424: Deep Purpose is the Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies with Ranjay Gulati

When you end an interview with a Harvard Business School professor and he tells you your questions made him think, it kinda makes your day (or maybe your week, your month, your year, or, perhaps your life)!

Though we may not see eye-to-eye on all the issues he presented, I consider the chance to chat with him extremely rewarding and fulfilling.

The professor I’m talking about is Ranjay Gulati. He’s written numerous books, his latest of which is called Deep Purpose: The Heart and Soul of High-Performance Companies.

He says few business topics have aroused more skepticism in recent years than the notion of corporate purpose, and for good reason. Too many companies deploy purpose, or a reason for being, as a promotional vehicle to make themselves feel virtuous and to look good to the outside world.

Some, he says, only have foggy ideas about wha tpurpose is and conflate it witih stratgy and otehr concepts like “mission,” “vision,” and “values.”

Ranjay takes readers inside some of the world’s most purposeful companies to understand the secrets to their successes.

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

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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.

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422: 7 Biblical Principles for Being Purposeful, Present, and Wildly Productive with Jordan Raynor

I love books on the topic of productivity. It’s a topic about which plenty of books have written. Some might argue we don’t need any more books on productivity.

jordan raynor

That is not the case for the latest productivity book I read. It’s now at the top of the list of best all-time productivity books in my view.

It’s written by author Jordan Raynor and it’s called Redeeming Your Time: 7 Biblical Principles for Being Purposeful, Present & Wildly Productive.

Jordan is a serial entrepreneur. He also serves as executive chairman of Threshold 360, a venture-backed tech start-up that has built the world’s largest library of 360-degree virtual experiences of hotels, restaurants, and attractions.

He’s a highly sought-after speaker on the topic of faith and work; he has spoken at Harvard University, SXSW, and many other events around the world.

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

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421: Four Simple Choices to Scale Your Impact with Chick-fil-A’s Mark Miller

Today’s guest is on the executive team of one of the nation’s most successful companies. That company is Chick-fil-A.

I’m talking, of course, about Executive Vice President of High-Performance Leadership, Mark Miller.

He’s been a guest on the show before to talk about Win Every Day. His latest book, though, is called Smart Leadership: Four Simple Choices to Scale Your Impact.

In this episode, Mark challenges us to intentionally schedule time to Reflect, Assess, Think, Create, and Plan. Additionally, he shares that the bigger your dreams, vision, challenges, problems, and opportunities, the more margin you need in your life. Time alone, Mark says, is when a leader adds the most to the organization.

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

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420: A Radical New Approach to Greater Success and Fulfillment with Brian Moran and Michael Lennington

One of my favorite productivity books ever is one called The 12 Week Year: How to Get More Done in 12 Weeks Than Others Do in 12 Months by Brian Moran and Michael Lennington.

brian moran and michael lennington

Though I didn’t get a chance to interview them about that book when it came out, I was delighted when a publicist reached out to me recently about interviewing about their brand new book!

It’s called Uncommon Accountability: A Radical New Approach to Greater Success and Fulfillment.

In it, Brian and Michael compellingly argue for a positive and affirming conception of accountability—one that stands for personal ownership of one’s goals, actions, and progress. 

They show you how to harness the power of accountability, with all of its built-in potential to enable growth and learning, improve well-being, reduce stress, and drive results.

Whether you are an individual looking to better your career, increase your income of improve your relationships, or a leader trying to inspire your team to accomplish what they are capable of, this book will show you how to powerfully shift your view of accountability and dramatically improve your results, and your life.

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

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