Inside Influence

Raj Sisodia explores his journey to Awaken, finding purpose and making a global impact

Tue, 05 Dec 2023 19:00:23 GMT

What makes you who you are?

I know that’s a huge, complex question. However, if you think about it – there would have been a few pivotal moments, relationships and possibly conversations that set you on the path you’re on today.

Beyond the path, those moments would have also laid the wiring for how you now react, decide and decode the world around you. Laying the foundations for how you show up in every situation, relationship, and moment of your life.

Today’s conversation is a little different to usual, as it has a very autobiographical feel.

However, although this episode is all about my guest’s lifelong journey, leading to the completion of his latest book, the lessons learnt along the way are universal. Offering a roadmap for anyone who wants to examine and reimagine their life - at whatever age.

Today’s Guest

My guest is a friend of the show - Raj Sisodia. Raj is an acclaimed thought leader, speaker and author. Co-founder of the Conscious Capitalism movement, Raj has written a number of the core texts from that field. Including ‘Firms of Endearment’, ‘Conscious Capitalism’, ‘Everybody Matters’ with past guest and incredible human being Bob Chapman and ‘The Healing Organisation’.

His latest book ‘Awaken: The Path to Purpose, Inner Peace and Healing’ is a guide to leading a life of meaning, purpose and fulfillment. Containing practical advice on how to know yourself, love yourself, be yourself and express yourself from a place of choice – rather than a place of habit.

This is Raj’s second time on the podcast, the first time we dove into his journey starting and leading the Conscious Capitalism movement. This time we go deeper into the moments, events and experiences that led to who he became – and who he chooses to become in this next chapter of his life.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajendrasisodia/

Twitter: @RajSisodiaCC

You’ll Learn

Raj’s definition of what it means to ‘awaken’. Including the acronym ‘LIST’ which he now uses as a roadmap for all his decisions. LIST standing for: Love, Innocence, Simplicity and Truth.
His journey of self-discovery – and the strength it takes to dismantle the parts of our lives and personalities that are no longer working.
How to find the courage to step back when things don’t feel right and the curiosity to ask: ‘Could there be a better way?’
Finally, why our core childhood memories often hold the key to what we most need to re-examine in order to move forward.

A couple of quick notes, this episode contains mention and memories of violence and abuse. As always, I leave it to your instincts to decide what’s healthy for you and any listening ears around you.

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Bahia Shehab

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook. The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Kemi Nekvapil on the true meaning of power and how to live and lead without apology

Thu, 23 Nov 2023 00:35:56 GMT

When you hear the word ‘power’, what first springs to mind?

Do you immediately think of its absence, the moments you felt ‘power-less’ – or the moments you showed up as the fullest version of yourself?

Is ‘power’ a word or sensation that feels like it belongs to you? Or is it a word that usually belongs to someone else?

My guest today wants to redefine how we think, approach and own the word ‘power’ in our lives.

Today’s Guest

Kemi Nekvapil is one of Australia’s leading coaches for female executives and entrepreneurs. She describes her life’s work as being to ‘empower women to live and lead without apology’.

Kemi is a certified facilitator for Brenè Brown’s ‘Dare To Lead’ program, and also a facilitator for The Hunger Project Australia which works with communities to enable them to realize a future free from hunger and poverty.

She is also a highly sought after international speaker and author who has just published her latest book: ‘Power; A woman’s guide to living and leading without apology’. The book looks at how to navigate the inevitable challenges we face from a place of unapologetic power – in order to show up at the highest possible level.

Instagram: @keminekvapil

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kemi-nekvapil-58000027/

You’ll Learn

The true meaning of the word power, and how it’s our definitions of the word – rather than our own innate strength – that keeps us small.
What stops us from stepping into our power. Including all the ways we give our power away, in order to feel a sense of safety and belonging.
The right questions to ask to reclaim your sense of power. In particular, when faced with people and situations that would usually make us shrink.
Why real power is often found in the quiet moments, the small decisions, the micro-choices – rather than the big grand gestures.
Finally, how to access your intuition and realize that the greatest power comes from outwardly trusting your inner voice.

For me, the word ‘power’ has shifted in meaning, particularly over the last few years. Previously it had the energy of pushing. Building, creating, showing up, using your voice – changing what needs to be changed. Forcing where necessary.

Yet now, largely thanks to this podcast. That’s fundamentally shifted.

Now when I think about the word ‘power’, when I embody it, when I witness it - the feeling is one of ‘pulling’. Showing up and holding yourself with such clarity, such intention, such gravity. That the right people and situations are quite literally pulled towards you. That to me is real power.

References and links mentioned

https://www.keminekvapil.com/

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Deb Gruenfeld

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Phill Nosworthy on clarity, redefining imposter syndrome and moving at the speed of wisdom

Wed, 08 Nov 2023 19:00:00 GMT

Hands up who’s busy? Busy with work, life, kids, family, businesses, side hustles, resting (now when did that become a task) and everything in between.

The reason many of us are so busy, constantly moving and thinking at 100mph is I believe, in its most positive sense, because we want to get it right.

We want to be the best we can be in every aspect of our life. Maybe that’s achieving mastery in our field. Maybe it’s being the best leader or parent we can be - or maybe it’s just not waking up one morning and realizing a window of opportunity has passed us by.

Nobody gets the results, impact, influence or relationships they want without giving it 110%.

But what if we’re actually too busy to be brilliant?

What if by slowing down, not hiding in the story of the ‘busyness’ of our lives, we could step back and reclaim the power we have to create the impact we want.

This is the mindset and approach that runs through the entirety of my conversation with today’s guest on the podcast - and no matter which way our conversation turned - every road seemed to lead us right back to that place.

Today’s Guest

Phill Nosworthy is a speaker, author and educator specializing in leadership, personal mastery and high performance.

Having spoken around the world over 2000+ times to companies including Microsoft and Universal Music. Phill is also the founder and managing director of Switch L+D; a learning and development company that advises and coaches some of the planet's foremost CEO’s, executives, athletes and entertainers.

I also know him as one of the most conscious and intentional leaders, husbands, fathers and humans that I have had the pleasure of knowing for more years than I can count.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phillnosworthy/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phillnosworthy/

You’ll Learn

Imposter syndrome - how to define it and how to tackle it. Honestly Phill has one of the most unique takes on this that I have found, his insights into this one aspect are worth the price of entry alone.
The importance of checking in with yourself as you build your influence, specifically what he calls micro check-ins OR ROC’ing - R: relax, O: open up, C:connect.
The 1%ers of impact - Simple, practical strategies and improvements you can make, rather than either postponing or tripping up on the big strides.
Finally, the importance of ‘prescription vs description’ in leadership, I’ll leave that one there – but suffice to say this one stuck with me in how I both lead and show up as a parent since this conversation.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code

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Paul Zak returns to unpack the science of Immersion and how to cultivate happiness

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 01:42:11 GMT

Do you struggle to immerse yourself in something (anything) without a buzz, ding or vibration pulling you out of your train of thought?

If we struggle to pay attention to even the things we care about - how as influencers, leaders and communicators - can we cut through long enough to create real and lasting impact.

Today’s Guest

Paul Zak is a neuroscientist, public speaker and author who has spent the last two decades looking into what our brains crave - and how we can use those cravings to build experiences that actually change our minds.

Paul is a Professor of Economics, Psychology and Management at Claremont Graduate University. His TED Talk ‘Trust, morality and oxytocin’ has had almost 2 million views and he has been invited to speak at NATO Supreme HeadQuarters, Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Harvard University to name but a few.

His most recent book: ‘Immersion: The Science of the Extraordinary and the Source of Happiness’, is based on 20 years of research into exactly why our brains hunt for the extraordinary - and how we can use this knowledge to create amazing experiences for our customers, employees and audiences.

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-zak-91123510/

You’ll Learn

Why understanding what makes an Immersive experience holds the key to designing messages, movements and marketing that significantly changes people’s behavior.
The five essential steps of persuasion. Including how to ‘Open Hot’ by starting any piece of persuasive communication in a way that literally changes the blood chemistry of your audience.
Why ‘fun’ is always a better motivator than ‘fear’. Although fear may motivate us in the short term, it’s fun (or positive emotion) that continues to motivate long after the fear has disappeared.
Finally, how to use the science of Immersion to lead a better, deeper and more enriching life - and why this has become Paul’s dedicated focus for the next 10 years.

This is Paul’s second time on the podcast. Since the first I’ve enjoyed many email conversations together on how the science he pioneered has changed the lives – and business outcomes – of tens of thousands of people across the world.

However, where our connection became deeper, is our shared passion for what science and technology can do to help us pause.

Paul’s work is a powerful beacon of light in that direction.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
http://getimmersion.com/

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Gay Hendricks

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Michael McQueen on why we are MindStuck and mastering the art of changing minds

Tue, 10 Oct 2023 19:00:54 GMT

Would you consider yourself to be stubborn? Do you bristle at the thought of change and dig your heels in even when presented with undeniable logic?

For most of us our instinct is to probably answer ‘no’ to that question.

It’s everyone else that’s stubborn right?

It’s the people on the internet who are blatantly wrong in their points of view. The family member who won’t shift position, regardless of how much evidence you present them with. The colleague that just can’t let go of how it ‘used to be’ and embrace the only logical path forward.

Or maybe… in order to survive in an age of more information, disruption, ideas, opinions, facts, news, and fake news than we have ever had to process - we’ve ALL become more entrenched and stubborn in our thinking. Simply as a way to survive.

My guest today believes that not only are we more MindStuck than ever before - but the process of how we go about changing minds – including our own – has to change.

Today’s Guest

Michael McQueen is a multi-award winning speaker, trend forecaster and best-selling author of nine books. Having helped some of the world’s most successful brands like Pepsi, Mastercard, BP and Cisco navigate disruption and lead in times of extreme change.

He has also just released his latest book ‘Mindstuck: Mastering the art of changing minds’ which completely flips on its head so much of what we assume to be true about exactly how we influence, in a world where silos and stubbornness are now the norm.

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelmcqueen1/

You’ll Learn

Why we are all more stubborn and MindStuck than ever before - and how accepting that fact opens up a whole new toolkit of influence.
The concept of the ‘inquiring mind’ vs the ‘instinctive mind’ – and why we currently spend more than 40% of our time trying to influence the wrong one.
Why logic isn’t enough and, in order to influence at the highest level, we need to take a whole different approach to persuasion.
The paradox of choice (this one blew my mind) and why giving people the opportunity to opt-out, rather than convincing them to opt-in - almost guarantees they will say yes.
Finally, five counter-intuitive strategies to move people from MindStuck to open to new ideas. Including why real trust and persuasion always begins with first having the courage to be wrong.

References and links mentioned

Michael’s book www.mindstuck.net
Michael’s book can be ordered at the following link:- https://linktr.ee/michaelmcqueen

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Zoe Chance

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Lisa Bragg on purposeful self promotion, loosing the fear and the power of picking yourself

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 22:29:51 GMT

How do you feel about the word ‘bragging’?

Does it make you squirm and immediately want to bolt away from the spotlight – or excited about an opportunity to share your success?

When a colleague, friend or co-worker starts to say things that sound like bragging - does it rub you up the wrong way? Or do you start feeling inspired and curious about how you could get similar results?

My guest today thinks we all need to become better braggers.

Which as someone who started life as a good British girl, raised to avoid phrases like ‘Too big for your boots’ and the cardinal sin of life becoming ‘Full of yourself’. Had me beginning this conversation already in a full body sweat.

Today’s Guest

Lisa Bragg is an author, speaker and advisor helping people self-promote in a more authentic and un-obnoxious way.

She is the founder of MediaFace, a Toronto-based content and consulting firm and author of: ‘Bragging Rights; How To Talk about Your Work Using Purposeful Self-Promotion’. A book that digs into the art of bragging and reveals that people really DO want to hear about our success.

That actually, when we share our wins and achievements, not only does it raise the bar on what’s possible for the people around us – it creates a field that immediately starts to attract even greater levels of success and opportunity.

That’s if we know how to do it right.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisabragg

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatlisabragg

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ThatLisaBragg/

You’ll Learn

Why (unlike the high school sports team) we need to learn to pick ourselves - rather than sitting on the sidelines waiting to be picked.
How to move from awkward ‘self promotion’ to authentic ‘purposeful promotion’ - and the right questions to ask to unpack exactly what to say.
The power of focusing on what makes you ‘remarkable’ i.e. literally worth ‘remarking’ upon. Including the key questions to help you realize exactly how remarkable you are.
The powerful equation of ‘Fear + 10%’. I love this, basically when you face something or someone that makes you want to back down, how to lean in just a little bit further.
Finally, why our perceptions of words like ‘bragging’ and self-promotion – even down to the language we use - rob us of way too many brilliant people and ideas at a time when we need them the most.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
Lisa is offering listeners exclusive access to download: Bragging Rights Riff Tool: idea and content generation. Simply follow this link https://www.lisabragg.com/listener-love

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Todd Herman on the Alter Ego Effect, defeating the enemy and unlocking your heroic self

Tue, 12 Sep 2023 20:00:12 GMT

Do you have an Alter Ego? A side of yourself, with a whole different set of traits and strengths, that you can quickly access to give yourself the edge?

Usually when we hear the term ‘Alter Ego’ we think of Peter Parker and Spider Man, Diana Prince and Wonder Woman, Clarke Kent and Superman. The list goes on.

However, what if I told you that some of the greatest performers and influential figures on the planet also had one.

A side of themselves that they deliberately built and cultivated. A persona that allowed them to access hidden superpowers. Powers like strength, resilience, charisma, deadly focus or larger than life presence – that may otherwise have remained undiscovered.

Today’s Guest

My guest today has helped millions of people access their Alter Egos in order to move from their trapped self, to their heroic self.

Todd Herman is a coach and mentor to some of the world’s most elite athletes, public figures and leaders. An expert on the topics of performance, mindset, strategy and execution - his work goes well beyond the theory. After over 22 years and 15,000 hours on the field of play, Todd has helped his clients achieve some of the greatest feats on the planet.

I first discovered Todd through his best selling book, ‘The Alter Ego Effect: Defeat the Enemy, Unlock Your Heroic Self and Start Kicking Ass’. This idea that we all have secret identities, dormant versions of ourselves that we keep buried (due to conditioning, past experiences or societal norms) really rang true with my experiences working with high level speakers and thought leaders.

Then I read his book and, to put it simply, it completely unraveled and rebuilt how I thought about myself and how I show up in the world.

LinkedIn: @toddherman1

Twitter: @todd_herman

Instagram: @todd_herman

Facebook - @toddhermanconnect

TikTok - @todd_herman

You’ll Learn

How to find your alter ego – not to change who you are – but to enable you to perform at levels you may previously have thought impossible.
How to move from your ‘trapped’ self to activating your ‘heroic’ self. And the power of ‘totems’ to help you tap back into your power.
The Importance of naming your enemy – not the enemy out there because, as you’ll hear, in many senses their name is irrelevant. Instead the voice inside your head that’s keeping you on the sidelines.
Finally, why answering the question ‘Who do you think you are?’ holds the key to unlocking more strength, wisdom and fire than you ever knew you possessed.

References and links mentioned

https://toddherman.me/

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

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POWERCUT: Gay Hendricks - THE BIG LEAP: HOW TO FIND AND STAY IN YOUR ZONE OF GENIUS

Tue, 29 Aug 2023 20:00:00 GMT

These are short powerhouse episodes, to keep you fuelled and showing up at the next level. Each PowerCut contains the most useful tools, moments or insights from the full conversation, essentially a mini masterclass in influence.

Our final PowerCut episode is with the incredible Gay Hendricks

Today’s Guest

Gay Hendricks has been a leader in the field of transformation and bodymind therapy for more than 45 years. After earning his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Stanford, Gay served as professor of Counseling Psychology at the University of Colorado for 21 years.

In that time he has written more than 40 books, including bestsellers such as ‘Five Wishes’, ‘The Big Leap’ (probably the book I have recommended the most this year) and ‘Conscious Living’ - all of which are still used as primary texts in universities around the world.

Gay conducts seminars worldwide and has appeared on more than 500 radio and television shows, including OPRAH, CNN, CNBC and many, many others.

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/gay-hendricks-195a90/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GayHendricks

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hendricks.gay/

You’ll Learn

The Upper Limit problem – why we consistently limit ourselves and the level of possibility we have available - whether you’re an award winning musician or a Fortune 500 CEO.
The 4 hidden triggers that lock our Upper Limits into place and how to quickly get unstuck and back on your path of potential.
Finally the ‘Zone of Excellence’ vs. the Zone of Genius’. Essentially what you’re great at (but not passionate about) vs. what brings you alive.

If you enjoy this PowerCut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Gay, check out the link below - or search for Episode 152 at any of your favorite podcast places.

References and links mentioned

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Victoria Labalme - Risk Forward: How to Harness The Power of Uncertainty

Tue, 22 Aug 2023 20:00:25 GMT

Our second PowerCut episode is with the incredible Victoria Labalme.

Today’s Guest

Victoria LaBalme is a Hall of Fame Speaker, Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author and Performance Strategist for Top Leaders & Brands.

As the trusted consultant to top leaders and brands, she shows individuals at all levels how to uncover their hidden genius and express themselves in memorable ways, aligning with a larger mission and winning over the people they serve.

She is also the author of the Wall Street Journal Bestselling book, ‘RISK FORWARD,’ and the founder of the ROCK THE ROOM® program that helps people knock their communications out of the park, both on camera and in person.

Website https://www.victorialabalme.com/

LinkedIn @victorialabalme

Instagram @victorialabalme

Facebook @victorialabalme

You’ll Learn

Why shifting your focus from ‘recognition’ to ‘contribution’ is one of the most powerful decisions you can make when it comes to building influence.
Why ‘hyperactivity’ is a form of ‘self hypnosis’ (this one really broke my brain). Including why the largest risk - and greatest step - we can often take is to deliberately pause and look at where we’re going.
And finally, how to start trusting the ‘idea that leads to the idea’ – rather than staying frozen and waiting for the perfect plan of action.

If you enjoy this PowerCut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Victoria, check out the link below - or search for Episode 133 at any of your favorite podcast places.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy this powercut with the powerhouse herself Victoria Labalme.

References and links mentioned

my new ebook The Influencer Code
Victoria’s book:- https://www.victorialabalme.com/book-risk-forward/

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

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Brendan Kane - Finding your Hook Point: How to stand out in a 3 second world

Tue, 15 Aug 2023 20:00:08 GMT

Our second PowerCut episode is with the incredible Brendan Kane.

Today’s Guest

Brendan Kane is a digital strategist for Fortune 500 corporations and leading celebrities.

As the former Vice President of digital for Paramount Pictures. His current client list includes Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Charles Barkley, Adriana Lima, and brands such as Disney, Fox, Paramount, NBC, Netflix, Xbox and LinkedIn.

He is also the bestselling author of two epic books. The first ‘One Million Followers - How I Built a Massive Social Following in 30 Days’ and his second and most recent: ‘HookPoint – how to stand out in a three second world’.

Website: https://brendanjkane.com/

Facebook: @brendanjameskane

Instagram: @brendankane

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanjkane/

You’ll Learn

The power of the three second rule when it comes to standing out online or on social media – plus exactly what those three seconds need to contain.
A peek behind the curtain into his own viral content engineering process - a blueprint that, to date, has generated over 100 million followers and 50 billion views.
And the keys to finally getting consistent with content - without burning out.

If you enjoy this PowerCut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Brendan, check out the link below - or search for Episode 134 at any of your favorite podcast places.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with master content creator Brendan Kane.

References and links mentioned

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Koelle Simpson - Transformational tension: How to sit in the space in between now and what's next

Tue, 08 Aug 2023 23:36:01 GMT

As the Inside Influence Team and I take a short break to refuel our collective batteries over Summer - or Winter depending on where you are in the world - we’ve got you covered. For the month of August we will be releasing a weekly power cut of our favorite (and your favorite) podcast episodes. A short powerhouse version containing some of our favorite moments. To keep you fuelled and showing up at the next level. Our first powercut is with Koelle Simpson.

Today’s Guest

Koelle Simpson is one of the most highly regarded horse whispers on the planet.

A world-renowned coach and leader of the Equus Coaching Movement. Her work has been featured in O Magazine, BBC Business Report, The National Journal, The OWN Network. She is also a TEDx speaker as well as appearing on many other stages around the world.

The Koelle Institute works with individuals and Fortune 500 organisations to create transformational leadership experiences – all by using the lens of her journey as a horse whisperer - to decode the silent language of authority.

Why silent? Well when it comes to building trust with a wild horse, all the best sales or leadership language in the world isn’t going to help. Charm and charisma don’t work. And raising your voice generally has the opposite effect.

Horses are listening to one thing and one thing alone. Your presence. Your ability to show up fully and yet with calm intent. Your ability to wait and hold space – and yet - still instill trust that you will lead the charge when it counts.

Get it wrong – panic or overcompensate – and you may well meet the wrong end of 1000 pounds of instant feedback.

Which is why, when I first came across Koelle and how she applies the world of horse whispering to leadership presence, I had to know more.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/koelle.simpson

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/koellesimpson/?igshid=18gyzqhw71gs0

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/koelle-simpson-21835012/

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Koelle Simpson please refer to the link at the end of the show notes, head over to my website juliemasters.com - Episode 124 - or wherever you get your podcasts.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with Koelle Simpson.

References and links

https://koellesimpson.com/
My new ebook The Influencer Code

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donna Griffit on becoming pitch perfect, owning your origin story and nailing the 'quick pitch'

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 03:54:55 GMT

Are you pitch perfect?

We all understand the power of the ‘pitch’ – whether it’s for investment, a new career defining opportunity or that game changing client. These are the 7 to 14 minute long ‘sliding door’ moments that define whether we take our influence to the next level.

However, once you’ve done the hard work of getting the right people in the room, how do you make every second count?

Today’s Guest

My guest today is corporate storyteller and ‘pitch alchemist’ Donna Griffit.

Donna has worked with over 1000 start-ups, Fortune 500 companies and venture capitalists from across the globe, helping them raise billions of dollars of investment – all through the power of pitching. Earlier this year she also published her first bestselling book: ‘Sticking to my Story - The Alchemy of Storytelling for Startups’, collating all of her knowledge from over 20 years helping experts and business leaders become pitch perfect.

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/donnaabraham/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Donna.Griffit.Corporate.Storyteller/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Donna_Grif

You’ll Learn

The most common pitching mistakes we all make - and one change you can make to avoid the biggest mistake of all.
The ideal duration of a pitch – including why you should always have a quick pitch in your back pocket in case your time is cut (happens more than you think), or if you bump into the right person in the elevator.
Why your ‘origin story’ is one of the most powerful tools in your storytelling arsenal.
Why the very best pitches are designed as a play of four acts - complete with a hero, a villain and a happy ever after.
And crucially, how to close your pitch in a way that guarantees people will take action.

I honestly don’t know many other skills as practical and vital to work on as perfecting the power of the pitch.

Yet what always amazes me - is that with a few small tweaks and a backbone of proven structure - it’s not as difficult as you think to take a 7/10 “Talk to me next year” to a 9/10 “Can we talk about next steps?”.

That’s where insights from experts like Donna – who have been on the front line of pitches that actually get results – are truly in a league of their own.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
Donna’s new book https://donnagriffit.com/sticking-to-my-story/

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Jeremy Connell-Waite decodes how to change the world through purpose driven storytelling

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 19:30:44 GMT

Today’s question is the holy grail of influence.

It’s the question that any influencer that wants to make an impact with their words, ideas or mission strives to answer:

How do you tell stories that change the way the world works?

My guest today has built his career around answering this question - and still sits at the coal face, mining away at the ever-evolving answer.

Today’s Guest

Jeremy Connell Waite is a man of many hats. He’s Communications Designer at IBM where he coaches partners and executives to create compelling pitches and keynotes for purpose-driven brands.

He also created IBM's Communications Thinking™ framework, now used across the globe to help future business leaders to tell stronger purpose-driven stories, on screen, on stage or in the boardroom.

Having been Voted the #1 Most Influential Person on Twitter for #BigData,Top 30 Most Influential Digital Marketer in the world and the 3rd most Influential Social Media Marketer in the UK.

In April this year Jeremy also founded the Earthshot Academy - a storytelling platform to help young professionals and business leaders who ‘want to change the world with their words and ideas’.

If this wasn’t enough, he’s also written four books, run his own agency and worked for brands such as Nike, Vodafone and Uber.

I first came across Jeremy after a friend recommended I check out his LinkedIn profile, where I was just blown away by the visual story maps he was creating. Literally decoding on one page the key structures, moments and secrets of the greatest storytellers of our time.

He calls himself an industrial storyteller – I would say he’s a storytelling scientist.

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremypaulwaite/

You’ll Learn

The key emotion you must evoke to get people to consider and take action on your ideas - basically the magic ingredient of influence.
What ‘elephants’, ‘wild geese’ and ‘black swans’ have to do with purpose-driven influence and how to use them all within your storytelling.
How to tailor your storytelling to make maximum impact – including staying flexible when it comes to ‘what you want to say’ vs. ‘what your audience needs to hear’.
How much preparation a world changing speech actually takes (HINT: a lot more than you think).
Finally, the keys to enrolling people in your purpose - and where you immediately need to take them from there.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
Purpose driven storytelling: https://vimeo.com/showcase/8858594

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Allan Parker on staying calm, communicating with presence and mastering your state

Wed, 28 Jun 2023 20:00:39 GMT

How do you communicate from a place of stillness and calm regardless of what’s happening around you?

We all know the situations that tend to set off our body’s alarm system. It could be a fight with our partner, the same old conversation with a member of our team - or getting up in front of a room full of people to speak or make our ideas heard.

Regardless of the situation – the warning signals tend to be the same. Our heartbeat increases, our breath shortens, our thinking becomes reactive, our responses shift into ‘fight or flight’ and our ability to communicate calmly becomes non-existent.

Well, those were mine anyway, until I adopted the micro-practices of my incredible guest today.

Today’s Guest

Allan Parker is a friend, mentor and one of the very first people I invited onto this podcast over 150 episodes ago. Episode No. 3 I believe. Such is the respect and admiration I have for him as a master in his space.

Allan is a Micro Behavioural Scientist, Educator, Facilitator and Author. In 2019 he was a recipient of the Order of Australia (OAM) as part of the Queens Birthday Honors List - for Contribution to Business and Dispute Resolution.

He’s best known in his field as a facilitator of large-scale multi-party negotiations and disputes. Having acted as a moderator for both the United Nations World Investment Forum, and the UN Conference on Trade and Development.

He is also the author of The Negotiator’s Toolkit, the bestseller Switch on Your Brain; and co-author of the negotiation bible Beyond Yes.

When you invite Allan into a conversation, it’s usually best to throw out your agenda – and follow where his instincts want to go. So that is exactly what happened.

LinkedIn : linkedin.com/in/allanparkeroam

You’ll Learn

How we can start to better understand and manage our adrenaline and cortisol systems as communicators – especially in high stakes moments.

Allan’s favorite techniques for preventing our inner alert system from being triggered in certain salutations – keeping adrenaline and cortisol low and enabling us to stay in a calm and present state.

The importance of breathing as a stress reliever – sounds simple I know, but anyone that’s tried to monitor their breath while in fight or flight knows the focus it takes.

How to identify what Allan calls ‘critical choice points’ in any situation – this one tool has been a game changer for me in my own communication.

Finally, why when speaking in front of either a large or small group of people, you should always identify your ‘light houses’ and lean into the friendly eyes.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
www.peakpd.com

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gretchen Carlson on speaking out, fighting for change and the ripple effect of courage

Tue, 13 Jun 2023 23:43:01 GMT

What does it take to own your voice when everything is on the line - and the entire world is watching?

Today’s Guest

On the podcast today I speak with Gretchen Carlson, New York Times bestselling author, speaker, and internationally recognized trailblazer for women’s rights in the workplace.

In June of 2016, two years before the beginning of the #metoo movement - Gretchen boldly went public with sexual harassment claims against then Fox News Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes, considered to be one of the most powerful men on the planet.

Having spent over 30 years as a journalist. Gretchen was one of the most recognised faces on television - hosting the Saturday edition of The Early Show on CBS News, Fox News’ Fox & Friends and The Real Story with Gretchen Carlson.

