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Learn to Lead

Learn to Lead

By Abilitie

Leadership is a process. These are the stories about the journey we all take learning to lead. On our show we talk about how people can lead teams more effectively, how organizations can enhance their approaches to developing the leaders of tomorrow, and we talk to our guests about their own journey of professional and personal development. Produced by www.abilitie.com.
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The Language of Leaders

Learn to LeadJul 17, 2020

00:00
19:33
Remarkable Leadership
Mar 13, 202417:58
Making Organizations More Human
Feb 21, 202416:14
Disrupting The Incumbents

Disrupting The Incumbents

Bradley Tusk is a venture capitalist, political strategist, philanthropist and writer. He is the author of The Fixer and his newest book is entitled Obvious In Hindsight. Previously, Bradley served as campaign manager for Mike Bloomberg’s 2009 mayoral race, as Deputy Governor of Illinois, overseeing the state’s budget, operations, legislation, policy and communications, as communications director for US Senator Chuck Schumer, and as Uber’s first political advisor. On this episode we talk about Bradley’s recent blog post detailing 50 reflections at age 50. We also talk about how he came to become Uber’s first political advisor and how that led him to create a venture firm that is now described as the world’s first venture capital fund that invests solely in early stage startups in highly regulated industries. We finish the show discussing his philanthropic efforts and what he has learned opening a bookstore in Manhattan.

Learn To Lead is brought to you by Abilitie a leadership provider of experiential learning. Abilitie’s simulations and leadership programs have inspired over 100,000 professionals in more than 30 countries. To learn more about Abilitie and about our host Matthew Confer, visit the links below:
Abilitie Leadership Development -
www.abilitie.com
The Learn To Lead Podcast - www.abilitie.com/learn-to-lead-podcast/
Host Matthew Confer:
- LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/matthewconfer/
- Twitter - twitter.com/MatthewConfer
- Matthew’s TEDx Talk on Decision
Making - www.ted.com/talks/matthew_confer_before_you_decide_3_steps_to_better_decision_making
Make sure you subscribe to our show to ensure you get our next episode when it is released.























Jan 31, 202430:20
Lift Your Impact
Jan 10, 202422:58
Mental Fitness
Dec 20, 202318:13
The 12-Week MBA

The 12-Week MBA

This week, we have a special episode. Bjorn Billhardt is the CEO and Founder of Abilitie and Nathan Kracklauer is Abilitie’s Chief Research Officer. Together, they are the authors of the upcoming book entitled The 12-Week MBA. The premise of the book is that there is a core set of business skills that entrepreneurs and future leaders of organizations can learn and will need regardless of their industry, function, or level. On this episode we talk about their journey over 20 years in the learning industry and the process of crafting the curriculum that serves as the foundation for our leadership programs at Abilitie.
We also dive into the book writing process, the power of
collaboration, and their advice for leaders at all levels.
You can learn more about The 12-Week MBA at:
abilitie.com/12weekmba

Learn To Lead is brought to you by Abilitie a leadership provider of experiential learning. Abilitie’s simulations and leadership programs have inspired over 100,000 professionals in more than 30 countries. To learn more about Abilitie and about our host Matthew Confer, visit the links below:
Abilitie Leadership Development - www.abilitie.com
The Learn To Lead Podcast - www.abilitie.com/learn-to-lead-podcast/
Host Matthew Confer:
- LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/matthewconfer/
- Twitter - twitter.com/MatthewConfer
- Matthew’s TEDx Talk on Decision Making - www.ted.com/talks/matthew_confer_before_you_decide_3_steps_to_better_decision_making
Make sure you subscribe to our show to ensure you get our next episode when it is released.
Dec 06, 202327:16
The Leadership Mindset
Nov 01, 202318:59
The Confident Presenter
Oct 13, 202319:03
Leadership Lessons

Leadership Lessons

Somi Arian the founder of InPeak, an innovative platform enabling creators and businesses to build using AI and blockchain functionalities. She is an award-winning filmmaker whose documentary, "The Millennial Disruption," won several international awards. She is also the author of Career Fear and how to beat it. She was also honored by LinkedIn who recognized her with their Top Voices Award. Somi joined us on the show to talk about her upbringing, her leadership journey, and her advice for other leaders. She also talked about the fact that she sits at the convergence of many different transformational technologies and how leaders need to navigate a changing technology landscape. 


