Winning Teams

Leadership takes courage. Leading through Covid takes even more courage. What can you do to show you have the courage to lead through the challenges we are facing today?

Today’s extraordinary guest is Sepi Saidi. Sepi is the founder and CEO of SEPI Inc, an engineering firm in North Carolina. She has won multiple awards not only as a business owner but as a woman in leadership. She joins me today to talk about how she has been able to build a successful business in a male-dominated industry, how she has led her business through Covid, and how she continues to overcome the obstacles Covid has placed on us.

Through culture, behavior, and values, Sepi builds great relationships with her team and community to make an impact.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

How Sepi Leads a Successful Business in a Male-Dominated Industry

Building Relationships with the Community

Recruiting Top Talent

Having Courage as a Leader

Staying True to Your Vision

How Sepi Inc. Adjusted to Changes From Covid

Sepi’s Views on the Future

The Fascinating Challenges Businesses are Facing

Isolation as an Extrovert

Creating More Flexibility

About Our Guest:

Sepi Saidi is a visionary leader who founded SEPI Inc. in 2001 and has led the company to become a premier multi-disciplinary firm focused on exploring complex challenges for today’s built environment.

Sepi is passionate about giving back to the community and is currently serving, or has served, on many different boards of directors including the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce. Sepi holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering and a B.S. in Agricultural Engineering from North Carolina State University.

To reach Sepi Saidi or contact someone within SEPI Inc., go to SEPI Inc.’s website: www.sepiinc.com.

Connect with Sepi Saidi:

Contact SEPI Inc.

LinkedIn

Twitter

Facebook

Instagram

Connect with John Murphy:

Youtube

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LinkedIn

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A Life and A Living Podcast

Learning new things is a big part of life: we always have to strive to learn and grow. But it takes time, and time is precious.

To create an efficient study system, you must know how the brain works. If you know how to realize the potential, you will produce high-quality work. And the quality of the work will be reflected in another aspect of your life.

For today’s podcast, let’s welcome our guest, Scott Young, to discuss the essential tips on how we can learn fast and how to retain that knowledge in the long run.

We’ll be talking about:

* How to Retain What You Learn

* How to Develop Critical Thinking Skills in Learning

* Traditional Learning Methods that Are Out-of-Date

* And so much more!

About Our Guest:

Scott Young, of Vancouver Canada, is the author of the book Ultralearning, which dives deep into the strategy for aggressive, self-directed learning. Using this method, Scott was able to complete a 4 year MIT computer science course in 12 months as well as learn 4 languages in the same time span. On this subject, he has been a TEDx Talk speaker and hosts his own podcast, Scott Young Podcast.

Connect with Scott Young:

* Podcast

Youtube

Instagram

Facebook

* Twitter

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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A Life and A Living Podcast

How can we unleash the talent of the people we have? This can be a challenge in the best of times, but right now with the changes we’ve seen from Covid-19, it has become a different hurdle for leaders. Today’s guest has a lot of success in this area and shares with us what he and his team have been able to accomplish during these strange times. 

Gary Salamido is the president and CEO of the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce. He was chosen as president and CEO in August of 2019 and had a great plan in place for 2020. When Covid-19 hit the United States, those plans quickly changed.

Listen to find out how Gary hired and engaged good people, engaged chamber members during a challenging time, and how he created an indispensable part of his community. 

What We Talked About in This Episode: 

* Hiring and Engaging Good People 

* Changing the Way You Put People First 

* Learning the Difference Between What You Change and What You Cannot

* The Importance of a Resiliency Plan 

* Unleashing the Talent of Your People 

* Delivering the Same Quality in a Virtual Setting 

* Constant Open and Transparent Communication 

* The Positive Outcomes of the Covid-19 Challenge 

* What We Don’t Know Yet: The Impact of Isolation 

* Taking Care of Your People During Social Unrest 

* Driving Real Change Through Deep Relationships 

* Looking at the Workforce of the Future 

* Gary’s Book Recommendations and Daily Rituals 

About Our Guest: 

Gary Salamido is the president and CEO of the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce. Prior to joining the NC Chamber in 2011, Gary worked 19 years at GlaxoSmithKline, the last 10 years serving as GSK’s director of state government affairs. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the Albany College of Pharmacy in New York and a Master’s degree in pharmacy administration from the University of Texas in Austin.

To reach Gary Salamido or contact someone within the NC Chamber of Commerce, go to the NC Chamber’s website: www.ncchamber.com.

Connect with Gary Salamido:

NC Chamber of Commerce Website

LinkedIn

Twitter

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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A Life and A Living Podcast

How prepared were you as a leader for the changes a global pandemic would force upon your company? For most, we weren’t prepared. But believe it or not, there are leaders out there who had a plan in place in the unlikely event that we would be in the predicament we are in now. One such company is M&F Bank and we have Jim Sills here today to talk with us about dusting off and implementing their pandemic plan.