Two weeks after the suit was filed, Roger Ailes was fired from Fox in a historic precedent. Laying the foundations for the #metoo movement to come. Gretchen went on to settle her lawsuit and co-found ‘Lift Our Voices’, a nonprofit organization fighting to stop forced arbitration and non-disclosure agreements keeping toxic workplace issues silent.

So what led to that moment? Although the NDA Gretchen had to sign as part of her settlement prevents her from publicly discussing her time at Fox. Her story has since been told as both the movie ‘Bombshell’ starring Nicole Kidman as Gretchen - and the Showtime mini-series ‘The Loudest Voice’ where Gretchen was played by Naomi Watts.

In today’s conversation we talk about what it takes to stand up to power, how to fight for change and the ripple effect of courage - in our workplaces, our families and the world.

Instagram & twitter: @gretchencarlson

You’ll Learn

How she found the courage to stand up and tell her story - and why “it’s not like walking into a room and flipping on the light switch, even as a strong person.”
What happened after “One of the darkest days of my life”. The day she was told by her lawyers that she didn’t have a case. All because of a tiny clause in her contract that she (and millions of others) didn’t know existed.
Why she created ‘Lift Our Voices’ to end forced arbitration and NDA’s. Including how they managed to pass the largest labor law change the USA has seen in 100 years.
Finally, how it feels to watch her story portrayed on the big screen – not once but twice – while being legally prevented from contributing her own voice.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
Gretchen’s Non-profit, Lift Our Voices: https://liftourvoices.org

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chris Barton on the story of Shazam, doing the impossible and a 'start from zero' mindset

Tue, 30 May 2023 20:00:19 GMT

Have you ever heard a song while you’re in a bar, at a restaurant, out shopping, or watching TV and wondered: “What is the name of that song?”

Although you may not have heard of my guest today, I can almost guarantee you’ve heard of his product. Over 2 billion people have downloaded it, 8 million new users every month use it (without a dollar of marketing) and in 2017 Apple bought it for $400 million dollars.

That company is of course – Shazam

Today’s Guest

My guest on today’s episode is Chris Barton. Chris is the first CEO and Founder of Shazam and an Innovation Keynote Speaker. When Chris first founded Shazam in the year 2000, it was an idea considered too far ahead of its time. To give that some context, this was three years before iTunes, seven years before the invention of the iPhone and eight years before anyone had heard of an App Store.

To put it simply - there was no market for digital music.

Chris went on to accomplish what everyone told him was impossible. Taking his idea from ‘it will never work’ to creating a global phenomenon, redefining the music industry and giving birth to the unofficial verb: “Can you Shazam this song for me?”.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cjpbarton/

You’ll Learn

His struggle with undiagnosed dyslexia and ADHD as a child – a disadvantage that he now considers to be his absolute super power.
The story of pitching a demo version of Shazam to potential VC’s and being told: "I don't see why anyone would ever use that.". Then why that became his motivation to take Shazam into the stratosphere.
The importance of holding a ‘start from zero’ mindset. Which involves questioning every assumption others hold to be true - then building from those basic truths.
How hard he had to fight to keep the name ‘Shazam’ and how to walk the line between staying true to your vision – and leaning into other peoples expertise.
Finally his learnings on how to get traction with an idea that’s years ahead of its time – from pitching the ‘un-pitchable’ to the core levers of achieving groundswell.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information in my conversations and interviews have helped you in your business journey, please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Your reviews and feedback will not only help us continue to deliver great, helpful content, but it will also help us reach even more amazing people just like you!

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Dr Kristy Goodwin on taming the tech, setting boundaries and thriving in a digital world

Tue, 16 May 2023 21:53:19 GMT

Which of these has more influence over your day.

Your priorities, focus and close relationships – or the demands and temptations of your digital device?

Maybe it’s a hard question to answer, maybe it’s easy.

Maybe you like the answer, maybe you don’t.

Either way, if influence requires focus, then how we handle the ongoing ‘creep’ of the digital world into our lives becomes one of the most important decisions we can make.

My guest today on Inside influence is on a mission to help professionals, parents and their families tame their tech habits and stop being a slave to the screen.

Today’s Guest

Dr Kristy Goodwin provides research-based, yet realistic, strategies to using technology in productive and purposeful ways - without reverting to phone bans or digital detoxes. Hands up guilty on that one.

She is a global speaker and media commentator – as well as author of my new handbook: ‘Dear Digital we need to talk- A guilt free guide to taming your tech habits and thriving in a digital world’.

This is Kristy’s second time on the podcast. Our first conversation was so powerful and practical that, rather than edit it to the usual length, we turned it into a two part series. Such is her ability to combine practicality, eye opening data and ‘guilt free’ wisdom on a topic we all need to master.

LinkedIn : Dr-KristyGoodwin

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkristy/

You’ll Learn

Why one of the most intimate relationships we have today is with a screen – and how to turn that relationship from ‘toxic’ into a powerful tool for focus.
Why digital detoxes don’t work
How to “Build a fortress around your focus” – whether that’s focusing on work or the relationships that are so critical to our wellbeing.
Finally, the non-negotiable boundaries she uses in her own life to ‘tame the tech’

The largest gift I received from this conversation was more awareness. I know that doesn’t sound like much at first.

The truth is that the technology we have now - and whatever it is we’re hurtling towards – comes with no handbook, not even from the creators themselves.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
https://drkristygoodwin.com/

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

George Dawes Green on The Moth and the art and power of sharing our stories

Wed, 03 May 2023 00:12:38 GMT

What makes a powerful storyteller?

Those able to tell a story that - whether it’s from a porch, a stage, a bar or an auditorium - can literally change the fabric of the air around you.

Those able to, from their first breath, plunge us into a world completely different from our own. Yet still offer a roadmap we can use to solve our own challenges.

Those able to literally change the way we view the world.

My guest today is not only one such globally regarded storyteller. His vision and commitment has also amplified over 50,000+ human stories across the planet.

Today’s Guest

George Dawes Green is an award winning author and Founder of The Moth.

His first novel, The Caveman’s Valentine, won the Edgar Award and became a motion picture starring Samuel L. Jackson. His second - The Juror was an international bestseller in more than twenty languages and became the basis for the movie starring Demi Moore and Alec Baldwin. His most recent The Kingdoms of Savanna is currently being made into a major television series.

However, for me, George’s impact reaches much further.

Back to 1997, when he first founded The Moth from his lounge room in New York.

The Moth, as he would describe it, is “a raconteur club” that he created to recreate the feeling of sultry summer evenings in his native Georgia. When moths were attracted to the light on the porch where he and his family would gather to spin spellbinding tales. The first New York Moth event was held in George’s living room and the story events quickly spread to larger venues throughout the city. It has since brought more than 50,000+ live stories to audiences across six continents.

The Moth podcast, containing some of these stories, also won a Webby People’s Voice Award Winner for Best Podcast Series, and is downloaded more than 100 million times a year. If you haven’t already discovered it please just trust me on this one.

Instagram: @georgedawesgreen

You’ll Learn

How The Moth began from his own hunger to replicate the intimacy and power of the storytelling of his childhood.
What he’s discovered about our collective hunger to share stories – including the ability of one human story to change the entire fabric of a room.
Finally, why the audience is always willing you to succeed – and how tapping into THAT knowledge gives you permission to speak from a place of both truth and clarity.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
George's website, and his most recent book, The Kingdoms of Savannah

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AJ Jacobs on facing life's challenges with curiosity, grit and a Puzzler mindset

Tue, 18 Apr 2023 19:30:21 GMT

Why is developing a ‘puzzle mindset’ the key to influence?

A few years ago, I developed a bit of an obsession.

It started out as innocent and then became an addiction that, like all addictions, began to expand into more and more corners of my life.

That obsession was with the world of puzzling.

Sudoku, crosswords, train tracks, word finders. You name it I had to solve it.

Perhaps it was a reaction to the pandemic, to all the countless facets of life and the world I couldn’t begin to solve. Or maybe, it just gave me something I was missing.

A safe space to channel my curiosity and restless mind.

To be honest I thought I was alone in my addiction - until I came across a book from my guest today.

That book was called “The Puzzler - one man's quest to solve the most baffling puzzles ever from crosswords to jigsaws to the meaning of life”.

Today’s Guest

AJ Jacobs is a best-selling author, journalist and human guinea pig. He has written four bestsellers including, ‘The Year of Living Biblically’ - for which he followed all of the rules of the bible as literally as possible and ‘Thanks a Thousand’ for which he went around the world and thanked every person who had even the smallest role in making his morning cup of coffee possible.

He has given four TED talks with a combined 10 million+ views, he also regularly contributes to NPR and the New York Times. He was also once, perhaps most importantly, the answer to No 1. DOWN in the New York Times crossword puzzle.

Twitter:- @ajjacobs

Instagram:- @ajjacobsinc

You’ll Learn

Why AJ has always considered himself to be a human guinea pig – and how developing an ‘experimental mindset’ changed the entire trajectory of his life.
Why every challenge we face is a puzzle – and how by consciously approaching and talking about it that way - we can tap into unlimited amounts of curiosity, energy and enthusiasm.
Why the best piece of advice he ever received was: ‘Don't get furious - Get curious’.
Finally, we discuss a beautiful tradition called ‘generational puzzles’. Essentially a puzzle that’s passed down from generation to generation - because no one person can solve it alone.

This conversation will twist your brain and hopefully leave you in a place where you can better approach the puzzles of your own life.

AJ also poses a few riddles that, for those of you that don’t have the patience to puzzle them out yourself, you can find the answers in the shownotes.

For me, I know when I approach anything in my life – goals, conflict, overwhelm – as a puzzle to solve, I immediately start asking better questions.

What are the constraints? How long do I have? What resources can I call on? What are the available clues? What assumptions am I making?

That shift – from powerless to puzzled – usually holds the key to moving forward.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code https://bit.ly/3djTTps

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane Adshead-Grant - The profound impact of becoming a better listener

Tue, 04 Apr 2023 20:00:22 GMT

How do we become powerful listeners?

Listening is probably one of the most underestimated tools of influence.

Think for a moment about the leaders that have had the most impact on you. The people who have changed your mind or perspective. Those who made you feel heard and therefore valued in every single interaction.

I guarantee you they would have mastered the art of profound listening.

Today’s Guest

My guest on Inside Influence today believes that listening holds the key to impact.

Jane Adshead Grant is a Master Certified Coach, a Listening Specialist and secret weapon to those who lead some of the world’s most powerful brands.

She is also the author of ‘Are you listening or just waiting to speak? The secret to propelling your business relationships’.

Jane fiercely believes that listening lies at the heart of influence. To building relationships that thrive when times get hard – as well as to loving and leading from a place of deep connection.

This episode made me want to recommit to the art of listening.

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/janeadsheadgrant

Instagram - Janeadsheadgrant

You’ll Learn

How to stop being a lazy listener – and what we miss out on when it comes to establishing deep connections with those we lead or love.
The core listening traps we often fall into - including interruption, impatience and internally rehearsing how we want to respond.
How to set the stage for those who find it hard to open up. Including the key questions you can ask to get them to share and feel heard.
Finally, we unpack some of the moments in our own lives - as leaders, partners and parents - when deep listening enabled a profound breakthrough in connection.

I’ve honestly used the tools every day since our conversation.

The result has been a calmer, more present and deeply connected way of interacting with the people in my life that matter the most.

A way of creating space where challenges can be solved - without feeling like I need to find the perfect words, perfect message or perfect moment.

In other words, it completely changed how I show up.

On that note, sit back, cycle on, settle in and enjoy the incredible – Jane Adshead Grant.

References and links mentioned

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter. Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben Jones is back to talk AI, the 4 hour advert and The Third Era of Marketing

Tue, 21 Mar 2023 22:23:30 GMT

What’s the future of storytelling?

Before you try to answer this question, consider these facts.

Al software can now generate video content on demand – in one year's time you will be able to generate an entire movie based on a few simple lines of text.

Short story platforms (Tik Tok, Snapchat, Instagram) have now hit staggering views of 30 billion views a day. At the same time in 2021 the streamers (Netflix, Amazon, Disney) released more than 1800 original series – that’s a staggering 90% increase since 2017.

So what on earth, you may ask, does all of this mean about the future of story?

Today, once again, to help me answer that question is Global Director of Creative Works at Google, the brilliant Ben Jones.

For those of you that don’t know Ben, you are in for a feast.

Today’s Guest

Ben Jones is Creative Director at Google and Head of Unskippable Labs. A team within Google designated with the huge task of studying the 1 BILLION hours of videos that are viewed onto YouTube EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Their mission? To work out exactly what makes us press, or not press, the SKIP button. Decoding ‘in real time’ the stories that attract and hold the attention of their 122 million visitors a day. Essentially – what makes a story UnSkippable.

This is Ben’s fourth time on the podcast. However, and I may say this every time, this is by far my favorite conversation.

This feels like a cumulation of all Ben’s predictions about the future of storytelling since we met four years ago – each coming rapidly and simultaneously to life.

LinkedIn : https://bit.ly/3JPbBiG

Twitter: @harperjones

You’ll Learn

How COVID reset all our patterns when it comes to the stories (and adverts) we pay attention to – and the trends Ben is now watching emerge.
The role of story length when it comes to engagement – this one hit me hard. Including why 3 minute videos are now more powerful than 30 seconds and why the most successful advert he has ever seen – runs for four hours.
We talk about why micro-cultures are now more powerful than demographics i.e. why ‘what you love’ is now a better indicator of engagement, than ‘who you are’.
We unpack the 3rd era of marketing. An era made up of big stories, invitations and automations.
Finally, and unexpectedly – we discuss his experience in navigating one of the hardest chapters of his life – and how a simple poem he wrote became a blueprint that kept him (and eventually many others) moving forward.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
Nissan ARIYA 4-hour advert -https://bit.ly/3FCdVHj
With me videos - https://bit.ly/3Z478ge
Medium article ‘If not joy, then joy’s direction’ - https://bit.ly/3mT4dJV

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zoe Chance on why influence is your superpower and what's holding you back

Tue, 07 Mar 2023 18:30:55 GMT

What holds you back from having the influence you want?

Quickly listen to the first thing that comes into your mind.

It might have been a sense that somehow you’re not charismatic enough, or not aggressive enough – or maybe the opposite. You talk too much and forget to listen or emotionally engage.

So if we have a clear idea on the blocks that are holding back from the influence we know we’re capable of having. What stops us?

According to my guest today, tapping into your true influence superpower is like learning a new language. We all say we want it, but few of us are prepared to go through the discomfort and awkwardness of becoming fluent.

Today’s Guest

My guest today is Yale Professor and super human, Zoe Chance. Zoe is a writer, teacher, researcher and climate philanthropist. Her latest bestselling book is called ‘Influence Is Your Superpower.’ She has a doctorate from Harvard and teaches the most popular course (in that it completely sells out every year) at Yale School of Management.

Her research is published in top academic journals and covered in global media outlets. She speaks on television and around the world, and her framework for behavior change is the foundation for Google’s global food policy.

Twitter: @zoebchance

Facebook & Linkedin: @zoechance

You’ll Learn

Why the universe is not designed for our pleasure, and what that has to do with how we influence ourselves and (as we both discovered) the wiring of our children.
The difference between our ‘alligator’ mind and our ‘judge’ mind – and you guessed it, why it’s always wise to win over the alligator first.
Why you should focus on changing someone’s ‘behavior’ and not their ‘mind’.
The main misconceptions about what it takes to be a person of influence
Finally, how Zoe is dealing with her own influence blocks right now. Believe me, the further you go on your influence journey – the more upper limits you will encounter and the better the tools you learn to employ.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code https://bit.ly/3djTTps
Zoe’s book Influence Is Your Superpower
Influence Insights Newsletter

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Erik Qualman on standing out, The Focus Project and the (not so) simple art of doing less

Tue, 21 Feb 2023 19:00:48 GMT

What’s holding you back from focus right now?

Most of us started this year with (hopefully) some clarity on what we want to set in motion. Goals we want to kick, freedom we want to create, impact and influence we want to build.

Yet what if I told you that the key to achieving any of those intentions was a commitment to doing less rather than more?

My guest today is the King of getting maximum impact, with minimum distraction.

Today’s Guest

Erik Qualman is a 5 time #1 Bestselling Author and speaker, having performed in over 55 countries and reached over 50 million people. His books ‘Socialnomic: How social media transforms the way we live and do business’, ‘Digital Leader – Five simple keys to success and influence’ and his latest ‘The Focus Project – The not so simple art of doing less’ have been on the CEO lists of must-reads for over a decade.

Erik’s work first caught my attention a few years ago. When a video he created seemed like it was being played on loop by every influencer, industry expert and CEO I knew. Literally every conference I attended or spoke at - Erik’s video was played from the stage.

That video was ‘Socialnomics’, a video trailer for what would become his bestselling book of the same name.

It was a two minute visual feast detailing everything you need to know, and couldn’t have imagined, about the rise of social media. If you haven’t seen it, or want to see a book trailer that literally created a global best seller, check it out here.

So, needless to say, I’ve wanted to dive into Erik’s brain for awhile.

Twitter, Instagram and Tik Tok: @equalman

You’ll Learn

How Erik created ‘Socialnomics’ and the keys to using content for massive cut through.
The story behind Erik’s legendary lime green glasses and why stepping through your story, rather than avoiding it, is the most powerful thing you can do to stand out.
Why Erik wrote ‘The Focus Project’ as the ‘anti-venom’ to his first book. A journey that began when he noticed his own inability to focus into a world of digital distraction.
What’s on Erik’s ‘Not To Do’ list right now – and how you can learn way more from learning what someone is committed not to doing, than what they’re hoping to attempt.
Finally, the advice he gives his own children about how to manage their focus and make a mark, in a world of never ending distraction.

The biggest piece of gold I got out of this conversation was a question I have since shared with many people in my inner circle who are trying to focus:

“What’s the ONE thing that if I do it well will make everything else easier or not necessary?”

Answer that question, then focus like your life depends on it.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
https://equalman.com/the-focus-project/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Christine McKay - Why not ask? How to negotiate and get more without the battle

Wed, 15 Feb 2023 02:21:17 GMT

How do you feel about the word negotiation?

When most people hear the term negotiation, they usually think of tense conversations, fighting for what you deserve and a battlefield mindset.

Yet what if that whole concept – that of thinking about negotiation as a form of combat – meant you never actually get what you want?

What if treating it as a zero sum game, with one winner and one loser, prevented the most valuable outcomes from ever even being discussed?

My guest today believes negotiation is the opposite of combat.

Today’s Guest

Christine McKay is the Founder and CEO of Venn Negotiation, a company through which she turns clients into world-class negotiators.

As a powerhouse negotiator Christine has worked with roughly half of the Fortune 500 companies on the planet, negotiated billions of dollars worth of deals – more often than not from what was presumed to be the weaker side of the table.

She is also the author of ‘Why Not Ask?: A Conversation About Getting More.’ A step by step guide to no longer giving up on what you really want, simply because you don’t know how to ask for it.

However, incredibly, that resume isn’t the most amazing thing about Christine.

For that you need to rewind a couple of decades. To when Christine was a homeless single mother living in a trailer and surviving on welfare.

How she went from that situation, to eventually earning an MBA at Harvard University, then onto one of the most globally sought negotiators in the world – is a story that will blow your mind.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinemckay/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mckaymch

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mckaymch/

You’ll Learn

Her journey from a homeless single mother to globally sought-after negotiator
The key mistakes people make in the negotiation process and how to avoid them
Why you can’t negotiate by talking about the past – only about the present.
The unbelievable power of creating your own advisory board.
Why ‘no’ is always the most powerful word in any negotiation.
Finally, why you need to know your values, before you start negotiating your value.

References and links mentioned

https://whynotaskbook.com/
Christine offers a course that gives people the basics for business negotiation and how to effectively negotiate to get more of what you want in her VennMasters Level 1 course.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cody Keenan - Obama's speech writer and ten days in the battle for America

Wed, 01 Feb 2023 19:00:51 GMT

Now, here's today's question. If you had to pick the most pivotal 10 days of your career, what would they be?

Ten days that, either looking back or in the moment, felt like everything had been leading you to this point. Perhaps it was the lead-up to a landmark decision, a moment in the spotlight to either make an impact or publicly fall short, or a crisis you could have never foreseen.

These are the moments that usually decide who we become as leaders, communicators, and influencers.

A few years ago, I had the genuine pleasure of interviewing someone whose work and career I have admired for a very long time. That person is Cody Keenan, chief speechwriter for President Barack Obama. We talked about the structure of a powerful speech, and what it really takes to forget the critics and show up as a fearless communicator. If you haven't already, you can follow the link at the end of these show notes.

At the end of that conversation, Cody mentioned he was writing a book about his experiences in the White House. I asked him to let me know when you're ready to talk about it. Two years and one pandemic later, here we are.

His new book, ‘Grace: Ten Days in The Battle for America,’ arrived on my doorstep and instantly became a NYT best-seller. Grace covers 10 pivotal days during June of 2015, when President Obama and Cody had to compose a series of speeches, to meet a succession of stunning developments in American history. These included a white supremacist shooting, an astonishing act of forgiveness, a national reckoning with race and the confederate flag, the fate of marriage equality, and a vital decision on the Affordable Care Act.

How do you find the words to describe a time where there are no words? In this episode we dive into his 10 day journey in doing exactly that.

Today’s Guest

Cody is a professional speechwriter who, as Director of Speech Writing for President Obama – has written or edited more than 2,000 speeches for his boss. Including the historical March 2015 speech, when Obama spoke in Selma, Alabama marking 50 years since “Bloody Sunday”. Most recently he has become a New York Times Bestselling author for his book ‘Grace: Ten Days in The Battle for America’.

Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn: @codykeenan

You’ll Learn

Cody’s hopes and fears for the next generation of communicators.
How to move past those moments where you are frozen, staring at a blank page and feeling like an imposter.
And finally, the difference between taking a half swing and a full swing as a communicator.

A loving warning, this conversation discusses both the act and details of mass shootings on American soil. As you'll hear, this conversation also heartbreakingly took place just days after the Colorado Springs shooting on November 19th, 2022, a fact that was very much on everybody's heart during this recording. Please do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself and any ears that may be listening.

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

My first interview Cody Keenan – Finding your voice as a leader

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POWERCUT: Julia Dhar - the lost art of constructive conversations

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 19:00:26 GMT

We are coming to the end of another eventful year, another 12 month bundle of opportunities, challenges, plenty of highlights and some definite unforeseen low lights. Hopefully you are about to embark on a well-deserved break. This is exactly what the inside influence team and myself will be doing. So over the next few weeks we are going to be taking a festive step back to rest up, recalibrate and re-inspire ourselves for 2022. However, if you need some inspiration to get you thinking and planning for next year, we have you covered. Our holiday season of power cuts or power minis are back. Our final power cut episode is with Julia Dhar.

Julia Dhar is a Managing Director and Partner at the Boston Consulting Group and the founder of BeSmart, BCG's behavioral economics and behavioral insights initiative.

Julia's mission is to enable leaders in government and the private sector to apply the science of behavior change across a range of social services and topics, including economic development, finance, education, criminal justice and welfare.

Her two TED talks on how to have constructive conversations have had at last count over 10 million views. She was also world school debate champion three times.

So it’s safe to say she knows a fair amount about crafting a successful argument.

However, what drew me to Julia wasn’t her ability to persuade – although as you’ll hear she is very persuasive - but instead the vision she’s dedicated the rest of her life and career to driving – how as Nations, teams and families - we can start to disagree more productively.

In this conversation we dive into:

The importance of respectful listening and how to construct the rules of respectful listening.
Why every conversation should start with ‘shared reality’ – an idea or intention you can all agree upon.
And finally… THE most beautiful and game changing question I have heard in a very long time - “What can you share that will help me see what you see?”

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Julia Dhar please head over to my website juliemasters.com or listen at all the usual places #itunes #spotify #googleplay #stitcher.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with Julia Dhar.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

POWERCUT: Colin Boyd - how to convert attention into action every time

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 19:00:35 GMT

Colin Boyd is obsessed with helping experts and entrepreneurs present in a way that creates action -– or sell from stage - in a non pushy or sleazy way.

He keynotes at conferences around the world on topics such as persuasive communication and selling ideas, clients include Coca Cola, Suncorp, Fuji Xero, and Hewlett Packard.

He runs high-level mastermind programs for speakers and content creators. And delivers his signature program Sell From Stage Academy® which helps people turn every presentation into a conversion machine.

In this conversation we cover A LOT of practical ground, including:

Why identifying and learning to tell your signature story is the fastest route to creating action – for anyone, anywhere, on any topic.
The biggest mistakes people make when it comes to telling their signature story and how to avoid them. Hint here… this is not your origin story.

Colin has literally dedicated his whole career and business to decoding the stories that work - and more importantly – compel people to take action.

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Colin Boyd please head over to my website juliemasters.com or listen at all the usual places #itunes #spotify #googleplay #stitcher.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy this powercut conversation with Colin Boyd.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

POWERCUT: Elizabeth Lesser - how to turn to face what needs to change

Tue, 10 Jan 2023 19:00:01 GMT

Every so often with this podcast, I get the pleasure of speaking to someone that’s had a huge influence on my own life - and so it is with today's guest.

Elizabeth Lesser is the author of several bestselling books, including Her New York Times bestselling book, Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow, has sold almost 500,000 copies and has been translated into 20 languages. She is the co-founder of Omega Institute, recognized internationally for its workshops and conferences in wellness, spirituality, creativity, and social change. She is also the creator of two amazing TED talks on civility, understanding and the power of truth telling. As well as being one of Oprah Winfrey’s Super Soul 100, a collection of a hundred leaders who are using their voices and talent to elevate humanity.

Elizabeth is also the person whose work I turn to during times in my life where I’m not sure where to turn. When I don’t want to be inspired, or motivated, or told to dig in and dial up the hustle - but just to know that it’s enough. Enough to show up, enough to take the next breath, enough to trust that the most transformational moments in our lives always happen when we step into the gap – the gap between what’s burning away - and what’s trying to emerge.

Which is why I was so thrilled to finally have her on the show.

In this conversation we dive into:-

The difference between breaking down and breaking open – and why staying awake as we fall holds the key.
The Phoenix process – how to stand in the fire of what’s burning away, while trusting that you will rise again.

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Elizabeth Lesser please head over to my website juliemasters.com or listen at all the usual places #itunes #spotify #googleplay #stitcher.

For now, sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with the woman whose books and wisdom I have shared more than any other - the incredible Elizabeth Lesser.

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POWERCUT: Doug Conant - building a leadership roadmap that's as unique as you are

Tue, 03 Jan 2023 19:00:14 GMT

Doug Conant is the only former Fortune 500 CEO who is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling author, a Top 50 Leadership Innovator, a Top 100 Leadership Speaker, and one of the 100 Most Influential Authors in the World.

A devoted leadership practitioner and teacher, Doug’s 45-year career has been defined by achieving high performance through an intentional commitment to studying, practicing, improving, and spreading the tenets of “leadership that works.”

He is Founder and CEO of ConantLeadership, former President and CEO of Campbell Soup Company and former Chairman of Avon Products. His Wall Street Journal bestselling book, co-authored with Amy Federman, is called ‘The Blueprint: 6 Practical Steps to Lift Your Leadership to New Heights’. He is also the New York Times bestselling co-author of ‘TouchPoints: Creating Powerful Leadership Connections in the Smallest of Moments’.

In this conversation we dive into:

How to build your own personal leadership model. To be honest I was a bit stunned with this one, it just hadn’t occurred to me that you could create your own - read one in a book ‘yes’, inherit one from a mentor ‘yes’ - but write your own? Put it on paper and then commit to showing up for it? That’s a different ball game.
And why developing your own leadership blueprint provides the ultimate foundation for dealing with the winds of your life. As a leader AND as a human being.

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Doug Conant please head over to my website juliemasters.com or listen at all the usual places #itunes #spotify #googleplay #stitcher.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with Doug Conant.

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POWERCUT: Leslie Ehm - how to unleash everything you are and get everything you want

Tue, 27 Dec 2022 19:00:25 GMT

Leslie Ehm is a former TV host and advertising Creative Director turned training guru. Having spent decades travelling the globe with her award- winning company Combustion, working with executives and teams from top organizations like Google, Disney, Pepsico, TD Bank, Uber, and more. Seriously the list may as well be the entire Fortune 500.