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Learn To Lead is brought to you by Abilitie a leadership provider of experiential learning. Abilitie’s simulations and leadership programs have inspired over 55,000 professionals in more than 30 countries over the last three years. To learn more about Abilitie and about our host Matthew Confer, visit the links below:

Abilitie Leadership Development - https://www.abilitie.com

The Learn To Lead Podcast - https://www.abilitie.com/learn-to-lead-podcast/

 Host Matthew Confer:

-      LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewconfer/

-      Twitter - https://twitter.com/MatthewConfer

-      Matthew’s TEDx Talk on Decision Making - https://www.ted.com/talks/matthew_confer_before_you_decide_3_steps_to_better_decision_making 

Make sure you subscribe to our show to ensure you get our next episode when it is released.

Sep 20, 202317:33
Navigating The Future
Aug 30, 202317:57
Leading With Vulnerability
Aug 09, 202320:36
Effective Communication
Jul 19, 202320:30
Learning Through Experience
Jun 28, 202318:03
Understanding Uncertainty
Jun 07, 202315:26
Overcoming the Pressure of Management
May 17, 202317:20
Advancing Economic and Social Mobility
Apr 26, 202316:49
Making a Positive Difference
Apr 05, 202317:12
Adapting How You Listen
Mar 15, 202313:53
Leadership Demands Courage
Feb 22, 202317:13
Trading Perfectionism for Authenticity

Trading Perfectionism for Authenticity

Síle Walsh is a coach specializing in leadership and organizational development with a focus on inclusion, performance, and psychological safety. With a background in coaching psychology and organizational development, and over a decade of working with clients in Ireland and internationally, Síle strives to support effective leadership so organizations can be high-performing, inclusive workplaces where people thrive, and great work gets done. Síle is a PhD researcher with Canterbury Christ Church University in Salomons Institute for Applied Psychology exploring inclusive leadership in organizations through a psychological lens. On this episode, we discuss the way Síle approaches curiosity, what initially got her interested in leadership development, and what trends she'd like to see grow and which she's less excited about. She also shares a story about the time she received feedback that inspired her to change how she presents herself online so she is more authentic and accurate to her unique approach to her work. 

Dec 21, 202220:46
Looking Back at 100 Episodes

Looking Back at 100 Episodes

On this episode, our host Matt Confer shares some gratitude and reflections about what he has learned since the beginning of the Learn to Lead podcast, 100 episodes ago. Since then, we have been fortunate to share key leadership lessons with more than 39,000 listeners. Those lessons have come from world-class coaches, trailblazers of industry, entrepreneurs, and even a memory champion and an improv artist. Matt identifies a core thread that has been woven through all his conversations and gives insight into what you can expect from the Learn to Lead podcast and the team at Abilitie going into 2023. 

From all of us here at Abilitie, thank you for inviting us into your ears for the past 100 episodes! 

Dec 07, 202204:58
Forces of Innovation

Forces of Innovation

Steve Hoffman is the Chairman & CEO of Founders Space, a global innovation hub for entrepreneurs, corporations, and investors, with over 50 partners in 22 countries. Hoffman is also a venture investor, founder of three venture-backed and two bootstrapped startups, and author of several award-winning books, including Make Elephants Fly, Surviving a Startup, and The Five Forces. In this episode, we discussed the difference between innovation and truly radical change as well as how Steve's experiences in a variety of roles in the startup system have influenced his understanding of leadership. We also discussed why his absolute requirement for success in business is to hire not good but great leaders and what that means. Steve shared an exercise that you can do today that will immediately test your leadership skills and show you how to grow them, and, finally, he discussed his findings about the five forces that will influence business innovation moving forward. 

