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Episode #353: Jeni Britton Bauer - How To Create A 'Craveable' Reason To Return

Jeni Britton Bauer is an American ice cream maker and entrepreneur. Jeni opened her first ice cream shop, Scream, in 1996, then founded Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams in 2002. Her first cookbook, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home, is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller and won a coveted James Beard Award in 2012. Jeni is a 2017 Henry Crown Fellow and has been recognized by Fast Company as "one of the most creative companies in the world."

Notes:

• Leaders who sustain excellence =
  • "The main thing is you show up every day.  You show up and lead by example. You have to be IN IT daily."
  • That develops trusts.  Trusts leads to it the rest...
• Jeni is a subject matter expert on the topics that matter to her: ice cream, leadership, curiosity, creativity...
• "It’s not a genius idea then lots of funding, then success.  It’s really more subtle than that. Blazing a slow path through a tangled jungle, learning as you go over many years.  It takes time."
• "I find my discipline when I find my passion.  And that passion starts with curiosity. And finding the place of what I want to do is needed in the world."
• How to know what your passion is?
  • "There's a cross road of what you want to explore and what other people want." -- "That's entrepreneurial thinking.  It's about community and creativity."
• "We don't know what's possible... You've got to be out exploring and be open to new ideas."
• Create time for yourself and your team to follow your curiosity...
• Entrepreneurship is about a 2 way communication with customers. 
• One pint of ice cream tested positive for listeria but there was never an outbreak. -- They recalled 6 months worth of ice cream, destroying 535,000 pounds (or 265 tons) of ice cream, costing the company more than $2.5 million!  It almost put them out of business.
• “You want to say you've got talent, hustle, and guts. You want to tell that to the world, but you don't really know until you prove it."
• "If we create a community, everything falls into place.  Put your values front and center and merge with the community.  When the community sees your business as vital, they will help you when times are tough."
• “There’s nothing more important whether in the financial industry or ice cream, than trust.”
• "Create a craveable reason to return" - Why would a customer come back to you? Why would someone follow you? What are you doing as a leader that makes someone want to follow you?

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Episode #352: Patrick Lencioni - The Five Key Actions Of Excellent Leaders

Notes:

• Leaders who sustain excellence =
  • Humility - They don't feel they are more important than others, but they realize that their words and actions carry more weight.
• "Leadership is a privilege... It's about serving others. A lot of leaders lead because they think it looks cool."
• "Leadership has to be about what you can give, not what you can get."
• Exploring the two leadership motives:
  • Reward-centered leadership: the belief that being a leader is the reward for hard work, and therefore, that the experience of being a leader should be pleasant and enjoyable, avoiding anything mundane, unpleasant or uncomfortable.
  • Responsibility-centered leadership: the belief that being a leader is a responsibility, and therefore that the experience of leading should be difficult and challenging (though certainly not without elements of personal gratification).
• One of the questions to ask yourself:
  • “How do you see your job in terms of verbs?” — what do you do to really help the business?
• The leader must be a constant, incessant reminder of the company’s purpose, strategy, values, & priorities.  You’re not only the CEO, you’re the CRO.” Chief Reminding Officer
• The actions of great leaders:
  • Running great meetings
  • Managing the executive team
  • Managing the executives as individuals
  • Having difficult conversations with people
  • Constantly communicating and repeating key messages to employees
• "The CEO should have the most painful job in the company."
• For the mid-level manager -- "Am I waking up with the right rationale to do this job?"
• Love is a verb:
  • Time
  • Affection
  • Discipline
• "Leadership is not a noun, it's a verb."
• Running great meetings:
  • "Meetings are the central activity of leadership.  Bad leaders have other people run their meetings."
    • Good meetings have debate and conflict.  People are able to be passionate without consequence.  The leader prioritizes what will be talked about.
• CEO's are responsible to build teams.  Your job is to build teams based on trust
• When receiving a message from a cynical leader who says "You don't understand."  Our response? "No, we're not going to be that way.  The ones who do the hard work change the world."
• Micro-managing vs. Accountability:
  • "There is an abdication of management.  You should know what your team is doing."
• Parenting: "The great news about being a parent is it's humbling."
• The leader must be the chief reminding officer:
  • "Constant, incessant, reminder of the company's purpose, strategy, values, and priorities. You must over-communicate."
• Marriage advice:
  • "Be completely humble, vulnerable, especially in front of the kids.  Engage in healthy conflict.  When people can't argue, that's a problem."

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Episode #351: John Maxwell - The Laws Of Leadership (Follow Them & People Will Follow You)

John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, coach, and author who has sold over 20 million books. A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week best-selling author, Maxwell has written three books which have each sold more than one million copies: The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Developing the Leader Within You, and The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader.

Notes:

• "Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better." - Pat Riley
• The difference between 'best' and 'better'
  • "Whatever is best for now... Tomorrow has got to get better. I always look at 'best' for a moment."
  • "If you're not growing today, I have to talk about yesterday. I don't want to talk about yesterday."
• The great leaders:
  • Listen
  • Learn
  • Lead
• The importance of listening and asking questions:
  • "I began to ask questions, invite people to sit down and talk."  Shared learning and growing together...
• What John learned from Angela Ahrendts:
  • "I aim to always give 60 and take 40.  Always give more than you take."
  • "Add more value to people than you take."
• Working with your team:
  • "I put an idea in front of my team and say, 'make it better,' and they always do."
• Proactive: "If you're not proactive, you're reactive.  I've never met a great leader who wasn't proactive."
  • "Be unforgettable.  Always be the first person to help."
• Action Attraction
  • "The moment I move, I attract all resources because I'm moving."
  • "I never draw people to me when I sit still."
    • "Action shows intention"
• Keynote speaking preparation:
  • "When I'm in the green room preparing, I'm thinking about the people in the audience. I begin to envision the people leaning in, taking notes, engaged.  It helps me."
  • The content you have will alone will not cut it -- "Connecting the content to the people carries the day. I want them to say, 'oh my gosh, he's talking to me.'"
    • "The response of the people charges me up."
• Layered learning:
  • Is your fence facing out or facing in?  Are you growing?  Or shrinking?
• Building a company?  "I wasn't trying to build a company.  It started in a garage.  Each company was created just to help solve problems for people. --> Find a need, start a company, find a need, start a company."
  • There are now over 30,000 John Maxwell coaches
• "I've always had the ability to take a problem and develop a resource for it."
• "I can smell an opportunity... And I can see it in people.  I've always been quick to spot this."
  • How to develop this skill? --> "You must seize the opportunities. Act quickly."
• Adaptability - "A person that lacks flexibility will mist a lot of opportunities."
  • Peter Drucker did not make long range plans.  He focused on seizing the moment.
  • John's long range plan: "What I want for people is for them to do well and I want to help them do that."
• Life advice:
  • Value people
  • Continually grow
  • Live very intentionally

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Episode #350: Tom Rath - Answering Life's Great Question

Tom Rath is an author and researcher who has spent the past two decades studying how work can improve human health and well-being. His 10 books have sold more than 10 million copies and made hundreds of appearances on global bestseller lists. Tom’s first book, How Full Is Your Bucket?, was an instant #1 New York Times bestseller and led to a series of books that are used in classrooms around the world. His book StrengthsFinder 2.0 is Amazon’s top selling non-fiction book of all time. Tom’s other bestsellers include Strengths Based Leadership, Eat Move Sleep, and Are You Fully Charged?

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • "They are the single best people at asking good questions."
  • "They are amazing listeners. They make you feel like you are the only person in the room."
    • Ask insightful questions that help others identify something they had not previously thought of
• How does one develop that skill?
  • Spend time alone learning... Have a genuine intellectual curiosity... Write caring, handwritten notes
• Make sure your teammates know you care about them and show your gratitude
  • I shared the story of Doug Meyer calling me simply to say "thank you" and how much it meant to me.  Be a thoughtful leader who leads with gratitude.
    • Use specifics when describing why you appreciate someone
• Why did StrengtsFinder catch on?
  • "We should not fall back to a resume.  We don't have a good language to describe what we do and our talents."  Strengths Finder does that for people
    • As leaders, we should always be on the lookout for the unique talent in others
• Tom's Top 5 Strengths:
  • Futuristic
  • Analytical
  • Relater
  • Significane
  • Activator
• My Top 5 Strengths:
  • Learner - People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.
  • Input - People who are especially talented in the Input theme have a craving to know more. Often they like to collect and archive all kinds of information.
  • Intellection - People who are especially talented in the Intellection theme are characterized by their intellectual activity. They are introspective and appreciate intellectual discussions.
  • Individualization - People who are especially talented in the Individualization theme are intrigued with the unique qualities of each person. They have a gift for figuring out how people who are different can work together productively.
  • Achiever - People who are especially talented in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.
• Individualize -- Send articles to specific people each day -- Write: "Hey, I was reading this and thought you might find it helpful."
• What you can contribute is more important that your passions. "There's an enormous mismatch in what the world needs and what's out there."
• Three big influences on Tom:
  • Dr. Martin Luther King - “Life's most persistent and urgent question is: what are you doing for others?”
  • Ben Horowitz's commencement speech
  • His grandfather, Don Clifton -- "Our greatest contribution can be to teach others."
• There is a higher correlation in helpfulness when you can literally see the people you're helping (Tom shares the research to back this up).  This gives you motivation to see your impact.  We need a productive purpose.
• When feeling unfulfilled or unhappy at work?
  • Instead of looking to leave the company, look for new ways to get to your intended outcome.  How could you re-write your job? Can you make the job you have today meaningful?
• The Peter Principle - The principle that members of a hierarchy are promoted until they reach the level at which they are no longer competent.
• Qualities Tom looks for in a leader:
  • Desire to develop other people
  • Vision
• Life's great question is: "What are you doing for others?"
• We need to align basic expectations: "How do each of us want to contribute?"
• Create - Have a challenger as part of your team.  Someone to push back and ask questions
• Relate - An energizer.  How do you get and stay charged up? What reminds you of the vision? Of the mission? How to have fun?
• Operate - Scaling... Reaching more people.
• Advice: Map what the world around you needs. Who are you? What are your talents? Interests? Motivators? --> Draw the connections.  Look where they intersect.

