Episodios

  • A key aspect of Leadership is realizing that you cannot be in every detail of a project for your organization. Instead, you have to trust your team to run experiments, fail often and quickly and provide you with feedback of what is working and sometimes more importantly, what’s not working. So, how do you let go of being in control of all the details? What ingredients are needed to create a culture of collective responsibility instead of control?

    Today Deepa speaks with Jan Gilg about the limits of a controlling culture. Jan tells us how we can create empowered workplaces that build trust and growth for all.

    Jan’s Tips for Avoiding Control Culture:Clarity is key. Give your employees the freedom to make decisions. Giving them this environment lets them get out of their comfort zone and grow. Stay away from the “how”.Over communicate with team members. Give boundaries and set up the right framework.Fail often, fail early is a key philosophy, not only in the Technology industry.Total consensus is not the goal in projects.As a leader- the more concerns you can hear, the better.Vulnerability is needed for all of these aspects of a product: running experiments, having feedback sessions and how things are going, and there is a sounding board as well. Articulate a clear vision and strategy in addition to acknowledging nothing is going to be perfect. Create the safety to have open communication, including challenges. This creates collective responsibility in the system.It’s important to acknowledge and accept the realities of the world and life. We need to give employees more flexibility.You have to take time to create team spirit which builds collaboration and connection. Everyone needs to feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves, make sure you connect your people to that purpose and vision which will unlock potential and motivation. This creates amazing things.

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know, what’s a piece of advice from Jan that you’d like to start incorporating in your organization?

    Please feel free to connect with Jan and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Jan

    Jan Gilg is President and Chief Product officer of SAP S/4HANA, which is SAP’s flagship product that encompasses ERP, finance, and supply chain. In this role he has global responsibility for the development, delivery, and product management of SAP S/4HANA, SAP’s Industry solutions, as well as the Digital Supply Chain portfolio. He is a cloud evangelist, a customer advocate and a business problem solver.  He is based in Walldorf Germany, but lived in the US for many years.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

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  • Have you ever felt a disconnect between who you are outside of work and who you are at the workplace? Have you ever felt like you can’t be with the politics and the way restructuring and tough decisions are made inside your organizations? 

    Today Deepa speaks with Anjana Sivakumar about authentic Leadership. Anjana has real tactical advice that you can start to use immediately. These are things they don’t teach you in business school!

    Anjana’s Tips for Authentic Leadership:Authentic Leadership starts with knowing who you are and having a good sense of your personal values. You have to feel comfortable in your own skin. And this comes across in every role you have - be it Executive, parent or child, volunteer.How to stay true to yourself while dealing with sensitive information at work and dealing with colleagues/friends.Don’t feel like you need to stay in a rigid box in a Leadership role. Bring your personality to the role.Being Authentic builds trust and connection. Acknowledge the uncomfortable or hard things. Don’t go easy and blame another person, own your mistakes. We lose a lot of time doing impression management and stressing over these situations!Communicate organizational changes and then listen to others as they go through their emotions.

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know - what’s hard about being authentic in your Leadership role? Do you feel comfortable enough to be human? 

    Please feel free to connect with Anjana and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Anjana 

    Anjana Sivakumar is a dynamic HR executive with over 20 years of experience across various industries. She has worked with C-suite and senior leaders in numerous global organizations, both large and small. Her experience spans various facets of HR, from talent and leadership development to operating model and organizational design to DEI strategy development and implementation.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow Deepa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

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  • As a highly driven person, you are so good at problem solving. And most likely, you have been promoted again and again because you get things done, you achieve and solve the problems at hand. But at a certain point, these problem solving traits do not help you get to the next level. So, are you ready to take your leadership to the next level? 

    Today Deepa speaks with Tony Stead from Airbus Defence and Space about stepping into Leadership. It’s important to acknowledge the different mindset that is needed between management and leadership - leadership requires letting go and building collective responsibility. Let’s move from management into leadership!

    Tony’s Tips for Stepping into Leadership:As a manager, you can be great at all the doing, problem-solving. Leadership is more about stepping back and reflecting - seeing the whole picture. When you are growing within your company, the way to stand out is to deliver results. When you are promoted to a higher leader, you have to focus less on delivering as an individual and focus more on the bigger picture and delegating to your team. Leadership is about letting go.Leaders need to focus on the problems of tomorrow instead of problems of today. Making the transition from management to leadership is much like going from a parent to a grandparent. Leadership is about finding the needle in the haystack. It isn’t about knowing everything. You can’t lead with buzz words. You will lose connection with your team.

