The Inner Chief

In this episode, we meet Mia Feasey, Founder and CEO of Siren Design.

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Mia founded Siren in 2005 as a place for creatives to thrive. With ambition, hard work, and an ability to think differently, Siren has flourished from a disruptive start-up, into Australasia's leading interior design consultancy.

Led by an all-female management team, Mia's team has created award-winning projects for some of the most innovative companies on the globe. Their values reflect those of an entrepreneurial spirit and a true creative, and their secret lies in finding the compelling sweet spot between innovation and practicality.

In this episode we talk about:

• What she learnt from being a singer in a girl-band that was lining up to be contracted by Sony and take on The Spice Girls;
• The power of being creative but also knowing the practical things;
• The importance of knowing your customer and what she learnt from a customer who took the time to give her accurate feedback;
• The power of mentors and peer groups;
• How her team has taken on the challenge to transform the interior design industry and its impact on the planet to being regenerative.

Connecting with Mia Feasey

You can reach Mia on LinkedIn.

Books and resources mentioned in the episode

• Harvard Business Review (HBR)

Welcome to the fourth and FINAL episode in our 2019 Winter Wisdom Series: a collection of the best of the best from our first 128 episodes of The Inner Chief podcast.

In our first three episodes, we covered Reading Recommendations, How to Get Unstuck and Mentors.

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We're closing out the Winter Wisdom Series with pure wisdom. The ultimate advice. A collection of answers to my favourite podcast question… If you could offer the next generation one final piece of advice, what would it be?

This question has been asked to more than 50 CEOs and Gurus.

The words of our Chiefs and Gurus is nothing short of inspirational. I'd love to include all of them. But to make this a quick and easy listen, I've made a shortlist and I've identified 7 Key messages in the process. They are…

1. The only constant is change
2. Do what you LOVE, and LOVE what you do
3. Take risks. It's OK to fail
4. It's all about people and relationships
5. Only YOU can create your future
6. BUT… You don't have to do it on your own
7. Look after yourself and HAVE FUN.

Welcome to the third episode in our 2019 Winter Wisdom Series: a collection of the best of the best from our first 128 episodes of The Inner Chief podcast.

Go to: www.chiefmaker.com.au/131

Complete your FREE Career Scorecard: www.chiefmaker.com.au/score-card

So far we've covered Reading Recommendations and How to Get Unstuck. And this week we're talking about Mentors.

In this episode, we're going to cover the following:

1. WHY having a mentor is so important;
2. HOW to get a mentor and WHO to approach;
3. WHAT to do once you have one;
4. The impact of having a mentor on your career and personal development; and
5. Networking your way to a mentor.

We asked more than 50 CEOs about the importance of mentors in their career journey. Every single one of them sees them as a critical element. Let's find out more.

Welcome to the second episode in our 2019 Winter Wisdom Series: a collection of the best of the best from our first 128 episodes of The Inner Chief podcast.

Go to: www.chiefmaker.com.au/130

Complete your FREE Career Scorecard: www.chiefmaker.com.au/score-card

Last week we looked at the Top 5 Reads, as recommended by our Chiefs & Gurus. Hope you've all added them to your reading list or your devices!

This week we've compiled all of the advice from our Chiefs & Gurus around what to do when you become stuck. So we're going to cover 3 Steps for Getting Unstuck and 4 Key Considerations when going through the process.

How do you know when you're stuck? What action should you take? And who should you turn to?

Maybe this is you right now or you can see someone that you care about is in this situation.

You're unsure about your next career move, feeling stalled, not satisfied or you're no longer making an impact in your work. Or maybe you're just unsure about what to do next.

Well, I've asked more than 50 CEOs what to do when you get stuck and this episode outlines what they had to say.

Stay epic,

Greg

Welcome to our 2019 Winter Wisdom Series, which is a collection of the best of the best from our first 128 episodes of The Inner Chief podcast.

Today's topic is Top Reads and we explore the 5 most recommended books by our Chiefs and Gurus.

These books are not about visionary products or visionary leaders, they're about visionary companies and what it is that makes the truly exceptional companies different from the others.

Built to Last

Good to Great

While these aren't business books, they're a profound study into human history. Drawing insights from biology, anthropology, palaeontology and economics and exploring how history has shaped our societies and our personalities. Life-changing reads, I promise!

Sapiens

Homo Deus

Like all of Patrick's books, this one is a compelling fable with a simple but powerful message. He reveals the 5 dysfunctions that go to the very heart of why teams (even the very best ones) often struggle. If you're leading a team or trying to build a culture that thrives, this is a must-read.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

This is a spiritual guidebook; a manual for understanding exactly how to 'live in the now'. It also has the benefit of markers throughout the book that symbolise 'break time' ie. when you should close the book, put it down and mull over what you've just read. Not in any way a business book, but a guidebook for living a purposeful life and being the best possible version of yourself.

The Power of Now

While I'm forever frustrated when the Wallabies lose to the All Blacks, I'm also forever in awe of what the All Blacks stand for: their culture, passion, teamwork and performance is like no other sporting team in history.

And like Neil Craig said, there's no need to reinvent the wheel. Success leaves clues and we should learn from these. So if you're trying to build a high performance team culture, something that lasts the test of time, then this is a great read for you.

Legacy

I think there are three key themes:

1. 1. People come first

      Uniting and aligning your people is the single most important factor in building a successful team and a successful business.

   2. It's not all fun and games

      Building a high performance team isn't easy. It takes focus, energy, commitment and accountability. But while high performance teams might be challenging, they're ultimately the most rewarding groups to be part of.