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#349 - An Inside Look At The Book Writing Process With Jay Acunzo

• Why this topic? We've both written books. And my book is out this week!
• Context on our books: Welcome To Management.  I wrote the book I wish I had when I first got promoted.  Jay's book is called Break The Wheel.
  • "Write a book because you think it has to exist.  Not to be a best-seller.
• The Process:
  • Research, outlining, fan interaction, drafting, publishing -- Why an outline is a vital piece of the process.  "The outline is the bones."
    • "Doing research in public created a system to vet ideas and best practices." --> Using client interactions as real time research to help test ideas
  • Podcasts - It was extremely helpful for me to be recording while I was writing the book: I was consistently doing research while writing the book.  Interviews, asking questions about writing/books, ideas, etc. I was working full time while I wrote this book and I think that made it better. It forced me to be disciplined with blocking time to write daily.
  • Traditional vs. Self-Publish vs. Hybrid -- Jay chose a hybrid approach to publishing his book.  I chose to publish traditionally with McGraw-Hill.  I did a lot of research on the different paths for publishing and chose the traditional route because: I wanted to create options and leverage for myself.  And after I spoke with Casey Ebro from McGraw-Hill I was completely sold on accepting their offer.
• Superlatives:
  • Platitude about writing/writing books/creativity that you found MOST true during this process? LEAST true?  Most true = Writers write (listen to the James & Kristy Clear story from dinner).  Least true = I’ve read from a few well known authors that you have to dedicate your life to nothing but writing the book.  I found that continuously working and building a business at the same time as writing was helpful. When I do q & a’s on stage after a keynote or on my podcast, I get ideas and prompts to write about...
  • Most useful habit/routine: I learn through talking.  I had regular sessions where I would sit in a room with my Dad and/or my friend Lance (who was a prosecutor for 10 years).  They would give me prompts, ask questions, and we would talk out the book. I would type notes during our sessions, then I would go by myself and write.  In my very first session with my Dad, he said, “Remember, it’s a lot harder when you care.”  He meant this in the form of leading people… And he’s right. But the same is true for writing a book. It’s hard when you care so deeply about the topic of helping people lead others more effectively… Because I understand the ripple effect.  The wake left behind you as a leader.
  • Most surprising lesson: You don’t fully know what you think or how little you know until you put pen to paper.  Writing REALLY forces you to be clear on what you believe. I outline sections and then would ramble on for pages.  The editing process was helpful. I hired an editor/writing coach to help.
  • Best story from the book:   I sent an early copy to Ryan Holiday to read and offer feedback.  He called me said, “Dude, why is your best story in the middle of the book?  You should open the book with that story." And so I did...
  • What was your editor's favorite part? Casey Ebro (from McGraw-Hill) said to me, "I read non-fiction business books for a living.  I've read hundreds of them.  And your section titled "You Have To Do All Three" in chapter six is the most unique and helpful view that I've read about leading, managing, and coaching."  -- That was a great moment.
• Additional Benefits:
  • Publishing your work online is becoming the greatest networking tool in the world -- When done well, you attract the people you want to be around. (David Perell, James Clear have written a lot about this)
  • Writing is the ultimate exercise to help you find clarity.  Sometimes you don’t realize how much you don’t know about something until you try to write about it.  -- This can help everyone (especially useful for leaders).

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Episode #348: Simon Sinek - Why Consistency Beats Intensity (Playing The Infinite Game)

Notes:

• Leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Humility - They don't believe their own hype.
  • Their power is accumulated through helping others.
  • "I'm fully aware I'm the same idiot I was back then."
• "Vision is like an iceberg.  The great leaders can see what's beneath the surface."
  • "I never look at what I've done, I look at what I can do."
  • "I tend to be very future focused."
• "People called me the 'why' guy... For my tastes, it's about new ideas, building on ideas."
  • "We all need to find a vision."
    • People should practice telling stories about real people, learn how to use metaphors
• Simon described the difference between the messaging at Apple vs. Microsoft
  • Microsoft (during the Steve Ballmer days) were focused on their competition
  • Apple was focused on helping teachers and designing beautiful products
  • Stop thinking of others as competitors... Instead find worthy rivals
• In the late 1970's Milton Friedman said business should maximize profits for shareholders.  For some reason, this idea was adopted and it became the norm.  it was embraced.  It's terrible.  Prior to this, the idea of mass layoffs didn't exist as an option for a business.
  • "We all have to become the leader we want to become."
  • "Leadership is not rank, it's seeing those around you rise."
  • "Business is one of the most personal things in the world."  You should never said, "it's not personal, it's just business."  It's ALWAYS personal.
• Great leaders are the ones who think beyond short term vs long term. They are the ones who know it’s not about the next quarter or the next election but about the next generation.
• The greatness of George Eastman - he was not just how great for Kodak,  but amazing for the game of business as a whole… He created a lot of employee incentives in 1912 that had not been happening up to that point. Stock options, sick days, college tuition reimbursement, etc.
• “Consistency becomes more important than intensity.”
• “Where a finite-minded player makes products they think they can sell to people, the infinite-minded player makes products that people want to buy. The former is primarily focused on how the sale of those products benefits the company; the latter is primarily focused on how the products benefit those who buy them.”
• “Being the best simply cannot be a Just Cause, because even if we are the best (based on the metrics and time frames of our own choosing), the position is only temporary. The game doesn’t end once we get there; it keeps going. And because the game keeps going, we often find ourselves playing defense to maintain our cherished ranking. Though saying “we are the best” may be great fodder for a rah-rah speech to rally a team, it makes for a weak foundation upon which to build an entire company. Infinite-minded leaders understand that “best” is not a permanent state. Instead, they strive to be “better.”
• "There is an entire section at the book store called "self-help," there should be a section called "help others."
• Why lead? --> "Because you want to see others grow. Your job may be 9 to 5, but leadership is 24-7."
• "If you like the idea of taking care of others, you may be suitable to lead."

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Episode #347: Steven Strogatz - How Calculus Reveals The Secrets Of The Universe

• Leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Have a willingness to be a beginner
    • "When you're naive, you ask new questions"
  • "They have the courage to be someone who's just starting"
  • How do you fight the urge to live up to a prior reputation of being an expert at something?
    • Be known as an adventurer.  Cannot have an ego.
• Six degrees of separation is a math problem
• The strength in weak ties
  • It's important to connect with people outside of your typical orbit
  • Action: Go to a strange party, play a new sport, go to a new gym, meet oddballs
    • Collect "casual acquaintances"
• The value of being a helper:
  • Be the assist person, help others, do little acts of kindness, promote someone else's work
• How Steven and I got to know each other:
  • David Epstein's wife made an intro for David and Steven... And then from David to me.
    • "Be the kind of person who remembers others names"
• Why should a normal person learn calculus?
  • "The world has been turned upside down by calculus"
  • "Calculus is the mathematical study of change"
  • "It's a great intellectual adventure story"
  • "Calculus is the language that God talks" --> The laws of nature are built in calculus
• How to be more creative?
  • Be broadly interested in many different topics.  Take something from one area and apply it somewhere else.
• Advice Steven would give to a mid-level manager:
  • "Getting high grades is jumping through hoops someone else sets"
  • "As a PhD, you have to make your own hoops"
  • "People need to be more adventurous, and then figure it out"
• Why you should study Improv as a leader:
  • Use "Yes and..."  This helps with brainstorming and coming up with new ideas.  Put out a lot of wacky ideas to get to the good stuff.
  • "I want people to be gripped irrationally by the imagination"
• The power of mentors:
  • "Learn from both the great coaches and the bad ones"
• The value of friendships:
  • The story of Mr. Joffray -- Physically impressive and wonderfully intelligent.  He took pleasure in Steven passing him.
• The value of teaching:
  • It helps create empathy... It forces you to put yourself in the mind of someone else. "Bad teachers don't have empathy."
• How does Steven prepare for big moments?
  • "I try to be myself.  And talk myself out of being intimidated." --->  The audience wants you to do well.
• Life advice:
  • "Do what you care about most, what drives you the most, do the hard work to become skillful."
  • Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

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#346: Cameron Mitchell is the founder & CEO of Cameron Mitchell Restaurants.  In 2018, they celebrated their 25th anniversary. He employees more than 5,000 people and his restaurants do $300m/year in sales. He is the author of Yes Is The Answer, What Is The Question?  He has been recognized as Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst and Young, as a Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration and as one of 50 New Taste Makers by Nation’s Restaurant News.