Jim Sills is the President and CEO of M&F Bank which is the second oldest minority-owned bank in the USA at 113 years old. Surprisingly, M&F Bank has increased their business during the Covid-19 pandemic both in revenue and customer experience. 

Listen on to hear about the road Jim and his company took to make sure that all Covid requirements were met and the health and safety of his employees and clients were managed with astounding success.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

Dusting Off the Pandemic Plan We Never Thought We’d Never Need to Use

The Major Adjustments Made by M&F Bank During Covid-19

Jim’s Personal Adjustments During Covid-19

Staying Optimistic and Positive While Adapting

The Work From Home Balancing Act

Caring About Your Team’s Physical and Mental Health

Keeping Your Clients Safe

The Quadruple Pandemic: Health, Political, Racial, Economic

M&F’s Commitment to the Community

What Jim Would Do Differently

The Importance of Educating Your Clients

The Positive and Negative Impacts of the Covid Experience

Jim’s Prediction of the Future of the Workplace

About Our Guest:

Jim Sills has been the President and CEO of M&F Bank, the second oldest minority-owned bank in the USA, since 2014. Prior to that, Jim was an Executive Vice President of MBNA America Bank (now Bank of America) and served as the President and CEO of Memphis First Community Bank. He has over 30 years of Banking and Technology Management experience. His background includes a unique combination of executive experience within large-scale banking operations, community banks, and government organizations.

To reach Jim Sills or contact someone within M&F Bank, go to M&F Bank’s website: www.mfbonline.com. 

Connect with Jim Sills:

M&F Bank Web Page

LinkedIn

Twitter

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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A Life and A Living Podcast

If you could go back and change how you approached leading your team during the Covid-19 pandemic, what would you change? Would you change anything? In these unprecedented times, we are faced with many new uncertainties and challenges. As leaders, our teams are looking to us for guidance, communication, and encouragement, even when we aren’t entirely sure how to provide. 

Fortunately, some companies have very intuitive leaders who can share with us the things that have worked for them in building up their teams during times of stress.

Today’s guest is Ward Nye, CEO of Martin Marietta, who will guide us in managing a very large scale corporation with increased communication, flexibility, and accessibility.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

● How Ward Nye Approached Management and Communication with a Large Scale Corporation

● Keeping Company Systems Robust and Capable

● Company Protocol and Efficiency During Covid

● Staying Accessible as a Leader

● When to Step Back and Refresh

● Communication vs. Micromanaging: Find the Balance

● The Importance of Flexibility

● Culture and Expectations

● Keeping the Nation Moving with Essential Workers

● The Resilience and Ingenuity of a Team During Challenges

● Efficiency Through Remote Employees

● Ward Nye’s Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Ward Nye is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Martin Marietta, a US-based S&P 500 company that supplies building materials, including aggregates, cement, ready-mixed concrete, and asphalt. Ward has served as Chairman of the Board since 2014, as President of Martin Marietta since 2006, and as Chief Executive Officer and a Director since 2010. Martin Marietta has about 9,000 employees across 400 locations.

To reach Ward Nye or contact someone within Martin Marietta, go to Martin Marietta’s website: www.martinmarietta.com

Connect with Ward Nye:

* Martin Marietta Web Page

* LinkedIn

* Facebook

* Twitter

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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A Life and A Living Podcast

Do you remember when you were younger and people ask you what your dream job is? Some of us are lucky to have known their whole lives and hit it off at the very first moment that they stepped foot into the world of employment. But for others, not so much.

Many people spend most of their lives soul-searching and looking for the perfect role that will give them a fulfilling and meaningful career. They either find themselves constantly switching jobs or stuck in one that they are unhappy doing but can’t really do anything about. If you somehow found yourself stumbling into this episode, trying to find ways to keep yourself happy in your career, then take that as a clue and tune in.

In today’s podcast episode, Scott Anthony Barlow will guide us on how to find the perfect role that will give meaning to your career.

Listen to today’s episode and give yourself a chance to reevaluate your career happiness.

 

What We Talked About in This Episode:

The Inspiration Behind “Happen To Your Career”

Measuring Happiness on a Daily Basis

The Relationship Between Your Strengths and Your Happiness

Skills vs Strengths: The Iceberg Theory

The Nuts and Bolts of “Happen To Your Career”

The Importance of Identifying One’s Skills, Talents, and Strengths

The Journey of Finding the Perfect Role: Attracting and Retaining Top Talent

External Factors Behind Losing Top Talent

The Six Keys to Career Happiness

Scott Anthony Barlow’s Daily Rituals

About Our Guest:

Scott Anthony Barlow is the founder and CEO of Happen To Your Career, an organisation that helps people transition from their current career to the career that they love and realise what their next career move would be. He also hosts a podcast of the same name “Happen To Your Career.” He is passionate and enthusiastic about helping people grow personally and professionally.

