Podcasts about upskill

We all feel the urgency: learn to use AI, or risk falling behind at work. And we all know there's an upside: AI can reduce tedious tasks, streamline operations, and boost output. But knowing is half the battle (maybe even less) and implementing AI needs to happen across an entire organization. So what does it take to start?Well, here at WaitWhat (the company behind this podcast!) we paused all operations for three days to find out. From editorial curation to visual design to event planning, we split into teams for an “AI Sprint.” And this Pioneers of AI episode takes you to the starting blocks on the track with us, as we test new tools, discover their limitations, and find where AI can deliver on its promise.Learn more about Pioneers of AI: http://pioneersof.ai/Follow Pioneers of AI on all channels: https://linktr.ee/pioneersofaiSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Most managers think their job is to have the answers.But the managers who create the strongest teams often do the opposite: they ask better questions.The challenge is that under pressure, most of us default to fixing, advising, and jumping in with solutions. And while that may feel efficient in the moment, it can unintentionally shut down ownership, confidence, and independent thinking on our teams.Fortunately, this week's guests explain why coaching doesn't have to mean hour-long development conversations or formal mentoring sessions. Instead, they share how small “coachable moments” in everyday work conversations can transform the way people think, learn, and perform.Laura Ashley-Timms and Dominic Ashley-Timms are leadership experts, executive coaches, and authors of The Answer Is A Question. Their work focuses on helping managers use operational coaching techniques to develop more confident, capable, and engaged teams through the power of purposeful inquiry.In this conversation, we explore how to identify coachable moments, the kinds of questions that build confidence and critical thinking, and why managers who stop rushing to provide answers often unlock far greater performance from their teams.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:14) Why managers default to giving answers instead of coaching(05:27) What makes a moment “coachable”(08:43) How operational coaching builds confidence and ownership(12:08) The difference between helpful questions and advice disguised as questions(14:31) The Ques-Gen framework for asking better questions(18:21) How purposeful inquiry creates new insights and learning(19:27) Questions that unintentionally shut people down(22:20) How to share your ideas without dominating the conversation(24:38) The leadership shift from problem-solver to talent developer(30:10) [Extended Episode Only] How to decide if a situation is truly coachable(33:36) [Extended Episode Only] Why small coaching moments create long-term team growth(35:17) [Extended Episode Only] The growing pressure managers face today(37:24) [Extended Episode Only] Why “accidental managers” are burning out(38:56) [Extended Episode Only] Reframing management as enabling others to succeed

We all feel the urgency: learn to use AI, or risk falling behind at work. And we all know there's an upside: AI can reduce tedious tasks, streamline operations, and boost output. But knowing is half the battle (maybe even less) and implementing AI needs to happen across an entire organization. So what does it take to start?Well, here at WaitWhat (the company behind this podcast!) we paused all operations for three days to find out. From editorial curation to visual design to event planning, we split into teams for an “AI Sprint.” And this Pioneers of AI episode takes you to the starting blocks on the track with us, as we test new tools, discover their limitations, and find where AI can deliver on its promise.Learn more about Pioneers of AI: http://pioneersof.ai/Follow Pioneers of AI on all channels: https://linktr.ee/pioneersofaiSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We all feel the urgency: learn to use AI, or risk falling behind at work. And we all know there's upside: AI can reduce tedious tasks, streamline operations, and boost output. But knowing is half the battle (maybe even less) and implementing AI needs to happen across an entire organization. So what does it take to start? Well, here at WaitWhat (the company behind this podcast!) we paused all operations for three days to find out. From editorial curation to visual design to event planning, we split into teams for an “AI Sprint.” And this Pioneers of AI episode takes you to the starting blocks on the track with us, as we test new tools, discover their limitations, and find where AI can deliver on its promise. Learn more about Pioneers of AI: http://pioneersof.ai/ Follow Pioneers of AI on all channels: https://linktr.ee/pioneersofai At the center of AI is people, so we want to hear from you! Share your experiences with AI — or ask us a burning question — by leaving a voicemail at 601-633-2424. Your voice could be featured in a future episode!

AI can now answer questions faster, cheaper, and sometimes better than humans. So where does that leave managers and teams?For many leaders, the instinct is to use AI to speed up execution and automate tasks. But the bigger challenge isn't getting faster answers. It's learning how to ask better questions, navigate uncertainty, and create environments where people are encouraged to think critically, experiment, and complement AI.Fortunately, this week's guest explains why the future of work won't belong to the people who always have the right answers but to the teams that know how to explore problems with AI as their partner.Dr. Vivienne Ming is a neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and author of Robot-Proof: When Machines Have All the Answers, Build Better People. Her work focuses on the intersection of artificial intelligence, human potential, and innovation, helping organizations understand which uniquely human skills become even more valuable in an AI-driven world.In this conversation, we explore the difference between well-posed and ill-posed problems, why curiosity and intellectual humility matter more than expertise, and how managers can build teams that think more creatively alongside AI instead of becoming dependent on it.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(03:42) Why AI excels at “well-posed” problems(07:00) The kinds of problems humans still solve best(10:41) Why uncertainty makes managers uncomfortable(13:20) How AI can create the illusion of understanding(15:13) The human skills that become more valuable in an AI-driven world(19:37) What “hybrid intelligence” between humans and AI looks like(23:18) Why curiosity and intellectual humility outperform expertise alone(27:12) How productive disagreement improves team thinking(32:19) [Extended Episode Only] Building resilience, curiosity, and learning through failure(35:48) [Extended Episode Only] Why rewarding “productive mistakes” matters(40:56) [Extended Episode Only] Using constructive criticism to generate better ideas

Follow Emil on LinkedIn & Twitter (X) Learn more about FlashPass: flashpass.com (or search FlashPass upskilling) 00:00 FlashPass: Upskilling for the AI Era 02:08 From Dorm Room to Millions: Emil's Origin Story 03:47 The $65K Summer: Tennis, COVID & Finding His Lane 07:01 What Is FlashPass? Upskilling America for the AI Era 10:27 AI Won't Just Take Jobs — It's a Feature of Progress 12:40 How FlashPass Works: Intake, Upskill, Match 14:44 Bipartisan Support & Scaling to 20% of America 15:29 Building Courses with Industry Partners 16:49 Working with Government & What's Next 18:30 Where to Find Emil Connect with me on:All my linksBecome a guestSign up for RiversideGet Descript #DigitalMarketing #Branding #PersonalBranding #MarketingInsights #SocialMediaStrategy Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Resilience is often framed as pushing through, staying positive, and powering past challenges.But that version of resilience can backfire, especially for managers trying to support their teams. When leaders jump too quickly into problem-solving or positivity, they can unintentionally make people feel unheard, dismissed, or disconnected.Fortunately, this week's guest shares a more effective approach to building resilience, one that starts with acknowledging what people are actually experiencing and then guides them toward solutions.Jay Abbasi is a leadership coach and former executive who helps individuals and organizations develop resilience, improve performance, and lead through challenges with greater awareness and intention.In this conversation, we explore how to support resilience in others without falling into toxic positivity, practical coaching techniques that help people find their own solutions, and how to lead teams through difficult moments by creating space, trust, and honest dialogue.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:18) Rethinking resilience beyond “just pushing through.”(05:46) Why positivity can sometimes make things worse(09:12) The importance of acknowledging what people are experiencing(12:34) Coaching instead of fixing: helping others find their own solutions(16:08) Powerful coaching questions that shift perspective(19:27) Asking permission before giving advice(22:41) Creating psychological safety through active listening(26:15) Supporting individuals without becoming their therapist(29:38) Leading teams through uncertainty and difficult news(32:56) [Extended Episode Only] Supporting team resilience in real time(33:44) [Extended Episode Only] Why “I hear you” matters more than solutions(36:44) [Extended Episode Only] Coaching techniques to unlock better thinking(40:14) [Extended Episode Only] How to lead team conversations during tough moments