She’s turned technologists into creative forces, bankers into storytellers, and has brought a serious dose of badassery to boardrooms everywhere.

Her latest book Swagger – Unleash Everything You Are and Become Everything You Want is a Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Amazon #1 bestseller. To quote her website she’s been called “better than therapy,” “a rock star,” “ass-kicking,” “a force of nature” and even “a witch.” So basically… my kinda woman.

In this conversation we dive into:

What faking it until you make it is the opposite of what works – especially if you want to end up being a magnetic and technicolor version of yourself – and not someone else
The main SWAGGER BLOCKS that most of us have when it comes to speaking up and standing out.
Why a huge part of swagger is owning our stories – especially the uncomfortable ones, the ones we fear make us look like a failure in some aspect of our lives.

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Leslie Ehm please head over to my website juliemasters.com or listen at all the usual places #itunes #spotify #googleplay #stitcher.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with Leslie Ehm.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

POWERCUT: Michael Port - how to make the leap from expert to visionary

Tue, 20 Dec 2022 19:00:24 GMT

Michael Port is a NY Times, Wall Street Journal bestselling author, TED speaker and Co-Founder & CEO of Heroic Public Speaking.

Over the last two decades, Michael has written eight books that have made it onto the bestseller lists of the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today – including… ‘Steal the Show,’ ‘Book Yourself Solid’ and ‘The Referable Speaker.’

Not too bad for someone who was told by his fourth grade teacher that he had the worst spelling she’d seen in 25 years of teaching.

Over that time, and together with his wife and co-founder, Amy Port he has also built Heroic Public Speaking Worldwide. Offering the most complete (and effective) speaker training in the world. All centered around teaching speakers what actors have always known – how to craft an authentic performance during presentations, pitches and lifes high stakes moments.

Clients include CEOs and founders, Admirals, Navy Seals, and FBI agents, Olympians, politicians (but apparently only the nice ones), bestselling authors and leaders of global movements.

Sometimes a guest comes onto the podcast and you just know you’re in for one helluva ride – this conversation was one of those. In it we dived into…

Speech structure and the 5 foundational elements to a speech
Why ‘winging it’ never works when it comes to impactful communication or presentations - and why the best communicators focus first on figuring out their ‘big promise’ and working backwards from there.

If you enjoy this powercut episode and would like to hear my full conversation with Michael Port please head over to my website juliemasters.com or listen at all the usual places #itunes #spotify #googleplay #stitcher.

For now sit back, relax and enjoy my powercut conversation with Michael Port.

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The Great Reset - Julie reflects on 2022, her sabbatical and what makes a great interview

Tue, 13 Dec 2022 18:30:12 GMT

Today's episode is a little bit different to normal programming. Today's episode is just me. When we were thinking about how we wanted to finish this year, the Inside Influence Team and I were trying to figure out what's the best way to wrap up 2022. We came to the conclusion that just putting all the lessons into one bowl and offering them up is probably the best and the most generous and honest thing that we can do.

What a year it has been. We hit 150 episodes this year! How is that even possible? And there have been so many brilliant minds and brilliant insights. It's hard to know what to do with all of that information. It's hard to know how to process it sometimes. And so the intention of today is really just to unpack a few of the lessons from 2022, some of the things that I have learned, both the easy way and of course, the unnecessarily hard way. Including why I took an eight-week sabbatical this year, what I did, what I learned, and how it's changed how I show up, both within this podcast and in all other areas of my life and existence.

Also, in this episode I am going to be answering a couple of questions. One that I get asked all the time, imposter syndrome, please raise your hand. We are going to be talking about you. And one that was emailed through just recently about how I prepare and try to craft a great interview. We get sent a lot of questions and we love every single one of them. They become the basis for how we plan the podcast, the guests that we choose, the content that we put out. Some of your questions have become the basis of presentations I give out there in the world. And so I appreciate every single last one that you send through. Please in 2023, keep those questions coming, but for now sit back relax and listen to reflections of 2022.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Bobette Buster - How to tell your story so the world listens

Tue, 29 Nov 2022 19:00:30 GMT

Why are stories so important?

I talk a lot about storytelling on this podcast, but let’s for a second explore the word itself.

I like to think about stories as gifts. In telling our stories we take a moment from our own experience, we wrap it up the best way we know how, and then we hand it to someone else with a handwritten card that says:

“Let’s unwrap this slowly together. I want you to feel my intention, I want you to understand why I’m giving this to you, I want you to experience something important to me, something I hope might become important to you.Please don’t throw it away or unwrap it so fast that you miss the layers. Don’t open it when you’re preoccupied or half paying attention. This is a part of me you now hold in your hands. Treat it with care.”

That is the preciousness of our stories. It’s also why when we learn how to tell them (how to wrap them) as powerfully as possible, they become one of our greatest assets.

Which will explain why, when I came across a book entitled: ‘How to tell your story so the world listens’, I immediately fell in love with its author.

Today’s Guest

Bobette Buster is an acclaimed lecturer, award-winning producer and author, whose workshops are sought after by top media companies and corporations alike, from Disney/Pixar, Sony, the BBC, Google and SoulCycle.

Her ground-breaking philosophy and process give people the ability to uncover and tell their own stories. Her unique ability to crack into the heart of story, has been transforming the way individuals, entrepreneurs and companies tell their own stories for well over two decades.

Named as “Hollywood's Best Kept Secret” by 21st Century Fox Studios. She is also the author of ‘How to tell your story so the world listens’.

Instagram & Facebook: bobette.buster

Twitter: bobettebuster

You’ll Learn

Why stories are so fundamental to the fabric of our lives. How they act as a map for the wilderness and a prescription for courage.
Why Pixar, Disney and other major studios spend $1 billion a year on the quest for unique stories – and exactly what they are looking for.
The difference between Storyreceiving and Storytelling and why “Being heard is so close to being loved it is almost indistinguishable”.
Finally, the ripple effect of the ordinary. Why the most powerful stories we own are often overlooked and how trust in the power of your own experience.

For me, as usual, this conversation didn’t go where I expected. I had prepared for an interview around the ‘words’ of storytelling. The structure of how to tell a story so people will be compelled to listen.

Instead, this conversation reminded me about the sacredness, rather than just the strategy, of storytelling as a tool for connection.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
YouTube Video Link: https://youtu.be/gE18wH9_e6U

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Gay Hendricks - The Big Leap - Finding Your Zone of Genius

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 18:30:33 GMT

Every so often I speak to someone that has changed things so fundamentally for me, that I can literally mark it as a day in the calendar.

Today is one of those conversations.

It all started a few years ago when a book arrived through the post from two people I respect very deeply.

So I did what you would expect. I put it on my bookshelf and ignored it for six months.

When I did finally pull it down to read, true to prediction, it was as if that book had been written for me.

That book was called ‘The Big Leap’ by my guest today Gay Hendricks.

The Big Leap basically describes a phenomenon known as The Upper Limit Problem. Where we all have a limit on how much success and love we’re willing to let into our lives - kind of like an inner thermostat setting.

Exceed the limit and we start to self sabotage, burn out, play small and create situations that make us unable to move from our Zone of Competence (where we are comfortable but unfulfilled) into our Zone of Genius (the truest and most powerful expression of who you).

So I made a commitment. I would read The Big Leap every morning for 15 minutes and continue to do so until I felt a shift in my own upper limits.

Did things change immediately? No.

Did I start to feel my grip and attachment to the limitations I had set on my own existence slowly begin to loosen? Yes.

Has it fundamentally changed how I monitor and continually reset my own internal thermostat for the level at which I show up? Absolutely.

Today’s Guest

Gay Hendricks has been a leader in the fields of relationship transformation and body-mind therapies for more than 45 years. After earning his Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Stanford, he served as a professor of Counseling Psychology at the University of Colorado for over 21 years.

In that time he has written more than 40 books, including bestsellers such as Five Wishes, The Big Leap and Conscious Living (another book I wholeheartedly recommend) all of which are now used as primary texts in universities around the world.

Gay conducts seminars worldwide and has appeared on more than 500 radio and television shows, including OPRAH, CNN, CNBC and many, many others.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GayHendricks

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hendricks.gay/

You’ll Learn

The Upper Limit Problem – what it is, how it works and the 4 hidden barriers that trigger it.
The Zone of Excellence vs. the Zone of Genius
The concept of ‘Ally Thinking’
The difference between being a ‘victim’ of time vs. the ‘source’ of time.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code
www.foundationforconsciousliving.org

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Devin Marks - Decoding the breakaway TED Talk: How to create an idea worth sharing

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 19:00:00 GMT

What makes a breakaway TED Talk?

If there’s one phenomenon in the world of storytelling that’s been impossible to ignore over the last decade. It’s this one. The TED Talk.

Sometimes inspiring, often igniting, potentially career defining - think Simon Sinek, Brene Brown and Amy Cuddy. The TED Talk has become a launching ground for more thought leaders and breakaway ideas than any other platform.

It also completely rewrote the rules around storytelling.

Think you need one hour to make your point? Think again.

Think you need 60 slides to make an impact? Think again.

Think you can’t change the hearts and minds of millions of people across the globe in under 10 minutes? Think again.

To prove that point TED videos get over 3 billion views annually. That’s not including views of their videos on Youtube or other social media platforms. The most popular TED Talk of ALL time is by the legendary Sir Ken Robinson – which to date has topped 72 million views and counting.

However, for me the rise of TED created another interesting question.

My guest today is behind some of the most viewed talks in TED history.

Devin Marks is the nation’s leading TED and TED-style speaking coach. Devin founded the nation’s first virtual TED talk coaching firm. He developed his methodology by researching exactly why TED talks and TEDx conferences were so popular. The result was a science-based framework that unpacks the astounding success of leading talks.

His clients range from CEOs and technologists to best-selling authors, veterans and thought leaders — including Dr. Robert Waldinger, a Harvard researcher who delivered one of the most viral TED talks in history. Entitled ‘What Makes a Good Life?’ Since its release in 2015 it’s now in the TED Top 10 with 40 million views and counting.

Collectively the spread-worthy ideas of Devin’s clients have been viewed by 100s-of-millions of people. He’s also just an absolutely incredible human.

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/thetedtalkwhisperer/

You’ll Learn

How to find and refine your breakthrough idea - the one sentence that will make us stand up and pay attention.
The six elements of a ‘sticky story’. Including why using ‘texture’ (language that relates to all five senses) in our storytelling holds the key to lifting from interesting – to captivating.
The concept of ‘winnable wins’ - why we should never ask for the big change, or the big action when presenting – but instead for an easily achievable first step.
The advice he gives his clients on beating imposter syndrome.

References and links mentioned

Devin is offering listeners the top 3 insights for captivating your online viewers. Simply follow the link https://bit.ly/3TWzJ5u

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Jessica Jackley

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Emily McDowell - Standing in the unknown and showing up when it's hard

Tue, 18 Oct 2022 19:00:00 GMT

What do you say when you don’t know what to say?

So much of influence is sold as having the right words, at the right time.

Words that get the outcome you want. Words that match your intention – words that result in exactly how you want the other party to feel.

Words that, hopefully, support everyone in reaching a better outcome.

And that’s definitely a big part of it.

However, where that doesn’t help, is in those situations where there are no words.

Or at least not good ones.

Where even trying to find the right words, feels like an insult to the magnitude of what’s happening.

Recently I’ve found myself in quite frankly, too many of those moments.

Moments of navigating sickness, loss and grief. Where not only can nothing I say make it any better – but everything I can think of to say, feels at the same time irrelevant, small and just plain useless.

However, ironically, those are the moments we need to show up the most.

So what do you say when words aren’t enough?

My guest today is someone whose work I have returned to time and time again - in moments of life where the complexity of ‘what’ I want to say far outstrips my ability to articulate it.

One of my favourite parts of this podcast is bringing you guests whose work I genuinely share with the people closest in my world.

Emily McDowell is a writer, illustrator, speaker, teacher, entrepreneur, founder and creative director of Em & Friends. A company she began after her own cancer diagnosis, when it became clear that most sympathy cards don’t reflect the relationships and complex emotions people REALLY have. The ones that are messy, beautiful, tricky, conflicting, and a whole bunch of everything in between.

In 2015, Emily was named one of Slate’s 10 Designers Who are Changing the World. In her own words she uses her unique breed of insight, design and humor to bring words to some of the most complicated moments of our life.

Her first book, ‘There Is No Good Card For This: What To Say and Do When Life Gets Scary, Awful, and Unfair To People You Love’, co-authored with Dr. Kelsey Crowe, should be required reading for anyone in relationship with another human being.

More than anything else Emily embodies the phrase: ‘Showing up when it's hard’.

Instagram: @emilyonlife

You’ll Learn

What to say when you don’t know what to say – and the power of truly showing up for someone in their darkest of times.
How to sit between ‘what was’ and ‘what’s next’
Why she recently quit social media (despite a following in the hundreds of thousands). Including the conflict we both feel about the impact social media has on the world, and our contribution as people who use it to share their ideas.

References and links mentioned

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Jon Levy - You're invited: The art of influence, connection and belonging

Tue, 04 Oct 2022 19:00:00 GMT

How influential is your personal network?

You know I love a multi-layered question and this one comes in two parts.

Firstly, how well does your current network, the current galaxy of people you orbit around (and who orbit around you) reflect the habits, influence, achievements you want to create?

Secondly – and here’s where it gets interesting – how much of an impact does your current network have on you and those around you. Including people who will never meet?

If there’s one thing that most researchers agree upon it's this: your level of influence is in direct correlation to who you are connected to.

Which is fine as a base line, however dig under the surface and it raises more questions than it answers.

How big does that network need to be? Who needs to be in it and – in a day and age where we all collect more connections than we know what to do with – what does connection even mean?

When I started diving into these questions, they all pointed me in one direction.

Today’s Guest

Jon Levy is a social researcher, best selling author, TED talker and (probably best known) founder of the Influencers Dinner—an exclusive dining experience created in 2009, which brings industry leaders ranging from Nobel laureates to Olympians, Emmy award winners, musician, politician and even members of the royal family - to celebrities together to cook and share a meal. In his words…

Levy shares his approach to making connections in his new best selling book, You’re Invited: The Art and Science of Cultivating Influence. The book breaks down his “Influence Equation”—how to build belonging and trust to create a high impact community.

Instagram and Twitter: @JonLevyTLB

You’ll Learn

Why influence and behavior is contagious – including the influence our network has on everything from our results to our longevity..
How the rituals within our communities and families become the cornerstones we orbit around - and the importance of consciously creating them..
Finally, why everyone, especially those at the top of their game, feel like they don’t fit in – and how to create spaces for deep and powerful connections.

References and links mentioned

Jon’s NY Times bestseller You're Invited: The Art & Science of Connection, Trust, and Belonging
Jon’s TED Talk

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! Please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show and leave a review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Holly Ransom - Living at the leading edge: How to lead when it counts and start before you're ready

Tue, 20 Sep 2022 23:02:11 GMT

Today's question is a big one for many of us this year, as we emerge from let's call it an ‘intense’ period of time – and into a new work and life landscape that’s being written as we live it.

So here’s today’s question – how do you lead from the edge?

I love this question because it has so many layers to it.

How do you lead from the edge of new terrain, where the opportunities are huge but the ‘how’ just feels messier than ever?

How do you lead in a new world of work, where the rules around how we work, where we work, whether we work at all – have irreversibly changed.

And, the conversation that I’m hearing a lot behind closed doors at the moment – how do you lead from your own edge? When your tank feels empty and there’s no space to exhale.

Today’s Guest

Holly Ransom is one of Australia’s 100 Most Influential Women according to the Australian Financial Review. She has delivered a Peace Charter to the Dalai Lama, was Sir Richard Branson’s nominee for Wired Magazine’s ‘Future Game Changers to watch’ and was awarded the US Embassy’s Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Leadership Excellence.

Having interviewed the likes of Barack Obama, Malcolm Gladwell, Richard Branson, Billie Jean-King, Condoleezza Rice, Nobel Prize Winner Muhammad Yunus and the world’s first humanoid robot Sophia (true fact) - Holly fights complexity with curiosity and fear with fact.

Her latest best-selling book The Leading Edge, helps people harness their own potential to lead by asking better questions, thinking beyond traditional answers and building collective momentum for change.

It is – in short – A MUST READ for any leader.

I first came across Holly’s work a few years ago, since then I have watched with growing admiration as her career and influence exploded.

It was while talking to a friend that she ended the conversation with: ‘Have you ever met Holly Ransom?’ to which I replied: ‘No, but I can tell you she will be the next Prime Minister of Australia’.

Having both agreed on that prediction, we were introduced and the rest as they say is history.

LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3BnwWdE

Instagram: https://bit.ly/3eTDVDs

You’ll Learn

Holly’s experience with the challenge of moving beyond the feeling of wanting to lead - to the practical actions of leadership. Including why most books on leadership still fail the ‘implementation challenge’.
How as leaders it is our ‘relationship to stress that’s the problem, not stress itself’. This one really hit me. That stress itself is agnostic – the question being more whether the stress we’re experiencing is healthy (made up of stretch and challenge) or toxic (made up of fear and a sense of powerlessness).
The concept of managing energy not time – and why this is a flip that every iconic leader (and let's face it parent) has to learn how to make.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast, please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Jeff Immelt - The Hotseat: Leading GE through controversy and crisis

Tue, 06 Sep 2022 20:00:34 GMT

What does it take to face your critics?

I mean squarely, unflinchingly – with full self-responsibility. However, and this part is all important, still willing to defend yourself when it counts?

Responsibility is an interesting word. I always understood it to mean ‘the ability to respond’. Taking full ownership of the fact that, while you may not always be able to control WHAT happens – you are always able to control what you do next.

As a place to begin, I think it’s a good one.

However, what we don’t often talk about is moments where – the stakes are sky high, the information is ever changing – and there are only bad options on the table.

That, as my next guest would say, is leadership in the hot seat.

Now imagine you’re new to the reins of one of the world’s most respected brands, have woken up to a Global tragedy that implodes a huge proportion of your revenue, an out of control 24 hour news cycle, all eyes on you – and the legacy of the company now rests in your hands.

Today’s Guest

Jeff was the 9th Chairman of GE and served as CEO for 16 years. He has been named one of the “World’s Best CEOs” three times by Barron’s. During his tenure as CEO, GE was named “America’s Most Admired Company” by Fortune magazine and one of “The World’s Most Respected Companies” in polls by Barron’s and the Financial Times. He has received fifteen honorary degrees and numerous awards for business leadership and chaired the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness under the Obama administration.

He is now also the author of ‘HOT SEAT’, a memoir on leadership in times of crisis.

A book that grabbed my attention with one of it’s opening lines… “My legacy as the CEO of GE was at best ‘controversial”.

Now, if you take any time to read the press coverage of Jeff’s tenure as CEO of GE, having taken over the reins from the legendary Jack Welch in 2001. Along with accolades you might also read words like ‘tumultuous’, ‘misguided’ or at worst ‘a disaster’.

Yet, what you might not read, is that during those 16 years, GE generated more earnings and cash flow than the previous 110 years combined.

You’ll Learn

The three voices that every leader must master in order to effectively drive change.
Why the role of any leader during – and after – a crisis is to learn how to ‘absorb the fear’ of their teams.
Why it’s so much easier to talk about our successes than our failures, especially if there was no great hero’s triumph at the end.

References and links mentioned

Jeff’s new book ‘HOT SEAT’ https://bit.ly/3qfGlig

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information in my conversations and interviews have helped you in your journey, please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Your reviews and feedback will not only help us continue to deliver great, helpful content, but it will also help us reach even more amazing people just like you!

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website https://bit.ly/3dcRsoF download my new ebook https://bit.ly/3djTTps and sign up to my weekly newsletter https://bit.ly/3vRZWYX

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Vanessa Bohns - You have more influence than you think: How to get to yes and learn to say no

Tue, 23 Aug 2022 20:00:00 GMT

Have you ever felt invisible or inarticulate - especially when it comes to asking for what you want?

Given the sheer volume of books in bookstores right now on the subject of influence - how to get more, how to get people to do what you want, how to speak up. You could be forgiven for thinking that we are hopelessly lacking in power.

Yet, what if instead of a lack of knowledge, we actually have a lack of awareness about the real power of our words, actions and presence when it comes to influencing the actions of other people.

Basically, in the words of my guest today, what if we all have tons more influence than we think?

Whether attending a meeting, sharing a post online, or mustering up the nerve to ask for a pay rise, the research shows that we tend to assume that our actions and requests are going to be declined, or at least that we will have to convince, persuade, or metaphorically drag people across the line to join us.

The truth according to today’s guest could not be further from that. In fact the research that people are always TWICE as likely to agree to your request than you believe. Twice as likely!

Unless, of course, you loose the opportunity by not asking directly for what you want.

Today’s Guest

Vanessa Bohns is a social psychologist and professor of organizational behavior at Cornell University. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, First company, list goes on. Her first book, You Have More Influence Than You Think, offers science based strategies for observing the effect we have on other people, reconsidering our fear of rejection, and even sometimes pulling back to use our influence less. It's I would say, essentially a call to stop searching for ways to gain influence, get more influence than you have, and to start recognizing the influence that you already have and get smarter about using it.

Instagram @profbohns

Twitter: @profbohns

You’ll Learn

The distinction between consent and compliance - and why that’s essentially for using your influencing powers for good and not evil.
Why people are predictably and reliably always twice as likely to say yes to your requests than you think they are.
Why so many people say yes when they actually mean no - and how to tell the difference.
Practical ways to ask for what you want that stack the odds of a yes even further in your favor.

What really stuck with me was how difficult we find the word no. Both saying it, but also creating the environments or relationships where we are likely to hear it.

How different would our lives be if we believed Vanessa's words that: "Saying no is a complete sentence."

What if the people around us knew that they could 100% trust our ‘yes’ because they could also 100% trust the clarity and the conviction of our ‘no’.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website https://bit.ly/3dcRsoF download my new ebook https://bit.ly/3djTTps and sign up to my weekly newsletter https://bit.ly/3vRZWYX

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Nathan Chan - The Foundr journey: Passion, momentum and creating your own MBA

Wed, 10 Aug 2022 00:30:59 GMT

If I asked you to create your own MBA – specifically tailored to you and your life, goals, challenges and questions – what would be in it? What would the modules be?

Next question, who would teach it? If you could choose any name on the planet, who would you want to learn from and what questions would you ask?

Then the final question – once you have those answers - what would you do next?

For my guest today – his journey into these questions began one morning alone on a train in Melbourne, traveling to a job he disliked, as part of a life in which to use his own words, he hadn’t really achieved much.

The answers he received, however, led him to go on to create one of the most successful digital magazines on the planet. An empire that has so far helped millions of entrepreneurs across the world to have the life, impact and business of their dreams.

What he learned along the way? Well that’s an MBA money can’t buy.

Today’s Guest

Nathan Chan is the Founder of Foundr, a magazine he launched back in 2013 with “nothing but a laptop and a fistful of dollars.” Driven by a frustration with the lack of quality actionable content for entrepreneurs and founders.

Fast-forward to the present, Foundr now connects millions of people every month with some of the most successful living entrepreneurs of our generation. Magazine and interviews include Richard Branson, Tony Robbins, Arianna Huffington, Mark Cuban, Tim Ferriss, Peter Diamandis, Bobbi Brown, and many more.

Nathan's mission and the mission of Foundr is to break down the strategies and experiences of successful entrepreneurs on the planet into actionable, battle-tested content and courses so that ANYONE can make the impact they want in the world.

Facebook: @foundr

Twitter: @foundr

Instagram: @foundr

You’ll learn

Why we are all Founders - Founders of our ideas, teams, business or movements.
How to build a ‘waitlist’ of people wanting to work with you. This is a total flip on the current idea of recruitment and ‘the war for talent’.
How Foundr went from ‘zero’ to nearly a million engaged Instagram followers in literally the blink of an eye.
Plus Nathan’s recent journey into ‘burn out during the pandemic - and what he did (and continues to do) to reconnect and recommit to fuelling his own fire first.

What questions do you have? Where does your curiosity naturally lead you? Find that space – and that’s an MBA worth pursuing.

References and links mentioned

Nathan is offering listeners two free trainings. Simply follow the links: https://bit.ly/3QxLGMV and https://bit.ly/3P9hQ01

Subscribe to and review Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website https://bit.ly/3dcRsoF download my new ebook https://bit.ly/3djTTps and sign up to my weekly newsletter https://bit.ly/3vRZWYX

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Nancy Duarte - Resonate: The secret structure of great presentations

Tue, 26 Jul 2022 20:00:41 GMT

Hey everyone - the Inside Influence team and I are taking an eight week sabbatical this winter (or summer if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere) to generally reset, recalibrate and refill our creative tanks.

For many of us, myself included, that means traveling across the world to see family members where it’s been far too long between hugs.

To keep you fueled while we’re gone, we’ve traveled back through the archives and pulled out four of our favorite Inside Influence episodes of all time. I can also hand on heart say that each of these has, in some way, radically changed how I show up, lead and influence.

If you're new to the Inside Influence crew, enjoy the ride. If you’re a long-time listener, these are definitely conversations worth listening to twice.

Stay safe and we’ll see you back with a brand new season in August.

Today’s Guest

In this episode I speak with Nancy Duarte – CEO and founder of Silicon Valley’s largest and most successful communications firm, Duarte Inc. Nancy has spent the last 30 years immersed in the world of human storytelling and has been behind the scenes of some of the most compelling speeches – or as she calls them’ impassioned pleas’ – that we’ve ever seen. Including Al Gore’s ‘An Inconvenient Truth’.

She’s worked with the thought leaders of global brands like Apple, Cisco, Facebook, GE, Google, HP, TED, Twitter, the World Bank – I’ll stop now. She’s also a renowned author of ‘Illuminate’, ‘Resonate’ and ‘Slide:ology’. Her TED talk ‘The Secret Structure of Great Talks’ has also been watched over 3 million times.

She’s been the master of the crazy world of presenting since way before speaking was cool, back in the days of projectors and transparencies, where you had to draw your idea onto a sheet of plastic.

You’ll Learn

The one pattern all the world’s greatest speeches have in common
The power of using contrast when building frenzy behind your idea
How to create action on the back of any presentations by ‘illuminating’ a new path
Why we sabotage our own ideas – and how to let the struggle transform us

So, think of this as an absolute masterclass in how to convey an idea in its most potent form. Whether that’s across a boardroom table, a kitchen table, or a lectern to drive serious change.

After this hour, you’ll have the world’s most powerful tools, so now there’s no excuse.

References and links mentioned

my new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chris Voss - How to negotiate like your life depends on it

Tue, 12 Jul 2022 20:00:56 GMT

For many of us, myself included, that means traveling across the world to see family members where it’s been far too long between hugs.

If you're new to the Inside Influence crew, enjoy the ride. If you’re a long time listener, these are definitely conversations worth listening to twice.

Stay safe and we’ll see you back with a brand new season in August.

Today’s Guest

What if I told you that as well as caffeine, chocolate, and your iPhone, you also had a yes addiction? My next guest, Chris Voss was the FBI's lead kidnapping negotiator. And what that means is he had to understand influence at a level and with stakes that you and I can barely imagine. For his 24 year tenure in the FBI, he was trained in the art of negotiation at Scotland Yard, at Harvard Law School. He's also the recipient of the Attorney General's Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement and has taught business negotiation at a number of prestigious universities around the world.

He's the founder and CEO of the Black Swan Group. And he's also the author of Never Split the Difference, which is a book that I genuinely cannot recommend highly enough if negotiating, persuading, or influencing is a part of your daily life, which I can promise you, it is. In our conversation, we jumped into a number of really fascinating conversations. The first of which was how yes is actually the last thing we want to hear, which blew my mind because I had assumed that negotiation was all about getting to a yes. And apparently, not one single hostage negotiation technique is designed to get a yes. What are they designed for? You'll have to listen.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophervoss/

Twitter: @VossNegotiation

You’ll Learn

High stakes conversations: How to prepare your mental state when going into these conversations where literally lives are on the line?
Delivering bad news: how to do it quickly and efficiently and get straight into what's next.
How to kick off a negotiation and how to close it.

