can of curious, as I call 'em, the people that have never tried it low and slow, if you're already in your journey, make it more purpose driven, try to drive it towards sleep. Journal and  track your results and you'll find your therapeutic dose. Andi Simon: What's interesting listening to you is essentially launching a rebrand of marijuana. I have a farm in northern Westchester in New York, and I have a barn and I met some folks who knew a gentleman who had lived there and they said, Oh yes, they grew pot in their attic and we had pot parties in your barn. Are you going to do that again? I said, So funny. I've been there 50 years, so you can imagine the time. And they did leave us their pot plants in the attic. I didn't quite know what to do with them and I didn't know about the pot parties in my barn until years later. But I had friends who would come with us on a vacation and they would be smoking. We didn't, neither my husband or I ever did, but clearly some folks liked it. I still have a friend who will start a dinner party and go outside to smoke for a little while, relaxing her so she can come and converse with us. People have used it for all kinds of different things. This is identifying something that people can use it for to go into good health because that sleep can be extremely valuable to them. You were telling me about all of the signs that came out of a good night's sleep on your wrist, your blood pressure, everything became happy. I'm not going to say it was happy because you were smoking. It was happy because your body had slept. Describe that a little bit. Nathan Richter: I'll use my heart rate as an example. Before I started using cannabis as a sleep tool, I was tracking my sleep and my heart rate would fluctuate at night anywhere from 25, 30 beats a minute. It might drop to 65, to 50, maybe 55 at the low end to all the way up to 70, 75, and it would be pretty erratic throughout the night. So what that heart rate was telling me is that my body's not settled, my heart was pumping faster at some point in time during the night and slower during others. Obviously slower when I'm more relaxed, obviously faster when something is keeping me up, whether it's a noise or whether it's my mind or whether it's something going on. So I just saw an erratic heart rate throughout the night. As I started using cannabis as a sleep aid, I found that my heart rate would naturally descend as my body relaxed and then level out. And my heart, my resting heart rate, went from in the mid to low fifties to the mid to low forties and sometimes in the high thirties. I'm a runner, so I'm very physically fit and I've got a very strong heart rate. But to see that change from being sort of erratic to more of the descending heart rate told me that my body was naturally relaxing, falling into different states of sleep, appropriately, and not being pulled out of those states of sleep, but instead staying in those states of sleep to let my body do what it's supposed to do. The most remarkable thing that happens with our bodies is that they can heal themselves. That's right. Like, it's incredible to me that you can get a cut off your skin and it goes away after a couple of weeks since your body can heal itself. We know through the sleep studies that our bodies heal themselves primarily at night when your body really starts its rejuvenation process. And so I saw just with my heart rate alone, that my body was going through the natural stages of sleep and the natural cycles appropriately. And then I was feeling it in the morning, waking up, going, Man, I feel refreshed. I feel focused, I'm clear, I'm energetic. I'm jumping out of bed. I'm ready to tackle the day instead of pouring myself out of bed, you know, struggling to stumble to get a cup of coffee. Just a totally different energy once I realized how I could use it as a sleep tool. You know, there's a fun side to cannabis. You talk about pot parties, right? There's a fun side to it. There's no doubt that there's a lot of people out there who enjoy the fun, the party side of it. But, what we miss is that there's actually a purpose-driven side to it as well. And the plant's been around for tens of thousands of years. The Chinese learned about cannabis as a medicine thousands of years ago. So we've known about it for a long time. We just haven't been able to study it. We haven't been able to discuss it. We haven't been able to really research or do anything with it because it's been illegal for so long. So now we're starting, people are starting to become aware that it's more than just a reefer madness, let's escape and go have a good time. It actually can help you with a lot of things from nausea to antiviral, antifungal, sleep, some massive anti-inflammatory. So people are finding great benefit from it despite the stigma that really surrounds the plan and has for the last hundred years. Andi Simon: What else besides sleep? Sounds like many things that might be addressed with a pharmaceutical of some kind, can perhaps be managed with medical marijuana in a different fashion and enable people to feel better. Nathan Richter: Yeah, so I'm a guy that spent almost 10 years in military service. So I've got bad knees, bad ankles, bad back. I I love to run. I love to work out. My runs were painful. During the run, I would feel the heaviness after the run. It would take me two or three days to recover. Using primarily CBD, but using it pre-workout and post-workout, I cut my recovery times in half. I shaved almost a minute off my run times. It's kind of a nice little vitamin supplement, if you will, for your body that brings about something we call homeostasis inside your body. We're a big giant chemistry experiment, right? And when one chemical's outta whack and the other ones are not in balance, then we tend to find ourselves not behaving and not acting, not thinking like we should, not like ourselves. So, CBD brings about that homeostasis and lets your body do what it does best, heal itself and operate. So I ended up shaving a minute off my run times and cut my recovery times in half. I mean, it was remarkable what I saw just from a workout perspective, much less the sleep perspective. Andi Simon: I don't mean to interrupt you. You're intriguing me. You're intriguing my audiences as well. If people were thinking about this, and sharing with their support networks. I mean, sometimes people are more comfortable if there's someone to talk to about it so they don't feel like they are...the worst thing to be is to feel consciously incompetent. And if you're moving into a new area, and I have a hunch you were exploring, but you did it before, are there networks, are there systems that can help them make wise decisions? Nathan Richter: There are in almost every state that has a market, whether it be a recreational market or a legal medical market. There's all kinds of Facebook groups out there with people that are trying to educate, trying to teach, trying to help people. I like to turn people on to the foremost CBD women's health expert, actually out of New York. Her name is Dr. Jane Janelle Chen, an excellent resource for any information regarding CBD or medical cannabis. She is a tremendous book of knowledge and has been using CBD and formulations