The Culture of Leadership

Have you ever declined to interview a candidate because they were over 40?  Are you in the over 40 age group? Have you yourself been the victim of ageism in your job search?   In this episode, I’m joined by Toby Marshall, an “Ageism Warrior.”  As Toby tells it in his frank and open manner, “Ageism is JUST DUMB.”  From debunking four big myths about hiring mature workers, to the “hidden” discrimination behind those noble-sounding mission and vision statements on company walls, Toby fights daily to sound the alarm about age discrimination.  Ageism costs our communities major money – in Australia, the figure is somewhere between $600M to $1B annually in costs including lost taxpayers, paying out unemployment benefits, and even healthcare costs, as unemployed or underemployed people, can be depressed and in turn have a host of other health-related problems. Take some time to look at your own prejudices against older individuals you encounter– at work, in your community, in the media- you might not even realize you are an ageist! Discussion Points When did you become so interested in fighting ageism? Can you define ageism for us? What is going through people’s heads when they refuse to hire mature candidates? Have you yourself experienced ageism? What do mature employees offer that younger people do not? Debunking the 4 main myths of ageism: Poor health/more sick days Afraid of, or unable to grasp technology ...

Today I’m speaking with Cassandra Gordon, founder of Growth Culture.  Cassandra shares her vision of what leaders, companies, and workplaces need to do to evolve into thriving businesses with safe, happy employees.  It’s not complicated, but the hierarchical old-school thinking that persists in our society is blocking these transformations. Cassandra really walks the walk and talks the talk. Her own personal mantra of “respect, integrity, and justice” informs her leadership and everything she does in her day-to-day life.  She shares her reliable, repeatable system for building a thriving culture that has five cornerstone elements: Creativity, Freedom, Purpose, Safety, and Diversity. The sad thing is, “organization design” that continues to utilize those outdated hierarchies has not changed much in nearly 300 years.  It takes courage, humility, and an open mind for leaders to change their organizations.  Do you have what it takes to overhaul your business and start thriving?   Discussion Points Tell us about your exciting work inside the PM &C? Can you share one thing you loved, and one thing you did not, about working there? When have your personal standards been compromised at work? Why is it important for leaders to know exactly ‘what they stand for?’ Do you think enough change is happening today in Australia’s workforce? You often use the word “thrive” – can you share what that looks like to you Your tenets sound fantastic, why wouldn’t leaders choose to adopt them? When determining a company culture, ...

Today I’m speaking with Justin Brown, Co-Founder (with his brother Mike) of Primal Video.  Primal Video teaches entrepreneurs and business owners how to leverage the power of online video to build and scale their businesses. Justin and Mike have grown their Primal Video Youtube channel from zero to over a million subscribers over the last seven years. Join us for a deep dive into what makes their company and partnership work, their philosophies on team building and finding the right team members to hire, and the ways that the brothers add value for viewers every day, through every video, and every point of contact with their audience. As a self-proclaimed “beach geek” from the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, Justin has over 20 years of experience in video production and has worked on everything from Netflix-featured documentaries, to extreme sports projects. Primal Video has evolved into a multi-six-figure automation-driven business, and they now help others (I am a client myself) implement the same approach through their Primal Video Accelerator program. Discussion Points The humble beginnings: making videos simply to help people What was the “penny drop” moment for you and Mike? Tell us about your early days, and is there an end game? How has a piece of “brutal” feedback actually helped you improve your videos? Justin explains how they hire using Meyers-Briggs and other personality tests to get the right fit Extreme ownership and integrity  Justin and Mike’s partnership and how it functions ...

My guest today is Gloria Tabi, the CEO and Equity & Inclusion Consultant for Everyday Inclusion, based in Sydney, Australia. Originally from Ghana, Gloria has spent nearly 30 years working in research, project management, employment services, and coaching.  She has authored the book, “Inclusive Teams & Workplaces: Everyone Wins,” and is the Founder and host of the “Voice Everyday Racism” podcast. Gloria joins us today to discuss how Everyday Inclusion is a one-stop shop where organizations can come to work on changing to become more inclusive. Businesses must truly understand systemic racism in order to create real change and foster inclusion, not simply check the boxes and celebrate inclusion with one special day every year.  Join us as we discuss Gloria’s sometimes painful personal experiences with racism, and the steps that leaders (and all of us) need to take to make inclusion part of their organization's mission. Discussion Points Gloria’s introduction/background What is the definition of “Everyday Inclusion”? What does EXCLUSION often look like? Some examples of exclusion in the workplace What if those exclusions were simply an oversight or an honest mistake? What can an organization do as a first step toward creating inclusion? Racism in Australia and Australian workplaces Addressing the phrase, “Because I’m white, I’m racist.” Unless we can talk about racism, we cannot change or resolve it How Gloria and Everyday Inclusion can work with organizations to ensure inclusion from top ...

Taras Kobernyk is humble, professional, and articulate.  That’s what makes his intriguing situation and actions much more believable.  After being fired by Google for questioning some of their policies on diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism, Taras found it quite difficult to find another job. When asked why he wrote his now-famous document “Questions about Google’s anti-racism actions,” he says he just wanted to start a conversation, just wanted to point out some contradictory, hypocritical behaviors and sentiments that Google leadership was pushing on its employees, particularly on software engineers like himself.  Google’s continued refusal (or inability) to address these points has not wavered since the document was released and began a very public media blitz on the subject. Join me as we talk to Taras about his experiences– from his excitement about moving to the U.S. from Ukraine, getting hired by such a massive tech giant, and the subsequent disintegration of his time there, leading to his being fired for questioning Google leadership on some tough topics. Discussion Points Taras’ introduction/background Getting hired by Google and finding out the internal downsides to his position What did you see that made you write the document? How did things go after writing it? Can you detail the timeline from the writing of the initial document, through your firing? Were you ever told your performance was subpar? How would you respond to people who think you’re simply a disgruntled former employee? What can you tell us about ...

In this episode, we review the most impactful takeaways from the 27 episodes we aired in 2021.  From deep listening to self-mastery, join us as we review the top ten pearls of leadership wisdom (plus four bonus nuggets) we gained from these inspiring guests.   Every episode this year had valuable lessons and inspiring speakers, but these were some of the standouts that you can go back and listen to if the topic piques your interest.   Discussion Points   Episode 41: “The Art of Self-Mastery” with RJ Singh Takeaway: Leaders focus on the art of self-mastery “I encourage leaders to start small.” - Brendan  Episode 43: “How to Overcome the Fear of Public Speaking” with Kate Purcell Takeaway: Leaders lead with vulnerability “Vulnerability is what creates trust.” - Brendan Episode 45: “How to Create Magic at Work” with Amy Lynn Durham Takeaway: Leaders connect with people “Spending time investing in people is super-important.” - Brendan  Bonus Episode 53: “The Story of My Broken Soldier” with Kaz and Matt Page Takeaway: Leaders face challenges head-on This was the longest episode we ever did, and very emotional. “HOPE– Help One Person Every day” - Marc Episode 48: “Culture of the Living Organisation” with Norman Wolfe Takeaway: Leaders must understand and work with context “The context of the situation is what creates the variation.” - Brendan  ...