Vanessa Druskat’s Post

When Vanessa Druskat, the award-winning behavioural scientist who pioneered the concept of "𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆" agreed to come on "Flip the Script", I was honoured and overjoyed. Like me, I'm sure many of you have had the experience of being part of teams that run like clockwork; and others that are the mother of dysfunction... Vanessa has dedicated her life's work to exploring the difference between the two, which, importantly, converts to mediocre vs high team performance. Now, as a team coach myself I'll be the first one to say there's a lot of literature on this topic. What Vanessa's research uniquely brings is the realisation that the real source of a team's success is not having a clear mission, sound processes or ample resources (although these are super important). 𝑰𝒕'𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 -- 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒔𝒐 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕. (That last bit stopped me in my tracks). 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒘𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒘𝒆'𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓. How we co-create the conditions so that we feel safe and stimulated to fully engage rather than hold back. How we bring emotions deliberately to the surface and understand their impact on the team's work. And how well we build relationships so we strengthen our ability to face challenges together. Some of the highlights from the podcast: 🔎 How 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔’ 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 - 𝒐𝒓 𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒐𝒇 - 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒅𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝒐𝒏 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 🔎 Why the people who play the biggest role in shaping the culture of a team i.e. the 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒕 🔎 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒃𝒂𝒅 𝒃𝒆𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎... 🔎...and why, 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒑, 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒔 𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔-𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 🔎 The 3 𝒃𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒆 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎’𝒔 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆: how we trust each other; how we improve together, with everyone's input; the extent to which we feel part of the team 🔎 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇-𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒎 I can't wait for you to listen and let me know what you think (link in comments)! And a big thank you to Vanessa Druskat for her sharp insights, inquisitiveness and generosity of spirit! #culture #team #emotionalintelligence

What if we are stuck in a toxic feedback loop? Ever wonder why some people seem to effortlessly ascend in their careers, excel in physical pursuits, and cultivate fulfilling relationships, while others struggle? Maybe the key is in a principle AI has highlighted, garbage in = garbage out. Have you ever asked yourself Why you want that thing you believe will make you happy? Whether it's career advancement, being good on your bike, health, financial security, or meaningful relationships, the real question we should be asking ourselves is WHY. The WHY is foundational. Often achieving these aspirations is feedback, they are not the end goal—they are the outcomes of deeper desires. Consider this: if you believe that excelling in a certain skill or achieving a specific milestone will eliminate negative feelings associated with failure or not meeting expectations, remember, there will always be more challenging objectives ahead. Like in mountain biking and other physical pursuits, there is always a harder challenge; a steeper hill, harder corner or bigger rock. So, why are these achievements important to you? Why is being at a certain point in your career, a specific weight, or financial status so critical? Identifying this WHY is your true objective. Achieving it unlocks the gems, and better still those gems become bonuses as you've now gotten what your heart truly desired. Identifying what life would look like if you achieved that WHY and stepping into that energy, can shift your perspective. Often, when we stop obsessively searching for that next big break or perfect partner, they serendipitously come into our lives. This principle applies universally. Imagine living as if you're exactly where you're meant to be right now. How would that change your feelings, actions, and reactions? Embody that state and watch the feedback transform. With warmth and encouragement, Tash •••••••••••••••••• I’m Natasha Lockey and I post about performance, mindset & lessons from my bike & other physical pursuits. 💥 I coach on increasing performance to build strength, confidence and reduce burnout, in business, life and on mountain bikes. 💥 I lead The BettyGoHard women's bike community (among other things). 💥 I co-host The Riding In The Weeds Podcast.

There are many thoughtful and insightful issues that Josh Bersin highlighted in his #podcast on #DEI, workplace civility, and the ROI of #AI (https://lnkd.in/gtCqnwYH). It is worth every bit of its nearly 26 minutes. I was particularly taken by the connection between DEI and civility at work. With the current controversy nearing boiling point over DEI, it is argued by some that the DEI concept has overreached so much as to alienate staff and customers. On the other hand, the lack of civility in the US workplace is strikingly strong. SHRM’s Civility Index seems to back up the anecdotal evidence that is available in abundance on the internet. Josh Bersin argues that equity is about treating people with fairness and that civility is about dealing with people in a respectful way. This seems to strike an excellent balance. As an Australian, this seems like plain, common sense. We have a very powerful cultural characteristic: egalitarianism. (Bosses are always called by their first name. And, if you don’t know someone’s name, you call them “mate.”) My American friends are surprised when they realize that, even from the perspective of very close cultural connections between Australia and America, our American cousins always seem to be at each other’s throats. It has been something I noticed from the early 1960s onwards when I started paying attention to the phenomenon. Focusing on the relationship between a manager and their staff, our company (MercurySays.com) has developed a sophisticated language analyzer that helps managers and staff to improve their performance in a supportive and respectful manner. After listening to Josh’s post, it is increasingly clear that our business model is a more gentle, Australian approach to the most important workplace relationship: how to help staff improve their performance in the specific area (like teamwork, initiative, and results focus) that their manager needs. #MercurySays #Performancemanagement #Futureofwork #DEI