and medical cannabis formulations in her practice for quite some time. Dr. Chen is a great resource. The internet of things is full of information. Unfortunately, it's full of a lot of misinformation. My CBD company is actually called Transcend, www.transcendlife is our website. We've got some resources on there. You can reach out to us. We're happy to answer questions at any point in time. On the medical cannabis side, my company, which is called Nature's Key, we actually have a whole education arm where Joe Hagers, my business partner, co-founder, he heads up our education arm. He talks to patients every day, tries to help guide them and suggest things to them that might help with whatever ails them. So depending on what state you're in, I'm sure there are resources there. Most of the time it's on Facebook but there are also great websites and great experts in the field that can help guide people as well and help give them information. Andi Simon: People have said my podcast is a top 10 futurist podcast, and I always ask the question, What do you see coming next? Because humans are futurists. I mean, if we can begin to see, we feel more comfortable doing today. Where do you see both CBD and medical marijuana, the culture around us moving towards? If we were all happy folks, that would be one thing, but there's so much that could be useful. This is not arsenic. This is better than not doing anything. Help us see where you see things going. Nathan Richter: If I had an hourglass and I could look into a crystal ball and I could look into the future 10, 20 years from now, I think what I hope I see is that hemp and cannabis have become great disruptors in the modern day industry. What I mean by that is what we're seeing trendline-wise across the world is, we've got to be more sustainable. We've got to be more regenerative. We can't continue to assault the land like we have and the environment like we have and think that the world is going to continue to be as beautiful and as wonderful as we find it. We got to  take care of it. We do that through farming, agriculture, methodologies and technologies. And what we're finding with hemp and with cannabis is that that particular plant, just from an agricultural standpoint, is incredibly robust. It's a plant that can be grown, three to four crops a year outdoors, one crop a year, three or four crops indoors. It's a plant that provides great benefit and nutrients back into the environment in which it's grown. And on the hemp side, it can be used for everything from paper to plastics to clothing to concrete. You can use that product to manufacture a lot of different textiles and things that are kinder to the environment and potentially more cost beneficial to the businesses. And so I think what we'll see in 10 to 20 years from now is hemp becoming a major commodity. It'll be used as an input material for various manufacturing operations and various types of products that you see today. I think that you'll see it start to show up in more cosmetics. Health and beauty and wellness have really learned that CBD topically is a great skin nourishment and skin vitamin. I think you'll start to see CBD and maybe even low dose medical cannabis sort of infused into some products that you'll see in the health and beauty sector. Then I think on the cannabis side, you'll start to see it over the next 20, 25 years be introduced in the supplement world and recognized as such. But unfortunately, I think you're going to see a split and you're going to see the medical side of cannabis by and large go one way. And unfortunately the vice side of cannabis, that recreational side goes another. There'll be a place for both, but where they end up, I don't know. Andi Simon: Well, I don't either, but at least you can have the early stages of what you see. It's the conversations that people are crafting. Remember, humans are meaning makers. We create meaning out of stuff. And hemp isn't inherently good or bad, until we begin to see ways that we can use it for ourselves and for different purposes. Slowly this country is beginning to see how to change something it thought was bad. You remember prohibition got alcohol to go into the back rooms. We have this pension for taking things that aren't bad or good and giving them weird meaning and then overusing them sometimes. But, I do think there was a period where over-abuse of drugs, and even now there are hard drugs and it's hard to separate out which are the good guys from which of them can be bad guys. But it is a time for us to think about the conditions that we live in and how to help people address them in a different innovative fashion. You know, I'm a Blue Ocean strategist, and Blue Ocean is about creating new markets. You are a Blue Ocean guy. You have a great red sweater on. I do love it. I do like red as you can tell, but I think we both should be in blue today because we're swimming in a blue ocean and we're not quite sure where we're going, but we're creating the market for tomorrow. So as we're about ready to wrap, two or three things you'd like our listeners not to forget other than who Nathan Richter is and where we can find you. Some thoughts that you'd like to share as your last thoughts. Nathan Richter: So, the one thing I would want people to remember about me is that I was put on this earth to serve others. And that's what I do every day. That's what my company does every day. And I hope that when people get out of bed every day, that's what they do. They serve others. That ripple effect makes the world a better place, whether we have it in our little small community or the bigger world at large. So the three things to take away from that is, One: always keep God in your heart. Two: mindset matters. It really does. Three: lead with love. Because if you lead with love and kindness and you have your mind right, you're going to have the biggest impact you can in the world. Andi Simon: You know, Nathan, to teach part of the science of wellbeing and for us to be healthy isn't a hard act of kindness, it makes us feel better. Saying thank you is a gratitude. It makes those hormones in your brain, the oxytocin, go, Oh, this is wonderful. And the act of doing it is as important as receiving it. Then, you know, running like you do or exercise, eating well, that's not that hard. You got to figure out what the good guys are but here's something new that could help in that whole mix of things and really take your wellbeing, particularly sleep, but perhaps something else that's keeping you up and keeping you challenged and helping it diminish so that every day is a gift. You know, you don't want to waste this. The present is the only moment you've got, and before you know it, it's gone. Right? And that's right. Nathan Richter: The most important thing we have. When I ask people, what's the most important thing you have in your life? And most people are like, it's my wife, or my kids, or my husband, or my spouse or this. And I'm like, Nope. It's the next breath you take. I promise. Andi Simon: Arnold Schneider of The Atlantic had a great quote: "I understand death, and I get it. I'm just pissed by it." I can see him saying it. Just pisses me off. This has been such fun. Nathan, where can people reach you? And