In this episode of DARE: The Time of Your Life, we are looking at Breaking New Ground. At an age when many people are beginning to look for the off switch, some over 50s are inspiring us by dreaming bigger than ever. Like our guest Jamie Durie. The landscape designer and TV host isn’t just 'not winding down', he’s completely upskilling and re-tooling. Join his conversation with host Jean Kittson alongside clinical psychologist and men’s mental health expert Dr Zac Seidler. About the episode – brought to you by Australian Seniors, in partnership with RSPCA. Join Jean Kittson for the seventh season of DARE: The time of your life (formerly Life’s Booming), called Better With Age. Too often ageing is painted as decline. In reality, Australians are living longer, healthier lives and reshaping what “older” looks like. This series flips the script and shows how ageing is not a dirty word but rather a time to be embraced, featuring interviews with extraordinary over 50s refusing to slip quietly into the background. Award-winning landscape designer and sustainability advocate Jamie Durie was once a performer with all-male revue group Manpower, before he realised his passion for horticulture and garden design. Now Jamie is navigating the beautiful chaos of a young family in his 50s, while revolutionising the way we build our homes in TV’s Jamie Durie’s Future House. Dr Zac Seidler is a clinical psychologist, researcher and leading men’s mental health expert. He currently holds dual roles as Global Director of Research at Movember and Associate Professor with Orygen at the University of Melbourne. Watch DARE: The Time of Your Life on YouTube Listen to DARE: The Time of Your Life on Apple Podcasts Listen to DARE: The Time of Your Life on Spotify For more information visit seniors.com.au/podcast Produced by Medium Rare Content Agency -- TRANSCRIPT: Jean Kittson: Welcome back to the podcast, DARE: the Time of Your Life, formerly Life's Booming, brought to you by Australian seniors in partnership with RSPCA. For more episodes, visit seniors.com au/podcast. Hi, I'm Jean Kittson, and this season is called Better With Age, where we are flipping the script and showing you how ageing is not a dirty word, rather it's a time to be embraced. In this episode, we are looking at Breaking New Ground. At an age when many people are beginning to look for the off switch, some over 50s are inspiring us by dreaming bigger than ever. Take our guest, Jamie Durie, the landscape designer and TV host isn't just not winding down, he's completely upskilling and retooling. From navigating the beautiful chaos of a young family in his fifties to revolutionising the way we build our homes with high tech prefab design, Jamie is living proof getting older doesn't automatically mean it's time to start downsizing. Also with us is Dr. Zac Seidler, a clinical psychologist and leading men's mental health expert. Zac is also global Director of Men's Health Research at Movember. Jamie and Zac, I'm so happy to welcome you both to the studio. Welcome. Jamie Durie: Thank you. Yeah, great to be here. Good to meet you, Zac. Zac Seidler: You too, Jamie. Can’t wait to chat. Jean Kittson: I know. Well, it's so exciting to hear what you're doing, Jamie, and you know when people are usually in their fifties, I suppose they start thinking about maybe slowing down or… never crossed your mind? Jamie Durie: Well, I think we, as men, and I'm hoping I'm not alone here, Zac. We only really start working it out in our 40s, and by the time you then reach 50, you go, Hmm, okay, now I know exactly where I wanna land and exactly what I wanna focus on. And I've got the experience behind me where I've made a few mistakes, learnt along the way, and I can apply with accuracy and shoot with a rifle – not a shotgun at your goals, if you like. Because the idea of, kind of, focusing in on the things that I think you’re most passionate about and that are most relevant in your place is, I think, distilling everything you've learned throughout your career. Jean Kittson: Yeah. It's something you come to with experience. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: And as you say, making maybe some mistakes, but then refining, fine tuning where your passion is, is this, like what you are doing now with this prefab. Is it the Prefab housing where you are also doing something called the Infinity Garden? Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: What's… tell us about this project? Jamie Durie: Well this, you know, Future House is the name of the show, and we're now at Channel Nine, which is brilliant, and we've had an amazing season. Basically it's an exploration of modern methods of construction and if we are sitting in the building crisis right now, the housing crisis, and we've got, you know, 1.2 million homes to build over the next five years – how on earth are we gonna achieve that target when we're 87,000 trades short of achieving that target with our conservative ways of building houses? Our houses need to be more energy efficient. They need to be more cost effective. They need to be more structurally sound. They need to be more resilient with increased weather attacks, you know, over the last five, 10 years, we've all seen the floods, the fires, the storms all increasing. And then how do we make it more affordable for everyday Australians so that we can all, you know, get off this renting bus and actually start to own a piece of Australia and be proud of it, but make it more affordable. So that’s what it’s really about. Prefab has come a long way. We're no longer talking about those archaic old ‘kit homes’, they're now beautifully designed, sophisticated homes, some of them, which you can buy at a hardware store at Bunnings these days. Jean Kittson: Wow. Jamie Durie: I don't know whether you've seen that or not, but it's amazing what's happening in this space and we're playing catch up and we wanted to develop a format to talk about those where we could, you know, pass on some of these learnings and create intelligent DIY design where Australians could learn from what we are learning from and help progress the solutions around solving the building crisis. Jean Kittson: Well, I can hear that you are using all your background in, you know, gardens and landscaping and building, but also a maturity that, you know, and in experience and knowledge that comes with age as you personally. And then you taking this knowledge and experience and then putting it into the community for a really important community benefit. How does that… does that make you feel good about your work? Is that what you mean by focusing more, in your 50s? Jamie Durie: Oh, for sure. This is the show I've always wanted to make. Having worked on 56 primetime shows throughout my career, which is a lot, when you only started at kind of 28. It feels like everything's come full circle because, you know, we're not just inspiring people to take up new ideas, but we're instilling them with education and awareness around how to create more sustainable homes, how to tread more lightly on the planet, how to reduce our energy costs, how to tackle the cost of living crisis and how to get more Australian families into more homes faster. Jean Kittson: That's amazing. I mean, from a person… personally, that's a lot of work, Jamie. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson:You don't feel like you should be slowing down, spending more time, you know… Jamie Durie: …weirdly Jean Kittson: …pottering around. Jamie Durie: No, weirdly, the more I dive into this, the more passionate I become and passion creates energy. You know, it just comes from somewhere. You would know this, Zac. You know, I mean, what you guys have created is astonishing and the people's lives that you've touched through the funds raised throughout Movember is absolutely mind blowing. Zac Seidler: Thanks Jamie, I appreciate that. It's been a community effort in a very similar vein, and I think Australians can really get around that type of… Jamie Durie: …Yeah… Zac Seidler: …of grassroots community building when you provide them with the right resources to do so. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: But I love the idea that, you know, I don't, I think that slowing down, that idea of becoming 50 or 60 and starting to slow down, especially because life expectancy is increasing – thank God. Jamie Durie: …Yeah… Zac Seidler: …We're moving, you know, into longer lives, hopefully healthier lives as well. The data is pretty clear that when men start to slow down, bad things happen, to be honest. Retirement is not a good vibe for lots of guys because they have not built the scaffolding around them. They often haven't spent a lot of time with their friends or family over the years because they've been in this provider protector mode for so long, that when it slows down, they go, okay, I'm gonna play golf, I guess, or something and I've never played it before. And how does this work? And who are the guys I'm gonna call? And so, I really like the idea of seeing eras of your life and the fact that as you are maturing and ageing, you are becoming more dynamic in ways and kind of getting rid of the stuff that was a waste of energy, the stress, the anxiety, the trying to do a thousand things at once that I'm probably still doing and hopefully we'll get rid of at some point. But that ability to work out where you want to spend your time and energy for, you know, the next era and then there'll be another one after. That's so important. And I think, you know, Movember has been around for over 20 years and we're now moving into the next stage. We were just this young kid on the block, you know, kind of breaking stuff and trying to work out what's the best way to show up in the charity space and really change men's lives, and it started with a practical joke. It starts with, with something that everyone… Jean Kittson: …A pun, yeah. Zac Seidler: A pun. Exactly. And it moves from that conversation starter really into thousands of programs and a billion dollars plus that we've fundraised over the years. And so many people say that men don't wanna get around this stuff. You know, it's like, oh… Typically it is women leading charity dinners and doing fundraising events and we kind of broke that mould and suggested that if you provide the right framework, something that is about banter and community and mateship and the things that matters to guys and their health. You know, health by stealth is always what we say… Jean Kittson: Yeah, health by stealth… Zac Seidler: Go around, don't hit them on the head with the thing. Jean Kittson: No, Jamie Durie: …that's right. Jean Kittson: Start in a light way with a light, you know, an idea that's fun. And then dig a bit deeper. Jamie Durie: And it's the path of least resistance, isn't it? Because I grew up watching Magnum PI. And there's a Tom Selleck in all of us, where we desperately wanted to grow that mustache, but just didn't feel like there was enough reason to, and this gives us the excuse. Jen Kittson: Yeah. Jamie Durie: To go, oh, I'm doing something good. And I'm also exploring this mustache, which could look terrible on me, but it also could look fantastic. And my Mrs might love it! Zac Seidler: I love the wives and the girlfriends who are just like, ‘make this stop!’ every year. But that is the joy of this thing. And some people find that they can grow a beautiful mustache. We had a whole campaign called Shit Mo’s Save Lives. You've got this wispy thing. It doesn't matter. Jean Kittson: It doesn't matter! Jamie Durie: Growing a mustache doesn't happen overnight. No. And so there's this constant reminder of the cause. And bringing people back, bringing people's minds back every time you look in the mirror, oh, that's why I'm doing this because I'm raising money for this cause. Zac Seidler: And we also want to get around the idea that, you know, November is one month of the year. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: We're lucky to have the pun to stand behind. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: But this is an all-year situation. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: You know, there are guys, whether it's prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and, and suicide prevention, lots of the things that we work in, they don't come and go, you know? They are a part of men's health. They're a part of our families. Our wives deal with them, our children manage this stuff. And so we wanna make this an all year round conversation, and it just gets supercharged in November. Jean Kittson: So what would you say to men who perhaps think they can just stop everything or they've had to stop everything because of health or their age or their jobs finished because of their age and they think they can go out to play golf. But then as you say, they may not have the friends around because they haven't stayed in touch with them, or that. So how do men find a new purpose? Because I think what you are doing, Jamie, is really a progression, a development of everything you've been doing in your past. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: But some men have just spent their whole lives doing one thing. And then suddenly that stops. So how do they find a new sort of purpose, or how can they build on the skills, the knowledge they have? Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jean Kittson: What, what do you say to them? Zac Seidler: I'm very keen for Jamie's thoughts, but the way that I see it, because I see a lot of men in their 50s, 60s… It's funny because lots of guys now are having their midlife crisis in their 30s, which is kind of good because they still have the time to pivot accordingly. But what happens is that, when we get into the 60s, 70s, even, even 80s –– my grandpa's 96 and still kicking; he’s around. He goes into his office every day. I have no idea what he does, but he goes to work, right? So there's a part of that purpose that comes from that, but it's about an expansion really, which is that if you are myopic and you have this singular vision of who you are, and this is all that you can do, when that thing ends, whether you are fired, made redundant, you know, you retire, whatever might take place, you know we're in shifting times at the moment, and without that foresight and without the vulnerability to go, who am I? Taking pause going, who am I? What matters to me? What are my values and how can I go about, you know, picking and choosing lots of different things to spend my time doing, whether that's family, friends, hobbies… You know, it shouldn't just come when you click pause and you go, who am I now? What am I supposed to do? Because that is going to breed catastrophe. It's terrifying for all of us. You need to work your way up to it and realise, there is, each day, a chance to kind of do a little bit more in different fields of your life, water the ground in different areas, and realise that if you are, you know, you can be a one track, you can be a one corporation man your entire life. There's nothing wrong with that. But if it comes at the cost of you never prioritising your kids or your friends or your hobbies, that's just not really what we're here for. We're here to do many different things and to expand and grow. And I always find it very interesting. There's this trope that men don't talk, they don't want to go to therapy, they don't want to discuss what's happening in their lives. And I always, whenever a guy comes in and he is a bit, you know, doesn't have all the words, he grunts a bit. He's silent most of the time. I'm like, why are we here if not to understand ourselves? Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And I think that lots of guys, when they get into those later years, they start to do that work, but it'd be lovely if they could do it a bit earlier. Jamie Durie: I didn't start my career in, you know, finding our future version of our house, you know, like what is the modern method of construction? I'd started in a very different space, where I was in Las Vegas dancing with an all male group called Manpower. You know? Jean Kittson: Dancing very well! Zac Seidler: Well, various people said, you need to talk to Jamie about this. You brought it up, not me! Jamie Durie: No, no. And, but listen, they were the greatest years of my life and, you know, I started when I was 16. I was lucky enough to meet, along my travels, and we toured 14 different countries and played to, you know, sometimes 8,000 women a night at various Zac Seidler: …and that one guy that was forced to be there! Jamie Durie: …entertainment centers… Yeah, in Sun City, in South Africa and Hong Kong and all over the place. And, I got to see a lot of the world, many, many times. Circumnavigated the globe many times before I was even 21. And I think, travel's been, you know, my greatest teacher. They say it's the university of life. And so by the time I got to sort of 23, I was like, okay, what do I really wanna do with my life? And weirdly, I met a garden designer, by the name of Paul Bengay and we got talking. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Jamie Durie: And he took me to his garden design studio and he said, ‘this is what I do,’ and I said, you design gardens for a living. This is amazing. So not only could I help heal the planet by planting more trees. But I can also do it in a creative way that would stimulate the creative side of myself. Right? So before I left Manpower, I enrolled into a horticultural course for four years, and there was that overlap effect where I was still doing shows. Still producing calendars. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Jamie Durie: …and my teachers had copies of my calendar. My horticultural teachers had copies of my calendar in their, in their staff room. And they were laughing at the fact that I was, you know, turning up to school every week, learning the names of plants – three and a half thousand of them – and, and throughout that period, you know, I didn't really graduate until I'd sort of reached, I think 30, but those last few years of my life where I was still doing shows at the Crown Casino in Melbourne and, and Las Vegas in the summer in in America… but I was going to school and studying. That's the pivot. That is… there's that overlap effect. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Overlap, yeah. Jamie Durie: Find what you are passionate about. Start seeding that idea, pushing your way into what is it that I next wanna do and move. And I think my love for the environment started way back then. And then morphed into what I'm doing today. And there's been that overlap into, okay, how are we gonna repair the planet as well? So, you know, I've overlapped the next section of my career out of horticulture and then into environmental work, you know, so I'm… Zac Seidler: It’s so, so values driven. And that's the thing, you know, you see young guys now who all want to be entrepreneurs and I end up seeing them because they're struggling to kind of reach this status that they believe they should reach in order to be successful. But it's get rich quick. And what you're describing is time, it's time, it's effort. Jamie Durie: Yeah Zac Seidler: It requires an understanding of what matters to you. And trial and error and failure and all of that stuff. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Which eventually. That all is the making of a man, you know? Yeah, yeah. Over time and you, you did two things at once, because you've gotta make a living. You've gotta try to work out what matters to you, where you're gonna go next, and you just keep following those open doors rather than going, this has to happen now. Jamie Durie: Oh yeah. Yeah. I remember. I remember doing a Samsung campaign. I was naked. And I was, I was, I finished that campaign and then I'd, I'd literally the next, that afternoon was at Ryde horticultural college studying plants. But, you know, something had to pay the rent, right? Jean Kittson: Yeah that's right… Jamie Durie: …you kind of... Jean Kittson: … it looks like a world, world apart, but you were able to do that. Jamie Durie: …Yeah. Jean Kittson: …follow both. Do this thing you had to do… Jamie Durie: But Zac, you've pointed out something there, which I think is quite important. And I think it sits in all of us as genuine human beings and it's cause-related drive. And the advertising industry call is called this CRM: cause related marketing. But cause-related drive sits in all of us. And when we suddenly tap into something that we feel like… is supporting community, supporting the planet, supporting your fellow human being. There's a different drive inside you that kicks in. You've got it. That's what's driven you with, with your group, over the years. I've got it there. There's, so if you can tap into what is your cause-related drive, you don't really have to find the energy. Zac Seidler: Mm-hmm. Jamie Durie: It finds you… Zac Seidler: That, that is exactly how I feel. Like, lots of people roll their eyes when they ask me, are you, you know, what's your job like, what's a dream job? And I'm like, I'm in it. I'm living it. Jamie Durie: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Zac Seidler: And no one wants to hear this positivity for some reason. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: I'm like, everyone wants to complain all the time. And I'm like. No, I've, I'm having a good time. It's con–– it's nimble, it's constantly dynamic. It changes every day. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: The lives of men, the, the man that shows up in, in front of me, he changes every moment. Let alone all of the other guys around him in the same way that nature constantly adapts over time. Jamie Durie: Yeah. You know, Zac, you're underselling yourself a little bit because Movember started here in Australia. Zac Seidler: Mm-hmm. In 2003. Jamie Durie: Yeah. But now how many countries does it here? Zac Seidler: Over 20. Jamie Durie: And you've raised how much? Zac Seidler: Over a billion Australian. Jamie Durie: That is a huge impact, and those funds get distributed. How… and are you part of the decision making process around that? Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jamie Durie: Tell me, tell me about that. Zac Seidler: So, I, so I lead our research team. So we've got, you know, 20 PhDs across the globe who are asking questions around what's going on for men, what's happening when they engage with health systems; you know, what's happening for new dads? You know, how, how is the GP gonna ask questions about it? To a dad who might be experiencing postnatal depression… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …but isn't aware of it. We're looking at the manosphere in social media to make, you know, men's lives a bit easier so they don't get tricked into some of this stuff, which is… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …which is harming them. So I get to do the research. Then we've got an entire program’s team where we're going to the community, grassroots, and creating programs in local footy clubs for coaches, parents, and young guys… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …to understand the signs, spot the signs, be able to talk with one another when they're struggling. Upskill community, fundamentally, around what to look for. Because I'm sure back in your days, that idea of, like, guys getting around one another at the pub and talking about what is bothering them… Jean Kittson: Yeah, no… Zac Seidler: …what they're feeling, what matters to them, how they wanna show up in their families with their mates. It's a new conversation and we're trying to provide the language for lots of these guys to be able to have those chats. So, we build all of these different programs with community partners. You know, we are not doing this alone. We stand on the shoulders of giants, definitely. But it's just this, this humility, this Australian way kind of where we just find our way into, into grassroots organisations, in York, in the UK, we're in California, in the States, we're in Toronto. We just work out what's working there and we try and ramp it up with them, with the funds that we've raised. Jamie Durie: Yeah. So good. Jean Kittson: Mm-hmm. It is so good. Imagine that it's very regenerative too, because it sounds like there… that at any age you can sort of discover yourself. Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jean Kittson: And find your passion and find the cause that drives you. And this would, so when, when men would reach a certain age, some of them haven't had any relationships – you know, the sort of intimate relationship with their families that a mother might have and their kids. Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jean Kittson: So then they're suddenly in a grandparent role. Then they've, then they've, they've gotta relearn how to connect emotionally, I suppose. Zac Seidler: But you see that, you see, it's beautiful. And I think the, the grandparents, the grandfather's situation in this generation is really unique. Where you see a lot of kids get a bit angry because they're like, I never got this attention. But the way in which grandfathers are going, oh, I was a career man and I spent all day, every day, I missed out on bath time. I didn't get to go and, and watch, you know, him play soccer. I didn't get to do any of these things. And now they're trying to re-parent themselves in a way. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And take back those opportunities that was, you know, taken from them because they weren't purposeful, they weren't able to go, what is actually possible here, and that's also what Movember is trying to do, is open those doors and say, being a man does not mean living within these constraints that you have been sold. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Because they are harming you. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Zac Seidler: They're fundamentally harming you. There's a reason that men die four years younger than women in Australia. That's a big gap, and it largely comes down to preventable reasons. Jamie Durie: …Yeah.. Jean Kittson: …yeah… Zac Seidler: …yeah. Jamie Durie: I'm father to three children. My first child, I had in my early 20s, and I'm a much better father now in my 50s than I was when I was 20, right. And I find very, very early on in my career, I was looking into a great speaker by the name of Anthony Robbins. We've all, we all know who Anthony, but he, there was one little nugget of wisdom that he shared with some of some of his followers, and that was the ‘wheel of life’. And within that wheel of life, you would have community, spirituality, friendship, family, career all that stuff helps the wheel go around. And if one of those pieces of pie was not, kind of, out to its extremity, the wheel doesn't roll. And so I've mentally kind of always tried to keep that check in my life. But more so these days because, it's funny, the more time you put into your kids, the more worthwhile your life feels. It's incredible what they teach you. Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jamie Durie: And I just feel like now I'm, I'm going to battle for my family every day rather than just myself. So it's a much less selfish way of life. But also we've got an enormous responsibility to raise these kids in the very best way that we possibly can and to keep bettering ourselves as parents and humans on a day-to-day basis so that that stuff spills over to them and they become great custodians of the planet and great, great movers and shakers and whatever, whatever it is they want to do. Jean Kittson: Whatever, yes. Jamie Durie: You know, and you've gotta instill that stuff to them, I think. Zac Seidler: So many people ask me to define, like, healthy manhood or masculinity. Because we're talking, we, we so often talk about toxicity and what is broken and what is wrong, and men doing bad things, which takes place. But we don't really have an aspiration. We don't have a message around what is possible. And I think that idea of being in constant sync around this notion of growth that comes in multiple ways within your life, there are all of these quadrants, there are all of these parts of yourself that it doesn't, it's not a day-to-day thing, necessarily. You know, sometimes you're gonna be working really hard and you're not gonna be able to, to be there at dinner, but what do you do to recalibrate the next day? Jean Kittson: Yeah. Zac Seidler: How do you find ways to make sure that that thing is in sync? Jamie Durie: Yeah, Zac Seidler: …because that's what drives distress in guys, and that's what they're not necessarily aware of that when some of those quadrants are falling away. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: … They are feeling less like themselves. Jamie Durie: Yes. Zac Seidler: And it drives them potentially to do some things that are, that are not in their best interest. Like if you're feeling like you're not being the best dad, lots of men start drinking more. Lots of men start pulling themselves away more because their kids start to, you know, rebel. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: When instead what is actually required is a leaning in, and that is that vulnerability that is required rather than this guilt pulling back and saying. This is not for me. Jean Kittson: …Defensiveness… Zac Seidler: Exactly. And you see that in, in a lot of guys. You see it a lot, a lot of women as well, which is this: You're feeling challenged. You're feeling like you're not living the life that you thought you were supposed to, and so you keep repelling further in the opposite direction rather than saying, maybe I'm a bit off kilter here and I should, I should recalibrate and work out what, what matters and have the conversations. And I want guys… lots of guys do this with their wives. It ends up being so much emotional burden on the women because the guys don't have deep male friendships where they can go and have these chats with other guys without feeling like a failure. Have you got guys in your life where you feel like you can, really… Jamie Durie: Oh, totally… Zac Seidler: …get into it? Jamie Durie: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. My best mate and I, ironically, we danced together back in the Vegas days. So we've been mates since, you know, I was 20 and we talk probably three times a week. He's a dental technician. Zac Seidler: How far you've both come! Jamie Durie: Yeah. Yeah. He's there making the most extraordinary little pieces of technical equipment that, you know, dentures and things for people that gives them self-esteem and pride and function and health and stuff, which is quite amazing. He's such a talented dexterous man, but he's constantly sitting in his laboratory, in his studio, you know, tinkering away. So he'll just call me in the middle of him making that stuff and I can hear that he's in the studio and I might be in a very different studio with TV, cameras rolling or whatever. But we always find ways to communicate and lean on each other when we need it most. And, and we have over the years, it's been great. Yeah. Jean Kittson: So you can be very vulnerable with him. Jamie Durie: Oh God, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Oh, he's got skeletons in that, we will take to the vault! Zac Seidler: Right. And that's what it's built, it's built on time. And energy and… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …realising that you need to invest in this stuff. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And you see that, you know, you, you get 15-, 16-year-olds whose, whose friends are everything to them. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And then they go into university. Slowly but surely they get into the workforce, they move into parenthood and it just starts to drop away. And you often see the wife is the one who is leading the social calendar. Jean Kittson: Yes, always. Zac Seidler: They're the ones who are looking after everything. They're making all of the calls. And you know, they start to believe, these men, that they actually are not capable of this stuff when, you know, they're a CEO… they're doing really complex things during the day and suddenly they can't call their friends to like arrange a beer on a Saturday night? What is that? And so I think it is, it's a muscle that needs working out… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …over time. And it needs to be prioritised. Because consistently, you look at the Harvard Longitudinal Study, which is an incredible study, started in the 30s, still going. Jamie Durie: Mm-hmm. Zac Seidler: The guys who are still alive, they're in their 90s. They had quality friendships. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: It didn't matter if they smoked, how they exercised, what their jobs were, all that stuff… Jean Kittson: Really? Zac Seidler: …it washes away. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: We are human beings who require socialising. We require to be with one another, and that's why the loneliness crisis that happens for lots of older guys, older women as well, feeling so isolated, feeling like you don't have any purpose anymore. You know, Men's Sheds, it's a group that we work really closely with. Jean Kittson: Yeah, they're great. Zac Seidler: Incredible. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Yeah. And they have, they have women coming in now. You're tinkering, you're doing something. You've got mates there. Jamie Durie: Yeah. It's great. Zac Seidler: It gives you something. We need more of that. I feel like those third spaces, those, those sheds, those community halls, they're just like evaporating. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: It's a real problem. Jean Kittson: Yeah. Well, we used to see a lot more community gardens. I don't see them so much anymore. We often talk about work-life balance, but when you were talking about the wheel or… Zac Seidler: mm-hmm. Jean Kittson: …and with all these different segments, I mean, because that's what life is. It's more complicated. It's not just life over there and work there and you try and balance it out. You've gotta feed all these different elements of your life. Jamie Durie: Yes. Zac Seidler: Because work life balance makes it seem like life is 50% and work is 50%. Jean Kittson: Yeah, it does. Zac Seidler: When in fact it's actually work should be 20, and 20 and 20. You've got all of these little things. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Yes. It is about creating balance within your life and if you, you know, anyone can do a quick equation of the various facets in your life and go, Ooh, I need to put a little bit more family time in here. Or, when was the last time I called my mum or my dad? Or, you know, when was the last time I took my kids to the park and, and played with them and, and gave them a good time? And, and so you, you gotta constantly keep a check of yourself, but also you gotta look after your own mental health so that you can be a better father for them, right? I surf every Sunday with a group of guys that age between oh, 50, 52 through to 74. Zac Seidler: Wow. Jamie Durie: In fact. Probably one of the best surfers in our group. He's had a double hip replacement. Jean Kittson: Oh I love that… Jamie Durie: …And he's a better… he's a better surfer than I am, he's awesome. Jean Kittson: …That's so great. Jamie Durie: …Oh yeah, if you can hear me now, Tones, this is a big plug for you, bro. Jean Kittson:Yeah. Jamie Durie: But I went and bought a new longboard yesterday and I was–– I couldn't wait to get out there at 7.30am with the boys just to kind of share this new longboard with them. And we had a great old time. We caught plenty of waves and then we go to breakfast together and that's what my partner Ameka calls ‘church’ for us, right. So she's like, go and have some boy time. See you at lunch. Zac Seidler: Because it's ritualised. Jamie Durie: It is, yeah. And I've been doing it, you know, 12, 15 years now and I really crave it. Zac Seidler: Yeah, because you don't have to pick up the phone and go, are we doing it this week? It's on, it's on. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Right. Oh yeah. And, and, and there's probably 30 of us altogether. Usually only 10 or 12 or even sometimes six turn up, you know? Jean Kittson:That's wonderful. Jamie Durie: But every so often they all, you know, one or two of them pop in and some of them are doctors, some of them come from the oil industry, some come from the textiles. Others are property valuers and all sorts of people. It's amazing. How many extraordinary high achieving blokes still require this – we all need church, I think. Jean Kittson: That ritual, that going, being able to gather when you want to without making an appointment… Jamie Durie: That's right. Jean Kittson: …And being together. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: I think one thing about your work, Jamie, I would say is that when we were talking before about men retiring and then going home, and then the wife taking over. Your work has always been around creating spaces around people's homes. Your own homes. Your garden and everything. So that's your domain. But for many men, they would leave work and the home is not their domain. Jamie Durie: Mm. Jean Kittson: It's like they're an alien in that environment because that's been the woman's domain and she's taking care of it. But you are, you are lucky because that's so familiar to you. And you have so much input in it. Jamie Durie: Mm. Jean Kittson: In fact, you're probably, it's probably your domain more than anything. Jamie Durie: I have a little too much input! And, so much so that, you know, we have to remind each other because Ameka loves interior design and so I've had to kinda let go a little bit and let her, you know, play with the interiors and all that, and she's done a great job. And, you know we have found a good niche in each other's careers because of that. I think you gotta, you know, make everyone feel like they're part of the end equation, you know? Jean Kittson: Yeah, Jamie Durie: yeah. Jean Kittson: Well, well, growing up, my dad was a DIY so he had a big –– he, you know, he basically built our house. You know. Nothing ever worked, but, you know, we had seven doors opening onto the loungeroom, I think. But he was as much part of the domestic life… Jamie Durie: yeah. Jean Kittson: …as, as my mother was. Zac Seidler: I just don't, I don't buy it that these rules and regulations that have been passed down by someone that we're not really aware of around what women should do and what men should do. You know, Venus and Mars, it just doesn't benefit anybody. Jean Kittson: No… Zac Seidler: …and this is the thing. There are some people who are just gonna be better at certain things. And, you know, my wife is much better with a drill than I am. Jean Kittson: That's right! Zac Seidler: Give up. Yep. Like I've, I've worked it out… Jamie Durie: Good on ya’ mate! I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna attempt it in the way that she does. I'm lefthanded. I'm probably gonna cut off a finger. I'm gonna let her have her day. Jamie Durie: Yeah. With a drill. He's gonna cut off a finger! Yeah. I like that. Jean Kittson: Okay. Hello. Jamie Durie: He really doesn't use tools. Jean Kittson: Well picked up. Zac Seidler: You got it. You got it. Live and learn! Jamie Durie: I gotta ask, Zac, you know, we, mental health of course is a huge part of our, elongating our lives, right. And I have to ask, what role does stress have in that? And also what role does the foods that we eat play into the health of our minds and our bodies? Zac Seidler: Well, I think that we went through a period, you know, early on in the 20th century where we started to split the mind and the body, and that was not a smart move. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And we are very much ricocheting back away from that and realising that everything needs to be calibrated, and they all affect one another in a cause-and-effect kind of way. That's why everyone, any psychologist worth their salt will bang on first and foremost about sleep and diet… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …and exercise. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …really. And it's funny because they're like, oh no, I just wanna talk about my feelings. And I'm like, no, if you don't get this stuff in order, there is no point in getting into the deeper stuff because this is going to create the foundations of wellbeing for you. Jamie Durie: That's right. Zac Seidler: Fundamentally, the fuel that you are putting in – and fuel comes through sleep, through exercise, through diet, and nutrition. And I think that we are at a point because of cost of living stuff, especially… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: …where everyone is, is trying to make their way and, and survive as best they can. And because of time and work and families, food just kind of drops off. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And so it becomes easier to do, you know, quickfire meals that are probably much worse for you. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Whether it's sodium or sugar or whatever it is. And that has a fundamental effect on your sleep. It has a fundamental effect on your mood. And really the more stressed you are, the more calorie rich food you kind of end up wanting. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Whenever you've had a tough day, you're gonna go for the chocolate because you’re like trying to manage… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Yeah. Zac Seidler: …and so trying to get ahead of that stuff. By building in… You know, I'm a very ritualised person because if I… you know, Obama and Steve Jobs, all these people, they always talk about trying to get rid of the grey in your day, which is like, Steve Jobs wore the same thing every day because he wanted to think about something else… Jean Kittson: right? Zac Seidler: …I've eaten the same breakfast and lunch pretty much every day for 20 years because I have other things to deal with and it's the best way that I'm gonna go to the shops and I'm gonna ensure that I have a nutritious meal. Because I'm doing the same thing and everyone goes, don't you get bored? Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And I go, well, I'm still alive, so no, I'm alright. Jamie Durie: Steve, I heard a Steve Jobs statement the other day and you don't often hear him, speak in this way, but he said, make food your medicine or medicine will be your food. Jean Kittson: Oh… Jamie Durie: …isn't that an awesome statement? Jean Kittson: …Clever. Jamie Durie: Yeah. And I've not heard that before. And then I started looking into some of his interviews in more detail. Do you know that none of his kids had devices? Zac Seidler: None. None. No one who owns a tech company, their kids never touch devices. Full stop. Jamie Durie: That's, that says it right there, right? Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jamie Durie: I mean, I wrote a book years ago, and it was called Outdoor Kids and it was about getting kids off TV games and devices and back out into the garden again, where I grew up. Zac Seidler: Mm-hmm. Jamie Durie: And I find that when I'm, I'm suffering stress or anxiety. I put my hands into the earth and I start weeding or planting or whatever, and suddenly within an hour or two, I'm back. I'm, I feel earthed, I feel… . Jean Kittson: …Grounded? Jamie Durie: I feel grounded and I've let go of all that stress into the earth. And there's a theory now about forest bathing. Zac Seidler: Mm-hmm. Jamie Durie: Which I'm sure you've heard about where, you know, you can go on a trip to Japan and walk through the forest for a minimum of four hours per day for two weeks, and it improves your immune system and helps fight tumors and infections and things and adds so much to your mental health that, and I think we're now just discovering the benefits that nature has, that plays within our health. Zac Seidler: Well, we're trying to create science around something that is obvious. Which is, which is the thing, we've created all of this infrastructure that is actually ruining our lives, and now we're trying to peel it back and go back to basics, which is, you know, the, back in my day, we used to play on the street and would hang around with different generations of kids and do all that stuff. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And now you know, the fog is really what you're… it descends from the phones. That's the iPads and the television. It's this notion of… Jamie Durie: yeah. Zac Seidler: …detachment from who you are and who you want to be. And we see this with young kids, the longer they spend on social media, the more they are unable to actually access their own wants and needs. Because… Jamie Durie: …they're the less functional they are when they get out into the real workplace as well. Zac Seidler: Fundamentally. It takes, so it takes so much time to relearn these things. Jamie Durie: There was a professor that wrote a book called ‘The last child in the woods’. You know, I developed this theory called the outdoor room, where you would convert your kitchen into an outdoor space, your living room, into an outdoor space, your bathroom, your bedroom, so that everything was connected to nature and you would spend more time out outdoors, being reconnected with nature through your everyday functions. Jean Kittson: Beautiful. Jamie Durie: And I used to talk about this, like, let's take the roof off our house, and then instill plants into our everyday lives. Think of your backyard like that. And that was what I used to model the outdoor room theory on. Now I want to take this to another level where we talk about, you know, health and wellbeing and fitness and how do we take exercise into the outdoors? How do we, how do we then start to, you know, control the food that goes into our children's mouths and our family's mouths, reduce pesticides and herbicides, get rid of glyphosates. What role does that play into keeping our bodies healthy enough, to be able to withstand stressful times and so forth, you know? Zac Seidler: Mm-hmm. Jamie Durie: … there been any studies within your funding groups…? Zac Seidler: …yeah… Jamie Durie: …in the past where, you've seen a direct correlation between stress and the increase of disease and poor health? Zac Seidler: Oh, yeah. It's the strongest causation you can possibly find, right. It drives cancer, it drives heart disease, it drives stroke. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: You know, fundamentally the more stressful your life is, the more cortisol you've got running through your veins. The lower your life expectancy is. Jamie Durie: Yeah. And, and I used to live off stress, like… Jean Kittson: …the adrenaline. Yeah. Jamie Durie: ... that adrenaline rush… I loved it. I loved, you know, and the, and oh, we may not get this garden done on time or, you know, or I may not get this project finished in time. Like, and so, the older I get, the more I realised, wow, this is not the goal. The goal is to minimise stress down to zero. And that's the only way we're gonna maintain strong health. Zac Seidler: And how we respond to stress…. Jamie Durie: Yes. Zac Seidler: …Like the more stress you have, the worse you are at responding to it. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And that's why you see lots of guys who are just like exploding because they just don't how to regulate that stuff because they don't have the energy. They don't have the coping mechanisms, they don't have the people to call on. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: But the more you realise what it is… There's so many guys I talk to and I, I go, do you get stressed about things? And they're like, no, I, I've never felt anxiety before. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And they're sitting there and their leg is shaking. Jean Kittson: Yeah, yeah. Zac Seidler: I'm like, they're… Jean Kittson: …can’t articulate it… Zac Seidler: They’re so detached from their own reality. Jean Kittson: …can’t articulate it… Oh, they're, detached… Zac Seidler: …exactly…Yeah. And so being able to get to the point where we realise and we're not afraid of stress because there is a certain amount of it that actually leads to better performance. You know, this effect of going into an exam, if you don't have a bit of butterflies… you know they're useful sometimes. Jean Kittson: Of course it focuses you… Zac Seidler: before a performance, it's good. But then it's called the ‘yerkes-dodson curve’, which is, it goes up, and your performance goes up, you’ve got a bit of nerves, it's pretty good for you. You hit this precipice, and the second you go past that. You suddenly can't see. You're in an exam. You can't think straight. You're in front of camera and you lose your words. Jamie Durie: Mm-hmm. Zac Seidler: That's when stress is tipped over and that's when… A little bit is good at getting you out of bed, getting you going. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Because you're excited. You know, excitement and anxiety can go hand in hand. But there's just a little bit that is good, and then too much that really has long-term effects on you. Jamie Durie: Mm-hmm. Zac Seidler: Yeah. Jamie Durie: Mm-hmm. Jean Kittson: What do you say to men who, maybe you have lived on adrenaline and have had all this pressure and all this stress, and then suddenly it stops, and then that withdrawal from the adrenaline. How do you manage that suddenly, do people find another stress to fill it, fill up that adrenaline? What do they do when they're suddenly taken away? Is it like a void or a vacuum? Or…? Zac Seidler: It can be, it can be very difficult. You know, no doubt, Jamie, when you moved past that and you had a moment of pause and were like looking back at those years and realising how overwhelmed you probably were, and constantly going and churning your… everything kind of just becomes this, this muscle that is moving towards survival. And when you realise that you're actually not enjoying anything, that you're not in the moment at all, lots of those guys – and that often happens much later on in life because they keep going until they run out of steam. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And then there's this vacuum, there's this, this hole underneath them, and they don't have the skills to be able to pick up new things and fill that. Jamie Durie: Yep. Zac Seidler: You know, in some ways… So we want to get to the point where guys are realising, are connecting with that feeling within themselves that maybe the past 2, 3, 4 weeks have been really full on… Jamie Durie: Mm-hmm. Zac Seidler: …And having the language to be able to say to someone, I need to pause here. I need to realise, I need to recalibrate. I need to work out what's happening. Jamie Durie: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. I wish someone had told me at 21 that stress was so destructive. Because I think that's something, you know, I've learned over, over time and I've watched some of my friends go into poor health, through, you know, their lack of dealing with stress. Zac Seidler: Yeah…. Jamie Durie: But Zac Seidler: We need the skills. We need the skills. At school, you should be teaching stress reduction, you know? Jamie Durie: Yeah, Jean Kittson: exactly. I have a friend who does mindfulness, part of her lessons, so she senses – she's a drama teacher of course – and you know my age, so we have the experience and we can look back and go, this stress we put on our children is just way too much. So she senses a class is really stressed. She won't do a normal lesson, she'll just relax them. Zac Seidler: Nice. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: Which is a really, you know, but that she's rare, but this is what we should be doing and… Jamie Durie: …yeah… Jean Kittson: …And I think we've got, we are at our age, we've got this… Not our age, I'm older than you, Jamie! But you know, as you get older, we've got the skills. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: We've got the experience to be able to say how, what's important in life. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: And you talking about in… in my day, we'd hug trees and it was sort of like a bit of a joke, but it was. A really beautiful thing to do. Jamie Durie: Yes. Jean Kittson: I do it outside the studio before I come in. There's some really old paper barks, you know, there, they, they must be a hundred years old. Did you notice them coming in? Jamie Durie: I know they're, they're all through this area. Yeah. Jean Kittson: They're incredible. And they're growing out of asphalt and I always give them a bit of a hug, and go, Good on you… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Jean Kittson: …I don't know how you've survived! And it just, that moment of connection with nature and you just have to value that and recognise it and thank nature for what it does, because as you say, all this technology, if you are going straight from an office back home to the telly or something… Jamie Durie: …It's incredible how well they survive, by the way, these paperbacks in these streets. Jean Kittson: …Aren’t they amazing. Jamie Durie: You're right, the pathways go right up to them, and you would think that the soils would become anaerobic, but Melaleuca quinquenervia – our paper bark tree is – is probably one of the most stoic trees in our system and our indigenous use the bark to wrap their fish and their food up and they would cook their food wrapped in the paper bark. Right? And it's got so many brilliant uses, but they've also got nitrogen fixing nodules and a whole range of survival techniques that other non-native trees don't have. So, you know, one of my pet hates is why did we, why are we planting London Plane trees, platanus hybrida, are all through our streets, which, which are, you know… Zac Seidler: …Causes us asthma… Jamie Durie: So, yeah. Causes asthma, gives us all hay fever – I get hay fever from them – when we could be planting these native trees that require zero care and they still thrive their heads off, you know. Zac Seidler: Finally, the paperback chat we all needed. Jean Kittson: Yeah. That's what we needed. Jamie Durie: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Jean Kittson: If only we, you know, treated ourselves like a paper bark, if we had nitrogen nodules, you know? Jamie Durie: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Jean Kittson: I mean, if we understood ourselves, when you talk about trees and plants like this and your knowledge of them and how they, how they exist and how they, you know, how they grow. We need that knowledge about ourselves. From a very early age. Jamie Durie: That's right. Jean Kittson: So we can recognise what we need to do… Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: So that we can enjoy. And this is the thing, it's, you are not going to gain that knowledge from a standing start in your 60s. Jamie Durie: No, that's right. Zac Seidler: You need to, it needs to be a lifelong lesson of what matters to me. How am I moving through the world? How do I grow? How am I going to understand how I tick? And those things cannot come when you retire. Jamie Durie: That's right. That's right. Zac Seidler: They need, they need to come much earlier on and they need to be instilled so that we're not just churning our way, you know, to the end. Jamie Durie: You're right, it's that evolution. It's those, it's the teaching, it's the experience. It's falling down, picking yourself up again. It's making all those mistakes and then coming full circle into where we are today and, and then passing down some of those learnings, to as many people as you can. That's what it's all about. Jean Kittson: Yeah, definitely. That's our responsibility, isn't it, as we get older, is to share what we've learned. Jamie Durie: Yep. Jean Kittson: And hope that our children or grandchildren don't make the same mistakes. Jamie Durie: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Jean Kittson: So, Jamie, what would you say to someone who was maybe hitting their 50s and feeling like they're winding down or they're stuck or something, or, I mean, you just took that huge leap in your 20s to do horticulture… Jamie Durie: Yes. Jean Kittson: … While you were doing something completely different, the dancing. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Yeah. Jean Kittson: So what, what would you say to, have you got any friends who you feel are stuck or… Jamie Durie: I, yeah, I have and I say the same thing to all of them. Find something that you are passionate about. Dive into it. Learn, feed your brain. You know, make yourself get engaged in it because it will provide you with the fuel that you need to push you well into your retirement and way past that. And I don't like to use the word retirement because I'm never gonna retire. I've decided I'm just gonna keep working because I love my work. But find what it is you're passionate about and learn more and feed your brain. And it's funny, if it's benefiting other people, you will also find another way to keep energy within yourself. So don't just feed yourself. Find something that feeds other people in other communities and there's a sense of worthiness around what it is that you are doing that makes you feel good about your day and what you've learned and how you've passed it on. Jean Kittson: Just to wrap up, what would your tip be to people over 50 who feel perhaps a bit, a bit stuck? What's one habit, do you think, they could in… because we're talking about you have to do it regularly and, and institute it as a part of your everyday routines. What, is there one habit? Zac Seidler: It is funny that I very much, hopefully, look like I’m not in my 50s, but I spend a lot of time with men in their 50s and and 60s and do clinical work with them and research with them because they are hungry, and they're looking for ways to improve the rest of their lives and seek understanding about themselves. And I kind of say the same thing, which I've been talking to Jamie about, which is pick up the phone and call someone. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Yeah. There you go. Zac Seidler: Reach out. Lean out. And it doesn't need to be a mental health conversation. It doesn't need to be something that's weird and awkward. It's just like, let's go for coffee, let's go for a walk. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: Let's do this thing called life together. And when you're finding that passion, that comes through other people… I went to a dinner party when I was 18 and someone started to talk to me about masculinity. And I was like, what? What are we talking about here? And then they connected me with someone else and slowly but surely doors opened. And your life opens, and there is no end point to learning. There is no end point to interest, to passion to drive. So, yeah, I think that realising, firstly, that you are stuck does not mean failure. Understanding that you're at an inflection point and there is now heaps of opportunity and potential for doing something different. Jamie Durie: Yeah. Zac Seidler: And that is a beautiful thing that we have, which is that there is always this splay of choices in front of us. And so start choosing. Jean Kittson: Just be curious. Start choosing. Jamie Durie: Yep. Jean Kittson: Can't go wrong. You can't make a mistake. Thank you both so much. That was such a great conversation. Thank you, Jamie Durie. Jamie Durie: My pleasure. Yeah, my pleasure. Jean Kittson: Thank you, Dr Zac Seidler. Thank you very much. Zac Seidler: Thanks for having me. Jean Kittson: That was really great. Thanks for being so open. Jamie Durie: Great fun. Jean Kittson: Thank you to Jamie Durie and Dr Zac Seidler. You've been listening to DARE: The time of your life, brought to you by Australian seniors. Please leave a review and share this show with someone you know or plenty of people you know, even better. Visit seniors.com au/podcast for more episodes. I'm Jean Kittson. Thanks for listening, and remember, it's your time, so dare to make it count. Go for it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ในโลกที่ทุกคนบอกว่าต้อง Upskill ต้องปรับตัว ต้องเก่งขึ้น หลายคนเริ่มรู้สึกว่าการพัฒนาตัวเองไม่ใช่ทางเลือกอีกต่อไป แต่กลายเป็นเงื่อนไขในการอยู่รอด . MM Interview EP นี้ เราได้ชวน คุณหนุ่ม โตมร ศุขปรีชา นักเขียน นักคิด และคอลัมนิสต์ที่อยู่กับโลกของความคิดมาหลายสิบปี มาคุยตรงๆ ว่าความกดดันเรื่องการพัฒนาตัวเองมันมาจากไหน ถ้าเลือกจะช้าลงมีราคาที่ต้องจ่ายจริงไหม และสุดท้ายแล้ว "พอ" สำหรับแต่ละคนควรนิยามจากอะไร . ถ้ากำลังรู้สึกว่าวิ่งอยู่ทุกวัน แต่ไม่รู้วิ่งเพื่ออะไร EP นี้อาจช่วยให้หยุดแล้วคิดได้บ้าง . . #คนทำงาน #missiontothemoon #missiontothemoonpodcast

