How Might We...?

In this episode, we ask a simple question with complex answers: how do you build trust across borders, cultures, and systems? Scott is joined by three voices with lived, global experience. Fahd shares how his teams serve families across Pakistan and the diaspora, and why trust is the real product when support is delivered from afar. Douglas reflects on leading across regions and why celebrating what is right with the world changes how we partner. Geoff brings two decades on global boards, arguing that trust starts with how we listen, engage, and follow through. Together they cover: Culture, context, and why “one message fits all” fails. Media noise, facts, and the human habit of de-humanising “the other.” Practical habits that travel well: clear expectations, empathy, openness, and delivery. Ideas like Ubuntu, and why being there for each other builds credibility over time. The role of data and technology, and why human experience still decides outcomes. If you lead teams, sell across markets, or simply want to work well with people who are not like you, this conversation will help. Listen in for practical ways to earn trust—one interaction at a time.   Geoff Linkedin Profile https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffsearle/ Douglas Linkedin Profile https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglaslines/ Fahd Linkedin Profile https://www.linkedin.com/in/fahd-khan-406bb835/       Transcript - Generated by AI and may not be 100% accurate    Hello and welcome to the latest edition of How Might We, and this time we're talking about how might we build trust internationally and at the time we are. I think that's a very interesting subject. And with me on this podcast is one of my regular guest, Jeff, another Douglas, who's been on many times and for the first time, and welcome is Fard. Welcome to the podcast gentlemen who would like to introduce themselves first. I think Fard should introduce himself first. Okay, there we go, please, Fard. Alright, so thank you for having me, onto the podcast. my name is Fahard and I'm the CEO of, two companies. One is, Mosen and the other is Moja. Moha is a private 9 1 1 service, or a private 9, 9, 9 service. in third world countries you typically don't have. very efficient systems, that work. So I have to make a private 9, 9 9, solution for the people of Pakistan in and through this company, we've, helped save more than 15,000 lives and, handle more than 55,000 events, globally. The other company is Mosin Mosin, is, very relevant to the topic today because, Mosin is all about helping, expat and overseas Pakistanis look after their families back home and making sure that they're looked after safe, provided for and everything. The typical challenge that we're trying to address is, establishing trust with the people who are sitting outside of Pakistan. They're looking for a service provider who basically look after their families like a surrogate child. So, you can imagine nobody wants to stand in unless they can trust them. So, it's very relevant to the topic today. Okay. Thank you very much and welcome. So, Douglas, do you wanna go next? Thank you, Scott, and it's, wonderful to, to see everybody again and far just amazing, , what you're doing in that region. And looking forward to having a conversation together today. And thank you, Scott, for including me. I said my name is Douglas Lyons. I'm a co-founder and director of IBM Group Limited based in London, and, have been so for a number of years. And Jeff and I are business partners and good friends. As, yourself, Scott and Fahd. So I think this is a collection of amazing people, but amazing friends, with these real trusts. So really looking forward to wonderful conversation from all the perspectives this afternoon. Okay, thank you very much. And last but not least, Jeffrey. Thank you young man.  Geoff Hudson Sill, independent non-executive director for the last 20 years on, global technology companies. senior executive, C-suite executive on both publicly listed and privately listed companies. author of seven books, regular thought leader and also, co-founder and and director with Douglas, as I said on on IBM group and group of companies. Okay. Welcome gentlemen. we're gonna talk today about how, how do we or how might we build trust internationally, which I think with the way that's [going on, especially geopolitically, and trade wise is quite an interesting topic. And, as far as you said, even in business, how do we build trust internationally that, especially the business you are doing with. Looking after people for expats or people abroad, and they're trusting you to deliver services and things from them, from afar, from a distance. I think, I think one of the things that we, we, so trust is a very expansive, very overreaching sort of word, but it is so fundamental in nature. It starts, from almost childbirth, where, where a child is, is, brought into the world and, he grows up in the cradle in the arms of people that he grows up trusting. And, and when you look at children for the first four or five years of their lives, they're very trusting people. And somehow along the way. the world, sort of starts taking that away. It starts chipping away at, at all of those things. And I think one of the major things that we would wanna discuss, today is how do we raise a whole society and then, through that, create,  a system where trust can be established along all lines so that when it, when, when a child or a person finally reaches into the business realm or into, into adult life, their people, who other people can actually trust. Interesting. I'd like the concept you said about as, as a child we basically trust and it's nearly unconditional in the amount we trust our children. or sorry, our children trust, us as parents and we trust our parents or guardians and say the experience that we have erodes that level of trust We have. As, as human beings. Doug, what do you think? I guess it depends also how you are brought up., everyone has a different story in that regard. So trust can be broken at a very young age. Trust can be broken at a teenager level, or even, even at an adult level, right, when you think about it. So you are engaging in different experiences, in your life journey, if you think about that. Yep. Doug, I think when you start talking about this, like to. Talk about things from a different perspective. And, you'll remember the mid nineties in business where, in England particularly you would have the queen's, expert export award for companies that were looking to export their products and services globally and internationally. And it, there were very few companies really doing that very well. I remember working for a company that did it well, continually won this award, but it was an unusual one because it was a case of there in in England there were a lot of companies that were afraid to do international business. was never afraid of that. And always looked to take our products and services, across country, across culture, and across boundary. When it was a very primitive thing to do, you know, we've just won a contract in United States, or we've just won a contract in Africa. We've just won a new contract in Malaysia or Japan or in China. The, in the nineties, that wasn't really happening. And then things started to evolve. I mean, I've worked in 121 countries around the world, successfully in my career to date. enjoyed it. But what was the fascination for me was that I am English and I had the ability to be able to go cross border, cross culture. And what you understand, even at that level in the mid nineties, was you were not going to succeed with that unless you built collaboration, unless you built trust. We are failing on those points. And if you look at, we've talked about this before, Scott, but if you think about what is the process of trust starts with effective listening. Doug and I, you know, we do a lot around empathy mapping. We do a lot around, why you need to have, what creates a curious mind, but more importantly, what is compassion? And then when you start leading compassion, you start bringing into understanding. And then you start moving into communication, which then obviously builds outcome, which builds purpose and trust. Now, if you start looking at what creates the curious mind, you can have as many curious minds as you want, but unless you have the ability to engage, and right now I would say we're at the worst point in the world's history for the ability to engage. Productivity issues have never been so disastrous than what they are today. 8.8 trillion at the last count with a Gallup report, which is about 11% of GDP, which is more than Amazon, apple, and Google's turnover all put together. Houston, do we have a problem? I think we have no old jokes aside, and I know Douglas has got some very strong points that he'd like to add to this, but I do think that if we look at what we were doing in the nineties, and I think it was our famous Winston Churchill. And it was I must add this. walked into, a meeting and, they said, one of the persons said, do we have a conclusion yet on the war? And he said, well, I don't think it's gonna last more than five days. Why do you say that? Well, we've only got five bottles of RA on the side. And that would say to me that Winston wants a conclusion in five days. And I would say right now we need a conclusion. When it comes to war, we've got massive problems. Geopolitically war is not helping trust, it's actually fragmenting our relationships, international relationships, our ability to actually communicate with others because everything is so transactional. And you know, and I know that transactions transactional. Relationships have a very short lifespan when it comes to longevity. Anyway, I've said enough. I wanna open up now, Douglas. Mm, thank you Jeff. I was deeply reflecting on, both your comments and files as you were

Welcome to How Might We Align Sports Innovation With Leadership and Trust, the podcast that explores bold questions at the intersection of leadership, innovation, and trust. In this episode, we’re diving into a powerful question: How might we align sports innovation with leadership and trust? Joining me are two exceptional guests bringing insight from two very different—but deeply connected—worlds. Dr. Beatrice Constandache is a specialist in sports medicine with a career spanning elite athletics, Olympic-level performance, and cutting-edge research into energy, emotion, and innovation in sport. She is currently a member of the medical committee of the International Association of Ultrarunners and founder of the Luce Innovations Medical Academy. Also with us is Geoff Hudson Searle, an international bestselling author and seasoned executive with over 30 years of experience in design-led innovation and trust-based leadership. Geoff brings deep business insight and a compelling vision for how human intelligence, collaboration, and emotional connection can transform both teams and organisations. Together, we explore what business can learn from elite sport—from team culture, emotional intelligence, and resilience, to the power of energy, empathy, and trust. It’s a wide-ranging conversation that challenges conventional thinking and offers a fresh take on high performance—on and off the field.   Dr. Beatrice Linkedin Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-beatrice-constandache-2650639b/   Geoff Hudson Searle Linkedin Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffsearle/   --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------   Transcript: This is AI generated and may contain errors   [00:00:00] Hello and welcome to the latest edition of How Might We, in this episode is how might we Align sports innovation with Leadership and Trust? And I've got two guests with me today, one of my regular guests, which is Jeff Hudson Cell and a new guest, which is Dr. Beatrice. So welcome both of you to the podcast and would you like to introduce yourselves? Who would like to go first? Thank you so much. Welcome. Thank you so much. My Hi everyone. My name is Dr. Ris Constantia. I am a sports medicine specialist with experience in rugby medicine, athletics, medicine. I've worked with Olympic athletes and now I am currently a member in the medical committee of Ultra Running International Association. And I founded the Loose Innovations Medical Academy currently [00:01:00] supporting the elite athletes and sports medicine to bring up the innovations in in this area. Okay, lovely. Thank you very much. It'll be, and Jeffrey, would you like to Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Jeff Hudson, sell 30 years plus global international seasoned executive in independent non-executive director for the last 20 years, around two separate businesses in the UK specializing in consultancy growth and design led innovation and trust. I'm an author of seven books, sorry, international bestselling author of seven books and public thought leader and speaker. Okay. We could, we've gotta get the international bestselling, haven't we? We can't. We're just not bestselling. We are in, we're Global. We remember. You remember that was what I was saying to Oak when we spoke last round. Yes, I remember that from Oak. Yeah. Hilarious. Hilarious. I was the only one who was not an author. So the whole list. So Dr. Beatrice, welcome and welcome to the podcast. [00:02:00] Thank you so much for having me. Oh, you're more than welcome. . So from your experience and obviously working through all the sports and bringing sports innovation, how do you think that would transpire into the business world and leadership? I think that throughout the years I've saw the struggles of the athletes at the highest level of sports Yeah. And the medicine level also there . and I would like here to give the microphone, to Jeff so to say overdue there, Jeffrey. Excellent. Thank you, sir. So I've got a couple of school of thoughts on this. Okay. So I have worked with sports professionals around the world. In fact, one of my very good friends was an NBA basketball championship. And he, when he left basketball, he transferred over to the business world and became a very successful c-suite executive in a Fortune 100 company a after his sports career. So [00:03:00] I've had the chance to actually spend quality time with. True professionals from sports. I've also looked at sports coaching. So if I look at sports coaching that really innovated the world my favorite coach of all time is Vince Lombardi. And I, he was the most successful NFL coach in the world. So successful that the rugby world particularly the All Blacks decided in their wisdom that they wanted to improve their percentage. They used the Lombardi methodology and no big surprise there was an 84% percentage win as a direct result of using the methodology and the techniques and the ideas. Good friends of mine have written books on and around the mindset of sports professionals. Why mindset is so important and why innovation is so important. And I think that, we're constantly looking in leadership at the moment about, reinventing [00:04:00] leaders taking the possible to the impossible. We're looking at, we're looking at very clever techniques around design-led innovation. We're looking very carefully at the way people behave in organizations. We've looked at touching on people, productivity, culture, psychological wellbeing. But one thing that sports professionals need to do cont consistently is they need to work as a team. If they don't work as a team, they don't perform. And when you look at the business world, we're constantly looking at dissemination of people in organizations. We're constantly looking at separate businesses that don't communicate with one another. They don't collaborate with one another. They don't speak and communicate in the way that you need to. , There's so many moving parts here, but the question I pose is that, with the clever things that. Dr. Beatrice is doing right now, particularly on and around sports medicines. It's all linked to better [00:05:00] performance. I look at, I don't just look at sports, I look at the military and, if you heard Oakland when he spoke the last time we were on, honor, respect, trust it's a military, but in certain degrees of collaboration, you look at team sports and then you look at the business team. But actually, I'd like to hear more about team sports. I've talked a lot about the business side and what I think the alignment is, but Beatrice has had direct. Experience with this, and love to hear about some of her experiences in working across, looking and how do you prescribe new medicine? What is the research behind this? What's the alignment? I think that'd be fascinating to hear. Jeff, I might, I must say I absolutely agree with your important aspect that you mentioned. In a team, in sports team, it's crucial to have this mindset, but from a empathic side of side of view. [00:06:00] Point of view. Why? Because we are humans. We all have emotions, whether we are women or men. We both have this movement in our body that our emotions are energy in movement and not also we have to be energized on the field, but we need to control our emotions also. And who can do better than that? I think the doctor has the most important role to, to bring this up. And when a pa, when a athlete come, came to me I als al always tried not to see only the medical aspect but also the emotions that he had because a lot of a lot of athletes are dealing with emotions and nobody tells them how to deal with these emotions. That's extremely important. Is emotional intelligence also in sports no one talks about. Yeah. And what you said that someone needs to collaborate, we need [00:07:00] human intelligence. Yes. Human emotional intelligence, that's another level. And that in in elite sports has some has some, not so great points. We need to come there also with resources. And there's a lot of, there's a lot to talk about also the innovations in this aspect as human approach. Not very few times have I seen the actions. Can I question on that? 'cause I think that's a really good conversation about what you bring up about emotional intelligence. As an example. I'm not really sure how it works in a rugby team, but in NFL we, we have the quarterback, I imagine it's in rugby, it's the captain of the team. But you see the captain of the team in rugby or the quarterback in NFL, there, there's gonna be a game plan. Okay? There's a play. They have to make a play if they're not using their emotional intelligence and if they're not communicating, it doesn't matter how risky. That play is that they're going to make [00:08:00] for to try and win the ball and actually go further down the field. Communication has to be vital because two things can happen, failure and lose the ball, or more importantly, have a severe injury which could take out team members as a direct result of taking something on that's too risky. So that empathy, listening, collaboration, exactly has to ab is effectively a, an ethos within the team spirit because they have to be working together and believe in the captain and believe in whatever decision he's making for, on behalf of the team that it's right. And that's that, and that his view here is about winning at all costs. Absolutely. And athletes when they come to compete, they have to forget everything. What they're going through. Their most important thing is winning on the field, and that does an Olympic athlete, Olympic team athlete. So that's what it takes to [00:09:00] be resilient, to have a high motivation and to thrive. Whatever the conditions are the same for everybody, is just, some are winners and some cannot focus enough or so many reasons are there. But the inner emotion