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know - where are you getting stuck between moving from management to leadership? And where are you succeeding at becoming a leader? 

    Please feel free to connect with Tony and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Tony 

    Tony Stead is currently based in Munich working for Airbus Defence and Space. He has been working within the Middle East and Europe for the last 15 years. He focuses on the agility of the team, the agility of the business and the agility of the project to improve our operational effectiveness and ways of engaging the stakeholder community. Tony is also a Fellow at the Institute of Leadership and Management.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow Deepa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Have you ever been in a meeting thinking, “I have the best idea - no one else’s even comes close to mine”?

    Then this episode is for you! Today Deepa speaks with Bjorn Ekelund about diversity and the need for all perspectives to be shared by everyone on the team and organization. We tend to believe our own thoughts and processes are the right way, but it is so important to hear from everyone and get curious about ideas and structures. 

    Bjorn’s Tips for Diversity Ice-Breaking:It’s difficult to discuss cultural differences because it is so much a part of our identity. Culture is not only a personal matter; it is important to business.We have been given a certain structure for how to succeed at life through our upbringing and culture. Every person is unique.Diversity Icebreaker is about getting a group together to recognize differences and our own processes. Many times what happens is the participants realize it is very easy to have an individual think their way is better than another person’s way. The process brings awareness and consciousness to each person so that going forward they will acknowledge another person’s idea differently.We need all perspectives, this is a level set for the icebreaker. It creates understanding and respect for the team. It creates psychological safety.Go find someone that you disagree with and talk through the topic with openness and curiosity. Managers and Team Leaders who expect the unexpected will make the best leaders. Listening is a powerful tool.

    We hope you liked this episode! Take the challenge this week and go find someone to disagree with. The point of this conversation is to get curious about their different viewpoints rather than arguing who is right and who is wrong. Be open to learning something new!

    Please feel free to connect with Bjorn and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Bjorn 

    Bjorn Ekelund is a psychologist with over 25 years experience. He is most known for creating the Diversity Icebreaker – a concept that combines assessment of cognitive styles with an experiential learning seminar. Besides running his own companies, he has been lecturing at management schools in organizational psychology and international management. Learn more about Diversity Icebreaker here - https://diversityicebreaker.com/

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow Deepa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Is your organization looking to build and sustain an innovative growth culture? What is holding you back from fully embracing this change?

    Today Deepa speaks with Tobias Klein about the essential shift organizations and senior leaders need to make this culture change happen. It is not sufficient enough to only build an organization with knowledge and expertise. So what else is needed?

    Tobias’ Tips for Making the Essential Shift:It’s time to take a look at the inner game of leadership.Cultivating a culture of failure is key. The point is not about failure, it is about how you move forward from the failure.Organizations need to take a look at how they measure success and how they reward their employees.Societal norms have set us up to have to finish what we start - but it is necessary to evaluate when is it time for something to stop, to come to an end.You cannot do everything at once, everything cannot be the priority.The top level leadership should take the time to ask and listen to their bottom levels. Empower the younger employees to be creative and innovative. Don’t be afraid of trying new things.Critically look at your recruiting approach. What values are you looking for and what is missing from your current team? It’s important to have shared values.Everybody is better than you at one thing. This is a great way to embrace and include everyone on your team. 

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know - what are the values that your leadership team shares? When was the last time you spoke about your organization’s values? It’s so important to be on the same page. 

    Please feel free to connect with Tobias and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Tobias

    Tobias Klein is a Chief People & Culture Officer at SEBA Bank. He has full accountability for building, maintaining and continuously improving the entire HR Life Cycle. He has implemented objectives and key results as one of the 1st financial institutions in Switzerland. He believes to win the marketplace, you have to first win the workplace.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow Deepa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Leaders are often judged by their decision-making. So, how do you make better decisions? Is there a formula to making better decisions? 

    Today Deepa speaks with David Siegel, author of Decide and Conquer, where he offers three main principles for better decision making. 

    David’s Tips for Making Better Decisions:Not making a decision is actually still making a decisionCulture matters, don’t ignore behaviors.Don’t only make decisions based on tangible items. There can be a lack of accountability around toxicity. Be kind and nice as a leader! You can be nice and clear. Surround yourself with people who will disagree with you. This will ultimately lead to a better decision. Make sure you ask your team to disagree with you before the meeting. Repeat the same message many times in order to change your organization’s culture.Embrace optionality - think about what options you can give yourself based on the decisions you make.Be careful when decisions are made by your ego. Be willing to share about your mistakes and failures. 