ในโลกที่ทุกคนบอกว่าต้อง Upskill ต้องปรับตัว ต้องเก่งขึ้น หลายคนเริ่มรู้สึกว่าการพัฒนาตัวเองไม่ใช่ทางเลือกอีกต่อไป แต่กลายเป็นเงื่อนไขในการอยู่รอด . MM Interview EP นี้ เราได้ชวน คุณหนุ่ม โตมร ศุขปรีชา นักเขียน นักคิด และคอลัมนิสต์ที่อยู่กับโลกของความคิดมาหลายสิบปี มาคุยตรงๆ ว่าความกดดันเรื่องการพัฒนาตัวเองมันมาจากไหน ถ้าเลือกจะช้าลงมีราคาที่ต้องจ่ายจริงไหม และสุดท้ายแล้ว "พอ" สำหรับแต่ละคนควรนิยามจากอะไร . ถ้ากำลังรู้สึกว่าวิ่งอยู่ทุกวัน แต่ไม่รู้วิ่งเพื่ออะไร EP นี้อาจช่วยให้หยุดแล้วคิดได้บ้าง . . #คนทำงาน #missiontothemoon #missiontothemoonpodcast

Toxic workplaces come in many different forms that we might not always notice. And because we aren't all affected in the same ways, even the most well-meaning managers can unintentionally contribute to an unhealthy culture if they aren't paying close attention. Aoife O'Brien is an organizational psychologist, leadership expert, and author of Thriving Talent. Her work focuses on helping organizations create environments where people feel psychologically safe, aligned to meaningful work, and able to perform at their best.In this conversation, we explore what actually makes a workplace toxic, practical ways to spot the early warning signs of an unhealthy culture, and clear, everyday actions you can take to foster trust, respect, and psychological safety. Because culture is something you create moment by moment, not something you merely declare.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:21) Types of Toxic Workplaces (and How They Develop)(06:17) Why Toxic Cultures Persist and How to Start Changing Them(10:06) A Framework for Building Thriving Workplaces(13:17) Fostering Psychological Safety at Every Level(17:58) Understanding What Actually Drives People at Work(21:05) Meeting Individual Needs(25:54) One Thing Managers Can Do Tomorrow(28:12) Closing Thoughts and Book Recommendations(31:04) [Extended Only] Gaining Awareness of Your Strengths(34:07) [Extended Only] Managing Conflicting Strengths on Teams(37:35) [Extended Only] Structuring Collaboration So Different Strengths Shine