Notes:

• "Leaders who sustain excellence believe in people.  They put trust in people."
  • Must have strong culture and values
• Writing your core values -- The benefit of putting pen to paper and the courage to act on them (including firing a superstar if he doesn’t live up to the values set)
• His goals:
  • Go to the Culinary Institute of America
  • Become GM at age 24
  • Regional at age 26
  • VP of Operations at age 30
  • Be president of a restaurant company by age 35
  • Go to the Culinary Institute of America
  • He woke his mom up at a 1:00am and told her his goals
• "When you share your goals, people want to hold you accountable to them..."
• He went to Culinary Institute of America. Same place as Anthony Bourdain. The CIA was the Harvard of culinary schools.
  • He got turned down initially because of his low high school grades -- "I had the can do, but didn't have the want to initially"
• He once worked 100 days in a row without a day off (that included a 1 hour and 45 minute commute each way)
  • "I equate it to the doll that you punch and it comes right back up." -- Must be resilient
  • "You cannot build a life like this or be successful without a commitment to hard work"
• Years ago Cameron was a young man with a dream, a yellow note pad, and a pen.  He wrote down 5 questions and answers that articulated who he would be, why he would exist, and what he believed and did as a restaurant company.
• The 5 Questions:
  • Who are we?
  • What do we want to be?
  • Why are we in business?
  • What is your role?
  • What is our goal?
• After those questions were answered, Cameron created their eight core values to live by...
• Fundraising (for people to invest in his new restaurant business) was a grueling process. He got rejected 9 out of 10 pitches when trying to raise money for his first restaurant.  Cameron shares everything he learned from so much rejection and failure...
• Initially Cameron was a bad boss and people threatened to quit because of him… He got help from Jim Collins and other mentors.
• Why the answer is always yes... --> Cameron shares the symbolism of a milkshake.
• To grow his business, he needed to hire great leaders to help him scale and run other restaurants... He shares the key qualities he looked for when making hiring decisions.  The first leader he hired 20+ years ago is still with him today.
• "I'm constantly pushing on where could we be?  Constantly thinking about how we can be better?"
• The Customer Comes Second -- Book by Hal Rosenbluth that impacted Cameron.
• Cameron gave 5% of the purchase price ($4.6m) to his associates (employees) when they sold a portion of their business to Ruth's Chris and gave a unique gift/experience to his senior leaders (paid for their kids college tuition, sent them on a European trip with their spouse)
• Associates must come first
• Cameron described with emotion the power of having children had on him...
  • Before Cameron had even met his wife, he would tell people, "I'm working for a wife and kids I don't even know yet."
  • The moment of clarity when you have that walk with your wife... When she's in the wheelchair holding your new baby.
  • "You can't be successful at home if you're not successful at work.  You can't be successful at work if you're not successful at home."
  • "Everyone sees the outward success.  But the family is the inward success."
  • Their associates get 8 weeks paid vacation.
• The culture and values must hold up especially when times are tough
  • Cameron tells the story of a time when his best chef used bad language towards another associate.  Cameron fired him within five minutes.
  • "If we don't live those values every single day, then they become no good."
  • General life advice: "Integrity takes years to build and minutes to ruin.  You must lead with integrity."
  • "Cutting corners in life will get you nowhere."  Don't think of the easier way to do things.  "If it were easy everybody would do it.  I don't want the easy way, I want the right way."
  • "Positive mental attitude.  It's what you do with your day that defines you.  Be constantly aware of that."
    • Be unwavering with your work ethic.  "We're pushing forward every day."
  •  

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#345: Kamal Ravikant - Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who have sustained excellence:
  • A belief in the power of commitment to self:
    • WHO am I going to be that day?
    • Don't just float through life
    • "Excellence means continuing through imperfect days." --> Moving forward: It's a mindset
• How to learn how to keep pushing forward?
  • "Don't wait until you're qualified to do it.  Jump in, learn to swim."
• Kamal's process for selling: "You have to believe it."
• Writing process -- Forced Kamal to deal with rejection... It was part of the process to get better.
  • Studied the greats: Hemingway - Clear, simple, prose.
  • "Writing is more rewarding than anything.  It's just you and the blank page."
• "Love yourself like your life depends on it."  It's story about responding to failure.
• How does this work with someone who already feels great about themselves?
  • "Fundamentally, this is about how to be better.  Learn from the maps of humanity."  It's all about what's intside.
    • "The internal impacts the external."
• Kamal had to come to terms with his tough childhood.  He appreciates the strength developed from sleeping in a car (temporarily homeless)
• What was learned from boot camp (in the Army)?
  • "I can handle anything thrown at me."  It teaches the value of mission and responsibility.
• Leading a team in business:
  • "Hire people for what they're best at."  And then support them to do that work.
  • "The best leaders are those that have actually done stuff."  They understand the nuance of the industry and the work.
  • Must be hungry.
• Why walk across Spain?
  • Having the mentality of, "No matter what, I'll figure it out... Take chances in life.  Go beyond comfort zones."
• How has a life altering event (a surgery that went bad) impacted perspective on life?
  • "I feel blessed and lucky."
  • "You can become a mess or become awesome."
• What Kamal learned from spending time with monks?
  • "The construct of self disappears."
  • "Love and compassion."
• Advice: "Excellence requires persistence."

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#344: Jesse Cole

Jesse Cole is the founder of Fans First Entertainment and owner of the Savannah Bananas. His teams have welcomed more than 1 million fans to their ballparks and have been featured on MSNBC, CNN and ESPN. Cole’s teams have been awarded Organization of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, Business of the Year and have won three CPL Championships. The Savannah Bananas currently have sold out every game for three straight seasons and have a waiting list in the thousands for tickets.  In 2018, Fans First Entertainment made the INC 5000 list as one of the fastest growing companies in America. Jesse wrote Find Your Yellow Tux – How to Be Successful by Standing Out.  The book launched #1 in three categories on Amazon and has been sold in 18 countries.   Staying true to his mantra, “ Whatever’s Normal, Do the Exact Opposite,” Jesse launched the book with a World Book Tour….at Epcot. 

Notes:

• How do we define excellence?
  • Hunger like PT Barnum and Walt Disney
  • Curiosity
  • Sustain energy -- Always "bring the energy." --> "When I'm at work, it's show time."
• Understand what brings you energy -- Write it down
• "It was right in front of me.  We sold our house... We needed to create attention.  We couldn't do marketing like everyone else."
• The daily practice of writing Thank You notes:
  • The "thank you experiment."  One per day, every day.  Look for people you're grateful for... Tell them.
• Love:  "Love is something not talked about enough."  Jesse learns the love languages of all of his employees.
• Long term values -- They call all people who buy tickets to his games.  
• Be intentional about EVERYTHING.
• "We don't invest in marketing, we invest in experiences."
• Relate to the normal person:
  • With the hold music
  • Your email signature
  • Business cards
  • Name tags
  • Make everything remarkable
• Write a letter to the parents of young people who work for you.  How are you recognizing people?  
• "Be patient in what you want for yourself, but be impatient in how much you give to others."
• Core beliefs:
  • Always be caring
  • Be different
  • Write your future resume (what do you want to experience)
• "Red flags never go down."  If you find a red flag in the interview process, it's time to move on.
  • "We want people who 'do and learn.'"
  • "You don't fail, you discover things."
• Build your idea muscle -- Write 10 ideas a day, every morning.
  • "I believe in learning by doing."
• Wrote 159 blogs before publishing any of them... "Stop standing still, start standing out."
  • "It's a lot easier to fit in than stand out."
• Create "You wouldn't believe" moments
  • Write the normal list and then do the opposite -- Do the remarkable (like going on a world book tour at Epcot)
• Magic Castle -- "Listen carefully, respond creatively."
• Advice:
  • What makes you different?
  • What makes you stand out?  Be okay with standing for something.  Don't just try to be a little better than someone else.
  • Experiment -- Throw darts until you hit the bulls-eye

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Episode #343: Kelly McGonigal

Kelly McGonigal is a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University who specializes in understanding the mind-body connection. As a pioneer in the field of "science-help," her mission is to translate insights from psychology and neuroscience into practical strategies that support personal well-being and strengthen communities.  She is the best-selling author of The Willpower Instinct and The Upside of Stress. You might know her from her TED talk, "How to Make Stress Your Friend," which is one of the most viewed TED talks of all time, with over 20 million views.  Her new book, The Joy of Movement, explores why physical exercise is a powerful antidote to the modern epidemics of depression, anxiety, and loneliness.  Her identical twin sister is the well-known game designer and futurist Jane McGonigal.

