Our guest, Dr. Mary Lippitt is the author of 'Leadersheep: Saving the Herd' - A fable and framework for successfully executing change.

What can we learn from a dedicated sheepdog about successfully executing change in an era of complexity and uncertainty? Dr. Lippitt will discuss the five-component framework for executing complex change she developed from over 40 years of leadership experience.

Key Takeaways:

🔥 Why do so many change efforts still fail? Despite improvement, 50% of change initiatives fail due to a lack of focus on implementation beyond just setting a vision. Failed change is costly in terms of resources, credibility, and even organizational survival.

🚀 What's the secret to actually implementing change? Successful change requires a framework with five levers: vision, skills, incentives, resources, and action planning. Without attention to all these areas, even a clear vision will likely fail.

🎯 What's the biggest mistake leaders make with their vision? Leaders often articulate a vision that is vague and lacks specific actions. A true vision needs clarity and must translate into concrete steps; otherwise, it's just a "hallucination".

👂 How can you spot hidden resistance to change? Watch for quiet rooms followed by booming hallway conversations. This "covert" or "B team" passive resistance, where people don't voice concerns but don't engage, is more dangerous than overt objections.

🌱 Is change a constant now for organizations? Yes, in today's fast-paced environment, change is a constant, like "death and taxes". Even successful organizations must continuously adapt with new products, markets, or partnerships to avoid stagnation.

🧠 How do different perspectives hinder change? Individuals have different "situational mindsets" or priorities, leading to conflict over change initiatives. Recognizing these different perspectives (like innovation vs. structure) is crucial for finding common ground.

💡 Why can't organizations just copy what successful companies do? Replication of another company's strategy is rarely successful because each organization has a unique talent pool, resources, and context. Over-relying on single "fads" or solutions ("Brilliant or Blender") blindsides organizations to their own specific needs.

⏳ Why are older individuals sometimes more resistant to change? Older individuals often have more experience with the failure of change initiatives, leading to a sense of disenchantment and lower trust in new promises. A history of poorly managed or excessive change ("piling on") also contributes to this resistance.

🗣️ What crucial feedback do organizations often overlook? Actively seeking and truly listening to customer feedback is a key early indicator of potential problems and the need for change. Additionally, understanding and addressing employee concerns, even seemingly small ones, is vital.

🤝 Is disagreement within a team always bad? No, professional conflict and divergent thinking are valuable as different roles bring unique perspectives to problem-solving. The danger lies in "group think," where a lack of diverse viewpoints can lead to less effective decision-making.

***

To learn more about Dr. Lippitt, visit https://enterprisemgt.com

To learn more about Softec, visit: https://softec.org

Featuring author Harpreet Ghumman discussing her book, Living and Loving Unapologetically.

Our discussion explores themes of female leadership, overcoming biases in the corporate world, and the importance of self-awareness. Ghumman shares her personal journey and insights on empowering women to find their voice and lead authentically. Brian Schwartz and guests contribute their perspectives, touching upon concepts like alpha personalities, societal conditioning, and the role of self-validation. Ultimately, the conversation recognizes the book's universal appeal, extending beyond gender to encompass leadership and personal growth for all.

Learn more about Softec at Softec.org.

The creator and host of Tech Reads is Brian Schwartz. Learn more at SelfPublish.org.

Join us for a truly inspiring episode of TechReads as we welcome JC Chamberlain, author of "Antidote: A New Emotional Wellth™ Framework to Build Resilience," a groundbreaking new emotional wealth framework for building resilience. In this episode, JC shares his incredible personal journey, revealing how a life-altering bicycle accident, where he was hit by a car, led to the development of his unique framework. This framework helped him recover from paralysis, learn to walk again, and even get back on a bike. He also used the framework to cope with and recover from an aggressive form of prostate cancer.

JC's story is not just about overcoming physical challenges; it's about cultivating inner strength and resilience. He emphasizes the importance of a mindset that embraces challenges as opportunities for growth.

Here's a glimpse into what you'll discover in this episode:

The "Antidote" Framework: JC explains his emotional wealth framework, which includes seven key elements: health, learning, earning, giving, love, spirit, and dreams. He explains how these elements act as a network of resources to help people navigate life’s inevitable setbacks. He discusses how these elements were present in his life, even before he recognized them.

The Power of Resilience: Learn how JC's mother instilled in him the importance of resilience from a young age, teaching him to be "overprepared" for life's challenges. His mother taught him to "not worry, nothing is going to be okay," which helped him embrace the reality that life will not always go his way.

