On the Brink with Andi Simon

Latest Episodes:

031: Debra Zambito—Love Your Career, Never Stop Learning Oct 06, 2017

Show notes

In this fascinating podcast, Debra Zambito shares her journey of becoming CEO of Elant, a leading healthcare system in New York State. Initially, Debra helped Elant's five skilled nursing facilities transition to new ownership, then she became CEO of its Clinical Care Retirement Community and the Elant Foundation. What is so interesting is how Debra describes how she has personally changed throughout her exceptional career. On the Brink is all about how to see things with fresh eyes—even ourselves, which is why Debra's revelations are spot-on. Listen in!

Evaluating our lives and where they are going is not easy. We start our careers in one place and then as we learn more, experience different environments, work with managers and colleagues, and move up (or sometimes sideways or backwards), we find ourselves changing, often despite what we think we "are." And at the same time we are changing, so is the world around us, and there is much to learn along the way.

What is clear as you listen to Debra share her experiences is that often, we are all on our way somewhere, on that train called "life." And yet, as we pursue our careers, change jobs, learn new skills and benefit from great mentors, we really need to reflect on the journey. As Debra explains, we are often not sure if the stops on the train are the right ones or just interesting places to gain a better understanding of ourselves, develop our skills and confidence, and continue on our way to someplace new and exciting.

As well as being an accomplished businesswomen, Debra tells a great story and I am delighted to share this wonderful interview with you. Debra's journey may be much like your own. And yours may be worth sharing as well. If you'd like to, I'd love to hear from you!

In this episode, Debra Zambito and I discuss:

How we hone our ability to think strategically to capture the big picture
How to ensure there is effective communication among all stakeholders
A real humility to "know what you don't know"
How to be truthful with yourself
The progression of Debra's career
How Debra prospered in a male dominated field
Adapting to different business cultures
Creating a uniform brand by replicating appropriate management
Communicating complex ideas simply
The switch from for-profit to not-for-profit environments
The functionality of Elant
Importance of hospitality in assisted living
The need of empathy for creating environments
How to keep people out of their comfort zones
Utilizing tools of communication for each situation
Achieving the strategic plan

Resources mentioned in this episode:

030: Cheryl McMillan—How To Develop Your Emotional Intelligence And Why It Matters Oct 02, 2017

Show notes

Do you ever regret how you reacted to a certain situation at work or home? Do you wonder why you responded the way you did? If you knew how to react differently, would you be able to change? Whether you're a business leader, employee, entrepreneur, teacher, parent or private citizen, you'll learn how to be less reactionary to situations that arise in your life and practical ways you can change your behavior for the better. Listen, learn and share!

In my interview with Cheryl McMillan, we talk about how you can become more aware of your reactions before they happen. She describes her approach using the Enneagram, a system for developing emotional intelligence, that leads to better results in business while living a happier personal life.

A Vistage International Master Chair, Cheryl directs two groups of Vistage business executives. In these peer groups, she facilitates a process that enables members to challenge and give each other honest, caring feedback. From this feedback, they learn to recognize their current reaction patterns, and also receive multiple alternatives and perspectives. Cheryl is also an executive coach, helping her clients see themselves with fresh eyes and improve the way they lead.

Cheryl career has included several leadership positions, ranging from hands-on Manager to President and Board Member. By leading difficult and complex projects, such as start-ups and mergers, she has successfully honed her unique combination of technical and people skills while discovering her love for working with people to accomplish change. Cheryl is described as having an ability to uncover hidden issues and succinctly summarize their essence.

In this episode, Cheryl McMillan and I discuss:

Self-aware leaders
Emotional intelligence and how to develop it
Understanding habits and instinct to optimize professional behavior
Changing the biased filter
Understanding and relating to others
Finding balance between the three centers of intelligence
Opening up, personally and societally
The importance of knowing yourself
The benefits of learning self-awareness at an early age
Resources for learning about self-awareness

Resources mentioned in this episode:

029: Ask Andi series—Changing Cultures Sep 29, 2017

Show notes

The 11th episode of Ask Andi series—short 15 minute podcasts every Friday where take a question and then offer tools, tips and strategies to help you re-think the issue and tackle it in new ways.