Introduction   Welcome to How Might We, the podcast that explores transformative ideas and strategies for leadership. In this episode, we delve into how leaders can cultivate impactful mindsets, featuring two exceptional guests: Geoff Hudson Searle, an international business leader, author, and keynote speaker with extensive global experience, and Oakland McCulloch, a retired Army officer with over 40 years of leadership expertise spanning combat, peacekeeping, and boardroom operations. Together, they bring a wealth of insights into the power of trust, collaboration, and mindset in shaping leadership. From the challenges of modern communication to the erosion of institutional trust, this conversation examines practical ways to build connection, foster community, and lead with purpose in a rapidly changing world. Get ready for an engaging discussion on the privilege of leadership, the importance of curiosity and care, and actionable strategies to create meaningful impact in organisations and beyond. Let’s dive in!   Transcript   Scott: [00:00:00] Hello, welcome back to the latest edition of how might we, and this edition, we're talking about how might we impact leadership mindset and joining me are Jeff Hudson Searle and Oakland McCulloch. I know you've been on some of the other episodes, both of these people have been on before, so it's going to be an interesting discussion. But for those who don't know you gentlemen, if you'd like to introduce yourselves to the audience and who would like to go first. Oakland: Oh, please. I'm glad to be back. Thanks, Scott. And thanks, Jeff, for inviting me to come back. I live here in the United States. I retired from the army after 23 years on active duty. You got over 40 years of leadership experience in combat, peacekeeping operations, disaster relief operations, and in the boardroom. And now I'm just a keynote speaker. I go around and talk about leadership and success. And as we talk about a lot, Jeff, trust. Absolutely. [00:01:00] I'd Geoff: like Oakland: to know Geoff: though, you're an international keynote speaker these days, aren't you? That's right. Right. Just Scott: in front of that. Okay. It lets yourself down. You're not just a keynote speaker. You Geoff: are international. Yes. It's like Scott: a man of wisdom. Right. And Jeff. Geoff: I'm myself. Yeah ex banker city bank head of commercial finance. That's where I started really my career and actually my, my formal education, really anything else 10 years around the world, launching fortune, 100 bands, C suite executive and CEO of both. Public and privately listed companies. International. Sorry, international. Very international. I've worked in over 121 countries in the world. I'm also an independent non executive director and chair of Remco. I've been doing that for the last 17 years. in my independent capacity. I'm currently on the executive board of two companies, one a metaverse company out of Australia, London and also one an AI sustainability [00:02:00] business which is very much based on Europe, UK, and also in MENA. I'm also an author of seven books and this family movie Discussion really highlights is going. I hope we'll highlight some of the important issues around, you know, collaboration, community, partnership and very much, you know, trust and what we do today. Scott: Okay. Welcome gents. So, and you didn't say you're an author as well. Oakland: Yeah. Yeah, I am. I've got one book out. I'm not as good as Jeff, but I got one out. You are? Talks about leadership and you know, and one of the things I always tell people is, You know, I don't mention theory at all in my book or in my talks. I talk about everyday things that everyday leaders can do to help improve their leadership ability and empower the people they have the privilege to lead. And it is a privilege to be the leader. And unfortunately as Jeff and I have talked about several times, it's too many leaders today have [00:03:00] forgotten that it's a privilege to be the leader and you see the results. Scott: Okay, well, you've got one more book than me, so I'm on zero, so you're okay. No books. I keep getting told I should write one, but I haven't got around to it. Okay, so before we came on here, we were talking, I think the word that came out that interested me quite a lot was community, sort of leadership through community and what that means globally. And obviously, We'll be talking about all the elections that are happening in 2024, and they're all settled down now, so during 2024 into 2025, the results of those elections are going to become apparent and the new governments are coming into shape. So how does that sort of pan into what we're talking about, the impacts of leadership and mindset? Yeah. So, I mean, let me kick this off. Oak and I were having lunch recently and we, we did talk about this and I think it's an incredibly important subject. Firstly, it's like, you know, when I start to think about community, I start to think about events that come through the [00:04:00] calendar. Geoff: So we can always talk about Christmas, we can always talk about Thanksgiving, and we start talking about You know what community is. I mean, with that is a set of values, right? You know, if you look at Thanksgiving in the U. S. for instance, you start to talk about gratitude. Well, gratitude shouldn't be reserved just for Thanksgiving. It should be something that's actually provided, given, and shared throughout the whole calendar year. Where we're failing in, in certain areas is our inability to be able to embrace community, embrace collaboration, embrace, embrace ideas, sharing. ideas, sharing, sharing perspectives and, and doing that in a meaningful way. You know, the, the erosion of trust in, you know, is a big subject. And, you know, I've, as you know, I've been studying that now for the best part of 30 years, but what I'm finding with trust, it's just getting worse and worse without actually starting to build it. Even in a small way, we [00:05:00] start to actually build community, which then has got an impact. You know, there are a lot of moving parts when I start talking about this, but you know, community is something that, you know, what Oak said earlier, you know, it's a privilege to lead. Well, to me, it's a privilege and an honor. And also I, I, I feel the same about my friends. I feel still the same about, you know, my close associates. My business associates and and the people that I share with. It's an honor and a privilege to actually work with people with integrity and and we have to start looking. I mean, I don't know what you think about that. But for me, I think we need to get back to that community matters and it matters. It's not a soft subject. But if we can start getting community right, we can start getting societal right, and therefore we can start sharing with one another in the physical 5D and not treat each other, you know, in a transactional way, which I feel that we are [00:06:00] doing an awful lot, where life is too transactional, and it's not about the human experience and community and the good things that can actually come from actually setting precedence over something like a community. Oakland: Yeah, I absolutely agree. I think the part of the problem is that we don't have that conversation. Because we have gotten that we all have something in common you know, whether it's our morality, our values, our culture, whatever it is, but, you know, one of the things I always talk about is that the problem is, is that we concentrate on the things that we have different. instead of the things we have in common. And if you, if you start with what you have different, you're never going to get to what you have in common because arguments, disagreements, whatever. If we start with what we have in common and we work our way out to the things that we have different, then maybe we [00:07:00] can, at least we're never going to get everybody on the exact same sheet of music. That's not going to happen, but you can at least then make compromises based on what you have in common that maybe will benefit. The majority of the people can I ask you a question? Geoff: Can I ask you a question about that? Because I'm really fascinated whether you actually think, you know, fundamentally, it's how we communicate. I mean, we don't have to argue, do we? Because actually, we should be able to talk to one another. Oakland: Well, I think that the key is the definition of argument. If you go back to, you know, the founding fathers of America, they said that we have to have arguments. That that is different than having quarrels, you know, I guess, you know, debate, argument, whatever, however you want to define that community demands that we have those debates and those arguments about the things [00:08:00] that that are going to affect all of us, and we got to do that in a civil way and I don't see that happening. Is Geoff: technology, is technology still that blocker do you think where we're not actually. You know, as I said, we're not in the human experience of being able to communicate, collaborate and be more of the community from a communication point of view. I mean, I, I would say I'm quite a good yeah, I'm, yeah, I'm not a hundred percent, but I would tell I'm, I'm quite a good communicator. You know, I'm, I'm very proactive, but you know, there's a lot of people that don't even return messages. They don't, they don't respond. They believe that, you know, technology is kind of the only way that they want to operate. Send me an email and I'll decide whether I want to respond to that, you know. And Carl Honor he wrote the book In the Praise of Slow. And he's kind of the part of the slow movement. And he's all about, we've got to spend more time with one another. I mean, [00:09:00] you know, people can pass on this earth plane without people even knowing about it i

This episode I have three distinguished guests chatting about inclusivity and leadership. My guests are Mark, Gary and Douglas - see below for more details about them Mark Freed  Mark Freed, a trailblazer in diversity and inclusion, co-founded E2W over two decades ago when he left a successful fintech career to become the type of husband and father that he always wanted to be. Mark grew E2W to become a community with a reach of more than 15,000 women in Financial Services, aiding institutions with best-practice recruitment and retention of diverse talent. Wishing to accelerate change, Men for Inclusion was born, and Mark shares his own lived experience as to why inclusion benefits all men, providing more opportunities and breaking free from outdated stereotypes. Mark's distinctive voice is not just heard within this community. He’s a vocal advocate for workplace inclusivity, and recently provided evidence to the UK Government Treasury Select Committee during their 'Sexism in the City' inquiry, and collaborates on initiatives like the Women in Finance Charter and the Diversity Project. Mark brings a refreshing perspective to the industry, making him an engaging and insightful commentator for journalists seeking a fresh take on diversity, allyship, recruitment, and workplace culture.   Gary Ford Gary Ford worked as a technologist within Financial Services for over 35 years. He was a Managing Director at JPMorgan where he co-founded their male allies programme for Women in Technology. The programme was rolled out to thousands of men globally and was ultimately launched across the whole firm. For the last 10 years Gary has actively promoted gender equality. He’s been the male ally advisor to Women On The Wharf, and was a winner of the WeAreTheCity Rising Star award in the Men for Gender Balance category. In 2020, he co-authored his first book, 'The Accidental Sexist: A Handbook for Men on Workplace Diversity and Inclusion’ (Rethink Press), showcasing his commitment to fostering inclusivity in workplaces. Gary’s not just a co-founder; he's a driving force behind Men for Inclusion, bringing a wealth of experience and a passion for creating transformational culture change. A compelling and knowledgeable industry commentator, Gary provides insights and data that will interest those fostering inclusive workplaces through DEI employee engagement and inclusive leadership.   Douglas Lines Douglas Lines is a digital first leader with a successful track record of growing and transforming businesses as well as innovating and commercialising new digital business models including successfully launching a global EdTech start-up amongst others. Douglas has been enabled by building a design thinking school in collaboration with Duke and Stanford Universities, appreciating the application of new technologies and having mastered business model innovation and cultural transformation practices. A purpose led and values driven senior business leader, executive committee member with substantial global commercial experience, operating principally in financial services. Pedigree business acumen underpinned by successful delivery of large complex transactions & portfolio managed businesses from > £1m to £8bn. Highly articulate communicator, C-Suite negotiator & influencer; comfortable engaging with all stakeholders. Motivated mentor & people leader who removes barriers to delivery & celebrates team successes, empowering personal goal development & cohesive team service delivery.   Mark's LinkedIn Profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-freed-3a496a6/ Gary's LinedIn Profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/garypford/ Douglas's LinkedIn Profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglaslines/ Men for inclusion website - menforinclusion.com IBEM website - https://ib-em.com/   Transcript   Scott: Hello and welcome to the latest edition of how might we and I've got with me , this week, we've got Douglas, Gary and Mark, and we are going to discussing how might we create inclusive leadership, . And that's not just related to work, but leadership in general and communities, ourselves, our families and with us. So welcome, gentlemen. How are we all today? Mark: Great. Scott: All good. Doing Mark: good, doing good. Scott: I'll give you a hint. We're audio. So nodding doesn't help. We are on audio. So the people need to listen to us, but there we go. Okay. So welcome gentlemen. So if we'd like to go in around Robin, just a quick introduction about yourselves. And then we will start the discussion. So as we've had a quick chat, we'll do it in the same order as before. So Gary, would you like to go first? Yeah, thanks, Scott. Gary Ford [00:01:00] former technologist within the financial services industry previously a managing director at JPMorgan Chase author of a book, The Accidental Sexist, and the co founder of Men for Inclusion with Mark. Okay. Thank you very much. And a nice segue into you, Mark, if you want to introduce yourself, please. Mark: Hi. Yeah. Mark Freed. So joint founder of Ment for Inclusion with Gary. A long career in financial technology and Turned to become a passionate supporter of gender equality 25 years ago when I left Credit Suisse to set up a firm called E2W which has been at the forefront of promoting gender equality in financial services for the last 25 years. Scott: Thank you. Welcome. And Douglas again, welcome back. Douglas: Thank you, Scott. Always great to be back with you. And my name is Douglas Lyons. I am a financial services executive of 25 years experience having been at the helm of a large corporate bank and commercial bank. And [00:02:00] absolutely a people leader. I think over that span of that career, I have witnessed and learned a tremendous amount from, from all the teams I've been privileged to work with and the leaders I've been privileged to work with. I am an international thought leader on a number of areas, an author of a book on innovation. I'm a subject matter expert in business model innovation. But I'm equally a thought leader around executive leadership and the skills and capabilities of executive leadership into the future. And again, that very important topic that you mentioned of both inclusion and trust. I am a founder of RBEM Group Limited based in London, and I currently reside in London. Scott: Okay. Welcome back, Douglas. I'm sure we'll have another interesting and fruitful discussion. So, Gary, the title of your book, Accidental Sexist. Tell us a little bit about it. Gary: Yeah, sure. I mean so I guess that my kind of, you know, starting point for this [00:03:00] is whilst I was at JPMorgan, I started getting involved in kind of gender equality and diversity inclusion initiatives by being asked to sponsor women in technology, which was a gender group that JP Morgan set up to attract and retain more women in technology, a sector that traditionally struggles with gender and arguably still does. And so I certainly found myself in a room with about 50 women. I was often the only man, a deeply uncomfortable experience, if I'm honest. And we were trying to explore why it was that women didn't want to work in tech. So I began to hear kind of additional barriers that women were facing, which up until that point had been completely invisible to me. And I thought of myself as a decent leader. I was a managing director there. I had around 250 or 300 people working for me. I thought I knew how to do it yet. There was things happening that I was frankly not seeing. So and I thought if I'm not seeing it, I'm sure there's plenty of other men that, you know, equally blind to some of these additional challenges.[00:04:00] So we set up a male allies program alongside a guy called Stephen Koch. So when I left JP Morgan, I kind of thought this male allies idea could be interesting to other, other people. So. The Accidental Sexist was born out of that. I met a woman called Dr. Jill Armstrong, who was our third collaborator in the book, and I think, Douglas, you may have had the same experience. Like the, the writing a book, you know, as a, you know, as, as a group is a really, really rewarding experience. So and Jill brought a lot of academic research to that book. She, she'd done a three year research program onto gender equality, diversity, inclusion at Cambridge University. So the book's about kind of three things. The first is this fact that women face additional barriers in the workplace. And actually women of color face, face them even more. Which echoed, you know, the, the female experience when I was at J. P. Morgan. But Generally speaking, the fact is that most of these barriers are kind of quite unintentional, right? Most, [00:05:00] most managers, leaders in the workplace go into work. In fact, most colleagues in the workplace go into work most days and they want to do the right thing. But because we are brought up to think in very deeply gendered ways, these, these, these mistakes often get in the way. And it's not unlike unconscious bias. We just think accidental sexism is a better reframing because We can learn from mistakes, right? And we can, you know, we can look to improve and, you know, when we make them, which even now Mark and I often call each other out when we make these mistakes, because you, you, you just do, you have to kind of recognize that if the intention is good, then we, we need to help people learn from them. So that's the first part is really just identifying the fact that there's extra barriers. The second thing is about what Steven and I learned from trying to roll out a male allies program. There weren't a lot of. Kind of, you know obvious references at the time. And then the final half of it is like, you know, how all the kind of things we picked up from running that [00:06:00] program, but about the things, the practical things you can do, which actually became practical things I think you can do in any kind of, you know, lead