    Remember that being vulnerable as a leader will make you a better decision maker, which will lead to becoming a better leader. The vulnerable leader creates a culture of learning and developing by being open about their own failures and successes. 

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know - what’s the hardest part of making a decision for you? Please feel free to connect with David and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About David

    David Siegel is the Chief Executive Officer of MeetUp, with 20+ years’ dramatically growing revenue and profit in digital media, subscriptions and e-commerce. He has recently authored Decide and Conquer. He is a motivational leader with full decision-making and P&L ownership. His experience includes M&A, turnarounds, scaling operations and growing post startup phase. David is a Management Professor at Columbia and has an MBA from The Wharton School. 

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Change agents can be a buzzword, and you may want to be one. But have you ever thought about how humans have acted as agents of change towards this planet? Instead of listening to nature and letting it show us the best way, we have created and controlled nature. Now shift this metaphor to you and your organization. Are you taking responsibility for your development? What would it look like if the collective group allowed you to figure out the best way for you to grow? 

    What does it mean to shift from being Agents of Change to Stewards of Change? This is a paradigm shift. How can we unfold the potential within each of us? Listen to this conversation with Trevor Comyn and Deepa to start exploring these ideas. 

    Trevor’s Tips for Rewilding Leadership:

    Rewilding Leadership is a metaphor taken from agriculture. It is a concept to play with.Instead of bending nature to our will, we can become stewards and allow nature to show us the way. This is believing and trusting in the cyclic nature of life.  In this stewardship model, ownership is taken by the individual and collective responsibility is in the system. Before starting development, it is important to start with why. Why are we developing? Instead of focusing on the problem, focus on the shift needed in the person.It is important for everyone to feel psychological safety in order to encourage personal development within an organization.Collective learning is the key to sustain change and keep accountability. 

    Becoming a part of a community that has a shared goal is the best way to grow. We can read all of the books and articles on developing leadership, but until you start an open conversation with others you won’t be able to fully integrate all of your learning. You are part of this learning community, thank you for listening and please let us know how we can best support you.

    We hope you liked this episode! Please feel free to connect with Trevor and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Trevor

    Trevor Comyn is the Director of Knowledge, Learning and Development at Mills and Reeve, where he has been for over 16 years. He is currently focused on developing a deeper understanding of adult development theory. Trevor is a systemic coach and believes team coaching can deliver meaningful results for both organizations and individuals.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Have you ever heard of the idea to have people stand on airplanes instead of being seated? Does that sound crazy to you? Do you immediately think that is not possible? Well don’t jump to that conclusion yet.

    Today Erwin De beuckelaer joins Deepa to discuss innovation, change and challenging assumptions. Every team and organization needs to set the right foundation for innovation to happen - this includes psychological safety, setting the right candor and being explicit about critiques on the idea instead of on the person. Erwin shares his best practices for engaging with innovation from his experience.

    Erwin’s tips for Innovation and Change:

    It can be hard to bring change to highly regulated areas, but also the most rewarding.Signaling is a great tool when bringing up new ideas. Frame the conversation of innovation to your audience. You are signaling the type of responses you want to receive.Every belief about if an idea will work or won’t work is an assumption. It is important to test assumptions. Testing an assumption will then offer a shared belief in your team.There should be a story that is told with innovation and new changes within the business. You have to know the very clear “why” in the change and how the “why” changes at every level of the organization.It’s easy to think of innovation in terms of products. Don’t forget that innovation can be applied to culture and team management too. Teams can get stuck doing the same thing, don’t be afraid to check in with your team and see what’s working or not working. Find something to test together as a team!Give yourself permission to innovate - it’s easy to get caught in perceived barriers.

    Signaling can be a powerful tool for you to create breakthroughs in your ecosystem. You and your crazy ideas are needed, don’t give up. If you need a place to start your innovation, pick up a paper and pen and answer this question, “What would I do if I gave myself full permission?”. Set a timer for 10 minutes and see what you come up with! 

    We hope you liked this episode! Please feel free to connect with Erwin and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Erwin

    Erwin De beuckelaer is a guest professor at the University College of Ghent and the Director of Innovative Capabilities at The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. He is transforming innovative practice and culture for the Quality & Compliance in Clinical Trials team. He is an expert in design thinking, digital health, strategy definition and business process management. 

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • It is the beginning of a new year and the perfect time to reflect on the way you lead. As you move forward into 2022, let’s make sure you are thinking about being strategic in your leadership.