Innovation is pivotal to business success. And individuality drives innovation. Yes, we need collaboration for operations and implementing on ideas but we need to encourage individuality to drive innovation. Great ideas are going to waste because people don't know how to self-advocate and be a cheerleader for themselves and their ideas. Neelu Kaur points out that this is very true in the tech sector, where many engineers feel overwhelmed in vast meetings and don't know how to share their great ideas. You need cheerleaders in order to have innovation. Check out the latest episode of Burnout Isn't Necessary if you want to listen to the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/et-zhN-c

Have you met Dr Anthony Simcoe? If not, tune in! In Episode 91, The Occupational Philosophers chat with Dr Anthony Simcoe, DCI. a multi-hyphenate, creative polymath - as comfortable on stage as he is in infrastructure projects in leadership, interpersonal and communication skills, and organisational culture. He is an Australian Actor and a graduate of the National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA) in Sydney. He has appeared in over 20 TV shows and films including everything from A Country Practice to The Inbetweeners Movie 2 and as Steve Kerrigan in The Castle (yep, that's right). He holds an MFA specialising in Actor Training, has taught for NIDA and has a doctorate in creative industries, organisational storytelling and knowledge management. Anthony has a global track record of success in assisting his partners to win work in the billions of dollars through his bid coaching services. He has also coached and facilitated top executives, leaders, and teams in various industries and sectors, helping them to improve their communication, influence, and leadership skills. (This is one curious cat) In this episode, we explore: 🍒 How AI is changing the creative industry right here, right now... 🍒 What can you accomplish at the limit of your talent? 🍒 What Anthony discovered through his Doctorate in Creative Industries 🍒 How storytelling accelerates learning and knowledge transfer 🍒 The art of leadership as demonstrated by Jodie Foster! 🍒 Why you can’t ‘out body language, shit content’ (What a hashtag) 🍒 What will help you be a leader who inspires your organisation... Hint.. build a bridge to your audience. And as ever, enjoy the Thought Experiments …this time it’s... 🎥 Film plot in 6 words or less Our aim with the show was always to chat with curious cats who have taken the path less travelled and this show is no exception. As always, a big thanks to my UK co-host/co-producer John Rice all the good stuff. You can listen wherever you listen to podcasts and links to Apple and Spotify are in the comments below #storytelling #AI #leadership #coaching #creativity #communication

When I was four, I had a dream - a literal fantasy - of riding a unicorn into the school playground. Stay with me. This wasn’t just about the unicorn… it was about being seen, celebrated and standing out – I love 4-year-old me. Fast forward a couple of years, and I was already shrinking to fit in - sound familiar?  But here I am, at forty, realising how much magic happens when we embrace our unicorn moments— being brave, bold and unapologetically standing out. SO, Megawatt Coaching is going back to the playground - so to speak - and working directly with employers to help comms teams achieve big things for 2025. How will I do this?  Calm Confidence in High-Stakes Moments: I use somatic tools, visualisations and mindset coaching to help teams find ease under pressure. Imagine bringing relaxed magnetism to the busiest of days and introducing a flow state to your most important meetings! Standing Out to Increase Influence: Too many of us dim our light. I’ll help your team rewrite those fears around visibility, so their brilliant work gets the recognition (and influence!) it deserves. Reigniting Motivation: The comms industry is evolving fast. I work with teams to align their personal “why” with their career, sparking fresh energy and commitment. This is me, standing tall on my metaphorical unicorn. I think 4-year-old Amy would approve. If your organisation could use some support with any of the above, direct your employer to my profile or website...

If we are leaders hoping to motivate our team to achieve certain outcomes, an ‘add more fuel’ mindset might tell us to offer them more rewards and perks, while a ‘reduce friction’ mindset says, “How can I make it easier for them to get there?” Here are 3 tips to reduce friction for your teams: 1// Get to know your team members as individuals to help uncover what friction they’re dealing with. 2// Give team members a chance to “add their egg” or contribute. People tend to care more about the work they’ve helped shape, which motivates them to do their best. 3// Address and reduce negative experiences. Negative experiences have a longer-lasting impact than positive ones. Encourage your team to talk to you about their negative experiences without attaching consequences. There’s a great Hidden Brain episode where organizational psychologist Loran Nordgren talks about this. We’ll link it in the comments!

