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In today's episode, we cover prioritizing team dynamics and collaboration in leadership. We discuss the importance of focusing on the team before jumping right into problem-solving. We emphasize the significance of team dynamics, trust, and leadership in achieving success and also discuss the value of having the right team members and fostering an environment that promotes growth and collaboration.Show notes:- Focus on building trust within the team before diving into problem-solving [00:00:00]- Prioritize getting the right people in place and headed in the right direction [00:01:08]- Shift focus from analyzing the problem to evaluating the team's ability to get the job done [00:01:32]- Recognize the importance of planning and looking ahead in careers and leadership [00:06:27]- Address the dangers of reactive problem-solving without purpose and structure [00:08:31]- Question initial information as a leader and involve the right people in decision-making [00:10:34]- Empower and trust your team members by selecting them for specific tasks [00:12:32]- Delegate problems to the team and provide the right level of coaching to support their success [00:15:02]- Tackle the biggest problem first, instead of focusing on quick wins [00:19:12]- Avoid the "quick win trap" and focus on addressing the most significant and challenging problems [00:21:18]- Demonstrate the consultant's value quickly by addressing the system's bottleneck [00:23:25]- Have confidence in your team's ability to work through problems [00:25:02]- Invest time and energy into coaching, feedback, and effective communication for a strong team [00:27:44]- Prioritize the team's success over personal agendas [00:33:23]- Pair team members to work on tasks together for better problem-solving and team-building [00:39:07]- Go through the stages of storming, forming, norming, and performing to build trust and improve collaboration [00:47:07]Thanks for joining us today. Don't forget to hit the subscribe button and feel free to reach us at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

We're back with our slow but informative walkthrough of The Trillion Dollar Coach, covering Chapter 3 - Build an Envelope of Trust. We cover a ton of ground in this episode, here are some of the main points.- Building trust between leaders and teams- Trust as the foundation of psychological safety- Leveraging radical candor in delivering difficult messages- Establishing trust and psychological safety within a team- Scaling care and trust across growing teams- Coaching the coachable and avoiding over-focus on underperformers- Creating an environment of open dialogue and vulnerability- Storytelling in leadershipThanks for listening. Please subscribe and share this episode to anyone you think could benefit.

In today's episode, we take a break from The Trillion Dollar Coach and reconnect after a break. We touch on several topics:1. Adjusting to recording again and optimizing our workspace for better productivity.2. The significance of career progression within our teams and the importance of fostering an environment that supports growth and success.3. The value of setting clear goals and priorities for the year ahead, emphasizing the need for clarity before the year starts.4. Sharing personal experiences with promoting team members, highlighting the positive impact of providing opportunities for growth and development.5. Balancing professional and personal life, and exploring our creative side through architectural drawing and sketching as a way to unwind and find balance.6. ChatGPT and AI as a way to augment human productivity and output, with the downside of creating too much noise in the ecosystem.

In this episode we discuss our experiences and observations about leadership and wellbeing back from some much needed time off. We touch on the importance of taking breaks, finding a work-life balance, and the benefits of taking a step back from work.We cover the challenges of maintaining a healthy work-life balance, especially when working remotely. We believe that taking breaks and setting boundaries are essential to avoiding burnout and staying productive.Share thoughts on the importance of being present in the moment and focusing on the task at hand. We also discusses the benefits of taking time off, such as reducing stress and improving overall wellbeing.Talk about recent road trips and how they helped recharge and reset. We also touch on the importance of finding time for self-care and exploring new experiences.We explore the idea of "divergence and convergence" during podcast discussions, where we uncover new ideas and perspectives that wouldn't otherwise be discovered. Taking breaks, setting boundaries, and taking time for self-care. Prioritize their wellbeing and to take steps towards finding a healthy work-life balance.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

How do we handle the people on our teams who are exceptional at what they do, but regularly exhibit behaviors that are outside of the bands of the team dynamics / company expectations? Bill Campbell calls this "Managing the Aberrant Genius".Bill Campbell's advice is clear - tolerating the Aberrant Genius is OK as long as their behaviors are in the service (or intended to be in the service) of the good of the company, or the good of the team. When it can't be tolerated is when they continually put him or herself above the team.We think feedback and coaching are critical skills for everyone on the team and, if not done consistently and effectively, will introduce more risk if you have Aberrant Geniuses on your team. We also discuss whether or not the time and energy required to manage these profiles is the most effective place for leaders to spend their time.We also discuss how managing this dynamic as a leader wades into decision-making. Critical decisions should have a timeframe. What is the useful life of a decision? When making critical decisions, it's vital we re-visit and re-assess at some point in the future. Too many decisions are made by "default" (taking no action) or "permanently" never adjusted in light of new information/wisdom.

Sometimes you need to make the hard decision and expect that everyone will rally around it.We're back after a long summer break with one of our favorite leadership concepts from the Trillion Dollar coach around executive decision-making. Bill Campbell says our job as leaders are to ensure all perspectives get heard and considered when making decisions AND the accountability for the final decision rests on the leader's shoulders. In other words, it's the leader's job to break ties because sometimes the team's direction will align with the leader's directional vision, and others it won't. In our roles as leaders, we have to balance facilitating, enabling, and decision-making.One thing we can do as leaders to immediately improve our decision-making skills is to create a Decision Journal. You can read more about Decision Journals here: https://fs.blog/decision-journal/For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website  or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we continue our series on The Trillion Dollar Coach with Part 3 of Chapter 2 which is all about one-on-ones.Bill Campbell brought his own unique flair to coaching his team and rooted it in solid leadership foundations that we will discuss today.We discuss a few thoughts and ideas around how to improve your own 1:1 effectiveness which center mostly around consistency and preparation. No single one-on-one will be life-changing, but the frequency of these relationship investments will compound over time. You will also get a 10x return on the time you invest preparing for the one-on-one which will lead to faster growth of your team.For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we continue our series on the Trillion Dollar Coach by talking about one of our favorite relationship building tools, the Trip Report.The Trip Report is exactly what it sounds like. A brief, informal, overview of a recent vacation you took aimed at sharing with your colleagues to build trust and help them get to know you better. When you have a team that is willing to share Trip Reports, you can foster a higher degree of empathy and collaboration over time.For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