Nov 09, 202223:09
Coaching Independent Leaders

Coaching Independent Leaders

Laura Gates is a sought-after executive coach, team facilitator and advisor to executives at Silicon Valley’s top tech companies, including Google and LinkedIn, as well as advisor and mentor to VC-backed start-up Founders in tech, bio-tech and blockchain. With over 25 years of coaching and facilitation experience primarily in tech, engineering, AI and machine learning, Laura’s prestigious client roster bridges industries and domains including space and aeronautics, academia, energy, finance, and communications, homeless organizations, and global women’s initiatives. Laura’s proprietary frameworks for building innovative teams and cultures to increase trust and collaboration and breakthroughs in navigating conflict have been featured in First Round’s Review and Culture Amp has featured her as a top executive coach. In this episode, we discussed her approach to building trust and strong relationships with her coaching clients as well as how she helps her clients understand their goals. She explains a bit about the lifecycle of the coaching relationship and how she supports clients when it's time for them to move on to their next goal. Finally, Laura shares how her personal leadership experiences at Wall Street firms and as an entrepreneur have informed her practice and how you can make better decisions about your development. 

Oct 19, 202217:34
Back to Human In A Hybrid World

Back to Human In A Hybrid World

Dan Schawbel is a New York Times bestselling author, Managing Partner of Workplace Intelligence, workplace researcher, global keynote speaker, podcast host, and career expert. He has led over 60 research studies in partnership with brands like Oracle, WeWork, and American Express in his career, surveying over 3 million people in 26 different countries. Dan has also interviewed over 2,800 leaders including Condoleezza Rice, Reed Hastings, Richard Branson, Warren Buffet,  and Meg Whitman. He is the bestselling author of three books: Back to Human, Promote Yourself, and Me 2.0. On this episode, we discussed how leaders have adjusted to management since 2020, what has continued to develop in workplace culture over the past two years, and his thoughts on the prevailing belief that "no one wants to work anymore." Dan shares his thoughts on how leaders can strike the best balance between bringing their teams together and giving employees the freedom to work remotely before telling a story about the best advice he's ever heard.

Oct 05, 202224:35
Build For Tomorrow

Build For Tomorrow

Jason Feifer is the editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine, host of popular podcasts including Build for Tomorrow, author of the book by the same name, keynote speaker, startup advisor, and nonstop optimism machine. His goal is to help you become more resilient and adaptable in a world of constant change — so you can seize new opportunities before anyone else does! On this episode, we discuss Jason's career and how he prioritized taking risks and trying new things to grow, how his work has led him to deeply understand the Four Phases of Change, and what he's learned from top performers about moving through those phases more efficiently. Finally, he shared his best advice for learning from the people in your network and how you can use the questions that people ask you to better understand your own value. 

Sep 21, 202222:27
Stay Curious, Lead with Heart

Stay Curious, Lead with Heart

Nozomi Morgan leads a team of experts in developing global leaders. Her team helps organizations develop Co-created Culture which she believes is the foundation for individuals and organizations to fulfill their purpose in this world.  Her diverse international background — having lived in Asia, Europe and North America — gives her a wealth of experience and knowledge as a strategic partner to leaders. She enjoys giving back to the community by serving on boards such as Japan-America Society of Georgia, National Association of Asian American Professionals. She is also passionate in empowering women to find their own voice and help them become leaders in their life, work and society. On this episode, we discussed Nozomi's journey from a corporate background and "living someone else's live" to the launching and running her thriving business dedicated to helping leaders from around the world succeed. She shares how she helps leaders become more curious (spoiler: it's probably not what you think) and why it's important to get out of your head from time to time and find intentional quiet. Finally, Nozomi gives some insight into how leaders can leverage technology as a tool to build connection rather than a hindrance. 

Sep 07, 202221:25
The Leadership Value of Transparency

The Leadership Value of Transparency

Brandi Nicole Johnson is "on a mission to help the world reimagine work so that work is integrated into our lives, instead of becoming our whole identity." Prior to becoming a coach and a tech learning executive, she climbed the ultimate career ladder in the nonprofit sector, growing from intern to Executive Director all before the age of 30. As the first company hire in the Learning and Development Organization at DoorDash, Brandi built and leads a world-class, global, learning and development team in accelerating performance so that talent can do the very best work of their careers. On this episode of the podcast, we discuss the path that led Brandi from her origins in the nonprofit world to tech leadership, how she has handled pivot points in her work, and what the rapid growth of DoorDash in recent years has taught her. Finally, she shares how she handles burnout, why she has become a radically transparent leader, and what she's curious about as a leader looking to the future.