    Today Victoire de Lajudie joins Deepa to discuss - what is a strategic leader exactly and how do you keep your strategy alive throughout the year.

    Victoire’s tips for being a strategic leader:Being a leader is being strategic. Make sure you think about your strategy before diving into a project.Leaders should: learn fast, fail fast, and have empathy.Learning includes curiosity and pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone.A mission can be short–term. The most important piece is for everyone to know and stay connected to why they are working on the project.Creating a vision needs a team, it is a collective responsibility. Dream big and don’t get stuck wondering “how”.Ask questions to keep your organization on track for culture change and strategy.Challenge the stories and assumptions that run your organization.Vulnerability is needed for connection and connection fuels collective work.

    What practices do you put into place to reflect on your goals? Do you write in your journal or have an accountability partner? Remember being a strategic leader does not end in January - keep going throughout the year.

    We hope you liked this episode! Please feel free to connect with Victoire and Deepa through LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

    About Victoire

    Victoire de Lajudie is VP, Head of Group Strategy at Michelin. She previously worked with Sanofi and McKinsey. She has a Master of Science, Applied Mathematics & Economics from Ecole Polytechnique.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)
  • We learn from some of the most successful people. Nils Michael’s leadership has brought him extraordinary results and he created that with people. He was the Head of A400M Retrofit at Airbus Defense and Space and he now heads Center of Competence for Programme/Project Management (PM).

    Listen to this episode to hear what key factors have contributed to Nils’ success with teams and projects.

    Key Points from this Episode:

    Start journaling. You’ll be surprised by how much clearer you will be when writing ideas down. Journaling also forces you to reflect on what is happening and how best to move forward.Foster a sense of belonging for your team. Bring the organization’s purpose to the individual level.Team building is necessary for every team. And it keeps motivation up on the project throughout. An example of this could be to come together as a team to support a charity that everyone can connect to.Remember to celebrate hard - you work hard, make sure you take adequate time to celebrate those successes and failures as a team.You always need to be yourself and be able to look into the mirror with pride. If you start acting not within your values, then that creates a problem.Don’t fall into the mode of compliance and control. Believe in yourself and your team.Remember that change does not happen overnight. That doesn’t mean that we need to give up.Being a good project manager is being a good leader.Change should be considered positive, look forward to it.

    We hope you liked this episode! We’ve written up a wonderful article based on this interview, it is in our latest issue of Samskara magazine. I hope you will subscribe here

    About Nils

    Nils Michael is the Vice President Head Of Programme Management at Airbus Defense and Space. Prior to that he was the VP of A400M Retrofit & MRO Programmes. He has a history of working in the European aviation and aerospace industry. He was part of the German Air Force for 10 years. 

    Thanks for listening and stay cool!

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Have you ever felt excluded in the workplace? We are willing to bet your answer is yes. Feeling excluded can range from being the minority to not being invited to a lunch group. What corporations tend to forget about is that employee motivation and retention is directly linked to belonging and inclusion. 

    Today Deepa is speaking to Cheryl Thompson, Founder and CEO of CADIA - the Center for Automotive Diversity, Inclusion and Advancement. Cheryl is on a mission to double the amount of diverse leaders in the Automotive Industry by 2030. She offered great tips for how we can begin to change our work cultures to be more inclusive.

    Key Points from this Episode:

    A big challenge for minorities is feeling as if you are always being watched and will be judged more than the majority. When someone doubts us, we immediately turn and doubt ourselves.We can easily give up our own sense of identity to fit into corporate culture. When we can’t be our authentic self, our brains don’t work as well! How much more productive and profitable would organizations be if all employees can be authentic?It is not enough to hire diverse talent, organizations need to embrace all cultures. This promotes creativity within projects and the organization is able to keep talent instead of having a high turnover rate.A change of culture within organizations will help build inclusive environments. First thing is to include yourself, take responsibility for showing up authentically. You can be the change agent.There has to be a Leadership Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion- they set the tone and the priorities, they model what is valued within the company. Systemic Change is needed for overall inclusion in a company as well. You have to look at how your company hires, offers benefits, and unconscious biases.Start to assess performance differently. Ask your leadership team - What do you define as success? What would get in the way of someone who doesn’t look like you to reach that success?

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know in the comments - have you had moments where you have felt excluded in your work culture? What did you do? 