The concept of Human Agency and are we really in control? Here at The Lab, we work with ambitious people seeking to design their work and life to reach their full potential. I would describe the majority of our clients as highly driven to make change and to achieve BIG visions. The theme that comes up again and again with our clients however is around 'ownership' and 'control'. In exploring the question of 'what's holding me back?', particularly in relation to business, career, performance and wellbeing, initial responses might sometimes include things like: 'the market', 'my qualifications and experience', 'my organisation', 'my leader', 'my financial obligations', 'my confidence', 'my time', 'my resources' and so forth. While at The Lab, we recognise that the current macro-economic environment IS making it extra hard for a lot of people, questions we might explore during coaching are: 🤔 Am I happy with my choices or could I make different decisions for different outcomes? 🤔 Am I making intentional choices or am I on 'autopilot', responding to only what is immediately in front of my nose? 🤔 What is actually in my control and strategically, what can I do differently to change things up? What other options and levers are available to me? 🤔 And most importantly, am I reacting and making choices based on emotional reactions or am I creating space to get perspective and make considered decisions that will provide me the best possible outcome for my one precious life? Cue here, are we flexing our emotional intelligence? It may be hard to hear, but we all ultimately have choices - many of which will inevitably result in trade-offs. While there is no absolutely right or wrong decision, creating the space to think through and experiment with different scenarios can really help to design the business, work and life you truly desire. 📅 For more information about how we can help at The Lab, DM me for your complementary coffee chat. #selfleadership #eq #emotionalintelligence #experimentation #designthinking #growthmindset #deisgnyourlife #agency #humanagency #empowerment #control #betheceoofyourcareer #performance #highperformance #fullpotential #performanceandpotential #strategicthinking

Deep breaths in, deep breaths out. That's how Yash Kothari, Founder of Kindred Minds, started a Zoom meeting yesterday. Kindred Minds aims to transform leadership through high-quality, personalized coaching at scale using AI. It was a refreshing reminder that we often jump from meeting to meeting, forgetting to check in with ourselves. Especially during #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, let's acknowledge: 🤐 We rarely consider what others might be going through before joining a call. ⏱️ It's easy to forget that taking a moment to connect can boost productivity. 🤯 Information overload means our minds are often cluttered as we move between meetings. ⏸️ A brief pause can refresh our focus and improve the quality of our interactions. 💙 Small changes in how we approach meetings can positively impact our well-being. Let's experiment with new approaches, even if they feel a bit awkward at first. Remember, growth happens outside our comfort zones. By showing up differently at work, we can make a real difference in our mental health and productivity. This shift can potentially reduce burnout, improve focus, and create long-term value for employees, customers, and shareholders. Kudos to Yash Kothari for recognizing the need to reshape how we think about meetings to make them more meaningful for everyone.

Today, in my commute, I listened to an interesting podcast on Freakonomics Radio. It was a panel discussion with people who had worked with Daniel Kahneman at some point in their careers. We all know how the Nobel Laureate contributed to the field of psychology and inspired a new branch of behavioral economics. In his landmark book - Thinking, Fast, and Slow, he explained the concept of the dual thinking mechanism and how our biases play a significant role in decision-making.  Tomorrow, I have planned a review meeting with a few business owners. Such synchronous communication helps us make quick decisions, brainstorm, and resolve immediate issues. Fast-thinking, as per Kahneman, involves quick, automatic reactions and decisions based on intuition and existing mental models. We spend much time in such meetings, chats, and phone calls.     Before the meeting, I had shared a presentation template with all of them. The template was for structuring their thinking and helping them focus on the gap between target and achievements. Often, focused work is possible only in asynchronous mode. Slow thinking involves deliberate, conscious thought processes that consider multiple perspectives, analyze data, and plan for the future. Synchronous and asynchronous thinking have their place in the decision-making process. The problem is to work on an optimal blend. I suggest the following: - Insist that every member of the team does focus work like planning, data collection & analysis, and preparing a draft before doing any synchronous meeting.   - Do not have any meeting without an agenda and a clear set of objectives. Use synchronous communication to brainstorm, resolve immediate concerns, and build teamwork.  Subodh