The Growth League

Latest Episodes:

Feedback that Creates Change with Sheila Heen Sep 22, 2020

Show notes

Sheila Heen is the Founder of Triad Consulting Group and a Lecturer at Harvard Law School.

Besides teaching at Harvard, Sheila has worked with the biggest companies in the world, helping their executive teams work through conflict, repair working relationships, and make sound decisions together.

She has also spent the last twenty years with the Harvard Negotiation Project, developing negotiation theory and practice. Sheila specializes in particularly difficult negotiations – where emotions run high and relationships become strained.

She's written two very successful books: Difficult Conversations

and the one we're talking about today, Thanks for the Feedback.

I really wanted to talk to Sheila because there have been so many books written on how to give feedback to others, but if we're going to learn from our mistakes and get even better at what we're already doing, we must learn how to not only ask for but listen to feedback. Sheila's book is a rare and incredible resource in this regard, and I just had to share it with you.

Specifically, Sheila and I discuss:

- How to make feedback work in your organization

- The problem with coaching and why it doesn't work quite like we hope

- The three different kinds of feedback you can give someone

- Why the feedback sandwich doesn't work, and how to give critical feedback much better.

- How to process the feedback you receive in a way you can actually use.

Thanks for listening and be sure to find me online to tell me what you thought of the episode!

@DianaKander on Instagram and Twitter
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After Action Review: The Iowa Caucus Reporting Malfunction and Its Aftermath Sep 15, 2020

Show notes

This week we're reviewing the 2020 Iowa Democratic Caucus reporting malfunction. In case you missed it, here are some headlines about that night:

- Iowa caucus app ran into issues when reporting results

(https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/04/politics/iowa-caucus-voting-app/index.html)

- 'It was a total mess': Caucusing is long over, but Iowa still doesn't have a winner

(https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2020/02/04/iowa-caucus-delayed-results-mean-no-winner-yet-iowa-caucuses/4653022002/)

- Who won the Iowa caucuses? We still don't have the results ...

(https://www.vox.com/2020/2/3/21121883/iowa-caucus-results-delay-app-2020)

This interview is the first extended conversation with the head of the Democratic Party in Iowa at the time, Troy Price. Troy explains exactly what happened that night and in the days afterward. He reflects on his lessons learned and has powerful takeaways:

- Operating inside of a crisis

- Communications strategy during a PR "situation"

- What Troy learned about redundancies in executing a big project

- The assets that came out the caucuses

Thanks for listening and be sure to find me online to tell me what you thought of the episode!

@DianaKander on Instagram and Twitter
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Go for No! With Andrea Waltz Sep 09, 2020

Show notes

Andrea Waltz is a professional speaker, trainer, and author. She calls herself a "Failure Philosopher" and "Reject-ologist" and she's an expert on achieving breakthrough performance through increasing failure rates.

Andrea is the co-author of Go For No! A brilliant, tiny book outlining a new way to think about failure and rejection. The book has sold nearly 1 million copies and has 1,500 five star reviews on Amazon.

This conversation is action packed with tips!

Thanks for listening and be sure to find me online to tell me what you thought of the episode!

@DianaKander on Instagram and Twitter
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com
Go for No!: https://www.goforno.com/
Andrea online: https://twitter.com/GoforNo?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor and https://www.instagram.com/goforno/?hl=en

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After Action Review: How Kodak invented the digital camera and failed to market it...Twice! Sep 01, 2020

Show notes

Whatever you think you know about the story of Kodak not capitalizing on their own invention of the digital camera, the actual story is so much better.

This After Action Review is with Steve Sasson, the original inventor of the digital camera and 35 year employee of Eastman Kodak.

Steve will break down the two pivotal moments in Kodak's past when they had the technology and opportunity to get into the digital camera business and chose not to. And you'll learn for the first time that their big mistake came in 1989 rather than 1975, as most people assume.

Specifically, we'll cover:

What he did wrong when he presented the digital camera idea to management,
What he did right,
Advice from Steve to innovators pitching today, and
The story of a completely different product Steve worked on that almost met the exact same fate.

A little more about Steve:

He spent his entire career at Eastman Kodak.
On November 17, 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama awarded Steve the National Medal of Technology and Innovation at a White House ceremony. This is the highest honor awarded by the US government to scientists, engineers, and inventors.
He was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2011.

Thanks for listening and be sure to find me online to tell me what you thought of the episode!

@DianaKander on Instagram and Twitter
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Art of Fear with Kristen Ulmer Aug 25, 2020

Show notes

Kristen Ulmer is a fear/anxiety expert. Her education on this subject comes from practical, real- world experience, starting with being a mogul specialist on the US Ski Team. Kristen then became more recognized as being the best female big mountain extreme skier in the world, a status she kept for 12 years.