    About Cheryl

    Cheryl Thompson is the founder of the Center for Automotive Diversity, Inclusion & Advancement. A veteran of the automotive industry, Cheryl has over 30 years of experience at Ford Motor Company and American Axle and Manufacturing in positions ranging from skilled trades, operations, engineering and global leadership. She is trained in diversity and inclusion, career and leadership coaching and is Six Sigma trained and certified as a Black Belt. Learn more about CADIA and their mission to double the amount of diverse leaders in the Automotive Industry by 2030 here

    Thanks for listening and stay cool!

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  • As the workplace has turned more and more virtual over the past year, teams can fall easily into the trap of getting onto a meeting and only discussing the projects at hand. At the end of the day though, we are all still human beings. Humans require connection and building trust with your team will actually increase productivity. 

    Today Katja von Bergen joins Deepa to discuss attitudes and dialogue. She ventures to say that managers and executives should lead the way to create meaningful conversation for their teams and organization. 

    Key Points from this Episode:

    In the Virtual environment, it can be easy to jump directly into business and tasks. We cannot forget to connect with each team member directly and get to know them as a human.Be aware that these valuable dialogues are going to be different and possibly outside of your team’s comfort zone. It’s good to make it fun, like bring a game. Keep it fun, the conversations do not have to be hard work. Try it once and see how they react. If it works, great. If not, try something different next time.These meaningful conversations lead to teams listening to each other deeply.You get to decide how deep you go. You cannot build trust unless you get vulnerable.Be easy with these valuable conversations and have fun with it. Be the example for your team.Create a space that is non-judgmental. If the person does not want to go deeper, accept that. Do not force anyone to give more than they are willing to.This can be a great tool for inclusion.Here are 5 great questions to start these conversations-What was the best decision in your job and why?What are you most proud of?What are you grateful for?What gives you energy to get up in the morning?What is your type of humor? What do you laugh about?You must first open yourself in order for others to be open.

    We hope you enjoyed this episode! Thank you for listening. Tell us in the comments, how are you taking one step towards meaningful connection today? 

    About Katja

    Katja von Bergen is the Managing Director and Entrepreneur of Agile Transformer, business unit of the German consultancy Kraus & Partner, but starting her own business in 2022. She has been in change consulting for 12 years and has been involved in quite a few projects, some of which went well and some of which went badly. Make sure you write to Katja on LinkedIn to get your free copy of questions for your next meeting! 

     

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  • We are no longer strangers to the digital space. The pandemic has forced us into this environment if we were not already there. We’ve had to move quickly and adapt and continue to evolve how we make use of digital platforms.

    Today’s episode dives into the world of digital learning and transformation as Deepa speaks with Detlef Hold, Head of Digital Learning Experience for Roche. They talk about what digital learning is as well as give practical tips for how to use the platforms to achieve the most engagement and success within organizations. 

    Key Points from this Episode:

    Digital Learning leverages technology platforms for individual or group learning. And it is about creating the best environment for digital workers, the world we are living in today.There is a lot of responsibility on digital workers. They have to be able to search, assess, and find what’s relevant. It’s important to use technology and build community around it.Small things make all the difference in digital learning, but it does require you to rethink the way you design these experiences.You have to create an environment where everyone has a voice and feels comfortable sharing.Focus on people first. Climate, Facilitation, and Pace of program are key ingredients in keeping transformation happen in digital learning environments.Use co-creation to increase engagement in your digital environment.Make the most of your meeting time! This means you focus on dialogue and connection rather than tactics and summaries. Make videos of those items before the meeting.Utilize all forms to communicate on your digital platforms, be breakout rooms or chats or small groups. Engage in multiple ways so that everyone has an option to get in the conversation.Keeping cameras on for online meetings creates more connection, so encourage the use. This can take time and needs to be woven into your organization’s culture.The platform is a means to an end. You will have to convince your stakeholders of the technological investment.You are asking your employees to rethink the way they work. You are helping them build new habits and forget their old ways of doing. This is about mindset.Focus on the social structures needed to engage every employee. This is more important than the actual technological part of the transformation.Articulate your intention. Experiment and observe ourselves. This brings about change within us. When you find yourself in a place where there is opportunity, take it!

    We hope you enjoyed this episode! Tell us in the comments, what is one way you are embracing digital learning? And what is one new way you learned from this episode to use digital learning?

    About Detlef

  • Have you ever been a part of a transformation project? Or an organization who was looking to make scalable, rapid change? Being a part of these times in an organization can be stressful and intense. Many times employees are nervous about entering a transformation project due to all of the unknowns. 