I promise I'll put that in our blogs and podcast and all the rest, but the best way to reach you or to reach Nature's Key or however to find out more about what you do? Nathan Richter: Best way to reach my companies is go through our website. So Transcend Life will  take you to the CBD company, and Nature's Key takes people to the medical cannabis company. Best way to reach me is through email. It's nathannatureskey@edibles.com. I'm also on socials. I'm on Twitter, that's really the only social site I'm on. Andi Simon: This has been a very interesting conversation. I'm so glad you reached out. I'm so glad we had an opportunity to educate and inform our listeners of something that could be of great value to them. I promise I'll get your podcast out quickly and we'll share it for my listeners. I'll do my normal wrap. My two books are there for you. They're here to help you. You know Nathan's point, why do we do what we do? I do it to help others to share wisdom and hopefully give you something that might help you. You see yourself and others in a fresh light. So On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights is there to help you run your business better. And Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business is a startup for my new book, coming up with Edie Fraser and Robyn Spizman. And it's coming out in September, actually September 26th, 2023. It's called Women Mean Business. And it's the amazing wisdom of 101 trailblazing women. But all of us want to elevate others, amplify the message, help people see the world through a fresh lens and not think that everything is lost. You know, I often say, if you want to change, have a crisis. I hope you don't. But I do think that you shouldn't waste a crisis either. And what Nathan has done is taken his own crisis and turned it into an opportunity to help others, both to get a good night's sleep, but also to see the benefits of that. If it's not just sleep, it's not just the dreams, it's really to feel really energized the next day and really living a great life. So for all of my great listeners, send me all your ideas for wonderful people info@andisimon.com. And I'm going to say goodbye. Please stay healthy, stay well. Remember we help you take observations and turn them into innovations just like Nathan did. It's been wonderful, Nathan. Thank you for coming. Bye.

Victoria Pelletier is a highly successful executive with a compelling story of achievement in the corporate world. In her interview on The Science of CX Podcast, she shares her insights on the changing landscape of workforces and the impact of AI.  Victoria is recognized across North America as a dynamic, captivating keynote speaker, published author, and dynamic executive. Her story of overcoming unspeakable odds to live a life of no excuses is both moving and incredibly inspiring. She draws from her 20+ years in corporate senior leadership at companies like IBM and American Express to deliver engaging, inspiring keynotes to audiences across North America. With her impressive rise to the top of companies early in her career, Victoria offers valuable lessons on leadership and personal and corporate branding. Her experience is a great resource for anyone looking to navigate the future of work and succeed in their professional life. In this episode, she shares key lessons from her personal branding experiences and advises listeners on essential traits of successful leadership, namely; relevance, resilience, and transparency. We also discuss the importance of building trusted relationships with clients and understanding the B2B landscape, as well as the HR role becoming more strategic in terms of skills development and diversity and inclusion.  Listen to this episode to learn from Victoria's journey and gain insights into modern leadership practices. Key Takeaways - Introduction: focusing on a different approach to leadership  - Victoria Pelletier's background in corporate leadership - Overcoming adversity in youth - Advancement through work ethic and skills - Lessons learned: staying relevant, building a strong personal brand, and resilience  - The importance of transparency and relationship building in business  - Why it's important to avoid a political culture of empire building  - The need for adaptation and using our brains  -  Victoria shares a personal branding exercise and suggests resources you can use for this  - Successful relationship building - Managing change and transformation - How poor communication and management lead to failure  - The hybrid model of remote and in-office work  - Connection to purpose and alignment with values  - Strategic hr role in skills development and planning  - The importance of diversity and inclusion - Productivity and culture in the workplace - The need for education and focus on clear deliverables  - Compensation based on experience and productivity  - Implementing policies and procedures that prioritize engagement and productivity  - Victoria Pelletier's achievements and inspirational speaking career Quotes The Future of Workforces with Victoria Pelletier: "Life is changing. The advent of AI is going to change all of our jobs. But the reality is that you really have to understand what's happening in workforces today, what's happening and how can we think about our workforce for the future."Managing Change in Business: "Change is inevitable. Leadership has to be out in front of it. They actually have to forecast it to some degree, and then they have to have everyone trust that they're going to take them through it well."Relationship-Based Selling: "Relationship-based selling is not about your product, it's not about your service, it's not about your company. It's not even about you, the salesperson. It's about them, the prospect, the customer. It's about understanding what their issues are, what their needs are, what their pain points are, what they're trying to achieve." Connect with Victoria Website - https://victoria-pelletier.com/  LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoriapelletier/  Twitter - https://twitter.com/PelletierV29 

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the Elite Professionals in Coaching Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E.P.I.C. Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/--At With Purpose, we have a heart for people and a mind for business. That is why we have created this 6 month Masterclass. Business owners just like you will be learning together from leadership experts and one another to launch your profits to the next level. Learn from expert leaders to reshape, reorder, and revive your business through tailored action plans.Click here to learn more: http://grow.withpurposellc.com/launch/