Known for big cliff jumps and you-fall-you die descents, she became sponsored by the likes of Red Bull, Ralph Lauren, and Nikon, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame September of 2019. Her mastery of other danger sports including paragliding, ice and rock climbing, kiteboarding, adventure mountain biking, and flying trapeze also gained her the outdoor industry vote as most extreme “fearless” woman athlete in North America,

Today we're discussing Kristen's book, the Art of Fear which beautifully explains that Fear is not the problem in our lives, it’s our avoidance/resistance of Fear that is the problem. If you become unwilling to feel or even acknowledge it, and put Fear in the basement –a habit that is almost universally supported by society– that emotion then starts to sabotage your life in either obvious or covert ways. Kristen is going to argue that today almost every problem we now have is tied in some way to our avoidance/resistance of Fear.

Specifically, we're going to cover:

The many unhealthy ways we avoid fear in our lives
Why you shouldn't try to overcome fear – but actually create an even stronger relationship with it
How we pass on our unhealthy relationship with fear to our children
Why your relationship with fear is the most important relationship in your life

For more, please find me online:

@DianaKander on Instagram and Twitter
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F&*K with Jason Kander Feb 10, 2020

Show notes

Hello and welcome to the Season Finale of Professional AF.

Today, my husband Jason and I are discussing The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F^*K. First published in 2016, the book has sold over 6 million copies and topped every best seller list. The book's premise is that we spend way too much time worrying about things that don't really matter and learning how to let that go is the secret to happiness and personal growth. There are so many great pieces of advice woven throughout the book that Jason and I both wanted to share our favorites while discussing the journey that we've both been on over the last 18 months.

Specifically, Jason and I are going to cover:

How to stop being a slave to what other people think of you
Why trying to be happy all the time will make you very unhappy
Why things are not your fault but they might be your responsibility
How to stop giving an F about the things that don't really matter

Important Links for the Show:

The ultimate fitness tracker that optimizes your life: https://www.whoop.com/ and use code DIANA at checkout for 15% off!
A bank that prides itself on how it treats both it's employees and it's customers: http://nbkc.com/diana - get a box of awesome Professional AF stuff for signing up, including a book that we discuss on the show!
Get a better nights sleep with the Purple mattress. To get the Purple pillow I covet for FREE with the purchase of your mattress, just text the code "DIANA" to 84-888. And you can combine this offer with what they have on the site!
The Subtle Art book we discussed: https://www.amazon.com/Subtle-Art-Not-Giving-Counterintuitive/dp/0062457713
How to Suffer Like a Pro by Pete Holmes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glY-K5jbLF8
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rising Strong: How to Get Back Up After a Setback with Candy Smith Feb 03, 2020

Show notes

Today I'm discussing the book Rising Strong by Brené Brown with my therapist Candy Smith.

Candy was my guest earlier this season when we talked about shame and vulnerability. Candy has been a licensed therapist for several decades. She specializes in working with adults, and children with trauma, that's how I met her. And every time we talk, I learn so much about the world, about people, and about myself.

In Rising Strong, Brené shares a simple truth. If we apply her previous lessons and are brave enough, often enough, we will fall. Rising Strong is a book about what it takes to get back up and how owning our stories of struggle gives us the power to write a daring new ending.

Candy and I are going to discuss:

Why you should encourage yourself to make 3 mistakes a day
How to properly mourn a failure
Why our expectations (even if we aren't aware of them) are a pathway to disaster
How to build your shame resilience

Important Links for the Show:

The ultimate fitness tracker that optimizes your life: https://www.whoop.com/ and use code DIANA at checkout for 15% off!
A bank that prides itself on how it treats both it's employees and it's customers: http://nbkc.com/diana - get a box of awesome Professional AF stuff for signing up, including a book that we discuss on the show!
Get a better nights sleep with the Purple mattress. To get the Purple pillow I covet for FREE with the purchase of your mattress, just text the code "DIANA" to 84-888. And you can combine this offer with what they have on the site!
Get 1/2 of your daily fruits and vegetables in a convenient shot!: https://superfoodshot.co and use code DIANA at checkout for 30% off!
The Rising Strong book we discussed: https://www.amazon.com/Rising-Strong-Ability-Transforms-Parent-ebook/dp/B00P5557G2
Candy Smith online: https://www.candysmithcounseling.com/
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why Your Team Needs Productive Conflict with Liane Davey Jan 20, 2020

Show notes

For the past 25 years, Liane Davey has researched and advised teams on how to achieve high performance. Known as the “teamwork doctor,” she’s worked with hundreds of teams, including 26 Global Fortune 500 companies (and counting).