Microsoft has today announced it will double its existing AI and digital skilling commitment in New Zealand, with a plan to train up over 200,000 Kiwis by 2028. The company has observed this training will help many businesses, with survey data showing 59 percent of Kiwi business leaders say productivity must increase. Microsoft's national chief technology officer, Sarah Carney, says upskilling will help unlock more opportunities for New Zealand's future. "Skilling is how you unlock that. Teach people how to use the tools and set them free." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Microsoft has today announced it will double its existing AI and digital skilling commitment in New Zealand, with a plan to train up over 200,000 Kiwis by 2028. The company has observed this training will help many businesses, with survey data showing 59 percent of Kiwi business leaders say productivity must increase. Microsoft's national chief technology officer, Sarah Carney, says upskilling will help unlock more opportunities for New Zealand's future. "Skilling is how you unlock that. Teach people how to use the tools and set them free." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With job cuts, pay pressure and uncertainty affecting many professionals across the UAE, one AI trainer says this could be the exact moment to future-proof your career - not in years, but starting this weekend. Reese Witherspoon has urged women to learn A, but not everyone is on board. Is this a wake-up call or a line in the sand? Family lawyer Madeleine Mendy answers your legal questions from custody to divorce disputes. With classrooms open again from this week, what are your school transport options for the kids? And the optometrist is in to discuss the impact of screen time on eyes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen and subscribe to Money Making Conversations on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, www.moneymakingconversations.com/subscribe/ or wherever you listen to podcasts. New Money Making Conversations episodes drop daily. I want to alert you, so you don’t miss out on expert analysis and insider perspectives from my guests who provide tips that can help you uplift the community, improve your financial planning, motivation, or advice on how to be a successful entrepreneur. Keep winning! Two-time Emmy and Three-time NAACP Image Award-winning, television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviewed Bamidele Farinre. Founder of No Ceiling Consulting, a biomedical scientist, STEM expert, agile project manager, and advocate for professional development, mentorship, and removing internal and systemic limitations (“ceilings”). They discuss her STEM background, the evolving role of AI in science, the meaning of “no ceilings,” navigating personal and professional barriers, mentorship, setbacks, agile leadership, and how individuals—especially people of color—can create opportunity even in the face of bias and structural limitations.

Listen and subscribe to Money Making Conversations on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, www.moneymakingconversations.com/subscribe/ or wherever you listen to podcasts. New Money Making Conversations episodes drop daily. I want to alert you, so you don’t miss out on expert analysis and insider perspectives from my guests who provide tips that can help you uplift the community, improve your financial planning, motivation, or advice on how to be a successful entrepreneur. Keep winning! Two-time Emmy and Three-time NAACP Image Award-winning, television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviewed Bamidele Farinre. Founder of No Ceiling Consulting, a biomedical scientist, STEM expert, agile project manager, and advocate for professional development, mentorship, and removing internal and systemic limitations (“ceilings”). They discuss her STEM background, the evolving role of AI in science, the meaning of “no ceilings,” navigating personal and professional barriers, mentorship, setbacks, agile leadership, and how individuals—especially people of color—can create opportunity even in the face of bias and structural limitations.

Listen and subscribe to Money Making Conversations on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, www.moneymakingconversations.com/subscribe/ or wherever you listen to podcasts. New Money Making Conversations episodes drop daily. I want to alert you, so you don’t miss out on expert analysis and insider perspectives from my guests who provide tips that can help you uplift the community, improve your financial planning, motivation, or advice on how to be a successful entrepreneur. Keep winning! Two-time Emmy and Three-time NAACP Image Award-winning, television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviewed Bamidele Farinre. Founder of No Ceiling Consulting, a biomedical scientist, STEM expert, agile project manager, and advocate for professional development, mentorship, and removing internal and systemic limitations (“ceilings”). They discuss her STEM background, the evolving role of AI in science, the meaning of “no ceilings,” navigating personal and professional barriers, mentorship, setbacks, agile leadership, and how individuals—especially people of color—can create opportunity even in the face of bias and structural limitations.

We often think our reactions at work are about what's happening in the moment: a frustrating colleague, a difficult conversation, or a stressful situation.But what if those reactions are actually coming from somewhere else?For many managers, moments of irritation, defensiveness, or emotional overwhelm can feel confusing or even unprofessional. But these responses aren't random and they're not a sign that something is wrong with you.Fortunately, this week's guest explains how our past experiences shape our present-day interactions and how developing self-awareness can help us respond more thoughtfully instead of reacting automatically.Nidhi Tewari is a therapist and leadership expert who helps individuals and organizations build emotional intelligence, navigate interpersonal dynamics, and create healthier, more connected workplaces.In this conversation, we explore why certain people trigger us, how to recognize when your reaction is disproportionate to the moment, and a simple framework you can use to regulate your emotions and lead more effectively. We also discuss how to support team members through difficult moments without crossing the line into becoming their therapist.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(01:41) The Science of Attunement: How We Sync With Others(03:38) Body Language, Energy, and Emotional Contagion(05:11) Attuning to Organizational Culture and Unspoken Norms(06:37) Case Study: Supporting Neurodivergent Teams(08:28) The CHECK-IN Framework for Difficult Conversations(13:32) Attunement in Remote Work: What Changes(15:56) Spotting Behavioral Shifts and Subtle Signals(17:18) Connection Gaps: Why Conversations Break Down(23:27) From Fixer to Explorer + A Story of Great Leadership(32:41) [Extended Episode Only] How to support employees while maintaining boundaries(36:52) [Extended Episode Only] The importance of normalizing and validating emotions(39:21) [Extended Episode Only] The right way to refer employees to additional support

Most AI initiatives don't fail because the technology is wrong; they fail because the humans around it stop thinking as carefully as they used to. In this episode of ThinkCast, recorded from a live session at Gartner CIO Leadership Forum, Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst Mandi Bishop breaks down why so‑called "soft skills" have quietly become the hardest — and most essential — capability to scale in the age of AI. From practical workforce exercises to Mandi's own racing experience, hear how over‑reliance, complacency and automation bias creep in — and how CIOs can rebuild critical thinking, judgment and contextual awareness to turn AI tools into true performance accelerators. You'll learn: Why automation bias is one of the biggest hidden risks in AI adoption How soft skills like skepticism and judgment directly impact AI outcomes Why hands‑on techniques, like hallucination hunts, can build real AI literacy How better prompting reinforces human thinking instead of replacing it What CIOs can do now to operationalize soft skills across the enterprise Dig deeper: Attend a Gartner CIO Conference near you See why Gartner is the world authority on AI Try out AskGartner for more AI-powered insights  

We are drowning in advice about AI. Upskill. Adapt. Stay ahead. But underneath all of that noise is a question nobody seems to be asking: what is this actually doing to us? Psychotherapist Michelle Mah works with high-performing professionals navigating exactly this - and what she's seeing in her practice isn't a skills gap. It's exhaustion, dysregulation, and an identity crisis that the productivity conversation keeps skipping over. In this episode, we get into AI anxiety, the psychological cost of being asked to change at machine speed, and why the "adapt or fall behind" message might be making things worse - not better. TIMETAMPS   00:00 - Introduction 01:58 - "Adapt or fall behind"  07:43 - How this anxiety is different from anything before 10:55 - The identity threat underneath the career threat 18:33 - What we should never outsource to AI 21:41 - AI influencers & content 24:35 - Will AI replace therapists?  27:46 - Trust as the new economy 31:13 - Michelle's thesis: what will hold through every disruption     CONNECT WITH MICHELLE MAH   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellemahsg/  Website: https://thecuriousbonsai.com.sg/  CONNECT WITH CHERYL LAU   Website: https://cheryllau.com  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@cheryltheory  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheryltheory LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheryllau WORK WITH CHERYL LAU   I produce distinctive and deeply resonant podcasts for leaders and organizations who want their content to command attention, spark meaningful conversations, and attract high-value opportunities. I ensure your podcast isn't just another show in the feed - it's an asset that elevates your authority and moves your work forward. Here are 3 ways we can work together: ✨ 1:1 Editorial Podcast Production ✨ Corporate Podcast Producing & Consulting ✨ Hosting for Corporate Shows   Schedule a discovery call for us to explore what working together might look like: https://cheryllau.com/discovery CONTACT   Please email hello@cheryllau.com for business inquiries.

What if AI isn't as neutral as you think? In this episode, we unpack the truth about artificial intelligence, discernment, and how to use AI without compromising your faith. Don't miss this eye-opening conversation!Hey friend, this is one of those conversations that honestly stirred my spirit in the best way. I'm sitting down with Misty Phillip to talk about AI—what it is, what it isn't, and why Christians NEED discernment in this digital age.We're not here to create fear; we're here to bring clarity. AI can be an incredible tool, but it can also quietly shape beliefs, influence decisions, and even replace human connection if we're not careful.Chapters[00:00] Podcast Preview[01:22] Topic and Guest Introduction[03:57] Misty's Transition into AI & Tech[06:27] Why AI Could Replace Jobs[07:25] Christian Perspective on AI[08:00] What Is the “Trojan Horse” of AI?[09:59] AI Hallucinations Explained[12:54] AI in Churches & Sermons[14:40] Why Discernment Matters Now[15:58] Deepfakes & Digital Deception[17:15] Staying Rooted in Truth[18:15] Family Safe Word to Avoid Scam[19:30] The Danger of Isolation & Technology[20:50] Screen Time & Digital Boundaries[21:58] AI Addiction & Replacement of Humans[23:28] AI and Mental Health Concerns[24:15] Parenting in the Age of AI[26:28] AI in Health & Medicine[29:30] How to Start Using AI Wisely[32:42] Use AI Without Losing Wisdom[34:53] Free Resources and ConclusionResources mentioned:Free resources + Bible study + Conversation cards: mistyphillip.comThe Trojan Horse of the Digital Age by Misty Phillip on AmazonConnect with today's guest: Misty Phillip is an award-winning author, cybersecurity professional, and dynamic speaker who bridges the gap between faith and technology. As the COO of Trilogy Works, she operates at the forefront of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, offering a unique perspective on today's rapidly evolving digital landscape.With both the expertise of a tech leader and the heart of a Bible teacher, Misty helps audiences understand how emerging technologies—especially AI—are shaping culture, influencing worldviews, and discipling the next generation.She is the author of several impactful books, including The Struggle is Real, but So Is God, Spark Your Influence, Upskill or Die, and her latest release, The Trojan Horse of the Digital Age. In this powerful new work, Misty sounds the alarm on one of the most significant cultural shifts of our time, equipping readers with a biblical framework to engage AI with wisdom, discernment, and confidence—not fear.Through her writing, speaking, and leadership, Misty empowers individuals and the Church to navigate the intersection of faith and technology with clarity and conviction.P.S. If you're just checking out the show to see if it's a good fit for you, welcome!If you're really serious about becoming Visibly Fit, you'll get the best experience if you download the worksheets available at https://wendiepett.com/visiblyfitpodcast.

If you are feeling stuck or ready for more in your jewellery journey, upskilling could be the key to moving forward in 2026. Jess is joined by jeweller Emma René, founder of Narratorium, who shares her journey from building a jewellery business with minimal formal training to investing in her skills through the Diploma in Fine Jewellery. They discuss the realities of reaching a plateau, the limits of learning through trial and error, and how structured learning, mentoring and feedback can transform both your confidence and your work. Emma also shares how upskilling is shaping the future direction of her business, as she moves towards creating more refined, high-end pieces and working with new techniques such as stone setting. If you are ready to improve your skills, pivot your business or take your jewellery to the next level, this episode will give you insight and inspiration.   Key Moments 00:02:00 – Introduction to the episode and upskilling as a jeweller 00:03:57 – Emma's journey and starting her jewellery business 00:06:11 – Early challenges and working with manufacturers 00:08:35 – Balancing business, family and growth 00:08:58 – Reaching a plateau and deciding to upskill 00:11:14 – The value of structured learning 00:11:58 – Expanding into gemstones and stone setting 00:14:17 – First experiences of the Fine Diploma 00:16:08 – Mentoring, community and support 00:16:22 – The impact of expert feedback 00:18:23 – Growth in confidence and skills 00:20:41 – Shifting towards fine jewellery 00:23:28 – Navigating business changes and industry shifts 00:25:19 – Building confidence with higher-value materials 00:27:42 – Favourite projects on the Diploma 00:29:45 – Sharing the journey through Diploma Diaries 00:32:04 – Advice for jewellers considering upskilling   Learn more about the Diploma in Fine Jewellery https://www.jewellersacademy.com/diploma-in-fine-jewellery   About Emma Emma René is the founder of Narratorium, a jewellery brand she launched after leaving her career as an art director in advertising to pursue her own creative path. Over the past ten years, she has built her business while developing her skills in silversmithing alongside raising a family. She is currently expanding into fine jewellery as a student on the Diploma in Fine Jewellery, focusing on advanced techniques such as stone setting and higher-end design.   https://www.narratorium.co.uk/ Follow her @narratorium  

We spend most of our time indoors moving from screens to meetings to more screens without realizing the toll it's taking on our focus, energy, and overall well-being.For many managers, burnout and fatigue feel like a personal failing or just “part of the job.” But what if the real issue isn't you… it's your environment?Fortunately, this week's guest explains how reconnecting with nature isn't just about wellness; it's a powerful, science-backed way to improve cognitive function, reduce stress, and become a more effective leader.Dr. John La Puma is a physician, author, and expert in lifestyle medicine who focuses on how nature, nutrition, and environment impact human performance and health. His work helps leaders rethink how their daily surroundings influence not just their well-being, but also their decision-making, creativity, and relationships at work.In this conversation, we explore how nature affects the brain, why “green” and “blue” spaces improve collaboration and reduce stress, and practical ways managers can bring more outdoor experiences into their workdays and team routines.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(01:42) Why modern work environments are mismatched with how our brains function(04:18) The connection between nature, stress reduction, and cognitive performance(07:36) How “green” and “blue” spaces impact focus, creativity, and calm(10:55) Why burnout is a biological mismatch, not a personal failure(14:27) The role of sensory engagement in restoring mental energy(18:03) How too much screen time (“digital overload”) affects the brain(22:11) Practical ways to incorporate more nature into your daily routine(26:34) Why small environmental changes can have a big impact on performance(31:48) [Extended Episode Only] How to bring nature into team activities and meetings(32:41) [Extended Episode Only] Why walking meetings work better in green spaces(40:18) [Extended Episode Only] A simple way to introduce cold exposure into your routine

