Episodes

  • Thinkers50: Improving Work, Improving Mental Health (For Everyone)

    Thinkers50: Improving Work, Improving Mental Health (For Everyone)
    May 8 2024
    What are some of the most important management ideas out there in today’s world? Thinkers50 is an organization that aims to identify and share these important ideas day in and day out, and all month long host Morra Aarons-Mele is partnering with Thinkers50 and The Silicon Guild for a series of roundtable talks about mental health and work. In this episode, she speaks with Columbia Business School’s Rita McGrath, Copenhagen Business School’s Poornima Luthra, and entrepreneur Andrew Barnes, founder of the Four Day Week Movement, about rethinking how we work to improve mental health for everyone. Learn more about Rita: https://www.ritamcgrath.com/ Learn more about Poornima: https://www.talented.dk/ Learn more about Andrew: https://www.4dayweek.com/andrew-barnes Learn more about Thinkers50: https://thinkers50.com/
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    55 mins
  • When Anxiety Sneaks Up on You, Try Something Different

    When Anxiety Sneaks Up on You, Try Something Different
    May 1 2024
    Imagine you are having an anxious moment at work. Instead of letting yourself slip into old patterns of negative thoughts or self-criticisms, today’s guest says you can take a step back and try something new: maybe moving around, going out for lunch, drinking some water - but definitely not doom scrolling. Emma Seppala is a lecturer at Yale and author of the book Sovereign: Reclaim Your Freedom, Energy, and Power in a Time of Distraction, Uncertainty, and Chaos. In this episode, she explains behavior changes that can make a big difference in your career. Check out Emma’s book here: https://www.amazon.com/Sovereign-Reclaim-Freedom-Distraction-Uncertainty/dp/1401975062
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    32 mins
  • Are You And Your Employer In An Abusive Relationship?

    Are You And Your Employer In An Abusive Relationship?
    Apr 17 2024
    Burnout culture is everywhere - case in point, a lawsuit brought against Goldman Sachs earlier this year by a former employee claiming that the relentless workload required by the firm led to heart problems and depression. The firm’s response was of particular note to Sarah Green Carmichael, a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. In this LinkedIn Live, Sarah joins Morra as well as Cali Williams Yost, founder and CEO of Flex+Strategy Group, to discuss the interplay between company culture and individual experience and behavior, as it relates to our mental health. For further reading, check out Cali’s book: https://www.amazon.com/Work-Life-Cali-Williams-Yost-ebook/dp/B001R9DHXK?ref_=ast_author_dp And Sarah Green Carmichael’s columns: https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/authors/AUKfbdj7jH8/sarah-green-carmichael
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    39 mins
  • Mental Health Literacy Can Change Lives - and Careers

    Mental Health Literacy Can Change Lives - and Careers
    Apr 10 2024
    There was a time when everyone masked their mental and emotional struggles at work; or worse, didn’t even know that what they were experiencing might be anxiety, depression, or something similar. In this episode, host Morra Aarons-Mele first speaks with Kent Coules, co-publisher at Hawaii Business Magazine, about his long career in media, his path to sobriety, and what he learned about drinking and anxiety along the way. Then, she speaks with Donna Volpitta, co-founder of The Mental Health Literacy Collaborative, about how important it is for adults - and kids K-12 - to better understand mental health.
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    55 mins
  • Think Your Family Background Doesn’t Affect You At Work? Think Again

    Think Your Family Background Doesn’t Affect You At Work? Think Again
    Apr 3 2024
    Just as members of a family have different roles to play and different patterns of behavior they keep, so too can our family dynamics play out in the workplace. We bring with us to work our feelings about how we should assert ourselves, ask for help, deal with failure and more - all behaviors we learn in our family system growing up. Deborah Ancona, a Professor of Organization Studies, and the Founder of the MIT Leadership Center at the MIT Sloan School of Management, calls these behaviors “ghosts,”and they’re not all bad. Ancona shares her research and experience on how family systems affect us at work. Check out our previous episode on family systems theory: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5ZNknArKLeGB9JATPFZkJb Read Deborah's Artile: https://hbr.org/2022/01/family-ghosts-in-the-executive-suite
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    48 mins
  • Are You Harnessing Your Anxiety for Good?

    Are You Harnessing Your Anxiety for Good?
    Mar 27 2024
    Anxiety rarely feels good, so it might feel counterintuitive to think about it as a positive thing. But in this episode, we revisit a conversation with Wendy Suzuki, an NYU neuroscientist who studies neuroplasticity. Anxiety can bring benefits to performance and work, and we can reframe our relationship with this challenging but necessary emotion. Suzuki is the author of the book “Good Anxiety: Harnessing the Power of the Most Misunderstood Emotion.” Learn more about Wendy here: https://www.wendysuzuki.com/
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    45 mins
  • Trauma-Informed Leadership: Is it Right For You?

    Trauma-Informed Leadership: Is it Right For You?
    Mar 20 2024
    In the quest to be a more empathetic and effective leader or manager, the lens of trauma-informed leadership might be helpful for you. It’s the idea that all people have various forms of trauma that they carry with them to the workplace, and that leaders should approach situations at work accordingly. Matthew Cooke, partner at the coaching, consulting and investment firm Evolution, is a big proponent of this kind of thinking. He explains how a trauma-informed leader might view or act in situations differently, the skills and resources used for managing through tough moments, and how you can apply the concepts to your own work. Learn more about trauma-informed leadership: https://healthadministrationdegree.usc.edu/blog/trauma-informed-leadership https://accelerate.uofuhealth.utah.edu/leadership/five-ways-to-practice-trauma-informed-leadership https://www.fastcompany.com/90836621/we-need-trauma-informed-leadership-in-the-workplace https://evolution.team/matthew-cooke
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    53 mins
  • Accent Bias: How It Impacts You and Your Work

    Accent Bias: How It Impacts You and Your Work
    Mar 13 2024
    Heather Hansen challenges the notion of "good" and "bad" English. Good communication is about getting the message across. She’s based in Singapore and helps executives with their linguistic and communication skills. Hansen is helping us tackle a real problem in our increasingly globalized work world: accent bias. Hansen is on a mission to help increase awareness about our assumptions of what “perfect” English sounds like-- and what we think a good leader sounds like. She explains the negative impacts that accent bias can have, and how we can fight it. To learn more about Heather, check out her TedTalk: https://www.ted.com/talks/heather_hansen_2_billion_voices_how_to_speak_bad_english_perfectly
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    42 mins