This conversation, I think, is by far one of my favorite ones in the podcast so far. Chris has so many years of experience in international crises and high-stakes conversations. And it really showed me again that all the theories and the ideas and the models in the world count for nothing until you have been down on the ground in a high stakes situation and you've really had to put them to the test. I invite you to sit back, listen, take a fascinating peek behind the curtain of what has to have been one of the most interesting careers I've ever heard of. And as a result, take some tools, and in the words of Chris, start negotiating like your life depends on it.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thank you for tuning into this week’s episode. If the information in my interviews have helped you please head to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Brant Pinvidic - The 3 minute rule, how to say less to get more from any pitch

Tue, 21 Jun 2022 20:00:47 GMT

For many of us, myself included, that means traveling across the world to see family members where it’s been far too long between hugs.

If you're new to the Inside Influence crew, enjoy the ride. If you’re a long-time listener, these are definitely conversations worth listening to twice.

Stay safe and we’ll see you back with a brand new season in August.

Today’s Guest

Have you ever been in a situation where you had limited time to pitch an idea? I’ve found myself in this situation more times than I can count so when someone sent me a book recently called ‘The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation’. I was ALL IN.

That book was written by my next guest – Brant Pinvidic – award-winning film director, veteran television producer, keynote speaker, top-rated podcast host (Rob Lowe being one of the most recent guests I tuned into) and columnist for Forbes.

With over 20 years of experience in producing, creating, and directing household TV shows and movies – Brant is widely recognized as one of the great creative leaders in Hollywood. Having given over 100+ successful film and television pitches over his career, Brant learnt that if he didn’t get them in the first three minutes – chances are he wouldn’t get them at all. Taking those business and storytelling lessons he developed a proven blueprint for leaders wanting to position their message with impact.

You’ll Learn

Why three minutes is the key to creating an ultra-concise, ultra-compelling pitch for any idea, product, service or company.
The Fire Alarm Test – If someone pulled the fire alarm after three minutes of your presentation or sales pitch, have you done enough to make people want to come back and hear more?
The four core questions every successful pitch needs to address
Why being passionate about everything – often means you are credible about nothing.
How to close with a hook that guarantees action.
And the difference between situational doubt and self-doubt – in particular why one of those mindsets is self-defeating – and the other is self-preserving.
If now is the time to get others on board with your ideas, product, company or vision – those potentially hold the power to making it happen – then this episode is for you.

References and links mentioned

my new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Frances Frei – Unleashing and repairing trust as a leader

Tue, 14 Jun 2022 20:00:00 GMT

For many of us, myself included, that means traveling across the world to see family members where it’s been far too long between hugs.

If you're new to the Inside Influence crew, enjoy the ride. If you’re a long time listener, these are definitely conversations worth listening to twice.

Stay safe and we’ll see you back with a brand new season in August.

Today’s Guest

Frances Frei is an American academic and author. She is the UPS Foundation Professor of Service Management and Senior Associate Dean for Executive Education at Harvard Business School. She is also the author of the recently released book: ‘Unleashed: The Unapologetic Leaders Guide to Empowering Everyone Around You’.

On top of that, she also leaped into Silicon Valley and became the very first Senior Vice-President for Leadership and Strategy at Uber, brought in at a time when Uber was under fire from pretty much every corner of the planet. Her job description? To try and restore trust at a time when it was at an all-time catastrophic low.

Her first decision in that role says a lot about who she is – committing to wear an Uber T-shirt every day until the people working alongside her were as proud to wear it as she was… but more on that later.

What brought her first into my world was actually her TED talk ‘How to Build and Rebuild Trust’. Where her insightful and – more than anything else – practical views on building trust in a world where it’s in short supply, became the first time I began to view trust as something tangible – that we can all build – quickly and predictably.

You’ll Learn

Unapologetic leadership – what it is, what it looks like and why it has nothing to do with refusing to take responsibility – in fact quite the opposite.
Devotion – yep that word again. If it makes you feel uncomfortable then stick with it. What does it take to be deeply devoted to the ‘wild success’ of another human being? More success than they could possibly achieve on their own. Then – if we can do it once – which we can – how do we take that impact and harness it to create a cascade effect – where it goes on to transform a team, an entire organisation (reference again her time at Uber) or a whole Nation.
The taking and giving of radical responsibility
The Trust Triangle; what the three points of the triangle are, how to achieve them and how to maintain them.

Leadership is hard at the best of times – in the middle of a pandemic, on the edge of a recession, when you’re miles away from those you’re trying to serve and support. I’m not sure it gets much harder. If I took anything from this conversation, it’s the calm and wholehearted way in which Frances approaches the tough stuff. If nothing else, I hope that carries with you into your day.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thank you for tuning into this week’s episode. If the information in my interviews have helped you please head to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Julia Dhar - How to disagree productively: The lost art of constructive conversations

Tue, 31 May 2022 20:00:19 GMT

How good are you at changing your mind? It’s not a question we tend to ask ourselves often.

I once interviewed a political strategist from Washington, who mentioned that practically no resources are spent trying to ‘convert’ voters from one political party to the next. That there was simply no point.

In fact, according to research, when our viewpoints are challenged we usually dig deeper into our position than before.

So that raises the next question - If most of us are terrible at changing our minds, wouldn’t a better focus be to learn how to disagree more productively?

Today's Guest

Julia Dhar is a Managing Director and Partner at the Boston Consulting Group and the founder of BeSmart, BCG's behavioral economics, and behavioral insights initiative.

Julia's mission is to enable leaders in government and the private sector to apply the science of behavior change across a range of social services and topics.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/julia_dhar

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliafetherston/

You’ll Learn

Why how we’ve been taught to talk about our differences is broken.
The importance of separating ideas from identity
And finally… the most beautiful question I have heard in a long time - “What can you share that will help me see what you see?”

In Julia’s words: “We need people with the technical skills of debate and persuasion. Not because we get to be right, but because we get to change people’s minds AND change our own.”

As part of this conversation, you’ll hear her ask me what I’ve changed my mind about recently. Honestly, I haven’t been able to get that question out of my mind since.

It’s easy to believe that we need to take a stance on our viewpoints every chance we get. That we need to be ready to defend our beliefs at a moment's notice, or lest we let the other side win.

I think I’m changing my mind about that.

Which as someone who’s not backwards about coming forwards with my viewpoints, marks a substantial change in my approach.

We know factually that confrontation rarely works. But more than that. What if it also robs us of the ability to discover the ‘shared realities’ where we can meet.

And maybe in doing that, we might change our own minds.

Myself and the team will be taking a break over summer - or in my case the balmy Australian winter. So for the next six weeks we’ve hand picked three of MY all time favorite golden oldie episodes to keep the momentum moving.

We’re also still planning to launch my new virtual program The Influencer Code in the second half of this year, so if you’re not already head to my website and hop on the waitlist to find out more.

References and links mentioned

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Raj Sisodia - The Era of Conscious Capitalism: The power of business to heal the planet

Tue, 17 May 2022 20:00:18 GMT

Have you ever felt alone in seeing a problem?

That feeling, a little bit like the story of the Emperor's new clothes, where everyone else is applauding – but there’s an important truth that no one seems willing to speak.

That’s how my guest today felt, from a very young age, about one of the most influential ideas on the planet.

That one idea is capitalism.

According to the dictionary… Capitalism is defined as “an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit”

Since the birth of the capitalism, approximately 200 years ago, the world’s population living in ‘extreme poverty’ has dropped from 94% to 9.6%.

Yet, what also comes with that idea – the flip side to the capitalist coin – has been argued to be unchecked greed and the treatment of people and the planet as ‘assets’ to be bought and then discarded.

To put it lightly – it’s a pretty powerful idea.

Ray Sisodia was a young man growing up in India when he first came across the impact of capitalism - and to the conclusion that there had to be a better way of doing business than just surviving to chase money.

THAT idea is Conscious Capitalism.

Today’s Guest

Raj Sisodia is a founding member of the worldwide Conscious Capitalism movement, FW Olin Distinguished Professor of Global Business and Whole Foods Market Research Scholar in Conscious Capitalism at Babson College.

He has written eleven award-winning books, including Firms of Endearment, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-seller Conscious Capitalism, Everybody Matters and his latest book ‘The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World’.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajendrasisodia/

Twitter: @RajSisodiaCC

You’ll Learn

The role of the Healing Leader post-COVID
Why part of moving forward consciously involves firstly going backwards.
Why capitalism can still be the greatest idea we’ve ever had and what needs to change in order to move forward.
Raj’s own journey of influence, what he’s learned about creating and sustaining a global movement.

On a personal note, this conversation honestly went NOWHERE I expected.

I arrived with two pages of questions about the future of capitalism and left with a deep appreciation for the humility, grace, and courage of Raj himself.

You know, in any journey of influence you are going to face your words head-on. If you teach patience, you will hit the places where you have none. If you teach courage, you’ll find those moments when yours disappears. If you talk about healing organisations, eventually you’ll need to face a healing journey of your own.

Raj is a human being that has had the courage to do both. The courage to drive the new ideas and stories that move the world forward and the courage to re-examine the old ideas and stories holding him back. That’s real influence.

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information has helped you please subscribe to the show, and leave a review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Elizabeth Lesser - The Power of the Phoenix Process: How to turn to face what needs to change

Tue, 03 May 2022 20:00:52 GMT

What in your life is trying to break open right now?

One of the most sacred parts of my work as a consultant and coach is that I get to see ‘behind the scenes’ in what it actually takes to build influence.

The success, the moments of inspiration - when nothing can hold you back - to the painful moments of failure, exhaustion and reinvention.

Those moments where the life you wanted, what you thought you had built, the identity you had worked hard to create, suddenly begins to burn - and you’re left staring at the ashes wondering what on earth happens next.

The truth is that anyone that decides to put their ideas out into the world - to make a difference - to drive a change – to step out of the sidelines and into the arena will in the eternal words of Brene Brown “eventually get their ass kicked.” That is part of the deal.

One of my favorite quotes is one from Paolo Coehlo says “A fall from the 3rd floor hurts as much as a fall from the 100th. If I fall – may it be from a high place.”

And yet… we very rarely talk about those moments. Those moments of a 100th floor ass kicking.

Or as my guest on today’s episode would call it – those moments of breaking open.

Today’s Guest

Elizabeth Lesser is the author of several bestselling books, including her New York Times bestselling book, Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow, has sold almost 500,000 copies. She is the cofounder of Omega Institute, recognized internationally for its workshops and conferences in wellness, spirituality, creativity, and social change. She is also the creator of two amazing TED talks on civility, understanding and the power of truth telling. As well as being one of Oprah Winfrey’s Super Soul 100.

Elizabeth is also the person who’s work I turn to during times in my life where I’m not sure where to turn. When I don’t want to be inspired, or motivated, or told to dig in and dial up the hustle - but just to know that it’s enough. Enough to show up, enough to take the next breath, enough to trust that the most transformational moments in our lives always happen when we step into the gap – the gap between what’s burning away and what’s trying to emerge.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethlesser150/

Instagram: @elizlesser

You’ll Learn

The difference between breaking down and breaking open – and why staying awake as we fall holds the key.
The Phoenix process – how to stand in the fire of what’s burning away, while trusting that you will rise again.

References and links mentioned

my new ebook The Influencer Code
https://www.elizabethlesser.org/video

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Colin Boyd - Decoding your signature story: How to convert attention into action every time

Tue, 19 Apr 2022 19:30:11 GMT

Here is today's question - what’s your signature story?

The story that you know works every time. That when you tell it in a pitch you can feel the room you’re speaking to start to SHIFT. A shift from logically thinking about the transformation or change or you’re trying to describe to actually feeling them. When the whole room starts to embody the exact moment in time and space that you’re describing. The smells, the sounds, the situation or struggle, and the possibility of what might happen next. That shift as an influencer is where all the magic happens. In that space, they stop hearing your story, and they start hearing their story. The struggles they are currently facing. The transformation they could experience. The results that are available for them. Having worked in the speaking industry, I’ve heard literally thousands of signature stories. Stories designed to shift hearts and minds on a particular idea. Stories that the tellers themselves have refined over years to make sure they are as impactful as humanly possible.

I’ve seen those that work, those that fail and those rare few that have the ability to shift an entire room on its axis in a matter of minutes. So when I happened to be in a room listening to today’s guest decode signature stories in a way I had never heard before, I knew I had to have him on the podcast.

Today’s guest Colin Boyd is obsessed with helping experts and entrepreneurs present in a way that creates action or sell from stage in a non pushy way. He keynotes at conferences around the world on topics such as persuasive communication and selling ideas. His clients include Coca Cola, Suncorp, Fuji Xero, and Hewlett Packard. He runs high-level mastermind programs for speakers and content creators and delivers his signature program Sell From Stage Academy® which helps people turn every presentation into a conversion machine.

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinboyd/

Instagram & Facebook @colinboyd

This isn’t just a conversation about selling, although you could transform your sales results by applying even one lesson. This is a conversation about traction, about bridging the gap between the action you want people to take and them actually taking it.

To use Colin’s language, your ONLY role as an influencer, as a leader, as a speaker, is to create and hold a ‘sacred space of transformation’.

Then your next job? Finding the most compelling way to invite people in.

Your story, especially the parts of it that you find the most uncomfortable to tell, is always the most compelling way.

References and links mentioned

My new ebook The Influencer Code and survey https://www.juliemasters.com/survey
Colin’s signature story formula http://sellwithstoryguide.com

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information in my conversations have helped you please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and as a special request if you could visit https://www.juliemasters.com/survey and answer 5 questions about YOUR journey as an influencer.

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Ben Jones - The UnSkippable Future of Storytelling: How to cut through when the rules have changed

Tue, 05 Apr 2022 19:30:47 GMT

Here is today’s question - what is pink noise?

We’ve all heard about white noise.

That being the words, phrases, stories and marketing messages in your space that sound EXACTLY the same as everyone else.

The tidal wave of noise that’s easy to get lost within.

Let’s call it the elevator music of influence.

So what is pink noise?

Well, it’s kinda the opposite.

Think of the last Netflix series you dedicated 24 hours of your life to bingeing, or the influencer you faithfully follow, combine that with cutting edge data, throw in some vibes (more on that later) and you’ve got a whole new post COVID world of UnSkippable storytelling.

Lost yet? Don’t worry it will all become clear.

To help translate this new world of storytelling - including pink noise – I enlisted third time guest and long time favorite of the podcast, the incredible Ben Jones.

Today’s Guest

Ben Jones is Creative Director at Google and Head of Unskippable Labs. A team within Google designated with the huge task of studying the 5 billion hours of videos that are uploaded onto YouTube EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Their mission? To work out exactly what makes us press, or not press, the SKIP button. Essentially decoding in real-time the stories that are attract and keep the attention of their 30 million visitors a day.

Twitter @harperjones

LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/iambenjones

You’ll Learn

Storytelling in a post COVID world. How our screen behavior has changed and how many of those changes are sticking around.
The vortex of time – how to make sense of a world where we’re happy to binge season after season of our favorite show (crazy fact, Amazon now spends more money on content than Paramount) – and yet micro content apps like Tik Tok are still exploding.

What I loved about this conversation is how open Ben is (and has always been in the years since we first connected) to changing his perspective.

He holds lightly onto any of his opinions or predictions - about what works, what might work and what definitely won’t work - and instead holds tightly onto an experimental mindset.

Test after test. Experiment after experiment.

Breadcrumb after breadcrumb.

Viewing the future as unchartered territory, means that he approaches every change and pivot – not with a sense of exhaustion and defeat – but with a consistent sense of wonder and curiosity.

That was my biggest lesson from this conversation.

Less energy on predicting what might work. More energy on finding out.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Bunker Roy - How to create a Barefoot Movement: The wisdom of Bunker Roy

Tue, 22 Mar 2022 19:00:49 GMT

How do you create a global movement, when your taskforce can’t read, write or speak a common language?

When I first emailed today’s guest to invite him on the show, this was his reply:

"Totally mystified as to why on earth you want to talk to an old Gandhian living in the middle of the Rajasthan desert?"

This was my email back:

"I can’t think of a better reason to want to talk to you."

This exchange is the perfect introduction to the humility and humor of Bunker Roy.

Today’s Guest

Bunker is global changemaker, Founder of the Barefoot College in India and listed as one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people. His TED talk ‘Learning from a Barefoot Movement’ has been watched by over 4.5 million people.

The Barefoot College has taught over 3 million mainly illiterate and semi literate rural people (mainly women), from some of the world’s poorest villages, to become teachers, midwives, weavers, architects, and doctors.

This includes training over 1700 grandmothers (or ‘solar mamas’ as they are known within their communities) from rural villages across 95 countries including India, Sierra Leone, Africa, and Afghanistan – to become solar engineers.

These women then go home to their communities and solar electrify their villages, to date powering a total of 60,000 homes and saving more than 1 million litres of kerosene from polluting the environment.

And if that isn’t incredible enough, each one of these solar mammas has been fully trained in under 6 months, using mainly sign language.

This conversation goes in so many different and beautiful directions on the topic of what it takes to influence from a place of both fierce determination and patience.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thebarefootcollege/

Instagram: barefootcollegetilonia

Facebook: @barefootcollegeTILONIA

Twitter: @barefootTILONIA

You’ll Learn

How going from an elite education to digging wells in the villages of rural India, completely rearranged the course of his life.
Why there are more powerful languages than the spoken word for creating engagement, inclusion and (most surprisingly) highly technical skill.
The power of dignity and autonomy – why a 12 year old girl from a rural village was able to meet a Queen and introduce herself as a Prime Minister
What it takes to build a movement from scratch and sustain momentum for almost fifty years.
And finally, why we need to stop searching for solutions outside ourselves, our communities and our teams and start looking within.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Brendan Kane - Finding your Hook Point: How to stand out in a 3 second world

Tue, 08 Mar 2022 19:00:00 GMT

Here’s a quote to kick off today’s episode:

“The traditional approaches are now obsolete. One hundred years of marketing thoughts are gone. Alternative approaches aren’t a novelty. They’re all we’ve got left.” Seth Godin

So how do you win at a game where there are no rules? Or even worse, a game where you can throw every cent, every hour, that you have at trying to figure out the rules – only to have them change with an algorithm overnight?

There are now more than 60 billion messages shared daily on mobile platforms alone.

That’s the tidal wave of noise that you, your content, your ideas, your business are up against – EVERY SINGLE DAY.

And yet. Every day there are organisations, individuals and ideas that consistently stand out. So there has to be an answer right?

When I first came across my guest today, it was through his book ‘One Million Followers: How I built a massive social following in 30 days’.

In it he talks about how his career creating online traction and followership for A list organisation’s including Disney, Xbox, Linked In and celebrities such as Taylor Swift – led him to ask a very simple question.

What if I took everything I’ve learned about cutting through the noise, everything that I know works – and applied it to starting from scratch, with the goal of reaching a million legitimate followers in 30 days. And what if I tried that experiment using myself as a case study. Can it be done?

The answer to that question was a resounding yes. To his own amazement in less than a month he’d generated more than one million followers in more than a hundred countries.

I’ll be totally honest here. I’ve always been a firm believer that you don’t need social media to build influence, my own social media accounts definitely attest to that.

That said, the focus of this conversation is that there are fundamental plays and rules that you need to understand in order to stand out on ANY platform – whether it’s social, the stage, publishing or even getting the attention of your colleagues.

This isn’t just about social media, this is about human attention. How it works, what activates it and most importantly how it can be harnessed to create action.

Today’s Guest Brendan Kane is a digital strategist for Fortune 500 corporations, brands and celebrities. He is a master at transforming complexity into simplicity, when it comes to what gets cut through in the digital world.

He is the former vice president of digital for Paramount Pictures, and his current client list includes Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Charles Barkley, Adriana Lima, and brands such as Disney, Fox, NBC, Netflix, Xbox and LinkedIn.

He is also the bestselling author of ‘One Million Followers’ as I’ve mentioned, and ‘Hook Point – how to stand out in a 3-second world’.

Facebook: @brendanjameskane

Instagram: @brendankane

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanjkane/

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information in my conversations have helped you please head over to iTunes, subscribe and leave a review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter

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Victoria Labalme - Risking Forward: Embracing uncertainty and unlocking your hidden genius

Tue, 22 Feb 2022 19:00:47 GMT

How much do you trust your inner current? That inner nudge that comes from the ideas, people and directions that ignite you. The voice that says this needs to be explored.

Next question – what about your ideas? How much do you trust your ideas? I’m not talking about the great earth shatteringly brilliant ideas, the ones that arrive like an avalanche and everyone applauds.

I’m talking about the quiet one, the one that isn’t quite right yet. The one that feels like a collapsed cobweb when you try to pull it out of your brain to explain it to someone else. In the words of my guest today – ‘the idea that leads to the idea’.

If you answer yes to both those questions, you live a life of risking forward.

Today’s Guest

Victoria LaBalme is a Hall of Fame Speaker, Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author and Performance Strategist for Top Leaders & Brands.

Website https://www.victorialabalme.com/

LinkedIn @victorialabalme

Instagram @victorialabalme

Facebook @victorialabalme

You’ll Learn

Why the most influential moments of our lives rarely come with a fanfare
Why shifting your focus from ‘recognition’ to ‘contribution’ is one of the most powerful decisions you can make when it comes to momentum.
The concept of the ‘through line’
Why hyperactivity is a form of self-hypnosis
How to start trusting your ideas

What I love about Victoria, and the idea of risking forward, is that it’s not about taking massive action. In fact, it often begins as the opposite. Putting down the pen long enough to sink into moments of not knowing. To let the last chapter fade, so you have the chance of writing something new. Trusting your inner current, even when you have no idea where it’s taking you.

References and links mentioned

my new ebook The Influencer Code
Victoria is generously offering listeners a gift. Normally valued at $100 she is giving it to listeners for free. Simply head to https://book.riskforward.com/risk-forward-events-julie

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code or become an insider by signing up to my newsletter.

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Doug Conant - The Blueprint: Building a leadership roadmap that's as unique as you are

Tue, 08 Feb 2022 19:00:51 GMT

What’s your leadership blueprint?

I’m not talking just about your values – or a description of how you operate at your best, on the best day – when everything is going according to plan.

I’m talking about a roadmap of clearly defined behaviours, rituals and practices that exactly define the type of leader you want to show up as – EVERY DAY.

There’s an age old saying that we get the leaders we deserve.

Maybe that’s true and it’s certainly a conversation worth exploring. But today’s conversation comes at it from a different angle, that rather than getting the leaders we deserve – which is somewhat out of our control - we become the leaders we build.

And like any successful building project, it starts with a carefully considered blueprint. From the bedrock of our carefully chosen intentions, to the walls of our daily non-negotiables.

My guest on this week’s episode literally wrote the blueprint on how to do that.

Today’s Guest

Website: conantleadership.com

Twitter: @DougConant

LinkedIn: @DougConant

You’ll Learn

The importance of setting an anchoring intention as a leader – and why as leaders we’re so often thrown in the deep end with no roadmap to follow.
Doug’s fundamental belief that ‘Your life story is your leadership story’.
Why owning that story is the key to connection, engagement and embracing your own authenticity as a leader.

If leadership is the hardest and most important job on earth, then it deserves a plan. You wouldn’t build a multi-million dollar hotel without some considered thought. And yet, somehow and at all levels of society, we believe leadership should be innate. Learned the hard way. Sink or swim. Survive or die.

How different would our organisations, communities, and political systems be if - before we even began the journey of leadership – we created a plan. Not about what we wanted to achieve, but instead a clear set of commitments on how we intend to show up.

Imagine the cumulative effect of that? Of all those plans in action, of all that accountability and growth. Now imagine the opposite. Feels strange right?

That’s where we are right now. That’s also an incredible opportunity to stand out.

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode. If the information this episode helped you in your business journey, please subscribe to the show, and leave a review. Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

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Leslie Ehm - Swagger: How to unleash everything you are and get everything you want

Tue, 25 Jan 2022 19:00:34 GMT

Swagger: How to unleash everything you are and get everything you want

Where do you need more swagger in your life?

I’m not talking about the fake version of swagger – arrogance, aggression or a false sense of bravado. I’m talking about REAL swagger.

The type that you can’t fake.

You’ve seen them. The people who walk into a room and you can’t help but notice. The ones that seem to emit something, exude something that makes them stand apart.

They laugh easily. Speak up easily. Listen carefully – and generally seem comfortable, capable and confident in their own skin. The result? They’re magnetic.

Literally. They seem to attract the right opportunities and people to them without even trying, by just showing up and freely offering what they have to give.

In the words of my next guest: “The truth of who we are is all we have in this world. It’s all we are, our words and our deeds. That’s our truth.”

So how do we make our words and deeds more magnetic?

The answer: start working on our swagger.

Today’s Guest

She’s turned technologists into creative forces, bankers into storytellers, and has brought a serious dose of badassery to boardrooms everywhere.

Her latest book ‘Swagger – Unleash Everything You Are and Become Everything You Want’ is a Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Amazon #1 bestseller. To quote her website she’s been called “better than therapy,” “a rock star,” “ass-kicking,” “a force of nature” and even “a witch.” So basically… my kinda woman.

Website: LeslieEhm.com

Facebook: @leslieehmspeaks

Instagram: @LeslieEhmSpeaks

LinkedIn: @LeslieEhm

You’ll Learn

Why faking it until you make it is the opposite of what works.
The main SWAGGER BLOCKS that most of us have when it comes to speaking up and standing out.
The power of intention – and why speaking it clearly completely changes our ability to cut through other peoples stories and reset the balance.

References and links mentioned

Leslie’s book ‘Swagger – Unleash Everything You Are and Become Everything You Want’

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

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POWERCUT: Laura Gassner Otting on ignoring everybody and carving your own path

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 19:00:00 GMT

We have reached the final episode of our special series of Power Cuts. I hope these small supercharged doses of content have kept you connected and inspired over this Christmas and New Year period, while myself and the inside influence team have been stocking up on turkey, binging on Netflix, and generally refueling our creative tanks. Over the past five weeks, we have cherry picked some of the best insights and tools from our favorite guests over the past year, all with one intention: to give you some fuel for whatever it is you are thinking right now for the year ahead.

And for that reason, for our final Power Cut, I chose the insights of Laura Gassner Otting.

Today’s Guest

Laura is an entrepreneur who started her career as a campaign staffer for the Clinton administration, before diving into the world of executive search, rising to the position of senior vice president of startup execsearches.com. Now, it was through her work in executive search that Laura started to notice something. She started to notice that leaders who successfully pivoted either their careers or their lives all had four decisions in common: a sense of calling, connection, contribution and control. These realizations went on to become the basis of her 2019 Washington Post bestseller, ‘Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life.’ Now just for a moment, how's that for a mantra for 2022? I'm taking that one with me everywhere that I go.

Now in this flashback to our conversation, Laura dives into why following your passion is a terrible idea. You have to bear with me on that one, including her theory of consonance, which is the key to unlocking potential and gauging whether we're on the right track. Now, if you don't know what consonance means, don't worry. Neither did I. I'll let Laura explain it in more detail, but in a nutshell, it's that feeling of flow, that sense of flow that comes with when the work that you are doing aligns with who you actually are at your core, when what you are putting out in the world matches who you are in the world.

Now, after a year of paying close attention to boundaries and borders and social distancing, the distance between us and another human being, our ability to be able to cross over geographically with family, paying so much attention to the boundaries in our lives, this idea of being limitless feels like a massively important idea to explore right now. So, I hope it helps you tap into a sense of expansion in your life, and for however long you're able to, sitting with the question, "What would I do? What would I create? Who would I be if I were truly limitless?" On that note, I will leave you in the very safe hands of Laura Gassner Otting.

Website: https://lauragassnerotting.com

Facebook: @heyLGO

Twitter: @heyLGO

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heylgo/

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information in my conversations have helped you in your business journey, please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review. Lastly, don’t forget to download my new ebook The Influencer Code

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POWERCUT: Dorie Clark on how to play the long game and win

Tue, 11 Jan 2022 19:00:55 GMT

Here we are again with number four of our series of mini power cuts, all designed to keep you inspired over the holiday season while our team takes a bit of a break to eat mince pies, drink eggnog, and obviously plot big things for next year.