Learn more about Abilitie: www.abilitie.com


Learn more about the Invited MBA: www.invitedmba.com

Aug 24, 202217:39
Finding the Success Factor

Finding the Success Factor

Dr. Ruth Gotian is the Chief Learning Officer, Assistant Professor of Education in Anesthesiology, and former Assistant Dean of Mentoring and Executive Director of the Mentoring Academy at Weill Cornell Medicine. A leadership development and mentorship expert, she researches the most successful people of our generation, including Nobel laureates, astronauts, CEOs, and Olympic champions, to learn about their habits and practices to optimize our own success. On this episode, we discussed the process of curiosity and exploration that led Ruth to study such a broad array of successful individuals, the lessons she learned early on about exploring the mundane as deeply as the impressive, and how her studies have influenced her own style of work. Finally, Ruth explains a few key factors that all the successful people she interviews have in common and shares the advice that has the most potential to improve everyone's ability to achieve their goals.

Jul 27, 202221:17
The Simple Truths of Leadership

The Simple Truths of Leadership

Dr. Ken Blanchard is the co-founder and Chief Spiritual Officer of The Ken Blanchard Companies and co-author of the iconic 1982 classic, The One Minute Manager. In the past three decades, Ken has authored or coauthored 60 books whose combined sales total more than 23 million copies. His groundbreaking works have been translated into more than 42 languages. In 2005 Ken was inducted into Amazon’s Hall of Fame as one of the top 25 bestselling authors of all time. Randy Conley is the Vice President of Client Services and Trust Practice Leader at The Ken Blanchard Companies and co-author of the new book, Simple Truths of Leadership. On this episode, we discussed how Ken and Randy developed the lessons of their new book, how they see leadership show up in their own lives, and what they hope rising leaders might learn from their work. Ken shares some key lessons from his many years as a leading thinker and teacher on leadership. Additionally, Ken and Randy give insight into how they approach the book writing process and share their advice for organizations that want to better serve their people.

Jul 13, 202233:26
Focus On Values Over Goals

Focus On Values Over Goals

Jennifer Brenneman is a Senior Director of Leadership Development at MongoDB. Prior to her work at MongoDB, Jennifer worked in Leadership Development and Instructional Leadership at Teach For All. Thus far, her career has focused on supporting adults to achieve their potential through facilitated experiences, coaching, and leadership development programs. On this episode, we discussed the difference between a career built on a foundation of values rather than goals, why Jennifer isn't interested in "building a career," and why knowing yourself is arguably one of the most important skills to develop. Finally, Jennifer shares a bit about how becoming a parent changed her work and some of the misconceptions folks often carry about work-life balance. 

Jun 15, 202221:30
Finding Your Way to Leadership

Finding Your Way to Leadership

Morag Barrett is a highly accomplished keynote speaker, leadership development expert, and bestselling author of Cultivate: The Power of Winning Relationships and The Future-Proof Workplace. Morag is the founder and CEO of SkyeTeam, a boutique leadership development firm, and has supported more than 15,000 leaders from 20 countries and on 4 continents achieve outstanding results by improving the effectiveness of their leadership and teams. On this episode, we discuss how she found her way (accidentally) into leadership development, what advice she'd give her younger self, and why it's so important to cultivate a sense of reflection for leaders. Finally, she shares her simple technique for staying focused on the right goals and getting the right work done. 

May 25, 202220:50
Succeeding As An Outlier

Succeeding As An Outlier

Niiamah Ashong is the Founder of the Outliers' Edge Multiverse, a leadership expert, and a high-performance coach. His work focuses on what you can do when you realize you have a different perspective or don't "fit in" -- when you're an outlier. Niiamah's experiences working at organizations as varied as the leading global consulting firm Deloitte and cutting-edge tech companies have given him a unique perspective on what it takes for leaders to grow and ultimately achieve their goals. On this episode, we discuss why Niiamah believes it is essential that all leaders understand with deep clarity what makes them unique and the importance of differentiating between your Zone of Excellence and your Zone of Genius. Niiamah also shares a story about "the moment [he] became a Black man" and what that moment meant for his life, his leadership, and his career. Finally, Matt and Niiamah discuss how he works with growing leaders to shift from thinking about their productivity to how they can think about managing their energy.