    Today Deepa is speaking with Elodie Loing about transformation in critical situations within organizations. Elodie shares her real life experiences with scaling organizations and creating change within teams. Elodie’s approach is about empathy, letting go and collective responsibility. This episode is for any one who may be experiencing a critical time in their organization, but especially for executives and managers. 

    Key Points from this Episode:

    Many times change agents are called into a project and organizations are called in too late. Critical times happen when there is high pressure and stress within an organization. It is generally systemic and performance is low.Being a mediator is different from being an operational manager. Empathy is enriching and humbling because you are looking at the situation from another person’s perspective. Being unattached - the ability to do the best you can and let go of what the future holds or what the outcome actually is.There is an opportunity to grow in every situation.Promote diversity in your teams. Hire those who have different opinions from yours and let them talk.Here’s an easy way to practice stillness - make an appointment with yourself, put it in your calendar! The hardest part of a reset is your ego and your rational brain. Watch out for those!Co-creation allows you to let go of your own ideas and let others in to help you. Give your teams the benefit of working with you.Collective responsibility comes from within each person. Accept yourself - the strengths you have, the weaknesses you have, every part of you. And realize you will make mistakes. Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone.

    We hope you enjoyed this episode! Elodie gave so much wisdom. Let us know in the comments, have you been a part of a transformation project? Was it during a critical time? What was the most memorable part? Was it stressful or fun? :)

    About Elodie

    Elodie Loing has 25 years’ experience in retail organizations including The Disney Store, Le Cùdre Rouge, The Nuance Group, Fashion History, Jean Paul Gaultier and Manutan. Elodie scales up and turnarounds organizations (in France and Internationally). She implements conflict wise dynamics which lead to improved team spirit and accelerated performance. Elodie is a National Mediator at French Ministry of Economy and Judicial mediator at the Paris Court of Appeals. She is also a Lecturer and Independent board member. Elodie is convinced that conflict-wise organizations are wiser and more

  • How many times have you had an idea or suggestion and not actually spoken it out loud? How many times have you seen something wrong happening in your workplace but you have not told anyone about it? Did you know that you are having an impact whether or not you are speaking? What is the legacy that you want to leave as a leader? 

    Today, Deepa is joined with Zana Goic Petricevic, Founder of Bold Leadership Culture, to discuss how and why you need to be bold in your leadership. We are all leaders of our own lives, so why not be bold about it?

    Key Points from the Episode:

    Boldness takes your soulfulness. In order to be bold, you have to engage your entire soul.There is a limit to your boldness that comes from your head.Reasonable and safe behaviors and decisions come from the brain. Unreasonable and risky behaviors and decisions come from the heart or soul, anywhere besides the brain.You have a choice to act more boldly and step outside of your comfort zone.Your discomfort matters less than your vision. This pushes you to act boldly.Zana shares a perspective to see how bold you are, based on SOUL - Self, Other, Universe, and Legacy.This is not easy! Leadership is as much about the “being” space as it is in the “doing” space. There needs to be moments of pause and presence as well as moments that challenge and grow us.There is no boldness without personal risk involved.Try to break out of the mindset that your work is solely a means for income. You cannot create legacy by staying small. You are creating an impact whether or not you speak up. Silence is a misused privilege. 

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know in the comments what part of the SOUL was most intriguing to you and your bold leadership. 

    About Zana Goic Petricevic

    Zana is the Founder and Managing Director of Bold Leadership Culture. Our mission is to cultivate bolder individual and collective leadership in organizations through coaching, learning and development. Zana also holds many certifications and credentials that make her a sought after Leadership Coach, Executive Coach and Facilitator. Visit her website here. 

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 😎

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • Many organizations are finding themselves in crisis right now. The pandemic has turned businesses upside down. So how do you persevere through crisis and come out stronger on the other side?

    Today, Deepa is joined with Magali Euverte who is the Director of the Normandy lines contract with SNCF. Magali shares her experience of pushing through crisis, when it lasts for more than a year. Listen to this episode to hear real life experience of how you can inspire and invest in your team to build collective responsibility and achieve success.

    Key Points from this Episode:

    Invest time and training in your frontline managers. Get them on board and encourage them to bring their teams.Find your purpose and why you will continue on this journey. If you don’t know your why, you won’t have much luck in continuing when the journey gets difficult.Understand what is in it for your fellow employees. Both in the sense of empathy as well as anticipating any possible roadblocks that may come along down the way.Celebrate every step along the way, otherwise the team will lose their motivation.Transparency includes engaging your employees in solutions, allowing them to contribute their feedback to build the solution.It pays to spend more time on the short term goals, rather than the long term goal.Communication builds team spirit. Team Spirit is what keeps the project going, even for over a year.It is important to be able to zoom in to the short term and zoom out to the long term, even with the crisis right in front of you there is a need to put processes in place that will help in the long term.Remember to reward every part of the project, especially in support of the long term goals.Resiliency is needed during a long crisis.Be honest about the crisis now and hold the future goal – yes the process will be hard and we can see what the future will be so we are going to keep going.

