Systematic Leader

Join us for a discussion about building a team that cares about each other and supports one another. Lauren Cockerell is the CEO of Kwedar & Co. One of my favorite parts of the interview is when she shares how she leads

Highlights from the interview:

1. Technique for coaching employees

Lauren explains that she uses the Rockefeller Habits and Scaling Up methodology, with a focus on quarterly goals, KPIs, and team alignment.

2. Quarterly goal-setting and review process

Lauren describes Kwedar's quarterly goal-setting process, where the team aligns on annual priorities, breaks them down into quarterly "rocks", and then tracks progress and celebrates successes at the end of each quarter. She emphasizes the importance of having measurable KPIs and involving the whole team.

3. Using core values to guide decisions

Lauren shares how Kwedar's core values are central to their operations used to guide decisions and have difficult conversations. She explains how the values create a common language and framework for the team.

4. PR and marketing systems

Karl and Lauren discuss Kwedar's approach to PR and marketing, emphasizing the importance of having an integrated, strategic system that aligns messaging across all channels. Lauren outlines Kwedar's process for planning, pitching, and executing PR campaigns.

5. Challenges of scaling and delegating

Lauren shares one of her current challenges - continuing to remove herself from the center of the business and delegate more to her team as Kwedar scales. She discusses using frameworks like the Accountability Chart to map out roles and responsibilities.

6. Influential leaders and mentors

Lauren reflects on two key leaders who have mentored and influenced her - her first boss, Paige Hendrix, and her recent EO coach, Robert Whitaker. She shares how she has applied lessons learned from them in building her own business.

You can learn more about Lauren Cockerell over at her website Kwedar & Co. You can also connect with her on LinkedIn.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!

Join us for a discussion about creating processes so your company can run more efficiently. Layla Pomper is the CEO of Process Driven. One of my favorite parts of the interview is how she protects her time and her team’s time so they can do high-impact work.

You can join the 5 Day Proactive Feedback Challenge to build a feedback systems that improves your team and company's systems.

Highlights from the interview:

1. Layla's journey to becoming more process-driven

Layla explains that her tendency towards creativity and chaos is what motivated her to develop more structured processes and systems in her business. She discusses how observing her own workflows and documenting the steps helped her systematize her work and eventually teach others.

2. Encouraging feedback and transparency on the team

Layla shares how she has built a culture on her team that actively encourages critical feedback and the open reporting of mistakes as a way to continuously improve processes and avoid repeating issues.

3. Frameworks for protecting time and focus

Layla outlines three key frameworks her team uses to defend their time and capacity from distractions: 1) a "no Friday tasks" policy, 2) a 20-hour weekly task limit for leadership, and 3) dedicated time for "shiny object" ideas and creativity.

4. Cultivating a playful approach to content creation

Layla discusses her approach to the creative aspects of her business, such as her YouTube channel, where she allows herself to be more playful and experimental without too much structure.

5. Influential mentors and recommended resources

Layla shares the impact of a college professor who helped her develop her communication skills, and recommends the book "Playing Big" by Tara Mohr as a resource for strategic thinking.

You can learn more about Layla Pomper over at Process Driven. You can also watch her YouTube channel, of the same name, Process Driven on YouTube. She is also on LinkedIn if you want to connect with her there.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!

Join us for a discussion about focusing on the one thing that matters in our lives. Jay Papasan is a best-selling author and CEO. One of my favorite parts of this interview is when he shares the question that Gary Keller asked him to hone in on finding the best executive assistant for him and his company.

Highlights from the interview.

Jay Papasan's background and partnership with Gary Keller

Jay Papasan has been working with Gary Keller, the founder of Keller Williams Realty, for 24 years. They have co-authored 11 books together, including the bestselling "The One Thing". Jay's role involves managing content and creating strategic content for Keller Williams and their publishing company.