May 11, 202226:31
Building a Career in L&D

Building a Career in L&D

Susan Kushnir, co-author of Decoding Executives: What They Say, What They Mean, and What You Should Do, has enjoyed a career in learning and development spanning the non-profit, public, and private sectors with a focus on leadership and people management. She has been the Head of Learning & Development at Sterling National Bank, Director of Lean Six Sigma & Director of Global Learning and Development at S&P Global, and Director of Organizational Development, Learning, Talent and Engagement for the Girl Scouts of the USA. On this episode, we discuss her advice for folks who are early in their learning & development careers, what she wishes people understood about how to get a lot done with few resources, and the lessons she's learned about what it really takes to achieve a goal. Finally, she shares some key insights about interacting with executives and how leaders can better teach these lessons to younger generations entering the workforce. 

Apr 27, 202220:15
Developing Mission Driven Leaders

Developing Mission Driven Leaders

Vaishali Jadhav is a Global Leadership Development Program Designer and Facilitator at the University of Texas at Austin, a Culterati Summit Fellow, an Instructor at the Kendra Scott Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership Institute, and an all-around leadership development practitioner. Her career has followed the "red thread" of building conscious leaders in organizations like Gallup, Whole Foods Market, Indeed, and, most recently, Procore Technologies. Throughout all her roles and the time she's spent advancing leadership programs at organizations, she has maintained a focus on growing purpose-driven leaders connected to their organizations' greater missions. On this episode, we discuss how she developed her own ability to connect to heart-led leadership practices, what she means when she says that the best leaders understand their purpose, and what she's learned making the move from professional services to technology. Finally, Vaishali shares how people leaders at all organizations can adjust their practices to uplift their direct reports and connect them to the bigger purpose -- without spending any extra money or drastically upending their organizations. 

Apr 13, 202218:29
You Need To Trust Your Teams

You Need To Trust Your Teams

Jeff Levin is a National Managing Director at a global consulting firm with over 20 years of experience leveraging passion, technology, and innovative solutions to lead and inspire teams. He was also one of Learn to Lead host Matt Confer's early leaders. On this episode, we discuss the ways that Jeff's leadership has grown and changed since his early years, how he's adjusted to manage a group of over 1,000 individuals, and how he hopes to continue growing into the future. Matt and Jeff also discuss how the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has informed each of their relationships with work and how Jeff is working to maintain a strong organizational culture even as more members of his team only know each other through Zoom.
Mar 30, 202221:46
Vulnerable Leadership Starts At The Top

Vulnerable Leadership Starts At The Top

Jaimie Krause is a Senior Manager of Learning & Development at Indeed, the world's "#1 Job Site" where she oversees all learning and development initiatives for Indeed’s sales enablement professionals. With a Ph.D. from the University of Texas, Jaimie's works at the intersection of I/O psychology, talent development, and corporate L&D strategy. She designs programs and coaches people to drive personal and commercial productivity helping people who help people get jobs. On this episode, we discussed the tactical challenges and opportunities when developing leaders in a global organization, the importance of encouraging your learners to think about how skills will be applied at work, and why she thinks the senior leadership at Indeed has been successful in modeling vulnerability during COVID-19.

Mar 16, 202218:20
Letting the Work Speak for Itself

Letting the Work Speak for Itself

Bryan Clayton is the Co-Founder and CEO of GreenPal, an online marketplace that connects homeowners with local lawn care professionals. GreenPal has been called the “Uber for lawn care” by Entrepreneur magazine and has over 100,000 active users completing thousands of transactions per day. Before starting GreenPal, Bryan Clayton founded Peachtree Inc., one of the largest landscaping companies in the state of Tennessee, growing it to over $10 million a year in annual revenue before it was acquired by Lusa holdings in 2013. On this episode, we discussed Bryan’s journey into the tech world, what he’s learned about running a rapidly growing company, and being in it for the long haul. Bryan also shared some book recommendations and explained why as the CEO he still spends an hour or two doing direct customer support daily.