To reach Scott Anthony Barlow visit Happen To You Career website – https://www.happentoyourcareer.com/ or listen to his podcast – https://www.happentoyourcareer.com/podcast/.

Other Resources:

The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg

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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A Life and A Living Podcast

Where we work, how we work, and how we lead were all changed drastically by Covid-19. How did we manage and how do we manage moving forward?

We’re doing something a bit different today by kicking off a series of podcast episodes that dig into the subject of leading through the Covid-19 pandemic. I have a lot of great guests lined up from many high profile global organizations and I’m thrilled to have Tim Humphrey joining us today.

Tim Humphrey is the VP of the Chief Data Office at IBM in North Carolina. Like other leaders, he was faced with making huge changes to the way his team works. How do you move an organization the size of IBM to shift quickly to working from home? How did Tim manage the logistical issues this caused, especially with managing team members with varying situations at home? We also get insight on what Tim learned about himself as a leader and what he sees the future of the workplace looking like.

 

Show Notes:

[2:51] – Tim discusses how fortunate he was when the pandemic became a problem that he was in North Carolina. He and his team were able to watch things unfold in China and prepare a crisis management team. [3:56] – IBM already had a crisis management team in place because of North Carolina’s tendency to have hurricanes coming through. This time they had time to prepare and they took the opportunity to prepare early. [4:48] – John asks about preparing his people for this huge change and Tim’s struggle with this was the uncertainty. [5:33] – Tim admits that at the beginning, leaders were trying to have all the answers, but as time went on it was clear that it was impossible to know what would happen. Leaders at IBM then shifted to trying to put their teams’ minds at ease and take it a step at a time. 

[6:07] – Every individual is different. For example, Tim does not have children and is able to work from home without interruption. [6:25] – IBM leaders were making sure to check in on team members to make sure their health and stress levels were okay. [7:04] – Tim was surprised to see increased productivity with his team working from home and gives examples of how this happened. [8:31] – Leaders had to make changes in how they approached their leadership. Tim is a very interactive and visual leader, so this shift was a big change. [9:18] – Tim made the change by making time for more one-on-one virtual interactions and checking in on his team members well-being much more often. [9:43] – It is important to acknowledge that we are in uncertain times and that it is okay to not know what is happening. [10:35] – It made things a lot easier that his team is really solid and was able to make adjustments. [11:29] – Tim said for himself it wasn’t too difficult to walk the fine line between checking in with his team members and micromanaging. 

[12:14] – Instead of placing work conversations in with his checking on his team members, he separated them. If Tim asked how a team member was faring, that was the conversation and he wouldn’t ask about work during that interaction. [14:00] – Visualizing the logistics on getting to the outcome of fewer people in the building and keeping teams safe from the spread of Covid was a huge challenge for Tim. [15:01] – Being comfortable with the uncertain is a mental hurdle Tim had to make. [16:15] – One thing that was impacted for Tim was his physical health.

What does it mean to “be brilliant?” How can you manifest brilliance? What does brilliant even mean? 

The amazing Janine Garner is with us today to help guide us to becoming brilliant and answer these questions. Janine is the best-selling author of It’s Who You Know and From Me to We. She also has a new phenomenal book out called Be Brilliant that we’ll be focusing on in this episode. Janine is also a business growth expert, keynote speaker, and consultant with a background in the corporate world. 

Join us as we discuss how building brilliance also builds high performing leaders that create extraordinary results.

Show Notes: 

[2:50] – Janine shifted by accident from the corporate world to being a best-selling author and shares her story on how she started on this route. 

[4:17] – She didn’t feel very fulfilled in her career and was constantly looking for more. She relocated to Australia with nothing and rebuilt her career and network from the ground up. 

[5:34] – While building her new life in Australia, Janine realized how powerful making connections and networking is. 

[6:19] – Throughout this experience and after a few years, she still had the feeling of “is this it?” and had lost her motivation. 

[6:56] – Janine met Abigail Disney, the grand-niece of Walt Disney, and had the opportunity to have lunch with her. Abigail told her, “You don’t have to climb Mount Everest. You simply have to choose to be a brick in the wall of change.” 

[7:56] – Janine shares her story about her “ah-ha” moment when talking about work with her young daughter. 

[9:30] – She left her six figure income to network and start her own journey. This domino effect led her traveling, speaking, and writing books.

 [11:12] – How do you define brilliance? Janine defines it as being the very best that you can possibly be. 