Hear how planning for the future means loving change I worked with Jennifer Kluge several years ago on a Blue Ocean Strategy workshop. Her organization, the National Association for Business Resources, was focused wholly on businesses in Michigan, offering important services from insurance products to support with accounts receivables. As CEO, Jennifer has catapulted NABR into a national initiative that supports businesses with best practices, training and development, insights, leadership, and a range of programs reflecting the needs of industry today—such as rebuilding talent, focusing on wellness and burnout, and helping businesses rebuild their cultures in a new hybrid workplace, among other things. I love her message: Don't be afraid to fail. Something we all need to hear. Watch and listen to our conversation here What is the right strategy for an uncertain future? This is what I worked on with Jennifer and her leadership teams. I remember at the time that my Michigan clients were struggling with talent flight. Students were leaving the state after graduation, and industries were trying to figure out their own futures. Fast forward to the pandemic and now the post-pandemic years, and Detroit, where Jennifer is located, is on the rebound, as is Michigan. Between the automotive industry, Rocket mortgages and loans, and IT incubators, lots of new businesses have successfully made it through the pandemic and are now rebuilding the economy of the state. But Jennifer learned something very important during the pandemic, namely that the challenges of the past had changed, forcing companies to rethink how they were going to survive into the future. In this podcast, you will hear the journey that she has been on as she has built her association into a major resource for companies across the U.S. You can connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn or her company's website, the National Association for Business Resources. Is your business struggling with change? Give these blogs and podcasts a try:  Blog: Okay, Okay, I'm Ready To Change. How Do I Do It? Blog: Hate Change? Anthropology Can Make You and Your People Love It! Podcast: Valerio Pascotto and Amit Raikar—Yes Change Is Painful But It's Necessary! Podcast: Rita McGrath—Don't Run From Change, Embrace It! Additional resources for you My two award-winning books: Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Businessand On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights Our website: Simon Associates Management Consultants   Read the transcript of our podcast here Andi Simon: Welcome to On the Brink With Andi Simon. I'm Andi Simon, your host and your guide. And remember, my job is to help you see, feel and think in new ways so you can change. That's not easy because your brain often hates me. I can't tell you how many clients who hire me immediately hate me, because I'm doing something that the brain says, Oh, please stop, stop trying to make me better. I know I need to be but it's hard to do. So I go looking for people who are going to help you do the same thing: see things through a fresh lens. People ask me, What does an anthropologist know? I was asked the other day at a conference, What do you do? I said, I hang out. And they laughed. And I said, No, my job is to help you see things differently, not to necessarily build a new sandbox, but to at least see the edges of what you're doing so you can see what you might be missing. And my first book, On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights, was about all my clients who got stuck or stalled. So Jennifer Kluge is my guest today. And Jennifer is interesting to me to share her thoughts with you. I worked with Jennifer and her team a number of years ago. We did a Blue Ocean Strategy workshop. And they were quite stuck or stalled. But trying to figure out, Where are we going? What else could we do? Jennifer, thanks for coming today because I want to share what you did. It was great fun to see you then and to continue to see you now. Welcome. Jennifer Kluge: Thank you so much indeed for having me. This is fun to talk about our journey and what's happened and what others can learn from. So thank you for having me. Andi Simon: Help our video watchers and our listeners on our podcast know more about Jennifer. You've had a journey. And it's always important to sort of set the stage for why people should listen to you. Because it hasn't just happened, you didn't jump out there. It was in stages, you have seen it, you built it, you've carved it. It's a big piece of playdough that you've made into something big and special. Just let me add one thing. Jennifer is the CEO of the National Association for Business Resources. Now she's going to tell you how that has pulled together a whole lot of stuff, Corp! Magazine, Best and Brightest. But Jennifer, a little bit more about who Jennifer is. Jennifer Kluge: Oh, gosh, that's a loaded question. Let's start with a business perspective. You know, I started my career in human resources. And the whole goal was, I wanted to help people, but I wanted to use business, I wanted to be in business. But I wanted to help people within business. So I've landed in human resources. I was one of the first graduating classes where it was actually called human resources. So I'm dating myself there. And then later on, I added strategic planning and marketing to my background. As far as my education goes, I was in the corporate world and it wasn't talking to me. I wanted to continue that mission of helping people. So the opportunity came to work for NABR, and I jumped at it, and some 25 years later, here I am. And quite honestly, that whole theme of helping people has been throughout my business career, whether it's my teammates, mentoring them, whether it's our clients. During the pandemic, we sat down as a team. I had all my team leaders, and we said, I said, How are we going to navigate this? And we came out with, We're going to help as many people as possible. And that enlightened us to unglue some things. We were able to launch so many programs that helped thousands of people through the pandemic and I'm super proud of that. Andi Simon: You know, your personal expression, your brand, your answer to the question, it's a very powerful one because there's purpose. There may be profit. And we do need profit so that we can pay our folks and they can all make living. But what mattered most to you is, How do I help people do what they have to do? Not what I have to do. So talk a little bit about your evolution as a business because when we met, if I remember correctly, your organization was providing some insurance products, some support for accounts payable and receivables. They were also doing tactical and practical solutions that smaller midsize businesses could use. It was an association of businesses helping each other and it's come a long way and tell me the journey, a little bit about the business, because part of it reflects you, not just them. Jennifer Kluge: Well, you know, we ignite greatness in companies in their people. And so we kind of pivoted from, Here's what we're doing, to Here's our mission, here's our purpose. And by shifting to that, we were able to think differently and offer different solutions to companies. So yeah, there's the pre-pandemic story and the post-pandemic story. You helped us pre-pandemic unglue the brain so to speak, as far as strategic planning. Everybody on my team knew who André Rieu was. And we used it in every meeting, every board meeting. We built the André Rieu story, and this is what we want to do: we want to change who we are in a way that is tenacious and has ingenuity. So for those that are listening and don't know André very well, you used the story of André Rieu and how he changed the whole