Designing Schools

Today’s guest has a career that has taken him from working with software to working with humans allowing him to be a leader who helps organizations stay relevant.

Douglas Ferguson is an entrepreneur and human-centered technologist with over 20 years of experience. He is president of Voltage Control, an Austin-based innovation workshop agency that specializes in in-person and virtual Design Sprints and Innovation Workshops. He is also the author of three books: Beyond the Prototype, How to Remix Anything (co-authored), and Start Within (co-authored).

In this episode Douglas shares:

• Why we are living through a huge experiment and the results that can come from this
• How teams can work better together to work at their highest abilities.
• The relationship between design thinking and design sprints.
• Why the design sprint is the first step and how you can move beyond the prototype
• How you can empower the edges and allow everyone to be creative within organizations
• What you didn't learn in school that you need to know to thrive in the world of work

You can connect with Douglas at VoltageControl.com. 

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.

Alvin Toffler said, “The illiterate of the 21st century are not those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn?”

Covid-19 has catapulted us into the future and we need to think about how to future proof ourselves.

As we think about how we can adapt and thrive in times of change, workforce futurist Keith Keiting joins me this week to talk about how we can use design thinking to learn, unlearn and relearn.

To connect with Keith join him on LinkedIn.

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.  

Now that many of us are set up in our remote work environments… what comes next? As the world transitions to a new way of working Ross Chapman, head of Etch Sprints, a design consultancy within Etch Group, is curious about how might we use this crisis to work better together.

In this week’s episode Ross shares why the world of work is ripe for disruption and why the opportunity is now for you to make a difference. Ross has been preparing leaders and organizations in how to work remotely in a global and connected world pre pandemic.

You can connect with Ross on LinkedIn here. You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.

Now more than ever people are looking for ideas, solutions, guidance and examples. If you have an idea to share, a best practice that may not seem special to you because it’s just how you do things, know that for others it may be the greatest gift you can share.

We always talk about how finding the gaps can lead to opportunities for design. As Jay found himself facilitating workshops for a number of organizations he found a major gap in being able to truly innovate - a lack of trust amongst teams. In today’s episode Jay and I discuss:

• The current situation unfolding with COVID-19 and strategies for moving towards remote workshops and collaboration.
• How to establish trust amongst a team to foster a culture of collaboration where innovation thrives.
• How to design a culture that provides everyone with a voice and platform to share their thoughts and ideas.
• How to utilize the ICBD framework to help teams begin a project.

To learn more from Jay you can connect with him on LinkedIn, or visit his website at New Haircut.

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter or visit my website askmsq.com.

"The counterfeit innovator is wildly self-confident. The real one is scared to death.” Steven Pressfield

This week I want to share stories and strategies for overcoming the fear of failure and how we can embrace change in our lives and in the workplace. A few months back I had the pleasure of being interviewed by my good friend Michael Hernandez. His podcast, Change the Narrative, is one of my absolute favorites! His unique and captivating style of telling stories is unlike any other. 

In this episode I discuss:

• Why empathy is key to designing a culture of innovation
• What a collaborative sounding board is and why you need one
• Why and how you need to develop your sense of self efficacy
• Strategies for how to overcome a fear of failure

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.

Our lives are defined by the conversations we can or cannot have. Pause. Read that again - our lives are defined by the conversations we can or cannot have. 

From the bedroom to the boardroom and in all the hallways in between we design conversations with others daily. Not only do we have conversations with others, there is an ongoing conversation happening all the time, perhaps the most important one of all, the conversation we have with ourselves. When I came across today’s guest, Daniel Stillman it occurred to me that despite not only having but leading conversations day in and day out no one had ever really taught me the art of how to design one. 

If you are a leader, a significant other or anyone who has conversations then this episode is for you! 

In this episode Daniel shares:

• How the conversations we have with ourselves and the voices inside our head determine the life we live
• The Conversation OS framework and how it can help you design better conversations
• Why products, teams and organizations are also conversations and why it is essential they be designed to help drive business outcomes
• The art of how we invite others into the conversations we have to create cultures of innovation
• A preview into his new book, “Good Talk: How to Design Conversations that Matter.”

