Winning Teams

After spending years focused on happiness through success, today’s guest made an important realization: with all of his success, he just wasn’t happy. With a background as a scientist, Eric Karpinski made the shift and was hooked on learning Positive Psychology and bringing it to the world of business management. Eric shares powerful psychology and neuroscience research that shows that happiness leads to success, not the other way around.

In today’s episode, Eric gives us a peek into his new book Put Happiness to Work and how his tools and strategies help people find more happiness at work. He digs into psychology and the study of how we need to raise the happiness level in organizations for the sake of the employees and the organization as a whole. How do we achieve this? How do we deal with employees who are challenging to engage? And how does happiness overlap with engagement?

What We Talked About in This Episode:

* How Happiness Through Success Didn’t Work for Eric

* Positive Psychology: The Study of Happiness

* The Overlap Between Happiness and Engagement

* Hard Science vs. Wishful Thinking

* The Need for Negative Emotions and Hurting Happiness Through Suppression

* The Testimonials for Put Happiness to Work

* Changing How We Think About Engagement

* The Subset of Positive Emotions: Contentment and Satisfaction

* The Impact of COVID on Eric’s Book

* Suffering Through Isolation

* Eric’s Suggestions for Boosting Connection During Meetings

* Finding Meaning in the Work We Do

* The Groups of People You Will Find in the Workplace

* The Tools and Strategies That Eric Details in Put Happiness to Work

* Eric’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Eric Karpinski has been on the cutting edge of bringing positive psychology tools to workplaces across North America for nearly 10 years. In his programs, he shares powerful psychology and neuroscience research that shows that happiness leads to success, not the other way around. He’s helped tens of thousands of people find more happiness at work and helped managers and executives lead with positive emotions to drive team productivity, engagement and performance. His clients include: Intel, Facebook, TIAA, T-Mobile, Eli Lilly, Nationwide Insurance, Genentech and many others.

To reach Eric, go to his website: https://www.erickarpinski.com/

Connect with Eric Karpinski:

Eric Karpinski’s Web Site

Put Happiness to Work by Eric Karpinski

Eric Karpinski on LinkedIn

Eric Karpinski on Twitter

Connect with John Murphy:

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Twitter

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. Thanks for tuning in!

For today’s guest, finding the career that makes her heart sing was the most important part of her journey. Through her discovery of her spiritual side, Jennifer Lyall developed a unique perspective and shifted her focus to guiding entrepreneurs in their business decisions through intuition.

Jennifer refers to herself as the Chief Energy Optimizer and an Intuitive Business Mentor but her background began in the corporate world. Today’s episode is about Jennifer’s journey from her commercial jobs to discovering healing and energy and how she brings that to the work that she does with entrepreneurs. She shares with us how to unblock the things that are holding you back and keeping you hidden from the world you belong in. Through her own discovery, Jennifer developed a unique mentorship program where she helps entrepreneurs find the core and essence of themselves and their business and tap into their own creativity.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

* Tuning Into Energy As a Intuitive Business Mentor

* Jennifer’s Background and Journey From the Corporate World

* How Jennifer Let Go of Control Through Spirituality

* Learning to Trust Your Intuition

* Tapping Into the Intuitive Brain, Emotional Brain, and Logical Brain

* Automatic Writing and Connect to U Modality

* The Process For Jennifer’s Shifting to a Business Mentor

* Fulfilling Purpose Through Your Business

* Combining Higher Level Thinking and Intuition

* Allowing Your Business to Energize You

* Identifying and Releasing Blocks to Stop Hiding

* What Jennifer and Her Clients Work On During Sessions

* How to Check Your “Inner Battery”

* Energy Levels to Tap Into Your Creativity

* Jennifer’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Jennifer Lyall is an Intuitive Business Mentor and Authentic Living Guide based out of Toronto. She uses a blend of intuition, energy clearing and energy awareness, spiritual teachings, mindfulness tools, business training, corporate and online experience to support entrepreneurs with expanding their business. She created foundational tools Connect to U and My Energy Check personal management system to ensure that clients are tapping into their energy, creativity, and thriving as their true selves. Jennifer’s background began in the corporate world of Marketing and Event Planning but through her discovery of her spiritual side, she discovered her gifts and developed her unique program.