orchestral experience from kind of boring to exciting and fun and a value and got everyone involved in classical music. So we used that example for years before the pandemic on how we wanted to change. And I think the secret there is that we know that success comes from a series of failures. And I think too, there's an element of, the more you fail, the more confidence you have. And having an important event, like the pandemic, and then you get through it, and you're crushing it through the pandemic, I think that builds confidence, not only in yourself, but in your team. And so it's the combination of knowing that we have to fail in order to succeed, and releasing yourself from the fear. I think for every CEO, there's kind of a thing, Not while I'm at the helm, and, It's not going down with me at the helm. So I think there's this fear out there for CEOs, a subliminal fear, that you might fail. And once you release yourself from that and have confidence, hey, you're not going to fail. No matter what happens, you're going to get through it. I think that releases you to think more Blue Ocean Strategy. So there's the philosophical, and then there is the actual doing the work. And doing the work is trial, we did a lot of pilots. So during the pandemic for the Best and Brightest companies we work for, we launched seven new cities. So we pivoted. I hate that word. Now, I hate the word pivot. Everyone hates it. We refocused. We shifted and we had a majority of the things that we did were in person. Across the country, we had conferences across the United States. So when that element went away, it liberated us to launch more cities for regional competitions. So we had our biggest growth during the pandemic because we were released from fear, I guess you could say, and Blue Ocean does this. It says, Okay, this is something strategic here. But there's opportunity in it. Andi Simon: What is the Best and Brightest? I've had some clients who are recognized as among the best and the brightest. So I'll put this in context for the listener or the viewer. Blue Ocean Strategy is not about competing in the market, it's about creating a new market, thinking about non-users and unmet needs, not simply more of the same cheaper, and then being free to do what Jennifer was talking about: to begin to experiment with new ways to do very important things. Because we don't know what we don't know. And I always say never waste a crisis. I never want another pandemic, but don't waste a crisis because as you listen to her talk about the Best and Brightest, it went from nice to very nice, and from some people benefiting to lots of people benefiting, all because of a crisis. What is the Best and Brightest? Jennifer Kluge: So the Best and Brightest is a series of programs that we score and rethink excellence. So there's the Best and Brightest of wellness and there's the Best and Brightest companies to work for. We put companies through the gauntlet. How do you treat your employees? We have 10 different scoring categories and we have an extensive survey to the employer. But we also validate that by surveying the employees at the end of going through these companies so they can see how they ranked. They see where their engagement levels are and they get a plethora of tools and services to help guide them with their talent. Now, that was our core. Since then we've launched all kinds of tools and resources. We have thousands of best practices that we now share through the Best and Brightest programs. So thousands of best practices, and then we've opened it up to CEOs and thought leadership best practices, diversity and inclusion, team bonding and hybrid work, digital engagement. So we have this whole plethora of what I call deliverables but it would be of value to the business community that came from the pandemic, quite honestly. But, what I like about the pandemic, not that we all had to go through it, but what I liked about it is that it gave you the excuse to go bigger. Andi Simon: And you didn't run the other way because I've heard of people who went smaller, and they shrunk. And they decided to reduce their staffing and they fled. Instead, you turned fear into an opportunity. And you parked it on the side and said, What do I have to be afraid of? What's the worst that could happen? You know, let's go help people because those deliverables are really a resource, as you call it. A business resource for people who need to know, How do I do this? Where are they going to turn? To a university when they're shut down too? And they're going to go to their association. Well, they weren't sure what they were doing. But you filled an unmet need of a huge proportion across the country. And people came to say, I'm not sure who you are, but I really liked what you have to do. Am I right? Jennifer Kluge: Correct. Correct. And we went, like I said, we got our team leaders together. And we said, What role do we want to play here? When times are tough, that's when people lean on their associations. And so we jumped in. We were answering legal questions. There were all these mandates and what have you. I mean, we were working around the clock. We felt we had to help as many people as possible...you know, people's jobs, livelihood, income, food on the table. So we felt a strong mission to help people and we still do. It's carried on to now. We've always felt that as a service organization that we have a significant job to play. Andi Simon: What's interesting for our listeners to think about is, here we are, we're facing a battle. We're not quite sure if we're trained for it. But we know that people have unmet needs, and I have a hunch those calls came through. You are a day ahead of them. It wasn't as if there was a whole lot of time studying the legal ramifications of the mandates that had to be done. Or what do I do to build a collaborative culture when people are in different places doing it in different ways? How do I keep them from getting phished, and having cybersecurity? And all of a sudden, the questions were beyond and all I bet you could do is say, Hang on, I'll be right back. Let me find out. Am I right? You were the go-to. Jennifer Kluge: Right. And I gotta tell you, Andi, no past emergencies prepared you for this. And what I noticed is, more seasoned people that have been through the Great Recession, have been through other hard times within their own careers in their own companies. Those were the ones that were like, Oh, yeah, I know what this muscle is. Let's roll up our sleeves. I don't think people realized how long the run was gonna be. We definitely knew that we had to use those muscles. Andi Simon: Real important point, because people who they didn't think were leaders rose to leadership, and people who they thought were their leaders didn't know what to do or how to perform. And so you know, don't waste them or waste a crisis, even for your own development. So that's really, really interesting. As you were going through it, was there a case or two that really stood out as something that was quite exemplary, either in a performance by a person or an area that you found was in tremendous demand, and people didn't know where to go and we rose to that. Something that you can illustrate? Jennifer Kluge: Well, I