The importance of finding the right Executive Assistant (EA)

Jay has had 7 EAs over the years, and it took him some time to find the right fit. He emphasizes the importance of clearly defining the 3 critical skills the EA must have, rather than just listing out all the tasks. The right EA can help liberate the executive from administrative tasks and serve as a true business partner.

Establishing priorities and systems for productivity 

Jay uses a "411" system to set annual, monthly, and weekly goals, which he shares with his EA. This helps them stay aligned on priorities and make the right decisions about how to spend time. Jay also cautions against chasing the latest productivity tools or systems, instead focusing on making incremental improvements to the right processes.

Empowering employees and building accountability

Jay believes in building accountability relationships with his team, including his EA. He encourages them to provide honest feedback and push back when needed, rather than just deferring to him. This helps ensure he stays focused on his priorities and makes the right decisions.

You can learn more about Jay Papasan over at his website Jay Papasan About Page. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn. Check out his brilliant book, The One Thing (Amazon Link), which he co-authored with Gary Keller.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!

Join us for a discussion about listening to your customers and how it can help you uncover hidden opportunities. Tim Grahl is the CEO of Story Grid Publishing. One of my favorite parts of this interview is when Tim talks about how he interviewed over 500 customers to get to the heart of his business.

Storytelling framework for business

Tim explains his framework for crafting a resonant story - deeply understanding his target audience through hundreds of customer interviews to uncover their true motivations and pain points, then aligning the company's messaging and offerings to directly address those needs.

Empowering employees with the company vision

Tim discusses how he sets a clear vision for the company and communicates it to his growing team. He emphasizes the importance of giving employees autonomy, making observations and asking questions rather than dictating, and ensuring they understand how their work connects to the overall mission. Tim also shares his approach to addressing problems as opportunities for improvement rather than crises.

Staying connected to customers as the business scales

As Storygrid has grown from 5 to 15 employees, Tim has maintained a regular cadence of customer calls and exit interviews to stay closely connected to his audience. He explains how this helps him anticipate issues, make data-driven improvements, and ensure the company's offerings continue to meet customer needs even as the business scales.

Gratitude for a key business mentor

Tim expresses gratitude for his business coach, Michael Walsh of Walsh Business Growth, who has been instrumental in guiding Tim to build out systems and empower his team as the company has grown, rather than trying to do everything himself.

You can learn more about Tim Grahl over at Story Grid Publishing. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!

Join us for a discussion about helping people find value in their work. Michelle Scribner is the CEO of the Sum of All Numbers accounting firm. One of my favorite parts of the interview was when she talked about her Monday morning routine and why it helps with employee engagement.

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1. Embracing Systems

Michelle discusses how she initially viewed systems as restrictive but now sees them as freeing when designed properly. She explains how systems can automate tasks and protect a business, even if the owner is no longer able to do them personally.

2. Monday Morning Routine

Michelle describes her company's Monday morning meeting structure, which includes a leadership team meeting, an all-hands meeting to review the mission and provide training, and a middle management meeting. This system helps align the team, solve urgent issues, and provide consistent onboarding for new hires.

3. Understanding Employee Personalities

Michelle emphasizes the importance of understanding her team's personality types and communication styles. She adapted her leadership approach to better suit the needs of her introverted, change-averse employees rather than expecting them to adapt to her extroverted style.

4. Transparent Communication

Michelle discusses her approach to sharing information with her team, balancing transparency with avoiding unnecessary anxiety. She consults her leadership team to determine what details to share and how to frame difficult news in a way that empowers employees.

5. Empowering Employees

Michelle strives to empower her team by setting high expectations, providing feedback and development opportunities, and allowing them to take ownership of their work. She struggles with the balance of supporting them and letting them learn from their own mistakes.

6. Recommended Resource

Michelle recommends the book "Traction" as a valuable resource for leadership principles and implementing effective systems in a business.

You can learn more about Michelle Scribner over at Sum of All Numbers. You can also connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Join us for a live coaching call with an entrepreneur who wants to improve his courses and scale his business. We talk through some of the internal system issues he is facing and how he can improve them. My favorite part of the interview is when he talks about the four powerful “Aha’s” that came out of our session together.