To reach Jennifer, go to her website: https://jlyall.com/

Connect with Jennifer Lyall:

Liv Healthy by Jennifer Lyall on Facebook

Jennifer Lyall YouTube Channel

Liv Healthy by Jennifer Lyall on Instagram

Intuitive Entrepreneurs Facebook Group

Connect with John Murphy:

YouTube

Facebook

LinkedIn

Twitter

If you liked this episode,

If you’ve ever thought your workplace environment was a challenge, wait till you hear this interview with our guest, Rachael Robertson. Rachael is a fascinating and successful team leader and keynote speaker from Australia who spent a year leading a team of 120 scientists in Antarctica. With no background in science or the environment she found herself in, she learned many leadership lessons during her time there and I’m thrilled for her to be sharing those with us today.

Rachael is the author of Leading on the Edge and Respect Trumps Harmony. In today’s episode, we focus on her most recent book and why respect is more important than harmony in a high-performance team. What does that mean? How did she learn this? Listen to find out more about building a team of leaders and not a team of followers through mutual respect, even in the world’s most extreme workplace.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

* Rachael’s Motivation to Apply for a Leadership Expedition in Antarctica

* The Challenge of Leading 120 People

* The Philosophy of Building a Team of Leaders

* Respect Must Come First

* The Pitfalls of Harmony-Focused Teams

* Accountability and Challenging Views in a High-Performance Teams

* The Culture of Speaking Up Respectfully

* Rachael’s Experience Coming Back from Isolation

* Rachael’s Books Leading on the Edge and Respect Trumps Harmony

* How Rachael Uses “No Triangles” to Eliminate Exhausting Conversations

* “Bacon Wars” Are Signs of a Deeper Problem

* Pushing Aside What Can’t Be Controlled

* Competing Goals and Priorities Within a Team

* Cognitive Diversity in Rachael’s Large Antarctic Team

* Creating a Shared Vision

* Rachael’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

After 15 years leading diverse and remote teams and business units, Rachael Robertson took the jump and led the 58th annual expedition to the edge of the world: Antarctica. It was a tough, gruelling and exhausting year, but ultimately extremely rewarding and fruitful. The intensity of this leadership role, where the leader is on-duty all day, every day, for 12 months with no respite, gave Rachael the opportunity to road test her leadership ideas the hard way – without the luxury of peers, a desk or high-speed broadband. It was a “leadership laboratory” in the most extreme, hostile environment on Earth. Since returning from Antarctica, Rachael has spoken at over 1500 national and international conferences and events with clients drawn from all industries and sectors including mining, pharmaceutical, construction, health, education, finance, hospitality and retail.

To reach Rachael, go to her website: https://www.rachaelrobertson.com

Connect with Rachael Robertson:

* Rachael Robertson Website

* Twitter  |  LinkedIn  |  Instagram

* Leading on the Edge: Extraordinary Stories and Leadership Insights from the World’s Most Extreme Workplace by Rachael Robertson

* Respect Trumps Harm...

Now more than ever, it is crucial to be ready. In the business world, that means to be Pivot-Ready and Impact-Ready, especially during these uncertain times. The last year proved to us that being in, what today’s guest calls, The Ready Zone, is crucial for moving forward.

Today’s guest is Esther Weinberg, founder of The Ready Zone. Esther is a leadership-training expert that has earned a reputation in the entertainment industry as the secret weapon behind game-changing breakthroughs with executives, leaders, and teams. Esther is passionate about helping media organizations understand that in order to drive innovation, be competitive, and ultimately, profitable, it’s imperative that people come first by creating an environment built on trust, respect, and safety. And she backs it up with proven, transformative, yet practical tools and systems that help benchmark and measure results. She is the author of the free eBook Why Your Company’s Bottom Line Is Not Your Top Priority.