My guests this episode are Geoff Hudson Searle, Douglas Lines and Oakland McCulloch. During the podcast we discuss focus in leadership, trust, psychological safety amongst other topics.   Corporate leaders today are measured by a new yardstick. The supreme test of a CEO and board of directors is now the value they create not just for shareholders, but for all stakeholders. The shift to stakeholder capitalism creates pressure for corporate leaders to try to satisfy a wide range of constituencies with different, sometimes conflicting interests and perspectives. Earning their trust is key to navigating this tricky terrain. Research shows that trust is the key to success. Yet growing distrust, cynicism and misinformation are eroding confidence in corporate impact and Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) claims. To prosper in the age of stakeholder capitalism, companies must actively cultivate the trust of employees, investors, customers, regulators and corporate partners: developing strategies to understand these stakeholders more intimately, implementing deliberate trust-building actions, tracking their efforts over time, and communicating openly and effectively with key stakeholder groups. We have entered the trust era: a time where (mis)information is omnipresent, individual perceptions reign supreme, and digital security and data privacy are constantly threatened. Now more than ever, stakeholders expect organizations to do the right things and do them well. These expectations range from entrusting an organization to safeguard one’s private data to requiring a company to have a strong stance on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. Trust also drives performance. When stakeholders trust an organization, their behaviors will reflect that trust can affect more traditional key performance indicators that directly affect financial performance. Trust elevates customer and brand loyalty, which can lead to revenue. It enhances levels of workforce engagement, which can result in increased productivity and retention. And the data confirms it. Trustworthy companies outperform nontrustworthy companies by 2.5 times, and 88% of customers who highly trust a brand will buy again from that brand. Furthermore, employees’ Trust in their leaders improves job performance, job satisfaction, and commitment to the organization and its mission. Despite the data, however, many leaders and organizations still view trust as an abstract concept. Trust should be managed proactively because, when trust is prioritized and acted upon, it can become a competitive advantage. An organization that positions trust as a strategic priority—managing, measuring, investing in, and acting upon it can ultimately build a critical asset. No heroic leader can resolve the complex challenges we face today. To address the important issues of our time we need a fundamental change of perspective. We need to start questioning many of our taken-for-granted assumptions about our business and social environments.     Leaders serve as role models for their followers and demonstrate the behavioral boundaries set within an organization. The appropriate and desired behavior is enhanced through the culture and socialization process of the newcomers. Employees learn about values from watching leaders in action. The more the leader “walks the talk”, by translating internalized values into action, the higher level of trust and respect he generates from followers. To help bridge the trust gap we recognise that organizations need to work with each other and with wider society to identify practicable, actionable steps that businesses can take to shape a new relationship with wider society: a new ‘settlement’ based on mutual understanding and a shared recognition of the positive role that business plays in people’s lives. To create such a settlement, businesses need to see themselves as part of a diverse, interconnected, and interdependent ecosystem – one that involves government, regulators, individual citizens, and more. Trust within and across this ecosystem is key to its long-term sustainability and survival. That’s why trust needs to be restored to the heart of the business world.

The latest edition of How Might We is out. In this edition Alexis Kingsbury talks to me about releasing time in business so you can go on a 6 week road trip. And this is not just theory, Alexis was talking to me whilst he was on his trip.   He shares insights and ideas on how to document processes and be able to delegate them confidently to others. How this documentation accelerates onboarding, increases performance and engages and empowers team members.   Alexis is an award-winning entrepreneur, with over 10 years of experience, currently running two SaaS businesses (AirManual and Spidergap) with a remote and global team. I also support others as a board member and consultant/coach (e.g. Sony Interactive Entertainment). He is an enthusiastic public speaker, podcast interviewee & facilitator, providing practical guidance to help business leaders to onboard and develop amazing teams — getting employees up to speed, reducing mistakes, and freeing up time.   Alexis LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexkingsbury/ Alexis Website: https://www.airmanual.co/    

My guest is Adelaide Goodeve. Adelaide is an elite performance coach, who, within 10 years, went from nearly bedridden to Ironman athlete and go-to performance coach for some of the world’s best companies, leaders, teams and athletes. In this episode Adelaide talks about her journey and how brain training helped her, and how it helps people change mindsets to become elite performers. Adelaide's linkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adelaide-goodeve/ Adelaides's website: https://www.adelaidegoodeve.com/ ----more---- Transcript Scott: [00:00:00] Hello and welcome to the latest edition of How Might We, and we're gonna do something slightly different today. So what we're gonna do is we're gonna have a conversation and based on where we go with the conversation is how we going to. So we are going to name this show at the end of the recording. So my guest on this episode, it's Adelaide Goodeve. So Adelaide, welcome. Adelaide: Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be here. Scott: You're welcome. So we'd like to introduce yourself to the audience. Yes. Adelaide: My name is Adelaide and I'm an elite performance coach. I teach people how to reprogram their brains to tech the, to take their mindset to the next level and achieve their desired results, whether it's increased performance or enhanced happiness. Scott: Okay. So, Helping people think differently is, is and sort of reprogramming that, that aspect of the brain. So do you wanna talk me through that a little bit, what that means? [00:01:00] Adelaide: Yes. So our brain is plastic. So they used to think our brain was hardwired like an electric circuit. So once those pathways were laid down, they didn't think that they could change. So you're kind of stuck with the results you got, whether they were great or not so great, but they now know that it's actually very far from the truth and the brain is plastic. You wanna think about your brain like a muscle. The more you train one neuro pathway, the stronger and better and faster it is at its job, the less you train another neuro pathway. The weaker and weaker it becomes and the slur it is at its job. So if you're at the gym and you just worked out one arm, that one arm is gonna get super strong and then that other arm is gonna look like a noodle in comparison. And this is a bit like how your brain works. Cause if you were to train your left arm and it would, so it could catch up with your right arm. And this is how the brain works, is, is always strengthening the neuro pathways that you use the most, not necessarily the ones which get you the results you want, but it's saying, [00:02:00] okay, they're using, for example, energy and. In the morning the most. So this is the pathways that are gonna make really strong. We're gonna bring them closer together and it's gonna become easier for them to activate those feelings when thinking about the morning. And so it'll enhance those ones. But if we think of the morning and we're thinking dread the most, then it's going to strengthen and bring close together the neuro pathways for the morning and dread. So when we think about the morning, we're like, Ugh, my gosh, I have to get up so early. And we're kind of already in that. State, It's a bit like sheep in the field. You have this chief sheep and every single day he takes his team to the same patch of grass. And over time that pathway is eroded and it's more and more visible. It's deeper, and it's stronger in that ground. You can see it from space cause the grass is just not there anymore. And that path is very deep. It's a dirt path deep in the ground. Cause they're traveling it every single. But then one day that chief sheet kind of looks across the field and he goes, Wow, the grass of [00:03:00] there is so much greener. Like, I bet my sheep could thrive if I took them to that area. So in that moment, in less than a split second, he change, He changes the path that they follow, and now that new neuro pathway or that new pathway in the field, Is now becoming the stronger one. They're walking it more and more often, they're using it the most. That now becomes eroded away and you can see that pathway from space. The old pathway that they used to use is now taken back by nature and you can barely see it and it's very difficult to follow. And this is how the brain changes growth and develops as a result of how we use it and how we use it is determined by our language. Scott: Okay, so there's a phrase, I can't remember if it's when I coined or had a conversation with or read somewhere. It says, language guides the mind. Adelaide: Yes, a hundred percent. So the words we use are the architecture and structure, or by reality. Scott: Yes. Yeah. Cuz what we say is, and our brain can't tell the difference between [00:04:00] reality and I what we think either kind of, so we can be thinking about something in the future, but it hasn't happened. But our brain. We'll react as if we are in that situation. Exactly. Adelaide: So it can't tell the difference between what's real and what's imaginary and it can be play to our advantage. Mm-hmm. , we can accelerate using specific tools at that neuroplasticity. So if we can get results, which may take years in very. Well, I'm very in minutes sometimes actually. So for me, I had severe chronic fatigue syndrome, was how I became an elite performance coach. So I had severe chronic, oh, can't talk this morning, severe chronic fatigue syndrome for four years, and I learned how to. Fully recover by training my brain and I achieve that in three days and fully recovered. So the brain can get extraordinary results in very quick time by harnessing the power of neuroplasticity and the language you use so you can get the results you want. May have taken years or maybe results you never would've attained. Dawn told me to have it for the rest of my life. But you can use the [00:05:00] brain to get physical and the mental results you want. Scott: So mind over matter. Yes. Mind over matter. Mind over matter. Okay. So it's interesting to say about performance and happiness cuz in, I can't remember that. Sean, I think is his first name and I've and he's got a great Ted talk about happiness. Mm-hmm. , it says quite often we, we put happiness as the result of something where really happiness is the driver to give us results. Adelaide: Mm. Scott: I love that because we normally say, When I get this I'll be happy. But in reality you come up constantly chasing something. Whereas if you are happy. That is the secret source of success. A Adelaide: hundred percent. I always tell my clients they, Cause also, I feel sometimes, and in our culture as well, like to achieve something, you've almost gotta do it in this like very miserable way. And so what I tell my clients is, how can you achieve this result but in a more enjoyable way? In a way that you're actually happy and it changes the way we do things in a dramatic way just by asking that very simple [00:06:00] question. So I absolutely, as Ted tore, it sounds like when I should. Scott: I think it's Sean Arch and I think it is. I will find it and let you have it. I'll put it in the link of the thing cause it is, That'd be great talk. Cause it again, a bit like you, he talks about just I think there's four or five questions you ask self every day and within 21 days you look at life more positively and has been proven that, that sort of asking yourself those questions, which goes back to you about the mind Yep. And the language asking yourself, because you were hardwired to answer question. So Adelaide: you are, and it's a great way to train your brain actually. So in the morning I always get my clients to a morning routine and the brain, our kind of default is to look for the negative. And when we're constantly looking for the negative, it highlights it to you. Cause it's like, oh, she like, they want to see the negative. Well that's great. , I'll make it easier for them. And so it'll start to kind of take very small, maybe unhelpful things that happen throughout your day and make them into Mount Everest. But by asking yourself specific [00:07:00] questions, like Sean's saying, in this Ted toll, by the end of the bit, you are able to retrain your brain to to highlight you the positive stuff that's happen. In your life, the stuff that makes you happy and that makes those kind of mole hills into your Mount Everest, which is what you want. You wanna be able to see the positive stuff going on in your life and our society. With social media, with the news, it's constantly training your brain to look the stuff that makes you. Fearful or anxious or down. And by asking specific questions, especially in the morning, which is the perfect time to wire your brain, you want to really ensure that you are looking for the great stuff that's going on in your life, the stuff that's helping you achieve and create and cultivate the life that you really want to live. Scott: Okay, so that's, Yeah, cuz what we, what we notice, what we think about is what we notice. So like if you are thinking about buying a car and you think, Oh, quite fancy. I know say an Audi, whatever it is, or a a a mini, all of a sudden you notice minis. Just why? Just cuz I'm thinking about them. I [00:08:00] see them everywhere is cuz your brain says that's what you're interested in. So that's what I'm going to show. Adelaide: Yeah, exactly. No, it was a really funny thing. So this was about 10, maybe 10 years ago, and me and a friend were walking down a very quaint high street in London, and I was single, I was around in my early twenties, so I was single looking, you know, looking for the hot guy. Whereas my friend, she was in her mid thirties and desperately wanted a family. So walking down this high street in London, And she goes to me, she's like, Adelaide, there are so many yummy mummies here. And I was like, What are you ta