Notes:

• How do we define excellence?
  • What's the metric?
    • It's about contributing to the world consistent and personal values.  A sense of who
    • Let your strengths and talents be what guides you
  • Trust in self, intuition, take risks
• Kelly has a strong sense of direction.  She's had that for a long time.  When to say yes or no?  She discovered she loved teaching.
• The story/science approach -- "I want to connect you with a stranger."  Help people connect with others.
  • "The science reveals something about human nature."
• Willpower -- "The ability to make choices to do what you want even when part of you doesn't want to do it."
  • Immediate gratification combined with an investment if your future.  Both are important.  "This is a skill that can be developed."
• Be clear about your values and goals.  Know what you want.  "Every morning, do a 30 second commitment to what's important to you."  Remember who you are.
• "Create an environment that reminds me of my goals and makes it easier to accomplish them."
• Disciplined people do what they say they will do.  "They are clear about what they want to do.  Create an environment that supports them.  Have a sense of purpose."
  • "Anyone can develop discipline if they are clear on what they want."
• "Stress is what happens when we care/have a lot at stake."
  • "Stress is what gives you energy.  It reminds you that it matters."
  • Think, "How is stress trying to direct me?"
  • "What is my body and brain trying to nudge me towards?"
  • "Figure out your healthy stress responses."
• Real life example:  How to prepare for your first meeting with your new team (that you are leading):
  • Get rid of the idea that you shouldn't be stressful.  It is part of the process.  It's a signal that you care.
  • Bigger than self-perspective.  Go beyond the ego.  Think it's allowing the team to have a moment.  Support the mission.  Think bigger than just making a good impression.  It helps you connect with clear intentions.  It's a mindset shift.
  • Always assume others have something as valuable as you.  They have wisdom.  Let it be co-created with others.
• "Being a leader is bringing what's best in the room.  People will rise to the expectations of them."
• Thoughts Kelly had in her mind prior to her TED Talk (that has since gone viral):
  • The woman that went before her had a panic attack.  Kelly noticed that the crowd had incredible goodwill towards the speaker.  They wanted the speaker to do well.
    • "Breathe in anxiety, breath out encouragement."
    • "I'm going to put the audience at ease.  I got you."
• The joy of movement:  When you go from sedentary to active, when you move your body, there is increased optimism, hope, connection.
  • The story about my mom working as an aerobics instructor when I was a kid -- Moving your body to the beat of the music is powerful and helpful.
• Walking in nature:  "When you're in nature, the brain shifts to the present moment."  Take more walks.
• The "Runner's High"-- Persistence is high, put the body in motion and just keep going.  Your brain releases chemicals to provide pleasure, reduce pain.  It creates energy and optimisim
• "We learn from movement.  We endure.  We learn what we're capable of."
• General advice:
  • Take care of your self -- invest in your well being.  It will help you deal with challenges
  • Tell me about someone who's made a positive influence on your life
  • Don't wait for permission.  Start it.  Do it.  You need feedback.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#342: Shane Snow - The #1 Skill Of An Effective Leader (Intellectual Humility)

Text LEARNERS to 44222

For full show notes go to www.LearningLeader.com

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Pattern recognition - The ability to connect ideas and people
  • Systems thinking - Connect dots, zoom out
  • The ability to continue to question yourself, a hunger to improve, a "voracious learner" (Liv Boeree)
  • Must relearn how to humble yourself
  • The #1 skill is intellectual humility -- The ability to sit between gullibility and stubbornness
• Why are people so unwilling to change their mind?
  • "So much of our ideas are attached to our identities."
  • "You must separate your ego from intellect."
• What is a solution (as a leader)?
  • If you're the one in power, invite people with a different perspective to the table.
  • Don't invoke identity.  Just ask for perspective.
  • Leave space to change your mind... "I could be wrong but..."
• Strength and flexibility should not be in conflict
• Ben Franklin idea:
  • Use idea, leave space for change, set opinion, but use phrases less defensive, only change your mind based on evidence.  Say things like:
    • "I could be wrong but..."
    • "The research suggests..."
    • "The evidence suggests..."
• Elon Musk -- His pattern to persuade people...
  • It's purpose based leadership ("to make life multi-planetary")
  • The strength is in his vision and his purpose.  He's seen as strong by being willing to change his mind.
• Compliance versus Committed = Cult vs Culture
  • Difference between a cult and culture:
    • Cult - Must act and think in a certain way
    • Culture - Asked to contribute your ideas in your way
• Key part of leadership: "Understand what matters to your people."
• Intellectual humility:
  • Respect for others' viewpoints
  • Lack of intellectual overconfidence
  • Separating your ego from your intellect
  • Being open to revising your viewpoints
  • Openness to new experiences
• Separate feelings/thoughts from facts
• Trying something new creates new opportunities
• Advice:
  • Learn about intellectual humility - take Shane's assessment
  • Frame changing your mind as a strength -- reward others for doing this
  • Habits: Instead of saying "I feel" say "I think."  Words matter.
• Separate facts from stories
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

Order my book: WELCOME TO MANAGEMENT

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#341: Behind The Scenes Of The Learning Leader Show With Jay Acunzo

Full Shownotes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com 

Text LEARNERS to 44222

Notes:

• SECTION ONE: Superlatives
  • Hardest interview:  -- Jim Collins.
  • Most-downloaded all-time:Show has steadily grown since it was created, so the most downloaded is a recent episode.  From this year: #310 David Epstein. He wrote Range and The Sports Gene,  Some popular ones from the past are: #300 with my dad and brother AJ, #216 Jim Collins episode is a popular one. 
  • Most referenced: the one you cite the most in conversation or your work - #78 with Kat Cole (Courage/Confidence + Curiosity/Humility) = Productive Achievers.
  • Biggest delta between what you thought they'd be like...and what they were actually like?  General Stanley McChrystal.  War hero. 4 star General.  Expected him to be super intimidating, but he was so kind, thoughtful, curious, and caring.  Followed up to ask him to write the Foreword to my book and he said yes. 
  • Hardest part of running this show?  It’s never ending.  Must always be working on it - Reaching out to guests, cold emails, preparing for each conversation, reading their books, watching everything they have online, etc.  It never stops.
  • Where have you most improved? Better conversationalist.  Understand how to ask better questions, be more thoughtful, intentional with my actions/behavior. 
  • Biggest benefits to your life...  1) The more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know…  I've become more curious. 
  • Most active listeners: who do you see popping up a lot?  - My Leadership Circle
•  SECTION TWO: Stagnation Is The Enemy
  • We undervalue the power of consistency:  Consistency + Quality is the key to long term success.  Most people quit.  Must keep going.
  • Why start it? - I wanted to create my own Leadership PhD.  One where I get to choose the professors.  Share with others, be a multiplier… Had dinner with Founder of Broadcast.com, Todd Wagner. Publishing work is the best form of networking.  Create a reason for people to WANT to contact you.
  • The preparation process -  Read their books, watch their talks, read articles written by them and about them.  Talk to friends we have in common. Read the ACKNOWLEDGEMENT section of their books to ask questions about meaningful in their lives (this gets them to open up and feel free to speak more emotionally… Which can be great audio and REAL)
  • Given repeat ability and longevity, how do YOU stay engaged? Mental heuristics, intrinsic things that you just do/try, proactive remixes and reinventions? -- Have to be genuinely curious in the guest.  Have to enjoy the pain of preparation. What are you willing to struggle for? Because that seems to be a greater determinant of how our lives turn out (Neil Pasricha). I love the preparation process, reading/thinking of angles to take a conversation with a specific guest that I’m curious about.
  • Given that stagnation isn't just caused by US but also by the market saturating, how do you operate today compared to before? Early mover advantage wanes...and so many more podcasts about your topic specifically now exist. -- Willing to try new things (like this).  Study and understand my listeners. You’ll often hear me speak to the exact avatar of my listener.  I’m not trying to have the biggest show ever. I’m trying to be the right show for the people who email me (mid-level manager in corporate America.  Building teams, hiring/firing, qualities to look for when building a team). It helps directly with those people, but have also found niche audiences in other spaces like NCAA basketball coaches, NBA players, etc.
•  SECTION THREE: What's next? 
  • What are you excited to do next?  Try new projects like this episode… Continue to do live shows with an audience, travel more for in person recordings (Koppelman, Roberge), and keep going.  My book.
  • Where does this show go? What other projects surround it now, vs what you want to try? - Live shows, travel for in person.  Bring on guests for my Leadership Circles (paid Mastermind groups.  My groups ask for a guest, I bring them on). Creates group teaching and a ton of value for my Leadership Circles. My book.
  • What's pissing you off about leadership in the corporate world that you'd like to explore and help solve? - Bad bosses.  I’ve worked for a few (as have we all).  I wrote about that goes through the process of being a bad boss to being a better one.  I lived it and I’ve learned so much from others. That’s what WELCOME TO MANAGEMENT is all about.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Text LEARNERS to 44222 to receive the first chapter of my new book, WELCOME TO MANAGEMENT for free.