Daniel designs conversations for a living, and insists that you actually do that too. As an independent design facilitator, he works with clients and organizations of all shapes and sizes (From Google to Visa, to name a few) to help them frame and sustain productive and collaborative conversations, deepen their facilitation skills, and coach them through the innovation process. His first book, The Paper Airplane Experiment and the 30 Second Elephant is about origami and teams and yes, it’s as strange as it sounds. Daniel hosts, “The Conversation Factory” podcast where he interviews leaders, changemakers and innovators on how they design the conversations in their work and lives. He’s here today to share how we can better design conversations and give us a preview inside his new book, “Good Talk: How to Design Conversations that Matter,” releasing April 2 with free chapters available for download here.

I hope you all enjoy my conversation with Daniel Stillman, and as always we’d love if you tag us online and share your thoughts and takeaways. 

You can visit Daniel’s website here to learn more and connect with him across his social channels.

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.

Give back on your way up. That’s not just Mikhail’s signature line, it’s also a practice he lives by. Mikhail Alfon is the co-founder and President of Blue Light Media in Orange County, CA.  His experience in marketing and leadership has grown into a fast growing digital marketing agency helping businesses and brands spanning from health and wellness supplements to real estate developments.

That’s not where he started though, Mikhail is passionate about sharing his story of going from a licensed vocational nurse to professional poker player to marketing entrepreneur.  His belief is that with a positive mindset, clear vision and strong work ethic, anything can be accomplished.

Mikhai is the host of Oversharing, a podcast with interviews that will inspire, empower, and motivate you to become your best self in your business and personal life. This summer he’ll be releasing his book, “Digitally Designed: How to Build an Extraordinary Life Using Social Media.”

His writing has been featured on Entrepreneur.com, and his library of videos on Facebook and YouTube has made him one of the most sought after speakers and presenters on Orange County

In this episode Mikhail shares:

• How examining his adversities led to a deeper level of self awareness and why he believes a lack of knowledge does not deter you from success
• The daily practices that have become rituals to enhance and develop a design thinking mindset that strengthens his creative confidence 
• How he shifted his decision making process to impact his personal and professional outcomes
• How his relationship with his fiance 
• A preview of what he is sharing in his upcoming book, “Digitally Designed: How to Build an Extraordinary Life Using Social Media”

I hope you all enjoy my conversation with Mikhail Alfon, and as always we’d love if you tag us online and share your thoughts and takeaways. 

You can visit Mikhail’s website here, or connect with Mikhail on LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter.

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com. 

His mantra is don’t make a living, design a life. This isn’t coming from an individual who is reflecting back upon their life and sharing advice, this is coming from 22 year old Jordan Paris who is designing a life that most would envy and he is here today to share his story and strategies for how you can do so as well. 

Jordan is an author, entrepreneur and podcaster who has been featured in Forbes, Men’s Health, NASDAQ and many others. We talk about the importance of cultivating a growth mindset and Jordan lives this practice as a host of Growth Mindset University - ranking in the top ten in a number of competitive categories not just in the United States but worldwide. Some of his guests include James Altucher, Grant Cardone, Mark Manson, Naveen Jain and Dan Lok and later this year he is giving his first Ted Talk. Jordan also just released another book, “The Winning Game Plan to Build an Audience and Make Money as a Podcaster.”

This is an episode you will want to share far and wide because Jordan’s story could be the motivation and advice someone needs to begin step one in designing their life.

In this episode Jordan shares:

• His journey as an entrepreneur and why he believes college could be a waste of your time
• The opportunities young people have today and why he wrote, “The Podcast Playbook.”
• How he created a top ranking podcast with some of the most coveted guests as a college student?
• Why he wrote, “The Podcast Playbook: The Winning Game Plan to Build an Audience and Make Money as a Podcaster,” and why it can help you.
• The topic of his upcoming Ted Talk and why he hopes it is the start of a movement

I hope you all enjoy my conversation with Jordan Paris, and as always we’d love if you tag us online and share your thoughts and takeaways. 

