In this week’s solosode, we address three big questions: What stops us from bringing our full selves to life and being more creative? How much is enough? And what kind of world are we facing? There are social conditions and leadership mindsets that hamper us that we can address. I share big ideas for everyday leadership.
Read MoreZoë Routh Leadership Podcast
Podcasts
279 Stop inequity by changing the systems with Olanike Ayomide-Mensah
Olanike Ayomide-Mensah is the founder of Mosaic Consulting which works with organisations to achieve greater workplace equity through diversity and inclusion strategies that nurture a true mosaic of talent. Having grown up between Nigeria and America, and now living in Ghana, West Africa, Olanike has lived and worked at the intersection of difference herself and experienced first hand how power drives the human impulse to fear what is different or unknown. Her heightened awareness of unfairness means she was often the first person to start the conversation around equity and formulated an approach to DEI that starts by looking at how workplace systems are contributing to inequity. In this episode she shares what organisations and leaders can do to create more equity - from recruitment to belonging and career development.
Read More278 Nina Simons shares a leadership mindset that challenges the system
What do you care about most deeply? That’s a question Nina Simons has asked and answered of herself and the leaders and organisations she works with. A passionate believer in the interconnectedness of life, Nina’s background spans art, nature and science with a whole of system approach to leadership thinking. Motivated by protecting the future of the planet, Nina is an advocate for self-responsibility and respecting the experiences and perspectives of others to forge greater understanding. She explains how we can do this on an individual, team, organisation and societal level and it starts with being willing to listen and learn, while taking a not-too-critical look in the mirror. If we are the system, then we can change the system.
Read More277 Mykel Dixon: lead fully self-expressed
Mykel Dixon is a creative catalyst - bringing his energy and insights to people and organisations who are trying to escape the quagmire of the quotidien! His award-winning book Everyday Creative is a call to arms for anyone who wants to bring creativity back to how they live and work. If this sounds like a tall order, it is. Mykel is on a mission to get leaders to recognise the rules and constraints that no longer serve them and to move beyond them, one barefoot step on the grass at a time. If this all sounds a bit too woo-woo, Mykel succinctly connects the dots between nature, science and leadership practices to remind us that the wisdom we are seeking to make the next move is all around us.
Read More276 Is controlled freedom possible?
How much autonomy is enough? How can we encourage teams to be independent without losing control of quality and outcomes? These are the tensions leaders need to manage. As we wrap up our season on holacracy and reducing hierarchy, what are some leadership tips to build more autonomous teams without losing control of the ship?
Read More275 Power and Politics: Leaders beware!
How much power is too much? How do we share power? How do we ensure power is not seized? These are the leadership questions that came up when news broke about the former Prime Minister’s secret ministries. There are important tips for all leaders about how we wield power. Beware!
Read More274 Leadership tips for great culture with author Mick Spiers
Mick Spiers is the founder of The Leadership Project and the author of You’re a Leader: Now What? where Mick brings to fruition his passion for modern leadership that is a match for our fast-paced world. From a first career in aerospace defence where he learnt the good, the bad and the ugly of leadership and culture, Mick moved into urban mobility and had a life changing epiphany: it didn’t matter how stress free the commute was if most people were spending most of their time in jobs they didn’t love for leaders they didn’t believe in. How had we got it so wrong and how could we do it better? These were questions Mick sought to answer with his research, writing, coaching and training in human-centred leadership. In this episode Mick shares the experiences that have contributed to his leadership philosophy and offers strategies for flipping our traditional notions of organisational design on its head.
Read More273 Empathy is the master leadership skill with work futurist Sophie Wade
Empathy is the master leadership skill. Throughout her career, Sophie Wade has been confronted with cultural norms, beliefs and behaviours that have literally caused her to stop and think. From rigid European workdays to Asian social habits and the American can-do spirit, she became an expert assimilator and realised that empathy was the key to unlocking understanding of all these different ways of working and living. Sophie now uses that empathy-based approach to help organisations evolve their leadership and workforces to be fit and flexible for the future. In this episode Sophie shares why empathy is vital in multi-generational teams and how curiosity can help with navigating complexity.
Read More272 Author Luke Mathers' habit-challenging leadership perspectives
Great leadership and great lives come down to habits. Tapping out at the top of his profession aged just 31 should have seen Luke Mathers sitting back and enjoying his success. Instead he quickly realised that without the structures of work he was questioning his self-worth and coming up wanting. Identifying self-destructive habits and a negative internal narrator (we’ve all got one!) led Luke down a new path exploring how and why humans approach change from a place of negativity and self-criticism, backed up with habits that simply do not serve us. He works with leaders and teams to help them get curious about their habits and make lasting changes with reframing, self-compassion and small but effective steps. In this episode Luke explains why we are all a work in progress - and that’s OK.
Read More271 Fear and conflict: leadership insights on the Larapinta Trail
I went to the desert for a pilgrimage. My intention was to reflect, and to evaluate who I am at this point in time as a leader, and as a human. I got more than I bargained for! More hills, rocks, and amazing views than I anticipated. And sore feet. What surprised me most were the leadership insights: on fear, conflict, status, and purpose.
