Episodes

  • Team First Problem Solving
    May 19 2023

    In today's episode, we cover prioritizing team dynamics and collaboration in leadership. We discuss the importance of focusing on the team before jumping right into problem-solving. We emphasize the significance of team dynamics, trust, and leadership in achieving success and also discuss the value of having the right team members and fostering an environment that promotes growth and collaboration.

    Show notes:

    - Focus on building trust within the team before diving into problem-solving [00:00:00]

    - Prioritize getting the right people in place and headed in the right direction [00:01:08]

    - Shift focus from analyzing the problem to evaluating the team's ability to get the job done [00:01:32]

    - Recognize the importance of planning and looking ahead in careers and leadership [00:06:27]

    - Address the dangers of reactive problem-solving without purpose and structure [00:08:31]

    - Question initial information as a leader and involve the right people in decision-making [00:10:34]

    - Empower and trust your team members by selecting them for specific tasks [00:12:32]

    - Delegate problems to the team and provide the right level of coaching to support their success [00:15:02]

    - Tackle the biggest problem first, instead of focusing on quick wins [00:19:12]

    - Avoid the "quick win trap" and focus on addressing the most significant and challenging problems [00:21:18]

    - Demonstrate the consultant's value quickly by addressing the system's bottleneck [00:23:25]

    - Have confidence in your team's ability to work through problems [00:25:02]

    - Invest time and energy into coaching, feedback, and effective communication for a strong team [00:27:44]

    - Prioritize the team's success over personal agendas [00:33:23]

    - Pair team members to work on tasks together for better problem-solving and team-building [00:39:07]

    - Go through the stages of storming, forming, norming, and performing to build trust and improve collaboration [00:47:07]

    Thanks for joining us today. Don't forget to hit the subscribe button and feel free to reach us at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

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    48 mins
  • The Envelope of Trust
    Apr 24 2023

    We're back with our slow but informative walkthrough of The Trillion Dollar Coach, covering Chapter 3 - Build an Envelope of Trust. We cover a ton of ground in this episode, here are some of the main points.

    - Building trust between leaders and teams

    - Trust as the foundation of psychological safety

    - Leveraging radical candor in delivering difficult messages

    - Establishing trust and psychological safety within a team

    - Scaling care and trust across growing teams

    - Coaching the coachable and avoiding over-focus on underperformers

    - Creating an environment of open dialogue and vulnerability

    - Storytelling in leadership

    Thanks for listening. Please subscribe and share this episode to anyone you think could benefit.

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    44 mins
  • Career Growth and Creative Expression
    Apr 13 2023

    In today's episode, we take a break from The Trillion Dollar Coach and reconnect after a break. We touch on several topics:

    1. Adjusting to recording again and optimizing our workspace for better productivity.

    2. The significance of career progression within our teams and the importance of fostering an environment that supports growth and success.

    3. The value of setting clear goals and priorities for the year ahead, emphasizing the need for clarity before the year starts.

    4. Sharing personal experiences with promoting team members, highlighting the positive impact of providing opportunities for growth and development.

    5. Balancing professional and personal life, and exploring our creative side through architectural drawing and sketching as a way to unwind and find balance.

    6. ChatGPT and AI as a way to augment human productivity and output, with the downside of creating too much noise in the ecosystem.

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    46 mins
  • We're Back!
    Feb 13 2023

    In this episode we discuss our experiences and observations about leadership and wellbeing back from some much needed time off. We touch on the importance of taking breaks, finding a work-life balance, and the benefits of taking a step back from work.

    We cover the challenges of maintaining a healthy work-life balance, especially when working remotely. We believe that taking breaks and setting boundaries are essential to avoiding burnout and staying productive.

    • Share thoughts on the importance of being present in the moment and focusing on the task at hand. We also discusses the benefits of taking time off, such as reducing stress and improving overall wellbeing.
    • Talk about recent road trips and how they helped recharge and reset. We also touch on the importance of finding time for self-care and exploring new experiences.
    • We explore the idea of "divergence and convergence" during podcast discussions, where we uncover new ideas and perspectives that wouldn't otherwise be discovered.
    • Taking breaks, setting boundaries, and taking time for self-care. Prioritize their wellbeing and to take steps towards finding a healthy work-life balance.

    Thanks for joining us today and don't forget to hit the subscribe button or reach out at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

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    53 mins
  • Managing the Aberrant Genius - Trillion Dollar Coach Series - Chapter 2 Part 5
    Dec 7 2022

    How do we handle the people on our teams who are exceptional at what they do, but regularly exhibit behaviors that are outside of the bands of the team dynamics / company expectations? Bill Campbell calls this "Managing the Aberrant Genius".

    Bill Campbell's advice is clear - tolerating the Aberrant Genius is OK as long as their behaviors are in the service (or intended to be in the service) of the good of the company, or the good of the team. When it can't be tolerated is when they continually put him or herself above the team.

    We think feedback and coaching are critical skills for everyone on the team and, if not done consistently and effectively, will introduce more risk if you have Aberrant Geniuses on your team. We also discuss whether or not the time and energy required to manage these profiles is the most effective place for leaders to spend their time.

    We also discuss how managing this dynamic as a leader wades into decision-making. Critical decisions should have a timeframe. What is the useful life of a decision? When making critical decisions, it's vital we re-visit and re-assess at some point in the future. Too many decisions are made by "default" (taking no action) or "permanently" never adjusted in light of new information/wisdom.

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    27 mins
  • The Throne Behind the Round Table - Trillion Dollar Coach Series - Chapter 2 Part 4
    Sep 15 2022
    Sometimes you need to make the hard decision and expect that everyone will rally around it.

    We're back after a long summer break with one of our favorite leadership concepts from the Trillion Dollar coach around executive decision-making. Bill Campbell says our job as leaders are to ensure all perspectives get heard and considered when making decisions AND the accountability for the final decision rests on the leader's shoulders. In other words, it's the leader's job to break ties because sometimes the team's direction will align with the leader's directional vision, and others it won't. In our roles as leaders, we have to balance facilitating, enabling, and decision-making.

    One thing we can do as leaders to immediately improve our decision-making skills is to create a Decision Journal. You can read more about Decision Journals here: https://fs.blog/decision-journal/

    For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website  or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

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    32 mins
  • Leader One-on-Ones - Trillion Dollar Coach Series - Chapter 2 Part 3
    Apr 18 2022

    Today we continue our series on The Trillion Dollar Coach with Part 3 of Chapter 2 which is all about one-on-ones.

    Bill Campbell brought his own unique flair to coaching his team and rooted it in solid leadership foundations that we will discuss today.

    We discuss a few thoughts and ideas around how to improve your own 1:1 effectiveness which center mostly around consistency and preparation. No single one-on-one will be life-changing, but the frequency of these relationship investments will compound over time. You will also get a 10x return on the time you invest preparing for the one-on-one which will lead to faster growth of your team.

    For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

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    30 mins
  • Peer Relationships and The Trip Report - Trillion Dollar Coach Series - Chapter 2 Part 2
    Mar 23 2022

    Today we continue our series on the Trillion Dollar Coach by talking about one of our favorite relationship building tools, the Trip Report.

    The Trip Report is exactly what it sounds like. A brief, informal, overview of a recent vacation you took aimed at sharing with your colleagues to build trust and help them get to know you better. When you have a team that is willing to share Trip Reports, you can foster a higher degree of empathy and collaboration over time.

    For more information, visit our website at Wanna Grab Coffee? website or send us an email at hello@wannagrabcoffee.com.

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    43 mins