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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Aron Ralston is a mountaineer, mechanical engineer, and best-selling author known for surviving a canyoneering accident by cutting off part of his own right arm. On April 26, 2003, during a solo descent of Bluejohn Canyon in southeastern Utah, he dislodged a boulder, pinning his right wrist to the side of the canyon wall. After five days, he had to break his forearm, amputate it with a dull pocket knife to break free, make his way through the rest of the canyon, rappel down a 65-foot drop, and hike 7 miles to safety. The incident is documented in Aron’s autobiography Between a Rock and a Hard Place and is the subject of the 2010 film 127 Hours in which he is portrayed by James Franco. After the accident, Aron continued mountaineering and became the first person to ascend all of Colorado's fourteeners solo in winter.

• "Turn boulders into blessings."
• During this conversation, Aron takes us through the 127 hours from when his right arm was pinned under a boulder until he was resting safely in a hospital bed. Along the way, he shares key learnings that all of us can take from his experience.
• In April 2003, Aron was canyoneering alone through Bluejohn Canyon, in Utah, just south of the Horseshoe Canyon unit of Canyonlands National Park. While he was descending the lower stretches of the slot canyon, a suspended boulder dislodged while he was climbing down from it. The boulder first smashed his left hand and then crushed his right hand against the canyon wall. Aron had not informed anyone of his hiking plans, nor did he have any way to call for help.
  • Assuming that he would die without intervention, he spent five days slowly sipping his small amount of remaining water, approximately 350 ml (12 imp fl oz), and slowly eating his small amount of food, two burritos, while repeatedly trying to extricate his arm. His efforts were futile as he was unable to free his arm from the 800 lb (360 kg) chockstone. After three days of trying to lift and break the boulder, the dehydrated and delirious Ralston prepared to amputate his trapped arm at a point on the mid-forearm in order to escape. After having experimented with tourniquets and having made exploratory superficial cuts to his forearm, he realized, on the fourth day, that in order to free his arm he would have to cut through the bones in it, but the tools available were insufficient to do so.
  • After running out of food and water on the fifth day, Aron decided to drink his own urine. He carved his name, date of birth, and presumed date of death into the sandstone canyon wall, and videotaped his last goodbyes to his family. He did not expect to survive the night, but as he attempted to stay warm he began hallucinating and had a vision of himself playing with a future child while missing part of his right arm. Aron credited this as giving him the belief that he would live.
  • After waking at dawn the following day he discovered that his arm had begun to decompose due to the lack of circulation, and became desperate to tear it off.  Aron then had an epiphany that he could break his radius and ulna bones using torque against his trapped arm. He did so, then amputated his forearm with his multi-tool, using the dull 2-inch knife and pliers for the tougher tendons. The painful process took an hour, during which time he used tubing from a CamelBak as a tourniquet, taking care to leave major arteries until last. The manufacturer of the multi-tool was never named, but Aron said "It was not a Leatherman but what you'd get if you bought a $15 flashlight and got a free multi-use tool."
  • After freeing himself, Ralston climbed out of the slot canyon in which he had been trapped, rappelled down a 65-foot sheer wall, then hiked out of the canyon. He was 8 miles from his car and had no phone. However, after 6 miles of hiking, he encountered a family on vacation from the Netherlands; Eric and Monique Meijer and their son Andy, who gave him food and water and hurried to alert the authorities. Aron had feared he would bleed to death; he had lost 40 pounds, including 25% of his blood volume. Rescuers searching for Ralston, alerted by his family that he was missing, had narrowed the search down to Canyonlands and he was picked up by a helicopter in a wide area of the canyon. He was rescued approximately four hours after amputating his arm.
• The STOP acronym: Stop (pause), Think (brainstorm), Observation, Plan
  • Stop
  • Think
  • Observe
  • Plan
• "Commitment is the first step."
• At one point when Aron's arm was stuck under the giant rock, he filmed his "goodbyes" to each family member.
  • "Who would you say your goodbyes to and what would you say?" Aron realized that life is all about loving relationships.
• "You can't hold despair and gratitude at the same time."
• 127 Hours - There is no force so powerful as the will to live.
  • Aron's version: "There's no force so powerful as the will to love."
• "Welcome adversity. It helps you grow."
• "Find gratitude for the worst thing that's ever happened to you."
• “Passion. That which I suffer, allow, endure, is done to me.”

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

• Be on time. It's not okay to be late. As the leader, we have to set the right example.
• There is a narrow path to Top Gun, but Dave made it...
• Dave served as an ANGLICO Forward Air Controller supporting the Army’s 1st Armored Division during extensive urban combat operations on the ground in Ramadi, Iraq in 2006. He led his supporting arms liaison team on scores of combat missions into the most dangerous neighborhoods and accompanied SEAL Task Unit Bruiser on virtually every major operation in the Battle of Ramadi. He was the only Marine selected to fly the F-22 Raptor having served as an exchange officer at the Air Force’s 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron as the Division Commander. He became the first operational pilot ever to fly and be qualified in the F-35B, serving as the Commanding Officer of the Marine Corps’ first F-35 squadron from 2012-2014.
• Balancing courage and confidence with humility - It’s a must to surround yourself with others who continue to push you and keep your ego in check.
• The attributes of a Top Gun instructor: Willing to learn and Able to teach. Great leaders seem to have those same qualities.
• Dave’s choice to volunteer to fight on the ground is what led him to meet Jocko Willink and thus change his life. Stepping up and doing a job that others don’t want to do, and taking that responsibility can lead to amazing opportunities.
• A Top Gun pilot must balance courage and confidence with humility.
• You need a great support group around you to keep in check.
• Your ego, however, can be helpful at times. "It allows you to do things that others say can't be done."
• How to deal with negative self-talk?
  • "We all deal with it. Relax. Take a step back. Breathe. Detach from the situation."

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

• Own it, live it, create it, see it, say it, change it, honor it, punish it, repeat it, evaluate it all. – The core components to building a world-class culture.
• Who are your foxhole people? They are the ones who are there when it’s hard and they’re there to celebrate when it’s great. They are honest, caring, and they love you. The best way to build a great foxhole group? Be a loving, caring, and honest friend to others.
• How to build a great foundation which sets you up to build a great culture? Be trustworthy and trust-WILLING person. Be vulnerable, open, and honest, and create opportunities for shared suffering. It takes time and intentional effort, but it’s worth it.
• Geron was always leading the younger quarterbacks when he was in high school. “The quarterbacks stay. You need to know what’s going on, for now, and in the future”
• Coach Dave Carroll had a huge impact on how Geron coaches... Tough, demanding, high expectations. He wasn't for everyone.
• From Brook Cupps: "From my perspective, it’s been really cool to watch his progression from a self-serving arrogant kid to an ultra-impactful leader and father."
• Geron's purpose is to maximize people. Here is how he lives that out...
  • Own It – Come to grips with my #1 Job - Get the most out of people. More than they can ever imagine. It HAS to be a love thing! Can I get them to work, care, execute, serve, give, and love more than they ever have in their life? My job. Not their’s. Wake up every day knowing my responsibility. “I’ve gotta get the best out of these guys today.”
  • Live It – I set the example for everything. I AM THE STANDARD! Have to be. Am I trying to maximize myself? Every. Day! How do I show up? Do I represent the values I’m trying to pull out of the people? They aren’t going to do it by themselves. They can’t. Stop expecting them to! I need to show them to engage them. Am I pouring my heart and soul into everything that I can?!? “The best thing you can ever give someone is a strong example,” “Preach the gospel every day, and sometimes use words.”
  • Create It - Environment matters. Cultivate relationships every single day. Do they walk in knowing we’re getting better today? Energy. Enthusiasm. Struggle. Hard, Tough. Work. Demanding. Constant. Growth. Whatever level you’re at. Just. Get. Better. EVERY. DAY! My relationships, time, & effort with my people is the soil! Maniacal about who, what, and how. Everybody! All the time. Daily requirement: get the environment ready for growth!
  • See It - See it as it is. See it better than it is. If I can’t see it better, how do I make it better? Reality to vision. The best see it at a different level. Extremely high standards! Competence matters. What is an acceptable standard? Can it be done better?
  • Say It – Any and all feedback. Do I care enough to tell them? Usually with questions! Intent matters. Relationships matter. Make it personal! It doesn’t have to be said exactly the right way. IT NEEDS TO BE SAID. They have to HEAR it & internalize it. “Good job” doesn’t exist in our world.
  • Change It – It must improve. Whatever it takes. Fix/correct/punish/measure until it actually changes. Spend extra time. Refuse to accept excuses. I love you so we have to make this better. Continue saying it!
  • Honor/Punish It – Celebrate. Loudly. Be specific. Recognize it. Measure it. Reward it. Make it a big deal. Every important detail. Ingrain it into the culture of the group. “That’s not how we do things here.”
  • Repeat It – Do it over and over and over and over again. The hardest part isn’t doing it. The hardest part is doing it every single moment, every single day, over and over and over. 
  • Evaluate It All – What is working? What isn’t? How do we keep getting better? What needs to be changed? CONSTANT. 24/7365. ARE WE GETTING THEIR BEST? Fanatical about improvement.
• Daily Questions To Ask Yourself:
  • Am I at my best?
  • Are my intentions right?
  • How can I get the most out of everybody today?
• I need to be on fire. Energy/Attitude is right. Seeking ways to make an impact. Is it about me or about them? Act your way into feelings. What do they need? Pushed? Pulled? Energized? Inspired? Demanded?