Read More270 Radical leadership principles for being a force for good from author John Davis
John Davis is a prolific author and speaker, an entrepreneur and founder with global experience. One thing he is not is jaded, instead he’s passionate and positive about the ability of organisations and teams to have positive impacts on their communities, customers and employees. He helps organisations play a bigger game while also making a bigger contribution. In this episode he shares his leadership principles and priorities for doing this sustainably. John believes in good companies that support good citizens and this is how we can address some of society’s most pressing challenges.
Read More269 Leadership principles for a heartful business from author Eudora Pascall
Coach, facilitator, author and, as we discover in this episode, Quaker, Eudora Pascall is all about bringing the heart back to business. ‘Back’ because she believes we used to have it, especially in Quaker-led businesses that thrive on equality, with no hierarchy in their organisational structures. Eudora shares fascinating insights into the Quaker decision-making process and talks about the importance of structure to create space, how safety influences performance, perfection is not the goal and why it’s OK to bring love into the business conversation.
Read More268 Roy Osing’s leadership rules for being audaciously different!
Entrepreneur, author and former CMO Roy Osing dares to be different - in fact, he insists on it and helps his clients to do the same! Roy is a one of a kind leadership thinker with little patience for those who practice performative creativity instead of getting their hands dirty with the real thing. He has grown a start-up to billion dollar sales and authored seven books in his ‘Be Different or Be Dead’ series. Roy shares his contrary leadership philosophies from falling in love with micromanaging to his human-centric hiring process.
Read More267 Jade Lee’s leadership strategies for connected teams
From Brisbane to Nepal via London, Vietnam and Cambodia, Jade Lee approached her mid-career disillusionment from a very adventurous angle! With a career in HR under her belt, Jade was finely attuned to team building and engagement but what she experienced on her trek to Everest Base Camp gave her a fresh perspective. From the Sherpa’s servant leadership to building trust and connection at speed, it was a life-changing endeavor in many ways. Jade now draws on these experiences to help organisations improve team connection and engagement - it’s less perilous than Everest but the people stuff delivers plenty of challenges for this intrepid explorer.
Read More266 General Manager Laura Cunningham talks secrets of leadership success
The more you tell Laura Cunningham she won’t be able to do something, the more determined she is to prove you wrong! Working her way up the leadership ladder in industries that traditionally haven’t been seen as a viable option for working mums, Laura is now GM and one-third of the ownership team of Canberra-based CentreRED IT. She leads from the heart, with a passion for people that is evident in her relationships with colleagues, customers and communities. A true Amplifier, Laura gets her kicks from seeing those around her succeed at work and in life and in this episode she shares her career journey and what she's learned along the way.
Read More265 Making sense of technology - a leadership perspective from Dr. Rick Chromey
Author, cultural historian, leadership professor and educator Dr Rick Chromey has a fresh take on the impact of technology on society and culture. Eschewing traditional generational cohorts, Rick applies a behavioural lens to understand how shifts in technology play out in the people stuff. He connects our history with our potential future to predict where technology can take us and why. At the heart of Rick’s work is connection and he shares his GROWLS acronym for the deep human needs he believes every leader should be aware of.
Read More264 A leadership framework for cultures that deliver with Gerald Leonard
As a conservatory trained bassist and widely certified productivity and culture consultant, Gerald Leonard leverages the synergies of music and business to help teams deliver outstanding performances. Replicating the flow and connection of a jazz ensemble in a sprawling project team doesn’t faze Gerald, who thrives on organising chaos. Whether it’s getting the band together or satisfying the boardroom, it’s all a beautiful process that results in sweet music!
Read More263 First look and listen of The Olympus Project
With climate change wreaking havoc, new industries emerge to handle the challenges. “World design” is a burgeoning sector to take on creating human habitats for hotter temperatures and smaller arable, habitable landscapes. And then there is the push to build the first Moon base, the Olympus Project. This is the imagined future of Zoë Routh’s first novel The Olympus Project. Get an early listen to the overview and first chapter, along with an introduction to the theme for this quarter on the podcast: Holacracy, self-organising organisations.
Read More262 Hot tips for hybrid team success
The new world of work means some sort of blend of work from anywhere and co-location. Certainly flexibility is the biggest demand employees are making right now. So how to do it well? In this wrap up of the quarter’s theme on ‘Hybrid Team Success’ we offer five key principles for doing it better.
Read More261 Leadership principles for a digital detox with Daniel Sih
Strong leadership skills include good digital health. Daniel Sih is a physiotherapist turned productivity consultant and award-winning author. Daniel is all about cultivating smart digital habits that create space for thinking and resting, ultimately enabling us to be more present and more productive. In this episode he shares his own rituals for unplugging, why prioritising rest is key to productivity and how to rekindle face-to-face connection (just add food!).
Read More