   3. Self-awareness

      Whether it's for the benefit of our team, our business or our own personal lives, self-awareness is critical. We must learn about 'us' first. We must debunk our own thinking, bias and beliefs. You can't live a life of purpose until you unpack yourself.

And that's it for the first of our Winter Wisdom Series.

Stay epic,

Greg

In this episode, we meet Justin McNamara, Psychometrics Guru on improving recruitment selection, performance prediction and acing psychometric tests.

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Justin trained as an Occupational Psychologist.

He has worked with a variety of businesses in most industries to improve the performance of their people in Europe, the Middle East and Australia.

He has a side-business, Advantage Punter which focuses on Machine Learning, with their product correctly predicting the 2018 Melbourne Cup winner!

In this episode we talk about:

• What Psychometrics are and aren't and which ones are useful in the recruitment process;
• Knowing the markers for success for predicting both performance and leadership;
• The future of Psychometrics and big data; and
• The key factors in ensuring you can ace a psychometric test.

Connecting with Justin McNamara

You can reach Justin on LinkedIn. You can also view the People Excellence Ltd website to see what his business is all about.

Books and resources mentioned in the episode

• Practice psychometric tests:
• • https://www.shldirect.com/en/practice-tests
  • https://www.savilleassessment.com/practice-tests
  • https://www.trytalentq.com
• Talent Intelligence - by Nik Kinley
• Mind Over Mood - by Dennis Greenberger
• Advantage Punter - To learn more about how to get accurate tips for your favourite sport

In this episode, we meet Tim Oberg, CEO of parkrun Australia on escaping the rat race, building a community and dealing with anxiety.

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Tim has a background in teaching and travel, having set up his own tour business in London in the early 2000s.

He stumbled upon the parkrun concept in the UK in 2010 and pitched to the owner to be the one to take it to Australia.

parkrun is a free, weekly, timed 5km run at more than 350 locations in Australia and many more globally.

Tim lives in Airlie Beach with his wife and 3 kids.

In this episode we talk about:

• Tim's epic back story that got him to where he is today - you'll really love this as it's one of the most in-depth, interesting and crazy ones we've ever had on the Inner Chief podcast;
• The courage he showed in repeatedly escaping the rat race to start his own businesses;
• Growing the parkrun Australia community from nothing to the biggest of its kind in the country; and
• How he has survived and thrived despite having dealt with anxiety.

Connecting with Tim Oberg

You can reach Tim on LinkedIn and Twitter, and you can go to the parkrun website and see what it is all about.

Books and resources mentioned in the episode

• Headspace app
• Beating Anxiety - SBS Insight TV show that Tim appeared on
• parkrun, anxiety and me - article posted by Tim after his recovery
• Dare - by Barry McDonagh

In this episode, we meet Nancy Slessenger, Founder and CEO of Vinehouse Hiring on scientific recruitment, the do's and don'ts of interviewing, and staff retention.

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Nancy has a Bachelor of Physics degree from the University of Nottingham and her first job was as a Production Manager at Mars Electronics.

Her love of graphs and mathematics gave her the inspiration to solve the biggest challenge in the recruitment industry - hiring and keeping the best staff.

She created a remote recruitment system that has a >90% success rate compared to the industry average of 30%.

Nancy founded Vinehouse in 1995 and works with clients worldwide.

In this episode we talk about:

• Her scientific approach to recruitment and how it has been so successful;
• Why star performers often don't interview well;
• What most leaders get wrong about recruitment and what that could cost your business; and
• What candidates should do to absolutely nail the job application process.

Connecting with Nancy Slessenger

You can reach Nancy on LinkedIn and via her business website, Vinehouse Hiring.

The Vinehouse shop has a wonderful range of books and booklets that Nancy has written, such as:

• Difficult People Made Easy
• Feedback for the Faint-hearted
• Praise and the Appraisal
• How to deal with Poor Performance
• How to Motivate Yourself and Others

Books and resources mentioned in the episode

• Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men - by Caroline Criado-Perez
• Factfulness - by Hans Rosling
• Mindset: The New Psychology of Success - by Carol Dweck
• The Luck Factor - by Richard Wiseman
• You can view some lectures from neuroscientist Marian Diamond on YouTube
• Video: Hamish and Andy fake reference check

Stay epic,

Greg

In this episode, we meet Mike Schneider, the current Managing Director of the Bunnings Group on career diversity, genuine empathy, and the 4Hs of authenticity.

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Before being appointed to the top role, Mike was the Managing Director of Bunnings Australia & New Zealand and had also led the store operations teams, having joined Bunnings in 2005.

His career has seen him hold a range of senior operational, commercial and human resource roles, both in retail and financial services, most notably at Target, Westpac and The Warehouse Group.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of NSW and has completed the Advanced Management Program at INSEAD, and the Advanced Strategic Management Program at IMD.

In this episode we talk about:

• How having a diverse career path has been to his benefit;
• Why genuine empathy and being a consistent not predictable leader has been the key to his success;
• What he means by an integrated life as opposed to work-life balance; and
• His 4Hs Framework that allows him to lead an authentic life.

You can reach Mike on LinkedIn.

For more info check out www.chiefmaker.com.au/124

Last week, our High Performance teams series concluded with part 25, namely Communication.

Today, I share the 5 stages that will set up the foundational success of your High Performance Team.

1. Philosophy, Frameworks and Analysis
2. Form the Team
3. Unite and Align the Team
4. Strategy and Tactics
5. Execute with Precision

Stay epic,

Greg