Blanchard LeaderChat

In this episode, hear Jennifer Brown deliver a call to action for leaders at every level to find their role and voice in affecting societal and workplace change. She shares concepts from her new book, How to Be an Inclusive Leader, Second Edition. For more information about Jennifer Brown visit www.jenniferbrownconsulting.com

In this episode hear Mike Easley share experiences and insights from his two decades as CEO of an electric cooperative. He explains why self-awareness and empathy are crucial for anyone aspiring to be a leader—especially a leader worth following. For more about Mike Easley on LinkedIn or visit his book website at noosofleadership.com/

In this episode Eileen Hahn shares tips from her new book, The Job You Were Born For, which presents a revolutionary approach to aligning your work with your life's purpose. She provides the method for learning what you were born to do while loving every moment of it and making a positive impact in the world. For more information visit www.eileenbhahn.com

Do what you love. Sounds simple, right? Hear Marcus Buckingham share how to determine when you are at your best, so you can do what you love, and do it for the rest of your life. His newest book Love + Work focuses on bringing love, the most powerful of human emotions, back into your work and in life.

In this episode coauthors Tom Kaden and Michael Gingerich talk about the skill of listening from their book Listening 2by2: A Paradigm Shift for Leaders. Listening takes intention, patience—and practice. Listening is no longer considered a soft skill but an integral part of communication not only for organizations, but families and personal relationships. They share tips from their L.I.S.T.E.N model to elevate the need to improve communication to the top of our priority list. For more information about Tom Kaden and Michael Gingerich visit www.Someonetotellitto.org

In this episode Amer Kaissi shares results of his extensive research into the traits that define strong, effective leaders from his new book, Humbitious: The Power of Low-Ego, High-Drive Leadership. Conventional thinking has us believe that those filled with hubris and a lack of self-doubt make the best leaders. However, he explains how the unique combination of humility and ambition are the most important skills a leader can use. Humbitious leaders integrate humility into their relationships with others to drive results for their organizations. For more information about Amer Kaissi, visit https://www.amerkaissi.com/

Hear Ken Blanchard and Randy Conley discuss how to be an effective leader by using the skills of servant leadership and building trust. They share how to put the commonsense methods into common practice from their book Simple Truths of Leadership: 52 Ways to Be a Servant Leader and Build Trust. For more information visit www.simpletruthsofleadership.com

In this episode, employee engagement expert Heather Younger explains that if you are looking for increased productivity, customer satisfaction, or employee engagement, you need to care for your employees first. People will go the extra mile for leaders who show they are genuinely concerned about their staff. But while most leaders think of themselves as caring leaders, not all demonstrate that care in consistent ways. Your employees will judge you by your actions, not your intentions. For more information about Heather Younger go theartofcaringleadership.com. Or follow Heather Younger on LinkedIn.

In this episode, hear peak performance expert Steven Kotler explain why we are all capable of achieving the extraordinary. Talking about his latest book, The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer, Kotler explains how the four skills of motivation, learning, creativity, and flow impact our ability to achieve and exceed expectations. He describes how the secrets of elite performers—athletes, artists, scientists, and CEOs—can be applied to your own performance so you can turn your biggest dreams into your most recent achievements. About Steven Kotler: For more information about Steven Kotler, go to www.stevenkotler.com, or www.flowresearchcollective.com.

In this episode, hear Carey Lohrenz explain how we can all learn to overcome the stressful circumstances in our lives instead of being overwhelmed by them. She shares the fundamentals of surviving and succeeding during times of crisis as outlined in her new book, Span of Control: What to Do When You're Under Pressure, Overwhelmed, and Ready to Get What You Really Want, to be released June 1, 2021. About Carey Lohrenz: For more information about Carey Lohrenz, visit www.Careylohrenz.com. To pre-order Span of Control, by Carey Lohrenz click here.

In this episode hear Liz Wiseman reveal the secrets of stellar professionals who play the game at a higher level from her new book, Impact Players: How to Take the Lead Play Bigger and Multiply Your Impact. Drawing on insights from leaders at top companies, Wiseman explains what the most influential players are doing differently, how small, and seemingly insignificant differences in how we think, and act can make an enormous impact, and why—with a little coaching—this mindset is available to everyone who wants to contribute at their highest level. For more information about Liz Wiseman, visit www.thewisemangroup.com.

In this episode, Juliet Funt, globally recognized warrior in the battle against busyness, shares tips from her latest book, A Minute to Think: Reclaim Creativity, Conquer Busyness, and Do Your Best Work. Funt developed a framework to help people regain control of an overloaded, chaotic schedule. She reminds us to insert white space—short periods of open time into our daily routine to reinvent the way we approach a maxed-out schedule. For more information about Juliet Funt, visit www.Julietfunt.com

In this episode hear Trust expert Randy Conley explain the important ways to create psychological safety by building trust in your working environment. He offers suggestions for things you can do immediately to create a safe place to work and challenges you to take the responsibility to make a difference.