"If you're a great manager, your people will make you a leader. They claim that not you." - Bill CampbellIn today's episode we continue our series on Bill Campbell and the Trillion Dollar Coach with Chapter 2: Your Title Makes You a Manager. Your People Make You a Leader.This chapter is solid gold and a great start to the book. It's also very dense with lots of differing advice around leadership, executive effectiveness, and building great relationships throughout the organization.Today we cover the areas of the chapter focused on building trust with your team and some of the attributes as a coach Bill brought to bear on the team to help it level up, both at the individual and group level.For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we continue our series on the Trillion Dollar Coach. We cover the first chapter which covers some backstory of Bill's life and some of the events and experiences that led him to become the person he is today. It's sort of a prequel to the book, there is not much actual guidance in this chapter but there is some wisdom that is worth the read.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we kick off a new series: Trillion Dollar Coach, a book that outlines the leadership style, approach, and secrets of one of the greatest business leaders of our time: Bill Campbell.Bill Campbell is not who you might have normally pegged as a fantastic leader that was in the middle of some of the greatest successes from the largest companies in silicon valley. He had a unique approach that informs how we might improve our own leadership craft.Just like before, we will kick off the book, cover each chapter individually, and close out the series with our final thoughts and some ideas on how we can collectively grow.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we clear the backlog on outstanding questions we have collected during our newhire onboarding.How do I ramp-up quickly on a new technology/topic?How often should I check in with my boss?How do I get more responsibility?We referenced a couple of interesting resources during the discussion as well:Computer Scientist Explains Machine Learning in 5 Levels of Difficulty | WIREDThe Feynman Learning TechniqueThanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we tackle one of the most commonly asked questions in our new hire orientation. How do I deal with Imposter Syndrome?Imposter syndrome, also called perceived fraudulence, involves feelings of self-doubt and personal incompetence that persist despite your education, experience, and accomplishments. -HealthLineWe start the episode covering what Impostor Syndrome is, how you can recognize it in ourself and others, and how to overcome it. If you or someone on your team is struggling with Impostor Syndrome, this is the podcast episode for you.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we welcome back Igor after a two month sabbatical and celebrate more than a year of podcasting. We spend some time catching up after taking a bit of a summer break from releasing podcast episodes, talk about some of the origins and inspirations that led us to start podcasting to begin with, get into some emerging tech ideas, and cap the episode off celebrating the last year and talking about what is next for us.Thanks for joining us after a year, we love doing this and hope you are finding value in our content. As always, don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today, we talk about planning your ideal week. As professionals, we live and die by our calendars and most of the time they are like a game of Tetris gone horribly wrong.Today we cover thoughts and ideas for regaining control of your calendar, managing expectations around your time, and making the time for things that are most important to you.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Vacation days are one of the most finite resources we possess as non-retired humans. Most of us with "normal" 9-5 jobs tend to get between 10 and 25 days per year with little flexibility beyond that - regardless of salary. As our careers progress, income tends to rise, and business tends to increase along with it - leaving the potential for having more than enough money but struggling to find the time to recharge, regroup, and reconnect with the humans most important around us.In this episode, we discuss how to think differently about vacations, effective strategies for taking vacations, and how overall health and wellbeing come into play.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

In today's episode we talk about the 40% of workers that are planning on leaving their job over the next 12 months and what we can do about it as leaders within our organization.Episode at a Glance:NPR coined the term Great Resignation as a way to label the abnormally high number of people planning on leaving their jobs as we begin to exit the worst of the pandemic.The decision to leave is largely driven by a desire for remote work flexibility and potentially a drive to take control over part of their life after navigating a crisis that gives a fresh start.Organizations are poised to lose their best and brightest in this time period as the job market has heavily skewed towards job seekers.What are actions we can take today to mitigate impact within our own organizations, or is it too late?Further Reading:https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/worried-about-the-great-resignation-be-a-good-company-to-come-fromhttps://www.npr.org/2021/06/24/1007914455/as-the-pandemic-recedes-millions-of-workers-are-saying-i-quitThanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today we wrap up our Nine Lies About Work series with a brief recap of the lies and our overall reactions to the book. Overall, we think Nine Lies About Work is worth the time and energy to read, especially if you are in a leadership position or aspire to be at some point in your career.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

Today the crew is back from 4th of July vacations and spend some time talking about how to unwind in the middle of a busy work-year. We all have slightly different approaches to taking time off and strategies to unwind as effectively as possible during the precious few vacation weeks we invest during our careers.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

The Wanna Grab Coffee? crew is on vacation this week so we are publishing a recent delivery of one of our most popular episodes around becoming The Ideal Team Player.This is a presentation Robert gives in our new-hire orientation expanding on some of the great work Patrick Lencioni discusses in his book The Ideal Team Player: https://www.tablegroup.com/product/ideal-team-player.We'll be back next week with brand new episodes.Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.