Today we're discussing Liane's book, the Good Fight, about creating productive conflict with your team. Conflict has become a “dirty word.” The truth is that our teams and organizations require conflict to get things done. But, as humans, we avoid conflict and build up conflict debt by deferring and dodging the difficult decisions and our organizations are paying the price – becoming less productive, less innovative and less competitive. Individuals are paying too – suffering from overwhelming workloads, endless drama, and sleepless nights.

Liane and I are going to discuss:

How to have healthy productive disagreements with your team
How to best rebuild a relationship with someone you're having tension with on the team
The surprising signs of teams with high trust
Some incredible exercises like the tarp exercise and the U exercise to help you have healthy productive conflicts

Important Links for the Show:

The ultimate fitness tracker that optimizes your life: https://www.whoop.com/ and use code DIANA at checkout for 15% off!
A bank that prides itself on how it treats both it's employees and it's customers: http://nbkc.com/diana - get a box of awesome Professional AF stuff for signing up, including a book that we discuss on the show!
Get a better nights sleep with the Purple mattress. To get the Purple pillow I covet for FREE with the purchase of your mattress, just text the code "DIANA" to 84-888. And you can combine this offer with what they have on the site!
Get 1/2 of your daily fruits and vegetables in a convenient shot!: https://superfoodshot.co and use code DIANA at checkout for 30% off!
The Good Fight book we discussed: https://www.lianedavey.com/goodfight/
Liane Davey online: https://www.lianedavey.com/
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How to Make Empathy a Habit in Your Organization with Michael Ventura Jan 13, 2020

Show notes

Michael Ventura is the CEO and founder of Sub Rosa, a strategy and design firm that has worked with some of the world’s largest and most important organizations like Johnson & Johnson, Adobe, The TED Conference, Delta Airlines, and The Daily Show.

Michael's first book and the subject of our discussion today is Applied Empathy.

Empathy is a squishy word. Sometimes it’s confused with sympathy or misinterpreted as “being nice.” That isn’t empathy. Empathy is about understanding. Empathy lets us see the world from other points of view and helps us form insights that can lead us to new and better ways of thinking, being, and doing.

Michael and I are going to discuss:

Why organization low in empathy are also slow at making decisions and face frequent miscommunications
The many different ways to be empathic and understand others' perspectives
The changes we can make in an organization to make empathy a habit
And how to get people to give you honest feedback

Important Links for the Show:

The ultimate fitness tracker that optimizes your life: https://www.whoop.com/ and use code DIANA at checkout for 15% off!
A bank that prides itself on how it treats both it's employees and it's customers: http://nbkc.com/diana - get a box of awesome Professional AF stuff for signing up, including a book that we discuss on the show!
Get a better nights sleep with the Purple mattress. To get the Purple pillow I covet for FREE with the purchase of your mattress, just text the code "DIANA" to 84-888. And you can combine this offer with what they have on the site!
Get 1/2 of your daily fruits and vegetables in a convenient shot!: https://superfoodshot.co and use code DIANA at checkout for 30% off!
Applied Empathy book we discussed: https://amzn.to/3a37nzP
Michael Ventura online: https://appliedempathy.com/
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kelly McGonigal Part 2 – The Joy of Movement - How Exercise Helps Us Find Happiness, Hope, Connection, and Courage Jan 06, 2020

Show notes

My guest this week is Kelly McGonigal. Kelly is a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University who specializes in understanding the mind-body connection. She is the best-selling author of The Upside of Stress – the book we discuss in part one of this show. Kelly's TED talk on the topic, "How to Make Stress Your Friend," is one of the most viewed TED talks of all time, with over 20 million views. And I can't stress enough how much her perspective, and research, have altered my relationship with stress.

In part two of the show, we discuss Kelly's brand-new book, The Joy of Movement, which explores why physical exercise is a powerful antidote to the epidemics of depression, anxiety, and loneliness. Kelly tackles some of the biggest myths about exercise and shares some very interesting research to explain exactly what movement and exercise does to us and how to harness its effects!

Important Links for the Show:

The ultimate fitness tracker optimizes your life: https://www.whoop.com/ and use code DIANA at checkout for 15% off!
A bank that prides itself on how it treats both it's employees and it's customers: http://nbkc.com/diana - get a box of awesome Professional AF stuff for signing up, including a book that we discuss on the show!
Get a better nights sleep with the Purple mattress. To get the Purple pillow I covet for FREE with the purchase of your mattress, just text the code "DIANA" to 84-888. And you can combine this offer with what they have on the site!
Get 1/2 of your daily fruits and vegetables in a convenient shot!: https://superfoodshot.co and use code DIANA at checkout for 30% off!
The Upside of Stress book we discussed: https://amzn.to/2sNVSvm
The Joy of Movement book we discussed: https://amzn.to/35sIIBs
Kelly McGonigal online: http://kellymcgonigal.com/
Professional AF Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/943925015810362/
Diana online: www.DianaKander.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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