In this Episode my guest is Brad Borkan. Brad has a great interest in how people and businesses build resilience. In this episode Brad shares his thoughts on how lessons from leaders of the past can help us make better decisions today. Brad's first book was the award-winning book: WHEN YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT: Extreme Decision Making Lessons from the Antarctic. This book puts the reader right into the action of the life-and-death decisions made by early explorers. In it, we reveal unparalleled lessons in leadership, teamwork, and the sheer determination that can help all of us make better decisions in life. It won 1st Place in the Chanticleer International Book Awards for Insightful Non-fiction. Brad's second book, AUDACIOUS GOALS, REMARKABLE RESULTS: How an Explorer, an Engineer and a Statesman Shaped our Modern World, focuses on six epic achievements made by three extraordinary people, one of whom is Theodore Roosevelt and another is the great Victorian-era engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The book explains the mindset they each developed to make monumental impacts in their fields.   Transcript Scott: [00:00:00] Hello and welcome to the latest edition of How Mike We, And on this episode, I'm pleased to welcome Brad Balkin and we are gonna be talking about how might we learn from history, make better decisions. So, Brad, welcome. Would you like to introduce yourself Brad: please? Hi, Scott. Great to be here. Thanks for having me on your show. I'm Brad Borkin, as you said, and I've written two books that have to deal with history in terms of looking at great explorers and great people in history and great endeavors that were occurred in history and ask what can we learn from this? Focusing on the decision making side of these people and these endeavors. Scott: And I think, I mean, I like decisions cuz I think we've mentioned before when we're off air is decisions are basically the precursor to every action we. Brad: Yes, they're at the heart of, of everything. And one of the things when it came to the early [00:01:00] Antarctic explorers was there's lots of books written about them as people, about the expeditions, like what they ate and how, where they traveled and the challenges they faced. But actually up until the, the book that my coauthor and I wrote, no one ever looked at the decisions. And we looked at the life and death decisions, which were actually the most exciting ones because they all, they all came near death all the time, but they actually very rarely ever died. Scott: Well, I can't, I suppose dying only happens once, so Yeah, that's it. Brad: That's that's true. But, but they, but they came, they came, they faced all sorts of commodities and, and challenges and, and you know, these, these, you know, everything from frostbite, curvy to, to flowing, harasses and, and all sorts of things and that, but somehow they, they were sort of at one level sort of indestructible. Yeah. Scott: I think the interesting thing is, as I say, you make a, you make a decision. I think we've talked about this as well before, is, and basically you're trying to predict the future with a decision. Cause when [00:02:00] we don't know the outcome, until we actually make that decision and enact it. Brad: That's right. Yeah. And, and, and actually a good, good point is, is I retired from my main job in 2021 in, in July, 2021, which coincide with to launch my second book. And inflation was 2% and the stock market was slowly growing and the world was at peace. And a year later, you know, it seemed like a sane. Normal rational decision. Inflations at 10%, the stock market is down 25%, and the war, you know, at least Ukraine and, and Russia at war. And it's, it's just a complete un perhaps not predictable, but it's, it's the, the outcome of a decision that you, you don't know until you look back many years later on. What's that? A good decision or a bad decision? Scott: Well see, I, my view on decisions is I think the decision, we make decisions, and usually it's one of the, with the. Capabilities we have at that time, whatever they may be with the best [00:03:00]intentions for the outcome that we want this, that that's there. So I would say a decision either has the desire, Or unexpected outcomes. Brad: Yes. And I think one of the things that's exciting about life and about looking, whether you're looking at explorers or you're looking at, at his great people in history, is that you can't, no one could predict the future. And even for them, like, just like we can't predict the weather that well, we really can't predict what the outcome is. Whether you're heading to the South Pole and you're running outta food and you're trying to decide what do we do next? Or you're trying to build a Panama Canal and you're dealing with workforces, dying of yellow fever and, and all sorts of other engineering challenges and building the Panama Pinella. It's like you just, you, you make. Best decision you can. But one of the things we learned, my co-author and I figured out in looking at these great decisions and great people, was that it's not about making the best decision, it's [00:04:00] about having the resiliency to recover from a bad decision. Scott: Okay. And I suppose that's, especially when you're talking about the, the extremes in which they were doing the Panama Canal and the and the explorers is they are extreme. And I imagine that a decision has an impact and you can see that quite quickly. And then you have to say, make a recovery decision or a Brad: another one. Right. But that's true in modern life as well. I mean, in a sense like we all have to make the, we all make decisions about jobs and houses and cars and all the things that we do in our, in our day to day lives, relationships, all sorts of things. And you can strive to make the perfect decision by, I've got a friend who tr want to buy a car, and he spent years, several years analyzing, looking at websites, trying to find the perfect car. as opposed to just going, buying a car and being like, Oh, if it's not the one for me, I'll just sell it and buy another one. It's you can't it. We have so many tools at our disposal to make perfect decisions, or we think we can make perfect decisions that we're actually [00:05:00] better off making a decision and it might be the right one. As time will tell, or it may be not a good one, but there are many different ways to recover from, from a not good decision, Scott: I suppose, making. Well, the other thing I'll say is not, deciding not to do anything is a decision in itself. Brad: That's right. That's right. Yeah. And, and there's some famous quote from Teddy Roosevelt about something like, you know, the something to the effect of the best thing is to make a decision, and the worst thing you could do is just not make a decision. It's, it's that to make. The, It's better to even make the wrong decision than to make no decision. Cause at least then you're taking action that you're not being Scott: on the path, aren't you? Something's happening. You've got momentum, right? Brad: And if you're on that path and it's wrong, As happened with Panama Canal, you can start making, making the right decision. So what? Yeah, the interesting thing with the Panama Canal was that the question was do you build a sea level canal? Basically you build a big trench and let the Atlantic Ocean of Pacific Oceans fill it. Or do [00:06:00] you build a, a canal with locks as the p Panama Canal exist today? And they started out with this idea, well, you just build a big trench and. Dig across Panama and across all the swamps and the jungles and the rain forest and you big build this big trench. And, and it, and the problem was, it was the wrong decision. You just couldn't, they, the. The soil of the clay, the, the very wet, dense material earth that's there, that kept the more they dug, the more they had landslides. I was just destroying the work they were doing. And they had, And what they found was that, So let's go back on the original decision and say that was the wrong decision. We try to the wrong decision, now we've gotta go to build locks. And they end up building 12 locks, each lock being like a thousand feet long and you know, three times bigger than any lock ever built in the world. And they built 12 of them in 19, you know, in the years between 1910 and 19 four. . [00:07:00] So it's looking at a decision and saying, Okay, now we've got, make the wrong decision. Now it's gonna cost a whole ton of effort and money to to, to correct it, but we will correct it, and they were successful. Scott: So in your view of all these, the, the people that you've done, they've all not been afraid to make decisions and actually enact on something and then say, Oh, that's not quite worked out properly. And then made have say, the resilience then to make corrective. Brad: Exactly, exactly. You saw that, we saw this in Antarctica a lot. Mm-hmm. that there's a wonderful decision that Shackleton had to make. He was, so this is his first expedition that he led in Antarctica, and it's lesser known than the expedition where the ship got sunk. Ice and got crushed in the ice and, and sunk and, and called the endurance expedition. And this was called the Nero Expedition. And he and four men as part of this expedition left base [00:08:00] camp, and they were treking to the South Pole and they got to roughly from the coastline to the South Pole was about. 800, 850 miles. They got to within 103 miles of South Pole and realized they were running out of food and they were either, they had this choice, which is they had choice of either we go forward. And we probably dial all the way back. Almost certainly we'll die because we don't have any food together. Sch back and we don't have any, There's no communication methods. There's nothing that they can call back the base camp and say, Hey, come rescue us. Or

In this episode my guest is Melissa Boggs. Melissa helps leaders and employees design an intentional employee experience that bridges the cultural and generational gap between them, increasing engagement and inviting joy for all. The key to engagement is not “fixing” employees or leaders, but enriching the relationship between them. I help design organizational structures and cultures that amplify the strengths of everyone, changing hearts and minds about what is possible at work. Melissa shares her experiences and thoughts on creating mutually, trusting relationships that bridge the gap between leaders and employees.   Melissas website: http://melissaboggs.com/ ----more---- Transcript   Scott: [00:00:00] Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of how might we, and in this episode, Mike guest is Melissa and we will be talking about how might we create mutually beneficial relationships. So welcome, Melissa, would you like to introduce your. Melissa: Hello, thank you for having me. Sure. My name is Melissa Boggs. I'm a keynote speaker and a leadership coach. I focus on employee experience design, and I work with leaders and their teams to bridge the gap between them. And like you said, build mutually beneficial relationships at work. Scott: Okay. So, I mean, I, I like playing around with the trust and I think that's sort of the. And a big thing about leadership is having those relationships with people that are, that are two way rather than just a one way. Whereas you think this staff have to do stuff for us to trust them, but it's much more, the other way is as important the other way around as well. Melissa: Absolutely. And I think this is one of the things [00:01:00] that we can miss sometimes as leaders is we have to show up first in fact, because we have. The, you know, greater power in the power dynamic, we must take the first step toward trust. We must be the first ones to live our values and, you know, show up and be transparent as much as we can. When we do that as leaders, then it opens the door and allows, you know, our, our teams and our teammates to do Scott: the same. Okay. So is that like us being role models, leadership, as in the, with role models, this is what we would like people to do. And this is how we are going to act, demonstrate what it's like Melissa: in a way. I mean, that's part of it, but I would say also, it's just simply that when, when you have the power in a dynamic, you know, then you have to open the door first. [00:02:00] If. If you don't humanize yourself, , you know, and become approachable, then you can't have an expectation that someone who is. You know, watching you is going to make themselves, I guess that's what it's about. It's about vulnerability, right? If you don't make yourself vulnerable as the one who has more power in a relationship, you cannot possibly expect someone else to make themselves vulnerable either. One of my favorite stories when I was the co CEO of scrum Alliance, I was quite new in that role. And. Consider myself to be a humble leader and a leader who listens, et cetera, et cetera. And so I kept using this phrase. So my title was actually chief scrum master, and I kept saying to people, okay, I'm gonna take off my chief hat. and my intention was like, Hey, like we're just two people. I just wanna listen, you know, tell me what you're thinking, et cetera, et cetera. And [00:03:00] I remember so clearly sitting down with this in a one-on-one with this dear woman, and she was maybe a bit older than me, more experienced and. But yet she was my employee. And so we're having this conversation and I used that phrase. I said, okay, I'm gonna take my chief hat off. And I want you to, you know, be honest, like tell me, et cetera, et cetera. And she goes, she puts her hand on my arm. Like it was so gentle and kind, but she was like, honey, I need you to understand that. No matter how many times you say that you cannot take off your chief hat, no matter what you say, you are still the person who signed my paycheck. And that was like a ton of bricks. I mean, that was a slap in the face, not from her, but like the, the reality of it that I, I can't just be like, oh, you know, just be real [00:04:00] with me. I have to be real with them. First. I have to be vulnerable with them first. I have to. Kind of work double time to create a safe place for us to have a discourse because no matter what I say, you know, I have the power in the relationship. It, it, I had the power in that relationship. And so we can think that we're the cool leader, but actually like we have to work extra hard to create that relationship and, and space in that relationship. Scott: So it's interesting cause you hear it quite a lot or don't just imagine I'm not the CEO either, but in reality you can't cuz you always are. Melissa: Exactly. Exactly. And again, that was a big awakening for me. I, I remember just thinking, like, no matter what I do, there's a weight to my opinions, so I need to not share them unless it's important. You know, if, if they're just opinions that actually, [00:05:00] maybe I need to hold them and give other people space because whether I like it or not, there's a weight. Scott: I mean, that's an interesting word. So apart from that sort of holding back your opinions, unless you thought it was important for you to express an opinion, what other impacts do you think the insight you got from that your, your member of staff's? Just that, as you say, sometimes that one comment just hit you like a ton of bricks and then you had to reevaluate so many things. Melissa: So that was the main one to be honest was just like the weight of my opinions. And. Often when, when I was saying things like that, like, oh, pretend I'm not the CEO or, oh, I'm taking off my cheat hat. It was just because I just wanted to say something like, I just wanted to like babble off some words. And so when I found myself about to say that I would ask myself, like, is it really important for me to say this right now? You know, even if it's an important thought to share at some point, is it important [00:06:00] right now? And. It made a difference in like the space that I was creating because I would, I would just wait and I would hold it. Again, in order to make space, it's not that my opinions were not important or, you know, the leader is no longer valuable, obviously, you know, there's value. But if we're talking about wanting to hear from our teams and our teammates, we have to recognize that you. Leaders spin the conversation whether they want to or not. So if you're gonna say, okay, I wanna know if everyone likes fruit lobes better or Cheerios. I like fruit lobes better. What do you think everyone's gonna say? right. Let's realize I use very American-centric cereals, but but you know, you're gonna swing the conversation one way or another. If you go. And so I think that was one of the things that, that kind of said to me is I couldn't go, I wanna know, you know, if everyone likes fruit loops or Cheerios, I'm gonna take off my chief [00:07:00] hat and tell you that I like fruit loops does not make a difference. Everyone's gonna say fruit loops, not everyone, but you know, you're gonna sway the conversation, whether you realize it or. Scott: Okay. So you've had, so having that sort of, that create that space pausing, and the question is, yeah, I've got an opinion, but is it necessary right now? Mm-hmm I think is it, is it so that's, do you think it's a really important question for us to ask ourselves before we express an opinion or a thought? Melissa: I think so. And actually, I think that's true of everyone, but just especially of executive leaders who are trying to create. Scott: Okay. So being aware of the moment and saying, is this appropriate for this moment in time to, or will it damage that space that we're trying to create? So how did you find that your staff started to, to respond to you now that you've created that space for them, and you were creating that space and withholding your opinion to you thought it was necessary to express it? Melissa: It took time for sure. But eventually[00:08:00] I did start to hear more from them. You know, I did start to hear their creativity and their ideas, which frankly were often better than my. I might have been like holding something back and be like, oh, I have this idea. And then sometimes they would say exactly what I was thinking or sometimes what they said was even better. And so, you know, a little mental, like pat on the back to myself, I'm like, Ooh, good job shutting up. Good job. Scott: I wonderful managers could do that. Say how many times I can. I congratulate myself for being quiet or shutting up. Melissa: Exactly. It's a new metric for leaders. It might be an amazing, yeah. Yeah. How many times can you be Scott: quiet? That would be an interesting thing for people to say, how many times did I actually manage to bite my tongue or shut up in a conversation. Melissa: And, you know, the funny thing is that the, the more that I did it, the longer that I did it, the easier it became, because I started to see, oh, wait, that was a way better idea. You know? Like, and so then it becomes easier to just [00:09:00] be quiet cuz you're like, okay, I've I've given them. So here's another important thing when you are going to. Keep quiet. I would focus on making sure that they had any context that I had. And another, another big thing I'm really big about is boundaries. So if I want them to have, you know, their entre entrepreneurial spirit, and I want them to self organize and I want the team to have space to be innovative and creative. And I'm going to shut up then I need to make sure that they have context. They have the information that I have. They have the data that I have and then that they have boundaries. And so I am good with anything you decide, you know, that is