1. The importance of systems and processes

Karl emphasizes the value of having well-defined systems and processes in a business, rather than just chasing revenue and profit. He explains the concept of the "flywheel" and how consistent, iterative improvements to processes can lead to compounding results over time.

2. Therman's business and leadership challenges

Therman discusses his background as a consultant, developer, and trainer, and his desire to focus more on the training aspect of his business, which he sees as more scalable. He shares his concerns about taking on a leadership role and managing employees, as he has not had that experience before.

3. Embracing the "Chief Repeating Officer" mindset

Therman has an "aha" moment when Karl introduces the concept of being a "Chief Repeating Officer" - someone who consistently communicates the vision and importance of tasks to their team. Therman realizes that he already does this effectively with his customers, and can apply the same approach with his family and any future employees.

4. Focusing on one course and building a system

Therman acknowledges that he has been trying to work on multiple courses simultaneously, which has prevented him from fully optimizing any one of them. He decides to focus his energy on his "Risk Register" course, building a structured process around it, including potentially hiring a co-host to help with accountability and production.

5. Developing a roadmap and setting expectations

Therman and Karl discuss creating a 3-month roadmap, with the first 6 weeks focused on Therman embracing the "Chief Repeating Officer" mindset, particularly with his family. They also emphasize the importance of setting clear expectations and celebrating successes along the way.

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Join us for a discussion about creating investment systems that help you in business and your portfolio. Rob Wolff is the founder of Digital Asset News. One of my favorite parts of this interview is his framework for investing. This segment alone is well worth your time.

Rob first learned about Bitcoin in 2012 when his son told him about a friend who wanted to sell 500 bitcoins for $500. Rob was initially skeptical, but after seeing Bitcoin's price rise to $1,000 in 2013 and then $5,000 in 2017, he decided to start investing. He went through cycles of gains and losses but ultimately decided to keep investing through dollar-cost averaging.

Building Digital Asset News

In 2019, as Rob's friends and family grew tired of him talking about Bitcoin, he decided to start the Digital Asset News YouTube channel to share his insights with a wider audience. The channel has now grown to over 350,000 subscribers, with Rob and his team using a system to research, curate, and present daily crypto news and analysis.

Investment Principles and Strategies

Rob discusses his key investment principles. My favorite was #5. Take profits along the way. He also talks about diversifying across different asset classes like real estate and small businesses.

Building a Productive Routine and Lifestyle

Rob shares how he has structured his life and daily routine to maximize his time and minimize stress. He emphasizes the importance of simplicity and removing unnecessary burdens, rather than constantly adding more possessions or obligations. Rob's morning routine of walking the dogs, drinking coffee, and working out helps him prepare for the day's tasks.

Recommendations

Rob recommends the book "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius and the writings of Ryan Holiday as great resources for developing a stoic, systematic approach to life and leadership. He also invites the listener to check out the Digital Asset News YouTube channel for more of his insights on crypto and investing.

You can learn more about Rob Wolff over at Digital Asset News. You can also connect with him on Twitter/X.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!

Join us for a discussion about the importance of stepping back to align your work with your goals. Simone Severino is the founder of Strategy Spints. One of my favorite parts of this interview is when Simone shares his framework that helps leaders create a more innovative team culture.

1. Importance of strategy

Simone and Karl discuss why strategizing is often difficult for busy professionals who are focused on solving immediate problems and delivering results. They emphasize the need to periodically "pull your head out of the water" to assess if you're swimming in the right direction at the right pace.

2. The 90-day strategy sprint framework

Simone explains the 90-day strategy sprint program used at Strategy Sprints, which focuses on incrementally improving 3 key metrics over 3 months to effectively double revenue: pricing power, win rate, and sales velocity. The process involves weekly strategy and implementation sprints, with a dashboard to track progress.