think what's coming to my mind is the themes that are still going on there. There's a lot of themes around talent right now. Wellness and well-being in the workplace, mental health and workplace burnout, hybrid work. There is a lot that we continue to see in that space that has not gone down at all. It's really interesting because some of these business trends are the inability to look to the future and predict things. That's a frustration at the C-suite level. So different themes are coming out. But they were the themes that were there three years ago; they're still here. What's the future look like? We have a lot of space and talent so we see a lot of the woes related to keeping and retaining talent. And there's been a lot of mergers and acquisition activity, a lot of culture merges and a lot of change. So, I mean, this is a great topic. If somebody can manage change and thrive and change, they thrive in business. If you are going to excel in business, you have to love change, you have to drive change, and you have to bring others with you to drive change, and you have to make it fun and exciting for them as well. So you can't be in business and think that things are fine, status quo. Well, it's weird. Andi Simon: Well, but just think about the things you just highlighted, because I think they are classic problems. How do you attract and retain people, but it's on steroids, or to use that expression: the Great Resignation. Your people may have resigned and have second thoughts, but it was a catalytic moment for employers to realize that they don't really own anybody. They're not really committed. And then I have had endless conversations about why did they leave? I said, Why don't you ask them? And what you find is that what they needed wasn't what you were focused on. You were focused on what you needed. And we flipped it all. Stop thinking about what I need, think about what we need and what that person is looking for. Because if you don't understand that, it's no different than a customer. You know, they aren't that different as people and they are looking for something to give them their own purpose and their own reason for staying with you. And they're willing to go jump off with everyone else and see what else is around. They may come back but the damage is done. They too can say it didn't work out. So what? But what's interesting is that you made a big point: the times, they are changing, I think Bob Dylan sang that in the 60s. I love the lyrics to that song because they're today. And I think they are always. When you talk about this, though, the National Association for Business Resources is also migrating in some ways. You're taking your own business, and changing as it comes to respond. And I love your pilots. I always love pilots because we don't really know, so let's try it and maybe we'll get part of it. Where do you see your own future? Because that's a big topic for your CEOs. Can you share with CEOs what you see, because you're a little bit ahead of them. Jennifer Kluge: In what way Andi? As far as where the business world is going? Or where are organizations going? Andi Simon: Well, you can do the first after the second. I want to know where the Association is going because you're responding to what people come to you with. You are anticipating, but you also are growing yourselves where many of you are in your future. Jennifer Kluge: So we're going through that right now. We are now finally able to launch our own strategic plan versus what the market tells us we need to do. So it's refreshing to get back to strategic planning and say, Here's where we want to go, here's where we're willing to drive. So we want to expand some of our work on best practices. We have all these wonderful resource guides. I do interviews like this with CEOs to find out what their secret sauce is, as it relates to talent. You're gonna see a lot more quick and dirty tools and resources. That's where we're going. We're gonna probably be launching some new programs. We have some wonderful endeavors that we do at our headquarters in Michigan that you'll probably see outside of Michigan within the next couple years. We don't let anything go too long without a big change or a big launch. And there's a lot of past launches that didn't work. I remember around 15 years ago, we did this online digital education and training program. A leadership program for small businesses. And I thought it was gonna be so cool. And we launched it, did a lot of marketing, and it didn't take. But gosh, if we had launched that this year, you know...we do have some wonderful training programs. We have leadership development, training programs, and what have you. But it's so funny, if you live long enough, right? You're in this long enough. That old tie from the 70s becomes a hit. Andi Simon: To your point, so I have three leadership academies operating, one for the fourth year, one for its fifth year. And when they went pandemic style, we went remote in our pack, and now we're sort of hybrid. But you know, only 18% of the companies in the US have training programs. And they expect their folks to be learning how to do things. In healthcare, I was always appalled that we would move a nurse up from nurse to nurse manager and tell her to wing it. I mean, it was like, Oh, how do I matter? Well, that's different from being a nurse and that's not. And then the ward manager became the leader. And what's the difference between one and the other? So there are some real profound transformations in organizations today, and how we get things done. And I also think, generational transitions. You know, Boomers are not Gen Xs, not Gen Ys. I've had folks where the Gen Xers are translating the Gen Ys to the Boomers so they could get along. And then you have the Zs and the As coming behind them. And the world is very complicated. And it's an interesting time. At one point, I had clients in Michigan and they all were struggling with the migration of people after college from Michigan. Has that changed, are people staying. Jennifer Kluge: In fact, we're hosting our National Summit in Detroit so people can see how cool and hip Detroit is now. I think the phrase Comeback City is very accurate. In fact, we moved our offices to downtown Detroit to be a part of the change in the resurgence. There's so many wonderful things happening in Michigan now. Again, talk about Blue Ocean, there's an opportunity right there. The cost of living is lower here. Land is cheaper here. A lot of people took advantage of the low interest rates, and they grew their businesses. So yeah, I would highly recommend that if you have not been to Michigan or Detroit or Grand Rapids in a while, you should come check it out. There's some pretty cool cities here. And we're doing some really incredible things. But to answer that other question that you had about what are the trends we're seeing right now, it's very interesting to see this transition right here in this moment. There are some companies that are thriving and can't hire enough talent. There's other industries that they're letting people go. We're at the beginning of this change of economy, where you have this group thriving and this group not thriving. So I think there's going to be another shift