On that note, actually, if there are any topics or people that you think should be on the show this year, get in touch. Some of the best guest recommendations have come from you, the Inside Influence community. Plus I always want to know what you're reading, who you're following and what you are curious about right now. So jump onto all the socials, you know the ones and let us know.

Today’s Guest

In today's flashback episode, we bring you Dorie Clark, who I have to say has the dubious honor of being the only guest I have ever invited back onto the podcast three times, a fact that should give you an idea of just how much I value her wisdom. Plus, she's just an all around kind of awesome human being. Dorie is one of the top 50 business thinkers in the world. Author of “Standout, Reinventing You.” And her latest bestseller, “The Long Game: How To Be A Long-term Thinker In A Short Term World.” Could there have been a better year for this book to be published? It is also, believe me, a must. Buy it and devour it if you are looking to reinvent any part of your life.

In this part of our conversation, she dives right into the question, what do I need to start working on today in order to have the influence or life that I want 10 years from now? Including the moment that she realized that she needed to start playing a longer game if she was ever going to create a life by her own design, by her own making, and of her own rules. She also talks about the importance of creating white space in our schedules to rethink the road that we're on and why we all need to learn the art of saying no. I say this for myself as much for anybody else so that we can start saying a big fat yes, to all the things that count. If you're taking some time out right now to rethink the year ahead, then you're going to need a pen and paper for this one. With that said, sit back, grab a coffee and listen to the voice of your long term future or calling, the amazing Dorie Clark.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dorieclarkauthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dorieclark

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dorieclark/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doriec/

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also if you have some big visions for 2022 and are looking for a kick start. I will be running my LAST EVER Live Rapid Authority Masterclass in late January. It will be a virtual event, so you can tune in from anywhere in the world, time zones allowing. Simply head to my website www.juliemasters.com and register your details.

Lastly, don’t forget to download my new ebook The Influencer Code

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POWERCUT: Rich Diviney on the power of quitting vs. giving up

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 19:00:30 GMT

Here we are with number three of our powercut episodes. This is our way of keeping you inspired over Christmas and New Year while our Inside Influence team takes a little bit of a break to rest and recharge. We have gone back through all the episodes and narrowed down, not only the five conversations we think will be the most helpful, but the specific parts of those episodes that will give you one tool, insight, or mindset shift to take it to the next level for whatever big visions or plans you have brewing for 2022.

In today's episode, it's the wisdom of Rich Diviney. Rich is a former Navy Seal commander who served in the U.S. Navy for 20 years and completed 13 overseas deployments, including Iraq and Afghanistan. Having worked as the Officer in Charge of Training for other Navy seals for specialized command, Rich became curious as to why a massive 50% of Seals were failing the training, despite having all the prerequisite skills and experiences to succeed. What he discovered was that success was actually determined not by a person's skills, but by their attributes. Qualities including resilience, grit and adaptability - none of which we get training for, and all of which he calls the hidden drivers of performance. It is these keys to performing under pressure that he breaks down in his latest book, "The Attributes: 25 Hidden Drivers of Optimal Performance.” In today's flashback, you're going to hear him diving into the part of the conversation where he explains the difference between quitting and giving up, and how successful people use quitting to redirect their energy in more efficient ways.

Now, after a year of asking myself that exact same question on so many occasions, am I quitting something that isn't working? Am I being smart with my time? Or am I just giving up when the going gets tough? I needed to hear this again. In his words, the secret to success is not necessarily to never quit, but to quit as many times as you have to, until you find what works. So with that said sit back, take a breath and listen to a voice from the front line of performance under pressure, Rich Diviney.

Website: https://theattributes.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rich_diviney/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richdiviney/

References and links mentioned

Rich Diviney's new book, The Attributes: 25 Hidden Drivers of Optimal Performance

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Lastly, don’t forget to download my new ebook The Influencer Code

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POWERCUT: Benjamin Zander on mastering the art of enrolment

Tue, 28 Dec 2021 18:30:57 GMT

Here we are again with another Power Cut, a series of mini-episodes dropping once a week, each carefully curated from our favorite interviews from 2021 to keep you inspired and motivated, while our Inside Influence team takes a little bit of a break to reimagine and recharge our batteries over Christmas. Today's Powercut episode was my pick, one of my all time favorite human beings and conversations from last year, Benjamin Zander.

Benjamin is the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic and also the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. However it's his unique approach to leadership that has led the best in the world to continually seek him out. And as you'll hear, at 82 years and strong, he has plenty to say. Benjamin co-authored the bestselling book, The Art of Possibility, with his wife Rosamund and his Ted Talk, The Transformative Power of Classical Music, has inspired over 20 million views. I'll say that again, 20 million views. However, what makes Benjamin so captivating for me is his ability to make classical music accessible and relevant to everyone. He's a true translator of his space and he uses his passion for music as an invitation, an invitation for us all to understand and stand in possibility, the possibility that exists in every piece of music, the possibility that is in every room, every situation, every conversation, especially the hard ones.

And in this part of our conversation, you will hear him talk about the art of enrollment, how you create a call to action for your team or audience that is so visceral, so compelling that people will literally travel the length of the planet to walk that road with you regardless of the risks ahead. Plus, how he became a primary translator in his space. That one was worth the price of entry for me. So sit back, soak up the incredible high notes of Benjamin Zander.

Facebook: OfficialBenjaminZander

Twitter: @BenjaminZander

LinkedIn: benjaminzander

References and links mentioned

Zander’s Ted Talk: “The Transformative Power of Classical Music”
Zander’s book co-written with his wife: “The Art of Possibility”
Rosamund Stone Zander’s book “Pathways to Possibility”
Zander’s “Safe & Sound'' Concert Series: Brahm’s Sextet in B-flat Major, op. 18
Zander conducting an online Masterclass

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Lastly, don’t forget to download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

POWERCUT: Guy Kawasaki on missions, mantras and nailing the pitch

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 19:00:02 GMT

We are coming to the end of another eventful year, another 12 month bundle of opportunities, challenges, plenty of highlights and some definite unforeseen low lights. Hopefully you are about to embark on a well-deserved break. This is exactly what the inside influence team and myself will be doing. So over the next few weeks we are going be taking a festive step back to rest up, recalibrate and re-inspire ourselves for 2022. However, if you need some inspiration to get you thinking and planning for next year, we have you covered. Our holiday season of power cuts or power minis are back. Our first power cut is Guy Kawasaki.

Today’s Guest

Today’s guest is Guy Kawasaki. Guy is the previous chief evangelist at Apple. As part of that role he popularized the word evangelist in business and the concept of evangelism marketing. Since then, he has published several books, including one for your must read list ‘Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions’. Guy now works as Chief Evangelist at graphic design platform Canva.

He is also a well known speaker and host of the remarkable people podcast in which he interviews amazing humans like Seth Garden, Dr. Jane Goodall and Angela Duckworth. In this flashback section of our interview, you're gonna hear Guy explain why life is like Tinder and not eHarmony and how this knowledge is the key to nailing your pitch. Now, for those of you who missed that whole internet dating aspect of romantic life, well done, I'll let you google those two references. Guy also reveals the exact matrix that he uses to identify solid gold products or people. Now you have to remember he gets pulled into a lot of pitches. He is an investor. He comes on board in the early stages of companies, and this is the exact matrix that he uses to identify the company's products or people he wants to get Involved with. He also talks about why we all need a mantra instead of a mission statement. Now, if you've been struggling to cut through the noise this year and need some new tools to make an impact, I promise you this episode is for you.

Website: https://guykawasaki.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/guy

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GuyKawasaki

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guykawasaki/

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Inside Influence Podcast! If the information in my conversations has helped you on your journey to raising your influence, please head over to iTunes, subscribe to the show, and leave an honest review.

Lastly, don’t forget to download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Thomas Kolster - The Hero Trap: Why purpose is done and what's coming next

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 19:00:40 GMT

How do you feel about the word purpose?

Does it light you up, make you feel aligned and on fire to make a difference?

Or does it leave you feeling a little disconnected and wanting to change the subject?

For me, I’ve always been in the latter camp.

I’ve always understood the need for clarifying purpose in a directional sense. Who are we as an individual or collective, where we’re going and how we get there in a way that aligns.

After that point, to be honest, my skin starts to crawl a little.

That’s usually the point where it starts getting into grand statements. Big decisive yet also vague commitments about ‘helping people’ or ‘making the world a better place’. Bizarre pictures of happy people and animals holding hands. You get the picture.

Which is weird, because I’ve spent my whole career building ideas, influencers, movements and brands to drive a specific conversation. A specific purpose.

So I’ve never been able to figure out why I found the whole topic so uncomfortable.

That is until I came across my guest today.

Today’s Guest

Thomas Kolster is an adviser to Fortune 500 companies, author of two best selling books, TED speaker and frequenter of more media appearances than I can list. His first book ‘Goodvertising - Creating advertising that cares’ created a movement that looked at how purpose can be used to unlock the world-bettering power of brands.

However it’s his second and most recent book that caught my attention.

It’s called ‘The Hero Trap – how to win in a post-purpose market by putting people first’.

In this book he literally takes a hatchet to his earlier beliefs. Now, other than just being a big fan of anyone that can publicly, unapologetically and enthusiastically change their mind. It was one of the very first lines that had me hooked.

“Screw your purpose, who can you help me become?”

It’s that last question ‘Who can you help me become?’ That’s the backbone of our entire conversation today.

Instagam- @thomas_kolster

Facebook- @mrthomaskolster

Twitter- @thomaskolster

Linked In- https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaskolster/

You’ll Learn

The Hero Trap, what it is, how we get caught in it and why the alternative is to shift our focus from purpose to enabling transformation.
Why 65% of people say they want to buy from purposeful companies – yet only 26% actually do – and what that tells us about the white noise that the subject has become.
How to design your transformative promise. Think of a mission statement – and then make it practical and accountable.

References and links mentioned

Thomas would like to offer listeners a $80 discount on his Masterclass. Simply head to https://www.thomaskolster.com/masterclass and use Code 50 at check out.
The Hero Trap Audiobook- https://bit.ly/hero-trap-audiobk

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode. Please subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast. Also if you have some big visions for 2022 I will be running my LAST EVER Live Rapid Authority Masterclass in January. Head to my website www.juliemasters.com and register your details.

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Koelle Simpson - Transformational tension: How to sit in the space in between now and what's next

Tue, 30 Nov 2021 19:00:20 GMT

How do you respond to transformational tension?

Those moments that form the space in between what we were and what we’re becoming. The information we had access to and what we know now.

That deeply uncomfortable place where we can feel change coming, but don’t yet know what the new horizon is going to look like.

Most of us choose from a few responses. We freeze – remain still so the threat won’t find us. We fight – start kicking and thrashing. Or we bolt - isolating ourselves from the herd until the threat has passed.

In that sense, in many ways. We’re no different to any other creature in nature.

Apart from one important aspect. We have the capacity to first get curious and then decide HOW we respond in those moments.

In today’s episode, we’re going to be talking – amongst many things – about learning to sit with transformational tension.

To do that, I get to welcome back one of my favorite guests, Koelle Simpson.

Today’s Guest Koelle Simpson

Koelle Simpson is one of the most highly regarded horse whispers on the planet.

Since 2006 The Koelle Institute has worked with individuals and Fortune 500 organisations all over the world to create transformational leadership experiences – all by using the lens of her journey as a horse whisperer to decode the silent language of authority.

Why silent? Well when it comes to building trust with a wild horse, all the best sales or leadership language in the world isn’t going to help.

Horses are listening to one thing - Your presence. Your ability to show up fully and yet with calm intent.

Get it wrong – panic or overcompensate and you may well meet the wrong end of 1000 pounds of muscle, of instant feedback.

Which is why when I first came across Koelle and the world of horse whispering and the lessons it has to teach about leadership presence. I had to know more.

One of the pleasures of having people on the podcast a second time, is that I can let the conversation go organically where it needs to go.

“Like all transitions we have to be ready to sit in transformational tension.”

“The thing that is really needed is for each of us to cultivate our empathy … and curiosity.”

References and links mentioned

Research around the concept of Mother Trees - https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/mother-trees-are-intelligent-they-learn-and-remember/

https://mothertreeproject.org/

My new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jessica Jackley - The story of KIVA: How to change the world through storytelling

Tue, 16 Nov 2021 19:00:52 GMT

How do you change the entire way people view a problem?

The answer. One story at a time.

Every once in awhile, a handful of times a year, I’m lucky enough to get to talk to someone on my original ‘wish list’ for the podcast. Today is one of those lucky days.

In the latest episode of Inside Influence I speak with Jessica Jackley, Co-Founder of KIVA, the worlds first person-to-person micro-lending platform. Since 2005 KIVA has facilitated over $1 billion dollars in micro-loans across the world.

KIVA essentially enables people like you and me to lend small amounts of money to low-income entrepreneurs. The intention being to help them create or grow a sustainable business that can support them, their families and their community for life.

The average loan contribution is $100. The repayment rate? 98.5%.

However this isn’t a conversation about money. It’s not even about the role of micro-finance or micro-donations to completely reimagine how we approach subjects like poverty and charity.

It’s a conversation about the power of storytelling.

In Jessica’s words: “The stories we tell each other, matter very much. The way that we participate in each other’s stories - matters even more.”

In today’s conversation we dive into:

The difference between trying to solve any problem from a place of hope rather than a place of hopelessness.
The moment that led to her to quit her job, move to Africa in order to interview micro entrepreneurs that had each received $100 to build or grow a business.
What she learned about building KIVA into a global $1 billion movement from scratch – with no business experience.
The energy and momentum that comes from speaking from present tense. This one is subtle but huge. Think about the powerful difference between: ‘This is what we are doing.’ vs. ‘This is what we are hoping to do.’.
Plus, why storytelling has the power to define (and then redefine) how we view and participate in each other’s stories in a way that everyone wins.
If you're trying to shift the needle on any issue – either at work, at home or within the world at large - then trust me this episode is for you.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jessicajackley

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alltruists/?hl=en

Website: http://www.jessicajackley.com/

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Lastly, don’t forget to download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Port - Stealing the show: How to make the leap from expert to visionary

Tue, 02 Nov 2021 21:18:57 GMT

Here’s today’s question – are you an expert or a visionary?

Seems like a random question? It’s not.

When I was growing up – a while ago now - influence belonged to those who could amass the most information. I don’t know if many of you can remember the EB – basically a set of books that were said to contain all the information on the planet.

Everything there was to know about pretty much anything in the universe. All in 32 books and 32,640 pages.

Seems like a big call now. But my parents spent more than they could probably afford at the time buying those books. Why? Because before the internet, it was the best chance they had at giving my brother and I access to the most powerful resource on the planet at the time – information.

Now – how many of us feel like we have a lack of information? Anyone sat there thinking, if only I had access to more information?

I’m guessing the answer is no.

And that brings me right back where we started, which is the key difference between an expert and a visionary.

Today’s Guest

Michael Port is a NY Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, TED speaker and Co-Founder & CEO of Heroic Public Speaking.

Over the last two decades, Michael has written eight books that have made it onto the bestseller lists – including Steal the Show, Book Yourself Solid and the Referable Speaker.

Not too bad for someone who was told by his fourth grade teacher that he had the worst spelling she’d seen in 25 years of teaching.

Over that time, and together with his wife and co-founder, Amy Port he has also built Heroic Public Speaking Worldwide. Offering the most complete (and effective) speaker training in the world. All centred around teaching speakers what actors have always known – how to craft an authentic performance during presentations, pitches and lifes high stakes moments.

Website: Heroic Public Speaking Worldwide

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heroicpublicspeaking/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heroicpublicspeaking/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelport

References and links mentioned

Michael is offering listeners ‘50 SPEAKER TIPS To Wow Your Audience’ https://juliemasters.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/50-Speaker-Tips.pdf

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marion Farrelly - Breaking through the white noise: How to get people to take action

Tue, 19 Oct 2021 21:42:52 GMT

If your website or online profile was a big red button, what would it say? Weird question I know. But let’s look at it for a second.

In those moments when we’re most trying to make an impact, it’s easy not to stop and think about what action we actually want people to take. We often get caught in our own bubble, how good does it look, how good does it sound, how likely are people to pay attention – and we totally forget about the one thing that counts.

As a result of paying attention, what ONE action do we want people to take?

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode we talk to one of our most popular guests ever, hit TV Director and CEO whisperer Marion Farrelly. More listeners speak to me about my last podcast with Marion on “How to be interesting” than any other of my podcasts. In our second conversation together, we talk about how she has learnt to connect to audiences and to get them to take action.

To give you an idea about how experienced she is in the arena of human attention EVERY show she has ever created has gone to No 1. - apart from those that went to No. 2 – and that was only because she had another show at No. 1!

Today’s Guest Marion Farrelly

Marion Farrelly created, built and produced some of the most influential reality TV shows on the planet. Shows such as The X Factor, Big Brother, Celebrity Apprentice, Dancing with the Stars and Farmer Wants a Wife. Her content has been watched more than eight billion times worldwide and she’s put more than ten thousand people on stage, who were then watched by hundreds of millions.

She’s worked with everyone from Hollywood A listers to Astronauts, Politicians to Popstars, Cyber Security Specialists and CEOs.

Websites: https://absolutelyfarrelly.com/ & https://www.mazspeaks.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Absolutely-Farrelly-1462447833794777/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/abmazfaz

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/maz-speaks

“I get them to tell a different story, a different story to everyone else in their industry because that’s what cuts through.”

“We don’t do business with people we like, we do business with people who are fascinating”

“Every website is one big red button. What should the button say? BUY ME.”

References and links mentioned

Shonda Rhymes’ TED Talk on Storytelling - The Future of Storytelling
The Choir of Hard Knocks
My new ebook - The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Daryl Davis - One man and the Ku Klux Klan: The power of meeting conflict with curiosity

Wed, 06 Oct 2021 00:33:08 GMT

Daryl Davis - One man and the Ku Klux Klan: The power of respectful communication

How does a black musician who’s jammed with the likes of Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, BB King and even Bill Clinton - become friends with an Imperial Wizard from the Ku Klux Klan?

In this polarised world, breaking down entrenched positions may be the most important skill needed by us all. If two passionate sides can agree to disagree, long enough to find what they have in common - could we overcome climate change, poverty and even racism?

My guest on this episode of Inside Influence podcast would say a resounding yes.

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode I talk to R&B musician and Race Reconciliator Daryl Davis about talking to the “other”.

Growing up overseas as the son of diplomats, he returned to the US as a 10-year-old and was shocked to discover that people could hate him because of the colour of his skin. Later that year he saw MLK assassinated.

This formed a question that went on to define the course of his life: “‘How can you hate me if you don’t even know me?”

Through music he discovered a beautiful universal language and had a wonderful career playing the piano for some of the greats such as Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis.

One night while playing in a bar in Frederick Maryland, he met a Ku Klux Klan member and decided the best way to find an answer to his question was to attend their rallies.

Rather than a debate, he was looking to have a conversation. Rather than trying to convince or convert, he decided to approach people with curiosity and respect.

Over the past 30 years, Daryl Davis has inspired 200+ people to quit the Ku Klux Klan. Through dialogue and (as you’ll come to hear) a thirst to first understand before being understood.

Today’s Guest Daryl Davis

Daryl Davis is an award-winning R&B piano player, actor, author, and race relations expert.

He has worked with Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley's Jordanaires, The Legendary Blues Band and many others. He currently tours with The Daryl Davis Band. He is also an actor and appeared on HBO’s critically acclaimed series The Wire.

As a Race Reconciliator, he has been sent around the world by the State Department to talk about conflict reconciliation and race relations. He has won numerous awards and has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, NPR and other media outlets to talk about race relations.

He hosts a podcast called Changing Minds and has written a book on his relationships with Klu Klux Klan members called “Klan-destine Relationships”

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daryl-davis-5226b24/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/realdaryldavis

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/realdaryldavis/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DarylDavisRaceReconciliator/

“One person can make an exponential change because when they impact another, that person then goes on to impact another.”

“You cannot change someone’s reality, they have to change it themselves.”

“You have to invite the other to participate and when you see that happen collectively, that is when huge things happen.”

You’ll learn

His journey from that bar in Maryland to immersing himself in the world of the KKK – what he learned, how he has learned to respond and what that has to teach us about having deeply difficult conversations.
Why he is NEVER offended by what he hears in those conversations – this one intrigued me the most – including how he stays in a place of active respect and curiosity – in situations that would bring most people’s blood to the boil.
Why he always start with ‘commonality’ - and he uses some beautiful language here – essentially beginning any difficult conversation with what he has in common with the other person, before moving to what he has in contrast.
Why change never happens in the moment, I think this one is worth hearing a few times – we will never change someone’s mind in the moment. The intention instead is to invite them to an exploration (NOT A DEBATE) – and then respectfully sow seeds that they can reflect on later.
Why self awareness and courage are muscles we all have – and only by strengthening and using those muscles – can we inspire others to start doing the same. Parents and leaders, this one is on us.
As someone who considers himself to be ‘just a rock and roll player’ how Daryl has managed to achieve what many movements have not – by first deciding to listen.
And finally, Daryl’s own personal roadmap to having deeply difficult conversations. A game changing tool for any conversation or situation where the emotions and stakes are at their most intense.

References and links mentioned

The Charlotteville “Unite the Right” Rally.
My new ebook The Influencer Code.
The Mark Twain quote was from The Innocents Abroad / Roughing It.
Daryl’s book Klan-destine Relationships

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Bob Chapman – Truly human leadership: What it means to lead like everybody matters
Hamish Thomson – Why it’s not always right to be right
Judy Atkinson - 4 Keys to Transform Conflict with Deep Listening
Jonah Berger - How to change anyone's mind without having to push

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dorie Clark - The Long Game: How to think long-term in a short-term world

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 20:00:23 GMT

Dorie Clark - The Long Game: How to think long-term in a short-term world

Does long-term thinking even matter in a world where the rules constantly change?

For many of us (myself included) the pandemic has been a tough opportunity to look at the long-term future of our careers and business models.

An invitation to step away from the next fire that’s burning. The next shiny object that everyone else seems to have. To ask 'What do I need to start work today, in order to have the influence or life I want ten years from now?'

That’s what today’s episode of #insideinfluencepodcast is all about.

On today’s episode I talk to Dorie Clark about her latest book “'The Long Game: How to be a long-term thinker in a short-term world'. Dorie is a Thinkers Top 50, a best-selling author and described by the New York Times as an “expert at self-reinvention and helping others make changes in their lives.”

This is also her third time on the podcast - the only guest I have ever invited back three times - which should tell you a lot about how highly I regard her insights!

Today’s Guest Dorie Clark

Dorie grew up in a small town in North Carolina but her ambitions quickly took her to new places. She graduated college at 18 and by 20 had received her Masters from Harvard Divinity School. From there she worked as a political reporter and won a New England Press Association award for journalism. She then became a presidential campaign spokesperson, nonprofit executive director, best-selling author, guest speaker, documentary filmmaker, Broadway musical writer, and a music producer for a multi Grammy winning jazz album.

Dorie is a sought after strategic thinker who has made her life an example of how to think long-term and hit your personal milestones.

She has been named one of the Top 50 business thinkers in the world by Thinkers50 and the number one ‘Communication Coach’ in the world by the Marshall Goldsmith Leading Global Coaches awards. Her 2015 book “Stand Out” was named the number one leadership book of the year by Inc. magazine and was in Forbes top ten business books of the year. She also publishes regularly in the Harvard Business Review, has several Ted Talks, and teaches at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and the Columbia Business School.

Website: https://dorieclark.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dorieclarkauthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dorieclark

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dorieclark/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doriec/

“If we want to be happy long-term, we have to be proactive about it. COVID has put everybody back on their heels for 18 months and largely we’ve been forced to be reactive, I think long-term thinking is a way of fighting back”.

“Long-term thinking is about understanding and appreciating that the things that are the most worthwhile usually do take longer than we want them to.”

“When you have a ten year horizon you don’t know how you are going to do it - all you need to know is the next step”

“If you have a long enough runway, you can accomplish almost anything.”

“It takes bravery to start out bad at something you really want.”

You’ll learn

Why long term thinking is more important than ever in a short term world
What keeps us in short term reaction loops - a clue on this one, it usually involves sacrificing our long term goals at the altar of ‘I’m too busy to take a breath’ and ‘I’ll think about that when I have more time’
The vital importance of creating white space to consciously recalibrate and rethink the road we’re on - and why we all need to learn the art of saying no - in order to start saying yes to the bigger picture
Why - when we get that white space - the first question we ask should never be ‘what do I want to do’ but rather ‘who do I want to become’
Dorie’s experience getting her first book published and what it taught her about the importance of measuring yourself against a 10 - rather than one year - year horizon.
Why everything takes longer than we would like it to and how to keep the faith when the road gets messy - including my new mantra when it comes to raising your influence: ‘‘If 100 people reject your work, that’s a pretty clear message. But one or two or 10? You haven’t even gotten started yet.’
Why if you don’t know your passion, just move in the direction that interests you.
The difference between patience and “strategic patience” so that you stay proactive.
The importance of being careful about comparing your progress to others, we progress at different rates - and comparisons suck rather than give us energy.

References and links mentioned

Dorie has offered a free PDF self-assessment tool to help you find your breakthrough idea as an influencer. Share this podcast episode on Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram with the hashtag #insideinfluencepodcast to receive a copy.
Dorie’s latest book - The Long Game: How to be a long term thinker in a short term world.
Dorie’s book - Reinventing You
Her latest HBR article - Feeling Stuck of Stymied?
My new ebook - The Influencer Code

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Dorie Clark - Stand out - A masterclass in influence
Dorie Clark - From influence to income
Rich Diviney - The Attributes: Lessons from an elite Navy Seal
Laura Gassner Otting - What would you do if you felt limitless
Benjamin Zander - The power of standing in possibility
George Burt - How to reimagine your path

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bob Chapman - Truly human leadership: What it means to lead like everybody matters

Tue, 07 Sep 2021 20:00:51 GMT

According to my guest on today’s episode, the largest crisis we currently face has nothing to do with the economy or politics - it’s a crisis at the very heart of how we define leadership.

Today a huge 88% of people do not feel like their work is valued by their employers. As a result, 75% of people would take another job if it came along, a level of disengagement estimated to cost companies over half a trillion dollars every year. This number does not include the impact it has on people’s personal lives: from addictions to broken relationships.

My guest on today’s podcast asks the question. How can we lead like everybody matters?

We give so much of ourselves and our lives to our jobs, so it’s strange that success is defined only in dollars and not in its impact on human lives.

Sitting with his morning coffee in the cafeteria of a company he had just acquired, Bob Chapman saw the joy of the workers slowly disappear as the work day started.

This moment became the seed that eventually shifted his entire organisation from a ‘me-centric’ approach to leadership to ‘we-centric’. A decision that eventually enabled them to not only survive, but thrive through some of the largest economic downturns of our time.

This episode is about his incredible journey into the power and potentially world changing impact of truly human leadership.

Today’s Guest Bob Chapman

Bob Chapman is the CEO of Barry-Wehmiller - a $3 billion global capital equipment business with more than 12,000 team members. He was also recently named the #3 CEO in the world by Inc. magazine and Top 10 Social Capital CEO by International Business.

Bob became the senior executive of this private company in 1975 at the age of 30, after his father unexpectedly passed away. As an 80-year-old business with $20 million in revenue, outdated technology and a very weak financial position, it wasn’t long before the banks literally flew in to call in debts.

Despite the obstacles, and there have been many since, Bob applied a unique blend of strategy and culture over the next 40 years to lead Barry-Wehmiller through more than 100 successful acquisitions. As well as successfully navigating the GFC and, more recently, COVID-19.

Over the past two decades, a series of realizations led Bob away from what he describes as the traditional management practices he learnt at university, to what he calls Truly Human Leadership. Where his employees feel valued, cared for and an integral part of the company’s purpose. At Barry-Wehmiller, they have a unique measure of success: by the way they touch the lives of people.

The transformational impact of this approach also became the inspiration behind his recent Wallstreet Journal bestseller ‘Everybody Matters: The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family’. Co-authored by Raj Sisodia, founder of Conscious Capitalism.

“Business can be the most powerful force of good in the world, if we simply taught our leaders to care for the people they have the privilege of leading.”

