Unlabeled Leadership

I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 31, Chris Adams explains how a previous manager enhanced the performance review process and describes how a manager successfully encouraged a team to embrace a transformational change. Also, Chris advises us to use small, positive affirmations as feedback, which can have a substantial effect.

00:00 Prologue: Performance Consulting Changes Organizations for the Better

I’ve known Chris for several years and have had the privilege to work with him on some performance improvement projects and workshops. Chris is a dynamic facilitator and an exceptional performance consultant. Oh, yes, he’s also a technology wizard (compared to me).

01:42 Part 1: A Small Addition Amplifies the Performance Review Effect

In traditional performance reviews, managers discuss with employees their strengths and ways to improve. Next, they work with their employees on a development plan for the following twelve months. In this story, Chris shares one of his performance reviews that occurred early in his career and what his manager did that was different.

09:27 Part 2: Removing Barriers and Obstacles

Chris shares a story of how a manager of a team encouraged the direct reports to embrace a transformational change with enthusiasm and an open mind.

19:37 Part 3: Feedback with Positive Affirmations

Chris advises us to offer positive affirmations to encourage growth and to help others figure out ways to develop and enhance their contribution to the team and the organization.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Chris' LinkedIn and Twitter profiles

Chris’ Bio

Articles:

  Becoming a Strategic Learning Business Partner

  Consider the White Room: Curating Meaningful Learner Experiences

  Focus First on Results

Blog: Skill Is Not Performance (a tribute to Dana and Jim Robinson)

Gary DePaul's website 

Gary's books:

  What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

  Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:23 Climbing Higher Up by jhunger

09:08 Documentary by Praded

19:20 Uplifting Adventure Rock by pinkzebra

23:00 Fun and Flirtyby BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

I invite guests to share personal stories about small and large acts of leadership that help shape their lives.

In Episode 30, Jessica Tower explains how poetry can help business professionals, how one experience can change a culture, and how you can strengthen your storytelling.

00:00 Prologue:

Jessica consults with organizations about talent management. She explains how stories can connect people, strengthen cultures, and affect the bottom line. Through Tower & Company, Jessica helps clients develop their story talent.

01:30 Part 1: More Poets Commit Suicide than Prose Writers

What we learn from one discipline may help us in another discipline. For Jessica, studying poetry improved her skills in business.

06:11 Part 2: The Strength of Storytelling Locally and Nationally

Jessica shares two stories: one is about how an icebreaker exercise affected managers, their teams, and customers at a local office. The other is about how a fireside chat helped alleviate the fear of a nation.

15:24 Part 3: Who Is Your Protagonist?

A way to connect with others is through storytelling. Jessica talks about one common misstep professionals make with their stories.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Jessica’s LinkedIn Profile

Tower & Company, Jessica’s business

Jessica’s blogs

Jessica's Twitter and company Twitter

American poet, Mark Jarman

How FDR's 'Fireside Chats' Helped Calm a Nation in Crisis

Gary DePaul's website

Gary's books:

   What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

   Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:20 Quirky Accordion by pinkzebra

05:55 Sentimental by pinkzebra

12:59 There's Hope by OlexandrIgnatov

15:05 Folk Acoustic Guitar by pinkzebra

17:07 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology. I invite guests to share their expertise about small or big acts of leadership.

In Episode 29, Don Kirkey, an expert in workforce performance improvement, change management, and leadership development, talks about the importance of vulnerability, how you can build credibility by sharing your mistakes, and how crucial celebrations are.

00:00 Prologue: With International Leadership Experience

If you need help strengthening management performance, developing your organization, or managing your workforce, talk to Don. With more than thirty years of international leadership experience, Don knows how to develop employees, including executives and management. When he’s not consulting, he instructs as an associate graduate faculty member at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte through the Department of Educational Leadership.

02:36 Part 1: Being vulnerable and getting to know others builds trust and relationships

Don explains that a critical part of trust is being vulnerable. He also shares a story about executives who were encouraged to craft and share their leadership stories.

12:08 Part 2: Sharing your mistakes builds credibility

Don shares a working definition of humility and encourages us to ask for and seek honest feedback.