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know in the comments what was the most inspiring part of Magali’s journey.

    About Magali

    Magali Euverte is the Director of the Normandy lines contract - monitoring and implementation of the operating agreement signed by SNCF and the Normandy region. She has operational management experience at the service of clients and teams. Magali implements several change management systems and supports managers for successful customer relationships.

    Thanks for listening and stay cool! 😎

    Visit the show website at (http://www.meetmypotential.com)

    Follow me on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepanatarajan/)

  • What is spirituality? Does that question make you nervous? Spirituality is not a part of the rational mind. This is why it is so hard for us to get into a practice of including spirituality into our lives because it is not in our comfort zone. The world favors the rational mind and we are conditioned to leave behind what is innately in us. 

    Join Deepa and her guest, Gaurav Arora, as they explore the intersection of spirituality and leadership. How could including a practice of spirituality improve your leadership? What does it mean to ‘come home’? Are you living a life of intention? Listen to get simple tips on how you can start on this journey today.

    Key Points from this Episode:

    From Gaurav’s perspective, spirituality is a process of coming back home. Where you unlearn what you’ve learned from social conditioning. Spirituality is being your true authentic self without any need of appreciation or acknowledgement from the world. It is a lifelong journey.Just by starting to ask questions about how you begin this journey, you have started this important work. Ask yourself “Who am I?” continuously over time, keep checking in with yourself and discovering who you are.Find your source of joy. When you are fully in what gives you joy,, you are not fulfilling a need. A need to show how smart you are or a need for approval from others. Define your version of success, and make sure it is truly from you instead from others or the world.Intentions are extremely important. They can guide you on this journey. To find your intentions, ask yourself “What do I stand for?”. Your intentions should be the foundation of your leadership.Take a moment before your day starts or before a meeting to question, “What is my intention for this day or meeting?”.Gaurav says Leadership is a process of a leader leading a team to a common goal. It is a performance art. “Who you are is how you lead.”“Who you are is how you lead.” If you don’t know who you are, you won’t be able to lead.

    We hope you liked this episode! Let us know in the comments how you define spirituality and how it is included in your leadership journey. If you’d like to dive deeper into how you can achieve more in harmony, come take Deepa’s masterclass on why you need to rethink leadership here.

    About Gaurav

    Gaurav Arora is the Country Head of Erickson Coaching International - India as well as the Director of Certifications at The Leadership Circle. He is a Master Certified Coach, designated by the International Coach Federation. Gaurav co-founded Inspire Coaching Systems, a professional training and coaching company in 2009, with the mission to inspire himself and others to live up to our own expectations.

    Check...

  • Have you ever come across an arrogant leader? I bet everyone has come across at least 1 arrogant leader. I have come across many in my years as a Transformation coach, working with many high level executives in organization. But, have you ever taken the time to turn around and examine your own arrogance? What would you find if you asked yourself why that leader’s arrogance bothers you? 

    We will always have arrogance to deal with, but the most important piece of this is to recognize what triggers you and how you can better deal with the arrogance. Once you know why arrogance irritates you, you’ll be better equipped to name it and move forward. Listen to this interview with Bob Anderson where we dive into specific examples of arrogance.

    Key Points from this Episode:

    It is easy to spot arrogance in others around us but more importantly arrogance needs to be identified within us. Instead of placing blame on others, first look at yourself and see what you find in yourself.We can feel vulnerable in work environments. As much as we want to feel like we are equal to or have the same amount of power as another, the truth is we all have different amounts of power at work. We attach many things to our identity, our ego. We get validation from those around us which inforce how we think about ourselves. This has the potential to grow our arrogance.If you are curious about how you are showing up, go ask a few of your colleagues how they see you. You might be surprised to hear what you are telling those you work with, even just with your facial expressions!You never know someone’s story, where they came from and what they are dealing with. Remember compassion.There are no difficult people. They only exist because they raise a difficulty in ourselves.“It’s not who we are, it’s how we’re not who we are.” Get in the practice of asking yourself, “Am I part of the problem?”It is so easy to identify ourselves as our ideas or our title, and if those things are not accepted then we feel not accepted.Remember to be open and listen. Our life stories have developed us in a certain way. This is not a bad thing, but it is something that needs to be examined and looked at so that we can know why we behave the way we do.