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

• You can’t heal a body you hate. We only get one body. It’s all we have. If it stops working or is working poorly, that affects all other elements of our lives. It’s worth it to make this our top priority.
• We’re looking for optimal, not average. If you’re listening to this podcast, you probably do not want to be average. And when it comes to the most important thing in your life (your body), I would hope that you don’t want that to be average. To be an effective leader for others, our body needs to be in optimal shape.
• Cut these 5 foods:
  • Gluten-containing grains
  • Industrial seed oils
  • Added sugar,
  • Conventional dairy
  • Alcohol
• After over a decade as a functional medicine expert, Dr. Cole discerned that shame can cause gut inflammation and sabotage wellness through what he’s named “Shameflammation.” When you send signals to your brain that you are overwhelmed, overworked, or overtired, your body reacts. Shameflammation can be the cause of chronic health conditions such as autoimmune disorders, depression, and more.
• Chronic stress is the ultimate junk food."
• Too much sugar has consequences beyond the waistline.
• Functional medicine is informed consent.
• 75% of your immune system is in your gut.
• Get back on track. Days are long, years are short.
• Testosterone Replacement Therapy? Work with a doctor, get labs, and choose to use based on what your doctor and your labs say.
• "Use meals as a medicine and a meditation."
  • "Ask yourself... Does this food love me back?"

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

• Consistency creates your future. Show up each day and do the work. Sounds simple, but it’s much harder in practice. Consistency is not sexy, but it builds trust and it creates your future.
• T.U.N.E. - 
  • T = Trust and truth 
  • U = Unite with love
  • N = Neutralize the negativity. “I do not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” - Gandhi
  • E = Elevate your thinking. With gratitude, optimism, and belief
• How to handle imposter syndrome - One sheet of paper. On one side write your negative thoughts. On the other side write words of encouragement. Again, this sounds basic, but it’s been proven to work.
• Navigate the Roller Coaster of our Mind: Take on our challenges in life with confidence and power instead of fear and insecurity.
• Recognize & Overcome the Five Ds of Negative Thought: Doubt, Distortion, Discouragement, Distraction, and Division.
• The root of the Greek word for anxious means “to separate and divide” When we are anxious, we feel divided. The key is to move towards “oneness”.
• Tune into More Positive Thoughts: Jon explains a revolutionary idea that the brain is an antenna, and we can elevate our minds with proven strategies. For example, we can’t be stressed and thankful at the same time. When we appreciate, we elevate.
• Override Fear with Love: Let love (the ultimate driver of grit) be the driving force behind our work and vocation, unlocking new levels of determination, devotion and success.
• Improve Mental Health & Relationships: Move from disconnection, loneliness and isolation to connection, healing, and wholeness. Whether you’re a recent graduate, executive, artist, parent, engineer, teacher, spouse, athlete or coach, once you know The One Truth, you’ll see how it impacts leadership, teamwork, mindset, performance, relationships, addictions, social media, anxiety, mental health and your overall quality of life.
• Bad teams = nobody leads. Average teams = coaches lead. Elite teams = players lead
• Change management -- People follow the leader first and the vision second. People won’t care about your vision if you don’t care about them.
• “Thoughts are magnetic. What we think about we attract.”
• Goals: "It's not your goals that will lead to your success but your commitment to the process." "The best teams don’t focus on winning championships. They focus on being champions. This leads to championships."
• “When leaders become focused on the fruit instead of the root and worry about the outcome instead of the process of developing team members, they may survive in the short run, but they will not thrive in the long run.”
• “As a leader, it is so important that your words equal your actions. It is imperative that you make sure that you go through a self-evaluation process on an almost daily basis to make sure that your actions are in line with your words. You must do what you say and say what you do.”
• “There’s a difference between culture and having a theme for the year. A theme does not equal culture. Too many schools/org move from theme to theme instead of building a culture. Utilize a theme as a tool to help you build a great culture.”
• “They asked a bunch of ninety-five-year-olds if they could do it all over again and live their life again what would they do differently. The three things that almost all of them said were: (1) They would reflect more. Enjoy more moments. More sunrises and sunsets. More moments of joy. (2) They would take more risks and chances. Life is too short not to go for it. (3) They would have left a legacy. Something that would live on after they die.”

00:35 - Lessons from Athletics

05:29 - Struggling With Adversity As a Child

07:47 - Building a Life-Changing Team from The Energy Bus

15:08 - Fear That Comes With Imposter Syndrome

20:54 - Transition from Self-Talk to Action

31:05 - How to React to Skeptics

36:14 - View Life as a Movie

40:25 - Leadership Qualities That Are Repetitive

44:18 - Advice for the Younger Generation

47:48 - Early is On Time

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Notes: Michelle "Mace" Curran has led an impressive career as a Fighter Pilot during her 13 years in the United States Air Force. From 2019-2021, she flew as the only female pilot for the Air Force Thunderbirds and performed for millions across the country and internationally. Before joining the Thunderbirds, Michelle was a combat-proven fighter pilot completing missions across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

• What inspired Michelle to join the Air Force?
  • "I had a grandpa who was a lieutenant in the Navy. I went through his World War II trunk and tried on uniforms and looked at postcards. He got to travel all over the world. I grew up in a small town and I wanted to travel. I’ve always been drawn to flying. I hadn’t done a lot of flying aside from commercially, but I loved it, so the Air Force seemed like a natural fit. I was also honestly looking for a scholarship for college, so the three things kind of came together."
• “C3” Comm – That’s clear, concise, and correct communication. How that plays a role as a pilot and how we can use that as leaders outside of the airplane.
  • For the solo opposing passes, each pilot is traveling at 500mph, that's 1000mph of closure toward each other. The timing that makes sure the aircraft safely pass each other at the center point directly in front of the crowd is all done through radio calls. Every call must communicate clearly, concisely, and correctly.
• There are a lot of benefits to having a beginner's mindset.
• What does Michelle say to young girls?
  • "You have to exceed people’s expectations. People are going to set expectations for you based on where you grew up, the family you came from, your gender — there are all different factors that go into that. Constantly do your best, strive for perfection, exceed those expectations, and really don’t shortchange yourself. Don’t set boundaries that don’t really exist, that you just place there for yourself. You’ll be surprised at all of the things you can do if you just keep pushing."
• “We wield a lot of power with our words.” Let’s plant a seed of inspiration. As leaders, our words carry a lot of weight. Let’s use that to help other people strive for more and potentially accomplish more than they ever thought they were capable of. What an awesome use of our power.
• The Debrief - It’s the sacred environment of flying. Your rank doesn’t matter. It’s all about focusing on what happened and how we can get better. I think our companies would be better if we had consistent debriefs after a big moment to ensure we are learning from our mistakes and getting better…
• The person you are today is likely much different than the one you were ten years ago. The person you will be ten years from now will probably be just as different compared to who you are now.
• Michelle initially didn't feel capable as a fighter pilot. But she kept showing up. It’s important that we have the courage to keep going even when we don’t feel ready.
• Being a female fighter pilot, Mace was in a male-dominated career... She was often the only woman in my unit and roughly 3% of fighter pilots in the Air Force are female even thirty years after combat airframes were opened to women,
• Leaders and followers – A young flight lead could be in command of a general whose role is to be the wingman…
• Mace has written a children’s book that just came out called Upside Down Dreams. It is a story written for girls with big dreams looking for a real-world heroine.