20:24 Part 3: Celebrations build community, connect events to values, renew commitment, promote social support, and improve everyone’s well-being

In organizations, people should celebrate things we value that advance the business. Whether big or small, celebrations are beneficial for teams.

25:58 Part 4: An Essential Part of Management

To meet your directive to get things done through others, Don advises us to help others improve their capabilities to ultimately lead to success.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Don’s LinkedIn Profile

Don’s bio

Brené Brown The Power of Vulnerability (TED through YouTube)

“True humility is forming a just estimate of oneself” Charles H. Spurgeon, the 19th-century English Baptist preacher, in his sermon Self-Humbling: “True humility is forming a just estimate of oneself” (Sermon no. 748, May 5, 1867, Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington, UK).

Jim Collins’ book: Good to Great

Mary Parker Follett: The art of getting things done through people

Gary DePaul's website 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Uplift Corporate Inspire by OlexandrIgnatov

02:17 Jazz Piano Trio Restaurant by Praded

11:50 Motivational Orchestral Adventure by musicdream

20:05 Food Delivery by LoopsLab

25:39 Groovy Lounge Tune by LoopsLab

28:01 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 28, Lisa Toenniges explains the value of feedback, illustrates ways to empathize, challenges us with kindness, and advises us to allow for self-patience.

00:00 Prologue:

I met Lisa at an International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) conference. Through ISPI, I’ve learned about Lisa’s stewardship and desire to help new professionals strengthen their capabilities. Lisa owns Innovative Learning Group (ILG), a performance-first learning company headquartered in Troy, Michigan.

02:25 Part 1: Take in Feedback

Lisa talks about how crucial feedback is for personal development. She encourages us to seek feedback to raise our awareness and create an opportunity to change our behaviors.

07:48 Part 2: Empathy and Challenging with Kindness

Through two stories, Lisa illustrates how we can leverage empathy and challenge others with kindness.

16:24 Part 3: Daily Private Victories

Lisa advises us to be patient with ourselves, seek help, and manage our time effectively. She offers specific tactics to accomplish these three things.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Lisa’s LinkedIn Profile

Lisa’s Twitter

On My Own of Michigan(Lisa serves on the board of trustees)

Lisa’s company, Innovative Learning Group (ILG)

   Website

   LinkedIn company page

   Twitter

   blog

   YouTube

   Two podcasts

Covey’s Daily Private Victory (video 05:33)

Gary DePaul's website 

Gary’s books:

What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

02:10 Warm And Emotional Acoustic by DivaProductionMusic

07:33 Soul Hip-Hop by Bransboynd

12:26 Food Delivery by LoopsLab

16:05 Lovely Gipsy Jazz Ballad by Remstunes

19:44 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 27, Robynne Orr explains how she became happier working with others by changing her expectations. She explains the value of expressing value, and Robynne shares some practical advice.

00:00 Prologue: A Narrative Passion

Robynne is more than an architect for Yale University. She is a voiceover talent. In 2020, Robynne narrated my book, What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care? If you listen to the audiobook, you’ll quickly realize Robynne’s passion for nonfiction narration becomes apparent.

01:32 Part 1: Revisiting Expectations of Others

Through a personal story about two friends, Robynne gains a life-changing insight into her expectations from others.

07:29 Part 2: The Behavioral Thread of Expressing Value

While there are many stories about toxic work environments, Robynne relates a story that is the opposite. Imagine working at an organization in which executives, managers, and peers express how they value others.

13:56 Part 3: Modeling the Values that We Appreciate

Robynne advises us to adopt behaviors that exemplify how we value the people that we work with.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Robynne’s LinkedIn Profile

Robynne’s website, voice of R.ORR

Robynne’s ACX profile

Book narrated by Robynne: What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

Gary DePaul’s website

Another book by Gary DePaul: Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:19 Around The Next Corner by SeaportSound

07:10 Let’s Go Have Fun by pinkzebra

13:36 Inspiring Lite Rock by pinkzebra

19:28 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology. I invite guests to share their expertise about small or big acts of leadership.

In Episode 26, Peter Popovich, emotional intelligence expert, shares how we can understand the meaning of emotional intelligence, improve how we can benefit from an assessment, and advise us on strengthening our emotional intelligence.

