Coaching for Leaders

We’ve all heard the warnings that AI is going to take our jobs. That’s certainly a possibility in the long term, but the story emerging, at least for now, is looking a little different. Instead of thinking about AI as a cheap way to replace people, David De Cremer invites us to use AI as a tool to augment human intelligence. That’s a key distinction he shared on this week’s episode of the Coaching for Leaders podcast. David is the Dunton Family Dean of the D'Amore-McKim School of Business and professor of management and technology at Northeastern University. He recently released his newest book: The AI-Savvy Leader: Nine Ways to Take Back Control and Make AI Work. Key points from his conversation with Dave Stachowiak: 1. AI is substantially different than prior digital transformations, and adoption efforts are failing at alarming rates. 2. Instead of leading, too often leaders are being too deferential to data and analytics teams. 3. Your expertise is exactly what your organization needs to deploy AI successfully. 4. Leaders who learn the fundamentals of AI will play an essential role in narrating dialogue between the technology experts and everyone else. 5. Get just enough foundational knowledge with statistics and modeling to communicate with the data and analytics folks better. The full transcript, audio, and notes are linked in the comments. Your turn: how are you working to learn more about AI? #leadership #management

Overcast is my favorite podcast app, and Marco Arment recently released an update to share listening stats. Here are my top listening hours for 2024. A few observations: * While it's not my professional discipline, I've always had a keen interest in technology as a hobby -- and I've realized more in recent years how much this has helped support Coaching for Leaders. Listening to smart people talk about technology is a joy, thus my top shows. * Unless I'm reviewing a single episode for interview prep, I'm rarely sitting down to listen to podcasts. Almost always, it's while I'm running, driving, doing laundry, doing dishes, or some other activity where my brain is a bit more on autopilot. I do at least 30 minutes of exercise every day, thus how I clock all the time. * Yes, I listen to every episode of Coaching for Leaders. Two reasons: (1) I always learn things that I missed during the interview, and (2) I notice where I could have improved. It doesn't bother me to hear my own voice anymore. I tell clients who are reviewing recordings of themselves for their development that the discomfort of hearing/seeing yourself gets way less intense after a number of iterations. * The only other #leadership podcast I listen to regularly is The Look & Sound of Leadership from my friend Tom Henschel (which doesn't show on this list since he only airs monthly). It's too easy to fall into my work brain when listening to leadership podcasts, and I usually prefer podcast listening to be time away from work topics. Don't worry, I get plenty of leadership content elsewhere from books, research, our members, etc. ?? * The top three shows on this list (Accidental Tech Podcast, Sharp Tech, and Mac Power Users) I pay for -- either because that's the only way they are available or because it means they come ad-free. Any show I listen to regularly where this is an option, I often jump in on the paid version to both remove the ads (if possible) and support the creators behind the show. And no, in case you're wondering, there are no plans to ever make Coaching for Leaders a paid show. * If you're an iPhone user, I highly recommend the Overcast podcast app. Just one of many cool features: Marco has “Smart Speed” as an option which I always have enabled. It ever so slightly reduces the silence space between speakers on every podcast episode. It's completely unnoticeable, but it saves many hours of listening time every year. * I also listen to every episode of Teaching in Higher Ed. It may be number 6 on this list, but I can assure you Bonni is number 1 in my heart. ?? What podcasts do you listen to most right now?

Whenever Dave Stachowiak is having a conversation with someone about getting better at coaching, it’s almost always through the lens of, “How do I do it well?” However, a bigger question is often missed: “How does the team do better at coaching each other?” Keith Ferrazzi has been at the forefront of helping teams work better for two decades. On this week's Coaching for Leaders podcast episode, Keith and Dave explored how you can help your team coach each other. It's one of the key messages in Keith's newest book, Never Lead Alone: 10 Shifts from Leadership to Teamship. Here are the key points that emerged in their conversation: 1. Good leaders give feedback and hold people accountable. Great leaders ensure the team gives feedback and holds people accountable. 2. Teamship starts right at the start. Organizations like E.L.F. BEAUTY begin these practices during onboarding. 3. We over-index on mindset. Starting with the right practices will shape the beliefs that help teamship emerge. 4. Use an open 360 where people share one thing they appreciate/admire/respect and one thing they suggest. 5. The 5/5/5 Learning Roadmap invites team members to share a struggle, respond to questions, and receive feedback. 6. We’re used to feedback being directive. Feedback from peers is data. We can consider it without acting on it. The full audio, transcript, and notes are linked in the comments below. Your turn: what's one practice you've seen work to help a team start coaching each other? #leadership #management Ferrazzi Greenlight