Mar 02, 202222:17
Co-Creating Growth through Creativity

Co-Creating Growth through Creativity

A senior leadership/board advisor, educator, executive coach, and bestselling author, David Nour is internationally recognized as the leading expert on applications of strategic relationships in profitable growth, sustained innovation, and lasting change. The author of ten books, including bestsellers Relationship Economics, Co-Create, and Curve Benders (Wiley, 2021). On this episode, we discussed David's perspective on collaboration, why he always asks the question "Who else should we involve in this project?", and how he helps companies build cultures of innovation and iteration. Finally, we discuss his best advice for prioritizing the most important work and why he thinks it's important for organizations to understand "prudent risk" if they want to become more creative.
Feb 09, 202219:31
What The Chicken Dance Has to Do With Leadership

What The Chicken Dance Has to Do With Leadership

Erin Diehl is a veteran improviser from the top improvisational training programs in Chicago, including The Second City, i.O. Theater and The Annoyance Theatre. Erin conducts workshops across the country leveraging improvisational techniques to improve employees’ skills in corporate settings. Her work with clients such as United Airlines, PepsiCo, Deloitte, and The Obama Foundation earned her the 2014 Chicago RedEye Big Idea Award and has nominated her for the 2015-2019 Chicago Innovations Award. She is also a proud member of The Chicago Innovation Awards Women’s Cohort and a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program. On this episode, we discussed what improv has to do with the corporate world, how her first client set her on the path to make a leap into entrepreneurship, and her advice for anyone trying to manage their time wisely. FInally, we discussed why she is most proud in her career of successfully coercing over 12,000 professionals to chicken dance.

Jan 26, 202221:08
Learning to Lead a Unicorn

Learning to Lead a Unicorn

Wes Schroll is a serial entrepreneur who started his first company at 14-years old. After two small start up ventures, he wrote a business plan for what would one day become Fetch Rewards during his sophomore year at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In March of 2021, Fetch closed its Series D round of financing with $220 Million led by SoftBank. Fetch is a bonafide "Unicorn" with a valuation of over $1 Billion. On this episode, we discuss some of the lessons Wes has learned along the way, how it felt for him to realize the Fetch Rewards app has more daily users than there are residents of New York City, and his trouble with productivity advice. Finally, Wes shares his approach to hiring leaders in his organization and why the two most important things he looks for are how well they understand the product and whether or not they can give and receive feedback. 

Jan 05, 202223:42
The Best Advice Show of 2021

The Best Advice Show of 2021

Happy holidays! As we prepare to enter the new year, we thought it would be a good time to pull together some of the best advice that we received from our podcast guests in the past year. This episode includes the advice that our guests from our most downloaded episodes shared with our audience. The guests include a New York Times best-selling author, a Broadway producer, a Fortune 500 C-suite member, and more!
Dec 29, 202106:38
Reflecting on Time Well Spent

Reflecting on Time Well Spent

As we approach the new year, we wanted to share a short reflection on the time we've spent with you as listeners since we first launched the Learn to Lead Podcast only twenty-one months ago. Host Matt Confer encourages you to think a little about time passing using a short anecdote about great movies, time travel, and the moon landing (trust us!). We are incredibly grateful to get to share the airwaves with you and look forward to sharing new and exciting lessons from our guests in 2022.

Dec 16, 202103:32
Innovative Leadership Challenges (and Rewards)

Innovative Leadership Challenges (and Rewards)

Rita Gunther McGrath is a best-selling author, a sought-after speaker, and a longtime professor at Columbia Business School. She is widely recognized as a premier expert on leading innovation and growth during times of uncertainty. Rita has received the #1 achievement award for strategy from the prestigious Thinkers50 and has been consistently named one of the world’s Top 10 management thinkers in its bi-annual ranking. Rita is the author of the best-selling The End of Competitive Advantage. On this episode, we discussed her new book, Seeing Around Corners: How to Spot Inflection Points in Business Before They Happen, and its implications for learning leaders. Rita also shared her thoughts on the challenges and opportunities of innovation and what people often get wrong when thinking about it. Finally, Rita shared what makes her optimistic and what she's most curious about heading into the new year. 