00:00 Prologue: A Really Brief Introduction

Peter was the guest of Episode 006: Peter Popovich and the Pickled Lifelong Journey. Peter is my go-to professional about all things related to emotional intelligence.

00:52 Part 1: RUM Is an Acronym

The formal definition is…formal and difficult to recall. I prefer how Peter explains emotional intelligence as RUM2.

12:56 Part 2: The Good and Bad of Emotional Intelligence Assessments

Assessments may have some reliability challenges, but Peter has found some valuable ways that you can leverage your emotional intelligence assessment.

24:45 Part 3: Advice from the Four Areas of Emotional Intelligence

There are several tactics you can leverage to strengthen your emotional intelligence. Based on the four parts of emotional intelligence, Peter advises on developing self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management (the four areas are from the book Emotional Intelligence 2.0).

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Peter’s contact: [email protected]

Peter’s website (includes a bio page)

Peter’s LinkedIn Profile

Peter’s Facebook Profile

A Dictionary of Psychology (Fourth Edition)

Book: Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves

Theodore Roosevelt quotation

Gary DePaul's website 

Gary’s books:

  What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

  Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

00:33 Fun Places by LoopsLab

12:37 Inspiring Dreams by pinkzebra

24:25 Boogaloo by Remstunes

31:35 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 25, Jessica Bronzert discusses how she is handling the COVID-19 pandemic, shares stories about client’s creative ways to connect with employees, and advises us to learn how to be comfortable with ambiguity.

00:00 Prologue: Helping Organizations at Multiple Levels

Whether coaching an executive or orchestrating an enterprise intervention, Jessica and her team can drive needed performance change and personal growth. Jessica is the founding CEO of The Sparks Group, which offers executive coaching and transformational change.

01:17 Part 1: Invitation to Slow Down

As we experience the COVID-19 pandemic, Jessica invites us to slow down and reflect.

07:57 Part 2: Leading During the Pandemic

Jessica shares how executives lead during the pandemic and some of their creative ways to connect with employees.

16:39 Part 3: Embrace Agility

Jessica invites us to become comfortable with ambiguity and embrace being agile.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Jessica’s LinkedIn Profile

The Sparks Group website

The Sparks Group pages: Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube

Harvard Business Review (HBR) article: How to Lead When Your Team Is Exhausted — and You Are, Too

Gary DePaul’s website

Gary’s books:

   What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

   Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:02 Relaxing Acoustic Guitar Folk by pinkzebra

07:42 Road To The Hills by JHungerX

16:23 Sunny Acoustic Folk Vibe by pinkzebra

18:12 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 24, Sherrie Niedermeier illustrates the formidable effect that leadership has through her stories. She discusses the importance of friendship, caring for others, and maintaining congruency between thoughts and actions.

00:00 Prologue: Leading with Care

Sherrie is the Chief Learning Design Officer at Human Capital Institute (HCI). If you work for Sherrie, you’ll quickly learn that she has high standards for performance, but she’ll do whatever she can to ensure that you’re successful. Sherrie cares about the people she works with and wants everyone to excel in what they do, both personally and professionally.

01:21 Part 1: Friendships with Direct Reports

Sherrie tells a story about a boss at a previous organization. The boss complained to Sherrie that she was too close to her direct reports.

12:57 Part 2: To be a Fear Factor or to Care

If you manage a team, do you perceive the negative more than the positive or vice versa? Do you see them as people first and then employees or vice versa? Sherrie conveys a leadership story that relates to these questions.

20:17 Part 3: Striving for authenticity

Sherrie advises us to strive for authenticity and explains what that means.

_________________________________

How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Sherrie’s LinkedIn Profile

Human Capital Institute (HCI) has excellent resources

HCI pages: Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn

Harvard Business Review (HBR) article: How Apple Is Organized for Innovation

Gary DePaul's website

Gary's books:

   What the Heck Is Leadership and Why Should I Care?

   Nine Practices of 21st Century Leadership 

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:06 Inspiring & Confident Pop by pinkzebra

12:41 Minimal Happy Corporate by pinkzebra

20:00 There's Hope by Olexandrignatov

23:53 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

On Wednesday episodes, I share leadership beliefs and unlabel terminology. I invite guests to share their expertise about small or big acts of leadership.