In this episode coauthor Pat Zigarmi describes the process of developing your Leadership Point of View as presented in the book Leading at a Higher Level. She explains the three basic steps of identifying key people and events that have influenced your thoughts about leadership, describing your leadership values, and sharing your expectations of yourself and of others with your team members. For more information about Leadership Point of View go to kenblanchard.com

In this episode, organizational change expert Jake Jacobs shares how to make any change initiative successful by using the techniques from in his latest book, Leverage Change: 8 Ways to Achieve Faster, Easier, Better Results. Jacobs encourages you to embrace change, learn to love the troublemakers, and find ways to help people make a meaningful difference during the change process.

In this episode, hear author Robert "Bo" Brabo share personal examples of delivering servant leadership in military, government, and business environments from his latest book, From the Battlefield to the White House to the Boardroom. Brabo explains how leaders can thrive by putting a focus on people and acting in alignment with the core values of their organization, whether big or small, public or private, for-profit or not-for-profit. Leaders who demonstrate consistent behaviors to support these values will be able to show long-term results for themselves and their companies. For more information about Robert "Bo" Brabo, visit www.robertbrabo.com

In this episode hear renowned business culture expert Stan Slap explain the difference between understanding your employees and understanding your employee culture. The distinction isn't semantics; it's the key to whether your strategies will succeed or fail. He shares tips for getting maximum business performance from his book, Under the Hood: Fire up and Fine-Tune Your Employee Culture.

In this episode, hear performance coach Victoria Labalme share strategies for moving forward in times when your goals aren't precisely clear. Some people know exactly what they want and go for it, but others aren't quite sure. Labalme talks about the tips and techniques from her new book, Risk Forward: Embrace the Unknown and Unlock Your Hidden Genius. About Victoria Labalme: For more information about Victoria Labalme, go to www.riskforward.com/book or www.victorialabalme.com

In this episode hear business strategy expert Berta Aldrich describe how the global marketplace has changed and explain why companies are struggling to hire and retain high-performing talent. She shares tips from her latest book, Winning the Talent Shift to show you how to overcome the three main barriers to unlocking the potential in today's workplace. By redesigning your talent acquisition strategy, you will increase revenue, engage teams and leaders, and set your company apart from the competition in the marketplace. About Berta Aldrich For more information about Berta Aldrich, go to www.bertaaldrich.com, or LinkedIn "Winning the Talent Shift" by Berta Aldrich.

Join us to hear learning strategy and design expert Julie Dirksen explain how to create a learning experience that's effective instead of one that gets forgotten as soon as the learner completes the session. The first important steps in Dirksen's process are to understand who your learners are, then define the behavior you want them to learn. This might seem obvious—but the trick is to identify the specific steps required to make that behavior visible and then teach them in a way that is both memorable and applicable to the learner. Dirksen understands that the goal of good learning design is to help learners emerge from the learning experience with new or improved capabilities—skills they can take back to the real world and apply immediately. With the recent shift to virtual learning, this includes using methods to keep people engaged in the session. Dirksen encourages you to use tools available on learning platforms to keep people active, such as asking participants to write on a whiteboard or put comments in the chat, or calling on them to unmute and answer a question. She also stresses the important role that repetition plays in the transfer of knowledge and offers methods to enhance memory. Dirksen's favorite learning tip? Designers should ask themselves one question about every single thing they are trying to teach: Can I provide a real-world example that will illustrate this learning point? About Julie Dirksen: To learn more about Julie Dirksen, go to www.usablelearning.com.

Marcus Buckingham believes there are some basic assumptions about work that are just no longer true in the business environment today. In this episode, he shares his insights on eight of the nine lies featured in his latest book, Nine Lies About Work: A Freethinking Leader's Guide to the Real World, including ideas such as: People care which company they work for; The best plan wins; The best companies cascade goals; The best people are well-rounded; People need feedback; and more.

In this exciting episode, you'll hear how aviation pioneer Carey D. Lohrenz learned what Fearless Leadership means in two of the most demanding and extreme environments imaginable: the cockpit of an F-14 and the flight deck of an aircraft carrier. Through her experiences, Lohrenz identified a fundamental truth: high performing teams require fearless leaders. "Fearless leadership isn't about not feeling fear. It's having the ability to feel uncomfortable and to move through it and show up to be the best you can be," explains Lohrenz. Hear her describe the fundamentals of Fearless Leadership: Courage: If you cultivate courage in yourself, you'll have what it takes to see limitless possibilities for yourself as a leader. Tenacity: Embracing the persistence it takes to keep going after a goal—even when it becomes difficult or risky—and continuing to take action. Integrity: Do the right thing, be honest, be trustworthy, and lead by example. Lohrenz also describes how to put Fearless Leadership into action by first setting a clear vision, then being the catalyst for moving your team toward that vision by creating the culture to support it. She also illustrates the importance of being resilient as a leader and describes the seven steps you can take to become more resilient: Reject victimhood Embrace change Focus on what matters Find a wingman Know what you can control Learn from adversity Take action "Above all, Fearless Leadership is the difference between having the life, team, culture, and organization that you want, and settling," says Lohrenz. So risk more, worry less, and take action—because bold, fearless action drives success. For more information about Carey Lohrenz, visit www.careylohrenz.com

A finite game has known players, fixed rules, and a clear end point, like baseball. But with infinite games such as business or politics, the players come and go, the rules are changeable, and there is no defined end point. There are no winners or losers in an infinite game—there is only ahead or behind.