This episode is 'How Might We Become Excellent' and my guest is Joe Templin. Joe, has led an eclectic life. As one of six kids (the only normal one, he insists) growing up in a small town and spending time on the family farm, Joe’s parents (John and Barb) instilled a love of learning, the outdoors, and a healthy disrespect for authority while still simultaneously embracing traditional values of hard work and “love thy neighbour but mind your own dang business.”  This is Joe’s foundation. He was severely asthmatic but through his work ethic and love of challenge has become a martial artist and ultradistance runner.  He had a speech impediment but has built a career around communicating.  This habit of overcoming limitations is a theme in his life and his writings. Joe shares his tips and thoughts on everyday excellence.   Joes LinkedIn Profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-templin/ Joes Website - https://everyday-excellence.com   Transcript Scott: [00:00:00] Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of how might we and today's Mike guest is Joe Templin all the way from over the pond in the us of a, and we are gonna be talking about how might we become excellent. So, Joe, would you like to introduce yourself to the guests please? Joe: Sure. So I'm Joe Templin. I am a self-taught polymath in a lot of ways. I say polymath as opposed to Renaissance man, simply because I can't draw a straight line even with a ruler. As you notice, I've got a little bit of an attitude and self deprecating humor. Everything's funny. I'm half Irish. So that's the way it is. And I am a human Swiss army. I am an ultra-marathoner a special needs parent, a martial arts champion and [00:01:00] author of the book every day excellence. Scott: Okay. So quite a mixed bag of stuff in there and lots of experiences. Joe: Yeah. You know, I have stuff to be able to pull out of the cabinet for almost any conversation I had with. Scott: Okay, so that sort of flexibility is, is held you in good stead, like the experiences you've had. Joe: Yeah. And also as some of my friends in used to say, I'm the most interesting man in financial services. Scott: Okay. And not, not renowned for an in full of interesting people. I must admit financial services. No, not written out for you. Okay. So you wanna talk about how might we become. What do you mean by those? Joe: So the first thing is that excellence is like happiness in that it is individually defined, but there are some consistencies across individuals about what it [00:02:00] constitutes happiness or excellence in a lot of ways. So for example, Excellence is partially about, is the process of improvement because we all start off life as babies. Okay. We can't take care of ourselves. We cry, you know, we eat, we poop. That's about all that we do when we sleep, hopefully, and that is literally how every single human being on the planet has started. Whether they become, you know, the most renowned martial artist on the planet, the greatest writer, you know, captains of industry, queen of England, they all started from the exact same position. So how do they determine where they wanna be, what they wanna become and go about the process of doing. That is the first critical component in discovering your own internal excellence, because we all have tremendous capacity that few of us even tap. In fact, no matter [00:03:00] what I've accomplished, there's still so much more that within me that I could unlock if I truly invested the time to do so. And every single human being's like that. So first we need to start figuring out, okay, what does excellence mean to. And for the person who is sitting there trying to get their degree while raising three kids, it is being able to pass the exams while at uni and then be able to get that degree so they can build a better life to them. That is the next step of excellence. And that is a very critical thing for other people. It might be, you know, winning that gold medal at the Olympics or, you know, making their first million dollars, whatever it. The first component of excellence is having a vision to be able to start working towards. And you know, that vision as says in the Bible, people without a vision will perish. If you don't have something [00:04:00] really important that you're working towards, you're gonna found it. You're gonna, you know, find any excuse to not put on the running shoes and go running. You're going to sit there and eat Cheetos and watch the bachelorette. Instead of cracking the book, you're gonna find any excuse possible to avoid doing the difficult things become better simply because that is human nature. It Scott: reminds me a little bit. I saw somebody a quote and I can't remember who, who this quote came from. Not, I remember where I slow selling is where I saw the them talk about it. And it says those who have achieved in their lives or high performance they, their common thing, they think they they've identified outside of actually knowing where they're going is you mentioned it a little bit. There is having or completing the habits that other people don't do. Joe: Yes, there's a great saying from believe it's Ernie gray talk, they gave a hundred years ago, actually that successful people [00:05:00] do what unsuccessful people are unwilling to do. And that is whether it's, you know, cutting up vegetables and having those instead of eating crisps or it's spending five minutes, every single morning reading so that you expand your mind and spirit, it is. Truly, as you know of CTM said, wellbeing is no small thing. Buzz made up of small things. It's those little decisions, the micro decisions, as I like to call them that over a day compound and determine whether you are better or worse over and how many good days can you stack up in a week, determines the path of your life. Essent. Scott: So go because what you said, it's not that these people do. That other people are unable to do is that they're unwilling to do. I think there's a big difference between those two isn't there, Joe: there, there's a huge difference. So for example, I'm a martial artist and we all start as [00:06:00]white belts. We all start, you know, at the very beginning with no skills. In fact, I being, you know, the CLTs that I am naturally, and I was highly, highly asthmatic. So I did not come on in with this immense athletic talent. But we all started and we all learned the exact same basic techniques. We learned about learned how to stand. We learned how to throw a punch and a kick. And that's what they teach you in most places in your first couple of classes first week. What have you. And then the question is how often are you gonna practice that? So it's just like your basic language. If you're a sales person, how often are you practicing those basics? How often as a musician, are you practicing your scales so that you get that basic repetition and that basic first punch that I learned. 35 plus years ago, I still do that punch every single morning, a hundred times minimum, each hand. And I've done so essentially every day for 35 plus years, at this point, I've thrown [00:07:00] over 10 million punches with each hand. I don't have to think about it, but I go back to that fundamental and repeat and build off of it. And that is how I've developed excellence in that space is starting with the fundamentals and then growing from there. And it doesn't matter what profession you're in. If you start with your fundamentals and master them, then build off of them. You can create excellence. And unfortunately, people don't wanna do that because it's too much work and it's not, you know, taking the quick pill and, you know, solving all your problems in 30 seconds. Scott: Reminds me a little bit of what we said just before we came online, cuz this is totally unscripted and we've only just rocked up and even spoken before is say what could go wrong load to things you can't rewind life, but you can't fast forward it either. Joe: Exactly. So, you know, you can't microwave the baby, as we say. Scott: I've never heard that. I don't really want to microwave a baby to be perfectly honest, but so it's not really, Joe: so it's a, it's a process, you know, it takes nine months essentially from the start of pregnancy until the time [00:08:00] that that baby pops out. So it doesn't matter what you do, you can't accelerate. So you need to just buy into that process. Becoming a very good musician is a process become, you know, climbing the ranks at. Is a process. Yeah. There's things that you can do to make sure that you are doing it the proper way and sustainable comes out healthy and you're ready for the next step, but you can't jump from step one to step six. Doesn't happen. Scott: I would tell you what you might be able to do is accelerate through that process. But you can't, as you say, you can't jump. And I think sometimes it's, we, we look at these things, we've got like life hacks and hack your way to here. It's always like the quick fix that we seem to be looking at, or be given in our lives at the moment, Joe: it can be quicker, but it's actually gonna be not easier. So one of the things that we used to say is that somebody can be. Fifth year [00:09:00] agent or, or a third year agent in their first year or in their fifth year. It just depends on how many repetitions that they're getting. So if you're gonna have that consistent hard practice, Malcolm Gladwell talks about the 10,000 hour rule. You know, you can squeeze that in, but you're still doing all of the repetitions. My TaeKwonDo master taught us that to do a technique. You have to execute a hundred times to understand it. You have to do it a thousand and to master it, you have to do it 10,000. So, you know, you can do it once a day for years and years and years and slowly get good, or you can suck it up and just do it and do it and do it and do it and repeat.

My guest on this episode is Karol Papa, he is a certified Scaling Up coach and I uses Scaling Up Methodology™ to help entrepreneurs create mechanics for predictable growth in their business. If you grew your business vastly over the past few years, added new clients and employees, but you began to realize that current management methods are no longer sufficient, the chances are your company's reached the next level of growth and needs new mechanisms to fight barriers to scale. The Scaling Up system was created for mid-market companies to overcome these challenges and set the basis for sustainable business growth. Thus you need to attract and keep the right PEOPLE, create a truly differentiated STRATEGY, drive flawless EXECUTION and have plenty of CASH to weather the storms. Karol helps companies answer the following questions - Do I have the right people in the company and would I enthusiastically rehire them all? - Is our strategy driving results and would anyone care if our business ceased to exist tomorrow? - How many months in a row have we reached or exceeded our monthly business goals? - Do we have consistent sources of cash to fuel the growth of our business? Karol can help you double your cash flow rate, boost your profitability, increase the valuation of your company relative to the competitors and help you climb to the top in a joyful and meaningful way.   Karol's Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/in/karolpopa/ Karol's Website: https://karolpopa.com   Transcript:   Scott: Hello and welcome to the latest edition of how might we, and this episode is called, how might we convert strategy into action? Now, my guest is Karol Popa, who I met about 3, 4, years ago now. So Carol, would you like to introduce yourself, please? Karol: Good to see you, Scott. Good to be here. Thank you for the invitation. Yes, my name is Karol Popa I'm. I'm here right now in Warsaw speaking. You di directly from sunny city. I'm a scaling up coach. I'm a certified gallops trans coach. This is where we've met with Scott. And what I do is I help entrepreneurs to build mechanics for predictable growth in their business. So you can, you can learn more about that on, you know, look for scaling up, scaling up certified coaches, scaling up community on the internet. You can find a [00:01:00] framework there. It's designed at the MIT university for. Midmarket companies to be able to just grow faster, really how, how to scale. Scott: Okay. And I think that's obviously a question that's quite at the forefront of most people when their business starts moving is how, how does this get better and bigger? And I think we were before we came online, it's one of the things, isn't it? That is something to consider at certain points, the way you work, isn't going to work because your company's growing. Karol: Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Like Marsha Goldsman said, what, what got you here? Won't get you there. Yeah. So depending on your growth stage of, of the, how big your company is you need to do things differently. Like the old ways doesn't open that does not open the new doors. Yeah. So we really need to change and adapt to the new situation inside as well as outside of your organization. Scott: Okay. And then we are [00:02:00] talking about how we convert strategy into actions, a conversation we had, obviously, before we came online, we deciding what we were gonna talk about. So why did you sort of want to hone in on that aspect of it? Karol: I think it's one of the biggest challenges out there when you wanna, you know, grow your company, go grow your company, or, or even achieve your personal goals. So you might know what you want. And then you might think you you've got a plan, but when it comes to the reality it'll oh, you know, always, oh, maybe not always, but very often happens that the reality takes all everything, and, and you actually are not able to achieve your goals. At least as much as you would like to. So what's the what, what's the solution. Yeah. What's how can you how can you tackle this challenge? How can you be victorious about it? So I think it's a good, good subject to have a conversation around it. Scott: Okay. So you've said it's more [00:03:00] often than not that people struggle with achieving their plans. And it's about their say strategy interaction is planned into action. So what do you think are the things that. Cause issues where people actually achieving what they're trying to achieve. Karol: Right. So like at, at the beginning. Yeah. So first of all, you need to know what you what you want. Yeah. And then you need to know why you want it. So those two things are very fundamental for you and you, and if you. If you try to think what, what the strategy really is. So just to simplify as much as we can, I I'd say the strategy is how you get what you want. Yeah. And then this implicates, those two questions. So what do you want and why do you want it? So you need to think about that at, at the beginning. And it's important because this is the one, one thing that. That may influence your [00:04:00] reaching your goals, because if you are not clear enough, what you wanna achieve, then you might, you know, it's impossible to achieve it. If you don't want don't don't don't know what it is. So this is the starting point. Yeah. If you wanna hit your goals, you really need to be perfect. Clear on what they are. And then what, what helps is another step. So you think about why you want it. We we've just talked about a little bit about it before we started recording about the values and about the purpose. Yeah. So it's, it's why, why, what do you want to change in the world if you think about your goals that way? So if you can tap into this higher purpose, Of why you want to reach your goals. It gives you more energy. Yeah. About, so you stay motivated, you don't need those outside motivators. It's just fire burning inside of you. So this is something that moves your engine [00:05:00] toward your goal and, and it will definitely help you reach those goals. So those two things, and then there's this next. Which is, if you know what you want, you have a clear vision, you know why you want it, then you need to figure out how you want, how you will get it. Yeah. So this is this strategic thinking about the situation. Yeah. So it's about what are your strengths? What are your weaknesses? What is the situation outside? Yeah, what's the landscape. And who do you compete with? Is there, you know, other people, other organizations, other companies they want the same as you, or are you alone there? So basically what you need here is the deep understanding about yourself and about the outside landscape and other organisms there. Scott: Okay. That's interesting. Cause obviously I'll do. When I'm in the middle east and talks, bigger companies. And one of the, some of the things that we talk about is quite the same as you understanding [00:06:00] yourself, like say the C I P D call it being business savvy. So what's in the business, what's important in our business and what are we trying to achieve? And also the contextual savvy is understanding the context in which we're operating. So you think even, so those principles are applied for if you're a multinational company, or if you are a solo person. Karol: So. I think it comes down to, to your individual goals as a, as a person as well, because We know, and we use Clifton strengths and this methodology, or, or this assessment changed my life. Yeah. And, and I know that it has changed lives of other people. So if you know your strengths and you can design your life and your actions on a daily basis around your top five or 10 strands, and you can use it more, you are more efficient and more effective, and then it suddenly Becomes easier to realize your goals. And it also goes the other way around [00:07:00] because when you know, what your, what, what, what are your strengths then sometimes, you know, your goals change because of that. Yeah. You suddenly realize that something that, that you thought you want it now, you don't don't need it really. There's something else that is more important to you. Uh, Through the lens of your looking at your strengths. Yeah. So I think it it's, it works the same as for the big international companies, global companies local companies and, you know, down to the individual level. Scott: It's interesting. You said that what you thought you wanted, you don't need and it's that difference? What is the difference between something I want and something I. Karol: Yeah. I mean, yeah, it's a difference, but, but it also is a, it, it cha the, the awareness and understanding of yourself changes your perceiving the world, your, your lens, how you look at at the world around you. Yeah. And it might, you [00:08:00] know, influence you in terms of yeah. What are your goals really? And what is important for you? That's why, you know, this understanding can change your wants and needs. Scott: Okay. That's one of the reasons. So the first thing is people not really having that sort of level of insight about themselves, about what's important to me and what really drives and motivates me. And I, I like the fact that you talked about the intrinsic motivat, this stuff that's inside that keeps our fire burning rather than relying on external things to keep you to keep you going. So what is it? I can never remember the guy's name. Oh, I, I can is the the philosopher. He's not philosopher or he was a psychologist and he talks about flow. Karol: Bet. yeah, Nick, Scott: but I'm gonna try and pronounce his surname. Remember? No, no, I think he was Hungarian. I may be wrong, but he talks about flow. So I think that could be a tip for people today. Say, what is it that really drives you? So [00:09:00] imagine you were a time where you were fully immersed in something and time just seemed to zip past said what was