Misty Phillip has many bullets on her resume. She has even had her photo displayed in Times Square, which is pretty amazing, but the thing I love most about her is her passion for championing others. Her testimony speaks powerfully to what God can do through our obedience and it's such a beautiful reminder that His timing is impeccable!  Misty shares about God's timing in launching the Spark Christian Podcast Conference on Feb. 21–22, 2020—just weeks before the pandemic—equipping believers to keep sharing the gospel when churches shut down. She shares her background from working at Enron to homeschooling, then writing, speaking, podcasting, and creating Spark Media; she also wrote six books and an award-winning 2019 Bible study, The Struggle is Real, but So is God. She explains how God led her to transition in 2023 into her husband's tech consulting work in cybersecurity and AI, describing how AI is already embedded in daily tools (maps, photo editing, search, Netflix, Canva).  Misty urges Christians to steward AI with discernment, noting bias from non-Christian worldviews, risks for kids (isolation, harmful answers), the need to verify outputs, and the importance of Scripture and the Holy Spirit amid deepfakes and cultural change. She distinguishes her books Upskill or Die and The Trojan Horse of the Digital Age, offers free resources on mistyphilip.com, and closes with prayer against fear and for wise, obedient kingdom impact. 00:00 Gods Timing Story 00:42 Meet Misty Phillip 01:32 Spark Conference Miracle 05:44 Books and Bible Study 07:09 Shift Into AI Work 10:25 AI Everywhere Today 14:16 AI Bias and Worldview 16:37 Parents and Kids Safety 20:00 Two Books Explained 22:54 Trojan Horse Warnings 25:31 Resources and Checklists 27:59 Prayer for Discernment 30:23 Final Thanks and Wrap Misty's website and resources: https://www.mistyphillip.com/  To purchase the new Trojan Horse Book: https://a.co/d/01mdiWEW  For Upskill or Die: https://a.co/d/0iyQTBV6  For the Struggle is Real but So is God Bible study: https://a.co/d/04qRTfqJ

Stress is something every manager experiences. Tight deadlines, constant decisions, competing priorities; it can feel like pressure is simply part of the job.Most leaders treat stress like one big, unavoidable force. In reality, stress isn't just one thing. It appears in different forms, and each requires a different response. When leaders don't understand the source of their stress, they often try to solve the wrong problem or end up stuck in cycles of overthinking and burnout.Fortunately, this week's guest shares a practical framework for understanding stress and turning it into something leaders can actually manage.Amy Leneker is a former C-suite executive, a leadership advisor to Fortune 100 companies, and the author of Cheers to Monday: The Surprisingly Simple Method to Lead and Live with Less Stress and More Joy. Her work focuses on helping leaders identify the sources of stress in their work and create simple systems to reduce it while increasing clarity and joy.In this conversation, we explore the different types of stress leaders experience, how stress flows through teams, and practical ways managers can help their teams talk about stress more openly and productively.Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(01:34) Why isn't all stress the same, and why that matter for leaders(04:12) The different types of stress managers experience at work(07:25) Why identifying the source of stress is the first step to solving it(10:48) How unmanaged stress quietly spreads through teams(14:22) Why leaders often underestimate the stress their words create(18:36) Helping teams talk about stress without judgment(22:41) Why unclear priorities create unnecessary stress for teams(27:18) Practical ways leaders can reduce stress while improving clarity and trust(30:02) Simple leadership habits that create more moments of joy at work(33:01) [Extended Episode Only] The three-step “unstressing” method for identifying and solving stressors(36:21) [Extended Episode Only] A powerful team exercise that revealed 73 hidden stressors(41:58) [Extended Episode Only] Avoiding toxic positivity and creating real moments of connection on your team

Empathy is often talked about as a “soft skill,” but in reality, it can be one of the most powerful leadership strategies for building trust, improving collaboration, and helping teams perform at their best.When leaders understand the experiences and stories that shape how people think, communicate, and respond under pressure, they can lead in ways that make team members feel truly seen and supported. But empathy at work isn't just about being kind or having surface-level conversations. It requires curiosity, listening, and taking action based on what you learn.This week's guest shares practical ways leaders can bring empathy into everyday workplace interactions, from asking better questions to creating small moments where team members can share their stories and build stronger connections.Leilani Garrett spent more than two decades in corporate sales and leadership, navigating high-stakes environments, leading teams, and closing multi-million-dollar deals. Today, she's a creative force redefining leadership, connection, and culture through storytelling. Her work bridges personal growth and organizational impact, helping leaders and teams break down silos, build trust, and show up more fully human.In this conversation, we explore how empathy strengthens leadership, why curiosity is essential for understanding your team, and simple activities managers can use to create deeper trust and collaboration.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:29) What empathy really means at work(04:19) Recognizing our shared humanity(06:46) Creating space for honest conversations with your team(08:50) Why listening matters more than relating(12:11) Identifying procedural roadblocks that affect your team(15:47) Why curiosity is essential for empathetic leadership(17:59) Recognizing and celebrating quiet contributors(19:46) Building trust by repeating what people say(22:18) Why teams stop sharing personal stories over time(26:03) Examples of empathetic leadership in practice(31:39) [Extended Episode Only] Questions that spark meaningful conversations(33:16) [Extended Episode Only] Using stories to bring empathy into decisions

Court Leader's Advantage Podcast Series March, 17, 2026, Episode Career development is essential for both individual success and the long-term health of any organization. There are several obvious benefits to an organization having asolid career development program. Improved Performance and ResultsWhen people keep learning, they get better at their jobs, they produce higher quality work, and are better problem-solvers.Increased Employee Engagement and RetentionEmployees feel more valued when they can see a future for themselves. They are more likely to stay and give their best.Organizations Can More Easily Adapt to ChangeCareer development helps staff stay current with business trends and adjust to new roles. Why, then, do so many organizations, including courts, struggle to implement effective career development programs? Competing Business PrioritiesCareer development often feels less urgent than meeting case processing targets, struggling with budget shortfalls, and dealing with unexpected events such as high-profiletrials.Limited Time and ResourcesCareer development takes staff time, money, and structure. All are scarce resources. Training budgets are often the first to be cut in tight times. Management MindsetNot all managers feel responsible for developing their people. Some may focus on employees just doing their jobs, or worry about losing strong employees to jobs elsewhere.Limited Internal OpportunitiesIn smaller organizations, especially, there just aren't many rungs on the ladder to the executive level. This month, we are discussing courts and career development programs. Katie Hemphill wrote a terrific article in the Fall 2025 issue of the Court Manager. It explains why career development matters and how courts can build effectiveprograms. Today's Panel  Katie Hempill, Consultant and Retired Federal Court AdministratorAaron Burdick, Professional Development Manager for the Illinois Supreme Court Judicial CollegeJuli Edwards-McDaniel, Curriculum Developer for the National Center for State Courts Become part of the Conversation. Submit your comments and questions to: CLAPodcast@nacmnet.org 

Change is constant. But too often, leaders treat change as a project instead of a core leadership skill.That's when teams disengage, resistance grows, and initiatives stall. The problem isn't the change itself. It's how it's led.Fortunately, this week's guest shares a powerful new approach to help leaders guide their teams through uncertainty, build trust, and turn resistance into meaningful progress.Yvonne is a Change Management Strategist & Advisor, Founder of The Change Leadership, Author, and a Change Leadership Advocate with over 20 years of experience helping professionals and organizations lead and navigate change in today's disruptive environment.In this conversation, we explore the difference between change leadership and change management, how empathy and adaptability drive adoption, and why resistance is one of the most valuable signals leaders can receive.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(01:34) Change leadership vs. change management(04:24) Core change leadership skills every manager needs(06:50) Adaptive leadership and the head, heart, and hand model(09:42) Empathy and understanding how others hear change(11:36) Leading AI adoption and understanding impact first(14:50) The change curve and why people react differently(18:55) Involving stakeholders early to avoid failure(21:48) Transparency, trust, and early communication(24:26) Why resistance to change is valuable feedback(27:29) Designing better communication through real questions(29:26) The role of trust in strong leadership relationships(31:22) [Extended Episode] Avoiding performative change(36:45) [Extended episode] Driving change adoption(39:19) [Extended Episode] When feedback creates insight

As Generative AI moves from pilot to practice, firms need to equip their teams with a new skill set: the ability to serve as “AI editors." Firms need to think about how to train their teams to review and validate AI-supported work to ensure accuracy, ethics, and client trust. This podcast explored why this skill set is critical, how firms can upskill attorneys to do it, and practical steps to maintain quality and keep matters moving fast.  Moderator: @Patrick DiDomenico - Founder & CEO, InspireKM Consulting Speaker: @Kathy Harford - Senior Knowledge Lawyer - Innovation & IP, Stevens-Bolton Recorded on 03-05-2026.

Many leaders assume communication is about clarity. But the real challenge is getting people to truly understand, care, and take action.Too often, managers jump straight into slides, updates, or instructions without thinking about the impact of their message. As a result, even important communication falls flat, creates confusion, or leaves teams unsure what to do next.Fortunately, this week's guest shares a simple yet powerful framework for making every message more intentional, engaging, and effective.Andy Freed is the Chairman of Virtual Inc., a strategic consulting and professional services firm that supports mission-driven organizations across technology, healthcare, and financial services. With more than 30 years of experience leading teams through growth and transformation, Andy is known for helping leaders communicate in ways that spark alignment, action, and trust. He's also the author of Lead Like The Boss: The Bruce Springsteen Framework to Elevating Your Leadership.In this conversation, we explore how leaders can craft messages that stick, why consistency matters more than novelty, and how to bring energy and authenticity into everyday communication.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the week's episode's big idea delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:42) Leadership lessons from Bruce Springsteen(04:25) The Think, Feel, Do communication framework(06:59) Why unclear messaging creates unintended consequences(09:35) The power of consistency in leadership communication(13:18) Crafting a clear central message(18:06) How energy influences engagement and impact(23:23) Leadership as performance even offstage(25:07) Tone, technology, and communication mistakes(28:58) Why PowerPoint often fails leaders(31:56) [Extended Episode Only] Preparation and technology in modern communication(34:19) [Extended Episode Only] How AI can support stronger messaging

Many managers believe pressure drives performance. Others focus heavily on support. But high-performing teams don't choose one or the other. They operate with both.When expectations are high, but support is low, people become defensive, stressed, and disengaged. When support is high but expectations are low, performance suffers. The real challenge for managers is learning how to balance intensity with kindness so teams feel both challenged and supported.Fortunately, this week's guest shares a practical and grounded approach to building this balance. Evan Marks, a mental performance coach who has worked in high-stakes environments, explains why people don't rise to the occasion but fall to their level of training. He also shares how structure, emotional regulation, and clear communication help teams perform under pressure.In this conversation, we explore how to create psychological safety without lowering standards, how to shift from feedback to “feedforward,” and why leaders must model ownership and emotional control if they want their teams to do the same.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!

We have a juicy question in the DM's today, which is all about propelling your business forward. But that can require some fresh new blood, and do you need to make redundancies to bring that in, or can you upskill your original investment? LINKS Follow Britt on: Instagram - @brittney_saunders Instagram - @bigbusiness_podcast TikTok - @brittney_saunders YouTube - Brittney Saunders - Fayt The Label Check out FAYT The Label HERE. Purchase my book "Just Getting Started" HERE CREDITSHost: Brittney Saunders. Executive Producer: Xander CrossManaging Producer: Ricardo Bardon Find more great podcasts like this at novapodcasts.com.au and follow Nova Podcast's Instagram @novapodcastsofficialSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to another episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm. Today, Roger Knecht and Deneen Dias discuss the evolution of accounting, focusing on Client Advisory Services (CAS) and the strategic shift from traditional bookkeeping to high-value advisory. Learn how your firm can embrace technology, particularly AI, to scale operations, enhance client relationships, and drive recurring revenue. In This Episode: 00:00 Welcome & Guest Introduction 02:11 Deneen's Journey into Accounting 04:08 Defining Client Advisory Services (CAS) 08:08 CAS 1.0 vs. CAS 2.0 & Challenges 12:24 Building Confidence in Advisory Roles 16:21 Growth and Pillars of CAS 19:33 Pricing Strategies for CAS 24:34 AI's Role in Advisory Services 27:52 Leveraging Existing AI Tools 33:13 Gratitude and Infinite Ties 34:25 Podcast Summary and Resources 38:39 Final Thoughts and Call to Action Key Takeaways: Define Client Advisory Services (CAS) as moving beyond transactional work to real-time data analysis and strategic client advice. Shift your firm's offerings to value-based CAS, leveraging recurring revenue models to increase profitability. Implement a tiered pricing structure for CAS, such as the "biking, driving, flying" analogy, to guide clients through different service levels. Utilize existing technology platforms to integrate AI for automating transactional tasks and enhancing advisory capabilities. Upskill your team's soft skills and business acumen to confidently deliver CFO and advisory services. Featured Quotes: "Clients are hungry for advisory. They don't want someone to just do their taxes or prepare their financials. They want someone that can talk to them about their business, can talk to them about the numbers." — Deneen Dias "CAS is the fastest growing new revenue source for traditional firms. We've seen audit is flat. Tax has about 5% growth. And CAS, for the firms focusing on it, have 20% to 30% growth." — Deneen Dias "The tech stack that you're using now, build.com, spending a lot of money, bringing a lot of AI… get to know the vendors… Make sure you're taking advantage of all of the new things that they're bringing to you already." — Deneen Dias Behind the Story: Deneen Dias, a leader with 17 years in accounting technology, shares her journey from helping firms adopt cloud accounting in 2008 to co-founding Infinite Ties, a community for CAS professionals. Her deep experience highlights the accounting profession's ongoing evolution, emphasizing the current push towards advisory services and the integration of AI. She provides practical strategies for firms to overcome resistance to change, package new services, and build confidence within their teams. Conclusion: Thank you for joining us for another episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm with Roger Knecht. For more information on how you can establish your own accounting firm and take control of your time and income, call 435-344-2060 or schedule an appointment to connect with Roger's team here. Sponsors: Universal Accounting Center Helping accounting professionals confidently and competently offer quality accounting services to get paid what they are worth.   Offers: Check out Infinite Ties, a thriving membership community built exclusively for CAS professionals who are shaping the future of advisory services.   Are you ready for a change, both personally and professionally?  Then accept and participate in the Accountrepreneurs Challenge.  This is a FREE opportunity to apply best practices and make this the best year yet in your career.   Get a FREE copy of these books all accounting professionals should use to work on their business and become profitable.  These are a must-have addition to every accountant's library to provide quality CFO & Advisory services as a Profit & Growth Expert today: "Red to BLACK in 30 days – A small business accountant's guide to QUICK turnarounds" – This is a how-to guide on how to turn around a struggling business into a more sustainable model. Each chapter focuses on a crucial aspect of the turnaround process - from cash flow management to strategies for improving revenue. This book will teach you everything you need to become a turnaround expert for small businesses. "in the BLACK, nine principles to make your business profitable" – Nine Principles to Make Your Business Profitable – Discover what you need to know to run the premier accounting firm and get paid what you are worth in this book, by the same author as Red to Black – CPA Allen B. Bostrom. Bostrom teaches the three major functions of business (marketing, production and accounting) as well as strategies for maximizing profitability for your clients by creating actionable plans to implement the nine principles. "Your Strategic Accountant" - Understand the 3 Core Accounting Services (CAS - Client Accounting Services) you should offer as you run your business. Help your clients understand which numbers they need to know to make more informed business decisions. "Your Profit & Growth Expert" - Your business is an asset. You should know its value and understand how to maximize it. Beginning with the end in mind helps you work ON your business to build a company you can leave so that it can continue to exist in your absence or build wealth as you retire and enjoy the time, freedom, and life you want and deserve. Follow the Turnkey Business plan for accounting professionals.  This is the proven process to start and build the premier accounting firm in your area.  After more than 40 years we've identified the best practices of successful accountants and this is a presentation we are happy to share.     Also learn the best practices to automate and nurture your lead generation process allowing you to get the bookkeeping, accounting and tax clients you deserve.  GO HERE to see this presentation and learn what you can do today to identify and engage with your ideal clients.   Check it out and see what you can do to be in business for yourself but not by yourself with Universal Accounting Center.   It's here you can become a:   Professional Bookkeeper, PB Professional Tax Preparer, PTP Profit & Growth Expert, PGE   Next, join a group of like-minded professionals within the accounting community.  Register to attend GrowCon and Stay up-to-date on current topics and trends and see what you can do to also give back, participating in relevant conversations as they relate to offering quality accounting services and building your bookkeeping, accounting & tax business.   The Accounting & Bookkeeping Tips Facebook Group The Universal Accounting Fanpage Topical Newsletters: Universal Accounting Success The Universal Newsletter   Lastly, get your Business Score to see what you can do to work ON your business and have the Premier Accounting Firm. Join over 70,000 business owners and get your score on the 8 Factors That Drive Your Company's Value.     For Additional FREE Resources for accounting professionals check out this collection HERE!   Be sure to join us for GrowCon, the LIVE event for accounting professionals to work ON their business. This is a conference you don't want to miss.   Remember this, Accounting Success IS Universal. Listen to our next episode and be sure to subscribe.   Also, let us know what you think of the podcast and please share any suggestions you may have.  We look forward to your input: Podcast Feedback   For more information on how you can apply these principles to start and build your accounting, bookkeeping & tax business, please visit us at www.universalaccountingschool.com or call us at 8012653777  