So listen on to find out more about developing a workplace culture built on trust, creating a motivated environment, and sustaining it through the ups and downs of our current climate.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

* Esther’s Inspiration for Authoring the eBook Why Your Company’s Bottom Line Is Not Your Top Priority

* Workplace Culture Built on Trust

* The KPIs of The Ready Zone and Determining the Culture You Want

* Less Stress and More Energy with the Correct Business Focus

* The Crossing-Over of Boundaries in the Virtual Workplace

* Creating and Sustaining Motivation Through Covid

* Leaning Into the Health of the Team to Avoid Crushing Creativity and Productivity

* Resetting Your Expectations

* Getting Your Company Pivot-Ready

* Dealing with Issues with Compassion

* The Need for Being Impact-Ready and How Esther Prepares Her Team

* Showing Your Company’s Commitment Through Actions

* The Effect of the Virtual World and Automation on the Workplace

* Esther’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Esther Weinberg is a leadership-training expert that has earned a reputation in the entertainment industry as the secret weapon behind game-changing breakthroughs with executives, leaders, and teams. As Founder & Chief Leadership Development Officer of The Ready Zone, Esther is passionate about helping media organizations understand that in order to drive innovation, be competitive, and ultimately, profitable, it’s imperative that people come first by creating an environment built on trust, respect, and safety. And she backs it up with proven, transformative, yet practical tools and systems that help benchmark and measure results. With over 20 years in the media industry, her innovative strategies have helped clients including Netflix, NBCUniversal, Microsoft, ESPN, WarnerMedia, Sony, Warner Bros., CNN, DreamWorks Animation, Discovery Communications, Adobe, Disney, IMAX, National Geographic, and Nickelodeon.

To reach Esther, go to her website: https://thereadyzone.com/

Connect with Esther Weinberg:

* The Ready Zone Home Page

* Why Your Company’s Bottom Line is NOT Your Top Priority – 6 Eye-Opening Strategies to Put People First eBook b...

Recently, the tables were turned and I was honored to be a guest on The Donald Thompson Podcast. Shared here is that very episode and it was such a great experience. Donald is a fabulous speaker and fellow business coach as well as a great podcast host.

In this special episode, Donald and I discuss a topic that is very dear to my heart: Managing your career. In addition to our discussion on challenging yourself and ensuring that you are doing your current job well, the key message from this episode is to take control and ownership of the work you are doing and the direction you are headed in.

Thank you, Donald, for giving me an opportunity to speak with you on your podcast! Everyone, take a listen to learn more about how to proactively manage your own career and optimize your potential.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

John’s Background in the Corporate World

Coaching Others and Putting Teams Together

Slowing Down to Reflect on What You Really Want in a Career

Proactively Managing Your Own Career

Your Desired Roles and Work Environments

Determining the Gap Between Where You Are and Where You Want to Be

Time Blocking and Why It is Crucial to Meeting Goals

The Value of a Coach

Investing Yourself in Relationships

Being a Leader That is Worth Following

About Donald Thompson:

With two decades of experience growing and leading firms, Donald Thompson is a thought leader on goal achievement, influencing company culture and driving exponential growth. As an entrepreneur, Donald has led companies which have attained successful exits with strong returns for shareholders and employees. As a Certified Diversity Executive, Donald is a champion of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and actively raises awareness and commitment.

Donald is currently CEO of Walk West, a digital marketing firm recognized by Inc. as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the US in 2018, 2019, and 2020 and the founder of The Diversity Movement, which works to embed diversity, equity, and inclusion into the core of doing business.