Welcome to the latest edition of How Might We. On this episode my guest is Phil Coley and I discuss how to build better relationships on LinkedIn. Phil shares his thoughts and experiences and some analogies with dating. He provides some great tips and advice on using LinkedIn to develop relationships that can help grow your business. Phil has over 30 years experience in direct sales both B2B and B2C Phil works with a number of different business sizes from solopreneurs to multi-million pound enterprises advising on the SIMPLE principles. SIMPLE Sales Information Money People Leadership Energy His business portfolio includes a sales & marketing agency, accounting practice, digital publishers and a number of website businesses. Phil has strived for a work life balance and now run my businesses from here in France thanks to my amazing team based in the UK and our dedication to process and people.   Phil's LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-coley-business-plus/ Website : https://iplussales.co.uk   Transcript   Scott: Hello and welcome to the latest edition of how might we, and this edition, we're going to be talking about how might we improve relationships on LinkedIn and my guest this week, or this episode is Phil Coley. So Phil, would you like to introduce yourself? Phil: Yeah, no lovely to be here today, Scott, thank you for inviting me yet. So I'm Phil Coley from business plus group of companies. So we have a number of companies in our portfolio, but it's one of my key interests is sales and marketing. So we have a company called hopeless sales marketing, and we help our B2B clients get more engagement on LinkedIn, get more leads and help to grow their business. Scott: Okay, so you are you as a field that you're very familiar. Phil: Yes. Yeah, absolutely. No inside that. And I, I suppose I've been linked on, been on LinkedIn for many years now when I first started and stayed on it. Scott: Oh, I I'm a [00:01:00] veteran no less. Phil: Yeah, it makes me sound a little bit old, but yes, I would say I'm a LinkedIn, the Scott: guy. Okay. So it's interesting. You talked about the relationships with LinkedIn and I think when a lot of times you talk about people, we talk about engagement. We talk about the importance of relationships in business. So why do you want specifically want to talk about that in relation to LinkedIn? Phil: So I think. Maybe I'll just take it back a step. I think it's, it's, let's look at sales, but even before that is on my professional background, sports psychology has played a huge part of my life from university all the way through. So I've taken an active interest in people and I've certainly taken active interest in people in sales. And there is that age old thing that, you know, people buy people and yes, I understand that. And I think that's, there's an element. And when I look at LinkedIn, I look at what LinkedIn is. LinkedIn is a networking tool. Is it a social media tool? I don't think so, [00:02:00] but I do think it's about people and it's about. Probably people apart from a profile picture, that's very faceless. And to be able to make that work, then you've got to work on the relationship online and using LinkedIn in a way that's probably different. And you would know, you know, we've got those, those three key things of making that first impression, which is the visual or. You got the auditory, how you sound, and then you've got the words, the words that you used and people then build a picture of it and that way, and actually that's probably how I relate it to link to. Scott: Okay. So how important you think it is for that first impression that we have. Phil: Oh, I think it's hugely important. And I think what I can probably look at is I can look at those mistakes on LinkedIn and I can look at suddenly. Now there are LinkedIn gurus everywhere, LinkedIn, this and LinkedIn that, and the majority of those people are talking [00:03:00] about. Posts. They're talking about how to get your posting right on LinkedIn. And I'm like, well, that's, that's fine, but you, first of all need an audience. So you need to reach out and start a relationship with somebody. And so I think that's where a majority of people probably get it wrong on LinkedIn. And I think in terms of how might we, I think, you know, I think about how might we start a relationship with somebody in a business. That's not just, hi, I sell widgets. Do you want to buy them? And that's where I think too many people make those mistakes. Scott: I made, I think most of us I've done it in the past as well. You've contacted somebody and you'd go straight into sort of trying to get something from them rather than giving something to them as well. But the amount of my inboxes on LinkedIn is hi, thanks for connecting. And then about two days later, here's an email. Do you want to buy from me? Does it work? Phil: No, no, it doesn't work at all. And I, I mean, yes. [00:04:00] Do do, do I, do we, as a company have a process on LinkedIn? Yes. Yes we do. But have I honed that over the years? My sales training and LP trading sports psychology trading, probably. Yes. And to hone it into, let's just take a step back and go forget it's LinkedIn for a minute. If you were looking at, say the dating game, then there's a whole array of different. Strategy is one can use when you're dating, you know, you certainly bump into somebody in a, in a scenario and then you might ask for their number and you're a little bit coy about this. And then you'll. Text them or ring them and they'll have a conversation. There's a whole array of different stages that you do to, you know, trying to date somebody or even just build a relationship, build a friendship. And for some reason, people seem to forget that on LinkedIn and they just forget those kinds of processes and they go out the window. And that's where I think so many people become anti LinkedIn and active messaging because there's so many people doing the [00:05:00] same thing without. Scott: So I quite like the analogy you had with dating. So I know when we were talking about what we were going to call it, there was a, there was some talk around dating, and I can't remember what it was, is like, don't ask for something on your first date, where you were starting from. And it is, I mean, I've been to face-to-face networking meetings as well, and people have done the same say hi, I'm nice to meet you. You're new here. And it's like, okay. And then just straight into. 'cause I think if they've been around, they know everybody, and then you turn up as a new person and everyone was like, Ooh, you person let's go and not build a relationship, but let's go and actually sell to this person. Phil: I think you're right. I think there's two scenarios there, which, which, which you paint and you paint really well is I think in those face-to-face networking. Yeah. Either people do prey on you as new, new, fresh meat and go, right. Let's pile on in, and let's try and sell to you. But I also think as well, I think, you know, people cluster, and I think a lot of people in those networks and scenarios will be chatting away with people. They know cause they built the relationships and then somebody new comes in and a lots of the time you see a new person [00:06:00] just sat in the corner, just drinking their cup of tea, going, what do I do? And I suppose in a way LinkedIn takes away some of those elements. Cause it's, it is faceless and it's quite easy to. To send a message, but you've got to realize why you're sending that message. What's your ultimate aim. And I think on LinkedIn, I'm sure people want to build networks and they want to build networks because maybe they're looking for a new job. Maybe they're looking to sell their products, but maybe they're, maybe they're trying to improve their brand awareness as well. And I hate to use this phrase, but it's a phrase that's being knocked around all the time about personal. And I'm like, okay, there's this personal brand, but actually at the end of the day, we're all individuals and we just want to meet other like-minded individuals to create relationships, whatever those may well be. Scott: Yeah. There is definitely a move in 19. I've seen about this personal brand and me personally, I, the wording you could possibly say. Is it [00:07:00] as, as true as that what's that make it quite false. But I do think the messaging across that is quite important. Is it everything you do in LinkedIn creates a reputation or perception. So that's the way I kind of look at it and say, what's the perception you would like people to have of you. And then how do you, how do you ensure that what you do consistently is aligned to that reputation that you would like to have? Phil: And I think for me, I think that there's two fold and. LinkedIn is, is morphing and changing all of the time. And I think that down to people, to the feathers that is changing, that is that LinkedIn isn't a social media platform is a network networking or a relationship creating. Platform for business people, but business people are still human beings. And I think there needs to be a mix of your personality, who you are. I don't think there needs to be a mix of, well, I'm going to have scrambled egg on toast and light with a bit of salmon that people aren't interested in [00:08:00] that there's other platforms for that. But I think people are interested in what you're, you know, you're a family person, you are, you're a sporty person, you know, w w you know, those kinds of things. Understanding an individual I think are key, but I also think, and really resonates with what you talk about trust is for me, I, I tend to use the eat principle eat, which is you need to be seen as an expert. You need to be seen as an authority and through doing that and creating that, that then people start to have. In you in your subject area. And th

On this episode we discuss How Might We Increase Trust In What Businesses Say About Sustainability. My guest is Hannah Keartland, Hannah helps bold purpose-led leaders build a sustainable business by showing where to start and what steps to take. In this episode we discuss the rise of the sustainability agenda and the current lack of transparency and trust. Hannah brings some great thoughts and insights into focus and tips on how organisations can increase trust in their sustainability claims. We’re at an exciting point in history. Some people are calling this ‘the sustainability revolution’. Markets are being shaken up – these are the times when great innovation happens! That can be scary. It’s also exciting. Your business needs to be resilient to the risks and grab hold of opportunities. I'll help you do that. I can help you go faster than you can on your own.     Hannah's LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannahkeartland/ Hannah's Website : https://keartland.co/ B Corp Website : https://www.bcorporation.net/en-us/ ORB Website : https://www.orbuk.org.uk/   Transcript----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Scott: Hello, welcome to the latest edition of how might we, and on this episode, my guest is Anna Kirtland and we were talking about how might we increase trust in what businesses are saying about sustainability, which is an interesting subject and quite a topical because of what's happened recently. So, Hannah, would you like to introduce yourself, please? Hannah: My Scott. Thank you. So I'm Hannah Kirtland. I help professional services, businesses know what steps to take to become more sustainable. Scott: Okay. Hannah: Short and concise. That's enough. That's enough Scott: for an intro. This is me. That's it. Okay, so you talk about sustainability quite a lot and helping businesses be sustainable. So why is it important to think that we, that, that the topic you talked about is about how do we trust them? What businesses say about sustainability? Hannah: I think that there has been so much greenwashing that I think [00:01:00] we know that the public want to make sustainable choices. We're seeing increasing evidence of that. But the moment it can be really hard for them to make those choices because without a huge amount of research, because there's so many businesses have been saying, here's my green, this my eco that we're going to be net zero by this stage, or this is a net zero product. And actually, if you start scratching beneath the surface, you can discover that there were loads of caveats. And that makes it really hard to know which products and services out there genuinely. Helping the planet. There's also, there's a big difference between a product that's less bad than the competitors and one that's genuinely good. And there are very few products out there, but a genuine Nygard. And just because something is a little bit less bad than the competitor doesn't mean that it's the right thing that you should be buying. So we need to be able to trust businesses because we can't. There are people out there who will do lots [00:02:00] of research into everything that they're buying, but most people don't have the time or the inclination or the knowledge to be able to keep doing research. You can't be walking down the supermarket with your phone out, checking every single claim and every single brand and every single product. So we need to be able to trust what businesses are saying to us. Imagine if we, we knew were going around Tesco and we know that Tesco is screened all of its suppliers and is only stocking products that are. Created sustainably packaged sort of sustainably not causing deforestation et cetera, et cetera. If we knew that we could walk around the supermarket trusting Tesco, knowing that we don't have to then think about that, but we are making sustainable consumption choices. But at the moment, we're in a stage where there are, there are the vast majority of brands. You cannot trust what they're saying. You need to be digging under the surface because there's no consistency around what net zero means or what, what people actually companies [00:03:00] actually mean when they're saying something is sustainable. Scott: So, and that's an interesting thing, cause I do think we're actually in a crisis of trust in a lot of areas about how we communicate and what we say. But it's interesting that we talk about sustainability and you hear this word and this, the language around it, that zero and everything else. But if we don't have a consistent understanding of what that means. Does that give organizations and to a degree, I suppose, governments some leeway in claiming how compliant they are with something, because there is no set standard or a acceptable what this actually means Hannah: at the moment. Yes. And certainly historically, yes, that's changing. So there's more and more regulation coming in. And since January, this year, we've had the green claims code in the UK, which has come in and we still that's all about businesses making environmental claims. So we saw only in the press, it was last week. They've had one of their adverts pulled because the [00:04:00] claims that they were making were not seem to be backed up by the right level of data. So we are going to see more of that. So we've now got green claims code is a really interesting thing at the moment, keeping a watch out to sort of see whether it has. Which businesses get pulled up on that. But there that provides a lot more regulation around what businesses can and can't say, and their, their marketing and what claims they can make. And if, for example, can you have a picture of a car driving against a nice wooded green background? Does that subconsciously give the consumer the impression that this car is good for the planet? You know, therefore is that not allowed anymore? These are all sort of questions that are being debated at the moment. I think it will be really interesting. And then in terms of net zero transition plans, in terms of the financials, there is much more regulation coming down the line. Now that will start to give us more consistency and compatibility, but we're not there yet. Which means that one company's net zero can be totally different to another company's net [00:05:00] zero it's only when you start digging into their reports, into their website, into all the detail that. I can understand exactly what it is they're talking about. And the reality is we can't expect people to do that. Scott: No, it's interesting. You say that. So I think there's an opportunity for organizations. So if they could jump ahead before the, before they forced to, and actually have that transparency and say, this is what we're doing this, and we're working and that's what it is. Then there's a potential opportunity for them to have that sort of jump on the competition when it arises. Hannah: Yeah. I think it's really interesting. So at the moment, there are a lot of businesses making voluntary disclosures, and then there are equally lots of businesses that are waiting to be waiting for it, to be mandatory and to do what they're told to do. I think it'd be interesting to see the way the market perceives that. So if you get ahead of the curve, You start disclosing being more transparent, being really honest about what it is you're doing, the impact that you're [00:06:00] having before you have to, does that start to build trust within your consumer base? So I saw a really nice social media post yesterday from Tony's chocolate, Tony, and they were talking about the percentage of child labor in their supply chain. And they were then really honest. They said, you know, this is the amount, this is the percentage amount of child labor that we have within our supply chain. And actually, you know, compare that then with the chocolate industry at large, the percentage they would have, the reason we have got this amount within our supply chain is cause we expanded supply over the last year. We've taken on some new suppliers we have now worked with them to understand where there is child labor. We are now working with them to eliminate that over the next year. So we will bring that percentage back down to zero. But they were being totally transparent that there is child labor in their supply chain. And that, that is an issue throughout the chocolate production industry. And they are, this is what they are now doing. This is their target that they're trying to get to. This is the timeline they've [00:07:00] given themselves. This is the, this is the plan. They weren't trying to hide it. And that for me as a consumer, that builds trust because they're not trying to gloss over an issue. They're not trying to make out that they are perfect. They're educating me at the same time, but they're the fact that they're sort of demonstrating that vulnerability makes me trust them more. They don't have to tell me that they didn't have to put out a social media post telling me that, but they did. And they, therefore, I trust them more because I know they do more than they have. Scott: And I think that's an interesting point is around trust is I know what you have to do. And if you go that extra mile, I say voluntarily, build that, buy more trust with consumers. And I think sometimes that fear is what stops people, because if they have to start reporting this and have to lift the lid on their supply chains, they're going to go, we don't know what we're going to find, and it could be absolutely horrendous. And then what are we Hannah: going to do? [00:08:00] And the supply chain is such an interesting part of this because most businesses, even if they're manufacturers, most businesses, the vast majority of their carbon emissions are what's called scope three. So either within their supply chains or in the way their products are used and then di