In this episode I discuss:

The definition of culture
What culture change is
Why culture change happens
Developing an outlined definition of your wants
Five easy things to take charge of your organization's culture
Reflecting your brand through your culture
Understanding the inside of your company
Personal passion for your mission
Taking personal responsibility of initiating culture change
Leading your organization into change

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

028: Adam Gamwell and Ryan Collins -- This Anthro Life Sep 25, 2017

Show notes

What a treat it is to listen to our conversation with Adam Gamwell and Ryan Collins, two anthropologists who are trying really hard to make anthropology relevant to buisnesses, corporations and leaders well beyond the acadmic classroom. They bring together their different perspectives. But, they share their ideas through their podcast, This Anthro Life.

Listen, share and lets make anthropology part of your tool kit to help you and your organization "see, feel and think" in new ways.

Let me tell you more about our two interviewees.

Adam Gamwell is a design anthropologist whose research and consulting work focuses on science and technology, environmental design, agricultural biodiversity conservation, and Peruvian quinoa. He is a PhD Candidate at Brandeis University. He is currently host, Creative Director, and Executive Producer for This Anthro Life Podcast, a public education initiative to bring social science tools and insight to wider publics. He is also a freelance ethnographic and design consultant.

Ryan Collins is an archaeological anthropologist with interests and experience in ethnographic survey and public education. His research is focused on comparative understandings of the social changes entailed by the development of complex society, specializing in the crystallization of early political and ritual economies in Mesoamerica with an emphasis in the Northern Lowlands of the Yucatan Peninsula. Ryan serves as the Education Designer, Editor, Host and Producer of This Anthro Life Podcast, a public facing and interdisciplinary education initiative seeking to engage wider audiences through stories and insights from the social sciences.

In this episode, Adam Gamwell and Ryan Collins and I discuss:

Design anthropology in big businesses
Making US society more open to tools of anthropology
Conversations as a social technology
Communication divides in cultures and societies
Stories as the essence of people
Appropriate storytelling defined by space
Fast-paced technology changes in agriculture
What humans keep and what humans change
Creative responses to change
Anthropology relevant to today's technologies

Resources mentioned in this episode:

027: Ask Andi series—Selling Your Story Sep 22, 2017

Show notes

Here is the 10th episode of my Ask Andi series—short 15 minute podcasts every Friday where I take a question and then offer tools, tips and strategies to help you re-think it and tackle it in new ways. In today's episode, I focus on family firms and the vital importance of putting a succession plan in place so that companies can continue to thrive for generations to come.

In this episode, I discuss:

How to be viewed as a "solution"
Writing for the searcher and the search engine
Choosing content to tell a cohesive, conversational story
Why blogging is critical for online presence
How to include additional content into your blogs
Creating a buyer persona
Establishing yourself as an authority
Utilizing social media
The importance of formatting and imagery
Letting people know why you love what you do

Resources mentioned in this episode:

026: "Work, Pause, Thrive" with Lisen Stromberg Sep 18, 2017

Show notes

Lisen Stromberg is an author, cultural innovation consultant, and a widely regarded speaker who empowers people and companies to reimagine the future of work. She's CEO and founder of PrismWork, a team that works to partner with leaders and advocates to make sure that women and millennials thrive in the workplace, and she is currently acting COO of The 3% Movement, committed to changing the ratio of women representation in the advertising industry.