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Dr. Angus Fletcher has dual degrees in neuroscience (BS, University of Michigan) and literature (Ph.D., Yale). His research employs a mix of laboratory experiment, literary history, and rhetorical theory to explore the psychological effects—cognitive, behavioral, therapeutic—of different narrative technologies. He’s the best-selling author of multiple books including Wonderworks: The 25 Most Powerful Inventions in the History of Literature, and Storythinking: The New Science of Narrative Intelligence.

• "The story you tell yourself needs to be the true story of yourself."
• How Angus tells his story:
  • Build trust
  • Listen
  • Demonstrate courage - Angus told a group of special forces operators one of the most embarrassing stories of his life. After that, he said, "I'm not scared of anything."
• You must be genuinely humble to learn from your mistakes.
• "Real leaders activate the leader within you."
• Being a leader is all about contemplating fear. Stepping up when adversity strikes is why we exist as leaders. It’s easy to lead when everything is going well. We want to be known as the leader who is there when it’s hard.
• Dr. Fletcher's ultimate goal of using the power of story to bring us closer to self-actualization. Seems like that's a good first step to being a great leader.
• Confidence is earned by creating evidence for yourself that you can do hard things. Angus did this when he shared his story of not making it through Marine Corps boot camp. Angus's vulnerability earned trust with the military leaders.
• “For the longer we suspend our judgments, the more accurate our subsequent verdicts become. This valuable fact has been uncovered by researchers who’ve spent decades probing the mechanics of better decision-making, only to discover that the key is simply more time and more information. Which is to say: reserving our judgment until the last possible moment.”
• Unlike a computer, the brain wasn’t particularly data-driven. Or particularly logical. Instead, it was emotional. And creative. And powered by story.
• “There are a number of judgments that we can suspend permanently, including most of our judgments about other people. Our brain is constantly making such judgments. It looks at strangers on the street—and judges them. It looks at celebrities in magazines—and judges them. It looks at family members and colleagues and friends in homes and offices and restaurants—and judges them. These judgments feel instantly good to our neurons; they deliver pleasant microdoses of emotional superiority. But in the long run, they make us anxious, incurious, and less happy, so we can improve our long-term mental well-being if we suspend them.”
• Apply to be part of my Leadership Circle
• 02:12 - Highlights of Leadership Training04:24 - How to Prevent Failure09:14 - What is a Story Scientist?

  12:57 - Is Story Science Therapy?

  14:22 - Tell Your Story

  18:56 - Vulnerability is the Most Powerful Thing You Can Do

  22:00 - Can You Go Too Far With Being Vulnerable?

  25:19 - How to Be Vulnerable

  32:42 - Real Leaders Activate the Leader In You

  36:10 - Where Does Your Sense of Confidence Come From?

  40:50 - Punch Through Your Own Fear

  43:00 - Be Open About What Could Go Wrong

  44:47 - Questions to Ask During the Interview Process

  48:33 - Responding to Adversity IS Leadership

  51:45 - How to Be Excellent at Speaking

  56:27 - Advice For Younger Leaders

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Katty Kay is a US correspondent for the BBC and a regular contributor on MSNBC. Katty grew up in the Middle East, where her father was a British diplomat. She studied French and Italian at Oxford University and worked as a foreign correspondent in Africa and Japan before moving to The US in 1996. Katty is the best-selling author of many books. Her latest is called “The Power Code.”

Notes: 

• The definition of power – The ability to exercise one’s will, influence others, and effect change.
  • The ability to exercise our will—More Joy. Influencing (not controlling) others—Less Ego. Effecting change—Maximum Impact.
• Redefining Power - In the past, it seems to be about dominance. About something you hold over something (people, or resources). Instead, we want it to be used to effect positive change. Let’s use power for good.
• Promoting on promise versus promoting on performance. The research states that more men are promoted on promise than women. And women are mostly promoted based on performance. As leaders, let’s think about promise versus performance. As Frank Slootman said in a previous conversation, let’s hire people “Ahead of their curve.
• Most women today don’t want power. The path to getting it, as it exists today, involves too many sacrifices, and power itself is unappealing, full of egos and competition. Women have all the skills, but we’d rather opt out.
• Women and men don’t define power in the same way. Men think of power as a finite commodity, part of a hierarchical, zero-sum game that involves having power over people. Women aren’t competitive about power, and we focus more on the end result, the change we can affect with power. It’s the difference between power over and power to.
• Does power corrupt? Not in the hands of women.  Researchers have found that women are the exception to the rule that powerful people are less empathetic–women tend to maintain their connection to others, to a ground-level reality, as we rise through the ranks–a huge leadership advantage.
• Power fuels action. Neuroscientists are discovering the remarkable things power does to our brains. It can liberate its possessors, across their lives, and even create an ability to act more authentically. That offers big rewards for women and needs to become a selling point.
• Women will never get power outside the home until our marriages look less like the 1950s. Our marriages aren’t keeping up with society or our careers. A woman with a job does more housework than a man who doesn’t work. In couples where the wife earns more than the husband, they lie about it on the US census form.
• Men are stuck in a box they don’t want to be in.  They are pushed to play the outdated role of primary breadwinner, which is why the number of stay-at-home dads has barely grown in a quarter of a century. But increasingly men realize the zero-sum power formula isn’t working for them either. A more collaborative, more humane approach to power would benefit everyone.

00:38 - How Do You Define Power?

03:18 - Challenges with Research on Gender

05:46 - Using Power for Good

08:41 - Power reveals your Character

10:22 - Why Wouldn’t Someone Want Power?

13:37 - Is Power Shifting for Good?

15:31 - How Does Power Need to Change?

19:21 - Suggestions for Relationships at Home

20:42 - The Options to be a “Stay At Home”

30:58 - Characteristics of Katty’s Career

33:46 - Can Fame Impact a Marriage?

35:13 - Society’s Expectations for Mom & Dads

39:05 - Confidence & Imposter Syndrome

42:45 - The Common Characteristic of Every Leader

44:46 - The Impact of Female College Graduates

46:59 - Can Having Children Impact Your Career as a Mother?

49:30 - Advice for a Male CEO

52:26 - Life Advice for All

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Full show notes at www.LearningLeader.com

James Clear is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller, Atomic Habits, which has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. His newsletter, 3-2-1 is shipped to more than 2 million people every Thursday.

