Love in Action

Culture of Shared Leadership “The reason so many managers fail is often attributed to the idea that if they share their leadership with others they will lose their power or authority” [1:33] Shared leadership is an impactful way to develop shared trust but leaders are often held back by a fear of failure or weak perception, and as Robb and Marcel say, that can be scary. When you’re focused on a top-down leadership structure, you’re going to get low performance from your worker bees, who are not empowered to grow and shine. To create this shared leadership culture, leaders need to release that fear and believe in their people. What do you have to learn? “Look at your team, as small or as large as they may be, and spend time in reflection looking at the strengths of each team member.”[6:20]  Robb encourages leaders to look at every meeting with the lens of not what you have to give but instead what you have to learn. When leaders realize the powerful skill sets and gifts they have, they will be surprised and encouraged. Remember this is why you hired these people because they have talents and skills that can serve you, you just need to submit and speak encouragement into them. The Mailbag Samantha from El Paso wrote in, “I am about to get promoted to manager. I’ve been an individual contributor for the last 5 years. Now I find myself having to manage the people I used to work with, my peers and former co-workers. Any advice?” [12:55] Robb shares an example from the start of his professional basketball career, and relates to Samantha in how entering new moments can come with feelings of hesitancy, and anxiety. He encourages her to enter with ease and be ready to serve those around her. Marcel encourages her that she deserves this job because obviously, her superiors have seen something in her. He reminds her and any new leader to come in confident and with initiative. Take the first meeting to set expectations, things will change and your team needs to know what that will look like but additionally, as a leader you’re there to support them, let them know you’re here to look after them, and build them up as well.  Humble Leaders Continuing in his series of providing a sneak peek of his book manuscript, Marcel has been sharing the  7 practical principles of love in action. The focus of today: Humility. “Humble leaders achieve greatness without arrogance, they shift from ego to humility which can drastically alter your advantage.” [26:23] So what are three ways humble leaders get this done? They Give Others Credit They Speak Their Truth They Are Teachable Mentioned in this episode: Robb Holman Marcel Schwantes | Professional Profile | LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!

Christina Maslach is the foremost expert and pioneer of research on job burnout. She is an American Social Psychology and professor emerita at UC-Berkeley, she also is the creator of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Christina joins host Marcel Schwantes to discuss the book, The Burnout Challenge, which she co-authored. She provides a working definition for workplace burnout, which plays a big part in the 3 dimensions of the 6 job mismatches. As she explains these mismatches she also encourages ways to pivot from these chronic stressors, and help leaders become engaged.   The Burnout Challenge As Marcel Schwantez and Christina Maslach dive into their discussion, The Burnout Challenge they talk about the real target of the book, “The way human beings function, depends on a relationship between the person and their environment.”[6:52] Christina comments on how too often people focus on just one part of that relationship, the person but what about the role the environment plays? How do we improve the relationship between the job and the people working? She then lays the groundwork for their discussion with a definition for Burnout in the workplace, a response to chronic job stressors that haven't been well managed. In this case, chronic is a very important word because these stressors become too frequent to cope with on a normal basis. Job Mismatches Christina overviews the 6 mismatches at work that lead to burnout: work overload, lack of control, insufficient reward, breakdown of community, absence of fairness,  and conflicting values. “These are the chronic job stressors, that are there all the time, that are annoying, that are hurtful, that get in the way, that are obstacles…that if you just didn't have them, you could get your job done and feel good about it.”[23:57] These are as she refers to as pebbles in the shoe, small but not trivial things that have a large impact on your ability to do your job. The Three C’s Collaborate, Customize, and Commit are the “Three C’s” Christina shares that leaders of organizations and their teams need to work on to move past and pivot away from the mismatches. She emphasizes the need to make it a we, not an I, and focus on bringing everyone to the table to come to a solution that does not have to be perfect, but can be better. Too often leaders and higher-ups are adding and adding more to their teams' plates but Christina says we need to rethink, redesign, and come up with something different but doable. “You have to do subtraction if you’re going to do addition in order to keep a relatively good balance between people and the job” [42:06] Be an Engaged Leader “People are capable of really good things…we ought to be able to figure out how to help more of that happen on a regular basis” [52:18] Christina makes an analogy about a beautiful flower plant on her deck, she could have paid a lot of money for it but that means nothing if she puts it in a broken pot, with bad soil, and gives it no water or sunlight…those are not the conditions for it to thrive. The same goes for leaders and their employees, they have to work to provide them with conditions that will help them thrive which is a major part of their role. She encourages leaders to be engaged, walk the floor, get to know their people and their needs so that they can be a part of the collaborative voice to help make things better. Mentioned in this episode: The Burnout Challenge maslach@berkeley.edu Christina Maslach | UC Psych Marcel Schwantes on LinkedIn Send Marcel a text message!