“You cannot ask people to care as leaders, you have to teach them how to care.”

“We measure success by the way we touch the lives of people.”

Blog Website: http://www.trulyhumanleadership.com/

Company Website: http://www.barrywehmiller.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/barrywehmiller

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bob-chapman-89b936b8/

You’ll learn

That there is currently a ‘crisis’ in leadership – with disengagement in the workplace costing ½ trillion dollars every year.
The fundamental difference between management and leadership
Bob’s own personal journey from the me-centric approach he had been taught at university - to a ‘we-centric’ approach that became the key to their success.
What happens if you dare to treat every life you encounter (and employ) as your own precious child – because let’s be honest, they are somebody's precious child.
The most underutilised tool in leadership – the bravery to listen to how people feel.
The two of the most powerful questions a leader can ask: ‘How does that affect your life?’ and ‘What did that feel like?’
How and why he went on to develop the GPO - the guiding principles of leadership – within Barry Wehmiller and how it went on to have more impact than he ever could have imagined.
Why trust is not a result, it is an outcome.
How good leadership needs to be taught, but the capacity to care is innate.
The moment Bob realised that one of the biggest indicators of the success of his organisation (and the Nation), wasn’t its financial position - but the marriage survival rates of its people.

References and links mentioned

Bob’s book was co-written with Raj Sisodia, author of Conscious Capitalism: Everybody Matters.
Bob’s TED Talk: Truly Human Leadership
Impressions of Truly Human Leadership https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=impressions+of+truly+human+leadership&docid=608007660873673207&mid=8AB5EFCC225876871B638AB5EFCC225876871B63&view=detail&FORM=VIRE
Bob’s video messages https://www.bobchapman.co/
Bob’s International Business Times article https://www.ibtimes.com/profile/bob-chapman
Bob’s vision of the power of business for good! https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__medium.com_jacob-2Dmorgan_4-2Dways-2Dleaders-2Dcan-2Dcreate-2Da-2Dbetter-2Dworld-2Dfrom-2Dbarry-2Dwehmiller-2Dceo-2Dbob-2Dchapman-2D75f4ec768043&d=DwMGaQ&c=nQOnw6HHAeKBNxj23OXhOw&r=2RFcSZ1TO913_bzN6KowXG0kP853a4wHV3pgummyZkA&m=u5qCoPXJv_DNOUAYoORaCiqlGgKWKwIHvmzNYZVp9e0&s=mbCqxGP4oTfz9UeMwCmwZokfaUivvXvuNPVaTmJbeKc&e=
Bob’s Profile https://shinesummit.hsph.harvard.edu/people/bob-chapman
Barry-Wehmiller Documentary https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Every+Matters+documentary+trailer&docid=608041367780993219&mid=E3BDBD7B69903C19104FE3BDBD7B69903C19104F&view=detail&FORM=VIRE
My new ebook The Influencer Code

If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy

Benjamin Zander – The power of standing in possibility: Leadership and the transformative role of music
Hamish Thomson – Why it’s not always right to be right and other hard won leadership lessons
James Kerr – Leading at speed: How to move like the All Blacks without burning out
Jim Tamm – The keys to Radical Collaboration
Frances Frei – Unleashing and repairing trust as a leader

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rich Diviney - The Attributes: A Navy SEAL Commander on the hidden drivers of elite performance

Wed, 25 Aug 2021 00:30:42 GMT

Rich Diviney - The Attributes: A Navy SEAL Commander on the hidden drivers of elite performance

Skills are not enough. 90% of Navy SEAL recruits fail to pass the basic training. And 50% of Navy Seals fail training for specialised command.

Today’s guest, former Navy SEAL Commander and officer in charge of training for specialised command Rich Diviney asked why?

Beneath skills there are hidden drivers of elite performance. These drivers are attributes like resilience, grit, and adaptability. But how do you develop attributes?

I am a big believer that if you want to develop mastery in any area you need to learn it from those that perform that skill in the arena’s where the stakes are the highest. And if you want to learn resilience, grit, adaptability, and leadership then it is hard to go past Rich Diviney.

Today’s guest Rich Diviney

Rich Diviney served in the US Navy for 20 years. He served in 13 overseas deployments including Iraq and Afghanistan.

As a Navy SEAL, Rich served as the officer in charge of training for specialised command. In this role he went on to create the “Mind Gym”, a program of physical, mental, and emotional training designed to train Navy SEAL’s brains to perform better in all environments, but particularly stressful environments.

Since retiring from the Navy in 2017, Rich has worked as a consultant and speaker with Chapman & Co. Leadership Institute, Simon Sinek Inc, and Dumanis Enterprises.

He has spoken to over five thousand leaders from the worlds of business, sport, and the military. He has spoken to leaders from organisations such as American Airlines, Deloitte, Zoom, and the San Francisco 49ers.

On January 26, 2021, he released his first book “The Attributes: 25 Hidden Drivers of Optimal Performance”.

“What skills don’t tell us is how people are going to show up in stress, challenges and uncertainty. In those environments we lean on attributes.”

“The secret to success is not necessarily to never quit, I’m going to quit as many times as I have to until I find the right way to do it.”

“People decide whether or not they want to follow us. You cannot self-designate as a leader.

Someone else decides whether you are someone to follow and that is always based on your behaviour.”

“The quality of our lives is directly proportional to the quality of questions we ask ourselves on a consistent basis.”

Website: https://theattributes.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rich_diviney/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richdiviney/

You’ll learn

Why quitting is different to giving up - and how successful people use quitting to redirect their energy elsewhere.
That perseverance is made up of the attributes of persistence, tenacity, and fortitude.
Why the best leadership is mostly observing rather than micromanaging.
The difference between skills and attributes. Skills are taught, however attributes are inherent and developed. Skills direct our behaviour in known situations. Attributes direct us in situations of stress and uncertainty.
What attributes you should develop and how to develop them.
That grit is made up of four attributes: courage, perseverance, adaptability, and resilience.
Why courage is the ability to step into our fear - and how our brain rewards us with dopamine when we do.
Freezing in a moment allows you to stop and think deliberately about what to do next and, unexpectedly, is a technique used by all Navy SEAL’s.
Sometimes you just need to move, and movement will reveal the next course of action.
The different ways to recover from stress and trauma. And why sometimes you cannot do it alone.
How to master the pivot. The one you don’t see coming and the ones you choose.
That elemental behaviour is made up of attributes and identities, and how identities shape our behaviour.
The attributes of leadership: empathy, selflessness, decisiveness, authenticity, and accountability.
That our minds are question answering machines - and by feeding it the right questions, we can guide ourselves to success. Including why, by default, we tend to get ourselves into a negative question loop when the road gets tough.
The power of gratitude.

Reference and links mentioned

Rich Diviney's new book, The Attributes: 25 Hidden Drivers of Optimal Performance
The Chapman Institute
Simon Sinek Inc.
Attribute Assessment Tool on Rich’s website
My new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jeremy Cowart - The Purpose Hotel and the art of showing up before you're ready

Wed, 11 Aug 2021 02:05:35 GMT

Jeremy Cowart - Getting Past “I Can’t” to Change Yourself and the World

We all have amazing ideas. Some are hard earned while others just come to us while we are walking down the hall on one unexpected day. But to make those ideas a reality, we need to get past the “I can’t moment” that invariably follows.

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode I talk to Jeremy Cowart, celebrity photographer, artist, and entrepreneur, about how fear lies on the other side of great ideas and how he has learned to get past those fears.

Jeremy Cowart has been named the “Most Influential Photographer on the Internet” by Huffington Post, Forbes and Yahoo. He has presented at TEDx and the United Nations.

His photos have appeared in well-known publications such as Time Magazine, The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and Sports Illustrated.

He has taken portraits of stars such as Taylor Swift, Sting, Britney Spears, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Heidi Klum, and Gwyneth Paltrow.

He is also well-known for his “Purpose Hotel” Kickstarter campaign. The aim of the project is to create a hotel chain where all the goods, services, and decor used generates a financial benefit for the marginalised around the world. A luxury hotel designed to connect people around the world to the stories of others - and enable them to support.

Today’s Guest Jeremy Cowart

Jeremy grew up in Hendersonville Tennessee.

He was a struggling student who seemed to fail at everything from piano to maths. “I can’t do it” was his motto. But his supportive parents were insistent that he could do anything: “I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me”.

Then he discovered a love of drawing and started to believe in himself.

After high school, his parents suggested that he study graphic design. But he did not feel smart enough to use computers. But he tried it and ended up becoming a designer and then a digital photographer right as digital photography was taking off.

Fast forward over 20 years, and he is an influential photographer to the stars and renowned social entrepreneur.

In addition to his photographic work, he helped start the global movement Help Portrait, founded an online learning platform See University, formed an idea development community called LIMINAL Society, invented a new digital photographic technique called Lightograph, and is founder and CIO of Purpose Hotel.

He has also written four books and is a sought after presenter.

Website: www.jeremycowart.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jeremycowart

Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeremycowart

Instagram: www.instagram.com/jeremycowart

LinkedIn:www.linkedin.com/in/jeremycowart

“I think a lot of people want to help but a lot of times they just don’t know how … but when you can align helping with people’s natural passions and interests, magic can happen.”

“I have pursued over 75 different ideas and probably more than half of them have been total utter failures, or I have abandoned them altogether. However a few of them have been very successful and those are the ones I end up talking to people on podcasts about”

You’ll Learn

The power of supportive parents in wiring our brains for influence
How to make a difference using your passions and interests rather than feeling you have to follow a stereotype
How photos capture a singular moment that has the potential to truly shift a persons perceptions of themselves and the world around them
How inspiration sometimes just happens, but that you still have to show up and fight through your fears to make it happen
How finding that one person who will ‘speak belief’ into your idea can be the push you need to break through and start taking action
Why platforms like Kickstarter hold the secrets of epic storytelling
The truth about makes someone hand over their money to person they don’t know, to support a vision that may not even happen - on the back of one 3 minute video
Why it’s important to mute or unfollow social media accounts that don’t create the energy or emotion you need to do the work that matters
How the ability to keep trying unlocks the future - and why the next step is all you ever really need to know
His journey with the “Purpose Hotel” and where this amazing but challenging project is up to now - and how you can support the vision

References and Links Mentioned

Digital Photography for Dummies
Help-Portrait
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
“Purpose Hotel” Kickstarter video and Kickstarter page
“Purpose Hotel” Kickstarter page and video and website
‘I’m Possible’ - video of Jeremy’s journey so far
My new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Laura Gassner Otting - Limitless: How to ignore everyone and carve your own path

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 02:53:42 GMT

Laura Gassner Otting - What would you do if you felt truly limitless?

Whether you call it “being in the zone”, “flow”, “hyperfocus”, “feeling invincible”, or in the words of my guest today “consonance” - we have all experienced those moments where we feel our abilities and passions are absorbed into the task in front of us. Time melts away and we produce some of our best work. What if you could have that every day?

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode best-selling author and entrepreneur Laura Gassner Otting describes how we can take the limits off our lives and live in a “limitless” state. A state describing when “what we do matches who we are (or want to be)” and the limitless possibilities that result. She calls this “consonance” - the opposite of dissonance.

Laura started her limitless journey at the opposite end of the spectrum. She had worked hard to achieve a successful career, but then realised she was working hard for someone else’s definition of success. Working in executive search, she also began to notice that those who appeared limitless had four decisions in common. Those four decisions enabled them to tap into their limitless potential. You can too.

Today’s Guest Laura Gassner Otting

Laura has over 25 years experience in service, leadership, and entrepreneurship. Today she is a best-selling author and an in-demand motivational speaker.

Dropping out of law school, Laura started her career as a campaign staffer for the Clinton and Gore 1994 Presidential campaign. She then worked in the Clinton Whitehouse helping to establish AmeriCorps (a domestic version of the Peace Corps). She then became an AmeriCorps program director and got her Master’s in Political Management from George Washington University.

She then entered the world of executive search and rose to the position of Senior Vice President of executive search startup ExecSearches.com.

After leaving the world of executive search, she founded the Nonprofit Professional Advisory Group (NPAG) where she held the position of President for over 12 years.

In 2015, she sold NPAG and after presenting at a TedTalk she was inspired to write her first book, “Mission-Driven: Moving from Profit to Purpose”. She then followed this up with the 2019 Washington Post Best Seller “Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life”.

Website: https://lauragassnerotting.com

Facebook: @heyLGO

Twitter: @heyLGO

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heylgo/

“Letting go of the controls of trying to go back to the way things were allows us to open up our lens to the way things can be.”

“If you are comparing your bloopers to someone else’s highlight reel of course you are going to feel terrible about yourself.”

“You can’t do it if you let other people limit you to what they think you are capable of because nobody knows what you can really do”.

“We cannot be insatiably hungry for someone else’s goals.”

You’ll learn

Why imposter syndrome is a product of our current society and what we need to be groundbreakers
Why social media is a highlight reel that should never inform your life choices.
Why, when it comes to our decisions and potential, we often give votes to those that shouldn’t even have a voice in our lives.
Who we should give voice to: mentors, a peer, and someone you trust and respect.
How to find a mentor: look for people who have walked the path you want to walk and are willing to give specific feedback.
Why you should not be afraid to seek out top shelf mentors or people you respect.
Why you can't just follow your passion, you have to invest in it. You need to work hard and be at the ‘bleeding edge of your incompetence’.
Why focusing on what might happen if we fail rather than what might happen if we succeed stops us from ever taking our true place.
We do our best work when we are in “consonance”: when our work and passion matches - and the end results are highly rewarding (not only financially).
Consonance is contagious. People are drawn in by passion in action.
The four pillars of consonance: calling, connection, contribution, and control. Calling is what gets you out of bed as a gravitational pull. Connection is involving other people and their calling in your work. Contribution is ensuring your work clearly contributes to your life. Control is being open to opportunities - while also setting clear boundaries around the areas of your work and life that matter.

References and links mentioned

HBR article: “Top telling women they have imposter syndrome”
Laura’s books: “Mission-Driven: Moving from Profit to Purpose” and “Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life”.
Amy Cuddy’s TedTalk, “Your body language may shape who you are”
Laura’s TedTalk, “Stop asking: How I can help”
Laura on the Today Show
My new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and review Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com, download my new ebook The Influencer Code and sign up to my weekly newsletter Influence Insider.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mikael Krogerus - The secrets of great decision making: Information, intuition and how to keep moving

Tue, 13 Jul 2021 20:00:40 GMT

Michael Krogerus - The Secrets of Great Decision Making: Information, Intuition and How to Keep Moving

How do you approach decisions in your life? Are you the cut and thrust type or do you agonize over every decision? We make decisions every day but do we have a good strategy for making those decisions? Even fast decision-makers can struggle with a weighty decision from time to time.

Today’s guest, journalist Mikael Krogerus, struggled with decision making. Sometimes he made his best decisions with preparation but other times gut decisions led to better outcomes. So like any good journalist, he decided to do the research to find the answers. This search became the basis of his best-selling guide “The Decision Book”. In this book, he and co-author Roman Tschäppele walk the reader through proven strategies for decision making, sharing secrets like how to make decisions under pressure and why too much information is just as debilitating as not enough.

Today’s Guest Mikael Krogerus

Mikael is a Finnish citizen who grew up in Sweden and Germany.

He is currently the editor of Das Magazin, the weekend magazine for leading Swiss newspapers.

He has over 20 years experience in journalism, writing for newspapers such as NZZ (Zurich) and Der Freitag (Berlin) and even started his own sports news portal. He has won seven journalism awards.

He has co-written five books with long-term friend Roman Tschäppele including the Decision Book and The Communication Book.

He has a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Government from Freie Universität Berlin and is an Enterprising Leadership graduate from Kasopilot.

Website: https://rtmk.ch/

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=644436972

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikaelkrogerus

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mikael-krogerus-0406906

“The problem with decision making is not only the fact that we can make a mistake but that we can spend too much time and energy to avoid making that mistake”.

“People agonize too much over things that don’t play a big part in their lives”.

You’ll learn

How humans differ from animals in terms of decision making i.e. we think long-term and worry about the past and future decisions.
What decision fatigue is and how to avoid it.
The importance of setting limits on your information gathering.
The TMI paradox is: why having too much information is similar to having not enough.
Why we are often happier when we limit our options and set a deadline for decisions.
The importance of recognising the unknowns. Taking the time to think about things you might not have considered, preferably before you need to make a big decision.
Why the pressure of making a “perfect decision” can be paralyzing - and how to avoid it.
The role of gut decisions in helping us make complex decisions - and the need to be sceptical: as gut decisions can be based on experience and prejudice.
How to make decisions better under time pressure - you often have more time than you think so step back, breathe, and focus on the goal of your decision.
Why not making a decision IS a decision.
Expectation vs satisfaction: the more we expect from a decision’s outcome, the harder it is to be satisfied with the outcome.
Maximizers vs. Satisficers: How maximisers make the best decisions - but satisficers are faster and happier with the decisions that they make.
The three phases of good decision making: the preparation phase (do I have enough information), the timing phase (is this the right time for a decision) and the reflection phase (how do I feel about the decision in hindsight).
Why we waste a lot of our decision making time - and momentum - looking for the Loch Ness monster. That being the illusive ‘perfect’ choice or option.
The truth that we become the decisions we make. When faced with two good but hard choices, choose the one that speaks to who you are or who you want to be.

References and links mentioned

Danish-Icelandic artist Olaf Eliasson’s 2020 exhibition was called: “Sometimes the river is the bridge”
The supermarket- jam experiment can be found in the paper:
Iyengar, Sheena S. and Lepper, Mark R.,(2000), ”When Choice is Demotivating: Can one desire too much of a good thing?”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2000, Vol. 79, No.6, p995 - 1006.
Dutch explorer Willem de Vlamingh: first European to discover black swans.
Daniel Kahneman quote: “intuition is thinking that you know without knowing why you do”.
Simon Yates cut the rope on climbing partner Joe Simpson who wrote the book, “Touching the void”.
Alan Watts quote, “muddy water is cleared by leaving it alone” comes from his book “The Way of Zen”.
Previous podcast with Brandon Webb: “Get off the X”
Loch Ness monster
Philosopher Ruth Chang’s Ted Talk “How to make hard choices”
My new ebook The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Benjamin Zander - Standing in possibility: Leadership, enrolment and the transformative role of music

Tue, 29 Jun 2021 20:00:00 GMT

Ben Zander - The power of standing in possibility: Leadership and the transformative role of music

What type of leader do you want to be?

Some leaders are like black holes that suck the passion and self-belief out of their teams. While others are unsure of how to enrol their teams into a greater vision.

Benjamin Zander is not one of these leaders. He is remarkable in the way he calls out the passion and possibilities in his teams. He wants to see your eyes shine!

His unique approach as the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra has elevated him to the level of leadership guru. He is awarded by the UN, has spoken at Davos, is a bestselling author with his wife, and his TED Talks have been seen by tens of millions.

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode, we talk to Benjamin Zander about how to lead from the position of possibility.

Today’s Guest Benjamin Zander

Benjamin Zander was born in Buckinghamshire England after his parents fled Nazi Germany in 1937.

At age 12, Zander became the youngest member of the British National Youth Orchestra. At 15, he moved to Italy to study under master cellist Gaspar Cassadó.

After completing a degree in English Literature at the University of London, he was awarded a Harkness Fellowship to study in the US.

Moving to Boston he joined the New England Conservatory of Music in 1967 and began his career as a conductor.

In 1978 he founded the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra where he continues to conduct to this day. In 2012, he founded the Boston Youth Philharmonic Orchestra.

He has over 11 recordings with the Boston Philharmonic and has been nominated for a Grammy multiple times. He is acclaimed for his interpretations of Mahler and Beethoven.

In 2000, he released “The Art of Possibility” co-authored with his wife Rosamund Stone Zander, therapist and executive coach. The book became a bestseller and has been translated into 20 languages. The book looks at how leadership and personal development can foster creativity and growth.

His Ted Talk ”The Transformative Power of Classical Music” has been seen and shared by over 20 million people.

He is a sought after speaker on leadership and classical music.

In 2002, he was awarded the “Caring Citizen of the Humanities Award” by the United Nations.

He was also awarded the Crystal Award for “Outstanding Contributions in the Arts and International Relations” by the Davos World Economic Forum

Website: www.benjaminzander.org

Facebook: OfficialBenjaminZander

Twitter: @BenjaminZander

LinkedIn: benjaminzander

“The conductor of an orchestra is the only musician that doesn’t make a sound but he has a lot of power. But the power comes entirely from his ability to make other people powerful”

“A cynical person is a passionate person who does not want to be disappointed again.”

“Look for love and the courage will come.”

You’ll learn

Why choosing to stand in possibility is the greatest discipline of life – and the impact that choice can have on not only those around us, but also some of the greatest challenges we currently face as a global community.
How to overcome the voice of negativity
How to know if you are leading well
That there is always a pathway to possibility
How to bring out someone’s best performance
The failure of not believing that people are up to a task
What are the two voices we all hear
The art of enrolment – how to put out a call to your team or followers. One that is so grippingly honest and compelling - that only the brave of heart will step forward.
What it means to be an interpreter within your space – and why sometimes it involves apologising for the times we fail to get others to enrol.
And finally - why there are always two people playing the violin – the first being the player – and the second being the voice inside their head. And what the most accomplished musicians in the world do when that voice gets unhelpful.

References and links mentioned

Zander’s Ted Talk: “The Transformative Power of Classical Music”
Zander’s book co-written with his wife: “The Art of Possibility”
Rosamund Stone Zander’s book “Pathways to Possibility”
Zander’s “Safe & Sound'' Concert Series: Brahm’s Sextet in B-flat Major, op. 18
Zander conducting an online Masterclass
Benjamin Zander playing the piano: “An evening with Benjamin Zander and Mozart”
Boston Philharmonic Orchestra
The Influencer Code

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cindy Gallop - Taking on Titans: Power, persistence and changing the world through sex

Wed, 16 Jun 2021 00:42:09 GMT

Is hardcore porn preparing children and young people for a good sex life? According to the American Psychology Association, the largest consumers of internet porn are 12 to 17 year-olds.

On today’s podcast, we talk to an advertising industry veteran and entrepreneur who is not afraid to talk about sex education and to stand up for good real-world sex, Cindy Gallop.

Cindy is the founder of the MakeLoveNotPorn website which she launched with a TED Talk in 2009. Her four minute talk quickly and unexpectedly went viral. It currently has over 2.6m views on YouTube. It elevated Cindy into a needed social discourse that is too often hushed.

MakeLoveNotPorn is a social sextech platform designed to promote good sexual behavior and good sexual values by showing good real-world sex. It’s mission is to promote honest and open conversations about sex through the dynamic of social media. It’s vision is a “social sex revolution”. Content is carefully curated and revenue is shared with contributors.

Cindy started the site after she started to see a trend in the young men she dated. Men were behaving badly in bed. They equated good sex with memes from harcore porn. She looked around and realised that hardcore porn had converged with society’s unwillingness to talk about sex education. She wanted to create a platform that showed the joy of real-world sex: consentual and communicative.

A decade on from LoveNotPorn’s launch, we talk to Cindy about why she started the platform, what has changed over that time, what needs to change still, and how we can be that change.

Today’s Guest: Cindy Gallop

Lucinda “Cindy” Gallop was born in the UK.

She earned a Master’s in English Language and Literature from Oxford University.

She began her career as a theatre publicist but moved into the world of advertising, where she has built a stellar 36 year career.

In 1989, she joined the growing advertising firm Bartle Bogle Hegarty. In 1996, she moved to Singapore to start and run BBH’s Asia-Pacific office, which included clients like Levi’s.

In 1998 she started the US branch. By 2002, the branch was named Adweek’s Eastern Agency of the Year, and in 2003, she was named Advertising Woman of the Year. Building on this success, she was appointed to the position of Chairman and President for BBH in the US.

Today, she works as an expert consultant in advertising and in her spare time is trying to make the world a better place. She has founded two influential online platforms: IfWeRanTheWorld (paying it forward with micro-actions) and MakeLoveNotPorn.

Website: cindygallop.com

Facebook: cindy.gallop

Twitter: @cindygallop

LinkedIn:cindygallop

“At MakeLoveNotPorn we show you how wonderful, great consentual and communicative sex is in the real world.”

“The only way you educate people as to what is great consentual and communicative sex, good sex, and good sexual behaviour is by watching people having that type of sex”

You’ll learn

Her journey with #makelovenotporn – why it began and why she sincerely believes our values and stories around sex should be a National priority
How she approaches – and handles herself – as a leader in the multitude of moments where all doors are being slammed shut
The impact of the porn industry – and how two dimensional and disconnected a conversation becomes - when you exclude 50% of the participants.
The concept of micro-actions – and why they hold the key to any sustainable change or momentum – including her recommendation for the No.1 micro-action we can all take to completely change the trajectory of our lives.
And finally – what she’s learned about talking about taboos – and how much one moment can change your life.
“Everyone of us can change the world in tiny tiny ways, every single day”

References and links mentioned

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on my website juliemasters.com and download my new ebook The Influencer Code

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Guy Kawasaki - The Art of Evangelism: Mastery, mantras and nailing the pitch

Wed, 02 Jun 2021 02:48:38 GMT

Guy Kawasaki - The Art of Evangelism: Mastery, mantras and nailing the pitch

Is your elevator pitch letting you down? The world is full of the “best” and “revolutionary” so how can you make your product or company cut through?

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode, we talk to the former chief evangelist at Apple and current chief evangelist for Canva Guy Kawasaki about how to be an evangelist for your product or company.

Guy shares stories from his journey as an entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and tech evangelist with practical tips that founders, business owners, and employees can apply to their organisation.

Guy learnt from the best but has a passion to share his lessons with others wanting to get started.

Today’s Guest: Guy Kawasaki

Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist of Canva and former chief evangelist at Apple. He is an executive fellow of the Haas School of Business (UC Berkeley), and an adjunct professor of the University of New South Wales. He is also a former trustee of the Wikimedia Foundation.

Guy was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. He has a BA from Stanford University, an MBA from UCLA, and an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

After working for an education software company, his Stanford roommate got him a job at Apple in 1983. At Apple, he promoted Macintosh to software developers. He ended up working for Apple twice and turned Steve Jobs down for a third stint.

After leaving Apple (the first time), he started two software companies and VC firm Garage Technology Ventures.

He has written fourteen books including Wise Guy, The Art of the Start 2.0, The Art of Social Media, and Enchantment. He is also a popular speaker on innovation, entrepreneurship, and product evangelism.

He hosts a podcast called “Remarkable People” where he interviews amazing people from all walks of life.

Website: https://guykawasaki.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/guy

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GuyKawasaki

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guykawasaki/

“Everybody is using the same adjectives so if you want to position yourself as unique and valuable you have to really articulate why you are unique and valuable”.

“It’s not where you start but how fast you move”.

You will learn

How to identify “solid-gold” products or people using the “Unique by Valuable” matrix
That showing (i.e. a demo), is more powerful than telling someone about your product
How to localise your product - personalising your pitch and marketing
How to optimise your 30-second elevator pitch - mantras rather than mission statements (for a 3-minute pitch check out Julie’s Podcast with successful film director Brant Pinvidic)
Whether your product is a “vitamin” or a “pain-killer”
The ideal format for a pitch deck
How to become an evangelist
What does “drawing on a bullseye last” means in terms of failure and success
How to make an “ask”
What the ultimate purpose of an organisation should be

References and links mentioned

Canva
Mac-Apple
The history of Apple Macintosh
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell - 10,000-hour rule
Mindset by Carol Dweck
Jane Goodall
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth

Subscribe to and Review the Inside Influence Podcast

Also, don’t forget to hop on and download my new ebook The Influencer Code which is available on my website juliemasters.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gautam Mishra - The Future of the News: Truth, trust and how to turn this ship around

Wed, 19 May 2021 04:09:58 GMT

Gautam Mishra - The Future of the News: Truth, trust and how to turn this ship around

We are drowning in news, fake and otherwise. And our time, energy, and mental health is suffering as a result. During the initial lockdowns last year, I found myself 'opting out'. I was overwhelmed.

But as influencers, we need to stay engaged and focused. And we need to be deliberate about the news we watch and listen to. We need to make it a habit. Avoiding the news is not the answer.