In this episode, hear virtual training pioneer Cindy Huggett share information from her book Virtual Training Tools and Templates: An Action Guide to Live Online Learning. She offers tips to ensure your virtual training is successful by meeting the specific needs of your organization. The first step is to define what virtual training means for your company. For example, if you are trying to replicate an in-person experience for a small audience, your design will have different requirements than it would if you were trying to reach a large audience. When creating a virtual program, the three most important things to consider are an engaging facilitator, an interactive design, and prepared participants. Preparation is a key to success. Virtual facilitators must understand the specific features of the technology they are using and have backups in place. Huggett's book offers a virtual trainer checklist to help. Most of all, facilitators need to realize that delivering in the virtual arena involves much more than simply making a presentation. Facilitators must make learners the focus—and think of the training as a conversation. To help the learning come alive, make use of the time together in the virtual setting exactly as you would in a face-to-face session. About Cindy Huggett: To learn more about Cindy Huggett, go to www.cindyhuggett.com, or find her on Twitter: @cindyhugg.

In this exciting episode, Alexa Shoen shares secrets for finding your first job—or your dream job—from her new book, #EntryLevelBoss. She calls her approach a "fitness plan" for looking for work, with the goal of helping people go through the job search process as efficiently as possible. Shoen believes there are 14 incorrect beliefs that stymie our job search efforts and she challenges us to reconsider those assumptions. For example, many people believe they need the right degrees to get the right job. They spend thousands of dollars on schooling when they should have focused on getting practical experience. It's not that an MBA isn't a good thing—but sometimes jumping on the first rung of the ladder to get the experience can be more important than getting more educated. Before you start your job search, Shoen wants you to answer three questions: What kind of role do you want? Where do you physically want to work? What industry do you want to work in? Don't just throw your resume out there—answer these questions and create a list of possible employers. Then plan a strategy for making connections with those companies. Shoen reveals a few creative methods for tracking down people who can help you find that perfect job. Most important, Shoen advises you to focus on being interested instead of looking interesting. Find out enough about the company to know what kind of problem you can solve for them. Think about what you can bring to the job on day one that will set you apart from other candidates. About Alexa Shoen For more information about Alexa Shoen, go to www.entrylevelboss.com.

In this week's podcast, you'll hear Brendon Burchard explain why and how some people perform at a higher level than others. He identifies six habits successful people practice to sustain long-term achievement in their personal and professional lives. Seek clarity. Successful people continually seek clarity. They are curious and ask questions. They are intentional about understanding how they are perceived by others and about the specific differences they want to make. Generate energy. So much mental, emotional, and spiritual fatigue exist today that we all must take control of our own energy. High performers develop routines such as meditation or other wellness practices to increase their energy throughout the day. They practice the exercise of releasing tension and they set their intentions before starting a project or activity. They create transitional moments to refuel their bodies and minds, and to increase creativity and focus. Raise necessity. High performers amp themselves up to do a good job. Before any situation, they define why it is important to excel, and they increase the psychological stress on themselves. They understand who and what they are performing for, and strive to be their best. Increase productivity. Focus is the key to increasing productivity. High performers don't do something just so they can cross it off their list. They continuously determine the most important work they should be doing—and then they intentionally block out time for that work in order to achieve their most critical goals. Develop influence. High performers influence others by asking them to think about things differently and to challenge themselves. When you think about someone who influenced you, you'll realize they probably challenged you in the same way. Demonstrate courage. Demonstrating courage doesn't have to be a Herculean feat. Practical things done on a daily basis help people perform at higher levels. Speaking up for yourself, sharing your truth, and speaking up for others are all acts of courage. As Burchard explains, "The things that matter most to your performance might seem like common sense, but they are not common practice. You must identify the things that make you extraordinary and align the right habits to help yourself become a higher achiever." About Brendon Burchard For more information on Brendon Burchard, visit www.brendon.com

In this episode, hear Keith Ferrazzi explain the new rules for work presented in his latest book, Leading Without Authority. The days of authoritative command and control are gone. "Work doesn't happen in organization charts anymore. Leaders need to learn the power of co-elevation to bring collaboration to a higher level of effectiveness," says Ferrazzi. When a leader thinks of themselves as a servant, host, or Sherpa, their role changes to one that focuses on working hard to get the most out of a group of individuals. If the whole team is committed to the mission and to each other, extraordinary and transformative things happen. A team isn't necessarily a group of people in the same department reporting to the same person. Today's teams are made up of peers working together across functions to achieve results. Co-elevation requires a shift in mindset and behaviors. Ferrazzi shares how to re-contract with colleagues to define new ways to work together collaboratively and offers bold solutions you can put into practice tomorrow. Now more than ever before, it is critical for individuals to step up and lead even if they don't have the title, the authority, or the position. It might not be comfortable at first, because it will be disruptive. But disruption drives innovation. The true power behind co-elevation breaks down silos and gets people focused on crossing the finish line together. For more information about Keith Ferrazzi, go to www.keithferrazzi.com. To access the handout mentioned in the podcast, go to www.keithferrazzi.com/leaderchat.