  A Team Who Believes “Do we have a vision that is anchored in purpose and is somewhat tangible, that is larger than any member of the team and the team in its entirety”? [7:39]  Inspired by the recent NFL tragedy and ongoing medical recovery of Damar Hamlin, Rob and Marcel draw a comparison to the feeling of believing in something larger. As players, coaches, and spectators banded together to pray to someone higher regardless of religious beliefs, it speaks to the fact that leaders have the power and the obligation to create this feeling of belief within their teams and the positive impact it will have. Believing in Potential “The essence of leadership is being able to care for one another, develop their skills, meet their needs…but what if you added an extension to that and began to see the potential in each person.” [10:32] Marcel extends this idea of belief in something greater than yourself, as a belief in the potential of those surrounding you. He calls it a mindset of trust, and an extension of trust and faith as a gift! Mail Bag In this co-host segment, Marcel and Rob answer a question that has been sent in by a listener. John asked in relation to a new leadership position, how can he connect in the first week. “Spend that first week asking more questions than trying to give answers”[14:55], Rob drives home the point that even though as a leader has a lot to offer, they should take it easy and remain the ‘student’. Marcel goes further with some advice for specific questions to ask: What are your strengths? What are your interests? How can I help support you and set you up for success? If you want to send in your questions, you can visit Marcel’s website for the information! A Culture of Kindness “A study by the University of California at CocaCola’s Madrid site, researchers there found that workers who were the receivers of kindness reported  experiencing 10 times more prosocial behaviors than the control group...examples of prosocial behaviors include activities such as empathy, altruism, sharing, cooperation, self-sacrifice, and helpfulness​.” [23:11] Marcel quotes this study and explains how great it is to receive kindness, but that the givers of kindness have an even more durable effect, including great life and job satisfaction. Cyclical Kindness “Kindness, when you encourage it as a corporate value and norm, it creates virtuous cycles within teams benefiting recipients and givers alike, but especially the organization as a whole.” [24:58] When one random act of kindness is initiated in an organization it creates a cycle that continuously benefits the team and even the company. This is a reference from the manuscript of Marcel’s book in the works! Mentioned in this episode: Robb Holman Marcel Schwantes on LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!

“Patience can be one of the hardest traits to master personally and professionally because of the intense pressure put on leaders to generate quick and effective results.” [00:55] Marcel introduces one of the important traits of a leader who leads with love, a focal point of what he has planned for his book in the works. How often are you slowing down to work through a problem or get to a decison? Marcel comments on this common problem that is truly a lack of patience. “Faster isn't always better. When times get stressful, it can be easy to rush through things, like decision-making. Making quick decisions may remove the problem short-term, but has the potential to create an even bigger issue down the road.” [1:29] It’s not all talk, Marcel has research and science to back up the power of patience. “In one 2012 study published in the Journal of Positive Psychology, researchers found that patient people made more progress toward their goals and were more satisfied when they achieved them, especially if those goals were difficult, compared with less patient people.” [2:56]   What does a patient leader look like? like? What type of qualities do they have? Marcel explains what it means to be a patient leader and the clear edge they get from that patience. “People who exercise patience, plain and simple, have self-control....their conduct is steady, rational, and manageable. In conflict situations, they seek to understand first before being understood; they listen more than they speak, giving them a clear edge in communicating and diffusing someone else's anger.” [3:20] Mentioned in this episode: An examination of patience and well-being Four Reasons to Cultivate Patience Marcel Schwantes | Professional Profile | LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!