Episode #340: Liz Bohannon - co-founder and co-CEO of Sseko Designs and the author of Beginner's Pluck: Build your life of purpose, passion and impact now. Liz and the Sseko story has been featured in dozens of publications including: Vogue Magazine, Redbook Magazine, O Magazine, Inc, Fortune and others. Sseko has appeared on national broadcasts including ABC's Shark Tank and Good Morning America. 

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • They do work that taps into their intrinsic motivation and they know WHY they do what they do.
    • You must drill down far to know this
  • Vulnerable -- Look at Brene Brown.  A "truth teller."
  • Shoshin - An openness with eagerness.  Have to have both.
• Why is the "Beginner's Pluck" message resonating with so many people?
  • "I believe it, but not sure if I really do..." People (women especially) tend to doubt themselves too much.
• "You don't need to be extraordinary to build a life making a difference."
• "Passion is something you build... I learned it through telling an untrue story."
• Be driven by interest, and curiosity...
• "I'm the CEO of a for-profit fashion company."
• "My ego wasn't super involved.  It gave me the freedom to just do it."
  • "I got so obsessed with the problem and finding a solution to it."
• "The work of an artist is to know what's inside of you.  Be solutions agnostic."
  • "The artist creates without thinking of the audience."
  • "The entrepreneur has to think of the audience." -->  What's the actual problem this fixes?
  • Sit in the complexity of what it means to be a world changer.
  • "We live in a world that is so quick to critique... Show up, do the work."
• How did Liz learn to run a business?
  • She took a six week crash course on basic accounting and followed her curiosity to learn each skill as she went.
    • Don't be caught in analysis paralysis
    • "The thing I had connected to me was my WHY."
    • "You don't get to know Step 7 when you're in stage 1.  That's not how it works."  Must take it a step at a time.
    • "What do I absolutely need to figure out?
      • The MVP - Minimum Viable Product -- Know that it's only Version 1.  Can iterate as you go.
• The 4 stages of Learning:
  • Unconscious incompetent
  • Conscious incompetent
  • Conscious competent
  • Unconscious competent
• How often am I feeling out of my league? -- You should feel this often in order to grow.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Ep: #339: Robert Greifeld - Lessons Learned From A Decade Of Change As CEO Of NASDAQ

Robert Greifeld served as the CEO of Nasdaq from 2003 to 2016. During his tenure, Bob led Nasdaq through a series of complex, innovative acquisitions that extended the company’s footprint from a single U.S. equity exchange to a global exchange and technology solutions provider, nearly quadrupling revenue, growing annual operating profits by more than 24 times and achieving a market value of over $11 billion. He is the author of a new book called: Market Mover: Lessons from a Decade of Change at Nasdaq. 

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • "Once you achieve competency, they're on a daily battle with complacency."
  • Always looking forward - never resting on laurels
  • A mindset that: "Success in the past is no guarantee that success will happen in the future."
• Self reflection is important for self awareness: "Being focused on the present doesn't preclude self reflection."
• Has being rich made you happy?  "Wealth makes you more secure?"
• How to balance family time and work time?
  • "Balance is a dangerous word.  I prefer having an integrated life instead."  "I made a rule that I did no business dinners unless I was doing the selling."
  • Make multiple short trips instead of longer ones... Only miss seeing your family for a day or two at a time
• Bob describes the story of how he was recruited to NASDAQ and why he took the job...
  • During the interview process, he shared the five things he would do within the first 100 days:
    • Get right people on board
    • Reduce bureaucracy
    • Embrace fiscal discipline
    • Overhaul technology
    • Stop being satisfied with number 2
  • Have to have the right people on the bus
    • Bob met with many people prior to starting as the CEO of NASDAQ:  "I fired a lot of people before 8:00am on the first day I started.  I did a lot of work prior to starting to learn who was going to buy in."
    • "Good morale in a bad organization is not a good thing."
• With promotions, live by the 80/20 rule: "We tried to promote 80% from within our organization."
  • "When interviewing people from the outside, the odds of being wrong are higher."
  • Qualities to look for in people to promote:
    • Positive attitude/energy -- "Happy campers"
    • Pure skills
    • How well do they play with others?
    • Won't tolerate prima donnas
• How to be a great leader?
  • Must be in front of your customers
  • Stand in the shoes of your people
  • Do a lot of individual contributor work
  • "Don't be a conference room pilot" -- Don't spend all your time in meetings
• Learned knowledge vs. Lived knowledge
  • Learned: "Don't know what's coming, you just learned it."
  • Lived: "You've sat in the seat, you can see around corners."
• Acquisitions:
  • Geography - If location is near us, that helps
  • Industry - If it's the same industry, just smaller, that helps
• Overall advice:
  • Never had a career path or end goal
  • Wanted to do something that energized me
    • "I'll do that job well."
  • "Don't focus on climbing the mythical career ladder."
  • "Don't take a job to just get another job."
• Why leave NASDAQ?
  • "I like controlling my schedule."
• The benefits of growing up with blue collar parents.  His dad worked for the Post Office, he was always upbeat and believe that life can be better.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Episode #338: Jason Fried

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Text LEARNERS to 44222 to learn more

Jason Fried is the founder & CEO at Basecamp. He's the co-author of Getting Real, Remote, REWORK, and It Doesn't Have To Be Crazy At Work.  Basecamp is a privately-held Chicago-based company committed to building the best web-based tools possible with the least number of features necessary.
Their blog, Signal vs. Noise, is read by over 100,000 people every day. Jason believes there's real value and beauty in the basics. Elegance, respect for people's desire to simply get stuff done, and honest ease of use are the hallmarks of Basecamp products.

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Willingness/ability to know what's the work worth doing
    • The skill to discern what's important
  • How to develop that skill?
    • Must become a good auditor of your time.  Practice.  Look back on what you've done.  Analyze what you do? Discern what's worth it.
• Remote work:
  • Basecamp has 56 employees in 30 cities around the world... Why remote?
    • "You don't want the best people, you want the right people."  The odds of all the right people living near your headquarters is small.
  • The business started in Chicago with three people.
    • They hired DHH to be their first programmer.  He lived in Denmark.  Then they hired someone in Utah.  "It just worked.  We didn't worry about where, just wanted to find the right people."
• Jason never writes a business plan -- No 1, 3, or 5 year plan.  They work in six week project increments.
  • Why? "Planning is simply guessing.  Setting your course over a guess doesn't seem like a good idea.  We have an idea of where we're headed, but we work in six week chunks."
• What Jason learned from Jeff Bezos:  "People who were right often changed their minds." --> Be willing to change your mind when better evidence presents itself.
• The "anti-goal" mindset:
  • "(Financial) Goals are made up. There's nothing about them that's true.  They are guesses... Made up numbers."
    • "Asking if I hit the goal is the wrong question.  Asking if I enjoyed the run is the better question."
    • "One of the problems with setting goals is you are a different person when you set them than when they need to be met."  You grow, evolve, and change.
    • "Too many companies focus on numbers instead of their customers." --> That is because they have number based goals to hit.  It can ruin the customer experience (Jason had a terrible experience trying to cancel his satellite radio service)
• Qualities Jason looks for when making hiring decisions:
  • Communicate clearly - "You must be a great writer."  Much of their communication is done in writing.  "We look at the cover letter first.  That must be good.  If that's not well written, then we do not look at the resume."
  • Quality of character - "You must be a good person.  We hire people that we want to be with.  No ego.  We like to hire people that use "we" and "us" instead of "I"
  • Must be able to give and take feedback - Need to be coachable.  "For designers, we give them a project to do in the interview process and then we provide them feedback.  If they can't handle it, we will not hire them."
• Transition from individual contributor to leader... How to do it well?
  • "It is REALLY hard. Very few people are born being good managers."
  • "Come to terms that you can no longer do everything."
  • Advice Jason got from Tobi (CEO of Shopify) - "As the CEO, you are working on longer term strategic initiatives.  You don't get to feel the day-to-day progress that people lower in the organization feel."  Need to get comfortable with that.
• Some of the benefits at Basecamp: Fully paid vacation every year for all employees ($5K), 3 day weekends all summer, $1K/year in continuing education outside of your job, $100/month for a massage, $100/month gym membership, $2K/year charity match, paid in the top 10% of your salary range as if you lived in San Francisco (even though no employees live in San Francisco)
  • Why do it? "It's the right thing to do.  I wanted to start a business that I wanted to work at.  We're a company that cares about service."
  • "People are not the place to save money.  They are the place to spend money."
• "Give people their time.  A contiguous block of time every day to do their work."  Don't muddle it up with meetings in the middle of that time.
• "I'll work hard now so I can relax later" is not the optimal way to live.  Create the habits now to enjoy it as you go.  "Later" is where intentions go to die.  "When calm starts early, calm becomes the habit."