Where do you go to get your news? What news should you pay attention to?

On today’s Inside Influence Podcast episode, we talk to Gautam Mishra the founder of Inkl.

Gautam talks about why he founded Inkl, the importance of getting the right news, and the future of the industry. He also advises on how to stay informed and balanced while avoiding the traps of social media.

Inkl is a premium news service that uses an algorithm to recommend stories from over 100+ trusted global sources like The Economist and The Guardian. It recommends stories based on news value (as determined by the publishers themselves) rather than what is trending. It also presents alternative voices to its stories, “Good News”, and original journalism. It has been called the “Spotify for news”.

During the pandemic, Inkl has seen its revenues double as people have turned to quality news sources. Publishers like Inkl because it pays a higher rate than normal online advertising.

Today’s Guest Gautam Mishra

Schooled in Kolkata, Gautam went to university in the US and graduated with an MBA from the Wharton Business School.

Even as a boy, Gautam was a news tragic. He wrote stories for his local newspaper and was editor of his school newspaper. While at Wharton he helped edit the Wharton Journal.

Moving to Australia he became General Manager for Strategy, Data, and Research for Fairfax Media, owner of the leading national newspapers, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

While at Fairfax he became an expert in paywalls and who and why people were paying for news.

In 2013, he left Fairfax to co-found AirShr (an interactive radio app) and Inkl. Today, he is the CEO of Inkl.

Website: https://www.inkl.com/

Facebook: @inklcom

Twitter: jeamish

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/jeamish

“There are not many parallels for this in history where the value of a customer has collapsed by 99 percent and the business has survived it.” Gautam Mishra.

You’ll learn

As readers there has been an explosion in the number of topics and sources we follow.
Social media algorithms give us information we already know and love. News platform algorithms are designed to give us information we don’t already know but need to know.
Social media is great for sharing news articles but as an open platform it is not good at checking their veracity.
A lot of news we now read or even pictures we see come from unknown sources with undeclared biases. This makes it harder for us to process the information.This is why providence is important.
Since the introduction of the internet, the revenues of newspapers have collapsed by something like 99 percent.
Online advertising is not working. People are not logging on to news websites. Google and Facebook attract the lion’s share of online advertising, and the small size of mobile phone screens make online advertising difficult.
News platforms are moving to subscription models, which provide revenues per user a hundred times greater than online advertising.
The importance of providing people with sufficient information on their path to conviction over an issue.

References and links mentioned

BBC Article mentioned in the intro - How the news changes the way we think and behave
Substack - newsletter service
Future Crunch - new learning experiences for key new knowledge (my podcast episode with Future Crunch)
For anyone who wants to explore Inkl further after listening to this conversation, Gautam has offered a 14 day free trial to all Influence Insiders. You can access it via this URL: http://www.inkl.com/julie-masters.

Also, don’t forget to hop on and download my new ebook The Influencer Code which is available on my website juliemasters.com.

Subscribe To & Review The Inside Influence Podcast

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Manal al-Sharif - Daring to drive the change: Courage, conviction and the power of using your voice

Tue, 04 May 2021 20:00:35 GMT

I want you to imagine for a second that your son or daughter – or niece or nephew if you don’t have children – is your legal guardian.

You need their written permission to open a bank account, get a job, get married, get divorced or leave the country. If something were to happen to them, your ownership would then be passed to someone else.

As part of this system, you’re also not able to leave the house alone, drive, show your face, have your name used in public – the list goes on.

When I first started researching todays episode – I had to take a second with that. What parts of my life right now would be or would have been impossible? How would I navigate the day-to-day practical aspects of just existing?

Having had those freedoms throughout my lifetime, it’s hard if not impossible to imagine having them taken away. Let alone not having them in the first place.

My guest today grew up within such a world. Born and raised in Saudi Arabia, a country in which - prior to 2019 - women were not permitted legal guardianship over their own lives – including being (until 2018) the last nation on earth to give women the right to drive.

There have been a number of reforms in women’s rights within Saudi Arabia over the past few years – including women’s right to take guardianship over their own lives after the age of 21 - and an increase in participation of women in the workforce from 20% to 33% within the past two years.

However, pivotal to these reforms, are the women that - in the case of today’s guest -quite literally ‘drove’ that movement. A movement that both divided – and then changed an entire Nation.

My guest today is Manal Al-Sharif. I was first introduced to Manal a few years ago when – in exile from her own country – she moved to Australia. Since then we have stayed in touch, and I have watched in awe as she travelled the world speaking on International stages to talk about her activism – and later her incredible book ‘Daring to Drive’.

In 2011, Manal co-founded and led the #Women2Drive movement. To challenge the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia. She was arrested and imprisoned for "driving while female" and was released on the condition that she never drive again on Saudi lands and never speak about it.

Ignoring these conditions Manal continued campaigning for #Women2Drive and the #IAmMyOwnGuardian movement - with the aim to end male guardianship in her country. In June of 2018 the Saudi government lifted the ban on women driving. Manal then went on to start #Faraj, a campaign to help domestic helpers leave jail, and #IAmLama which resulted in codifying the first anti-domestic violence law in Saudi.

As a result of her tireless activism, she was awarded the first Vaclav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent. Including being listed as one of TIME Magazine's 100 most influential people, and Forbes Top 50 Women in Tech.

Manal is a TED and Harvard speaker, she has also spoken for the United Nations, UNESCO, the Obama Summit, Google, Yahoo!, the Oslo Freedom Forum and many others.

In this conversation, I finally had chance to ask some of the questions I had always wanted to ask her. Including:

The day of her arrest – and what went through her mind as she heard those knocks on her door at 2am, while her 5-year-old son slept upstairs.
What she learnt about using her voice so publicly - against a structure or system that seemed impenetrable – and how she handled the inevitable backlash.
What it takes to not only start a movement – but to see it through to its conclusion. We tend to hear a lot about movements in their early stages, but not so much in the months and years later - when those at the frontline are still tirelessly fighting – often without resources, media or financial support.
How she handles the personal consequences of what happened. Including the impact on her career and her ability to see her children – and how she prepares every day to help her sons understand the decisions she made. Favourite part…
And why – for a large portion of the planet – we still live in a world driven by ‘rules that were written in our absence”- and what she now understands about how you start to question and then rewrite those rules.

Please be warned that some parts of this interview contain violent language and swearing. So I’ll leave it to you to decide whose ears should be listening.

For me, Manal is one of those individuals that – when she walks into a room – the clocks literally stop. Such is the palpable strength of her presence and conviction.

However, what I’d love you to reflect on here is not necessarily the size of her strength.

It’s the smaller decisions. The moment by moment – day by day choices to commit and recommit. A favourite quote from the suffragette movement is that it is ‘deeds and not words’ that changes things. What aspect of the world around you right now seems broken, no longer useful or in need of a rewrite?

What deed, however large, could you undertake – or whose deeds can you actively support in the long term – to help get that change made?

That's a question that’s very much on my mind at the moment.

On that note, sit back, cycle on, stride out, drive safe and enjoy my conversation with the undeniable force that is Manal Al-Sharif.

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Hamish Thomson - Why it’s not always right to be right: Plus other hard won leadership lessons

Tue, 20 Apr 2021 20:00:00 GMT

One of the great things about the world of founders and entrepreneurs – and for anyone in that arena you’ll know there are many not so great things – is that you get to choose your landscape.

No one is going to walk into your office at 2pm on a rainy Tuesday afternoon - and announce that you now work somewhere else, possibly in a different country, leading a whole new team, with a whole new batch of KPI’s, stakeholders and challenges.

Such is the world of the organisational leader. The corporate leader who, entrepreneurial and innovative as he or she may be – still needs to exist within a legacy and structure that is largely out of their hands.

Now don’t get me wrong - that journey also comes with definite advantages – mentors, resources, consistency, a carefully refined playbook – but as we all know, the bigger the ship, the more entrenched the culture and the more stakeholders – the harder it can be to turn around.

Honestly, I’ve never really spent much time on the art of corporate leadership within this podcast – I’ve always owned and run my own businesses so it’s not a world I’m deeply familiar with – plus I’ve tended to believe we can learn more about influence on the fringes - than the centre of business as usual.

But oh how wrong it seems I have been. Flashback to a few months ago, when a publisher colleague of mine handed me a new book about to hit the shelves called: ‘Why it’s not always right to be right: And other hard won leadership lessons’.

Written by Hamish Thomson, it’s a book that beautifully documents the learnings, stories and strategies he learnt during a 30-year journey from (his own words) a fresh-faced account executive in the London advertising scene – to the Regional President and Global Brand head for Mars - one of the most iconic and recognised brands on the planet.

In this conversation we dive hard into:

The namesake of the book – why as a leader it’s not always right to be right. And what metric successful leaders focus on instead.
Using the 30% rule to light a fire under any team or target – anyone that’s looking to get serious traction will want to take some notes here.
Time on the ball – why those leaders that truly become iconic are those that learn how to stop translating pressure into stress.
The concept of drains and radiators – and how one conversation in a stairwell can pivot an entire organisation.
And finally – my personal favorite, so much so that it’s now written on a post-it note on my desk. I’m looking at it right now. How to stop confusing motion with impact.

Probably the piece I have been thinking most about since we recorded this interview, is the part around limiting beliefs. Or upper limit thinking.

You’ll hear Hamish talk a lot about the courage it takes to not only talk about the elephants in the room with his teams – those limiting beliefs about why this will never work, what’s been tried before and how the resources will never stretch that far.

But actually taking it one step further – by placing those beliefs on the table, documenting them, questioning them and agreeing to release them as a team.

Whether you’re a solo start up, an experienced leader or the CEO of a multinational enterprise – that’s a powerful (and visible) commitment to removing whatever blocks stand between where you are - and what’s possible.

On that note, sit back, drive on, stride out and I’ll leave you with the insights of a veteran of leadership – Hamish Thomson.

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Paul Zak - The Trust Factor: The neuroscience of morality, prosperity and epic storytelling

Thu, 08 Apr 2021 00:48:37 GMT

Here’s a question for today – what makes someone trustworthy? What do you look for? If you had to pin it down to a single trait, or indicator, what would it be?

Think about how many people we trust in our lives just for a second – with our vision, our businesses, our children, our finances, the health and wealth of our Nation.

Yet how do we ever really know if someone can be trusted - essentially their moral code – until it’s tested. Essentially until – potentially – it’s too late.

Which brings me on to my next question, and ultimately the focus of today’s episode.

Is there a reliable i.e. scientific way that we can predict and therefore design for trustworthy behaviour? A way of being able to trust who we can trust in a way.

Now let’s take that to the next level, if there is. If there are repeatable factors behind trustworthy behaviour – how could we use it to influence ourselves? Our own likelihood of behaving in a way that fits with our intentions – with the vision of the human being we want to be on our best days.

When I first started diving into this topic, the marriage of combining science with trust seemed like an unlikely one. Human beings are mysteries right? We’re a walking soup of contradictions, hormones and reactions. Any attempt to predict our behaviour usually fails.

And yet – this simple force – trust – is the glue that holds together every single fundamental part of the world that we know. Society, democracy, marriage – they all rely totally upon its existence.

So, it would seem about time that we dived a little deeper into the mechanics of it.

My guest on today’s episode has done exactly that, but he’s also taken it a step further. He’s identified the actual molecule responsible for trust – and found a way it can be used to predict behaviour with up to 80% accuracy.

Paul Zak is the founding Director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies and Professor of Economics, Psychology and Management at Claremont Graduate University. Paul’s two decades of research have taken him from the Pentagon to Fortune 50 boardrooms to the rain forest of Papua New Guinea. All this in a quest to understand the neuroscience of human connection, human happiness, and effective teamwork.

His latest book, Trust Factor: The Science of Creating High Performance Companies, uses neuroscience to measure and manage organizational cultures to accelerate business outcomes. His 2012 book, The Moral Molecule: The Source of Love and Prosperity, recounted his unlikely discovery of the exact neurochemical that drives trust, love, and human morality.

In todays episode we dive into…

Why human beings are the only creatures with a fully developed moral code – and how we use it to predict behaviour and essentially keep ourselves safe.
The moral molecule – what it is, how it works and how it can be harnessed to increase the likelihood of trustworthy behaviour.
The link between trust and prosperity – and why understanding the science of trust might be the key to alleviating poverty
How Pauls career and experience in this field has impacted his own approach to building trust – as both a leader and a parent
And finally – probably the part that blew me away the most – what all this information tells us about the future of storytelling. Including exactly how to structure a story – in order to trigger the chemicals in the brain that are directly responsible for people taking action.

On reflection, the part of this conversation that probably stuck with me the most is the concept of ‘time ins’ as a trigger.

The essential idea being that when people behave in a way that leads us to disconnect – either as a leader, a partner, a friend or a parent – often our instinct is to give them a time out. Set them apart, make an example, reinforce the rules through separation. In most countries we have based an entire criminal justice system upon this one guiding principle.

And yet… in many of those occasions, what’s actually needed is a time in. A bringing closer into the fold. An acknowledgement that - given the wrong combination of situations, chemicals, hormones and moments in time – we can all (and will all to varying degrees) lose sight of our best selves.

On that note, hunker down – or hide out somewhere quiet if you’re still in lock down – and soak up both the science and wisdom of the incredible Paul Zak.

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John Neffinger - Compelling people: The two secrets to massive influence

Tue, 23 Mar 2021 19:00:54 GMT

“It is better to be feared than loved, if one cannot be both” Niccolo Macchiavelli, Italian philosopher.

As a leader – which would you rather be? For all of us that question brings up different triggers, the desire to be liked, the fear of being seen as a push over. The pain of watching our plans dissolve because we were obviously not compelling enough – in that moment - to as my next guest would describe ‘bend the world to meet our will’.

So what if I told you that you can be both. In fact, what if I told you that the most charismatic, influential and inspirational people in our world are always both.

Everyone wants to know how to be more influential – it’s the entire focus of this podcast. But most of us don't really think we can have the kind of magnetism or charisma that we associate with someone like Bill Clinton or Oprah Winfrey unless it comes naturally.

My next guest - John Neffinger believes that this isn't something we have to be born with, it's something we can learn.

In his excellent book ‘Compelling People – co-authored with XX - They trace the path to influence through a balance of strength and warmth. Each seems simple, but only a few of us figure out the tricky task of projecting both at once. Drawing on cutting-edge social science research as well as their own work with Fortune 500 executives, Presidential candidates, TED speakers and Nobel Prize winners, Compelling People explains how we size each other up - and how we can learn to win the admiration, respect, and affection we desire.

In this episode we unpack:

Why words like chemistry and "charisma" are unhelpful. In short because they give us the impression that you either have it or you don’t – and they aren’t just tools that can be learned
The two critical criteria when it comes to being a compelling force as a leader: strength and warmth. And why EVERY single one of our social judgements are based on those two aspects.
Managing the dance – cold and warm – what comes first – and how the most charismatic, influential and inspirational people in our world are the ones that move continually and deliberately between those two places.
His experience working with Hillary Clinton to prepare for her first debates with Donald Trump – you all remember that one. Knowing what happened, how would he prep her now?
How to deal with interruptions – and yep you guessed it – why the Biden / Trump debate was an ideal case study on how to deal with vocal force.
And why the job of President is not just to run the country. The job of President is to lead the country. Which means giving voice to people’s sentiments and telling the story of what comes next.

If there’s one thing I’d love you to reflect on while you listen to this conversation – it’s the concept of ‘the tilt’. That your role as a leader – positional or not – is not necessarily to bend the world to meet your will – or to fold at the bendings of other people. It’s stay centered, get still, take a moment if you need to – and feel into what’s out of balance. Then, use the power of your will and intention to tilt back the scales.

On that note, sit back, stride out – pull out the protein bar for those who are still on a NY detox – and soak up the lessons from the front lines of persuasion from the incredible – John Neffinger.

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Pip McKay - Your Influence Archetype: A hidden language of growth, persuasion and getting unstuck

Tue, 09 Mar 2021 21:30:22 GMT

There are some episodes of this podcast where I feel like I come into the conversation with at least some basic knowledge of the subject or, or the journey we're about to embark on. And then there are others where it's probably equally as new territory for me as it might be for you. And in my experience, those ones, the ones where I have the least experience usually make the best conversations. And they also usually lead to places and nuggets of gold that would be hard for me to reach otherwise. Mainly because I don't come at the conversation with my biases or with my own knowledge or own experiences. I am simply able to sit completely in a beginner's mind. And today is one of those episodes. For a long time, I've had a long running fascination into the mysterious world of archetypes. Now archetypes is not a topic that's discussed often or even a word that's probably often used. But use of archetypes typically has and continues to form the foundation of pretty much every brand identity, advert film storyline, reality TV show or a marketing campaign that you have encountered. Now most of the people who work in those worlds can and do talk about this particular subject at length, but outside those walls, you barely ever hear it mentioned. In fact if you've ever taken any kind of a form of personality test, which as we know form the basis of billions of dollars worth of recruitment and training decisions, you'll basically have been given a giant list of what your archetype is usually in the context of work, and how to make that archetype work for you.

Now, the simplest way to think about archetypes or how I have come to think about archetypes is they just describe a pattern of behavior that is either permanent ie- I am a Heidi for anyone familiar with the Myers Briggs model of personality testing, or they form a part of a very specific phase of a journey, such as the phase of the journey called the call to adventure in Joseph Campbell's classics hero's journey, which if you haven't heard has been used to design the storylines of pretty much every blockbuster movie of our time. Just think Luke Skywalker in Star Wars.

So there has to be a key in here, right? Understanding the world of archetypes would seem to give us some kind of unique vantage point on what makes a story, a human, a political party, movie or leadership team so compelling. Basically why some are successful and why others fail.

And that, my friends, is a very long rationale as to why I sought out my next guest Pip McKay.

Pip is a world leading coach, mentor and author on the subject of NLP and breakthrough performance, author of two best selling books ‘The eight principles of achievement, love and happiness’ and ‘Four tribes on Earth’, both of which reached Amazon Number one in the US, Australia, UK, Canada - the list goes on. She is also an expert on archetype or coaching, which is predominantly what we dive into as part of our conversation today.

In this conversation we cover:-

What exactly an archetype is and how we can use that understanding to build greater insights into where the leaps in our performance might lay.
How to get ourselves unstuck - The four phases of growth, How we move between them, where we often find ourselves, what feels like right back at the beginning, aka Thank you 2020.
The price of feedback and why powerful vulnerability does not mean standing in front of the firing line alone.
The concept of thresholds and click through points, usually describing those moments that feel like freefall, but are in fact, usually an invitation to something else.
Why at various times, we all need to learn how to stop blaming and pay the price.

I've thought a lot about this conversation since it was recorded. Strangely enough more than

most and probably my biggest takeaway and something I'd really love you to listen out for. While you're soaking all of this up today is this simple reframe. The next time you're stuck there are usually only ever two ways out of it. The first is to stop beating your head against that brick wall - you know the one and get some support. Now that might be a partner, a coach, a friend or a mentor. Essentially, whatever place it is they won't judge how you got yourself there in the first place. And then the second is to consciously surround yourself with a genuine diversity of perspectives on the where to from here.

As that age old Einstein quote goes “We can't solve our problems with the same thinking that we used to create them.” Now both of these strategies sound really simple, but in my own reflections, and as someone who's been stuck more than my fair share of times it's rare that we do either. On that note sit back, sip on your latte, stride out and enjoy the fascinating mind of one of the true sages in this space, the amazing Pip McKay.

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Michael Grinder: Charisma, power and the School of Unlearning

Tue, 23 Feb 2021 19:00:00 GMT

Here’s a question – how do you feel about the word charisma?

Does it inspire you? Make you think about world leaders or industry icons – those who are able to inspire others with their words and actions. Does it make you cringe? Feel somehow kind of hollow – like a veneer or side show designed to hide something? Or does it just feel like a super power you either do or do not have.

The honest answer for me – is somehow all of those things. I’ve seen charisma – that illusive magnetic quality – move mountains, raise millions of dollars and build entire organisations from nothing but an idea.

I’ve also seen the traditional definition of charisma – one of flamboyance, volume and a willingness to put on a show - be responsible for keeping some of the most incredible people, ideas and companies on the side lines. Resigned before they begin - by the mistaken belief that they don’t have what it takes to achieve that level of influence.

So much power – for one very little word.

Today’s guest takes that word charisma – and turns it inside out. Rather than an attribute that’s externally referenced – what people think of me, the end result I achieve – he believes it to be something that starts from within.

He also believes that charisma – and influence – has very little to do with the words that we say – but rather in the space between the words – or non-verbal cues as he calls them.

In other words – he’s someone I had to talk to.

Michael Grinder has over 40 years of experience training thousands of groups. Known as the pioneer of nonverbal communication, Michael helps executives and educators assess people accurately, connect with others deeply, and build their charisma.

He’s written 14 books, which have been translated into seven languages. He’s a sought-after speaker across seven continents. He was also Teacher of the year on three different occasions and a recipient of the 2019 DACH “Mediator of the Year.”

In this conversation we dive into:

How to avoid being shot as the messenger of bad news – especially if you’re in a leadership position that involves naming the unpopular elephant in the room.
How to use your breath as a tool to immediately move your body from fight or flight – into a zone of powerful influence.
Why the cracks in works of great art, hold the key to understanding the two spaces we need to occupy when lifting our charisma
The role of ‘planting’ when it comes to diffusing conflict – or igniting possibility. GAME CHANGER
And finally, why there should be a school of unlearning, when it comes to the stories we tell ourselves about our own ability to influence – and the tools we are given (or in many cases not given) to make the leaps in impact we want to make.

If you’re interested in even more tools from Michaels arsenal. Can only cover so many in an audio format – if you want to learn more – I can’t recommend highly enough that you check out Michaels newsletter ( http://michaelgrinder.com/free-charisma ). It’s packed full of tools, videos, resources on every area of this topic.

In this episode, what I’d love you to reflect on – or keep at the back of your mind - is this line that you’ll hear us discuss: ‘If you can’t give solutions, give sanity’.

I think all too often, as leaders, parents – salespeople – we fall into the solution trap. The idea that our role is to have all the answers. To have a clever strategy, or winning smile, that will make all the uncertainty disappear.

The irony is that – more often than not – the people who look to you – or look up to you – they aren’t even listening. They’re measuring how you hold yourself. They’re reading your body language, your voice, your pauses and the strength and certainty of your presence.

That’s charisma. That’s influence. And those are tools you can learn.

On that note, sit back, cycle on, sharpen your pencil and get ready for a masterclass from one of the legends in his field – Michael Grinder.

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Oberon Sinclair: From Unknown to Iconic: How one woman made Kale the world's most infamous vegetable

Tue, 09 Feb 2021 19:00:00 GMT

I’m going to start today’s introduction with a quote from The Times: “If the vegetable kingdom had a supermodel it would be Kale.”

You know Kale - the green leafy vegetable that seems to be in everything? Steamed kale, baked kale, kale smoothies, dehydrated kale chips and my personal favourite – kale ice-cream.

For those of you that have been living under a rock – kale has to be the world’s most talked about super food of the past few years.

In 2014, Whole Foods went from barely stocking Kale to selling 22k bunches per day, and small-time kale chip producers became multi-millionaires practically overnight.

From food to fashion - even Beyoncé sported a Kale sweatshirt in one of her popular music videos.

So, like all things that seemingly come out of nowhere and suddenly become viral – it’s interesting to ask the question – what exactly happened?

Who started these wheels in motion – how do they feel about what happened next - and more importantly – how on earth did they do it?

So this episode started nearly a year ago – when I hadn’t yet asked myself any of those questions about my morning smoothie. It began with an email from someone call Captain Jack. The rough gist of the email was ‘I love your podcast and – if you haven’t already – you have to talk to a lady called Oberon Sinclair. She made Kale famous’. Full stop.

Now we get a handful of these emails every week – some are interesting – some are down right strange - but there was something about Captain Jack – and the words ‘made Kale famous’ – that I think pretty understandably got me hooked. Pardon the pun.

What followed was a six month conversation from various points around the globe, that led me to become more and more fascinated with the phenomenon that is Oberon Sinclair.

In simple answer to the question – yes she did single handedly make Kale famous – but how she did it – and why she did it – is a story you have to hear. So here are a few background details…

Oberon is the CEO and founder of the PR and creative agency, My Young Auntie.

Over the past 20 years, she has collaborated with, consulted for and managed clients including Hermès, Vivienne Westwood, Jack Spade, Converse and Fabergé. On top of all of that she is also widely regarded and known – as the Queen of Kale.

In this conversation we unpack:

How to spot – and create trends - by making and creating space in your life for curiosity
Why deciding to act on that zing – is one of the most powerful decisions you can make in business and in life
Why she created the American Kale Association – and why it became the vegetable kingdoms best kept secret
How to create a network of influence – including creating natural, unforced connections – no faking it until you make it here
The keys to putting together effective collaborations – including the three step rule - Connect, create, collaborate

What I’d love you to reflect on when listening to this conversation – is how un-linear her journey has been. I think we can often fall into the trap of taking a a+b=c approach to influence – or to building any kind of business, career or movement from scratch.

From my experience – and from any of the conversations I have had with those that have fire tested the tools – it just doesn’t work that way. It involves trusting your instincts, following the breadcrumbs when they appear, showing up and staying inspired when it feels like you’re on an unexpected detour (aka the whole of 2020). And finally – playing the long game with the people you meet along the way.

If this conversation feels like it walks down many different paths - it’s because that’s what a truly inspired and influential life often feels like. The question is always our commitment to keep walking.

On that note – sit back, pull out the kale chips and enjoy an insight into the brilliant mind of the Queen of Kale herself – Oberon Sinclair.

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Cody Keenan - Finding your voice: Lessons from Obama in compelling communication

Tue, 26 Jan 2021 19:00:00 GMT

Today’s we’re going to dive into that last word – Nation.

What does it take to write a speech so captivating - so compelling – that it has the ability to stop a Nation in its tracks? Make the planet literally sit up and pay attention – or define an entire moment in history for generations to come. Would it be fair to say that the writing of that speech would take a level of mastery that’s worth knowing?

I’ve worked with speakers and presenters for twenty years. And this bit, the crafting of the story itself – what’s too much – what’s not enough – what’s too simple – what’s too complex – what does justice to the ideas – and what will just get lost amongst the noise. That’s always the most underestimated part. Presentations skills you can learn – an instinct for the unparalleled power of words – that’s a level of mastery that takes years or decades to develop.

Unless… of course… you learn from the best.

My guest today is exactly that. Someone I have admired for years as THE master of the craft. Keenan is a professional speechwriter who, as Director of Speech Writing for President Obama - has written or edited more than 2,000 speeches for his boss. Including the historical March 2015 speech, when Obama spoke in Selma, Alabama, marking 50 years since "Bloody Sunday". More recently he also worked on Obama’s Democratic National Convention speech, which is still being described by many pundits as a ‘historically unprecedented’.

So what does that take? Where do you start? What words do you use when there are no words? Or – in moments when every single word counts so much – that each will be dissected a million times by the media. What you’re about to hear is basically a masterclass in compelling communication.

In this conversation, we dive into…

One of the most powerful questions I have ever heard when it comes to owning your space in a room – or an arena… ‘Why are you the only one who can tell this story?’
The importance of starting and ending a speech on purpose - how to grab the audience’s attention from the first word and send them home with a fire to move forward.
Transitions and signposting – basically how to move seamlessly from one point to the next without losing your audience.
Why the best speeches are like jazz – a piece of advice that came from President Obama himself – where the pauses and low notes are what allow the high notes to shine.
Why you shouldn’t put anything in a speech that you wouldn’t say to a friend in a bar – try thinking about public policy this way and you’ll get what a mind flip that requires.
And surprisingly, and reassuringly, that even for the man who writes to a nation, on some of the most pressing issues of our time... self-doubt and imposter syndrome are par for the course. The question is, can you put them to work for you - rather than letting them run the show.

As a heads up – Cody does make a few references to mass shooting events - in the context of moments where it’s hard to find the words. I’ll leave you to decide how best to take care of yourself and your loved ones in those moments.

What I do want you to reflect on here is that – as always - genius leaves footprints. Think of the last speech you witnessed that left you glued to your chair. That left you utterly committed to taking some action. Can you map out its basic structure? What caught your attention straight out of the gate? What were the core 3-5 points? How did they finished in a way that made sure you took action? Pay attention, all the clues are there.