    I hope you liked this episode! If you are curious about knowing how and why you behave the way you do, schedule some time with me! I love helping others get to the root of how they act and figuring out next steps to create the change you are wanting. Schedule a session with me here

    About Bob

    Bob Anderson

  • Our world is built on a lot of complexity. But what would happen if we stopped and took the time to evaluate if that complexity is serving us? What if we realized that the complexity within our organizations is actually wasting time and doing the opposite that we are hoping for? 

    Today I’m joined by Lisa Bodell and we talk about why it is important to get back to simple. There can be so much value in simple things like asking ourselves what are we saying yes to? In this question you can find what you are valuing and you will instantly know if you are on track to what you’ve said is the purpose of your work. Take a listen and get ready to be very honest with yourself!

    Key Points from this Episode:

    We add complexity with the best of intentions, we are trying to solve a problem or trying to add onto a process we already have. We should spend more time stopping and getting back to simple.The goal of simplifying means to get to the heart of the work, meaningful work. We get too stuck in the meetings and emails.We all value getting stuff done. We all need to check our behaviors to take into account not our own work loads, but also our colleagues’ load.Complexity is driven by fear and creates comfort because there are places to hide.Most of us have been taught to not take risks. And no one gets punished by following the status quo so not taking risks is reinforced. Change won’t happen unless the leaders give permission.‘Kill a stupid rule’ exercise - remember to look at the rules that you adhere to each day, not only the rules in other departments.The way to make change stick is to change behaviors. Instead of changing tactics, you must change behaviors. Start doing this by questioning the assumptions around you and that you are run by.Complexity not only wastes time but it also kills your company culture.When everything is simplified, transparency rises above everything. It is easier to spot the problems and see what needs to change to make companies more efficient and innovative.Everywhere can have simplicity, no matter how regulated it is.Do a calendar audit - think about how many meetings you may not be needing to attend a week!These 3 behaviors are needed to embrace simplicity: Permission to be questioned, Say No, and Streamline decision making. 

    Thanks for listening! If you liked this episode, you will LOVE my masterclass on how to Achieve Success in Harmony. It is all about diving into what drives you and what behaviors you could add into your life to achieve more balance in your life. Check it out here!

    About Lisa

  • What does a “good” leader look like? What do you want from someone who is leading your organization? Times are changing, our environment is always in motion, our world is forcing us to think outside of the boxes we have created. As humans we create these boxes in order to give ourselves a sense of control and certainty, but the time has come to rethink the way we lead.

    Sonja Blignaut joins me today to dive into our complex world and talk about how we as leaders need to reframe what we think is leadership. Sonja provides a very realistic and human approach to complexity. She highlights 5 points to thriving in complexity as a leader. 

    Key Points from this Episode:

    Complexity is multiple aspects in a system that interact with each other in ways that are not linear. Each thing is changed when they interact with another thing and you are not able to predict the changes. It is a messy environment.We need to let go of what we think of as “Traditional Leadership” and what being a “good leader” looks like when we are faced with complexity. It won’t do us any good to be stuck in old expectations.Leaders need to normalize the idea that the world is uncertain and that will always be the case. One easy way to do this is to say “I don’t know.”Instead of drilling down to time-based goals(6 month or 5 year), it can be more helpful to focus on a direction than being very specific so that you can be flexible within complexity.Being fully present in complexity is key.All of us live and thrive in complexity every day, in social situations, in family events, even just in driving on roads. For some reason though, we decide that experience is not valid to bring into the workplace. Instead we walk into work and think everything is going to be ordered and we can control it. We need to let go of that.Here are 5 points for leaders to take to better deal with complexity:
    Be open to diversity. In addition to being open to different races, cultures, genders, it is important to have a diverse set of perspectives and ideas on your team and within your organization. Oftentimes it is easy for an organization to have employees who end up all thinking alike. We need to be aware of multiple perspectives so that we can catch our blind spots as well as diversifying the way we do things because the only constant is change and you cannot do the same thing the same way for too long.Be curious and cultivate it. Be open to being surprised. Over the past few decades we have become obsessed with being efficient and that has made us extremely task focused. There is no time to be curious in this efficiency world. Have the courage to be vulnerable. Acknowledge that situations are not always enjoyable and foster co-responsibility so that everyone can work on the problem together.Get closer to the front line....