Marcel discusses with guest and author of You're the Leader, Now What?, Dr. Richard Winters, how leaders need to invite the discovery of other perspectives.   Overplaying Expertise In chapter 1 of his book, You're the Leader, Now What?, Dr. Richard Winters calls out leaders as having a decision-making flaw, we overplay our expertise and at times wrongly let that guide our actions. Dr. Winters shares stories from his personal and professional life that lean into solving this blind spot. "Look for these moments where we're uncomfortable, those moments where we feel others are being mean to us are oftentimes the moments where maybe we're not being the best way we can to them." [16:00] The Need to Be Right Who doesn't like to be right? Dr. Winters nails it with this description, "I like to feel like I'm adding something to the world, and I like to have a sense that my expertise matters, my experience matters." [17:28] In chapter 3 of Dr. Winters' book he talks about getting off the dancefloor and stepping up to the balcony. He explains this metaphor as removing yourself from your reflexive 'in the moment' input and rising above to the balcony where you can see other perspectives and understand more than you might right away. Not only can leaders step up to the balcony but they can bring others up to see a wider perspective. Burnout and Wellbeing "I think it's important to think things from multiple levels as opposed to just us or just the boss."[26:48] When it comes to burnout, Dr. Winters explains that it comes down to three levels. Organizational, in which you look at the organization you're working with... do they respect you and your time? Interpersonal, in which you look at how you interact with each other, do you have a voice and positive relationships? And lastly, which most people tend to start with…Individual, in which you look at how you're taking care of your personal well-being. He also shares the acronym from Carol Riff's Psychological Well-being research...PAGERS. Purpose - A sense that the organization is aligned with our purpose, values, and mission. Autonomy - A sense that what we say is being heard. Growth - A sense that we're in a place to get better. Environmental Mastery - A sense that we have the resources we need. Relationships - A sense that our relationships are overall positive. Self-acceptance - A sense of acceptance of our decisions, forgiving poor decisions. Engagement In chapter 5, Dr. Winters lists key drivers of engagement for leadership: Develop, recognize, inform, value, engage, respect, and supervise. He shares a statistic that shows just how much these drivers matter in which for every one-point change, the burnout rate went down 9% "Just some small incremental change in the ability to engage with someone from a personal growth perspective or to help them feel safe about having conversations… Just one incremental point of change can have a huge effect on individuals and organizations." [32:17] Fears and Worries Addressing fears and worries is an important part of decision-making. "If you're not listening to the fears and worries while you are trying to figure out the solution to the problem, your strategy is going to be shot." [35:17] One great thing about fears and worries, Dr. Winters explains they can be the motivation and energy to cause everyone to come together to work toward the right solution. Many times this can be a fear of vulnerability, but leaders can invoke the strategies of engagement to bring people together and bring the fears and worries to light for the benefit of the organization. Mentioned in this episode: Send Marcel a text message!

Marcel Schwantes and guest, Heather Hanson Wickman, are aligned on their messages of how practical love works to serve people well and help organizations to thrive and profit. They expand on the principles of “love in action” through the guest’s compelling 2018 book, The Evolved Executive, whose sub-title inspired the creation of the Love in Action podcast.   Show-Notes: Optimism Vs. Pessimism; Is there room for both? So often leaders and individuals feel the only way to present feelings is in the form of optimism. But are they honoring their real, true feelings? Cohost Robb Holman, references the Harvard Health article, An Outlook Better Than Optimism?, and discusses the importance of being aware of your feelings and mindset especially when grief or pessimistic associated feelings are necessary. “We need to acknowledge and embrace how we really feel and in the midst of that there is beauty, there’s intimacy, power.” [5:18] Suffering Heather shares the very real and painful elements of her own suffering, and the point in which the tension became too much, something had to give. Marcel points out that many people believe since the pandemic suffering has decreased with an increased level of equity and awareness. And while the work landscape has changed and shifted, Heather believes the suffering has not decreased but rather changed and presented in different ways. “Care, Candor, Connection, and Change…I don’t think these have really shifted based on the pandemic, if anything when we think about connection maybe we’re even at a place that’s worse.” [28:18] The Evolved Executive The title of Heather Hanson Wickman’s book is The Evolved Executive but who is the Evolved Executive? “An Evolved Executive is the individual that really draws into the idea of servant leadership, that we are here are as stewards of the people that are working for us and the organization that we’re a part of” [30:00] Heather defines this person with this scientific definition but also an as she says “artistic definition”, in which there is the idea where the individual as a deep drive to continue to look inward and constantly change and be better. Operating from love NOT fear “Fear is really allusive in terms of the ways in which it shows up at work… the hoarding of information, the secrecy, the gossip… those are the things that get in the way of us stepping into the space of love”[32:04] Heather’s top signs of fear in the workplace are Gossip, Secrecy, Not Speaking the Truth, and ‘Yes Boss’. Most of the time people aren't even aware they are doing these things, these are just the way they’ve been taught. Moving to a space of love starts with a place of deep self-awareness as a leader in how you are creating or allowing fear in the workplace. Deeper Level of Consciousness Deeper Consciousness, it’s not metaphysical mumbo-jumbo. Heather explains that as someone (like an ‘Evolved Executive’) who is evolving, raising their awareness, and constantly looking at how they are serving others will naturally expand into their consciousness.“We are all mirroring and magnifying different parts of who we are…as we raise our awareness we begin to see differently.” [44:31] Mentioned in this episode: Robb Holman An outlook better than optimism? - Harvard Health Untethered Heather Hanson Wickman on LinkedIn hello@beuntethered.com  Send Marcel a text message!