In this episode, hear leadership expert Dave McKeown challenge leaders to break the cycle of mediocrity and take responsibility for their own development. In his latest book, The Self-Evolved Leader, McKeown acknowledges that it is easy for leaders to get stuck in the busyness of the day-to-day and allow themselves to be disrupted at any time. Leaders need to spend less time taking care of every little detail and more time developing, inspiring, and encouraging their staff.

In this compelling episode, you'll hear La'Wana Harris share timely thoughts about her new book, Diversity Beyond Lip Service. She explains how she works with leaders to help them become aware of their own biases and how to make conscious choices that mitigate bias in order to embrace diversity. Harris defines diversity as the full spectrum of human indifference including race, gender, and sexual orientation. But she also points out other differentiators such as cultural elements, position or role status, privilege, and physical abilities that limit inclusion. La'Wana's executive coach experience has provided many opportunities for her to work with people to first build their awareness of biases, then do the self-work to move forward with actions that have a positive impact. She encourages us to commit to courageous actions and speak up when we see someone being marginalized. The action is to not ignore what you are observing; instead, practice awareness, point out the discrepancy, and be part of the solution. This is the only way to move beyond supporting diversity only through lip service. It takes a long-term commitment to action. Diversity is an issue that must be addressed, and now is the time. "There are no extra people—every single person has inherent value and it is a huge disservice to ourselves and others not to mine for the greatness in everyone. We must help others become their best selves and fully appreciate the beauty in our diversity," explains Harris. For more information on La'Wana Harris, go to lawanaharris.com or find her on LinkedIn.

In this episode, Mark Johnson describes a method for putting visionary thinking and processes into place so that any organization can take advantage of disruptive innovation. As business models change at an ever-increasing rate and the world becomes noisier, the tendency for most organizations is to hunker down and deal with the here and now. But it is important to get past the pull of the present and plan for five to ten years in the future.

In this episode you'll hear Joel Peterson, chairman of JetBlue Airways, discuss the difference between an entrepreneur and an entrepreneurial leader. In his latest book, Entrepreneurial Leadership: The Art of Launching New Ventures, Inspiring Others, and Running Stuff, Peterson explains that leaders who want to make a lasting impact must learn to launch new initiatives, inspire others, and champion innovative approaches. In short, these leaders require a new set of skills.

Judd Hoekstra, coauthor of Who Killed Change, explains why up to 70 percent of change efforts fail. Research indicates there are several predictive reasons why change fails, and Hoekstra explains how to navigate through the process successfully. He also describes three of the five stages of concern that people experience during a change initiative.

"If leaders know that showing gratitude and appreciating the work of their employees is important, why aren't they doing it consistently?" asks Adrian Gostick, organizational culture expert and cofounder of The Culture Works. In this episode, hear Gostick talk about research his company conducted with more than one million employees that confirms the strong relationship between employee recognition and employee engagement. He explores the myths that are holding people back in his latest book, Leading with Gratitude, coauthored with Chester Elton.

Hear motivation expert Susan Fowler describe the three basic needs that are essential to optimal motivation: choice, connection, and competence. She explains we all need to create these three needs in our lives in order to thrive. Creating the basic need of choice can be as simple as recognizing that we have a choice. Have you ever wished you didn't have to go to work in the morning? That is a choice point. When that happens, ask yourself what would happen if you didn't go to work—what would you lose? Then ask yourself what you would learn and contribute if you did go to work. Thinking about those things will help you plan and understand that you do have a choice. Fowler recommends that at the end of each day we ask ourselves which choices made us happy and which ones didn't. This simple process makes us more aware that we do have choices, and it helps us look at consequences to ensure we make better decisions in the future. The need of connection is tied closely to values. If you say family is your number one value but you spend 80 hours a week working and missing family events, or if you say health is a value but you don't eat right or exercise, you might need to take a closer look at your values. The choices we make are true indicators of our values—so if we don't know what your values are, we'll have trouble creating connection in our lives. Defining our values is the first step toward creating connection. The third basic need is competence. This isn't necessarily about mastery; it's about learning and growing every day. Everyone wants to feel effective at managing professional and personal activities, but mastery doesn't happen overnight. Developing competence is about making progress. The most important takeaway is that we can control the quality of our lives by controlling the quality of our motivation through the creation of choice, connection, and competence. For more about Susan Fowler, go to www.susanfowler.com.

A finite game has known players, fixed rules, and a clear end point, like baseball. But with infinite games such as business or politics, the players come and go, the rules are changeable, and there is no defined end point. There are no winners or losers in an infinite game—there is only ahead or behind.

