423: How to Grow Your People to Grow Your Company with Whitney Johnson

When a guest who’s been on the podcast more than any other guest recommends another author to you, your ears perk up quite bit.

Whitney Johnson

That was the case for me when four-time guest Liz Wiseman suggested I meet author Whitney Johnson.

I am so thankful to Liz for that introduction because her new book came to me at just the right time. It’s called Smart Growth: How to Grow Your People to Grow Your Company, and it’s a Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestseller.

Growth is a goal, Whitney says.

Helping people develop their potential—enabling them to articulate can become the self they want to be, are capable of being, and that best serves them and others in the short and long-term—is what we as individuals and leaders strive toward. 

But how do we grow? It turns out it happens in a predictable way, which means we can understand where we are in our growth and chart a way forward.

As individuals grow, so do organizations and societies. Growth is learning put into action—action that betters the world as we better ourselves and our small niches, both personal and professional, within it. Growth occurs when learning is internalized—when we try something new and invest the effort to move it from being something we do to something we are.

I hope you’ll click the play button below to learn more about Whitney and her work. For a summary, just keep scrolling.

Join in on our chat below

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In today’s episode, Whitney and I chat about:

  • The S-Curve of Learning
  • What it means to be a collector in the context and why it’s important to collect the way a child does
  • How competence, autonomy, and relatedness play a role in motivating us to grow and building confidence that we can…
  • And lots more!

Order Whitney’s Book

You can order your copy of Smart Growth: How to Grow Your People to Grow Your Company right now!

Consider Ordering My New Book Too!

Purchase a copy of my new book (written with Jesse Wisnewski) Read to Lead: The Simple Habit That Expands Your Influence and Boosts Your Career. There, you can also download the introduction and first chapter for free!

Whitney in Action

Books That Whitney Recommends

In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women’s Development by Carol Gilligan

The Innovator’s Dilemma: Why New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail by Clayton M. Christensen

You Were Born Rich: Now You Can Discover and Develop Those Riches by Bob Procter

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

Check Out These Additional Resources

Grab a copy of Whitney‘s book now.

Fine out more about Whitney at her website.

Consider bringing in Whitney to speak to your team or at your next event.

Connect with Whitney personally on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Finally, thanks for listening and remember, “Leaders read and readers lead.”