Alex Budak is a social entrepreneur and professor at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business. He teaches, speaks, consults, and advises organizations around the world, with the mission of helping people from all walks of life, become changemakers. He’s a graduate of Georgetown University and UCLA and received UCLA’s recent graduate of the year award. He loves spending time with his two favorite changemakers: his wife, Rebecca, and their baby son. Alex teaches one of the most popular courses at Berkeley, the namesake of his book, “Becoming a Changemaker.” Together Marcel and Alex discuss the 3 parts of becoming a changemaker: Mindset, Leadership, and Action with interesting anecdotes from his class and student experiences! Humility “We’re all attracted to confidence in great leaders…but yet if you take one wrong turn it becomes overconfidence and then people look at you as arrogant.” [4:08] Co-host Robb Holman and Marcel discuss the perfect paradox in leadership which is humility and confidence. Humility is often seen as a weakness yet it instead has immense power for gaining trust and respect. Humble leaders put their egos to the side, spotlight their employees, and give credit where credit is due. Changemaker Mindset Marcel and Alex discuss the mindsets involved in becoming a changemaker, including the importance of failure. How can failing actually be a good thing? Alex shares about an incredible teaching opportunity where he requires his students to go out and fail on purpose and all of the shifts and mindset changes that occur when they do this. “The data shows that those who succeed the most, also fail the most. Sometimes it's not about one stroke of genius but rather having that willingness to keep going again, and again, and again.” [54:37] Changemaker Leadership When Alex works through leadership with his class, he has his students list all of the traits of the bad leaders they’ve encountered. How do you change these traits? Reinvent leadership, led as a changemaker. Stop waiting for permission to lead, start asking the right questions, and see leadership in its simplest form, leadership moments. “I think we so often look at these courageous, heroic leaders and we say if that’s what leadership is and I am not naturally as charismatic as this…does that mean I can’t be a leader? I think absolutely not..there is an opportunity for us to shift from thinking of leadership as a title to leadership as an act.” [1:02:08] Changemaker Action “The sum of your mindset and your leadership, multiplied by your action…that’s how you have impact as a changemaker….It doesn’t take a math Ph.D. to know that if you multiply a number by 0 the result is 0….Even if you have that mindset, even if you have that leadership, if you just sit on it and never do anything with it, you will never have any impact as a changemaker. Impact is driven by action.”[1:04:06] Alex explains how changemakers should see themselves as scientists, constantly learning from unplanned outcomes and failures, running tests and experiments, and keep moving forward. Mentioned in this episode: Alex Budak - Helping People Become Changemakers Becoming a Changemaker Alex Budak on LinkedIn Robb Holman Marcel Schwantes on LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!

David Achata is the author of Embrace What You Don’t Know, as well as a coach, trainer, facilitator, and speaker. Living in the mountains of Tennessee with his wife and two children, he brings over 20 years of leadership experience. Marcel and David dive into his book and the idea of asking the right questions instead of having the right answers. David gets real about toxic shame, how to combat it, and the impact of leadership orientation. Stewardship Robb Holman and Marcel break the ice with today’s co-host segment on stewardship. Being a good steward of your organization is important to leaders but too often personal stewardship is neglected. A good caring heart can cause leaders to become stretched too thin. Robb and Marcel discuss setting boundaries, getting focused, and embracing your unique identity to not only impact personal stewardship but stewardship across all of your leadership. “When we understand and embrace being the best version of ourselves, this has everything to do with stewardship.” [4:00] Embracing What You Don't know Marcel quotes guest David Achata, “What sets leaders apart is not having the right answers, it’s learning to ask all the right questions.”[21:55] David explains that embracing what you don’t know is all about understanding these categorical blindspots, first personally, secondly in our leadership, and thirdly in our organizations. If you can learn to ask questions in these facets of your life, leadership, and organization you can gain a lot of clarity. The Shame Leaders Carry “Shame is whenever we feel inadequate, the feeling that we’re not enough.” [39:00] David jokes that we need just enough shame to not go to the store naked, shame helps us understand our boundaries and our limits. However, toxic shame can make us feel like failures, and we compensate by puffing out our chests and bringing out our egos. David says that when leaders show this toxic shame, they are trying to overcome inadequacy by posturing themselves as something that they’re not. To combat this shame it is critical to address the blindspots David mentions, get to the root of shame, and be vulnerable. Leadership Orientation It’s important to understand and ask, ‘What kind of leader am I?’ David says that it's not better or worse but about understanding your influence, and what you’re influencing your people toward. Influence is about your power and voice in the world and how it expresses yourself in the world, and your orientation. “Understanding these pieces about orientation help make up the matrix of who a leader is.” [53:06] Mentioned in this episode: David Achata Coaching Leadership Books by David Achata Embrace What You Don't Know: A Stupid Guide to Smart Business Leadership David Achata - LinkedIn Robb Holman Marcel Schwantes | Professional Profile | LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!