To reach Donald, go to his website: https://donaldthompson.com/

Connect with Donald Thompsom:

The Donald Thompson Podcast

Donald Thompson Coaching

The Diversity Movement Home Page

The Diversity Movement on Instagram

Connect with John Murphy:

* Youtube

* Facebook

* LinkedIn

* Twitter

* Website

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. Thanks!

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A Life and A Living Podcast

It seems that music and business couldn’t be more different. But our guest today has found that they are far more similar than we think. Today’s guest on A Life and a Living Podcast is Gerald J. Leonard, CEO of Principles of Execution and accomplished musician. The work he has done as a consultant is absolutely fascinating.

Gerald started out as a musician that wound up in the field of IT. Over time, he then worked his way into the CEO position of Principles of Execution and is the author of two books, Culture is the Bass and Workplace Jazz. As you can see, music still plays a significant role in Gerald’s life and his career. In today’s episode, he weaves together what he knows and uses as a musician into the business world and the results speak for themselves.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

Gerald’s Background and Passion in Music

What Business and Music Have in Common

The Importance of Learning Your Instrument

Understanding the Value of Practice and Repetition

Seeking a Coach, Instructor, or Mentor to Hone Your Business Craft

Demonstrating Expertise

Developing an Environment to Create Team Buy-In

How to Get a Diverse Mindset for Innovation

Learning by Watching versus Learning by Listening

Conversations Drive Culture

The Neuroscience Behind Culture

Gerald’s Advice to Leaders Through Crisis

Growth Through Agility, Flexibility, and Innovation

Covid’s Positive Impact on Culture and Teamwork

Gerald’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Gerald J. Leonard is the CEO of Principles of Execution (PofE), a Certified Minority Business Enterprise, Strategic Project Portfolio Management and Culture Change consulting and coaching practice with over 20+ years experience working with large Federal and State Governments and Multinational Corporations. Gerald provides an insightful and unique way of combining his experience and expertise as a professional bassist and a certified Portfolio Management Professional consultant.

To reach Gerald, go to his website: https://geraldjleonard.com/

Connect with Gerald J. Leonard:

* Workplace Jazz Website

* Culture is the Bass: 7 Steps to Creating High Performance Teams by Gerald J. Leonard

* Workplace Jazz: How to Improvise – 9 Steps to Creating High-Performance Agile Project Teams by Gerald J. Leonard

Connect with John Murphy:

* Youtube

* Facebook

* LinkedIn

* Twitter

* Website

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. Thanks for tuning in!

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If you are looking for inspiration, look no further. Today’s guest is an extraordinary individual with a fascinating background that spends our interview describing his journey and his mission.

Today’s guest is Andy Salmon. Andy has a 36 year background in the Royal Marines and as a first for A Life and a Living Podcast as a CMG OBE. He served in many global conflicts, including The Troubles, The Falklands War, Angola, Sierra Leone, The Balkans and Iraq. He now produces, directs and narrates events for his website Journey Through Conflict. Uniquely fusing original artworks and live music, Andy shares his experiences and learning from conflict to inspire people to seek peace and reconciliation.

In this episode, Andy shares his strategies on how to lead in crisis situations, how to develop yourself and your leadership skills, and how to prepare yourself physically, emotionally, and mentally for leading through crisis. His passion for music, art, and culture has impacted him and others greatly and throughout our interview, you will feel just how powerful the arts can be.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

Andy’s Extraordinary Background in the Royal Marines and as an OBE

Helping Leaders and Teams Manage Through Crisis

Getting Strategies in Order in Their Simplest Forms

Dealing with the Fight, Flight, or Freeze Response to Anxiety

Learning the Art of Breathing

The Ability to Choose Your Emotional Response

Conveying Skills to Team Members Through Doing

Finding Peace Through Music, Art, and Culture

Shifting Minds to Optimism

The Impact of the Arts on Visualization

How Andy Began Journey Through Conflict

Andy’s Mission Behind Journey Through Conflict

Virtual Offerings from Andy During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Andy’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Major-General Andy Salmon CMG OBE, spent 36 years in the Royal Marines and is a former Commandant General, Head of Service.  He served in many global conflicts, including The Troubles, The Falklands War, Angola, Sierra Leone, The Balkans and Iraq. Three tours of duty in Iraq spanned 19 years: from 1991 and the Kurdish humanitarian crisis, to 2003 in the Green Zone, Baghdad, and to 2008/9 when he was the last British General in Basra, closing down the UK Campaign. He retired from the services in 2013.