In this episode, Craig Weber explains how strong communication skills can build healthy work environments and increase leadership effectiveness. "The first step is awareness. People need to be aware of how they react to others during conversations," explains Weber. Once people have this awareness, they can be more thoughtful about their responses and help conversations move along in a positive way. The second step is to embrace a new way of thinking. Many people let their ego get in the way during conversations when they want to prove they are right. That isn't helpful. The purpose of a conversation is to get a clear understanding of an issue with the goal of working together to make good decisions and move forward. To do that, you must develop a mindset of learning. The third step is learning the skills of candor and curiosity. Candor involves being able to state your opinion clearly and explain the thinking behind it. Curiosity is about testing your opinions or theories with others to learn about blind spots or inaccuracies in your thought process. It also involves the ability to inquire and gain clarity about comments or opinions from others. Weber suggests creating a personal plan to work on specific areas of your communication skills. Be aware of your behaviors, approach every conversation with a learning mindset, and then practice the skills of candor and curiosity. Weber wants everyone to realize they have the power to make a difference both at work and at home by simply improving their communication skills. For more information about Craig Weber, go to https://www.weberconsultinggroup.net/conversational-capacity.

Jennifer Brown says most of us are not aware of the variety of forms bias can take. The most important thing is to start having discussions about diversity and unconscious bias so every leader can begin their journey toward becoming an inclusive leader.

Marcus Buckingham believes there are some basic assumptions about work that are just no longer true in the business environment today. In this episode, he shares his insights on eight of the nine lies featured in his latest book, Nine Lies About Work: A Freethinking Leader's Guide to the Real World, including ideas such as: People care which company they work for; The best plan wins; The best companies cascade goals; The best people are well-rounded; People need feedback; and more.

"I've been in the business of leadership development for 30 years, and it became increasingly evident to me that love is the foundation of great leadership," says Steve Farber. He isn't talking a touchy-feely notion of love, but the competitive advantage you can have when you love what you do in the service of people who love what you do. This book is about dispelling the myth that love and business are mutually exclusive. Farber isn't talking about love as a sentiment, but as a discipline: love of the cause, values, people, customers, products, and services.

In this exciting episode, you'll hear how aviation pioneer Carey D. Lohrenz learned what Fearless Leadership means in two of the most demanding and extreme environments imaginable: the cockpit of an F-14 and the flight deck of an aircraft carrier. Through her experiences, Lohrenz identified a fundamental truth: high performing teams require fearless leaders. "Fearless leadership isn't about not feeling fear. It's having the ability to feel uncomfortable and to move through it and show up to be the best you can be," explains Lohrenz. Hear her describe the fundamentals of Fearless Leadership: Courage: If you cultivate courage in yourself, you'll have what it takes to see limitless possibilities for yourself as a leader. Tenacity: Embracing the persistence it takes to keep going after a goal—even when it becomes difficult or risky—and continuing to take action. Integrity: Do the right thing, be honest, be trustworthy, and lead by example. Lohrenz also describes how to put Fearless Leadership into action by first setting a clear vision, then being the catalyst for moving your team toward that vision by creating the culture to support it. She also illustrates the importance of being resilient as a leader and describes the seven steps you can take to become more resilient: Reject victimhood Embrace change Focus on what matters Find a wingman Know what you can control Learn from adversity Take action "Above all, Fearless Leadership is the difference between having the life, team, culture, and organization that you want, and settling," says Lohrenz. So risk more, worry less, and take action—because bold, fearless action drives success. For more information about Carey Lohrenz, visit www.careylohrenz.com

In this episode, you'll hear Jim Clifton describe the findings from Gallup's largest study on the future of work from his new book, It's the Manager. "We found that engagement—not satisfaction, but engagement, where people are developing and contributing to something bigger than themselves—is extremely low. In the United States, about 30 percent of employees are engaged at work. And if you look worldwide, that number drops to 15 percent," says Clifton. "This tells us that in the world of management, something isn't working. The numbers are depressing—but the possibilities are inspiring." After studying 300,000 teams across 160 countries, Gallup found that one thing makes the difference between high performing teams and failing teams: the manager. While the world's workplaces have been going through extraordinary change, the practice of management has been stuck in time for more than 30 years. Hear Clifton describe a few of the 52 discoveries from his book, including the importance of creating the kind of culture that supports employee development and the need for managers to stop being a boss and start being a coach. The new, younger workforce wants their work to have deep mission and purpose—and they don't want old-style command-and-control bosses. They want coaches who inspire them, communicate with them frequently, and develop their strengths. "Just imagine if we improved engagement from 15 percent to 50 percent. We would see meaningful growth like never before." About Jim Clifton For more information about Jim Clifton, visit www.gallup.com.

For everyday situations that can drain our daily energy and make us lose focus, Micro-Resilience offers quick and easy ways to help us cope: Learn how to Refocus Your Brain, Reset Your Primitive Alarms, Reframe Your Attitude, Refresh Your Body, and Renew Your Spirit! Bonnie St. John explains how in her book Micro-Resilience, coauthored with Allen P. Haines. "We have so much disruption in our lives—new technology, new customers, new competition, new processes and systems," says St. John. "All of this disruption creates stress and mental exhaustion. But you can make tiny changes in your daily routine to help you deal with the big changes going on in your life." A lot of information is available about how to deal with big life changes such as illness or natural disasters. These kinds of events can require complex solutions and take time to work through. But for everyday situations that can drain our daily energy and make us lose focus, Micro-Resilience offers quick and easy ways to help us cope.

