Syntropic World

Robb Smith is a leader and social innovator in human development and integral metatheory, advising entrepreneurs, executives and thought leaders on leading-edge social innovation, vertical development, leadership development and company growth.

He is CEO and co-founder, with American philosopher Ken Wilber, of Integral Life, a digital hub supporting the global trend towards meta-integrative human capacities (representing ~4% of adults in advanced economies). At Integral Life, he has spearheaded dialogues, courses and events that build skills and tackle pressing problems, including climate change and the rise of populism and the end of US hegemony. He has produced media and events that include Full Spectrum Mindfulness, The Future of Christianity, The Fourth Turning, WhatNEXT, Beyond Seeking, the Climate Leadership Campaign and Loving Completely.

He was founder and CEO of Chrysallis, the world's most comprehensive human development app, which offered hundreds of practices across more than 50 areas of human life. Chrysallis was nominated for the 2015 Goldman Sachs Healthcare Startup of the Year and the IONS award for Transformational Technology before being acquired in 2016 by ADURO, where he now chairs the Advisory Board and supports Fortune 500 companies to deploy full-spectrum human performance initiatives.

He was a co-founder and partner in Nevada Ventures, the state's first venture capital fund, dedicated himself to building Nevada's innovation economy (syndicating over $200 million in capital). He is a former director of Alere, a three-time Inc. 500 awardee, which became the largest population health management company in the United States.

Robb is a graduate of University of Nevada, the Venture Capital Institute and held the Certified Management Accountant and Certified in Financial Management designations. He is a fellow of Desert Research Institute, a former fellow of Aspen Institute and former trustee of Nevada Museum of Art. He was named to Nevada Top 20 under 40 lists in three different decades and in 2012 he was nominated for the TED Prize. He gave a TEDx talk in 2013 on The Transformational Life.

In a mushed up world of Politically Correct, hard right, hard left, #metoo, identity politics, too much/too little sexualization in the media, the rise of the fundamentalist view, this podcast provides contours for most of these experiences.

www.robbsmith.com

We experienced some minor technical issues with the recording. They do not take away from the conversation.

A seemingly insatiable curiosity, distinctive laugh and unique dress sense are three of Desmier’s more prominent features, but it’s his ability as a branding strategist that truly sets him apart from his peers.  Having originally trained as a designer (before realising his talents lay elsewhere), Matt is able to apply a design-thinking approach to help businesses understand their positioning, their messaging and their audience’s motivations, and he uses these tools to help authentic brands evolve.  Through his agency Wise Old Uncle (a loose collective of equally talented individuals), Desmier and his team have worked with some impressive organisations, including the UK’s largest crowdfunding platform, the UK’s most respected insurance company and a global leader in mapping technology, helping them discover their voice, grow their audience and develop products and services fit for the 21st century.  A regular feature on many annual digital lists (including the BIMA’s Top 100, the Maserati 100 and the Digital Leaders Top 100, where he came Runner Up as SME Digital Leader of the Year), Matt is an influential digital champion in the UK and his counsel has been sought by the likes of 10 Downing Street and St James’ Palace, as well some other far less prestigious organisations.  When he’s not busy running around helping brands, he’s busy running around picking up after his two young children or, as a keen runner, he’s just busy running. In this episode we discuss confidence, vulnerability, dealing with the darkness of depression and anxiety, women in leadership, being a father and choosing to be a very present and engaged father, and much more.

In this exquisite conversation with Peter Thompson, 5th generation farmer from rural Queensland in Australia (near Roma), I came to the realisation that stewardship of land with the fluency and capability that is part of Peter’s DNA is as relevant to leadership of any enterprise that holds the ongoing health and wellbeing of ALL of humanity and Earth. Indeed, the role of leader as steward in our business enterprises could well learn from farmers such as Peter. 

In Peter’s words,

” I am a farmer who is passionate about agriculture and its valuable contribution to modern society. I believe we must operate as a team in conjunction with our urban counterparts for the long term financial and environmental sustainability of Australia. I believe by encouraging ways for people to connect to the land they will be able to keep their lives in a healthy perspective in this fast paced and rapidly changing world.”