Turning Setbacks into Strengths: JC shares how his personal setbacks, including a severe bicycle accident and cancer diagnosis, led to the discovery of his emotional wealth framework. He emphasizes the importance of a positive balance in each of the seven emotional bank accounts.

The Importance of Dreams: JC shares how his mother stressed the importance of dreams as the foundation of his framework. She said, "Without your dreams and your aspiration, you have nothing,". She taught him that aspiration leads to inspiration and then to perspiration.

A Life Satisfaction Quiz: JC has developed a quiz to assess how you're doing in each of the seven areas of the emotional wealth framework. This quiz, which is in the shape of a wheel, is a tool for radical self-kindness and helps you see where you're doing well and where you have deficits.

The Innovation Cycle: JC discusses the innovation cycle in business that allows you to fail fast, find a new solution, test it out in the marketplace, and integrate elements of the new solution into a new product.

JC also shares his ongoing ambition to break the world record for the most distance cycled in one hour in his age group. He has ridden over 437,000 miles since 1970, with a third of those miles on velodromes.

This episode is packed with practical wisdom and inspiring stories that will leave you feeling empowered to build your own emotional wealth and face life's challenges with greater resilience.

Don't miss this opportunity to learn from JC's incredible journey. Listen to Episode 24 of TechReads now!

Visit antidotethebook.com to learn more about JC's work and to access additional resources. Visit Softec.org to learn more about TechReads and SelfPublish.org to learn more about Brian Schwartz.

Recorded LIVE at ACI Jet in San Luis Obispo, this episode of the Tech Reads podcast features Captain George Dom, a former Blue Angel pilot and author of the book High Trust Leadership: Building High Performance Teams.

The episode covers Dom's 26-year Navy career, his transition to the private sector, and his philosophy on leadership. Dom's impressive military background includes over 1,000 aircraft carrier landings (400 at night), and active combat duty in Libya, Iraq, and the Adriatic Sea serving as airwing commander to lead nine squadrons from the carriers Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy.

Dom has experienced firsthand the transformative power of training and preparation “You don’t rise to the occasion, you fall to your training”. The mantra 'Train Hard, Fight Easy' not only allows the US Military to retain its superiority, but is the key to improving productivity, agility, innovation, and resilience within teams and organizations.

Dom emphasizes that his experience in the Navy, especially as a Blue Angel pilot, taught him invaluable leadership lessons. He believes that the most important leadership skill is earning high levels of trust, which leads to increased productivity, agility, innovation, and resilience.

In High Trust Leadership, Dom identifies five key areas that leaders must focus on to earn the unconditional trust of their teams:

• Character: Walking the talk and living up to obligations and shared values
• Commitment: Being present and supportive during difficult times
• Competence: Continuously improving and demonstrating expertise
• Connection: Understanding team members' challenges and perspectives
• Communication: Transmitting messages clearly and ensuring they are understood

Dom shares specific examples and anecdotes from his time with the Blue Angels to illustrate these principles, including the importance of:

• Controlling emotions during high-pressure situations
• Debriefing after every flight to analyze performance and identify areas for improvement.
• Acknowledging the contributions of all team members, not just the pilots.

Dom also discusses his transition to the private sector, noting that the fundamental leadership principles remain the same despite differences in culture. He reflects on the importance of his father's influence, who instilled in him a philosophy of "service above self." This philosophy, combined with the discipline and teamwork he learned in the Navy, has guided Dom throughout his career.

This episode provides listeners with a unique perspective on leadership, drawing on the extraordinary experiences of a former Blue Angel pilot. Dom’s insights on building trust, fostering connection, and prioritizing service offer valuable lessons for leaders in any field.

Learn more about George Dom at https://hightrustleader.com

Learn more about Softec at https://softec.org

In this episode, Bill Canady, author of The 80/20 CEO, shares his expertise on turning businesses around in 100 days, drawing from his 30+ years of experience leading global companies and developing the profitable growth operating system.

My co-host was Bob Dumouchel who recommended Bill to me after he read (and enjoyed) Bill's book.