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Text LEARNERS to 44222

For full show notes, go to www.LearningLeader.com

Episode #337: Scott H. Young - How To Become An Ultra Learner

Scott Young is a writer who undertakes interesting self-education projects, such as attempting to learn MIT's four-year computer science curriculum in twelve months and learning four languages in one year. Scott incorporates the latest research about the most effective learning methods and the stories of other ultralearners like himself—among them Ben Franklin, Judit Polgár, and Richard Feynman, as well as a host of others, such as little-known modern polymaths like Nigel Richards who won the World Championship of French Scrabble—without knowing French.  He is the author of the best-selling book, UltraLearning.

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Understand how excellence works
  • Learning, constantly thinking about the process of improving
• Being interested in learning new things... Scott finds the mind fascinating
  • Encountering things that people have done that are jaw dropping
• Projects:
  • Why he failed to learn French as an exchange student
    • "Simple decisions you make early on can have big consequences."
    • Because he didn't go all in and immerse himself in the language, he always reverted back to his native tongue
• Go for inversion from the beginning.  This is why he did the "year without English."
• "Doing the hard thing makes it easier in the long run, it accelerates skills more quickly"
• UltraLearning - A strategy for acquiring skills and knowledge that is both self-directed and intense
• As a manager, recognize that there are many different skills you can possess to be successful...
  • Know what you need to be good at.  Break it down to the component skills... Have a process
  • Get better at each important skill
  • Think: "What would it be like to be amazing at this?"
• Tristan de Montebello:  He wanted to learn a new skill that was completely outside of his current skill set (he's a musician)
  • Instead of learning another instrument, he chose to become a world class public speaker
  • He started as an amateur and ended as a finalist for a public speaking championship.
    • How?  He got on stage twice a day, took improv class, and compressed the process.
    • "He made the conscious decision to become excellent."  And then executed...
• Process for a person who has a full time job/family/mortgage:
  • This doesn't need to be a full time endeavor
  • "How are you using every minute of every day?"
  • Take on intensive bursts
  • Follow your curiosity and obsessions
  • Ramit Sethi -- "See the game being played around you"
• Principles:
  • Spend time figuring out the best way to learn what you want to learn.  What tools and resources are available?
  • Drill, attack your weakest point.  Sometimes you shouldn't learn a skill (ex: fixing your car... Hire a mechanic instead)
  • Every complicated skill has components
  • Test to learn
    • Repeated review - read over and over
    • Free recall - read the text once, then close the book.  Try to recall what you learned.  In an experiment, free recall learners retained more.  PRACTICE remembering something.  It impacts how you process information.
• Anders Ericsson - Deliberate practice:
  • In 40% of the cases, feedback hurt.  Task oriented feedback works best.
  • How we process feedback is most important
    • "If you're doggedly trying to be an ultra learner and sustain excellence, emotional consequences are important..."
• Born with it vs. Ability to learn:
  • Anyone has the ability to learn anything
  • Everyone has their own abilities, their own pace.
  • Recognize your capacity to improve but don't compare to others
• Life advice:
  • Read more books - It expands your mind
  • Meet more interesting people - Subtlety informs choices, expands group you meet
  • Go do ambitious things - bold projects
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Episode #336: Neil Pasricha: How To Build Resilience & Live An Intentional Life

Full Show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

How To Build Resilience & Live An Intentional Life

NEIL PASRICHA is the the author of six books including: The Book of Awesome, a spinning rolodex of simple pleasures based on his 100-million-hit, award-winning blog 1000 Awesome Things, The Happiness Equation, originally written as a 300-page love letter to his unborn son on how to live a happy life, Awesome Is Everywhere, an interactive introduction to guided meditation for children, and How To Get Back Up, a memoir of failure and resilience released as an Audible Original. His latest book is called You Are Awesome. His books are New York Times and #1 international bestsellers and have sold millions of copies across dozens of languages.  His first TED talk “The 3 A’s of Awesome” is ranked one of the 10 Most Inspiring of all time.

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • They read a lot
  • They unplug regularly - "the genesis for all my best ideas."
    • "Create untouchable time" for yourself
• The CEO of Wal-Mart -- How did he create this time?
  • He's the CEO BECAUSE he always made this part of his way of operating.
• Neil worked in a senior level corporate role for Wal-Mart for 10 years
  • His side hustle was writing and speaking
    
    • He didn't quit his job until he had successfully built his side hustle for eight years!
• Ask yourself two questions:
  • Which of these two decisions will I regret not doing more on your death bed?
  • What will you do if it fails?
• The farmer with one horse fable: A farmer had only one horse. One day, his horse ran away. His neighbors said,“I’m so sorry. This is such bad news. You must be so upset.” The man just said,“We’ll see.” A few days later, his horse came back with twenty wild horses following. The man and his son corralled all twenty-one horses. His neighbors said, “Congratulations! This is such good news.You must be so happy!” The man just said,“We’ll see.” One of the wild horses kicked the man’s only son, breaking both his legs. His neighbors said,“I’m so sorry.This is such bad news. You must be so upset.” The man just said,“We’ll see.” The country went to war, and every able-bodied young man was drafted to fight. The war was terrible and killed every young man, but the farmer’s son was spared since his broken legs prevented him from being drafted. His neighbors said, “Congratulations! This is such good news.You must be so happy!” The man just said, “We’ll see . . .”

  What is up with this crazy farmer, right?

  Well, what’s up with this crazy farmer is that he has truly developed resilience. He has built up his resilience. He is resilient! He’s steady, he’s ready, and whatever the future brings, we all know he’s going to stare it straight in the face with eyes that scream,“Bring it on.”

  The farmer has come to understand that every skyrocketing pleasure or stomach-churning defeat defines not who he is but simply where he is.

• What do most commencement speeches get wrong?
  • Do what you love only if you're willing to accept the pain to continue doing it...
  • The grind.  A lot of small losses add up.  Can you handle the pain that you will need to endure to do what you love?
• Is it better to be a big fish in a small pond?
  • Yes.  Academic research shows it benefits you even up to 10 years after you leave the pond...
  • Don't but the $5m condo in NYC.  Continue to find places where you can purposefully win.
  • Rig the game to win.
• "Different is better than better."
• Add a dot-dot-dot...
  • Neil's mom: "I always just added the word yet to everything..."  It's not a NO, it's a "not yet."
  • You have to just "keep going."
• The two minute morning routine that takes the worry out of waking up:
  • In your journal write three things:
    • I will let go of...
    • I am grateful for...
    • I will focus on...
• Neil's goal setting:
  • Set the lowest possible goals.  Set goals that you will hit.
  • "Extrinsic goals don't work."  
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

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Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Episode #335: Deconstructing The Art & Science Of Public Speaking With Jay Acunzo

This is another bonus episode with my friend, Jay Acunzo.  We deconstruct the art and science of public speaking in this bonus episode. "I'm trying to help you see something different that fundamentally changes your work for the better."

Notes:

• The goal:
  • Help your audience see something different that fundamentally changes their work for the better.
  • Everything I'm doing (when speaking) is helping you get from where you're at to where you want to be.
• How to put a talk together:
  • Prompt driven -- Anticipate the questions that will be asked and answer them.
  • The coaching of Andrew Davis for Jay... "He's been really instrumental in helping me build a speaking business
    • "The Dialog Outline" -- You break up a talk you're giving into it's component pieces making it a modular talk.
      • "You're sharing the things others need to hear at the right moment they need to hear it... So they're anticipating what comes next..."
  • Put yourself in situations to "talk out your thoughts" to generate ideas... "Learn through speaking."
•  Process to prepare:
  • The value of rehearsal -- Is it needed?  How much?
  • Memorization vs. knowing your content cold → How to not sound like a robot, but still remember what to say?
  • Visual aids (PowerPoint, Keynote) -- "If I need the slides, I'm not ready." - Jay.  Slides should be use to reinforce the message.  You should never need to look at them.  They are there to be additive to your message for your audience.  
  • The 30 seconds before going on stage?  The optimal self talk... Interesting to hear the dramatic difference between Jay's approach and mine...
    • Get emotionally cross-faded.  "Wow, I get to do this.  This is so cool." (The words Jay says to himself the instant before he goes on stage."  And then... "Watch this." Assuring people that "I'm going to have some serious fun."
    • "Get ready... I'm about to put on a show." -- Use your excitement and confidence to serve the audience.
• How to start a speech:  What to do and what NOT to do:
  • The first part of the speech is the shared goal - "What does everyone in the room want?"
    • "The Vanguard." - The front line you send out to begin the attack...
  • Do NOT start by saying, "I'm so excited to be here."  Of course you're excited.  Don't waste that time.  It's too important to wander into the speech.

