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This is the first conversation that I had with Dr Richard Hodge, and it's the fourth podcast that I've published.

That's because after we talked, Richard sent me an email basically saying, "Hey, we covered some pretty advanced stuff, but I think we need to really break it down for folks."

So the last three conversations with Richard have been reverse engineering our way to this conversation, the culmination (so far).

This is the conversation about how to make a difference in the world.

How to use systems thinking, how to approach problems and issues holistically.

How to listen to up-until-now marginalized voices and community.

And how to still be how to be a small, insignificant human beings and still look at the world and know that there's "no problem too big."

I hope you enjoy our conversation, and that you're inspired to lend your mind, spirit, and shoulder to the wheel of Better.

Links

DrRichardHodge.com

Rory Sutherland's TED Talk

The Memory Code: Unlocking the Secrets of the Lives of the Ancients and the Power of the Human Mind, by Kelly Lynne

Unlocking the Emotional Brain, 2nd Edition, by Bruce Ecker, Robin Ticic, and Laurel Hulley

Right Story, Wrong Story, by Tyson Yunkaporta

Antifragile, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Awakening from the Meaning Crisis (Video series by John Vervaeke on the Four Ways of Knowing)

The Greatest Night in Pop (Netflix documentary on the making of "We Are the World" in 1985)

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You don't hear the word joy thrown around a lot in business. And that's why I'm delighted to share this conversation with you with business psychologist Simi Rayat.

Simi is the author of the upcoming book Productivity Joy.

And her thing is, are you a joy to be around at work, at home, on the streets?

It's such a great question.

It reminds me of my friend Howard Prager's trademark question: “How can I make someone's day?”

They’re both a sort of mantra that allows you to orient your whole life towards a really beautiful goal. And for Simi, it's about being a source of joy for others; being someone that other people actually want to be around.

And if you think about it — what a powerful focus for the workplace, for our volunteer organizations, for our families, for anywhere that we want to have a positive changeThere’s so much wrong with the world and there's so much to be angry about and there's so much to be sad about.

And if we want to mobilize people to action, to make a difference, to make a change, we can't just run on the fuel of negativity.

We also need joy.

And the harder it is to generate that joy, the more it's needed.

So I'm really excited to share this conversation. It's chock full of science. It's chock full of joy. And I hope it helps you bring about the world that you want to see.

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In this conversation, the brilliant Dr. Richard Hodge (aren't you glad you live in a universe that includes him?) introduces the four quadrant model as a way of clarifying and codifying our approach to complex problems.

Before we get into it, I wanna say: This is high-level stuff.

It's meaty (ok, seitan-y) and will take a while for most folks to digest. (I'm still working on it after being introduced to Richard's work over 3 months ago.)

And it's the real deal — a ninja path to high level impact at scale in a TUNA world.

(TUNA, which we learn about in this episode, stands for Turbulent, Uncertain, Novel, and Ambiguous. Richard likes it better than VUCA, and now I do too.)

The four quadrants are:

• WHY (drives meaning)
• HOW (drives connection)
• WHAT (what we're going to do)
• IF (impact if implemented)

The beauty is, we can apply this process to both large-scale organizational problems and personal challenges.

The process is question-based.

First, we ask why to uncover meaning and values.

Then we explore how to build connections between people, nodes of the system, and outside forces.

We inquire into what we're going to do, diving into the oft-overlooked details of strategy, operations, and governance. (Yes, this is complex, but you can apply it to your personal goals and challenges, like improving your diet or starting a journaling habit or upgrading how you communicate with work colleagues and loved ones.)

Then we look at the projected consequences and outcomes, and ask if they match our initial goals and values.

We go deep here, covering concepts like identity and policy framework. And I realize this isn't your usual podcast-while-taking-a-walk episode.

In fact, I highly recommend you set aside time and space to watch the video — there's a lot of valuable white-boarding, which will make the whole thing way more understandable.

And I don't want the complexity to obscure the big idea here: that every person has a role to play in making the world a better place. By understanding their place in the larger system, they have exponentially more power to contribute to positive change.

Links

DrRichardHodge.com

Sir Ken Robinson's TED Talk: "Do Schools Kill Creativity?"

Man's Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl

Walking Well, by Michael Gelb and Bruce Fertman

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