soon for employers to really focus on. The other interesting thing is hybrid work, and how that affects culture and creates subcultures. And we are seeing a lot of issues around, Do we have digital employees? Do we force them to come back to the office? Do we not force them to come back? Do we need them to come back because the economy is really hurting our operations and it's time? Those kinds of questions. I think that a lot of people are swimming in that right now. Andi Simon: Well, you know, it's interesting, I had done a podcast with a gentleman who had a book about how to manage a totally remote workforce, Running Remote. There are others that are global, that have been for a long time completely remote. And then I've been called to come in and help with a culture of organizations who have a flywheel of hires and fires and hires, and they leave because they think it is a bad culture. And being an anthropologist who studies culture and helps companies change their culture and knowing that people don't know what their culture is, they're not even quite sure what they want to create out of it, which makes it intentional. And that creates a whole new platform for thinking about what it is you're really trying to do. What is it you missed? I have a wonderful client and they have a brand new office that was completed in March of the beginning of the pandemic, and nobody wants to come in. And their folks, they have 70 employees, they say to us, Why do I have to drive an hour in and an hour back to sit there to do the same work I can do here? And the CEO wants to be with people. I mean, he's a social fellow, and really just wants the socializing part of it. It's interesting what the pressure is, and how efficient you can be or how social and effective you are. And it really reflects who you are as much as anything. And I don't want my listeners to underestimate the power of me and who I'm looking for, as opposed to we and what we need to be effective here. I had a client ask, Why do you think people are leaving? Well, because it's not the culture that it was before. I mean, nobody left before. Well, they did too, but they seem to be moving faster now. And I said, So, let's take a look at what's going on. But these are interesting times, aren't they? Jennifer Kluge: Very, very different. So I think we're at the beginning of a new era of how business is done and how talent works. It's going to be very, very interesting to see what best practices come out of this. And quite honestly, it is different. You know, there's truth to both sides, right? To the companies that want to bring people back in person, it's much easier to communicate and engage in a group, in person. Training is a huge issue, bringing people in with the right skill sets is much harder now. Training people for their job is much harder. Imagine a supervisor that's digital and an employee that's in person. So there are a lot of issues now. And that's what we're hearing about. So what we're doing as an organization is, we're saying, Okay, this is what this company is doing, here's the best practice on that side, here's the best practice on this side, but you have to fit it for your culture. You can't just take a best practice from another company and plop it in. It has to be shaped and molded for your company's personality. Andi Simon: And it's important to figure out what your customer's personality is. Jennifer Kluge: Well, I'm blessed because the Best and Brightest companies to work for and the companies that we work with, they're above average, they think differently. They're more elite thinkers. It's a community of really smart, cutting-edge companies. So I have the pleasure of seeing the best. But it's our job to share what they're doing with others, right? So that's an expensive expectation. Going through the programs, we're gonna share your secret sauce, but it's also a gift. Andi Simon: And there's nothing better than the gift of kindness, of sharing, and then celebrating. And I do think that says getting exactly the gift you have. So I'm absolutely having a blast listening to you. I love Michigan, it's been a good world for me to have clients in and that's how we met. A couple of things you'd like our listeners not to forget? They always remember the ending even better than the beginning. One or two things that they should keep in mind that you've learned in building your business? Or as you work with your Best and Brightest who are building theirs. Jennifer Kluge: A success comes from a series of failures. Don't be scared to fail. And it's about you. It has nothing to do with you. Take the emotion out of it, the emotion out of decision-making, the emotion out of your personal impact and the best road for decision-making. Andi Simon: You know, years ago I taught. I was a visiting professor at Washington University teaching entrepreneurship, and some of the entrepreneurs I brought in to talk for their case studies said, "I opened three businesses. That one worked, that one didn't. I never failed" And that's a little like what you're saying. Let's distance the business from ourselves and make sure that we understand that sometimes things happen for good or for not, that's part of it, but it isn't necessarily all of us that's doing it. I had two things I didn't hear from you. I want you to be free from failure. The fear of failure is what impedes you from doing the best things, the right things, or knowing what you could do. And the other thing is that this is a time for rethinking talent. And I think all of the things you talked about, whether it's well-being, and that's a really big area, or it's burnout, or it's hybrid or it's culture, people are herd animals. We have survived because of our work together. We've evolved because we could really do things better together. So a great book is called The Secret of our Success. And our success has been because we did it together, not alone. You let that happen. What a gift. Thank you, Jennifer, thank you for joining me today. Jennifer Kluge: Thank you, Andi. So it's always a pleasure to chat with you and get your wisdom. Andi Simon: Well, I'm glad it's been so impactful for you, but it's fun for me to share it as well, for my listeners, and my viewers. Thank you for coming. Remember my books, Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business and On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights are both available. They've done extremely well. They won us awards, and they share the stories of people like Jennifer's customers, their clients. And they are like Jennifer who have smashed the myths tof what women can do. My new book comes out in September. It's called Women Mean Business. It's the wisdom of 101 trailblazing women and it is truly an extraordinary experience to listen to 101 women tell you their experiences, a little like Jennifer has done today. What are the wisdoms that we want you to share so we can elevate you and inspire you and help you get to where you need to go. And I think that it is a time of transformation for business, but also for women in business. So for all of you who come, thank you so much. Have a wonderful day. Stay safe, stay healthy. Jennifer, thank you again. It's been such fun. Goodbye now. Bye bye.