Many teams struggle with the same invisible problem: unspoken norms that quietly undermine collaboration, performance, and trust. Even when leaders want better behaviors, more ownership, healthier boundaries, and stronger collaboration, change often stalls because no one has named what's actually happening.Fortunately, this week's guest helps managers put language to the hidden norms shaping their teams and offers a practical way to replace judgment-based practices with norms that help people do their best work.Nilofer Merchant is a bestselling author, speaker, and thought leader on innovation, collaboration, and organizational culture. In her work, she focuses on helping leaders identify the outdated norms holding teams back and redesign work in ways that unlock human potential. She is the author of Our Best Work and founder of The Intangible Labs.In this conversation, we explore how managers can surface unspoken norms, talk about them without defensiveness, and create shared ownership for cultural change. We also discuss why real change requires choice, not control, and how small shifts in language and process can cascade into healthier team dynamics.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the week's episode's big idea delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:18) Why unspoken norms quietly shape team behavior(06:04) Naming judgment-based practices that limit performance(10:41) Replacing judgment with encouragement at work(15:36) How language gives teams permission to change(19:58) Connecting team values to everyday behaviors(24:27) Why do people resist change even when they want it(29:02) Creating choice instead of control to enable real change(30:02) [Extended Episode Only] How to talk openly about norms as a team(33:12) [Extended Episode Only] Using shared ownership to sustain new behaviors(37:57) [Extended Episode Only] Designing work that supports flexibility and trust

Send a textIn this episode, Alyssa Avant is joined by Misty Phillip—author, speaker, and co-author of Upskill or Die—for an honest and insightful conversation about AI, fear, and faithful stewardship. Misty shares her journey into the tech and cybersecurity world, explains why AI is advancing so quickly, and helps demystify generative and agentic AI in a way that's easy to understand. Together, they discuss why Christians shouldn't ignore AI, how to use it wisely without surrendering our voice or values, and how education—not fear—positions us to steward technology well in a rapidly changing world.

Managing a team gets especially challenging when emotions run high.Whether it's you who regularly rides the emotional rollercoaster or a team member who explodes in meetings, shuts down during feedback, or feels unpredictable from one conversation to the next, many managers struggle with how to respond when emotions show up in the workplace.Fortunately, this week's guest offers a grounded framework for supporting emotional intensity at work without becoming a therapist and without ignoring what's really happening.Jordanna Eyre is the founder of Spiral Growth Systems and the creator of the Spiral Leadership Methodology, a transformational framework designed to help leaders work with time, energy, emotions, and growth in non-linear ways. Known as the Chief Sorceress of Life & Business, Jordanna helps leaders expand their capacity, regulate their nervous systems, and lead with greater presence and clarity.In this conversation, we explore how leaders can hold space for emotions without fixing or minimizing them, when support crosses into referral, and how emotional safety creates stronger teams over time.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the week's episode's big idea delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:21) Supporting team members with big emotions(06:04) Why leaders must regulate themselves first(09:46) Management vs. leadership in emotional situations(14:10) Fear as a blocker to anger, grief, and sadness(18:32) How suppressed emotions show up as ego or shutdown(23:48) Holding space without fixing or minimizing(27:55) When to refer instead of intervene(31:55) [Extended Episode Only] Expanding emotional capacity as a leader(33:13) [Extended Episode Only] What to say when emotions run high(36:52) [Extended Episode Only] Seeing the wisdom beneath behavior(40:41) [Extended Episode Only] Building shared leadership through emotional safety

Many organizations say they want to invest in people, but their hiring and talent practices often tell a very different story.Degree requirements, limited benefits packages, and poor management practices continue to limit who gets access to opportunity and how teams perform. And the cost shows up everywhere: higher turnover, slower productivity, and missed potential.Fortunately, this week's guest brings clear data and practical strategies that show how companies can do better for both people and performance.Dr. Angela Jackson is a Workplace Futurist and ESG expert, founder of Future Forward Strategies, and a lecturer at Harvard Graduate School of Education. She works with entrepreneurs, F100s, and policymakers on the future of work. Dr. Angela holds a doctorate from Harvard University and serves on several boards, including Needham Bancorp. Her book, The Win-Win Workplace, became a New York Times, USA Today, and Los Angeles Times Best SellerIf you want to build stronger teams, reduce turnover, and boost performance inside your organization, this episode offers a practical roadmap.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the week's episode's big idea delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Why “being your best self at work” is a business imperative(02:52) What is a “zero-sum workplace”?(06:05) What happens when workplaces invest in people(06:57) The 9 pillars of a Win-Win Workplace (overview)(12:26) What managers can do (even without company-wide power)(19:03) Distributed leadership and the Ownership mindset(26:57) A great manager story(29:30) How to connect with Angela(30:45) [Extended Interview] Building a deep talent bench(32:30) [Extended Interview] Hiring for skills, not credentials(36:18) [Extended Interview] How to design a skills-based interview

Upskilling for an AI era will be critical. While it requires a strong grasp of individuals' skills and potential, data shows leaders wildly overestimate their own capabilities and can misjudge what their teams can offer. CEO Kian Katanforoosh of skills measurement platform Workera shares what's needed to bridge these gaps and what could be ahead to keep pace with changing needs. He offers a sneak peek at what the future could look like, tackling questions on how AI can reshape mentorship and why it might one day be unethical for a human (rather than a machine) to judge another human's capabilities. He also digs into: how prompting AI can help any leader refine their asks when managing humans; How his own assessments have helped him hone key leadership skills, and what war games have taught him about strategic thinking. About this episode:  https://www.workera.ai/ Transcript:  https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/kian-katanforoosh-upskill-ai-age-workera Related episode:  Do you need an AI mentor? This tech entrepreneur thinks so https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/radio-davos/episodes/ai-skills-workera-kian-katanforoosh/

About 95% of people believe they're self-aware, but research shows only 10–15% actually are. And that gap matters, especially for managers.Self-awareness shapes how we communicate, make decisions, handle conflict, and interpret others' behavior. When we don't understand what's driving our reactions or how our actions land, we risk creating friction, bias, and misunderstanding on our teams without realizing it.Fortunately, this week's guest helps us unpack what true self-awareness really is, where it comes from, and how managers can develop it in practical, grounded ways.Dr. Helen Fagan is a leadership development expert and author of Lead Like People Matter. Drawing on neuroscience, intercultural research, and decades of coaching leaders, Helen explains how our values, cultural conditioning, and unconscious brain systems shape how we show up at work and what it takes to interrupt patterns that no longer serve us.In this conversation, we explore how to notice emotional reactions before they hijack us, how to give feedback without attacking identity, and how managers can build self-awareness in themselves and their teams without it feeling awkward.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:20) What self-awareness actually means (and common misconceptions)(04:02) How culture and values shape workplace behavior(07:41) Why different work styles aren't “wrong,” just different(10:13) How unconscious beliefs influence leadership decisions(12:56) Using emotional reactions as data, not direction(16:46) Recognizing physical signals of stress and reactivity(19:40) Naming emotions to reduce conflict and improve communication(33:37) Helping someone build self-awareness without making it personal(39:29) [Extended Episode] System 1 vs. System 2 thinking and emotional hijacking(42:14) [Extended Episode] Practical ways to re-engage logic during emotional moments

You already have a personal brand, whether you've chosen it or not. And every meeting, email, and interaction at work is quietly shaping it.Many managers assume personal branding is about being visible online or promoting yourself. But in reality, it's about how you show up, how others experience working with you, and what people say about you when you're not in the room. It's essentially your reputation.This week's guest helps us unpack what personal brand really means at work and how to be intentional about it without feeling inauthentic, salesy, or self-promotional.Andy Storch is a keynote speaker, author of Own Your Career, Own Your Life and Own Your Brand, Own Your Career, and host of multiple podcasts. He works with leaders and managers to help them build reputations that earn trust, influence stakeholders, and attract opportunity. In this episode, we explore how your internal behaviors, external presence, and everyday choices combine to shape your brand and how small shifts can make a big difference over time.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.If you want more influence, stronger relationships, and greater career opportunities without becoming an “influencer,” this conversation will help you lead with clarity and intention.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) You already have a personal brand(02:07) What a personal brand really is (and why it matters at work)(04:54) Internal vs external brand: how reputation is formed(07:01) How small behaviors quietly shape how others see you(10:29) The balance between humility and visibility(12:50) How to assess your current brand with self-reflection and feedback(17:49) Why building your brand isn't fake; it's intentional(22:01) Appearance, perception, and owning your choices(27:11) What great leaders are remembered for long-term(35:27) [Extended Episode] Using values to guide what you share publicly(36:08) [Extended Episode] How celebrating your team strengthens your leadership brand(38:12) [Extended Episode] Networking, relationship-building, and long-term opportunity

Hiring a friend can feel both generous and like a leadership landmine waiting to explode.Good intentions aren't enough when power dynamics shift, boundaries blur, and personal relationships collide with professional expectations. The risk isn't just losing a friendship; it's undermining trust, fairness, and team culture if the situation isn't handled thoughtfully.Fortunately, this week's guest helps us unpack how to navigate one of leadership's most uncomfortable decisions with clarity and integrity.Dr. Cindi Baldi is the founder and CEO of Culsure, a management science firm, co-host of the Management Muse podcast, and co-author of the Uncertainty Playbook. From blackjack dealer to PhD in organizational behavior, Cindi has seen the full spectrum of workplace behavior. Now she helps leaders across the country understand their people better through data and decades of consulting experience. Cindy explains when hiring a friend can work, when it absolutely won't, and how to protect both the relationship and the organization if you decide to move forward.You'll learn how to say no to a friend without damaging the relationship, what boundaries must be set upfront if you do hire them, and why conflict style in friendships is a strong predictor of workplace behavior.In the extended conversation, Cindy goes deeper into the hidden risks of managing friends, including what must be off-limits once a friend reports to you, how oversharing personal information can undermine fairness and trust, and how to lead with integrity when professional and personal lines start to blur.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) The hidden risks and rewards of hiring a friend(03:03) Why friendships change once power dynamics enter the picture(06:00) Using social capital responsibly when recommending friends(12:42) What you can legitimately vouch for when referring someone(15:11) When hiring a friend actually makes strategic sense(17:03) The bias trap leaders fall into with people they like(20:25) How to protect fairness when making the hiring decision(22:36) Setting expectations before your friend starts the job(27:02) Power dynamics that make hiring a friend a bad idea(30:31) [Extended Episode Only] What to do when your friend applies but isn't a good fit(36:29) [Extended Episode Only] Preventing personal boundaries from bleeding into work

Salary conversations are inherently complex and challenging, filled with hidden traps. They are high-stakes, deeply personal, and blend factors like budgets, fairness, expectations, and emotions. Since these discussions are infrequent, many managers lack the necessary practice, which adds to the difficulty.Fortunately, this week's guest breaks down exactly how to navigate compensation conversations with confidence, clarity, and leverage, without damaging relationships or risking the offer.John Gates is an author and founder of Salary Coach, where he helps C-suite executives and senior leaders negotiate higher compensation packages without risking their job offers or future relationships. John's unique approach, born from his extensive experience in corporate recruiting, consistently helps his clients secure 10-20% more in their pay packages, even in challenging job markets.In this episode, we explore the biggest mistakes candidates and managers make when discussing pay, how to respond to the dreaded “What are your salary expectations?” question, and how to negotiate thoughtfully before an offer is on the table. If you want to avoid losing great candidates and negotiate with confidence, this conversation is for you.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction(02:05) Why salary conversations feel so intimidating(05:48) The biggest mistake candidates make early in the process(08:41) How recruiters decide whether to move you forward(12:10) A smarter way to answer “What are your salary expectations?”(17:06) Why giving a range protects your leverage(21:42) The danger of accepting an offer too quickly(26:09) Common fears that stop people from negotiating(30:12) How effective negotiation actually works(33:16) [Extended] The exact script for handling salary screeners(37:59) [Extended] Gender differences in negotiation fears(45:02) [Extended] Using trade-offs and benefits to close compensation gaps