[11:57] – When we can get into the space of accepting who you are and what your potential is, there is amazing growth. 

[12:20] – How can you build incredible teams and be an incredible leader if you yourself feel like you are in survival mode and not shining brilliantly? 

[12:49] – Janine started speaking with great leaders to try and find what was missing. She found this consistent thread of self leadership. 

[13:40] – The essence of Be Brilliant is honing in on that self leadership so you can better lead others. If you can lead yourself without stepping into self doubt, you will be brilliant. 

[14:55] – The enemy of your brilliance is in you. It’s that negative voice in your head that keeps you small. 

[16:10] – Many people are acquiring stuff and contacts and knowledge, but are still struggling with self doubt. That self doubt keeps you stuck. 

[18:07] – Janine tells a humorous story about a guest she had on her own podcast that really impacted John. Her guest named her negative inner voice Mildred the orangutan. 

[20:00] – Being able to distance yourself from that voice in your head really gives you a reality check. 

[20:32] – Janine created a series of “laws” in Be Brilliant – be you, be ready, be together, be heard. 

[21:04] – The first law, “be you,” is owning your spotlight. 

[21:31] – The next law, “be ready” is about harnessing your energy. This all about ensuring that you are functioning at your best for as much ti...

In today’s podcast episode, we have Barbara Moynihan – On Your Feet, Presentation skills specialist will discuss how to prepare, what to avoid, to nail a presentation or speech. What are the building blocks? Where do you start? How to build an effective presentation. How do you manage your fears and anxiety to channel it to add to your presentation. Slides – death by powerpoint.

Show Notes:

[2:10] – John and Barbara begin the conversation with why people have such a fear of public speaking.

[3:38] – Barbara spends a lot of time preparing her clients for presentations and states that most people go about preparing all wrong by beginning with the PowerPoint slides.

[4:07] – The first thing you need to ask yourself is who will you be presenting to?

[4:20] – The next thing you need to ask is what are they looking to gain from your presentation? You need to write this down in a “so, that” statement.

[5:40] – Barbara points out that the biggest mistake people make is that they don’t think about their audience from the beginning and what the outcome should be.

[7:06] – Barbara lists the key ingredients to making an impact with your presentation and begins with the structure and outcome of a presentation.

[8:10] – Having the content right and being familiar with it is important, but to appear prepared and confident you must practice it out loud and even consider recording yourself presenting to watch yourself.

[9:34] – Stop trying to be perfect. You’re not perfect, so be easy on yourself.

[10:10] – You want to sound conversational and not robotic. Over practicing can cause you to sound robotic.

[11:04] – Nerves and excitement are very similar. Accept that you will be nervous, but create a positive mantra to help your mindset to shift to excitement.

[12:58] – The first step in engaging the audience is to watch your “you” to “I” ratio.

[15:06] – A little bit of appropriate humor goes a long way.

[15:31] – When to take audience questions is personal preference and specific to each topic of presentation.

[17:14] – John and Barbara discuss the importance of body language during a presentation.

[18:01] – When Barbara is coaching her clients, she records them practicing a presentation for them to see their natural body language and hand gestures.

[19:23] – Stance can seem stiff for those who are nervous. Barbara begins coaching her clients by having them mimic her own movements.

[20:17] – Barbara also uses a set of cards that are a useful tool in practicing public speaking. You can get your own set of these cards from AtMyBest.com.

[21:40] – If you feel that a PowerPoint is important to convey your message or assist your audience in remembering your content, then use it. But don’t use it as a teleprompter.

[22:28] – John and Barbara discuss the ideal length of a presentation. Presentations should be just long enough to cover the essentials but short enough to keep everyone interested.

[23:54] – The biggest mistake being made with virtual Zoom meetings in our current climate is the first impression and an unprofessional appearance.

[24:45] – Position of lighting is key. And there’s nothing worse than not being able to hear pro...

When we hear the word networking, we often see this as another business tactic that salespersons love to spread about everywhere.

If you’re a salesperson, you probably know how hard it is to gather people and make business together. There’s no denying that networking is not a walk in the park. But if you make little changes in your strategies, you can be an effective networker and magnetize potential clients towards you.

Today, let’s welcome our guest speaker Paul Edwards as we talk all about the ins and outs of networking. He will also share some tips on how to become an effective networker and be a successful entrepreneur in your own business.

What We Talked About in This Episode:

* Tips about effective networking

* How to build influence

* Marketing yourself instead of your products

* Being an effective networker

* Strategies of networking your target

* Book recommendations and daily rituals

About Our Guest:

Paul Edwards is the host of Influencer Networking Secrets podcast, and an author of the 2019 bestseller Business Beyond Business, where he talked about a range of topics on how to become an effective “influencer” in the business scene.

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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A Life and A Living Podcast