• Speaking Framework:
  • (Mine: story → science → practical application)
    • Story -- People remember stories
    • Science -- Empirical evidence/data to support the story
    • Application -- This is what it means for YOU
  • Storytelling -- How to become a better storyteller?  Great storytellers can rule the world...
    • Give a "feature story" -- And then reveal your hidden truth.
    • And then break it down into a methodology.
  • Engaging the audience - some speakers walk in the crowd, some ask questions regularly… The optimal ways to engage the audience
  • The element of surprise -- How to create ‘moments’ for the audience (surprise, ‘aha’ etc)?  How to ensure you are enlightening them and not just regurgitating stuff they already know...
  • The keys to Q & A and why it should never be the last thing you do on stage...
• Film the audience to see their reaction to your message... Study that to see what hits.
• How to add humor appropriately
• Coaching/feedback -- The intentional actions taken to ensure improvement.  Why you should have a coach.  Who is your kitchen cabinet?
• For corporate world mid-level managers who have to do QBR’s (quarterly business reviews) -- How can they make those more exciting?  (Most are dreadfully boring full of random stats, charts, bar graphs, etc)
• Study the 'intentionality' of stand up comedians.  Everything you say is for a specific reason.
• Be thoughtful and intentional with your actions.
• Persuasive presentations have logos, ethos, and pathos (from Talk Like TED)
  • Logos - Backing up your argument with data
  • Ethos - Credibility of the speaker 
  • Pathos - Establish an emotional connection

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#334 Yancey Strickler

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Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Yancey Strickler is a writer and entrepreneur. He is the cofounder and former CEO of Kickstarter and author of This Could Be Our Future: A Manifesto for a More Generous World.Yancey has been recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People. He’s spoken at the Museum of Modern Art, Sundance and Tribeca Film Festivals, Web Summit, and events around the globe. 

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Selflessness - "You have to get over yourself first"
  • Have strength to know what's important
  • Flexible
  • It requires more time living into the minds of other people - "Not necessarily compassion, but 'what's going on with them?'"
  • Curiosity - A desire to know more
• Amazon thinks 'customer maximization' - thinking in the best interest of the customer
• How to get hired for the next management role?
  • Spend 1 hour a day with your current team -- Learn from them.  What's really going on?
  • Be the "go to" person for important objectives
• What was Day 1 as the CEO of KickStarter like?
  • "I remember the new fancy office... I needed to set proper expectations."
  • "People need to know how to make decisions"
  • "The weight I felt as a new CEO was very high"
  • The "on-me-ness was so high" - A huge responsibility that was felt
• The skill of "sandwiching ideas" -- Using metaphors to put together different ideas
  • Japanese cuisine
    • "Hara Hachi Bu: stop eating when you’re 80% full so that you're still hungry for tomorrow."
      • We shouldn't overfull ourselves because there is always something to learn tomorrow
• "My brain is really good at storing and making connections."
• "As a CEO/Leader, you need to be able to speak in metaphors to bring more oxygen to the situation..."
• How can we all do this?
  • Read --> Write it down --> Take notes of something interesting
  • "Metaphors are powerful."
• The power of story --> science --> application
• During his time at KickStarter, they grew from 70 employees to 155 in just a few years... What did Yancey look for in candidates?
  • Selflessness, servant mindset
  • "When they shared accomplishments, did they use 'we' or 'I'?  We like the people who use 'we'"
  • Mission driven
  • Honest
  • Not afraid to share bad news
  • "Whenever I found myself having to talk myself into something and overlook a red flag, I often found that was a mistake."
• Why did he leave KickStarter?
  • "I got tired, it took the energy out of me.  It was my identity for a decade..."
  • Had a rough 360 review (full review of people above, beside, and below him in the organization)
  • "One morning, I got to the door to leave my house, and I could not do it.  I broke down crying to my wife and said, 'I don't want to be a CEO today.'"
• Why writing is so beneficial:
  • Forces clarity of thought
  • "It forces you to accept rejection and just roll."
• Why write a manifesto(the book)?
  • "I gave a talk, had it transcribed, put it online, and it went viral."
• When deciding to work for himself:
  • "I need to treat myself as if I'm a company." -- How to properly plan and strategize as a solo entrepreneur
  • "I wrote down five options... One of them was writing a book.  I chose that option."
  • A publisher said to Yancey, "You don't need to hide. Your book is good enough without all the fancy artwork."
• Going against the grain: "I'm challenging the dominant ethos of our time."
• Bentoism - A balanced view of what's in our rational self-interest as inspired by the layout of a Japanese lunchbox.
  • Now me, future me, now us, future us.  The four quadrants...
  • Do you want do this in a small group with Yancey? Email me
• How Adele did this?
  • She used an algorithm to measure how loyal a fan was.  She used that information to help them get tickets at a decent price instead of the extraordinary prices on the secondary market.
    • This is both emotional and rational.  It's possible to be done for all of us.
• Life advice:
  • Yancey originally felt like a failure because he didn't identify with what the magazine covers were telling him: He didn't feel the urge to want to crush his competitors.  It's hard to be aware of the water you swim in...
  • Have awareness... Be curious, read a lot.
  • Have a plan... An idea of where to go.  Understand new values.
• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#333: Chris Savage - How To Bet On Yourself & Scale Through Creativity

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Chris Savage is the co-founder and CEO of Wistia, a web-based video hosting solution built for businesses. He founded the company in 2006 with the goal of helping businesses effectively market their products or services in a smarter way through video. Under Savage’s leadership and vision, Wistia has experienced 100 percent growth over the past three years, expanding the company’s client portfolio to more than 110,000 users in more than 50 countries, including companies such as HubSpot, MailChimp and Starbucks.

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Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Voracious learners - "they celebrate learning more"
  • Crave feedback - a strong desire to improve - "They are wired to want that"
  • Patrick Campbell - "He's trying hard to learn as fast as possible"
• Chris's process for continual improvement:
  • Placing people in his life to push him
    • "I go to them to push my thinking"
  • Block time to think - "Being busy is not a sign of success"
  • Spend time with customers and employees
• Enjoying the process:
  • "It was stimulating and exciting.  It took us a year to get our first paying customer."
  • The business was funded by savings.  They kept their expenses very low
• Key to a successful partnership:
  • Ensure values are aligned - "These are intrinsic"
  • Know that everything takes longer than you think
  • Have a decision making framework - Demystify the process to make big decisions
• The product strategies/options:
  • Operational efficiency - The cheapest (No, this is not optimal)
  • Product leadership - Be different
  • Customer intimacy - This will solve customer problems
• Their values:
  • Long term company thinking
  • Creativity
  • Presentation - An elevated experience. Aesthetics matter.
  • Simplicity
• Hiring - "Hiring is everything."  Qualities he looks for:
  • "How are people intrinsically motivated?"
  • "Are they excited about the craft, the challenge?"
  • Give them a real-life problem to solve -- And see how they handle it/resolve it
• Inside their process to hire a VP of People:
  • Clearly define what success is in the role
  • Do a project after the first round of interviews - "Do the job, get critiqued."
  • Build out strategy - Not a perfect plan, but have a process
  • Meet with management team, present the plan.
• Building your network:
  • "Take the weight of your friends.  You're the average of them."
  • Be proactive who you want to be --> Look for people who challenge you.
  • Reflect on that...
  • Tactically: Make connections with people who you admire.  People like honest, sincere compliments.  Tell them WHY they inspire you
• Financials: Raised angle round of $650K.  Then $800K.  All individual angels.  No venture.  They have $10m in revenue.
• Crisis:
  • "We were losing this money, we weren't having fun anymore... People tried to buy us."
    • They raised debt to do a buy back... "I felt amazing."
• Wistia:
  • Creative risk taking
  • Have to scare self - made a feature length documentary
  • Host of the Brandwagon show
  • "Take risks that scare you"
• Growth and profitability aren't mutually exclusive - "Focus on building products and experiences that people love... Growth follows."

• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show with Ryan Hawk

Ep # 332: David Brixey & Doug Meyer LIVE! - How To Build A Business From The Ground Up

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

This episode was recorded in front of 150 of our closest friends, family, and clients in Dayton, Ohio.

Doug Meyer formed Brixey & Meyer alongside Dave Brixey with a dream to give clients a different way of working with their tax professionals. In his role as Managing Director, Doug serves as a trusted business advisor to Business Owners, CEOs, CFOs and Boards of Advisors, driving value and accountability in the following strategic areas: succession & ownership planning, strategic planning, owners agreement structures, compensation planning, family business advisory & issue mediation, professional management practices, mergers & acquisition strategy, and family charter implementation.

David Brixey formed Brixey & Meyer with Doug Meyer in 2002 utilizing his insatiable entrepreneurial spirit and his financial skills gained at Ernst & Young. He is also the co-founder and Managing Director of Brixey Meyer Capital, a lower middle market private investment firm.  Since 2008, Dave has been personally involved in investing in small business to lower middle market as well as venture capital.

Brixey & Meyer is recognized as a leading provider of accounting and business advisory services in the Midwest.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

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Episode #331: Ryan Holiday - Stillness Is The Key

RYAN HOLIDAY is one of the world's foremost thinkers and writers on ancient philosophy and its place in everyday life. He is a sought-after speaker, strategist, and the author of many bestselling books including The Obstacle Is the Way; Ego Is the Enemy; and The Daily Stoic. His books have been translated into over 30 languages and sold over two million copies worldwide. He lives outside Austin, Texas, with his family. His latest book is called Stillness Is The Key.