Happy New Year, Leaders! We are kicking off 2026 with a "power bomb" episode. If your plan for this year is simply to "be better," Tammy has some tough love for you: Better is not a strategy. Stopping the wrong behavior is. In Episode 115, we aren't adding to your to-do list. Instead, we are identifying the five anchors weighing down your leadership and eroding your team's trust. If you want to be taken seriously in every room you enter this year, it's time to put these habits in the rearview mirror. What We're Stopping (So You Can Start Growing): The Busyness Trap: Why being in every Slack thread and meeting doesn't make you indispensable—it makes you a bottleneck. Tammy's Sandbox Truth: "Leaders create clarity; managers create motion; exhausted people create chaos." Power Question: What are you still doing that your position should have outgrown by now? The "Sugar-Coating" Habit: How vague feedback and "just circling back" emails are actually courage issues that create resentment. Tammy's Sandbox Truth: "Unspoken expectations become resentment every single time." Power Question: Who are you protecting by not naming the problem, and what is it costing the organization? Managing for Consensus: Why alignment actually comes after direction, not before it, and how seeking total agreement is outsourcing your leadership. Tammy's Sandbox Truth: "Alignment comes after direction, not before it." Power Question: Where are you waiting for permission instead of taking responsibility in leadership? Hiding Behind the Shield: Why "HR said so" or "that's just our culture" is an abdication of your authority. Tammy's Sandbox Truth: "Leaders don't outsource accountability. They own it." Power Question: What are you blaming instead of owning right now? The Autopilot Routine: Why the version of you that worked in 2022 is officially under-qualified for the challenges of 2026. Tammy's Sandbox Truth: "If you don't upgrade your inner work and get in touch with who you are as leader, what you're here to do, no skill set will save you. Upskill you on the inside first. Lead yourself well before you lead others." Power Question: How are you intentionally evolving how you think, not just what you do? Listen to this episode to get the full details on your "Sandbox Truths" and "Power Questions" for each of these five steps. Let's make 2026 the year you stop sabotaging your own momentum. Check out the artwork mentioned in this episode: davidwightglassart.com  

When disruption hits your team, confidence often drops, communication gets messy, and progress slows. But disruption isn't the problem; how we respond to it is.Fortunately, this week's guest offers a clear, practical framework for leading with steadiness even when everything around you is shifting. And just as importantly, he explains how we can become positive disruptors in order to facilitate a brighter future.Patrick Leddin is a global speaker, former Army Ranger, Vanderbilt professor, and bestselling author of Disrupt Everything and Win. He shares how managers can help their teams stay focused, take smart risks, communicate clearly, and build healthier relationships during periods of uncertainty.If you want to lead with more clarity and confidence when change hits, this conversation gives you the tools to do it.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Rethinking disruption as opportunity rather than threat(02:17) Why mindset shapes everything(03:30) How disruptions show up at work and in life(09:59) The danger of avoidance, “waiting it out,” and living in survival mode(11:11) What it means to be a positive disruptor(14:27) The 5 Positive Disruptor Roles (24:10) The 4-step disruptive leadership cycle(26:30) The 16 disruptive strengths (31:03) Keep up with Patrick(38:20) [Extended] Creating conditions for positive disruption inside your team's culture(39:08) [Extended] Clarifying decision authority so your team knows when they can act(40:35) [Extended] Disrupting unhealthy workplace relationships

Ever feel like you should know more, be more confident, or have everything figured out by now?You're not alone, and more importantly, you don't need to be a “know-it-all” to be an exceptional leader.In fact, the strongest leaders today share one trait:They are learn-it-alls, people who grow through challenges instead of shrinking from them.Fortunately, this week's guest brings a powerful, actionable framework that helps managers move from self-doubt into genuine capability.Damon Lembi is a 2x bestselling author, the host of The Learn-It-All Podcast, and CEO of Learnit, a live learning platform that has upskilled over 2 million people. Drawing from his prior baseball career, Damon brings an athlete's perspective to leadership. Through his journey, he has gained invaluable insights into what helps organizations grow, how great leaders learn, and why learn-it-all companies outpace their competitors every time.We explore why action transforms confidence faster than motivation ever could, how to stop perfectionism from stalling your growth, and how “possibility spotting” turns obstacles into opportunities for advancement. If you've ever felt like you're not ready, not experienced enough, or not “the right fit,” this conversation will help you step forward as the leader you truly are.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction: Why imposter syndrome spikes when stepping into leadership(01:12) What imposter syndrome really is (and why nearly everyone experiences it)(05:42) Why we undervalue ourselves when taking on bigger roles(08:30) Confidence through action, not waiting to feel ready(11:18) Building leadership skills through mentors, reps, and learning(13:44) Why difficult conversations trigger self-doubt for new managers(15:56) Owning your gaps to build credibility(18:03) Asking for help and advocating for your development(22:58) Finding opportunities inside constraints(25:57) [Extended Only] Why everyone has imposter syndrome(26:45) [Extended Only] Damon's 4-step framework for overcoming imposter syndrome(34:05) [Extended Only] Turning obstacles into an advantage

In a world that constantly demands breakthrough solutions, do you ever feel like innovation is reserved for a select few, or that you're simply not "creative enough"? This week's guests are here to set the record straight: that we are all capable of creative thinking if we just give ourselves permission and a little guidance. Tessa Forshaw and Rich Braden are the co-authors of Innovation-ish: How Anyone Can Create Breakthrough Solutions to Real Problems in the Real World. Tessa is a cognitive scientist exploring how we work, learn, and innovate. She is a co-founder of Harvard's Next Level Lab and teaches Design Thinking and Innovation at Harvard, DCE, and Stanford D School. Rich is the founder and CEO of People Rocket, which helps leaders and teams overcome innovation hesitation; there, they guide clients through the innovation-ish approach, a flexible human-centered framework built on mindset shifts, small adaptive steps, and reflective practice he also teaches at Stanford D School.In this episode, we're cutting through the myth of the "right-brained" innovator. You'll learn how to integrate the six innovation mindsets into your work, overcome "innovation hesitation," and embrace your "whole brain" approach to problem-solving. This conversation offers practical tools to foster fresh thinking within your team, create space for ideas to thrive, and give you the concrete tools to move those ideas forward, no matter your role.Plus, in the extended episode, Tessa and Rich share tips for normalizing failure and using “F-Up Nights” to build a culture that learns from failure.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction – Why experimentation beats opinion-driven decision-making(01:18) The root of spiraling: fear, assumptions, and cognitive bias(04:02) Why small experiments create big clarity(07:10) The danger of optimizing parts of a system instead of the whole(10:42) A real-world case study: redesigning a supply chain through small tests(15:45) Why most ideas fail and why that's a good thing(18:04) How emotional attachment to ideas sabotages good decisions(21:30) Cognitive caution: What your brain is really doing when you avoid failure(25:14) Practicing emotional regulation while testing ideas(28:33) Creating a culture where testing > guessing(30:20) [Extended only] How leaders can use data to reduce conflict and opinion-driven debate(36:24) [Extended only] Normalizing failure and learning from it as a team(40:18) [Extended only] Global “F-Up Nights” and how leaders can model healthy failure

When the world around you feels chaotic, leading a team can feel overwhelming, especially when your inner world is just as loud. Most managers try to push through, rely on willpower, or double down on doing more. But in reality, external chaos only becomes manageable when we learn to work with the internal chaos driving our emotions, reactions, and habits.Fortunately, this week's guest helps us unpack exactly why leaders get stuck in overwhelm and how to shift back into clarity and confidence.Rob Kalwarowsky is a world-renowned executive coach, author of the best-selling book Capitalizing on Chaos, and keynote & TEDx speaker. We explore the hidden parts of ourselves that shape our leadership, the subconscious fears that drive “DIY leadership,” people-pleasing, and imposter syndrome, and the practice that brings you back to center when everything feels too much.If you've ever found yourself spiraling, overworking, micromanaging, avoiding decisions, or doubting your capability even when you're successful… this conversation will help you understand what's happening inside your brain and what to do next.Rob's practical framework gives you the mental tools to lead yourself and your team with steadiness, self-awareness, and strength, even when everything feels uncertain.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction – Leading through internal and external chaos.(01:07) How self-awareness impacts leadership and team dynamics.(04:14) The DIY Leader—When doing everything holds you back.(07:44) TA tool for acknowledging stress and building empathy.(10:25) Understanding internal leadership behaviors.(16:21) Using self-awareness to improve interactions and decision-making.(19:41) Applying the “Parts Framework” to enhance collaboration.(22:50) How your internal state affects team morale.(24:41) Recognizing and managing energy-draining saboteurs.(30:39) [Extended only] Team strategies for shared language and stress signals.(32:56) [Extended only] Using vulnerability and playful cues to improve team communication.

Managers play a crucial role in shaping how employees experience work. But when ADHD enters the mix, good intentions can backfire if not handled thoughtfully. With the right mindset and tools, you can create a space where everyone performs at their best.Fortunately, this week's guest brings both personal and professional expertise to this conversation.Rita Ramakrishnan is an executive leadership coach and consultant who helps neurodivergent professionals and their teams amplify their strengths and work more naturally. Her work focuses on neurodivergent leadership success, helping individuals and organizations embrace differences as a pathway to thriving.In this episode, Rita and I explore what ADHD looks like in adults, why it's often misunderstood, and how managers can support themselves and their teams through empathy, structure, and flexible systems. You'll learn strategies for managing focus, energy, and motivation, plus how to build habits that sustain success over time.In the extended episode, Rita shares how to approach conversations about ADHD respectfully, even when a team member hasn't disclosed, and how to foster a collaborative, psychologically safe culture that supports everyone's best work.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction: Why ADHD awareness matters for managers(01:02) Meet today's guest: Rita Ramakrishnan(03:04) How ADHD shows up in adults, and why many go undiagnosed(06:16) The connection between neurodiversity, performance, and burnout(09:28) Building psychological safety for employees with ADHD(12:47) Shifting from fixing people to redesigning work(17:11) The right way to talk about ADHD (and what not to say)(22:08) Supporting focus, follow-through, and accountability on your team(25:11) Managing ADHD Team Members(30:22) [Extended Episode Only] Raising sensitive topics with empathy and care(33:35) [Extended Episode Only] Redesigning roles and work for energy and well-being

Have you ever had a great idea but struggled to get others on board?You don't need a title to have influence; you need a strategy.Fortunately, this week's guest knows exactly how to build credibility and momentum without formal power.Tami Reiss is an expert on influence-driven leadership. She's a keynote speaker, corporate trainer, and CEO of Leader Within, where she helps leaders master influence and maximize impact. Through tools like the LEAD Framework, MAP, the Influence Canvas, and the Confident Communicator GPT, she makes leadership concepts practical and accessible to professionals around the world. Her latest passion project is a rhyming illustrated book on leadership.In this episode, Tami shares how to use the MAP Framework (Manifest, Assess, Promote) to move ideas forward, align your vision with others, and build relationships that lead to collaboration instead of resistance. We explore what to do when your ideas are dismissed, how to avoid losing your cool under pressure, and why influence is really about connection, not control.In the extended conversation, Tami shares practical tools for managing crisis moments with calm, rallying allies before big decisions, and communicating risks in ways that help others listen and engage constructively.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction: Why Influence Without Authority Matters(02:09) The MAP Framework: Manifest, Assess, Promote(05:06) Why Influence is About Connection, Not Power(09:15) Manifesting a Vision That Inspires Buy-In(12:38) Assessing Stakeholders and Building Relationships(17:02) Promoting Your Ideas Authentically(21:19) Managing Pushback and Reframing Resistance(25:26) Lessons from Great Managers: Buy-In vs. Being Right(29:03) Connect with Tami Reiss(30:35) [Extended Episode Only] Staying Calm and Building Allies in Crisis(34:24) [Extended Episode Only] The “Meeting Before the Meeting” to Gain Real Support

Are you showing up as your full, authentic self or just the version you think others expect?Authenticity isn't a matter of oversharing or saying whatever's on your mind. It's about honesty balanced with humility and vulnerability, the kind that builds genuine trust and stronger teams.Thankfully, today's guest brings both experience and expertise to this conversation. Mike Robbins is the author of five books, including Bring Your Whole Self to Work and his latest, We're All In This Together. For the past 25 years, Mike has been a sought-after keynote speaker and executive coach who delivers keynotes, workshops, and coaching programs for some of the top companies in the world. His clients include Google, Wells Fargo, Microsoft, Walmart, eBay, Schwab, and many more.In this episode, we delve into what it truly means to “bring your whole self to work,” examine why self-righteousness undermines connection, and explore how vulnerability cultivates trust and psychological safety. Mike shares his “authenticity equation” and practical ways managers can model openness without crossing professional boundaries.In the extended conversation, Mike delves deeper into the art of authentic appreciation, why most people are uncomfortable receiving praise, how to cultivate a culture of gratitude on your team, and the key distinction between appreciation and recognition. He also shares a powerful team practice, “the appreciation seat,” that helps managers cultivate belonging and empathy at work.Get FREE mini-episode guides with the big idea from the week's episode delivered to your inbox when you subscribe to my weekly email.Join the conversation now!Conversation Topics(00:00) Introduction: Why Authenticity Matters at Work(01:03) The Challenge of Showing Up Authentically(01:46) The Authenticity Equation Explained(03:14) Removing Self-Righteousness from Your Leadership(06:55) The Subtle Ways Self-Righteousness Shows Up in Coaching(10:21) Lowering the Waterline on the Iceberg(16:24) The Art of Appropriate Disclosure(18:53) Navigating Grief and Personal Struggles at Work(22:30) Authenticity, Identity, and Belonging(26:11) The Power of Sweaty Palm Conversations(30:18) Connect with Mike Robbins(31:07) [Extended Only] The art of appreciation: how to give and receive it authentically(37:38) [Extended Only] Recognition vs. appreciation—what every manager should know