Past Coaching for Leaders podcast guest ?? Michael Bungay Stanier in The Advice Trap: “In those situations when your Advice Monster has seized the moment, and you’re telling others what to do, or you’re saving them from themselves, or you’re keeping control of the situation, the belief that’s behind those reactions is: I’m better than them. I’m faster or smarter or more experienced or more senior or more certain of myself or louder or more creative or more strategic or more right or… In these moments, you’re also saying that they’re not enough. Not smart enough, efficient enough, wise enough, resilient enough, capable enough, competent enough, courageous enough, original enough, moral enough, generous enough, trustworthy enough, insert whatever word matters to you enough to figure this out. You’re saying that they’re not good enough. They’re not good enough. They’re not good enough. Sit with that and feel how uncomfortable it is to admit. How unsustainable. How unscalable. How exhausting for you. How disempowering for them. How, when we get to the bottom of it, inhuman it is to you both.” #leadership #management

Whenever Dave Stachowiak is helping someone prepare for an upcoming, difficult conversation, he often hears this: “I just don't trust them.” Charles Feltman invites us to think about trust a bit differently. Instead of framing trust as a binary, he suggests that we examine trust through four assessment domains: care, sincerity, reliability, and competence. By doing this, we can better identify our concerns, communicate them, and make a specific request for the other person to shift their behavior. On this week's Coaching for Leaders podcast episode, Charles and Dave explored these four domains, featuring in his newly revised classic: The Thin Book of Trust (3rd edition). When preparing for a conversation, Charles invites us to follow these seven steps: 1. Identify the assessment(s) you are concerned with: care, sincerity, reliability, and/or competence. 2. Define the standard you are using. 3. Identify the specific actions or behaviors that have led to your assessment of distrust. 4. Consider what you are doing that may be contributing to the situation. 5. Determine what you need from them in order for them to regain your trust. 6. Decide if you are willing to talk to the person about it. 7. Ask the other person if they would be willing to have a conversation with you. The full audio, transcript, and notes are linked in the comments. Your turn --> What did Charles share that was helpful for you? Comment below. #leadership #management

Over 30 years ago, Dave Stachowiak picked up a copy of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The lessons from this book helped shape the principles he brings into his work and life each day. He's been following the work of the folks at FranklinCovey ever since. That's why it was a joy this week to feature Stephen M. R. Covey on the most recent episode of the Coaching for Leaders podcast. Stephen has been a tremendous catalyst for his father's original work and is an accomplished bestselling author in his own right. Stephen and I explored the lessons from his most recent book, Trust & Inspire: How Truly Great Leaders Unleash Greatness in Others. Specifically, we discussed how to shift from command and control to trust and inspire. Key points from our conversation: 1. In spite of all progress, most leaders today are still operating from a command and control mindset. 2. The carrot and stick approach still dominates most organizational cultures and tactics. 3. The biggest barrier to becoming a Trust & Inspire leader is when we think we already are one. 4. People are whole people. The best leaders care for the body, heart, mind, and spirit. 5. There is enough for everyone. Trust & Inspire leaders elevate caring above competition. 6. Enduring influence is created from the inside out. The job of the leader is to go first. 7. All people have greatness inside them. Trust & Inspire leaders work to unleash potential, not control it. A link to the audio, transcript, and notes is in the comments. Your turn: which of these points was most helpful to you? Comment below. #management #leadership