In the latest episode of How Might We, I am joined by Mark Hammond. Mark is the owner of Connectivity Consulting, and he specialises in enabling highly effective teams by transforming how those teams behave. His passion is for enabling a team and their leader. His experience is that by transforming the behaviour of teams, shifting the entire dynamic, I can embed a change in culture and performance. He achieve this by doing things differently. His approach is powerful, as are your outcomes. Mark LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-hammond-a0103714/ Marks Website: https://connectivityconsulting.co.uk   Transcription: Scott: [00:00:00] Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of how might we, we're going to be unusual this time. We, we're not going to decide on the title until the end. So it's going to be quite an unstructured chat around things of purpose, vulnerability, and leadership. So on this episode, my guest is mark hammer. Good morning, mark, would you like to introduce Mark: yourself by Scorpio? Mark Hammons and I am. This podcast with Scott after having met him. And we just connected and had a really good conversation share quite a bit have a lot in common and I agreed to come on and talk a little bit more. Me I'm I run my own business it's called connectivity consulting and I focus on helping people change. Pretty much similar to what Scott does. I work with teams mostly in that evolved after 25 years in corporate. But I, I tend to [00:01:00] focus on really helping people to shift their awareness within a team and then help that team to shift. And that includes the leader. And I linked that to sorta things like sustainability purpose And innovation, it's sort of a process, so it's not very linear. And I've I've had to learn, be open to a whole lot of learning in that process. So yeah, Scott and I got talking about some stuff and so here I am. So it's been It's been interesting just to come out, come on and just find something to talk about. And but it makes sure it has meaning and purpose and some focus. So that's a little bit about nameless. You feel you'd like a little bit more Scott, but this there's plenty of me on, on my website and LinkedIn, and I thought maybe could use this time to talk about some good stuff. Scott: Okay. We could, obviously we can we'll put your your links to your website and stuff on the, on the page. So people are more than welcome to do so. Yeah. So you talked about change, changing and working predominantly with teams, but obviously the important thing is you said it's about the leaders to change within that team as well. So and the adaptability before we came online use the word vulnerability, [00:02:00] which has definitely been sort of gaining a lot of traction sort of on things on LinkedIn and sort of people talking in, in the sort of personal development, leadership field about talking about vulnerability. So what do you think vulnerability is? Mark: So, this is just my personal view. I think it's, it's many things. And when you, when you start looking at something like vulnerability, it would be easy and comfortable to categorize it as, as a thing. But if there's anything that I've learned in working with different teams and different people, it's many different things for many different people. But broadly, I mean, probably the best. The best sort of approach I've heard or unread of is, is that by Brandon Brown and a couple of other people that she's spoken to. So for me, you know, for me personally, I think vulnerability is, is when you're willing to take a risk with something that you, you have that that's going to make you feel. But you [00:03:00] that as you put yourself out in that space, you can notice a physical reaction. You may notice a cognitive or mental reaction to that. But it it's something that might make you feel a little uncomfortable in whatever your comfort zone. I, I'm not going to curve from. You know, putting your trust in somebody that you haven't done before, it could be raising a difficult topic. It could be challenging somebody on something. So it's many different things, but it tends to have an emotional response or an emotion. A very strong theme of strong is the right word, but it tends to come with an emotional component. So for me, it's when I start to feel uncomfortable and noticing the things that I do to distance myself from being uncomfortable. That's when I started to pay attention. So it brings with it a number of things. So there's a, there's a strong emotional component to it. And I, I sort of broadly categorize it as when you start to feel uncomfortable. And it tends to have quite a bit to do with trust. But again, it's not, it's not exclusive to trust. So yeah, it's Brenda Brown's definition, I'm going to see if I can pull it up briefly so we can [00:04:00] have a, I can be a little bit more specific. Cause I was just running through my mind. What is, what's the best way to define it? So ground Brenda Brown, I think in a book from 2016, says the emotion and the experience during times of risk uncertainty and emotional exposure. And I love that one. There's a more technical one, which is from Maya luffa and Robinson, I think from 2007. More research-based vulnerabilities manifest in a willingness to be honest and open to learning by accepting our own fallibility and thus taking responsibility for one's own actions, be more responsive to others and sharing responsibility. So in answer to the question, probably somewhere in, in amongst those two. Scott: Okay. So, I mean, I quite like the thing about that, being that vulnerability about taking responsibility. For ourselves and then saying, this may be uncomfortable for me, but I'm going to have to do it, but I understand where I am and what I can do within that space.[00:05:00] So was it the muscling somewhere versus the, you've got your comfort zone sometimes in, outside the comfort zone, that's where the magic happens. And it's about this it's uncomfortable at times. Mark: Yeah. And I saw playing just a little bit on the weekend with my daughter. She was, she's doing a diving. So springboard diving course. And it came from jumping off a pier somewhere in Croatia while back, and she loved it, enjoyed it. And so she decided to take up a diving course. And so she was in the springboard and they had asked the class to go up to the sort of three meter and then right to the very top one. And she said, you know, I've done. I was, and she's 12. So she said to me, I was feeling really nervous and anxious about it and scan of it. And I said, so what did you do? She said, well, I didn't want to look bad in front of the rest of the class. And I also knew that I could do it cause I've done it before, maybe not as high, but I felt quite anxious and uncomfortable with it. And I said, so, and what happened when you did it? And she said, well, I felt a lot better and was a little nervous going down. But she said, I felt a lot better when I did it. Cause I knew I could do [00:06:00] it. And I said, yep. And to your point, Scott right there. And once you take that step into the, into what we perceive as the unknown and potentially the uncomfortable and potentially some of the risks we might perceive that comes with it. Sometimes, I mean, granted not always, but sometimes there's a sense of relief afterwards of actually it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. That's what my daughter said to me. She said, I got out of Wharton and I looked at him and went, I can do that. And so to your point and learning unfolds and, and something beautiful starts to happen and I don't shy away from those words. The learning, the learning that starts to take place as we take a step forward, as we make the choice, as we start to connect with those decisions, as we start to connect with how we feel about stuff that there's, there's some real purpose in there, and there's a whole level of learning that comes with that. And that's, that's not sort of, make-believe soft and fluffy. It's probably life giving a little tap on the shoulder going, come on. I think maybe we we, we, we need to take a couple of steps down here. I ain't gonna force you. But [00:07:00] he has a choice and then we make the choice. We make the choice to either shy away or engage with it or play with it or think about it or circle back. Or my sense is life. My experiences life always come back and use it. Broadly. Life, life comes back gently. When, when you, when you when you least expected and gives you a tap on the shoulder and says, okay, come on on, stay in your comfort zone all the time. So, Scott: I used to work with somebody and he had a great saying. He said everyday every day, Mark: Yes. Scott: Every day is a school David, so it'd be willing. And there's another one I liked. I mean, I love my quotes. I can't remember as this. I mean like a lesson, something that happens to you and experiences the lesson, doing something different is a learning. And I think that goes back to what you say is that we, we have these experiences in life, whatever they may be. And what do we do with that knowledge, that new experience that we've gotten? How could we then use that to move ourselves forward in such a way? And I liked strengths. I, I think we've talked before about the, the Clifton strengths. Yes. So I'm one, I'm a coach for them. And the interesting thing is it's [00:08:00] accepting that yes, you are stronger at something, but there's areas that maybe you're not, and it's not about trying to take time to work on our weaknesses, but it's basically how can we leverage what we're good at? To overcome our challenges. So instead of spending our time trying to develop, so I'm not an organized person, I'm not a dude. I'm not a sort of a, somebody pushes things forward. I'm much more about give me some ideas, do it play around with things, and then I'll say, well, I c

TRUST is the genesis of economic prosperity.   A lively debate today with Oakland McCulloch, Douglas Lines and Geoff Hudson-Searle, discussing the role of leadership in creating trust.   Douglas Lines: Douglas is a senior business leader, executive committee member with substantial global commercial experience, operating principally in financial services.   Geoffrey M.J Hudson-Searle: Geoff is a serial business advisor, CSuite Executive and Non-Executive Director to Private and Publicly listed growth-phase tech companies. An author of 5 books including the best seller Purposeful Discussions and rated by Agilience as a Top 250 Harvard Business School authority covering; ‘Strategic Management’ and ‘Management Consulting’   Oakland McCulloch: Oak is aRetired Lieutenant Colonel Oakland McCulloch is the author of the 2021 release, Your Leadership Legacy: Becoming the Leader You Were Meant to Be. Based on 40+ years of leadership in the U.S. Army and subsequent civilian positions, Oak highlights principles that will benefit today’s leaders and inspire the leaders of tomorrow. Oak is also well-known speaker who gives presentations on a variety of topics including leadership, success, military history, college preparation and others.   Trust directly influences the actions and outcomes of business every day. By embedding trust in a company’s business, leaders generate value for their stakeholders and society more broadly now and in the future. Trust between employer and employee and among employees enhances human capital investment. Trust influences the behaviours of both employers and employees. Deloitte research suggests that employees who highly trust their employer are about half as likely to seek new job opportunities as those who don’t. At the same time, workers are more likely to invest in their own skill building if they trust that their employer will reward them for their efforts. This is especially true regarding non-transferable or firm-specific skills, which suggests that trust can raise the level of institutional knowledge that can lead to more productive work.   Geoff and Douglas: https://ib-em.com/   Oakland: https://www.ltcoakmcculloch.com   Scott: https://theinnovatecrowd.com   Blog site, books, news and resources: https://freedomafterthesharks.com/   Transcript   Scott: [00:00:00] Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of how might we, and I've got a first, I have three guests with me this time. So it'll be interesting how this pans out the title for this podcast is how might we go back to the future with leadership? So with me today is Oakland McCulloch, Jeff Hudson, cell, and Douglas lines. So gentlemen, in no particular order who would like to go first and introduce themselves to the lovely listeners? Oakland: Well, I'm a retired Lieutenant Colonel McCall on. Yeah, over here in America. So across the pond there, as you guys would say did 23 years in the army retired, a Lieutenant Colonel had got about 40 years of leadership experience one way or another. And recently wrote a book your leadership legacy becoming the leader you were meant to be. And and I'm out on the speaking and speaking tours doing some [00:01:00] speaking, but but excited to be here with, with all three of you and looking forward to talking about. Scott: Okay. Lovely. Thank you very much. And I will go international then. So Douglas, you want to go next is our next, Douglas: thank you. Scott says you can hear my accent clearly, south African living in the UK educated in the us. And actually I have a German driver's license. I think that confuses most, really great to be here with you guys today, a conversation and a topic that I'm enormously passionate about. Equally like Oak. I have in excess of 20 years experience leading businesses and teams have learned to the good, the bad and the ugly along the way. But I really believe that with great leadership there's great opportunities for, for the world that we live in and certainly going forward. And it's that positivity that each and every one of us can bring in our lives not only in professional, you know, corporate life, but equally in our personal lives in our community. So really looking forward to the conversation, Scott. Scott: Thank you. You're welcome. Thank you. And Geoff, Geoff: .Thank you, Scott. It's a pleasure to be here. And I [00:02:00] also a great pleasure to be here with both Douglas and Oak I'm really looking forward to this conversation. My name is Geoff Hudson Searle. I'm a 30 year executive serial business advisor for growth phase companies. C-suite executive private and publicly listed companies both CEO, CMO and CCO. I've been at NXD for the last 13 years, mainly on around regulation technology and internet security. And I'm an author and thought leader of my sixth book, which will be out 2022, which is called the trust paradigm. And. As I said before I do have a little bit of an explainer, everything that's, I will be discussing today with, with both Oak and Douglas, I must make clear that these are my personal preferences and they are not of the preferences of any of the companies that I represent. Scott: Okay. Thank you very much. See, I only represent my one company, so I never have to put that disclaimer in, this is me. [00:03:00] It's just the way it is. It makes life so much more simple, so much more simple. Okay guys. So we, we had a chat before we came on, live on air I'm one of the, we were talking about the time it was and we said, we go back to the future back to back to the future for leadership. So, oh, go to you. Why do you think, well, what was it about that title that you liked and sort of what it was suggesting? Oakland: Yeah. So I think that we have gotten away from producing leaders who. Understand what their job is, and it's not about them. I think we've got to get back to producing servant leaders who, who understand that it's about the organization. It's about the people who work for that organization. And if they put the focus on that, then the organization will, will do well and they'll get their benefits in the end anyway. But if, if you're becoming leaders and I think at least here in America, we are producing leaders at all levels. In all professions, politicians, businessmen, military, we're [00:04:00] producing leaders who have forgotten why they are leaders. And it's not about their title. It's not about the power that they get. It's not about the money they make. If that's why you're picking to be a leader, then go do something else because you're going to be a horrible leader. As we see in the world right now, if you want to be a good leader, you gotta, we gotta get back to if we want things to get better in this. We got to get back to producing leaders who understand that it's not about them. It's about the organization and the people. Scott: Okay. Lovely. Thank you. Listen, would you like to come in on that, but yeah, I think Douglas: first of all, I, you know, I'm a firm believer that we live in a, an environment of contextual change that's happening at a rate that we cannot even begin to imagine. And so this matter of contextual leadership is really profound for me. And I think coupled with that is I do not believe that the past is necessarily the proxy of the future of leadership. I think there's aspects where we want to take the best from the past. But be enormously curious about the future and, and I challenge leaders in every society and [00:05:00] every level of our organization to really continue their journey of personal reimagination, because I don't think leadership is static anymore. And, and coupled with an enormous amount of curiosity about the world that we live in. And so, yeah, enormously passionate in terms of, of, of going from that past world and the great learnings that are exploded, use those, don't lose them, but bring new ones that compliment and enhance this ever-changing context we operating. Scott: So don't, don't throw the bath board out with the baby type thing. So let's learn from the past and that's okay. But when we learnt leaders in the past, it was principles, but application was going to change because the world is changing at a pace. We never, I love the curiosity aspect, but I do think that we under under milk or under rag, really the value of curiosity. In what we do, because I think curiosity is the path to finding new ways of working, working out. What's working, what's not working doing this, [00:06:00] but I think curiosity with care. Absolutely. Yeah. So it's not about challenging, Jeff, would you like to come in on anything Geoff: that was mentioned? Yeah, look, I, I can't disagree. You know with my colleagues whatsoever. I think we do need to get back into back to the future and more importantly, the time machine on a few issues. I'd like to, I'd like to talk about some of those issues. You know, we talked about principles, we've talked about, you know, accountability. I mean, if we go back in history, you know leadership was more passionate 20 years ago. Right. You know, you got to see at the top of the tree with his people or. And you have a lot more passion. You have a lot more care. You, you had value of valued system okay. In your organization, which, which we were not seeing too much today. And as a Douglas quite touched on, you know, we're, we're at another rating change of pace changes, constant. This is not. Cycle or an event that we're just describing right now, this is constant, right. And that's [00:07:00] changing people's human behaviors, but unless we get back to some basic principles around leadership and then you can get, you can actually get hold of any major. Key piece of research, whether it's Duke's universe, duke university, whether it's PWC, whether it's McKinsey, I'll tell you that we are failing in leadership. Okay. We're failing because we've got an there, there are many factors that go aro