In Episode 23, Simma Lieberman, my expert on DE&I, helps me decipher Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

00:00 Prologue: Discovered through Social Media

I discovered Simma through her blogs on Multibriefs, which lead me to her podcast about diversity. Simma, a.k.a. The Inclusionist, is an award-winning professional who consults, coaches, and offers powerful keynotes. If you plan to meet 50 people this year, ensure that Simma is one of them.

01:28 Part 1: Debunking the Need for Similar People

What makes diversity in organizations diverse? Simma answers this question.

07:24 Part 2: You Need More than Equal Access

Equality doesn’t mean that there is equity. Both terms are worth unlabeling, and Simma does just that!

13:44 Part 3: Accessing Their Brilliance

If you have diversity, do you have inclusion? What does it mean to have an inclusive culture and organization? Simma helps me demystify inclusion by answering these questions.

21:50 Part 4: Take Diversity to Lunch

Whether a manager or a team member, Simma offers practical ways for us to enable teams and organizations to diversify and become more inclusive.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

Episode links

Simma’s LinkedIn Profile

Simma’s Bio

The Inclusionist (website)

Simma’s Twitter

Everyday Conversations on Race for Everyday People (podcast)

Example blogs by Simma

   How story-sharing creates connections and empathy in organizations

   Unconscious bias gone wrong

About Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. in Diversity Officer Magazine

Examples of Diversity Definitions PDF (includes Thomas’ definition)

The Story of the Elephant and the Giraffe (a blog about Roosevelt Thomas’ fable)

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:11 Marching Band Fun by pinkzebra

07:05 Happy swing by Praded

13:26 Inspiring Emotional Cinematic Piano and Strings by pinkzebra

21:33 A New Door Opens by pinkzebra

24:29 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!

I invite guests to share personal stories about acts of leadership that help shape their lives. In Episode 22, Lisa Wicker shares two of her guiding principles. In a story, Lisa describes how she connected with and championed a difficult employee. Also, she advises us to think critically about why we would want to enter and advance in management.

00:14 Prologue: Standing on the Shoulders of Mentors and Guides

From working for an automotive foundry to becoming the Chief Executive Officer of Career Mastered and publisher of Career Mastered Magazine, Lisa has mentored, lead, and even cheered for the people in her life. Of all the people I know, Lisa illuminates what empowering women means. Her hard work in celebrating women publicly, providing networking events, and developing girls and women has opened opportunities for women to flourish professionally.

01:26 Part 1: Showing Respect for Who You Are

New managers who rely on authority and trying to control their situation and others hurt their ability to lead. Lisa shares two of her guiding principles that make a difference in how she leads.

11:05 Part 2: Why Do You Care?

When someone starts at a new company, employees already have made assumptions about who you are and what to expect from you. Mostly unconscious, these assumptions are not based on the new employee’s personality but come from job typecasts (to name one source). Lisa illustrates how to overcome role typecasting.

18:58 Part 3: Why Do You Want a Promotion?

Lisa challenges us to critically think about why we would want to change careers and shift to a managerial role.

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How You Can Support the Show

Unlabeled Leadership is a free service for people to learn about leadership. If you want to support the show, you can make a $0.99 donation. Your support reduces production expenses. https://anchor.fm/unlabeled-leadership/support

No transcript available (future enhancement)

Episode links

Lisa’s LinkedIn Profile

The Dr. Lisa Wicker website

Linwick & Associates, LLC. (LWA)

Career Mastered website

Lisa’s Twitter

Lisa’s Facebook page

Excel Village

Lisa’s books

   Capacity: Women Shattering the Limits - NOW! (preorder link)

   The Winning Spirit: Building Employee Enthusiasm

   Power Play: Discover the Secrets to Spirit-Winning Success

Gary DePaul's website

Background Music

You can find all the musical tracks at Envato Elements.

00:00 Theme music: Inspiring Uplifting Corporate by mixer_drummer

01:08 Casual Acoustic Folk by pinkzebra

10:47 Emotion by Tonydrumer

18:40 Soundtrack for Your Life by pinkzebra

22:45 Fun and Flirty by BrownHouseMedia

Lead on!