He now produces, directs and narrates the Journey Through Conflict events. Uniquely fusing original artworks and live music, Andy shares his experiences and learning from conflict to inspire people to seek peace and reconciliation.

To reach Andy, go to his website: https://journeythroughconflict.org/

Connect with Andy Salmon:

* Journey Through Conflict Home Page

* Andy Salmon on Twitter

* Email: [email protected]

Connect with John Murphy:

Youtube

Facebook

LinkedIn

Twitter

Many books talk about how to be a good leader. Many episodes of this very podcast are on that topic. Yet almost no study focuses on the relationship between leaders and followers, even though the quality of this exchange is essential for a productive work environment. I read one of the most fascinating books by Sherri Malouf and I knew I needed her on A Life and a Living Podcast. Through her research, Dr. Sherri Malouf explains the science of relationships within business organizations and I am thrilled to have her on the show today.

Sherri is the Chair and Principal of Situation Management Systems, Inc. and her new book Science and the Leader-Follower Relationship: The Implicit Social Elements Explained enables you take a step back, look at relationships in a logical way, and take rational steps to improve its quality. In today’s episode, we dig into this fascinating angle and discuss influence, building blocks, and the importance in understanding the space between a leader and a follower.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

* How Sherri Determined the Angle to Write Her Book From

* The Implicit Social Elements of Relationships

* How Self-Control Impacts Relationships, Leadership, and Success

* The Different Types of Self-Control

* Reciprocity’s Role in Relationships

* Common Ground and Connection Around a Vision and Purpose

* Challenges That Arise Without Common Ground

* The Connection Between Engagement and Quality Relationships

* What Happens When Someone Doesn’t “Fit”

* There’s Always Potential in Every Moment

* Shifting Models and Expectations When They Aren’t Working

* Challenging Ourselves to Make Changes

* Looking Inward Rather Than Pointing Fingers Outward

* Developing Your Own Sense of Empathy

* Where Influence Lies in a Relationship as a Leader

* Sherri’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Dr. Sherri Malouf is the Chair and Principal of Situation Management Systems, Inc. For over 30 years, Sherri has been a leader in the personal development space. During the last 20 years, she has overseen Situation Management Systems, Inc. and its programs have touched over a hundred thousand people in public and private sectors, across the globe, and within many Fortune 500 companies. In 2019, Sherri completed a PhD program in Human Development through the School of Leadership at Fielding Graduate University and focused her research on the leader-follower relationship. Through this research she developed the revolutionary concept of the Implicit Social Elements which are the critical unconscious building blocks of every relationship.

To reach Sherri, go to her website: https://situationmanagementsystems.com

Links and Resources:

* Science and the Leader-Follower Relationship: The Implicit Social Elements Explained by Sherri Malouf

* Situation Management Systems, Inc. Home Page

* Sherri Malouf on LinkedIn

* Sherri Malouf,

What connections are there between the arts and science? Well, there happen to be more than we might initially think and that is why I have asked Eliza Lay Ryan onto A Life and a Living Podcast today.