Notes:

• “The key, if you want to build habits that last, is to join a group where the desired behavior is the normal behavior.”
• We should champion good ideas. You need to bet on something. Bet on a business. Bet on a relationship. Bet on something. You may have less risk being a pessimist or not going all in on something, but you also limit your upside. It’s worth being a champion of good ideas.
  • A Chilean saying: "Criticizing a musician is easy, but it is more difficult when you have a guitar in your hand." -- Don't criticize someone else unless you're willing to do the work.
• Quantity and Quality – The parable of the pottery class – The University of Florida film photography professor, Jerry Uelsmann, divided his class into two groups. What happened with that experiment? We have to get going to get good. Quantity leads to quality. Be consistent. Show up, and do the work.
• Priorities – We all should ask ourselves this question: If someone could only see my actions and not hear my words, what would they say my priorities are?
• Steven Pressfield says the difference between an amateur and a professional is in their habits. An amateur has amateur habits. A professional has professional habits.
• 3 things that help luck:
  • Deconstructing your craft, so you know what good opportunities look like.
  • Remaining vigilant, so you notice when lucky breaks come your way.
  • Acting quickly, so you are more likely to seize luck when it arrives.
• "You do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems."
• "Habits are like the atoms of our lives, each one is a fundamental unit that contributes to your overall improvement."
• "Outcomes are about what you get. Processes are about what you do. Identity is about what you believe."
• "The goal is not to read a book, the goal is to become a reader."
• "Your identity emerges out of your habits."
• Why We Should Write – “Many people assume they are bad at writing because it is hard. This is like assuming you are bad at weightlifting because the weight is heavy."
  • Writing is useful because it is hard. It's the effort that goes into writing a clear sentence that leads to better thinking.
• Get Going to Get Good – Many situations in life are similar to going on a hike: the view changes once you start walking. You don't need all the answers right now. New paths will reveal themselves if you have the courage to get started.
• "The most practical way to change who you are is to change what you do." 
• "Building habits in the present allows you to do more of what you want in the future."

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Seth Godin is the author of 20 international bestsellers that have changed the way people think about marketing, leadership, and work. His blog (which you can find by typing "seth" into Google) is the most viewed marketing blog in the world. Some of my favorite books of his are… Tribes, Linchpin, Purple Cow, and most recently The Song of Significance.

Notes:

• Hiring Leaders — when deciding who to hire for a leadership role: look at the careers of the people who have worked for them. And look at the careers of the people they’ve led. Leaders aren’t managers with fancy titles. Leaders are planting the seeds for generations of impact to come.
• Let's get real or let's not play.
• Tension is what we seek.
• It's important to show up early.
• Frederick Taylor met Henry Ford and management was created.
• Study bees - They leave their home and have 72 hours to find their next one.
• Matt Mullenweg (Automatic CEO) - "Create the conditions for forward motion."
• To create the environment for the people they’re leading to flourish. How are you intentionally creating the environment for the people you’re leading to do their best work?
• Management doesn’t just exist. It was invented. When you race to the bottom, You see people as resources, not as people. (I don't like the term human capital management)
• When Paul Orfalea was building kinkos (which he later sold to fed ex for $2B), he said his best technique for growing the business was simple. He would walk into their stores and ask someone there to tell him about an innovation they’ve recently made. And then he’d tell all the other stores about it…
• “Real value is no longer created by traditional measures of productivity. It’s created by personal interactions, innovation, creative solutions, resilience, and the power of speed.”

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Notes:

• Tony Dungy’s quiet strength - He never criticized without an adequate solution. As leaders, it’s on us to be thoughtful about how we help our people get better. Just yelling that someone messed up is not helpful. We need to provide an adequate solution.
• Dianna Nyad – She swam for 53 hours from Cuba to Florida. It looked like a solo mission. It was anything but. She needed a full team to make it happen. We need other people to help us accomplish big missions.
• A lot of people are afraid to win. They are afraid to put it all on the line and risk not being enough. Too many of us want to look cool and play it safe in case we lose. The people who sustain excellence over time commit 100% to what they’re doing even though they might lose. It’s worth it.
• It is “kind of a sin” to waste potential and the real champions never committed it. - Dan Jenkins
• Advice from her dad (legendary sports writer, Dan Jenkins): "Never let a thing go until it's as good as you can make it."
• "Interest yourself first before you'll interest anyone else."
• Key learning from Brian Daboll - Winning organizations are made up of people who've been doubted in the past.
• The "greats are a result of construction." We must be intentional.
  • Go all in. Preparation. Practice. There must be a dept of preparation. "Never leave the field wishing you'd prepared more."
• "Pressure is what you feel when don't know what the hell to do."
• Michael Phelps was not born with an innate sense to swim fast. His body was well suited to swim but not much more than any other Olympian.
  • "The work is what made him great."
• Day-to-day consistency leads to excellence. Derek Jeter built his schedule around being consistent every single day.
• Laird Hamilton built his resilience through doing hard things like cold plunges, saunas, and surfing tough waves.
• Activate your body to stress:
  • Stress has two sides. We're meant to experience stress. Stress + Rest = Growth. We need stress to grow. Life is born without it.
• Pat Riley - What happens when people don't believe in their leader? They gear down their effort.
• Life/Career Advice:
  • Shoe leather hard work. You can't substitute hard work.
  • Find the thing you'd do for fun and see if you can build a career from it.

Sally Jenkins has been a columnist and feature writer for The Washington Post for more than twenty years. She was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2020 and in 2021 was named the winner of the Associated Press Red Smith Award for Outstanding Contributions to Sports Journalism. She is the author of twelve books of nonfiction including The Real All Americans, the story of the Carlisle Indian School, and its use of football as a form of resistance following the close of the Indian Wars. Her work for The Washington Post has included coverage of ten Olympic Games. In 2005 she was the first woman to be inducted into the National Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame. Her most recent book is called The Right Call: What Sports Teach Us about Leadership, Excellence, and Decision Making.

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Mark Miller started his Chick-fil-A career working as an hourly team member in 1977. Mark's cell phone number is 678-612-8441. He asked that you text him your thoughts on this episode. In 1978, he joined the corporate staff working in the warehouse and mailroom. Since that time, he has provided leadership for Corporate Communications, Field Operations, Quality and Customer Satisfaction, Training and Development, and Leadership Development. During his tenure with Chick-fil-A, the company has grown from 75 restaurants to over 2,300 locations with annual sales approaching $10 billion. Mark began writing almost twenty years ago when he teamed up with Ken Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager, to write The Secret: What Great Leaders Know and Do. He's now written 11 books that have sold over 1 million copies. His latest is called Culture Rules. 

Notes: 

• “Your capacity to grow determines your capacity to lead.”
  • You must make the choice to be a learner...
• Let’s start with a story told by the late philosopher, David Foster Wallace. He said, “There are these two young fish swimming along, and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way who nods at them and says, “Morning boys. How’s the water?” And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other and goes, “What the hell is water?”
• Mark Miller conducted research with more than 6,000 individuals from ten countries that revealed that 71% of U.S. leaders believe culture is their most powerful tool to drive performance. However, the study revealed that enhancing workplace culture ranked eleventh on the leader’s priority list.
• “If your heart is not right, no one cares about your skills.” Your character, integrity, and care for others must be there to earn any type of followership. If your heart is not right, no one cares about your skills.
• The 3 culture rules are aspire, amplify, and adapt:
  • Aspire - Share your hopes and dreams for the culture (Andrew Cathy, new CEO, said “Rooted in purpose, known for our care.”)
  • Amplify - Always be looking for ways to reinforce and amplify the aspiration for your culture.
  • Adapt - Always look for ways to enhance your culture and be innovative.
• The Magic Circle: It dates back to 1938 when Dutch Historian Johan Huizinga wrote about the impact of play on culture…
• The "Must-Have" leadership qualities
  • Character
  • Competence
  • Chemistry
• Mark has spent a lot of time with Navy SEALs to learn about culture... Key takeaways:
  • Shoot
  • Move
  • Communicate
• Is focusing on culture a soft skill? The data suggests it is the #1 driver of performance.
• Storytelling - People remember the stories more than the stats. Don't just tell... Take people there.

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Frank Slootman is the CEO at Snowflake. Frank has over 25 years of experience as an entrepreneur and executive in the enterprise software industry. Frank served as CEO of ServiceNow from 2011 to 2017, taking the organization from $100M in revenue, through an IPO, to $1.4B. Prior to that, Frank served as President at EMC following an acquisition of Data Domain Corporation, where he served as the CEO, leading the company through an IPO to its acquisition by EMC for $2.4B. He's also the best-selling author of Amp It Up.