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence =
  • They look at the whole picture
  • They have the ability to zoom out
  • They have balance
    • Driven, skilled at what they do, but they do not run unchecked.  This creates happiness.
  • Highly disciplined
  • Temperance - Integrated into life
• The word enough:
  • Balance - "We're definitely going to be forgotten." 
  • It's important to have the quiet time to do the work.  And you have to love doing it.
• Michael Jordan's hall of fame speech:
  • "It's so misguided.  The problem with proving people wrong is eventually you do it.  And it's never enough.  Rather, you should choose to prove your own potential right.  Did I leave it all on the page?  Did I fulfill my own standards?"
  • I choose to prove my supporters right instead of allowing detractors to take up space in my head
• The higher power was the logos - the path of the universe... The stoics acknowledged fate and fortune and the power these forces had over them.
  • Marcus Lattimore (RB from South Carolina and the NFL) - He said, "The career ending injury I had was the best thing that ever happened to me."
    • Decide how you will choose to respond.  Make the choice to make a positive difference in people's lives.
• The impact of father hood has had on Ryan:
  • "You realize how powerless you are as a parent.  It's humbling and eye opening."
• The WHO - the power of relationships
  • It's a team.  It requires balance.  Both players must flourish independently:
    • "Accomplishments are not part of the identity of the relationship I have with Sam (his wife).  She doesn't give a shit how many books I sell."
    • "I have an inner scoreboard and hold myself to those standards."
• The value of a daily journal - The process, the ritual, the routine is helpful.
  • The act of the devotion.  Quiet time everyday, provides energy in the morning.  "A routine becomes a ritual over time."
  • Journaling one line a day for five years: It's the process of warming up, talking to self, verbalizing fears
• Thoughtfulness - "Interrogate yourself at the end of each day." -- This is what Churchill did
• Hitler said, "I recognized the correctness of my views."  That's not wisdom, it's insanity.  Don't do that.
• Privately, Abraham Lincoln with racked with doubt.
• The epidemic of ego easily mistakes for confidence and strength
• Stillness - What we're working towards.  We need it to think clearly.  We need to rest.
  • Must be fully in the moment
• Momento Mori - "Get in the moment"
• Speaking routine - Wear the same clothes, workout before, listen to the same music, manage energy, funnel focus, and know that the material helps people
• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#330: Deconstructing The Art & Science Of Interviewing With Jay Acunzo

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

This is a special bonus episode focusing on deconstructing the art and science of interviewing.  You will hear learning happening in real time.  Jay Acunzo and I go a meta-level to better understand how to better improve our conversation ability, how to be better in an interview.  "Interviewing is a skill that enhances your life in a pleasant and unexpected way."  This is focused on how you can ask better questions, be more interesting and more interested, and become a better conversationalist.

Notes: 

• The meta level of deconstructing the process of making the work is rare...
• "I experience the most flow when it's quiet, nitty-gritty work.  Those minute are profoundly rewarding for me."
• What makes a great interview?
• An open loop -- Start telling the story, but wait to close the loop until later to build intrigue...
• The difference between a narrative style show and an interview getting to know someone:
  • A story is three parts - The intent of the story: The "Joseph Campbell Heroes Journey" 1) Status Quo 2) Conflict 3) Resolution
  • Bucket of questions:
    • "Tell me about X..."
    • "How did it make you feel?"
    • The analysis and the reflection
• Change your mindset: "You're not an interviewer, you're a dance partner."
  • "The only thing that matters is that you lead.  Everything else is little subtle moves to get people to go to where you want to go."
• "It's not a constant march forward. Instead, think of it like a dance. There are some steps back, steps forward, steps to the side — all packaged together in one coherent experience, with lots of zig-zagging and subtle steps inside those boundaries."
• Open ended questions: “Tell me about X” gets you story details, while “how did it feel when” gets you key moments of reflection and analysis. Both are crucial.
• Clip #1 -- JJ Redick 
  • He says “great question” — what would make someone interviewed as often as a pro athlete say that?
  • How to prep for an interview for someone who is interviewed all the time?
    • Built a basic rapport leading up to the interview -- Discussed sports, restaurants, podcasting, interviewing.  Developed a "friend" level of communication
      • Create an environment where the guest wants it to be a great show
  • Good follow up questions: Ask for an example... Asking, "How did that make you feel?" "What's your process?" --> Then be a deep, thoughtful listener to ask a follow up.
  • Stay on the same level with your dance partner - Don't be a guest "worshiper"
  • When following up, there are a few things you can do: 1) Distill 2) Disagree 3) Ask the next question...
  • During an interview, the best question you can ask: "How did that make you feel?" It enables them to get in an emotional lane (away from canned responses)
  • Testing the levels on the microphone -- Don't waste that opportunity.  Engineer the guest, the human -- You need them to feel like we're hanging out and excited about the interview.  Make it fun.  What to ask instead: "I'm going to check your levels, do you have any pets at home?" "What would be your last meal on earth?" -- It helps people break out of their corporate drone mode.  The question is about the person, on a human plane.
  • Create a safe space for them to share their truth. "I'm not a journalist, I'm a conversationalist."
• Clip #2 -- Adam Savage
  • How did he get on the show? Working with a PR firm to book a guest -- A great PR person like Brent Underwood only recommends guests that are a good fit for the show.
  • Ask questions that you are genuinely curious about -- I am curious about someone's process and it's always led me to a useful follow up...
  • The issue is sometimes a "process" oriented question is the guest can answer with a generality... How to wiggle out of that?
    • Look at the acknowledgement section of their book to get ideas for important people/events in their life to ask about...
  • Mental Heuristics: Tell me about, 30,000 feet, go to a specific example... The third question is "Putting them in a box:" -- "
• From Jay: Heuristics to tell great AUDIO stories:
  • Tell me about...
  • How did you feel when (or, how did that feel?)
  • Can you give me an example?
  • (Superlatives) Best, worst, funniest, scariest, hardest, least certain, favorite, etc...
  • (Dig for emotional moments)
• Clip #3 -- Brian Koppelman
  • How to handle nerves -- Work to get settled in.  Get through the initial conversation point...
  • Give people a genuine compliment for why you like their work -- Tell people why their work helps you
• Hidden Gems:
  • Interplay between your intent for the work and your framework for it:
    • "My goal is to engineer an outcome, but I have an intent I don't want to become The Bachelor in Paradise."
      • Have self and situational awareness.  We carry with us good intent to serve the audience.  Don't let the framework or engineering supersede the original intent.
  • The two types of interviews: 1) The person, their story... 2) Their content
    • The best conversations are able to weave both together and smoothly bounce back and forth
    • Learn about the person AND learn about the topic that he has mastered -- Master that dance between both -- I need to give you something that is going to make you better.
• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Ep #329: Kindra Hall

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com 

Kindra Hall is President and Chief Storytelling Officer at Steller Collective, a consulting firm focused on the strategic application of storytelling to today’s communication challenges. Kindra is one of the most sought after keynote speakers trusted by global brands to deliver presentations that inspire teams and individuals to better communicate the value of their company, their products and their individuality through strategic storytelling.  Kindra is a former Director of Marketing and VP of Sales. Her much anticipated book, Stories That Stick, will be published on September 24, 2019.

Notes:

• Why is storytelling so important?
  • It's how we learn, how we connect
  • Your team needs to know you, and like you (stories do that when you tell them well)
  • You can learn breadth/depth of a person through a story
• A story is NOT:
  • A bullet point resume
  • A list of information
  • Stating the mission statement
  • The objective
• A story = The small moments when mission is in a specific place and time... When something happens.
• The four components of a story:
  • Place and time: "a moment"
  • Identifiable characters - must see people
  • Authentic emotion - Relatable to audience
  • Specific details - Draw audience in to the co-creative process
• Opening story of her book: In Slovenia at Thanksgiving:
  • The power of the sales clerk's ability to tell a story compelled Kindra and her husband to buy
• Why did the story work?
  • It drew you in with powerful moments and emotion
  • It had suspense - "I want to know what's going to happen..."
  • People will give you their attention when you're telling a compelling story
  • It brought them to places through vivid descriptions
• How to better start a meet at work:
  • First, realize it's a skill you can develop
  • Take a step back, think of the higher level message -- "What's the overall theme?"
    • "When have I seen this in action?"  Why was it compelling?
• Make a list of nouns: People in life you've had to communicate with (bosses, friends, colleagues)
  • Find moments and stories from those people... Understand the characters of the story
• Think: "What do I want my audience to think, feel, know, and do at the end of this story?"
• Use the "bystander story" - Stories of others that you make yours
  • Remember the goal is to create connection
  • This becomes your story... Through your eyes
• How to handle price conversations?
  • Move from dollars and cents to value -- "They need to feel the pain of if they didn't have this thing I'm selling."
  • Our decisions are not always based on logic, they are based on ideas
• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea