477: Why Work is No Longer Working and What Do To About It with Seth Godin

Today is a real treat for me (and for you), as I get to welcome—for the third time—the person I consider to be one of the world’s greatest thinkers and authors. He’s certainly had a huge impact on me and my life.

seth godin

That thinker and author is the one and only Seth Godin. He’s written his twenty-first book, and today is the day we get to welcome it to the world.

It’s called The Song Of Significance: A New Manifesto for Teams.

Seth argues that real value at work is no longer measured by easy indicators of industrial productivity, but by effective personal interactions, innovation, creative solutions, and resilience. In a world ruled by remote work and artificial intelligence, leaders must disentangle themselves from the pervasive industrialized management system created in the early twentieth century and adopt a new leadership style that places humans at the forefront.

The futility of commanding people to care and managing for short-term results has become clear to
everyone. Instead, leaders must aspire to create the best jobs their employees have ever had while
creating conditions for systemic change. The emotional labor of employees who truly participate in an organization’s mission is the competitive advantage that all businesses need and what the exceptional ones produce.

In The Song of Significance, Seth provides a roadmap for the business leaders who are willing to
create a meaningful future while bravely rejecting the outmoded management models that are no longer serving us. As he writes, “Choosing significance is to dance with fear, and choosing fear
requires belief that what we’re doing matters.”

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

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476: Choosing Greatness and Achieving Exceptional Outcomes with Christina Curtis

Today’s guest is not only a podcast guest, she’s also the first guest expert inside the new premium tier of my online Read to Lead Community called Read to Lead+.

christina curtis

Her name is Christina Curtis, and she’s a thought leader on motivation and goal attainment, and regularly contributes to the Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Psychology Today.

Her new book, released earlier this month, is called Choosing Greatness: An Evidence-Based Approach to Achieving Exceptional Outcomes.

I read it from cover to cover and nearly ran out of ink in my highlighter while doing so.

Christina asks questions like, “Do you yearn to achieve more? Do you want to make more? Do more? Well, you are not alone. We are all drawn to the irresistible sensation of accomplishing great things and succeeding mightily.

Yet despite our best efforts, ultimate success and joy can seem so elusive. Why? All too often we are running on autopilot, repeating past behaviors, and achieving the same results.

In Choosing Greatness, Christina combines her decades of practical experience in business psychology and her conversations with some of the greatest leaders of our generation—Richard Branson, CEO of the Virgin Group; Javier Rodriguez, CEO of DaVita Inc.; Jonathan Johnson, CEO of Overstock.com; Teena Piccione, executive at Google; Lara Merriken, founder of LÄRABAR®; and more—to teach you how to unlock the full potential of the greatest change agent imaginable: your own mind.

In the space between instinct and outcome, between reflex and reflection, between ordinary and extraordinary, lies choice, she says. Her book provides clear, easy direction on how to live more consciously in that space so you can push your brain to operate with peak efficiency and precision.

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

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475: How to Get Unstuck When It Matters Most with Adam Alter

You may recall that in the first episode of 2023, I spelled out the six books I was most looking forward to in the first half of this year.

adam alter

Today, I’m thrilled to be able to feature the fourth of those six books. That book is Anatomy of a Breakthrough: How to Get Unstuck When It Matters Most.

Adam has spent the past two decades studying how people become stuck and how they free themselves to thrive. Here he reveals the formula he and other researchers have uncovered. The solution rests on a process that he calls a friction audit—a systematic procedure that uncovers why a person or organization is stuck, and then suggests a path to progress.

The friction audit states that people and organizations get unstuck when they overcome three sources of friction: HEART (unhelpful emotions); HEAD (unhelpful patterns of thought); and HABIT (unhelpful behaviors).

Despite the ubiquity of friction, there are many great “unstickers” hidden in plain sight among us and Alter shines a light on some exceptional stories to share their valuable lessons with us. Getting stuck, Adam says, is a feature rather than a glitch on the road to thriving, but with the right tweaks and corrections we can reach even our loftiest targets.

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

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474: How to Talk About Your Work Using Purposeful Self-Promotion with Lisa Bragg

I love speaking with authors who also happen to be former broadcasters, as is the case today. Why? Because they’re excellent communicators, and today’s guest is certainly no exception.

Lisa Bragg

I’m talking about Lisa Bragg, whose new book comes out in two days called Bragging Rights: How to Talk About Your Work Using Purposeful Self-Promotion.

Tell me if you identify with this: We’ve long been told, “Put your head down, do good work, and eventually someone will notice you.” But that limiting and diminishing advice doesn’t hold up in the noise and pace of these transformative times. The reality is, no one cares about your future the way you do. If you want to achieve remarkable results, it’s up to you to talk about your successes and accomplishments.

In the book, Lisa shows you how to get comfortable with sharing your strengths. Drawing on proprietary research, consultations with high-performing leaders, and her own rich experiences as a journalist and entrepreneur, she examines why so many people are afraid to speak up about their work, illuminates why bragging is a catalyst of positive change, and offers practical advice on embracing and applying the art of authentic self-promotion.

With proven tools, techniques, and insights, Bragging Rights will help you understand and tell the world about your true superpowers, so you can access new opportunities and, along the way, elevate others.

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

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473: How to Make a Sustainable Living from Your Creativity with Miriam Schulman

Today, I owe a special thanks to former podcast guest and author Michael Schein. He’s the one who introduced me to today’s guest. And a great guest (and author) it is!

miriam schulman

Her name is Miriam Schulman, and she’s written a new book called Artpreneur: The Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Sustainable Living from Your Creativity.

Whether you’re a musician, photographer, painter, writer, dancer, singer, or any other creative with aspirations of making a living from your art, this is the perfect time to turn your creative ideas into a sustainable business. With gatekeepers no longer controlling the market, Miriam says, anyone with a laptop and a dram can make a thriving living from their creativity.

Miriam, who hosts the Inspiration Place podcast, breaks down the five core elements in the “Passion to Profit” planning framework to help you develop your art business—so that you can have the time and freedom to do what you love.

After twenty years of selling art as well as coaching other artists, she knows that now is the time to leave the rat race behind and pursue your highest dreams. It’s time to gamble on yourself.

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

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