The single most important thing I did for my business was when I took my healing seriously and allowed myself to heal from inside in order to conquer my current strategic setbacks. Join me as I dive into what that looks like and how it was possible.    My name is Aubrey and I am an intuitive Coach and healer. For the last 15 years, I have been working one-on-one with my clients to reach their ultimate potential. And I ran a photography business for the last 8 years as well. My combined work of being a Reiki Master, Subconscious Release Technique Practitioner and a creative entrepreneur has taught me so much about our thoughts impact every aspect of life and I want to share it all with you.  Because you know what, I've been there. But at some point, I stopped letting life happen to me, and I created the life that I knew I deserved all along.   Join me weekly as I dive into the most common thought patterns that show up in our industry and give you practical solutions to release them never to bother you again. Imagine a life with less stress and free from everyday triggers.   Join the email list    Join the FB community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/groundedwithaubrey   Deep Healing for the Creative Soul Course- https://abstoryteller.com/intuitive-coach

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the Elite Professionals in Coaching Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E.P.I.C. Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/--

How do you create a successful transformation when markets are unstable and business changes are inevitable? Brad's Deals re-imagined their content technology and created a new world that the content teams had to adapt to... And then the market conditions turned and the whole company had to adapt again. In this episode, hear from Director of Software Engineering Keith Mazanec about the lessons he's learned for creating change while building trust through turbulence.Timestamps:1:00 Why content is the lifeblood of Brad's Deals1:28 The challenge that led the company to re-imagine their content technology4:25 Why initially there was fear amongst the content team5:08 How Keith helped to change the mindset inside the organization and build confidence6:39 A challenging year 07:04 Rebuilding trust after layoffs07:53 The importance of writing everything down8:23 Planning for business continuity

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the Elite Professionals in Coaching Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E.P.I.C. Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.comCheck out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/--

Lori Michele Leavitt, “The Pivot Catalyst”, has coached, consulted, and trained hundreds of leaders around the world to achieve their objectives and generate extraordinary momentum. Her teachings guide leaders to generate positive influence throughout their organizations, strengthen alignment, and catalyze momentum. In today's episode, we discuss ways to drive organizational change, ways to make changes stick, and why clarity is a leader's most important skill.

Thank you for listening to the newest episode of the Elite Professionals in Coaching Podcast! Did you love this episode of the E.P.I.C. Podcast? I would appreciate it if you shared it with a few people that you think would also be interested in listening to this week's topic.Also, be sure to subscribe so you know when the next episode will be arriving! Got an extra minute? Give this podcast a review on the platform you are using. It would be greatly appreciated.--If you want to check out With Purpose, you can do it here: WithPurposellc.com.Check out the With Purpose blog: https://withpurposellc.com/blogConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/withpurpose-consulting/With Purpose Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WithPurposellc/Follow With Purpose on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/withpurposeconsulting/--At With Purpose, we have a heart for people and a mind for business. That is why we have created this 6 month Masterclass. Business owners just like you will be learning together from leadership experts and one another to launch your profits to the next level. Learn from expert leaders to reshape, reorder, and revive your business through tailored action plans.Click here to learn more: http://grow.withpurposellc.com/launch/

In today's episode we get to sit down with Dylan and Jesse to discuss their businesses and how Dylan is making a big change in 2023 and moving forward. Along with the business change is coming a pretty cool name change as well. Guess the correct name and get some great swag from Dylan. Connect with us below:Stephenson IG- https://www.instagram.com/solowcutslandscaping/Wiener Landscape- https://www.instagram.com/weidnerlandscape/ Online Store-https://stan.store/GrowingGreenPodcast Register for Synkd Live-https://www.synkd.io/live-event Schedule a demo for SynkedUP- https://synkedup.com/?fpr=jeremiah61 Send hate mail or encouragement to P.O. Box 1091 Trussville, Al. 35173 Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/growinggreenlandscapes/ Email-ggreenlandscapes@gmail.com ISOtunes Save 10% with code GG10-https://isotunes.com XMAS Mentor-https://course.xmasmentor.com/course?affiliate_id=3977520 UZMARKETING Yard Signs-https://lddy.no/1d3v5

Lee goes back to basics and discusses some of the common pitfalls of business change. You may recognise some of these problems in your own change team and systems as many people have before. Listen in and see if you can avoid these problems before they occur. KEY TAKEAWAYS Immediate success and instant change is rare to impossible. Change is a process and a journey.  Communicate clearly to achieve change. Be sure your message has been received. Involve the people who are in the process to develop the change. It is more likely to be successful with buy-in from the initiators.  Be flexible. Be ready for fluid change when encountering problems in a plan.   Take care of your people. Involvement in change decreases the fear of it.  Celebrate success. Recognise things that are going right, nor just things that go wrong.  BEST MOMENTS “There is no moment when a monkey learns to ride a skateboard. It's a process.” ‘Just consider are you involving enough people? And how are you involved with those people?'  ‘Leading change can be stressful and it's really important to take care of your team or the people and peers that you're working with during this process.'  VALUABLE RESOURCES Business Problems Solved Podcast          ABOUT THE HOST For the last 15 years, I have been a multi-sector internal or external business improvement consultant, building the improved capability of individuals, teams and businesses. In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my two young children Jack & India. I also enjoy listening to and reading business & personal development material. Lee Houghton is “THE Business Problem Solver”, a Management Consultant, CX Specialist and Keynote Speaker. CONTACT METHOD You can contact Lee Houghton on 07813342194 Lee@leehoughton.com  https://www.linkedin.com/in/lhoughton/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

January series 31 Reasons To Grow Your Side Business Day 16!Complete this form and we will keep you updated.The Side Business Vault Early Access

Red Box, the AI voice software specialist, is enabling enterprise businesses to capture and unlock the power of their voice data to drive digital transformation, AI innovation, and compliance – all while giving their customers full ownership of their data. Voice data, both from internal communications and customer interactions, is commonly overlooked in informing an enterprise's decision-making. However, it is amongst the most powerful data sets a business can own! Pete Ellis, Red Box's Chief Product Office, talks about the many ways voice data is the fuel for change businesses need and provides a crucial foundation for digital transformation and AI deployments. We also discuss how data ownership is a key part in unlocking the benefits from AI and analytics tools, and how many businesses are losing out on this valuable asset because of things like paywalls and extra charges for exporting data.