You can connect visit Jordan’s website here, or connect with Jordan on LinkedIn and Instagram. You can purchase The Podcast Playbook: here and definitely subscribe to Growth Mindset University. 

You can connect with me, Sabba on LinkedIn,  Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com. 

When people think about design thinking, it’s often in reference to the creation of new products and services. However, when you begin to adopt design thinking practices in different areas of your life you begin to develop a design mindset. IDEO identifies 8 mindsets that are fundamental to building the mindset muscle so that you can enhance and develop your ability to think like a designer. Designers transform not just products and services, but organizations, the people and challenges around them and above all the life they live. 

To examine just how powerful these mindsets can be in creating change it is with great enthusiasm that I introduce you to Julia McCoy. Julia is a serial content marketer, entrepreneur, and author. She founded a multi-million dollar content agency, Express Writers, with nothing more than $75 at 19 years old. Today, Julia has been named an industry thought leader in content marketing by Forbes, is the author of two bestselling books, and creator of The Content Hacker, a resource for growth-focused content marketers. Julia's latest and third book, a genre-defying nonfiction narrative memoir, Woman Rising, launches in February of 2020. Follow her on Twitter @JuliaEMcCoy.

In this episode Julia shares:

• How she escaped a cult and founded a multi million dollar content agency.
• How she leveraged the design thinking mindsets to overcome her barriers to success.
• Why she wrote her newest book, “Woman Rising” and what you can expect to learn when you read it.
• Why she helped her daughter launch a YouTube channel and how she is raising her daughter to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

I hope you all enjoy my conversation with Julia McCoy, and as always we’d love if you tag us online and share your thoughts and takeaways. 

You can connect visit Julia’s website here, or connect with Julia on Twitter @JuliaEMcCoy. You can purchase Woman Rising on Amazon here. 

You can connect with me, Sabba on Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.

How will you navigate the GPS of your career? Whether you are about to enter the world of work or if you are already in it, you know it’s a road filled with digital disruptions acting as blind spots along the way. As Jim Marous shares in this episode, change is happening faster than ever before yet it will never happen this slowly again. It can be challenging in times like this to stay relevant and informed about what change means for your industry and for you as an individual. In this episode Jim shares why a personal brand is critical to your self education and why you should use it to show and tell the marketplace that you are the master of your domain. 

In this episode Jim Marous, an internationally recognized financial industry strategist named one of the most influential people in banking and top 5 finch influencers to follow, reframes the purpose of why you should have a personal brand calling it the most important self education tool that is going to be critical to helping you thrive and stay relevant in the age of disruption. He’s the co-publisher of The Financial Brand, owner of the Digital Banking Report and host of the Banking Transformed podcast. As a sought after keynote speaker, author and recognized authority on disruption in the financial services industry, Marous has been a contributor to Forbes, CNN, CNBC, The Wall Street Journal and many other news outlets. He’s with us here today to share his journey of disruption and why he believes building your personal brand is the key to life long learning and staying relevant in a rapidly changing world.  

In this episode Jim shares:

• How you can take control of the GPS of your career
• Why building a personal brand is the best form of self education 
• How you can show and tell the marketplace that you are the master of your domain
• Why building a personal brand is not always about building a business
• Advice on how to navigate your brand for those who want to get started and for those who are already established
• Why there is room for everyone to take a share of the opportunity pie

I hope you all enjoy my conversation with Jim Marous, and as always we’d love if you tag us online and share your thoughts and takeaways. 

You can connect visit Jim’s website here, or connect with Jim on Twitter @JimMarous, and on LinkedIn. You can also listen to his podcast Banking Transformed. 

You can connect with me, Sabba on Instagram and Twitter @AskMsQ or visit my website askmsq.com.