Learn more about softec at: https://softec.org

Learn more about Bill Canady at https://billcanady.com

Enjoy the latest episode of TechReads! Hear past episodes at:

https://rss.com/podcasts/techreads Learn more at: https://meetup.com/softec

The book we are discussing: https://amzn.to/4dMQdHf

Summary: This episode of Tech Reads brings together publishing professionals Thad McIlroy and Brian Schwartz for a lively discussion about the intersection of artificial intelligence and the ever-evolving landscape of book publishing. McIlroy, a prolific author and expert in both publishing and technology, shares his experiences writing and self-publishing a book about AI using the iterative platform Leanpub. This platform allows him to constantly update his book with new information and reader feedback, ensuring its relevance in a rapidly changing field. Schwartz raises concerns about the potential impact of AI on the overall quality of books, given the ease with which content can be generated. McIlroy acknowledges this concern, pointing to the emergence of "junk books" on platforms like Amazon. However, he argues that discerning readers and Amazon's review system, which he sees as a generally reliable indicator of quality, can help filter out poorly written books, whether AI-generated or not. Both agree that AI should be viewed as a powerful tool for authors, not a replacement for human creativity and expertise. McIlroy highlights the value of AI in generating ideas, assisting with research, and streamlining workflows, citing Perplexity as a particularly useful tool for research that, while not perfect, offers a starting point for authors. He emphasizes the importance of human oversight in evaluating and editing AI-generated content, as it is prone to inaccuracies and "hallucinations"— instances where the AI generates false or nonsensical information.

About Thad McIlroy (https://thefutureofpublishing.com): Thad McIlroy is a leading voice in the publishing industry, with decades of experience as a consultant, analyst, and author. His latest book, "The AI Revolution in Book Publishing," Thad provides an essential roadmap for writers and publishers navigating the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence.

About Brian Schwartz (https://selfpublish.org): Schwartz is the CEO of SelfPublish.org, a full-service concierge author services firm based in San Luis Obispo. He is the event director of the Central Coast Writers Conference and past president of the Colorado Independent Publishers Association. #techreads #ai #publishing #authors #artificialintelligence #bookpublishing

Does the idea of retirement seem like a far-fetched impossible dream? What if I could change your point of view? Early retirement isn’t exclusively for Dave Ramsey aficionados (who started saving in their 20s) or the independently wealthy few. Are you worried about your financial future? Confused by conflicting retirement advice?

If you're seeking a secure retirement, whether you're nearing retirement age, in your 40s, 50s, or aiming to join the FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) movement, Steve Selengut wrote a book that offers a comprehensive investing system developed over four decades. In Retirement Money Secrets, he provides step-by-step guidance on generating sufficient retirement income, enabling you to achieve your financial goals sooner and more safely, regardless of market conditions or your current stage in life.

Unlock the secrets to financial freedom with a 40+ year investment pro! Steve Selengut reveals how to generate more spending money than you need, quarter after quarter, year after year. Learn why market corrections and rising interest rates could actually boost your portfolio income.

Steve's approach is revolutionary. Imagine saying: "Neither a stock market correction nor rising interest rates will negatively impact my portfolio income. In fact, either condition will help me grow my income even faster." Whether you're planning for retirement, already retired, or an investment professional looking to better serve your clients, this interview is a must-listen. Steve will reveal strategies from his latest book, Retirement Money Secrets, and provide insights that could transform your financial future.

Connect with Steve at https://theincomecoach.net.

Connect with Softec at: https://softec.org

Connect with host Brian Schwartz at: https://selfpublish.org

Special Thanks to Doug Garland and Janet Martinez for joining us!

Wonder what it takes to succeed in real estate? Our special guest, Sonny Moyers has honed his masters degree in Psychology (Human Behavioral & Interpersonal Communications Theory) to design a real estate practice that incorporates psychological insights, communication strategies, and business acumen.

To excel in a crowded market, real estate agents should strive to be perceived as trusted advisors rather than traditional salespeople. Building genuine relationships with clients and focusing on addressing their needs is crucial. By prioritizing client satisfaction and providing exceptional service, agents can foster long-term relationships and generate referrals.

The Architecture of the Real Estate Practice: The Psychology & Art of the Real Estate Profession is a revolutionary guide for new agents, focusing on the overlooked art of building relationships and emotional intelligence to achieve lasting success in the industry. It's a journey that will challenge you to rethink everything you thought you knew about succeeding in real estate. From managing client relationships to building a thriving practice, Sonny Moyers covers it all with fresh ideas and practical solutions.

Join us as we delve into the secrets to becoming a true real estate professional. Whether you're just starting out or looking to take your career to the next level, this is an episode you can't afford to miss.

Special thanks to Softec for sponsoring this podcast and Office Hours for providing the venue.

Hosts: Brian Schwartz and Rosemary Russo

Guest: Sonny Moyers

Special thanks to Jennifer Foster.