Seth Goldenberg is the author of Radical Curiosity: Questioning Commonly Held Beliefs to Imagine Flourishing Futures. In his book he explains how to reignite curiosity, today he talks with Marcel about what Radical Curiosity really means and how people can improve their ability to be curious. Goldenberg's approach to stimulating curiosity was launched by a re-interpretation of the 18th and early 20th-century Salons. These informal gatherings were forums that advanced feminism, the Enlightenment, informal learning sciences, and the notion of the “public sphere”. Seth and Marcel discuss curiosity and activism, systemic prevention of curiosity, and some of the 28 building blocks for curiosity he includes in the book. Show-Notes: Well-Being To kick off the episode, Marcel Schwantes brought on co-host Robb Holman. Robb brings up the idea surrounding so many reasons for changing workplaces, the environment, or leaders not prioritizing the well-being of their staff. But what really is well-being, “When I think of well-being I think of physical, spiritual, emotional, mental, there are so many aspects that makeup who we are.” [6:00] Robb defines well-being as this holistic view of ourselves, and too often leaders are looking only at the professional view and not even making time for their own well-being.  Radical Curiosity Seth Goldenberg is the author of Radical Curiosity: Questioning Commonly Held Beliefs to Imagine Flourishing Futures. “What's holding us back..from being curious, asking questions, and digging  down into the roots to find the answers to our problems.” [25:27] Marcel asks Seth about the barriers keeping us from being more curious, because as a whole, we are not collaborating, getting together, and asking questions to solve core problems.  Improving Curiosity So if we’re not being curious…can we get better? Seth says, “Curiosity is an innate capability in all of us” [36:29] Just like breathing, we are born with the ability to be curious but with the right work and focus, we can hone in and refine our curiosity to be better. In the book, Seth has 28 building blocks to improve curiosity, he discusses a few of his favorites at the end of the episode. Exploring What You Don’t Know This podcast is all about leading with love, and empathy…Seth proposes that a systemic prevention of curiosity is actually eliminating love and empathy. He explains how curiosity and breaking the path of prevention is the way to successful leadership. “That origin point of how to zero in and figure out what a great question is, to really unleash value… that is the leadership practice of the 21st century.” [48:10] Curiosity is Activism Seth in his book describes that curiosity can be a form of activism, in the way of unlearning. “So many core ideas are getting rewritten, we don’t have to make a new product…we have to actually unlearn.” [54:29] We are moving forward from many ideas in the past and keep this momentum and live successfully in this new era, we must unwind our minds and unlearn ideas so that we can be curious again.  Mentioned in this episode: Curiosity & Co. Radical Curiosity - Bookshop.org Seth Goldenberg - Founder & CEO - Epic Decade | LinkedIn Robb Holman Marcel Schwantes | Professional Profile | LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!

This Thanksgiving, embrace the spirit of gratitude and take these activities back to work with you to spread more gratitude after the holiday. [00:49] For You, I Am Thankful For the first activity, write down 5 people you are thankful for. These five people should be people who report to you and have a relationship with you that you value. [1:35] Gratitude Reflection  For the second activity, think back on the key contributions, accomplishments, projects, and other things that have happened during the year involving these people. Relive these moments involving your 5 people in your heart and mind. [2:10] Let Your People Know In whatever method you can, let these people know how special they are. Let them know how much you value them, their character, their work, and what their relationship means to you! [3:00] The Science This isn’t just lovey-dovey gratitude, there is real science behind these three activities. Positive psychology research states that by simply expressing gratitude for two minutes a day for a period of 21 straight days is the fastest way to learn optimism and increase brain productivity by 31%. These activities train your brain to scan for positives instead of negatives. It will significantly improve your optimism even six months later, and raise your success rates significantly. [3:50]   Mentioned in this episode: Marcel Schwantes | Professional Profile | LinkedIn Marcel Schwantes Send Marcel a text message!