My Guest this episode in Marie-Louise O'neil and she discussed how she used her experience and knowledge to create online learning and build a community. Marie-Louise is equipped with a breadth of design knowledge and more than 16 years’ industry experience. I studiedpackaging and branding at university. Since then I've created everything from logo design, social mediatemplates and website design in the digital space, to printed brochures, adverts, banners and packaging.   Marie-Louise LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marielouiseoneill/ Marie-Louise Website - lovelyevolution.co.uk   Transcript Scott: [00:00:00] hello and welcome to the latest edition of how might we on this episode, my guest is. Marie Louise. And we're going to be talking today about how might we convert our knowledge into online learning. So welcome hello and welcome to the latest edition of how might we would you like to Marie Louis? . Would you like to introduce yourself? Marie-Louise: Yeah. Hi, thank you. So yeah, I'm Marie-Louise from lovely Evolution and I specialize in branding, design and CANVA so a little bit about my business. I do design one to one's branding, so creating logos in layman's terms, and also I train people on how to learn, how to [00:01:00] design and create within Canva. And I have a sort of working strap line that I sometimes use from crap creations to competent in CANVA so that that's me in a nutshell, Scott: I quite liked that strap line and it's also, I spent hours working and then just got nowhere very fast. So so it's interesting to say, so you start helping people to do it. So it'd be interesting to talk about your journey from obviously working one-to-one with people to realizing that or identifying that you can actually generate some learning content to help people become better at it themselves rather than you being doing it. Marie-Louise: Yeah, well, it was a bit of a happy accident because I discovered CAMBA back in 2017 another client of mine said, have you heard about this thing? And I had to look at it and thought it would work really well as part of my workflow, how I worked with my clients because it's all very well good [00:02:00] creating a fancy pants logo, and then what do they do with it? And I work with a lot of small businesses and I want to rather than be like, oh, well you have to come to me for every single little tiny change. Where possible. I like to enable my clients to be able to either do it themselves or work with the VA. You know, certainly in the context of say social media where things are very fast paced. So I don't have the time to sort of do it in Photoshop and change it every time they want. And you and you post and certainly Photoshop and you know, whether this, or. Yeah, professional design programs can be a bit clunky and a bit difficult and overwhelming to learn for, you know, the average person. So I was using it as part of working with my clients. And I was having more and more people going, well, I want to learn how to do it, you know, can you, can you teach me? So I did a couple of free CANVA workshops for my local library in north Hampton. As part of being a [00:03:00] guest expert at the business and IP center North Hampton share. And and I was like, oh, well, there's something in there. So then I ran my first paid for workshop two years ago, it came up on Timehop quite nicely Facebook, yesterday, or the day before I was like, oh wow. I hired a buffet as well. You know, it was like real people. And I thought that was great, but running an in-person event, you know, and one-off workshops are their own special beast. And I thought, well, you know, we're, we're already living in this sort of more global, international way. I was already doing a few bits and bobs on zoom. And I really wanted to move my training online. So in January of 2020, I set up an online monthly membership where reserving training you know, like a 13, 30 to 40 minute training on a particular canvas tool or [00:04:00] like template and really breaking it down in my own kind of unique way of just telling you as it is, there was no kind of like trying to be perfect. I wanted that audience participation, so they were kind of live events, but they. So I've got this fun curve, like a year and a half worth of training that I then went on to repurpose and I'm kind of relaunched as a group membership so that I could have a bit more flow to how people were being trained. And so yeah, so it's, it's been a bit of an evolution for me because I rebranded myself planning to, you know, specialize in logo, rebrands and all of that. But in the meantime, I was getting really known for Canva. Hashtag CANVA girl and stuff like that. I didn't coin that way. And and I was like, well, there's something in it. You know, not very many people. Certainly at the designers that I know locally that I was networking with really had [00:05:00] embraced CANVA like I did. So it was a really nice and fairly unique at the time combination of my years and years of design experience. You know, I'm a trained designer combining that with a really easy to use tool like CANVA. And so it's been a really great combination. And for me, it's not, I feel that my training is not just about here's, how to use CANVA, you know, like it's, there's loads of there's loads of stuff on YouTube and stuff out there. You know, free resources for me, it's about trying to impart what I've learned. I'm really helping my clients to really develop that design eye. So when I'm showing them something, I'm not just going well, you know, there is the tool aspect and features of it. That's part of it, but it's also about, you know, well, you need to consider lining things up and making sure there's a bit of negative space here, you know, is there balance to visit the, the design [00:06:00] and you know, is there a focus? So I'm really trying to help them to hopefully understand what comes well, to me is second nature because I've been doing it so long, but it's not something that as a non-designer you would know automatically, and even using these great Canva templates, you know, necessarily understanding once you change things, if you change them too much, that you can't. Water down the impact of the design or, you know, it's so it's no longer looking so great. Scott: Okay. So you found this interesting, the journey you've gone through. So, so you went online before COVID Marie-Louise: I was ahead of the game. Yes. And it was, it was part of my strategy even before then. I kind of come full circle really because I had been the summer. So I guess, what was it about August time of 2019? I'd gone on a three-day workshop about [00:07:00] how to create an online course. And it was, it was also about the kind of marketing of it, landing pages, what kind of things you're training on. And so I sort of started working on that, but I just didn't like sitting in front of a camera, prerecording, all this training. I didn't have that magic though. I have. When I even like one-to-one, you know, having a chat like this, but also, you know, working in a design context or training someone going, here's how you do this, whether it's one or a group. And so I kind of put down the idea of being an online course and that's where the membership kind of came into play. And then I came sort of, as I said, full circle of going well, I've got this bank of prerecorded stuff, you know, it's, it was recorded live, but this is great content. How can I repurpose it and repackage it? So I've then kind of ended up with this hybrid model where there is stuff that people can watch on B play and, you know, [00:08:00] prerecorded, but also there's that group support so that I could get my fix of seeing people and helping them, you know, helping them have that aha moment. So it works really well. Scott: So do you think because of the stuff you were talking about it, it's not just about understanding how to use Canva. That's important to you, but it's about people gaining now, what do you call it? More of a designer eye, so to speak. So do you find that being with people and letting them play around with it and giving them feedback and working with them directly helps develop that. Marie-Louise: Yes, because the way I give feedback, like, because you, what I discovered was that, you know, people will go away and try and do something. And when, you know, people have different levels of experience and confidence in using some form of new tech, you know, some people thought it work where they're like afraid to do anything, you know, trying to do something on [00:09:00] zoom, you know, like, how do I share my screen is, is really challenging for them because they're not used to it once they've done it a few times, then it's a bit easier and they can work out and it's fine. And the same is a tool with canvas. Some people really take to it like a duck to water and others really struggled to do really simple things. So there's an element of, they've got so kind of practice with it and it's, you know, watching some training, whether it's mine or someone else's and break it down into composite. But then once they got used to the kind of functionality of that program and doing from, you know, going from a, to B, is it where it's then elevating that of going well, how do we then make it look good? How do we make it appeal to our target market? So that's the kind of the upleveling that I bring is that I'm going well. Okay. Well, so you've done this design. You're not sure about it. So yes, from a technical design point of view, I can explain how [00:10:00] you can improve it, but also don't forget, you need to appeal to your target market, you know, is it on brand, I using your brand colors? So it's all these things that are really important that people may not realize they need to be using within, you know, anything that they're creating. Scott: From

In this episode, my guest is Simon Payne. Simon is a tattooed, creative, commercial, and highly focused individual who has been working in learning and people development since 2004. He ran an innovative team-building company for 9 years before fully focusing on training, capability, and performance consulting, and people strategy. He’s proud to have worked with hundreds of organisations and thousands of people, across multiple business sectors, worldwide. He’s got my own attitude, style, and very forward-thinking. He thinks it’s vitally important to challenge and not settle for OK. His approach is simple, be human. His special power (I don’t say shazam though – well not often) is getting inside the head and heart of the problem – understanding what makes people and businesses tick – and this means challenging the status quo sometimes.   In this episode Simon and I discuss the concept of being oneself in the workplace, not having one persona for work and one for home. We meander through the concepts of growth mindset, leadership, learning, and psychological safety. And maybe it all boils down to being more human in business.   03:19 I employ you and not your family 04:29 COVID may well help us look at how we work together 08:05 How do you be more human in business 09:26 It is the system that is broken, not the people 10:46 We can’t grow in fear 12:37 What is the role of trust? 14:51 All the stuff about being human we are good at; so why can’t we do it? 16:18 Team charters 18:04 We all want to have a social connection and a positive environment 21:00 Helping employees set their own objectives 22:57 Peer to peer feedback 27:47 The role L&D can play 35:50 Organisations being brave, and try something different 40:18 Start with yourself and learn from other departments 44:38 Be careful what we define as success 46:01 Businesses are not around forever 49:18 How we can adapt to the new normal of work 57:24 The role of leadership     Simon’s LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonjpaynegotskills/   Simon’s Website: https://www.punkincorporated.com/   Scott’s Website: https://theinnovatecrowd.com

My guest this episode is Adrian Waite, Adrian is a Strategic HR & Talent Leader, Executive Coach, Consultant, Writer, and Speaker. Currently Head of Talent for Boehringer Ingelheim in META, specializing in “Purpose Driven Performance” through bespoke Talent, OE, OD, Leadership & Management support systems, which produce learning as a by-product of optimal performance experience.       We discuss the role of L&D in delivering ‘Purpose Driven Performance.’ How we should be careful of ‘Best Practice’ and be aware of cultural, people and landscape differences. The need for organisations to embrace experiments and learning from outcomes. Let us focus on the purpose of what we are trying to do, and we touch on principled negotiation.   Adrian shares some thoughts on leadership development. Asking questions to get clarity on what the leaders need to be able to do to fit in their space in the organisation. Do we need to extract leaders from the real world for five days to talk about the theory of what is being done in the real world?   To be honest, who in your organisation cares about learning outcomes?   In the leadership space, we tend to be happy with generic approaches that would not be tolerated in a technical environment. Should we look at leadership development in the same way as technical development, what specific things do your leaders need to be able to do?   Adrian explains his principle of developing leaders to perform first and learn through performance. This approach goes against the grain of a lot of leadership development that exists. We need to be working with leaders on the challenges they are facing tomorrow. We can use employees' roles and life cycles to narrow the focus of development.   Can we develop an approach that lets leaders drop in and out as they decide? Letting leaders engage when they have the need to do so, rather than one size fits all and waiting for a space to be available.   Covid has given us the opportunity to work in a test environment and question what is essential and what adds value. And we can now move to work on the future and what that might look like. That enables L&D to look at how to develop and support people to be effective and efficient within that.   Kids ask ‘What is the point of you?’ it is a profound question and we should explore it on a regular basis. If we want the performance, we need the purpose underneath.   ‘We are in the performance business – that is my point’   Do you know the purpose of your role, department, function, or project? Knowing this can help cut out some of the noise and help you prioritise the important stuff. We are often talking about inputs and not the purpose, however, the purpose is what underpins everything.   There is a need to provide the support that is linked to operational needs and landscape changes. We need a different mindset, moving away from generic and topic-led solutions. We can learn from other specialists, such as marketing to help make the shift and rethink how we do things.   Working in partnership with senior leaders, working towards high purpose outcomes that are critical to the survivability of the organisation you can get a pass on the metrics. Don’t wait to be asked for a seat at the table, go around and get to understand what are the pain points. Work with them to see how you can support them to deliver on their objectives.   What metrics are important, it may not be what you expect. Elevating L&D professionals to trusted advisors. It is not about proposing programmes, but supporting and helping, that approach can quickly elevate your role within the organisation.   ‘You may not get to play with everybody with the current plan, but you’re a lot more likely to get to play in the future plans because there is no threat in that.’   Be selfless, L&D serves to enable others to achieve their goals, we are there to help performance to be achieved. The role you played will become evident and your reputation will grow, there is no need to bang your own drum.   If you can – choose your boss.     Adrian’s LinkedIn  https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-adrian-waite-chartered-fcipd-flpi-69227aa/   Scott’s website: https://www.theinnovatecrowd.com   If you have ideas, thoughts, and insights around purpose, business and development then please email me to discuss being a guest on a future episode of ‘How Might We…? scott@theinnovatecrowd.com

In this episode my guest is John Hinchcliffe; John is an internationally recognised award-winning digital learning expert with over 12 years in the field. He is Head of Talent at Jam Pan, The #1 On-Demand Digital Learning Marketplace, which connects the right expert freelancers and agencies with your digital learning needs. He also is the founder of the Global Learning and Development Community and was shortlisted for Covid Champion at the LPI Learning Awards 2021 in recognition of his efforts to helping others in the industry during Covid.   We discuss the bad rep L&D has had for a long time, especially in the digital learning space. However, a lot of this was well deserved. John talks about his journey and how discovered how not to design. We then discuss how it can and has evolved and can continue to do so.   We touch on creating agile organisations, solving actual problems, and adaptive learning. What can L&D also learn from other disciplines to create better solutions that deliver?   03:12 Learning was never a passion to be an active experience – Learning has been a reactive thing for people 05:19 No-one was asking what was wrong 07:02 Attractive can mean so many things – results are attractive 08:31 What is the solution? Well, what is the problem? 10:03 The shift from defined roles to transferable skills – thinking about project/GIG based work 10:47 Working with what strengths/interests’ people already have – helping create agility 12:34 Adaptive learning in the workplace 14:08 L&D moving from the owner of learning to the curator of learning 15:10 Using data on platforms to gain insights 16:36 Using data analysis and marketing to improve L&D 20:46 Measuring and answering the ROI question 22:20 Answering the what’s in it for me question 25:22 Best principles, not best practices 27:43 Because it has become the norm 33:53 Why are we looking at one-off solutions? 35:12 Internal L&D CRM System 40:53 Onboarding and stress 43:29 L&D and creativity 45:53 L&D and customer experience 46:41 5 questions to ask in any design 49:35 We have gone full circle – time for a bit of a recap     The Global Learning and Development Network: GLDC https://www.mygldc.org   John’s LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-hinchliffe-yourskillshub/   Jam Pan: https://www.jam-pan.com   Scott’s Website: https://www.theinnovatecrowd.com   If you have stories, insights, and thoughts you would like to share, and be a guest on the podcast; drop me an email at scott@theinnovatecrowd.com to arrange a chat.

In this episode, my guest is Paul Matthews. 20 years after moving into L&D, Paul is a sought-after speaker on the international stage – not only for his undoubted knowledge but also for his engaging, story-led approach and his desire to make L&D ideas easy to understand. He also runs workshops and does consultancy for many blue-chip clients in the UK and beyond. He’s a regular speaker in L&D events in the UK and around the world, as well as writing for leading industry magazines and blogs. He is also a member of the CIPD’s L&D advisory board.   Paul and I talk about the importance of thinking about delivering behavioural change. And how this can be the golden thread through design that makes measurement of output easier. Paul talks about the levers to pull for learning transfer to happen and how we can design a learning workflow that creates the behavioural changes required.   01:07 The function of L&D is changing behaviour to ensure we get the performance we need 03:07 Taking our eye off the prize 04:43 It’s not learning needs analysis – it’s a behavioural needs analysis 06:07 And now we have a reasonable way of measuring 07:22 Generic leadership content – there needs to be a customised layer 08:37 Learning transfer is the key to behavioural change 10:31 Accountability and responsibility 12:18 The 12 levers of learning transfer 13:56 Performance consultancy 16:13 How do I deliver these behaviours to people 17:15 Does one-day training actually need three or four days? 20:13 Does learning happen without reflection? 20:49 The five layers of reflection 23:49 Let’s get the basics right 25:06b Workflow and behavioural change 32:29 Training and coaching is good, but what else can we do? 32:51 Governance, accountability and responsibility 36:11 The perception of L&D 41:58 Do leaders feel that L&D think too short term and transactional     Paul’s Website: https://paul-matthews.com/   Paul’s Workflow platform: https://peoplealchemy.com/   Scott’s Website: https://www.theinnovatecrowd.com/   If you have ideas, thoughts or insights that can help change the perception of learning. Please drop me an email to chat about being a guest on the podcast scott@theinnovatecrowd.com