Eliza is the author of Supermindful: How to Tap Into Your Creativity which teaches us how to connect with our own genius more deeply and shift into new ways of seeing. Her interesting background in that arts as an actress and teacher of theater arts served as a catalyst for writing this book. She has taken what she has learned through the creative arts and has married the insights together with science to support greater creativity and resilience. In today’s episode she and I discuss the tools she gives in her book and on her website to deal with challenges, fears, and issues that keep us up at night. She gives us the tools and motivation to “zoom out” and use our creativity to be more aware and mindful of the present day.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

Eliza’s Background in Theater

How Acting Techniques Can Apply to General Life

Why Eliza Wrote Supermindful and Why That Title Was Chosen

The Connection Between Creativity and Neuroscience

Mindfulness, Awareness, and the Dialogue Between What’s Happening and What You Want to Happen

Showing Up More Fully As You Are

Coping With the Past and Present and Creating the Future

Connecting With Life and Asking the Moment for What It Needs

The Tools Eliza Provides

The Mindset of Curiosity

Internalizing the Qualities of Those You Admire

Asking Why Instead of Judging

When In Doubt, Zoom Out

Choosing How You Think

Eliza’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

A speaker, teacher, and performing artist, Eliza Lay Ryan has led acting programs and taught supermindfulness practices to people from all over the world. She collaborates in teaching and researching with leaders in neuroscience, business, wellness, and education. Eliza Lay Ryan marries insights from science and the arts to offer practices that support greater creativity, resilience, and connection. The goal of supermindful is to make curiosity, rather than fear, the default setting of the world so we can work together for a better future. 

To reach Eliza, go to his website: www.supermindful.co.

Links and Resources:

Supermindful: How to Tap Into Your Creativity by Eliza Lay Ryan

Supermindful Home Page

Eliza Lay Ryan on LinkedIn

Connect with John Murphy:

Youtube

Facebook

LinkedIn

Twitter

Website

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. Thanks for tuning in!

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Today’s guest on a Life and a Living Podcast is the best selling author Tommy Breedlove. His book Legendary has become a huge success and having read it myself, I can certainly see why. I am thrilled to have him on the show today to dive deep not only into his book, but his fascinating journey and to help give you the tools to build your legendary life.

Tommy Breedlove took the opportunity to completely turn his life around through mentorship, hard work, accountability, and a lot of soul-searching. Listen on to find out how he went from incarceration to success and then left it all behind for a greater purpose. 

What We Talked About in This Episode:

Tommy’s Background and Incarceration

Turning His Life Around Through Hard Work and the Help of a Mentor

Financial Success Does Not Equal Happiness and Fulfillment

Making Yourself a Priority

Tommy’s Experience in Getting Help

Internal Work and Accountability

Leaving it All Behind for a Greater Purpose

Aspiring to be Legendary

Keeping a Strong and Supportive Network

Living Your Life Instead of Living Your Story

Soul-Searching and Creating Your Own Mission Statement

Valuing Time and Relationships Above All

Time Blocking and How to Use It

Tommy’s Book Recommendation and Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Tommy Breedlove is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today bestselling author and Atlanta-based business, relationship, and mindset coach who is a regular featured keynote speaker at global events.

Tommy started his 20-year corporate career at one of the largest financial consulting firms in the world, and eventually became a shareholder, the International Practice Leader, and a member of the board of directors for one of the largest public accounting and financial firms in the southeast U.S.

At the top of his career, Tommy experienced a transformational moment inspiring him to walk away from the corporate world to change his life and follow his true calling.

Tommy now serves clients and audiences everywhere by empowering them to build and live Legendary Lives. He guides people to discover a life of significance while building a lasting legacy. The simple tools he shares shows them how to work in their zone of brilliance, obtain financial confidence, and live with meaning and balance. The goal is to help everybody to become the person they’ve always wanted to be.

To reach Tommy, go to his website: https://tommybreedlove.com/

Links and Resources:

Legendary: A Simple Playbook for Building and Living a Legendary Life by Tommy Breedlove

Tommy Breedlove Home Page

Tommy Breedlove on Facebook

Tommy Breedlove on Instagram

Connect with John Murphy:

Youtube

Facebook

LinkedIn

Twitter