Notes:

• Frank's work ethic was developed as a child in the Netherlands. In his teens, he had summer jobs harvesting tulip bulbs and walking behind a tractor ten hours a day. He also cleaned factory toilets one summer in the plant where his dad worked.
• “The Man In The Arena” Theodore Roosevelt – Frank put this at the beginning of Amp It Up. 
  • After retiring from ServiceNow in 2017, Frank had no intention of taking another CEO role, but people like him “have a hard time leaving the arena.” It’s exciting to be back in a CEO role with Snowflake.
• Hiring -- “Hire people ahead of their own curve.” Hire more for aptitude than experience and give people the career opportunity of a lifetime.
• NO MBO -- “Another source of misalignment is management by objective (MBO). Which I have eliminated at every company I’ve joined in the last 20 years.”
• Push the pace -- Leaders set the pace. “Instead of getting back to me in a week, I asked, “Why not tomorrow?” Change the cadence. Push the pace.
• The leadership "must-have" qualities:
  • A need to prove something
  • Unbalanced
  • They want to show the world something... They have passion
  • High trust
  • Need some ego, but it has to be in check
  • Legacy? "I don't think about legacy much. When you're dead, you're dead."
• Frank's leadership team:
  • We are not balanced, we are available to each other 24/7.
• Drivers vs. Passengers -- “Passengers are people who don’t mind simply being carried along by the company’s momentum …They are often pleasant, get along with everyone, attend meetings promptly, and generally do not stand out as troublemakers … While passengers can often diagnose and articulate a problem quite well, they have no investment in solving it.” Frank wants front-seat drivers who’ll take ownership, make trouble, and help navigate.
• Raise Your Standards -- Push for insanely great. A leader must always push the standard higher.
• Focus -- “Founders don’t have a mindset around operating companies. Focus is one of our number one things. You need to learn to have extreme, machine focus, and most people don’t even know the beginning of what that means. They think they do, and they don’t.”
• “I’m more of a Patton than an Eisenhower,” he says, known for constantly driving the troops forward.
• Sequoia’s Carl Eschenbach remembers, “When we brought Frank into Snowflake, at our first board meeting he said, ‘Let me tell you how I’m running the board meetings and how you’re going to participate. We’re going to keep this very simple. I’m not even gonna tell you anything about the good stuff that’s happening because you already know that—I’m going to dive into the shit that’s broken and how we’re going to fix it.'”
• Very Brief Retirement -- In 2017, Frank spent time regatta sailing, winning the iconic ocean race, Transpac. Race from Los Angeles to Oahu. (To win, “We focused on recruiting talent”).
• Put The Success of The Company Ahead of Your Own – If you want to build a Snowflake-sized company,  you can’t be about the celeb-CEO lifestyle.
  • “That’s not real life. Real life is you’re terrorized and uncomfortable every day of the week. People always ask me, ‘Is this normal?’ I’m like, yep.”
• Snowflake - Hit the ground running on April 26, 2019.
  •  Good news: They were on already on a tear.
  • The bad news: “The company was quite impressed with itself.”
    • Growth in all areas (revenue, retention rate, total customers, $1m Customers, Forbes Global 2000 Customers, Customer Satisfaction).
• The first 90 days as a new leader. It’s a combat zone. You must quickly assess what’s working, and what’s not. Who should stay on the bus, and who should get off?

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Oscar Munoz served as CEO and chairman of United Airlines, previously holding several executive leadership positions at CSX, AT&T, US West, PepsiCo, and Coca-Cola.

• Listen, Learn, AND THEN Lead… The purpose of the listening tour was to hear from people at the ground level, listen, learn, and then make decisions.
• I love the simplicity in the question to his team, “Hey, what are the 10 dumbest rules we’ve put in place?” And then changing them… This is something we all should think about periodically.
• The father-daughter bond Oscar has with his daughter, Jessica. The traits he sees in her that are also in him are “tenacity and refusal to give in no matter what.”
• Before Oscar became CEO, the culture was based on a “cost-cutting, rule-obsessed, disciplinary-heavy culture."
• Listening Tour - In 2015, After becoming CEO of United Airlines, Munoz embarked on a "listening tour" of the company, meeting with disgruntled employees around the United States and discussing their concerns. While this phase was intended to last for the first 90 days of the job, Oscar was hospitalized after having a heart attack in October 2015, 38 days into the job.
• In 2015, Oscar was one of two Hispanic CEOs in the top 100 of the Fortune 500 list. Munoz has been named among the "100 Most Influential Hispanics" by Hispanic Business magazine. In March 2017, Oscar was named "Communicator of the Year for 2017" by PRWeek.
• How to be both a great dad and a great CEO?
  • "Model the right behavior for your kids."
• Advice: Swing easy. Be yourself.

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Derek Thompson is a staff writer at The Atlantic and author of the books Hit Makers and On Work: Money, Meaning, Identity, and the host of the podcast Plain English.  

Notes:

• Before graduating from high school, Derek appeared in several theatrical productions at the Folger Shakespeare Theater and the Shakespeare Theater.
• Why do Americans care so much about work?
  • workism is “the belief that work is not only necessary to economic production but also the centerpiece of one’s identity and life’s purpose.”
• Jobs, Careers, or Callings: One theory of work holds that people tend to see themselves in jobs, careers, or callings…
• The Bow and Arrow metaphor… We need stress, but we need to let it go. You pull back on the bow and arrow… Then you let it go. Stress + Rest = Growth
• “Happiness means being balanced between busyness and leisure.”
• The mark of a good leader? Don’t be afraid to ask the ignorant question… Have the confidence to ask it.
• Derek had breakfast with the prominent CEO… The CEO was deeply curious about Derek. Asked him a lot of questions, listened intently, and asked great follow-ups. Great leaders make their conversations about the other person. Follow your curiosity with great rigor.
  • That same leader also had the emotional intelligence to not bother Derek Jeter while he was having breakfast. He knew there would be a better time to meet.
• The book, an anthology of Thompson’s articles for The Atlantic, includes a new adaptation of his essay on workism, a term that he defines as “the belief that work is not only necessary to economic production but also the centerpiece of one’s identity and life’s purpose.”
• “The decline of traditional faith in America has coincided with an explosion of new atheisms,” Thompson writes. “Some people worship beauty, some worship political identities, and others worship their children. But everybody worships something. And workism is among the most potent of the new religions competing for congregants.”
• How Derek earned a job writing for The Atlantic out of college?
  • After being rejected 30 times, he applied for a fellowship with The Atlantic and got it. He then earned a job writing about economics for them even though he had no background or interest in economics. "It's like the New York Yankees offered me to play second base even though I played catcher my whole life."
• How Derek earned a role as a podcast host working for Bill Simmons?
  • "Bill had me on his podcast to talk about Covid after he read some things I'd written for The Atlantic. That was sort of an audition. After he had me on, he asked if I wanted to have my own podcast on his network. We eventually came up with the name Plain English."
    • The name of the show is very important. You want people to be able to easily say, "Hey, I listen to Plain English."
• How to predict the next great quarterback?
  • It's contingent upon their surroundings (their coaching staff, receivers, linemen, etc...)
• Life/Career Advice:
  • Skin thickness -- It can't be so thin that you can't accept criticism, but it can't be so thick that you stop listening. You have be somewhere in the middle.
• Working hours — no large country globally averages more hours of work per year than the United States. Americans work longer hours, have shorter vacations, get less unemployment, and retire later.

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Kevin Kelly is Senior Maverick at Wired magazine. He is also the editor and publisher of the Cool Tools website, which gets half a million unique visitors per month. He co-founded Wired in 1993 and served as its Executive Editor from its inception until 1999. During Kevin’s tenure, Wired won the National Magazine Award for General Excellence (the industry's equivalent of two Oscars). He is the best-selling author of many books including New Rules for the New Economy, The Inevitable, and his latest is called Excellent Advice For Living - Wisdom I wish I’d Known Earlier. 