In this episode, S. Chris Edmonds discusses the key points of his book The Culture Engine: A Framework for Driving Results, Inspiring Your Employees, and Transforming Your Workplace. S. Chris Edmonds has a delightfully simple explanation of culture: "Culture is all about how people treat each other—how leaders treat their teams and peers, how employees treat each other, and how people treat customers and vendors. It's about relationships and respect," he explains. As simple as that sounds, it can also be a very disruptive concept to some organizations. Many leaders and managers are asked to manage business results but are rarely asked to manage the quality of their work culture. "Get out of the mindset that results are the most important thing. Make respect as important as results. One of the first things I do is educate senior leaders about how important it is to have a culture that is purposeful, positive, and productive—one that is going to drive great customer experiences and employee engagement." So how does an organization start creating the culture they want to cultivate? Edmonds suggests writing an organizational constitution—a document that outlines the purpose, values, strategies, and goals of the company. It describes exactly how employees will engage with each other, with customers, and with vendors. An organizational constitution gives meaning and clarity to every employee by providing a clear understanding of how they can do their best work, treat others respectfully, and help the organization prosper. It is critical to urge all the leaders in the organization to model the behaviors outlined in the organizational constitution. It becomes the document they can lead by, live by, and manage performance to. It helps them hold people accountable, praise people who are living the values of the constitution, and redirect people whose behaviors are not in alignment. If your organization doesn't have a constitution, individuals can lead by example. Edmonds asks leaders to pay attention to the relationships they have with their direct reports, peers, customers, and vendors. "I ask leaders to shift from an 'I need' mindset to a 'What do you need?' mindset. If leaders can help their people accomplish tasks easier, or give a client what they need, they will build trust and create a mutually beneficial relationship," Edmonds explains. "I've seen it work with intact teams within organizations. I tell people to just start making a difference where they are." Edmonds shares several examples of working with organizations to help them define their purpose, values, strategies, and goals, and describes how these companies are creating their desired cultures. The stories bring his concepts to life. Edmonds stresses that culture drives everything that happens in an organization day by day, including focus, priorities, and the treatment of employees and customers. A great culture not only drives great performance but also can help attract and retain top talent. However, a great culture isn't something that evolves naturally—it must be defined, supported, honored, and modeled every day. About The Ken Blanchard Companies The Ken Blanchard Companies is the global leader in management training. For nearly 40 years Blanchard has been creating the best managers in the world, training over 150,000 people each year. From the award-winning First-time Manager program—based on the best-selling business book The New One Minute Manager®—to SLII®, the most widely taught leadership model in the world, Blanchard is the provider of choice for Fortune 500 companies as well as small to medium businesses, government agencies, and educational and nonprofit organizations. About S. Chris Edmonds For more information on S. Chris Edmonds visit his website at www.drivingresultsthroughculture.com

In this episode, Whitney Johnson discusses the secrets to creating an engaged and productive team as outlined in her book, Build an A-Team: Play to Their Strengths and Lead Them Up the Learning Curve. Johnson shares seven ways managers can support their team members' journey up the curve. Take the right kind of risks—Help team members understand the difference between doing something just to compete, versus finding a problem that needs to be solved and creating the solution. Play to your distinctive strengths—Help team members identify what they are good at and let them apply their knowledge to those types of projects. Embrace your constraints—By identifying constraints and taking a hard look at them managers can help team members inspire innovation. Battle entitlement—Encourage team members to think about new ways of doing things. Just because a process has been in place for years, doesn't mean it is the best process. Entitlement can kill innovation. Step back, down, or sideways to grow—Continually pushing forward is not always the best way to drive innovation. Help people understand the positive influence of stepping back to look at other possibilities. Give failure its due—Accept what you can learn from failure. It might be the very thing to catapult you up the learning curve. Be driven by discovery—Encourage your team to ask for feedback and use what they learn to discover things that might be holding them back. About The Ken Blanchard Companies The Ken Blanchard Companies is the global leader in management training. For nearly 40 years, Blanchard has been creating the best managers in the world, training over 150,000 people each year. From the award-winning First-time Manager program, based on the best-selling business book, The New One Minute Manager®—to SLII®, the most widely taught leadership model in the world, Blanchard is the provider of choice for Fortune 500 companies as well as small to medium businesses, government agencies, and educational and nonprofit organizations. About Whitney Johnson For more information on Whitney Johnson visit www.whitneyjohnson.com. Or visit www.whitneyjohnson.com/diagnostic to take an assessment to determine where you are on the S-Curve of Learning.