Dec 01, 202118:09
Constantly Learning Through Change

Constantly Learning Through Change

Eric Pliner is the CEO of YSC Consulting, a global leadership strategy consultancy headquartered in London and focused on the styles, dynamics, and cultures that enable successful achievement of strategy. On this episode, we discussed Eric’s recommendations for effectively managing difficult conversations at work, the lessons Eric’s learned as a leader in the last year (hint: it involves constant learning!), and how he manages to keep two days each week completely empty of meetings.
Nov 10, 202119:24
Bright Ideas Only

Bright Ideas Only

Kim Kaupe is the founder of Bright Ideas Only where she has worked with Oprah, Paul McCartney, and Jimmy Buffett. Her first company, The Superfan Company, allowed her to work with everyone from Katie Perry to the Boston Red Sox. She was recognized as a Forbes 30 under 30, and by Inc Magazine, 35 under 35. She also received one of the highest offers on Season 5 of Shark Tank. On this episode, we discussed how she went from being an accidental entrepreneur to running a thriving marketing business, her best productivity tips, and how she prepares for a meeting. Finally, she shares how she’s dealt with imposter syndrome and how you can too.

Oct 20, 202117:12
Solve Problems, Don't Overthink

Solve Problems, Don't Overthink

Kara Goldin is the Founder and CEO of Hint, Inc., best known for its award-winning Hint® water, the leading unsweetened flavored water. She has been named one of InStyle’s Badass 50, Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business, Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs, Fortune's Most Innovative Women in Food & Drink and EY Entrepreneur of the Year for Northern California. Kara has successfully navigated the world of large companies and startups in many industries including media, tech and consumer products. On this episode, we discussed her motivations for founding Hint and the lessons she’s learned along the way. She shares how she comes up with ideas for new products and the benefits of not going in with all the answers figured out. Finally, she shares some tips for hiring well and leading a fast-growth company.

Sep 29, 202124:01
How to Negotiate

How to Negotiate

For over two decades, Moshe Cohen has been helping people unlock their potential to negotiate more effectively, communicate more skillfully, lead more purposefully, and manage conflict more artfully. His book, Collywobbles: How to Negotiate When Negotiating Makes You Nervous, combines negotiation with emotional intelligence to help you overcome emotional barriers, apply your skills, and become a more effective negotiator. In 1995, Moshe founded The Negotiating Table and has been teaching at Boston University's Questrom School of Business since 2000. On this episode, we discussed why negotiation freaks people out so much, how you can prepare for your negotiations better, and why it’s important that you do. Additionally, Matt talks about his favorite memory from when he was a student in Moshe’s class at Boston University.

Sep 22, 202123:38
Build Without Burnout

Build Without Burnout

Mallory Rowan is an entrepreneur passionate about fitness, digital marketing, and building community. She has built her life around following her passions and sharing lessons along the way. On this episode, we discussed her journey to and through burnout, her personal practices to ensure she can perform at a high level without pushing herself to the brink, and we dug into what her experiences as an entrepreneur have taught her about leadership. Finally, she shares what a tube of toothpaste taught her about growing (and sustaining) multiple six-figure businesses. 

Sep 15, 202120:27
Leading Below the Surface

Leading Below the Surface

As founder of The Change Coaches, LaTonya Wilkins works with leaders and their teams where human connection and cultural change really happen: below the surface. LaTonya has built a career working in HR, talent management, and learning & development at GE, Abbott Laboratories, AbbVie, and other corporations. Her book Leading Below the Surface: How to Build Real (and Psychologically Safe) Relationships With People that are Different from You will be out in the Fall of 2021. On this episode, we discuss the link between empathy and curiosity, the difference between Episodic DEI and Cultural DEI, and what changes LaTonya has seen unfold in the DEI field. Finally, she shares what advice she’d give her younger self and what habits she includes in her own life to maximize her impact.

Sep 01, 202118:16
The eLearning Renaissance

The eLearning Renaissance

Elliott Masie is a provocative, engaging, and entertaining researcher, educator, analyst, and speaker - focused on the changing world of the workplace, learning, and technology. Elliott is acknowledged as the first analyst to use the term eLearning and has advocated for a sane deployment of learning and collaboration technology as a means of supporting the effectiveness and profitability of enterprises. He heads The MASIE Center in Saratoga Springs, NY focused on how organizations can support learning and knowledge within the workforce. He leads the Learning COLLABORATIVE, a coalition of 75 global organizations cooperating on the evolution of learning strategies. On this episode, we discuss Elliott's thoughts on Zoom fatigue (and what people get wrong about it), his take on the credentialing crazy, and his unique take on storytelling. We also discuss why Elliott thinks we're in a renaissance for learning and development and how we can all better serve our learners.

Aug 25, 202122:09