In this episode, we will be discussing:

Where Lisen Stromberg's inspiration for her book stemmed from
The research Lisen conducted with women and the number of women in the workforce
Trailblazer women navigating their own paths
How "the pause" affects women in the workforce
"Momtrepeneurs"
Serious change coming to the workplace through Millennials and work/life integration
The shift of employee demand in the workplace
Workplaces that accentuate work/life integration and how they thrive
Couples strategizing together to make their future flourish
Availability of return-to-work internships
The future of gender equal leadership

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

025: Ask Andi series—Succession Planning Sep 15, 2017

Show notes

The ninth episode of Ask Andi series—short 15 minute podcasts every Friday where take a question and then offer tools, tips and strategies to help you re-think the issue and tackle it in new ways.

In this episode I discuss:

The number of family firms in America and its impact on society and economy
How many family firms are without succession plans
The importance of planning succession early
Why family firms don't want to think about succession
How family firms can start their succession plan with an external coach
Things to consider for generational growth
The importance of a selection process to choose a successor
Why you should reaffirm your succession plan often
Current owners working on their business rather than in it to stay involved

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

024: Jason Middleton—A Conversation About our Changing Cultural Landscape Sep 11, 2017

Show notes

I have been interviewed a bunch of times by Jason Middleton. This was my turn to interview him. And what a great time we had! Listen in to what Jason sees as the future of work. Since his radio show, Techonomics on KGO 810 in San Francisco, is located in the center of Silicon Valley, he has a bird's eye view of the trends that are coming soon to a workplace near you.

Having spent time in newsrooms since he was 18, Jason started in radio, then newspapers, magazines, digital content, television, and now, back to radio. His career has included answering reader-submitted questions as a "cub reporter" to covering politics at the national level. He has also built content teams for multimedia consumption at NBC and LA.com.

Now Jason focuses on Silicon Valley trends, as well as business news reporting. He is also a marketing consultant, focusing on market research, analysis and corporate pivots.

In Jason's talk today, you will hear all about the coming changes in artificial intelligence and machine learning, the robots that are almost here, and how robotics will transform society in the not-too-distant future. Don't miss it!

In this episode, Jason Middleton and I discuss:

Social media impact on journalism and newsrooms
Confirmation bias in storytelling
Getting the facts right with artificial intelligence
As robots rise, how artificial intelligence will impact our jobs
Embracing technology
Education and social change
Thriving at the speed of change

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Jason's Techonomics show
Cory Doctorow book: "Walkaway"
My book: "On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights"
Simon Associates Management Consultants website

023: Ask Andi series—Lying May Be Your Brain's Fault Sep 08, 2017

Show notes

The eighth episode of Ask Andi series—short 15 minute podcasts every Friday where take a question and then offer tools, tips and strategies to help you re-think the issue and tackle it in new ways.

In this episode I discuss:

Your "story-brain," aka the reason you lie
How often people lie and how you're not excluded from those numbers
What a lie really is
The five rules of lying
Shared perceptions of reality
Whether lack of truth always equates to a lie
If our relationships would thrive without lying
Using lies to solidify the abstraction of reality

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

NYdailynews article: "Pants On Fire! The 5 Most Important Rules of Lying"
On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights
Simon Associates Management Consultants website

022: Dudley Slater—Fusion Leadership Sep 05, 2017

Show notes

In Dudley Slater's new book, "Fusion Leadership," he talks about how great leaders "see, feel and think" differently. They build teams that understand goals and how to achieve them—together. In our fascinating interview, he tells a great story about why the people he has worked with have done so well. Their companies defy national norms and their employees are exceptionally happy, purposeful and successful. You need to hear this!

In this episode, Dudley Slater and I discuss:

How to expand your team as your business grows
Why a company must be mission-driven
Understanding employee engagement
How to prioritize work when everything is #1
Smart leadership: how to work smarter, not harder
The importance of asking the right questions in an organization
Company rituals that inspire employees
Crucial patterns of organizational change

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Dudley's book: "Fusion Leadership"
My book: "On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights"
Fusion Leadership website
Gallup study: Employee Engagement in U.S
Simon Associates Management Consultants website

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