• You lead by letting others know what you expect of them, which may exceed what they themselves expect. Provide them a reputation to live up to.
• Habit is far more dependable than inspiration. Don’t focus on getting into shape. Focus on becoming the kind of person who never misses a workout.
• "Every great and difficult thing has required a strong sense of optimism,"
• Prototype your life. Try stuff instead of making grand plans.
• The best way to learn anything is to try to teach what you know.
• Don’t create things to make money; make money so you can create things. The reward for good work is more work.
• The more you are interested in others, the more interesting they’ll find you. To be interesting, be interested.
• Promptness is a sign of respect.
• The consistency of your endeavors (exercise, companionship, work) is more important than the quantity. Nothing beats small things done every day, which is way more important than what you do occasionally.

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The Learning Leader Show was first published on April 9, 2015. TODAY marks the show's 8th birthday! To celebrate, I kick off the episode by sharing some key learnings I've gathered over the past 8 years... And then I answer YOUR questions and did a full AMA (Ask Me Anything). If you'd like me to do more AMAs, send me an email: Ryan (at) LearningLeader dot com

• Here are some key things I've learned after publishing The Learning Leader Show for 8 years...
  • Consistency > Intensity. Showing up to do the work (prep) each day is key. Become part of your routine as a listener. Consistency builds trust. You know you’re going to have a new show for your Monday morning walk or commute.
  • Following your genuine curiosity is attractive. This parasocial relationship is built because as the listener you know I’m following what I’m actually curious about. I own guest selection 100%. They are all my call and my call alone. I only choose guests that I’m deeply curious about.
  • The curiosity-judgemental spectrum. Talking with more people with a wide range of life experiences has helped me view the world from their eyes and be less judgemental. All the way back to episode 3 with Maurice Clarett. Approach people with curiosity, not judgment.
  • The prep works as a forcing function to learn. Same with mindful Monday. I have systems in place to ensure I’m getting a little bit wiser each day. And that learning compounds over time. Create forcing functions on your life to intentionally get better. Don’t just wander from meeting to meeting each week. What are you doing to ensure your learning is compounding? The Charlie Munger quote; go to bed a little wiser than when you woke up. I try to live by that.
  • Relationships with your heroes: General McChrystal. Pat Lencioni. So many others. Being pleasant to work with. Showing up prepared. Being grateful. Following up. All of that has helped me build real relationships with people I admire. The McChrystal trip to Gettysburg. Forewords to books. McChrystal and Lencioni. Dan Pink. The Kat Cole ATL show. Adam Grant. Ryan Holiday.
  • Relationships with listeners. Some amazing friendships have been formed and fostered because of this podcast. So many of my Learning Leader Circle members. Technically they are clients of mine, but lots of them have become genuine friends for life.
  • Communication skill - LISTENING. Thinking. Speaking, Writing. All have improved. Earned the opportunity to speak on hundreds of stages all over the world. Publish books. Meet fascinating people.
• Listener AMA:
  • Learn 2 Cope (Instagram) – What was the biggest struggle you had transitioning to life after sports?
  • Kevin Janiec (Instagram) – How do you and Miranda balance and align your competing priorities?
  • Samantha Phillips (LinkedIn), Sales Manager at Insight Global – 1. What is 1 of your champagne toasts? (Victory Shot toast) 2. Who is 1 person you have not yet had on your show that you’d like to?
  • Aaron Arnston (LinkedIn) - Congratulations, Ryan!  Truly blazing a trail, we’ll done! You have interviewed hundreds of guests and I have liked every show, can't recall one, not one, show I didn't like...have you ever interviewed guests that didn't make the cut or do you have a filtering process prior to the show that helps with this?
  • Noah Vasilj (Mindful Monday email response): My question is a “3 parter”:
    • What is your favorite part of your job?
    • Do you generally enjoy/love what you do?
    • What keeps you interested and going on the days when you are not at 100%?
  • Brian Causer (Twitter) — Congrats! Love the show, Ryan. One of my top podcasts and I listen weekly. Maybe have two questions... How do you choose your guests? Referral? Follow your curiosity? Also, what is one question you wish someone would ask you that nobody has asked you before?
  • The Greek In The Kitchen (Instagram) — Who is the guest you think about most or has had the most influence on you?
  • Denise Kollias (LinkedIn) Hi! Congratulation! I have been listening to your podcast since 2017 and it has been a Godsend. It has taught me so much and I appreciate all your hard work to continually bring insightful conversations on leadership. My question is what episodes were your favorite to record or the top 5 that you recommend with the greatest impact to help people grow or push through?
  • JP Botero (Instagram) - After 8 years of experience, what would you recommend to the Ryan thinking of creating The Learning Leader Show?
  • Aaron Campbell – After 8 years of exploration along a central theme, how would you finish this sentence: “A great leader is….”

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Dan Lyons is the New York Times bestselling author of "Disrupted," "Lab Rats," and "STFU: The Power of Keeping Your Mouth Shut in an Endlessly Noisy World." Dan was a writer for HBO's hit comedy, "Silicon Valley," and before that was a journalist at Newsweek, Forbes, and Fortune.

• The best sales reps spend 54 percent of the call listening and 46 percent talking. The worst reps talked 72 percent of the time. They made calls feel like conversations.
  •  A company called Gong uses machine learning software that analyzes sales calls to find out what works and what doesn’t. Its software vacuums up millions of hours of audio data and then analyzes it to figure out how the best sales reps operate. Gong’s customers use this information to train new sales reps and help underperformers improve. In 2017 Gong analyzed more than five hundred thousand calls and found that sales calls with the best close rates were ones in which reps knew how to be quiet and ask questions instead of making a sales pitch. To be precise, the most successful reps asked eleven to fourteen questions. Fewer than that, and you’re not digging deep enough. More than that, the call starts to feel like an interrogation.
• Eavesdropping on happiness: The research showed that people who spent more time having substantive conversations were happier than those who spent more time having small talk, and weather conversations.
• Always Say Less Than Necessary – "When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control. Even if you are saying something banal, it will seem original if you make it vague, open-ended, and sphinxlike. Powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.” -- Robert Greene
• Researcher, Mehl joined a team that made a third big discovery: that people who suffer from anxiety and depression use the first-person singular pronouns I, me, and my more than other people.
• Go OUTSIDE – Harvard biologist Edward O. Wilson, who hypothesized that our affinity for the outdoors and love of living things have been hardwired into our DNA by evolution and exist as innate parts of our psychological and physiological makeup. Wilson calls this “biophilia,” a name derived from the ancient Greek words for “life” and “love.” It’s the reason people watch birds, melt at the sight of baby bunnies, travel to Yellowstone National Park to marvel at the bison, and rush to the window when a deer wanders into their yard. It’s why walking through Muir Woods among giant thousand-year-old redwood trees takes your breath away.
• The Talkaholic Scale Test – Prior to writing the book, Dan scored a 50 (the highest possible score)… Meaning he is a talkaholic. AFTER writing the book, he scored a 40, and Dan's wife scored him at 38.
• Life/Career Advice: Earn attention by doing great work, not by being loud and outlandish. It’s more lasting and will help you build better relationships and a great career.

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Dr. Mat Duerden is a Professor of Experience Design and Management at Brigham Young University. His teaching focuses on experience design and design thinking. He is the best-selling author of Designing Experiences. His research focuses on experience design in both work and non-work contexts. Mat’s publications have appeared in a variety of journals including Leisure Sciences, Journal of Environmental Psychology, Journal of Adolescent Research, and Journal of Leisure Research. Mat Duerden received a Ph.D. in Recreation, Park, and Tourism Sciences from Texas A&M University and an M.S. in Youth and Family Recreation from Brigham Young University. 