In this episode, Tasha Eurich describes concepts from her book Insight: The Surprising Truth About How Others See Us, How We See Ourselves, and Why the Answers Matter More Thank We Think. Eurich explains how developing self-awareness—knowing who we are and how others see us—can help you be fulfilled, confident, and successful in life and work. "As an organizational psychologist—and intuitively—I've always believed that self-awareness was an important skill. But as an executive coach, I've come to realize it is an essential skill. I wanted proof, so I started researching the concept." Eurich's research shows that self-awareness is the foundation for high performance, smart choices, and lasting relationships. It also shows that most people don't see themselves as clearly as they could. "Our data reveals that 95 percent of people believe they are self-aware, but the real number is 12 to 15 percent," she says. "That means, on a good day, about 80 percent of people are lying about themselves—to themselves." There are two parts to self-awareness: internal and external. Internal self-awareness means knowing your values and personality strengths and weaknesses. External self-awareness means knowing how other people see you. The two parts are independent of each other. A person can be high or low on both scales, or high on one and low on the other. Fortunately, self-awareness is a skill that can be developed—all it takes is a willingness to improve. Critical elements include questioning your assumptions about yourself and asking for feedback. Most people don't like hearing feedback, but pushing past this discomfort is one of the first steps on the journey to self-awareness. Eurich identifies a phenomenon she calls cult of self as a global problem. "Think about the way people use social media. They don't post bad news—only great news. It can take so much effort to make ourselves seem a certain way that we become disconnected from who we really are," she explains. "We each have a choice between being a meformer—just talking about ourselves, or an informer—focusing on what we do, how we can add value to the world, and what we learn from people around us." Self-serving behavior shows up in the workplace when people are not authentic and not open to feedback. The most productive work environments, according to Eurich, are built around people being humble, open, honest, and willing to learn and grow. "A surprising finding centers on people who spend a lot of time in self-reflection. We assume they would be more self-aware, but it isn't true. Some people spend so much time ruminating on the negative that it actually damages their self-awareness. The key to effective self-reflection is to think about something for a defined period of time and then make a decision, not to beat yourself up. For example, instead of focusing on why you may have done something, think about what you can do differently next time or what kind of support you need. Self-reflection should move you forward productively." To apply this concept in the workplace, leaders must model self-awareness behaviors. First, ask for feedback from every member of the team. Create a safe environment for people to share their truth when giving feedback. Most important, make sure this is a continuous practice—not just an activity at a retreat. Eurich offers one last piece of advice. "Working on your self-awareness will put you ahead of 80 percent of your colleagues. It is the secret ingredient. Don't put pressure on yourself to do it quickly—be open to what people tell you so that you can make a significant improvement." About The Ken Blanchard Companies The Ken Blanchard Companies is the global leader in management training. For 40 years, Blanchard has been creating the best managers in the world, training over 150,000 people each year. From the award-winning First-time Manager program—based on the best-selling business book, The New One Minute Manager®—to SLII®, the most widely taught leadership model in the world, Blanchard is the provider of choice for Fortune 500 companies as well as small to medium businesses, government agencies, and educational and nonprofit organizations. About Tasha Eurich For more information on Tasha Eurich, and to take a free self-awareness quiz, go to www.insight-quiz.com.

In this exciting episode, Peter Bregman shares his thoughts about leadership and the importance of showing up with confidence, being connected to others, and being committed to a purpose in a way that inspires others to follow. He explains that the most successful leaders not only know what to say and do, but are willing to experience the discomfort, risk, or uncertainty of saying and doing it. These leaders display what Bregman calls Emotional Courage. "Think about a conversation you need to have, but haven't. You have all the skill and knowledge you need, but you aren't doing it. Why? Most likely it is because you believe it may cause you to feel something you don't want to feel. You might become disconnected from that person. Or they might come back in anger or act in a passive aggressive way that can damage relationships and put projects at risk. It could simply make you uncomfortable—and no one likes to feel uncomfortable. Emotional Courage is not how much you know—it is about what you are willing to feel," says Bregman. The four elements of Emotional Courage are simple to understand, but not always easy to implement. To be a leader with Emotional Courage, you need to: Be confident in yourself. To be confident, you need to understand who you are as a leader and then determine who you want to become. Asking for feedback is a powerful way to uncover blind spots, while listening to and accepting that feedback is the key to changing your behavior. Building confidence creates the foundation for your leadership style. Be connected with others. Listening with a willingness to learn something new is the birthplace of connection. Following through on commitments builds trust for a lasting, honest relationship. True success depends on connecting with others. Be committed to a purpose. Create a clear, powerful, compelling focus toward a larger purpose in order to channel your energy and the energy of those around you toward a common goal. Achieving a common purpose requires extreme focus. Act with Emotional Courage. Understand when you don't want to feel something and take steps toward it. Be courageous and act boldly. Emotional courage feeds on confidence, connections, and commitment. "The key thing to remember is to be aware of what is important to you and be willing to take the risk to increase your own productivity. That will have a positive impact on personal and organizational results—because you will be operating with Emotional Courage." About The Ken Blanchard Companies The Ken Blanchard Companies is the global leader in management training. For nearly 40 years, Blanchard has been creating the best managers in the world, training over 150,000 people each year. From the award-winning First-time Manager program, based on the best-selling business book, The New One Minute Manager®—to SLII®, the most widely taught leadership model in the world, Blanchard is the provider of choice for Fortune 500 companies as well as small to medium businesses, government agencies, and educational and nonprofit organizations. About Peter Bregman For more information on Peter Bregman, visit www.bregmanpartners.com.