3. Embracing failure and learning

Simone and Karl discuss the importance of embracing failure and using it as a learning opportunity. They encourage teams to experiment, try new things, and report on their failures during the weekly review sessions, as this is how true innovation happens.

4. Maintaining momentum and focus

Simone describes two types of "business meditations" used at Strategy Sprints - the weekly 30-minute sprint review, and the 90-day focus card review when teams need to re-align on priorities. This helps maintain momentum while also providing space for reflection and course correction.

You can learn more about Simone Severino over at Strategy Sprints. You can also find him on LinkedIn. You can check out the his book Strategy Sprints on Amazon.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Dig to Fly website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!

Join us for a discussion about documenting your leadership standards and why it’s so important. Therman Trotman is the founder of The Sharepoint Helpdesk. One of my favorite parts of the interview is his story about why he didn’t think he could document his leadership approach and how he was going to start doing this to help his team understand his standards.

Highlights from the interview:

1. Therman's leadership journey and challenges

Therman shared that he has struggled with being intentional about his leadership, as he has naturally fallen into leadership roles but finds it challenging to directly manage and hold people accountable. He discussed how he is more comfortable providing advice and guidance when disconnected from the outcome, versus when he has a vested interest in the results as a business owner.

2. Documenting processes, values, and communication norms

Karl suggested that Therman document his leadership approach, including standard operating procedures, core values, and communication norms. This would help new hires understand Therman's expectations and style, rather than relying solely on verbal guidance. They discussed the importance of balancing prescriptive processes with flexibility to allow for creativity and problem-solving.

3. Overcoming distractions and maintaining focus 

Therman shared that he struggles with maintaining focus and feeling like he's not doing enough, even when he's accomplished his goals for the day. He discussed strategies like setting stretch goals, celebrating small wins, and using checklists or Pomodoro techniques to stay on track.

4. Gratitude and self-reflection

Karl emphasized the importance of gratitude and regularly reflecting on what's going well, rather than constantly focusing on what could be improved. They discussed how this mindset shift can help leaders avoid burnout and maintain a positive, growth-oriented perspective.

You can learn more about Therman Trotman over at The Share Point Helpdesk. You can also connect with Therman over on LinkedIn.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the inter

Join Austin LaRoche and me as we discuss balancing vision and execution as the leader of a company. Austin runs a technology consulting agency called Atak Interactive. One of my favorite parts of this interview is how Austin uses the company's core values to assess people’s performances.

Highlights from the interview:

1. Balancing vision and implementation 

Austin shares how his company adopted the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) to help balance his visionary tendencies with the need for structured implementation. He explains the importance of repeatedly communicating the company's vision and goals to ensure alignment and buy-in from the team.

2. Managing underperforming employees 

Austin discusses the cultural shifts and challenges that came with implementing EOS, including having to part ways with some employees who were not aligned with the new systems and processes. He outlines his approach of providing clear feedback and opportunities for improvement before making difficult personnel decisions.

3. Establishing standards for client relationships 

Austin describes his company's "3 P's" framework for evaluating potential clients - people, product, and performance. He explains how this helps them ensure a good fit and set appropriate expectations before engaging in a client relationship.

4. Embracing mistakes and driving continuous improvement 

Austin emphasizes the importance of creating a culture where people feel comfortable admitting and taking ownership of mistakes. He shares his "I am the problem, I am the solution" core value, which empowers employees to identify issues and propose solutions.

5. Lessons from mentors and personal growth 

Austin reflects on the positive influence of his father's approach to parenting and problem-solving, and how he has applied those lessons to leading his company. He also discusses the importance of self-awareness and managing one's inner critic to maintain a growth mindset.

You can learn more about Austin LaRoche over at ATAK Interactive. You can also connect with him over on LinkedIn.

As always, if you have any questions or want to submit a guest for the podcast that you think would be amazing, just reach out to me on the Systematic Leader website, and I’ll do my best to get them on. If you enjoy the interview, please take 30 seconds to rate the Systematic Leader podcast on your favorite platform. Thanks!