Several years ago, Shandy Welch FNP, PCC sent Dave Stachowiak a gracious LinkedIn note. He replied shortly after. She didn't believe it was him. So he sent this back: "Greetings to you, from Orange County, California.” ?? Shandy is an executive leadership coach. Her coaching focus is around humanizing leadership and re-engaging individuals and teams to inspire change and innovation. Earlier this year, she was named as one of our first Coaching for Leaders Fellows. On this weekend's Coaching for Leaders podcast episode, Shandy and Dave discussed a topic they've both faced a lot -- both in their own careers, and in supporting others: how to talk to people who intimidate you. Here are the key points that emerged: 1. Nervousness is your friend. If you feel it, that means you care. Try to get the butterflies flying in formation. 2. You are there because you are the best person to be there. Full stop. 3. People with visibility will expect you've done your homework. If they’ve put something out into the world, they want you to find it. 4. Preparation helps you improvise. “You've got to learn your instrument. Then, you practice, practice, practice. And then, when you finally get up there on the bandstand, forget all that and just wail.” -Charlie Parker 5. Always assume there is something you can do to help out someone else. Consider their perspective and what they gain from the meeting with you. 6. Everybody has doubts and struggles. Remember the humanity that’s present in every interaction. As part of her fellowship, Shandy is collecting feedback about what was useful from this conversation for you. Comment below or tell her directly via email --> [email protected] Audio, transcript, and notes are linked in the comments. #leadership #management #careers

When Dave Stachowiak was a kid, his family would go shopping at Sears. He remembers running through the aisles of appliances and televisions with his brother, astounded by how much stuff could fit under one roof. But some people reading this haven't heard of Sears because the company didn't stay relevant. Keeping relevant is both critical for organizations -- and essential for leaders. That's why Dave was so glad to feature Steve Dennis on this week's episode of the Coaching for Leaders podcast. Steve is a strategy consultant, advisor, speaker, and author focused on transformational leadership and the impact of digital disruption. His newest book is Leaders Leap: Transforming Your Company at the Speed of Disruption. Steve and Dave explored the mindset and tactics that will help us lead in the context of an ever-changing world. Here are the key points that emerged from their conversation: 1. Self-sufficiency is a virtue, until it’s not. Learning to ask for help is a key practice for leaders. 2. Be cautious about a deserving attitude. High expectations may be correlated with low resilience. 3. Seek insight everywhere. It’s no longer sufficient just to gain ideas from direct competitors. 4. Turning pro means showing up and doing the work, especially when we don’t feel like it. 5. We must go through discomfort, not around it. Radical acceptance of truth will help you stay relevant in changing times. A link to the audio, transcript, and notes is in the comments. Your turn --> What's one practice you leverage to stay relevant? #leadership #management

Seth Godin writes this: “It’s not clear to me why business plans are the way they are, but they’re often misused to obfuscate, bore, and show an ability to comply with expectations.” If you haven't come across Seth before, he's published 22 bestselling books that have changed the way people think about work. He writes one of the most popular blogs in the world, which Dave Stachowiak has been reading for over 20 years. On this week's episode of the Coaching for Leaders podcast, Dave asked Seth, “What's better?” He generously shared with us the framework for a modern business plan that he's outlined in his most recent book, This is Strategy. Key points from their conversation: 1. Big problems require small solutions. 2. We often skip strategy because most of us have trained our whole lives for tactics. 3. A modern business plan is clear about systems and the status quo. Use the system if you intend to change the system. 4. Assertions are the heart of a business plan. Leaders need to have empathy for someone else’s “better.” 5. Articulating alternatives helps you stay resilient when some of your assertions are inevitably wrong. 6. Find people to support you who have a track record of shipping. 7. A useful business plan gets easier over time and persists (maybe even thrives) when the world changes. Find the audio, transcript, and notes linked in the comments. Your turn --> which element will you include in your next plan? Comment below. #leadership #management

One of the definitions of the word currency in Merriam-Webster’s dictionary is, “General use, acceptance, or prevalence.” All of us want to be both accepted and prevalent in the work we get to do. On this week's episode of the Coaching for Leaders podcast, Maha Abouelenein reminded us that personal brand isn't about self promotion, it's about leadership. She's the author of 7 Rules of Self-Reliance: How to Stay Low, Keep Moving, Invest in Yourself and Own Your Future. Key points from her conversation with Dave Stachowiak: 1. Rather than promoting yourself, promote the ideas that you stand for. 2. Reputation is currency. It’s the only thing you truly own and its value comes from how other people perceive it. 3. Sometimes it’s the right move to take a job to earn. It’s also important to take jobs to learn. 4. Knowing what you stand for is key, but this doesn’t come overnight. 5. We all make missteps. What’s often more remembered is how you respond. Apologize and have empathy when things go wrong. The full audio, transcript, and notes are linked in the comments below. Your turn --> what's one idea you stand for? Comment below. #leadership #management