• Transformational Learning – "The future intrinsic use of the content." Going from theory to putting it into practice. It’s the implementation of the learning that codifies it.
• What to do at your next leadership retreat? Ask yourself the question, “What do you want them to say when they walk away from the experience?” And design the event based on your answer to that question.
• One of the must-have qualities needed to be hired as a team leader is humility and curiosity. Curiosity is the fuel for creativity and innovation. Having a broad range of interests is a good sign of curiosity.
• What do Apple, Costco, and Walt Disney have in common? A high NPS Score...
  • What is NPS? Your Net Promoter Score is the percentage of customers who are promoters (those who scored 9 or 10) minus the percentage who are detractors (those who scored 0 to 6).
  • They have a uniform type of experience
• Harmonizing Ques...
• There should be a narrative structure:
  • Build rising action... -- Anticipation, Participation, Reflection, Climax.
• It's important to solve problems tied to the needs of your customer or your team.
• The Wonder Switch from Harris III
  • The curiosity is becoming comfortable not knowing
• The Buc-eee's gas station restroom experience takes the ordinary and turns it into an extraordinary experience.
• For businesses:
  • Need to develop a brand experience guide for the type of experience you want to provide.
  • Write a brand theme statement that aligns with who we are.
• HEB Grocery Store:
  • Here Everything's Better
  • Hire the type of people who are curious and want to interact with customers.
• Curiosity is the fuel for creativity and innovation. A broad range of interests is important.

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Colin Coggins and Garrett Brown are adjunct professors of entrepreneurship at USC’s Marshall School of Business where they teach the popular class they created, “Sales Mindset for Entrepreneurs. ” They are also authors, speakers, longtime sales professionals, and best friends who met while working at enterprise software startup Bitium, which they helped lead to an acquisition by Google. This odd couple first connected over their shared obsession with the importance of selling, and have made it their mission to uncover the unexpected and inspiring mindset of the highest-achieving sellers on the planet.

• The most impactful sales professionals are learners. They consume information and ask lots of questions that they are deeply curious to know the answers to. They don't go down the list of sales discovery questions. It's from a place of curiosity.
• "Noone has ever changed the world without moving people." That's sales.
• An abundance mindset — Collin was meeting with a new sales rep named Matt that worked for you at Bitium. Matt sat down on the couch and loved it. He asked who made it and Collin didn’t know. So he flipped over the cushion, saw who made it, realized they were a potential customer and made a note in his phone to connect with them on LinkedIn and call them. Matt has an abundance mindset.
  • "Great sellers see opportunity where others don't."
• World-Class sales professionals love the process.
• When making promotional hires/decisions, "create a culture that's not pulled up. It's pushed up." 
  • When promoting someone to be a manager, look at those who are known to help others. They are pushed to management by the members of the team because they are so helpful.
• Being a “pathological optimist” — Colin told a story about taking the first flight with his whole family (wife Margot and two young boys) and despite the chaos of crying and trying to take care of young children, Colin loved it and told Margot "it would be a great story one day." She called him a pathological optimist (not meant as a compliment, but he took it as one).
• Act like a teammate, not a coach:
  • Will Smith’s manager, JL, told him to turn down a $10m offer for a movie called 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag because it didn't help them pursue Will's goal of being a big movie star. (Even though both of them didn't have any money at the time)
• The Partnership: “Colin, thank you for seeing something in a slightly insecure, overly analytical introvert and deciding to throw in with me.”
• The class they teach is called “Sales Mindset for Entrepreneurs”
• Colin & Garrett don’t teach a typical sales class focused how to “build rapport,” “handle objections,” or “ask for the close.” Instead, they help students understand why the most successful people on the planet aren’t successful because of what they do, they’re successful because of what they think.
• We all sell, every day. Sometimes it's ourselves, sometimes it's ideas, and sometimes it's products. We truly believe that the world would benefit if EVERYONE learned how to sell authentically, whether you're a "salesperson" or not.
• Great salespeople are not remembered for the statements they make, they're remembered for the questions they ask. 
  • Ask better questions, get better results. As mindset guys, we get a little bit obsessed with one-on-ones when we lead teams, so we geek out when experts like Jeanne shed light on new questions to ask that can help bring out the best in other people.
• At some point a long time ago, someone studying great salespeople noticed they were mirroring the people they were talking to. So they started training salespeople to mirror the body language of their customers. One MAJOR problem... These great sellers weren't connecting with people because they were mirroring, they were UNCONSCIOUSLY mirroring people 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣. If you're sitting there thinking about crossing your leg when your customer crosses theirs, you can't possibly be having a good conversation. Science shows that mirroring is a natural inclination when we’re AUTHENTICALLY engaged in a conversation with someone and are relating to them. So instead of ACTING like you’re in a deep conversation by copying someone’s body language, work on caring enough to get into that deep conversation in the first place.

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

David Lieberman, Ph.D., is a renowned psychotherapist and the author of eleven books, including the New York Times bestsellers Get Anyone to Do Anything and Never Be Lied to Again. He has trained personnel in the U.S. 

• Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: “People do not seem to realize that their opinion of the world is also a confession of character.” A person looks at the world as a reflection of themselves. If they see the world as corrupt, they feel on some level that they are corrupt. If they see honest working people, that is frequently how they see themselves.
• “How someone treats you is a reflection of their own emotional health and says everything about them and nothing about you.”
• Speaking negatively behind someone’s back orients you to look for the negative in others. Wouldn’t we rather spend time with people who seek the greatness in others?
• “The less emotionally healthy a person is, the more they denigrate the world to accommodate their own insecurities.”
• Knowledge is not power. Knowledge is a tool. How it is wielded makes all of the difference. Real power is the responsible application of knowledge.
• Word usage: Let’s take the example of giving a compliment. A woman who believes what she’s saying is more likely to use a personal pronoun. For instance, “I really liked your presentation.” However, a person offering insincere flattery might say, “Nice presentation,” or “Looks like you did a lot of research.” In the second case, she has removed herself from the equation.
• The Art of reading the bluff - When a person is bluffing, they are managing others’ impressions to convey the “right” effect and serve a personal agenda. Conversely, the authentic person is not interested in how they come across because they are unconcerned with their image.
  • “People who bluff habitually overcompensate, so you can uncover a bluff instantly by noticing how someone tries to appear.”
• Relationships: Whenever David speaks to couples, he's always on the lookout when the word we is conspicuously absent from the conversation.
• We are attracted to positivity. It reflects humility.
• "Humility connects you to the ownership of mistakes."
  • Humility can recognize a weakness in self.
• The difference between a sociopath and a psychopath:
  • A sociopath has no conscious. They are very dangerous.
  • A psychopath's wiring is off. They were born that way.
• Life and career advice: Find a passion that contributes to the world.
  • Don't get too caught up in image or ego.
• "You can be anything. you're good at. as long as they're hiring." -- Chris Rock

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Matt Mochary is an operator and an investor. Matt is known as the coach of Silicon Valley’s best CEOs. He works with leaders at many companies, including Coinbase, Opendoor, Bolt, and Clearbit. After selling his startup in 1999 for millions, he surfed, made movies, and then developed the Mochary Method to help leaders excel.