As we wrap up season one of the LeaderChat Podcast, Ken Blanchard and Chad Gordon revisit some of their favorite episodes. They share new thoughts about the important messages from our guests and invite you to send questions you would like Ken to answer in future episodes. Just send your questions to [email protected]. Enjoy this episode of Chad Gordon interviewing Dr. Travis Bradberry, researcher and author of the best-selling book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0—which has sold over one million copies! Bradberry shares how emotional maturity is absolutely critical for success as a leader, and how emotional intelligence is a capacity that can be learned and developed. He explains that increasing your emotional intelligence begins with self-awareness. Bradberry discusses how to integrate EQ training into a leadership development curriculum—and how the emotional intelligence displayed by top leaders can set the example for all levels of leadership in an organization. Bradberry also shares strategies for dealing with stress, procrastination, and toxic people. Emotions are a primary driver of behaviors and emotional intelligence is a foundational skill of all good leaders. Learn how to be a master of your emotions in a way that increases your effectiveness as a leader. And be sure to listen to the very end of this 30-minute interview to hear Ken Blanchard share his thoughts and personal takeaways on Dr. Bradberry's ideas.

As we wrap up season one of the LeaderChat Podcast, Ken Blanchard and Chad Gordon revisit some of their favorite episodes. They share new thoughts about the important messages from our guests and invite you to send questions you would like Ken to answer in future episodes. Just send your questions to [email protected]. Enjoy this episode of Chad Gordon interviewing Patrick Lencioni, author of The Ideal Team Player as well as nine other books on teams and motivation—which have sold nearly five million copies! Lencioni describes leadership as a calling that requires putting the needs of others ahead of your own. That begins with identifying people with the right qualities and developing those qualities to the fullest extent. Building on the concepts he first explored in his best-selling first book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Lencioni recommends taking a moment to consider your own behaviors when working on a team. He teaches how using a Humble—Hungry—Smart model can help you and others become more effective team members. Lencioni shares how leadership development experts can identify these traits in potential new hires along with sharing his own personal story of using these principles in his work and other areas of his life. Be sure to listen to the very end of this 30-minute interview to hear Ken Blanchard share his key takeaways and the areas that he most plans to work on. About The Ken Blanchard Companies The Ken Blanchard Companies is the global leader in management training. For nearly 40 years, Blanchard has been creating the best managers in the world, training over 150,000 people each year. From the award-winning First-time Manager program—based on the best-selling business book,& The New One Minute Manager®—to SLII®, the most widely taught leadership model in the world, Blanchard is the provider of choice of Fortune 500 companies as well as small to medium businesses, government agencies, and educational and nonprofit organizations. About Patrick Lencioni For more information on Patrick Lencioni visit www.tablegroup.com

As we wrap up season one of the LeaderChat Podcast, Ken Blanchard and Chad Gordon revisit some of their favorite episodes. They share new thoughts about the important messages from our guests and invite you to send questions you would like Ken to answer in future episodes. Just send your questions to [email protected]. Enjoy this episode where Chad Gordon interviews Elena Botelho, coauthor of The CEO Next Door: The 4 Behaviors that Transform Ordinary People into World-Class Leaders to hear what it takes to become a world-class leader. "Most ideals about why people are successful are driven by stereotypes and gut feel rather than facts and data," explains Botelho. "In this book, we've aspired to provide information about how anyone can be successful by helping readers learn from other successful people in business." Learnings shared in the book are based on groundbreaking research and in-depth analysis of more than 2,600 leaders drawn from a database of more than 17,000 CEO and C-suite executives. Botelho describes the four behaviors of highly successful people as identified by the research. They are decisive and understand the importance of speed over precision when making decisions. According to Botelho, most people assume that CEOs have an uncanny ability to make the right decisions more often than other people. But her research indicates that what really makes a CEO stand out isn't necessarily the accuracy of their decision, but the speed and will to make the decision in the first place. They are reliable and deliver what they promise, when they promise it—without exception. This behavior sounds simple, but isn't easy to practice consistently. Botelho describes the importance of being on time and doing what you say you're going to do—and she offers another tip: "Highly reliable leaders are thoughtful about setting expectations right up front." Botelho shares that this behavior not only improves the likelihood you will succeed in your role, but also increases your chances of being hired In the first place. They adapt boldly, especially when faced with the discomfort of the unknown. "Of the four behaviors, this is the one where people are most likely to underestimate their ability—and that is costly." Botelho explains people naturally assume change will be painful, so they resist it. But her research shows that the most successful leaders are good at letting go of past behaviors, habits, and commitments that will not serve them in the future. They engage with stakeholders without shying away from conflict. These leaders focus on leading to deliver results that benefit the company as opposed to leading to be liked. They keep all stakeholders—customers, employees, and shareholders—in mind and manage those relationships. Finally, Botelho shares some counterintuitive insights about making great strides in your career—what she calls career catapults. "Sometimes it is better to go small in order to go big," Botelho says. Having an elite MBA or working for a marque company is a great way to advance your career, but sometimes taking what looks like a side step instead of always focusing on moving up the ladder can have a more positive impact. By being in charge of a smaller project, division, or group, you might actually have a chance to practice more skills and get more exposure. According to the author, here is the most important message to take away from The CEO Next Door and this podcast: Excellence is more achievable for us than we assume. Be sure to stay tuned for comments from Ken Blanchard at the end of the podcast!