• Matt's life mantra: “Make Money, Have Fun, Do Good”
• Matt has coached the leaders of Angelist, Brex, Coinbase, Sequoia, Grammarly, Attentive Mobile, Flexport, Plaid, and Reddit.
• I was not expecting so much emotion from him when talking about coaching. It’s evident that Matt finds great joy in what he does. I find that inspiring.
• The components to a coaching conversation... Hold each other accountable. Declare the highest priority actions. Unpack the problems. Ask them how they are complicit in creating those problems? Help provide solutions & action items for each. Then share feedback.
• Instead of looking for a specific class, find the best teachers and go to them. That’s where the learning happens. In college and out in the real world.
• "Matt’s coaching has brought me clarity, focus, organization, less stress, and higher performance (me and the team). I have always been skeptical of coaches but I think he can 10x the output of a lot of people and I hope he does!" -- Sam Altman (CEO, OpenAI)
• “It's often easy to make a decision, but it can be much harder to get your team to invest emotionally in that decision.” “You create buy-in when you make people feel that they are part of the decision and that their input contributes to the final outcome.”
• “Most companies spend extraordinary resources of time, money, and equity to bring on a new team member, and then almost entirely drop the ball on quickly getting that team member onboarded and up to speed on how the company works so that they can begin making a full contribution. Don’t make this mistake.”
• “You create buy-in when you make people feel that they are part of the decision and that their input contributes to the final outcome.”
• “Making a Sale To make a sale effectively, you need to do the following three things: Build trust Identify the customer’s specific pain Sell results, not features”
• “Why did you leave that job?” Was the candidate promoted, recruited, or fired? Get very curious about why.”
• “And when receiving appreciation, there is only one correct response: “Thank you.” Do not feign humility by downplaying the act with statements like “It was nothing, anyone could have done it.” No. The person is trying to make you feel appreciated. Anything other than “thank you” will rob them of their goal.”
• Meetings – ALWAYS start on time. Don’t ever say, “Well let’s wait for everyone to join zoom.”

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Kim “KC” Campbell (KC = “Killer Chick”) is a retired Air Force Colonel who served in the Air Force for over 24 years. She has flown 1,800 hours in the A-10 Warthog, including more than 100 combat missions protecting troops on the ground in both Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2003, Kim was even awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for Heroism after successfully recovering her battle-damaged airplane after an intense close air support mission in Baghdad. Kim is the author of Flying in the Face of Fear: A Fighter Pilot’s Lessons on Leading with Courage.

Notes:

• On January 28, 1986,  the challenger rocket exploded (killing all astronauts on board). On that day, Kim learned what it meant to serve something bigger than yourself. She decided she wanted to be an astronaut and serve something bigger than herself.
• A big influence in Kim's life was a high school teacher named Mrs. Kennett. She helped Kim on the speech and debate team. One of her arguments was about women being allowed to be combat pilots.
  • Mrs. Kennett worked to create "power women."
• Response to Rejection: Initially Kim got rejected by the Air Force Academy because of a low SAT score. In response, instead of quitting and moving on, she wrote a letter to them every week stating why they should accept her... Which they eventually did.
  • "The tough moments make you better." The initial rejection was a blessing in disguise.
• How to crush the interview process?
  • Prepare... Walk through potential questions and rehearse your stories. Role play with a mentor.
  • Be you. Be real. Be authentic
  • Create a connection with all in the room. Look them in the eye. Be genuine.
• Like father, Like daughter — just before Kim's final year at the academy, she earned the position of Cadet Wing Commander. This is a position her dad held 25 years earlier. They were the first father-daughter wing commander duo in academy history.
• A woman in a man’s world: When Kim started pilot training in 1999, there were 33 female fighter pilots in the Air Force. About 1% of fighter pilots.
• Kim's choice of airplane was the A10 WartHog. The airplane was designed first with the 30 mm Gatling gun on it in mind: capable of shooting 3,900 rounds per minute.
• The leader sets the culture. They decide what to create and what to allow.
• Kim was on a combat support mission in Baghdad when her airplane was hit. She had to make a split-second decision about whether to exit the aircraft behind enemy lines or try to fly it back to a safer area...
• Commanders intent - Your why is the way forward. You allow your team to take action and make decisions. "Explain the why. Explain the context. Let the lower level leaders make decisions and run with it."
• Roosevelt's "Man in the Arena" speech resonates with Kim.
  • "We feel fear and freeze. We can't let fear paralyze us. We need to take action in the face of fear. Remain calm. Acknowledge the fear and move forward."

Text Hawk to 66866 to become part of "Mindful Monday." Join 10's of thousands of your fellow learning leaders and receive a carefully curated email from me each Monday morning to help you start your week off right...

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12   https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Jason Feifer is the editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine. He is also the author of a great new book called, Build for Tomorrow: An Action Plan for Embracing Change, Adapting Fast, and Future-Proofing Your Career.

Notes:

• Define yourself… What is your one sentence? Jason’s is “I tell stories in my own voice.” That’s what he does as the editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine. That’s what he does when he writes books. Records podcasts… Everything. What is your one sentence? What do you do?
• How to lead through change – Remember... You’ve had time to think about it prior to the meeting, they haven’t. Show some grace. Communicate why the change is happening and how it impacts them.
  • And… “People hate new things, but they love better versions of old things.” People hate loss. Remind them of what’s staying the same, but getting better.
• In 1348, The Bubonic Plague happened... What occurred as a result? 60% of Europeans died. It led to an opportunity for employment. Prior to that, there were the rich and the poor. The rich had the poor work for them, but did not pay them money.
• "If a city isn't growing, it's dying. The same is true for people."
• In your career, "Don't ask for the opportunity... BE the opportunity."
• The Four Distinct Phases:
  • Panic
  • Adaptation
  • New Normal
  • Wouldn't Go Back
• The first thing a person should do when navigating change is to identify the thing about themself that is not going to change. This is tough because we naturally identify with the output of our work. If somebody at a party asks you what you do, you’re either going to tell them your job title, your role, the way in which you do your work, or the thing that you create. And that’s natural—it’s a good way to understand ourselves.
  • "We are programmed for loss aversion."
  • "Build a bridge of familiarity from them to you."
• "That’s something Ryan Reynolds told me. Ryan is an actor who also started an extremely successful advertising agency called Maximum Effort. He also owns Aviation Gin and Mint Mobile. Ryan told me that the thing that distinguishes people is not whether they’re good at something at the beginning (because nobody will be good at something at the beginning), but rather whether someone can tolerate the natural state of being bad at the beginning. When trying something new, there cannot be an expectation of mastery from the start.
  • "Can you tolerate being bad long enough to be good?"
• In front of you are two sets of opportunities. Opportunity Set A is everything that is asked of you, for instance showing up at your job, things your boss needs done, etc. It is necessary to do a good job at Opportunity Set A. Opportunity set B is everything that is available for you to do that nobody is asking you to do. This could also be at your job, but it could also be something outside of work like taking a class to learn a new skill.
• With every single thing you do, ask What is it for? This forces you to make sure that the things that you do have a valuable outcome. It’s okay if that outcome looks strange, or if that outcome will come after some time working towards it. We want to know which things we should devote our time and energy to, and we want to understand how to maximize opportunities. Answering What is it for? clarifies that.
  • So, What is it for? Content now is for relationships. People will trust you and like you because of your content. You build a relationship with people when you put something out into the world.
• Life/Career advice:
  • Try, quit, and learn
  • Life is a series of experiments

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Twitter/IG: @RyanHawk12    https://twitter.com/RyanHawk12

Mark Fogel is a former US Air Force fighter pilot and current squadron commander in the Ohio Air National Guard. He’s A graduate of the US Air Force Academy and the Harvard Kennedy School, he is an adjunct lecturer at the University of Dayton, and his TEDx Talk called The Culture of a Fighter Squadron is one of the best I’ve seen.

Notes:

• American Fighter Sqaudrons are the most effective teams on the planet. Cockiness is unacceptable. Humility is a critical quality and skill to be part of the team.
  • The subculture is you check your rank at the door. When you lead a mission, you’re in charge of the debrief. I love building a culture where feedback is regularly given both ways. And the trust created amongst the team to be able to do this with psychological safety.
• The real training and learning take place in the debrief…Spending hours pouring over video, computer graphic reenactments, radio calls, everything… To diagnose exactly what went right and what didn’t and why. The debriefs can last multiple days to describe 10 minutes of action.
  • The person who leads the debrief is the flight leader. That person is not necessarily the most experienced member of the team. Fighter squadrons share the leadership and followership duties constantly. You might have a situation where it’s a 24-year-old lieutenant telling a 2-star General in front of the entire room, “You screwed up and this is why we failed the mission because of it.” This creates a mixture of perfectionism and humility.
• Building a culture takes time. Trust is built from character and competence.
  • How do you reward and incentivize behavior?
  • You're modeling what you want others to do.