Oh and finally – if you write anything on a post it note and stick it to your desk today – let it be this: “What’s the story I want to tell – and why am I the only person who can tell it?”

In the meantime, settle back and enjoy my conversation with the incredible mind that is Cody Keenan....

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Valerie Young - Rewriting the script on Imposter Syndrome: How to stop playing small and break free

Tue, 19 Jan 2021 19:00:31 GMT

Have you ever caught yourself wondering if you’re the right person for the job? I’m talking about that feeling that eventually - everyone is going to figure out that you’re making it up as you go along. That questioning how you even found yourself in the position you are, doing the things that you’re doing? Wondering when (not if) anyones eventually going to ‘find you out’?

And secondly - here’s the biggie - have these thoughts ever stopped you from shooting for something - or asking for something - that really mattered?

Today’s topic is a deeply personal one for me...

I know for me there has been countless times in my life, not just my career, where I’ve thought to myself “”? And now that you’re here, how on earth are you going to pull this off?”

As a mum, a founder, a speaker, my inner voice can sometimes be deafening than the sound of the busy-ness, even louder than the sound of the triumph, can I probably don’t have enough fingers and toes to count how many times my inner voice has been loud enough to stop me at the last minute from taking a dive into something beautiful.

That’s what makes today’s podcast guest and conversation, such a deeply personal one for me, because I know the grips that Imposter Syndrome has had on me in the past, and I’m sure for you as well, and

So - as one of the first in the year - I went on a mission to find the No 1. Voice on the planet on imposter syndrome.

Find we did - and her name is Valerie Young,

Valerie has spoken at some of the world’s largest and most diverse organizations as Apple, Chrysler, Boeing, Microsoft, IBM, Facebook, BP, Google, TED - and the list just keeps going - as well as at over 85 colleges and universities including Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, MIT, and Oxford.

I...:

Just exactly how far-reaching the effects of imposter syndrome are - here’s a clue it doesn’t belong to an age group or a gender - in fact - the further up the tree you go - the more likely you are to deal with it
What it can do, to even the most capable of people - and why it’s vital that we learn to deal with it or miss out on vast amounts of potential
The tools to re-frame that voice in our heads when it appears - to literally take the ‘freeze effect’ and use it as fuel
Developing new responses to failure and mistake making - this one has been huge for me this past year. Starting with my conversation with Mark Schulman - drummer for Pink and the phrase ‘Am I free to fail?’
Why the belief that we are imposters relies on one fundamentally untrue assumption
And what to do when we feel that cycle of self-doubt kick in

This was one of those conversations, that started out for me - and hopefully will continue to gain traction as we start discussing - in more and more places - and certainly on this podcast - the stories that keep us small - in business, in society and in life - and ways to flip that narrative to make the largest contribution we’re capable of making.

And that involves first believing that we deserve to be there.

So grab your favorite biscuits, I’m all in on Tim Tams at the moment - make sure you’ve got your pen and paper handy - and let 2020 be the year you finally let that imposter go.

Enjoy my conversation with - Valerie Young.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mastery Moments - Lessons learned from 100 episodes

Sun, 17 Jan 2021 21:43:21 GMT

So here we are, 2021 has to be one of the most eagerly anticipated years of recent times, and today’s episode marks 100 episodes into the Inside Influence journey.

You know, honestly, I'm a little bit in shock with that last one. Three years ago, Inside Influence started out over dinner with a friend, we were talking about how the tools of influence had changed over the last decade. How we had watched the pyramid of influence completely turn on its head.

These shifts had taken us from an analog to a digital world. From those with a platform having the power and the voice - to those with an iPhone. From brands being the central holder and focus of attention - to human beings. From the information age - to a world of Epic storytelling. From success equating currency in the bank - to success literally now being valued on the currents of attention and engagement you're able to command.

I can still remember the day when we press go on the first episode. Since then we've been on a ride that I could not have imagined. Diving deep into the world of global movements, WWF wrestling (that was a trip), the underbelly of Hollywood, FBI hostage negotiation, Unskippable storytelling and presidential politics. Throughout it all, the single point of focus has not changed – that being trying to decode this new age of influence. Essentially, unpacking exactly what is it that makes the people, movements or ideas of this new age utterly and truly compelling.

So for this episode, in case you've not guessed already, it's just me. I'm flying solo. I wanted to take a moment to just reflect on some of the lessons I've learned over the past hundred episodes. And not only that, but some of the core lessons I've seen play out and take quantum leaps over the past 12 to 24 months.

However, before I do, it feels appropriate and somewhat necessary to me to take a moment just to acknowledge the year that has been.

We started 2020 on a trajectory that changed very quickly. I remember when lockdown first happened, when our businesses, careers, lives and families first underwent this giant shift. In the beginning, all I can remember thinking was - I don't know what to say. I was being asked to speak on podcasts, interviewed for magazines and to be honest I felt like a fraud. The predominant voice in my head just kept saying the same words - I don't know what to say. I felt like I just needed to shut up and listen, because I didn’t have the words to describe this moment. I didn't have the words to be useful. I didn’t have the words to translate this in a way that I felt was helpful.

And so that's what I did. I listened and it soon became apparent that nobody really knew what to say. And for me, as someone who defines my world through words, that was deeply unsettling. I think it was deeply unsettling for most of us. In particular, those in leadership positions, where you have people or communities looking to you to find the right words.

It felt like we’d been rugby tackled off the road well-travelled and onto a dirt track, where nobody had a map or suitable shoes. Even the boldest amongst us stumbled as much, if not more, than we stood. And so it opened a different conversation. I got to watch a new conversation unravel and unfold, and that was one of bravery.

This conversation became one of showing up - one of pulling close our communities, businesses, competition and communities. And one that, as I started to watch it unfold, began to amplify the speed and importance of the trends that, interestingly enough, we had already been uncovering in this podcast. These are the lessons I want to talk a little bit about in this episode

In essence, it turns out that the right words don't matter as much as consistently showing up. It also turns out that relying on fear as a tool of persuasion can get you a very long way, a very long way, but not all the way. It also turns out that becoming fluent in the questions of those you are there to lead or serve, is way more important than being seen to have all of the answers.

Now, as I recorded this, a third wave of COVID-19 was predicted to hit Sydney. It’s no longer shocking, and any adrenaline we had left has gone. Now it's about how quickly we can reset. How quickly we can reframe. How quickly we can focus on what is coming next, assuming and surrendering to the fact that it will probably contain just as many curveballs, if not more, than last year.

So, that takes us back to where we began, where Inside Influence began 100 episodes ago. What can we double down on if we want to expand our sphere of influence? I've framed the five points within this episode as the Five Flips – the five essential shifts in thinking, strategy and mindset - that will be needed in order to stand out and own the power of our influence in 2021 and beyond.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

James Clear - Atomic Habits: How to lock out distraction and move to the next level

Tue, 05 Jan 2021 19:00:05 GMT

Now, hands up if you have a set routine whilst listening to this podcast. Maybe you listen whilst you’re in the gym or on your commute?

Obviously, if you’re listening to this at the time of publishing – when most of us are in lockdown due to the Covid 19 pandemic - you’re not at the gym and your commute is probably a traffic-free 10 second stroll to the kitchen table. So, in that scenario, it’s likely that your podcast listening habit has shifted or changed. And if that habit has changed, then I imagine, like me, most of your other habits are either completely out the window or drastically re-engineered.

And… I’d take a guess that you’re probably forming new habits for this new landscape; some good (like spending more time with your family and finally reading those books you’ve been meaning to get to), and some, like the daily baking of banana bread and drinking of red wine - potentially bad.

As the saying goes, we are creatures of habit. Habits ground us, they lead us, they calm us. According to researchers at Duke University, they also account for 40 percent of our daily behaviour. So what happens when all our usual habits disappear – or become impossible?

Although unsettling (which is a just a fancy way of saying a cause for being either frozen, frantic or freaking out), it can also present us with a massive opportunity to upgrade. To bed down new habits – atomic habits - that can become the foundations of whatever comes next.

In times of crisis we are either catastrophic or catalytic – The habits we develop during this time – they will become the catalysts to who we become next.

So, all you need to do to improve your habits; is put in some good new ones, remove the bad old ones. Easy, right? Well, it’s easier than you think, and my guest for this episode can help you... 1% at a time.

James Clear is the author of New York Times Best Seller: ‘Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones’. The central question to James’ work both in the book and on his website and (EXCELLENT) newsletter is: how can we live better? And as I’ve said, our habits are the foundation to how we answer that question.

So what is an Atomic Habit? They are small 1% improvements in behavior that, over time, compound into full-blown transformation. And this isn’t just about ‘will power’ and ‘mind over matter’. This is about removing the mental load of intending to get something done every day – and beating yourself up when you don’t – into creating micro habits that you can achieve easily, consistently – and eventually automatically.

In this episode we talk about:

● Forming and enforcing new habits in this new environment - and what four things you need to focus on to cement those new habits.  

● How to make the immediate outcome of your habit satisfying – even when the greatest returns may feel in the distant future – i.e. developing killer abs.

● The vital practices of Habit stacking and habit squashing - and how to master both.  

● Why identity always trumps motivation when the going gets tough. First asking yourself “Who is the type of person I want to become?” and “What would they do right now”?

And Warren Buffet’s two-list rule; how the most dangerous things on your to-do this are the ‘good’ uses of your time (and also that you're a rose bush and not a tree, but that’ll make a lot more sense later).

I could go on with the sound bytes as this episode is packed with them, but perhaps the most striking insight for me, is that ‘every action you take is a vote for the type of person you want to become’. If you sit with that one sentence for long enough – other than potentially regretting that last bottle of wine – it brings every decision you make from here into blinding clarity.

So, pick a chair, corner of the garden or just get comfy into whatever your life in lockdown looks like – and enjoy my conversation with James Clear....

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marion Farrelly - How to be interesting: The keys to cut through and working out your X Factor

Tue, 29 Dec 2020 19:00:00 GMT

Now, what if I told you that I could capture your attention in 30 seconds or less. Then convert that attention into engagement so great – that you would voluntarily spend an hour of your day – every day – consuming my product. Then add to that maybe another hour of your day talking about my product to your friends, family, online networks. And then – and here’s the kicker – what if I told you I could turn that engagement into action - to the tunes of millions of dollars in revenue - in the space of one week? And I would do that by persuading you to spend your own money to vote on the fate of a group of people that you don’t know – in a situation that doesn’t impact you or your life in the slightest? And what if I could do that every week? Week after week. In various different forms. To the tune of 8 billion interactions and counting.

So here’s the question - is that a formula you would be interested in knowing? My answer is a big fat yes.

I’m talking of course about reality television. Now before you roll your eyes, and believe me I get it - let’s get real about the influence it wields. In the UK, more young people voted in the final of Britain’s Got Talent, than voted in the most recent general election. I’ll give you a second with that one. As a content tool, it exists within and shapes more conversations than the news. And as a force – it literally redefined the concept of celebrity and shaped an entire generation of attention spans.

And on that note – I arrive at today’s guest.

Marion Farrelly created, built and produced some of the most influential reality TV shows on the planet. Shows such as The X Factor, Big Brother, Celebrity Apprentice, Dancing with the Stars, The Farmer Wants a Wife. Her content has been watched more than eight billion times worldwide and she’s put more than ten thousand people on stage, who were then watched by hundreds of millions.

She’s worked with everyone from Hollywood A listers to Astronauts, Politicians to Popstars, Cyber Security Specialists and CEOs. Having recognised one thing very early in her career - that the people who were world-class, charismatic and utterly influential, all had one thing in common – The X Factor.

In today’s conversation we get into:

The X-Factor – what it is, what it looks like and how to harness it from the fist moment – whether in a pitch, a video, or walking onto a stage. Casted over 12,000 people.
The formula for turning engagement to action; i.e. getting people to ‘vote’ - either with their time, attention or money.
The power of ‘sticky information’ i.e. how to have the largest impact with the least possible words.
The A, B, C & D of presenting yourself in the best possible way whenever you’re required to step up.
How to cut out the white noise; every industry has white noise – the words everybody else uses
The difference between hoping something will happen – and making it happen.
And, in what has been possibly the most obvious and yet insightful piece of advice in the history of this podcast. Why the antidote to stage fright is one simple sentence: ‘no one knows what you’re going to say and so therefore, you can’t get it wrong’. Sounds obvious, but believe me it’s worth spending some time with that one the next time you feel any fear around using our voice.

I’ve known Maz for a little while now. Other than being as brilliant as she is wholehearted. The reason I asked her on the show is really simple – I really believe that if you took everything she knows - about the levers behind attention, influence and action – and how to pull them – and then injected it into a brand or political party. It would rewrite the playing field.

Imagine an election campaign so compelling you would pay to vote? Hard right? Hopefully not so hard by the end of this episode.

So, turn on, tune in, put down the hashtags and enjoy my chat with the explosion of energy that is Marion Farrelly...

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

James Kerr - Leading at speed: How to move like the All Blacks without burning out

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 19:00:00 GMT

My next guest is James Kerr - the only person that has ever been allowed to go behind the curtain with the All Blacks -, to study what it is that makes them such an unrivalled force in the sporting world.

He has spent most of his professional career studying the culture, patterns and habits of the world’s top performers including the Navy Seals, Manchester City FC and obviously the All Blacks - the fascinating insights of which became part of his widely acclaimed book Legacy.

It’s his belief, that by unpacking what it is that makes generations of these teams so extraordinary, we can all learn to become better leaders – of ourselves, our teams and our chosen playing fields.

Background to how it came about…

Jules – can you add how you stumbled on James?

And so that’s how James and I found ourselves sitting down over a dodgy internet connection, he sat by an exotic pool in Bali and me sat in my makeshift studio surrounded by empty cups of tea, trying not to be jealous of said exotic pool.

I think it’s pretty clear to anyone who has ever heard of the All Blacks, which let’s face it, is everyone, why I would be so keen to sit down with the man who’s spent more time studying them up close than anyone out there – as a team, they are the pin ups of high performance, from the moment they step onto the pitch, to the ground shaking impact of the Hakka, to what happens even in the changing room - the influence they have over themselves, each other and their opponents is mesmerising.

Now I’m not traditional known as a follower of sport, being surprised by the layers of Influence these players master on a day to day basis. From self influence, not letting high stakes situations crush you, to the influence of the collective, working together towards a higher order purpose as a team.

James summed it up well when he said that the entire team has a mission that they strive towards that is talked about at every team meeting, and at every game and that is, to leave the jersey in a better place than when you first put it on.

It’s this that I think will be the most powerful takeaway as you listen to James talk – a higher order purpose, bigger than one individual ego or performance, brought to life by captivating stories and delivered daily through habits and rituals is really the difference between an All Black, and – basically - everyone else.

So what can we learn if we want to become the All black of our own space?

In this episode we dive deep into:

Intensity vs. hustle – how to shoot for your goals without your team burning out
Mental tricks for standing your ground – the tools players use to keep a cool head on the field and how these can work in your high stakes situations
The power of totems – why there are wine gums in every All Blacks locker room
Fierce Rituals – how the Haka has never lost its spine chilling power
Shared mission – why the man who lays out the jerseys is as important as the men who wear them

I’m confident that you’ll walk away from our time spent together today armed with the tools you need to set an intention, create a culture and operate at peak performance in a way that allows you to create your own legacy whatever you're playing field.

So sit back – or sit up straight if you’re driving – and enjoy my interview with James Kerr, peeling back the curtain and giving you unfiltered access to the sporting legends that are The All Blacks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Deb Gruenfeld - How to Access Your Power: Why you are far more influential than you believe

Tue, 08 Dec 2020 19:00:00 GMT

Today we’re going on a deep dive into the sticky subject of power. What it looks like, where it lives – and how we can access it – deliberately and specifically - to create more impact, choice and authority in our lives.

If there’s two questions that have followed me throughout my career its these – firstly, how do you create influence? Is there a blueprint to owning your space in an industry, room or conversation – in such a way that you become the undisputed trusted authority.

And secondly – is it possible to communicate with power and certainty - without being perceived as cold, aggressive or unapproachable?

This conversation answers both of those questions.

My guest today is Deborah Gruenfeld, social psychologist, Stanford Professor, in demand keynote speaker and author of ‘Acting with Power: Why We Are More Powerful than We Believe’. What I love about her book is that it puts to bed the story that there are two kinds of people in world: those who have power, and those who don't. Instead coming to the eye opening conclusion that we all actually have far more power than we think.

Therefore making success not about how much power we have - but rather how we use it.

In this conversation we dive into:

Why in your next interaction or presentation - you have 100 milliseconds before we decide whether or not you are competent – and what to do to make them count
Why most of us prepare for any big moment by focusing on what we want to say – when only 7% of the impact we make is actually based on our words!
The body language of power – how to move been playing high – a projection of authority – and playing low – a state where we are more connected and approachable. And why the real power lies in our ability to move between the two effortlessly and consciously.
The keys to gravitas – and why the answer might just lie in the world of flamenco
Our perceptions and behaviour towards women in power – and how body language is the most effective way to offset negative assumptions. These insights are incredible tools to either use – or share with the women you either manage, mentor or love.
And finally, why being responsible for our state – and our ability to change it – has nothing to do with being inauthentic or changing the entire essence of who we are. But instead owning the fact that we have choice – in any moment – about which aspects of ourselves we choose to dial up.

As a point of reflection while you listen to this conversation. If 2021 is going to be anything – I think we can all pretty much agree that it’s going to be a year of uncertainty. And, if history and politics have taught us anything, it’s that during uncertain times - our natural inclination as human beings is to avoid risk by seeking out those who communicate their ideas with power and certainty. Basically, we gravitate towards those we perceive as the trusted authorities.

So now – as we close down on 2020 – it’s the perfect time to get curious about your current relationship with your own power. Where do you step into it? Where do you actively avoid it? Where do you overuse it? And where could you start to share it?

All choice lives in awareness – and believe me our personal power is no different.

On that note, sit back, stride out, steer carefully – or just sip a cup of coffee - and enjoy my conversation with the literal powerhouse that is Deborah Gruenfeld.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Schulman - The Power of the Rockstar Mindset: How to show up hard when the going gets tough

Tue, 24 Nov 2020 19:00:00 GMT

In this episode, we are once again fusing the world of influence and rock n’ roll...

However today’s question isn’t about what it takes to show up like a rock star - when all eyes are on you – and the stakes feel sky scraper high - but instead what it takes to STILL show up like a Rockstar – when one seemingly ordinary morning you wake up – and your entire audience has disappeared.

In order to do that I once again called upon the incredible Mark Schulman – author, speaker, insightful human being and well and truly at the top of the performance tree as the lead drummer for P!nk.

Mark has performed for over 1 billion people - touring with world class performers such as Cher, Billy Idol, Simple Minds, Beyoncé and Tina Turner. He is also the author of the very fitting Conquering Life’s Stage Fright. In which he interviews global powerhouses like Tony Hsieh (CEO of Zappos), Jeremy Piven (Actor from the Entourage) and Alan Bean (Apollo 12 Astronaut) - in order to translate the magic of world-class performance.

In other words what it takes to show up, reframe your fears and own what you’ve got with every cell in your body.

Marks number one super power – other than drumming – is his ability to maintain what he describes as a Rockstar mindset. A belief that the attitude and energy levels we choose - are the PRIMARY fuel of any world class performance - and that everything - down to the phone call you just took - and the Tweet you’re about to send - is a form of performance.

Today we pick right back up again where we left off – however this time in a whole new world. Diving straight into…

Why ‘world class’ always begins where our comfort zones end”
How your attitude is both your vantage (or disadvantage) point
Mark’s favourite equation (and lets face it it’s not often you get to discuss mathematics with a Rockstar): A x B = C (Attitude x Behaviour = Consequence)
How to embrace the fact that you always have the ability to respond – even (and especially) when situations feel out of your control
How Mark had to take a huge dose of his own advice in 2020 – when all his events, concerts and sources of income were cancelled within 48 hours
Why it’s not about WHAT (you say/play) but HOW (you say/play it) – in other words how you show up and embody the impact your trying to have
And why Clarity + Capability + Competence …. are three steps to top performance

What I want to you to reflect on while listening to our conversation is exactly that – if the lights came on, the music started - and tens of thousands of people were about to watch you perform. How would you show up? Now turn off the lights, take away the audience and remove any element of certainty you had about the future – could you show up just as hard?

With that, I’ll leave you to soak up the most curious, unstoppable, infectious human being that I ever met. The Rockstar himself – Mark Schulman.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eric Bandholz - Building a Digital Tribe: How to find your niche and build an epic following

Tue, 10 Nov 2020 19:53:56 GMT

If there’s a few words this year that have been played on loop – I think they would be the words pivot, reinvention and digital deep end.

I feel like for many of us, as individuals and brands, there was a long list of activities we knew we needed to do in order to increase our influence in a digital world. However, the general consensus was that we had years right?

At least a few years to figure out how to tell epic stories online, how to compete with Netflix by making our pitches and presentations utterly compelling, how to transition our sales strategies to include new market segments we can’t reach face to face. How to embrace different business models like subscriptions, memberships and digital tribes. And – perhaps most foundational decision – how to translate what we know, our expertise and message – in order to take your target audience on an Unskippable journey.

Well those years, turned into months, which turned into weeks – which for many – eventually became days to turn around some of these changes.

And those who did it well, who will come out with an edge for 2021 – having activated plans and strategies that may have taken years before the pandemic. If you look closely enough, they all tend to have one thing in common.

They went out to the edges, to people and brands in completely different industries – who have been perfecting these tools for years – and they listened carefully.

So that’s what we’re here to do today. My guest this week is Eric Bandholz. Eric is the Founder of Beardbrand, a men’s grooming company that I have been watching for years as they blaze a trail in a previously crowded space.

Along with his co-founders, Eric bootstrapped Beardbrand to a high seven-figure company by focusing on (in their words) ‘badass’ products, digital storytelling, focusing on collaborations and building a community of fever pitch fans.

In cracking the code of a new age of storytelling – Eric also built a Youtube channel dedicated to just answering the questions of his target audience – a channel that now has close to 250 million views, 1.5 million subscribers – and which in and of itself provides a pretty sizeable independant revenue stream.

In this conversation we dive into:

Pivoting from budgets to beards – his journey starting out as a financial advisor and finding his breakthrough idea
The myth that if you build it they will come – and the truth that roadmap is often more valuable to your target market than the destination
Why focusing only on ‘How to’ videos on YouTube was the secret of their success
How to forget the idea that everything we produce needs to be high production and perfect in order to create engagement – and why what works on YouTube (and I would argue most other platforms) is actually the exact opposite
And finally, authenticity vs Intention. How, during one of the most difficult periods of his life, he made the decision about what – and what not – to share.

What I want you to reflect on while you listen to Eric is how the path to cut through isn’t a straight line. It’s a series of listening to your gut, making moves, building things, reassessing and choosing to embody rather than hide behind a brand.

The most significant moments – the ones where you take leaps forward you couldn’t have imagined – they aren’t the result of a ‘this plus that’ equation. You can rarely pin point that exact things that made those particular doors open.

Apart from this one. You have to start. You have to accept that you will get it wrong – you might look or feel foolish - usually for a nano second before we all move onto the next attention grabbing thing. And in a digital world where everything feels so on display – that takes a level of courage and curiosity that isn’t easy.

However – as we’ve seen this year – for those who are willing to consistently show up at that level, the opportunities are literally limitless.

So, on that note, sit back, stroll on, find a quiet corner or open that packet of biscuits that you’ve been hiding for the next lock down. And enjoy my conversation with the one of a kind that is Eric Bandholz.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jim Tamm - Radical Collaboration: How to stop being defensive and start being effective

Wed, 28 Oct 2020 00:49:15 GMT

In this episode we jump into radical collaboration. Radical collaboration is the ability to hear both sides of an argument with curiosity and empathy and – and this is the pivotal part - an intention to resolve – rather than just beating the other person down with the surely obvious logic of our position.

Or, and this is the terrifying truth of where we find ourselves at the moment – not showing up in the arena of debate at all - and simply retreating further behind our boundaries – whether those boundaries are global, national, political or digital.

My next guest is no stranger to the arena. Jim Tamm is a former judge for the State of California, a role which enabled him to witness conflict unfold, resolve and of course stay unresolved over the course of two decades and more than 1,000 disputes.

His most recent book, Radical Collaboration (co-authored with Ron Luyet) was on Amazon’s top seller lists for most of the past nine years. He is a former law professor and currently on the faculty of the International Management Program of the Stockholm School of Economics, the Management Education Program at NASA and the Wallenberg Institute in Sweden.

As well as all of that, he is also a dedicated grandfather – which we’ll get into more later.

In this episode, we dive into:

Why now is not a normal time – and why it’s more important than ever to pay attention our triggers – and hard-wired responses when things don’t go our way
Going into an empathetic space: Why role-swapping and learning to fight for the other ‘side’ is key to being a master collaborator
The vital role of collaborative intention – and why stating your ‘intent to collaborate’ at the beginning of any negotiation can turn the whole thing around
Becoming aware of your answer to this simple question - when someone makes a mistake - do you get curious, or furious?
And finally – but most powerfully for me – how to identify which of the three faces of fear – being or being seen as unlikable, insignificant or incompetent - are currently running your life. This one seriously was a game changer for me.

What I want you to reflect on here is that last part. What’s your primary fear? What’s the real trigger in those moments where you fight, freeze or run when the going gets tough – or when the conversations get hard? What’s the No 1. story that kicks you into furious – when all the solutions live in a place of staying curious?

Is it that they might not like you if they knew the truth? Or that your voice isn’t important enough to be heard? Or that eventually, everyone will find out that you’re actually an imposter who’s surely not meant to be here.

Figure that out – name it – learn to recognise the moment it kicks in – and that’s the biggest shortcut I know to the land radical collaboration – and radical results.

On that note, I’ll leave you with the sage words and extraordinary insights from a career on the frontline of conflict. The incredible Jim Tamm.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Leon - The Art of Conscious Co-Parenting: Commitment, radical honesty and rewriting the rules

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 19:00:48 GMT

Today’s conversation is about co-parenting – the good, the bad, the ugly and the achingly beautiful attempt to raise human beings together. There’s no assumption here about in which way you do this – in or outside of a traditional romantic partnership, in or outside the same home. It’s also not about IS NOT ABOUT 50/50 PARENTING – OR WHO WORKS AND WHO STAYS AT HOME. For me, the more important question is how we do it together.

In a way that keeps everybody – I’ll repeat here – everybody – nourished and supported.

I recorded this episode deep into the trenches of the first lock down. Both mine and Josh my husbands offices had closed, we were working from home - both our businesses needed some serious reimagining in order to survive – and we were trying to do all of this while wrestling two children under four in a home without with walls.

Normal. Game plan. Out. Of. The Window.

Needless to say it wasn’t pretty. But what it did do is shine a very intense light on all of the areas of our co-parenting approach - that maybe hadn’t been working for awhile.

In one of my moments looking for answers, and also using my iphone to numb out the noise, I stumbled across an incredible TED talk by a man called Joel Leon. In it he talked about co-parenting as beautiful and hard work. Work that should be consciously created, rather than left to form as a result of whatever we witnessed as children. He had me hooked.

After I finished watching, I told Josh I wanted to interview him for the podcast – to which he understandably replied: ‘I’m not really clear what parenting has to do with influence’.

So, for anyone else wondering about that link – here it is.

There is no distinction between parenting and leadership. Anything that works in your home - I guarantee you the essence (don’t mistake the essence with the tactics) will work the people you work with or lead – and vice versa. There is also no distinction between co-parenting and negotiation. Our ability to balance two often competing needs and reach a mutually beneficial – respectful outcome – even when the going gets hard. Those tools, they don’t change between the boardroom and the loungeroom.

And finally - for many of us - isn’t this the biggest influence job we will ever do? The one we will regret the most if we get it wrong - the one we are most fundamentally, universally and societally responsible for?

I know for myself - how I influence and lead myself around the ones I love - is often an exact and sometimes uncomfortable mirror on how I am in the world at large.

Curious, collaborative and clear - or distracted, fearful and forcing my own agenda.

So – in true stalker style – I did track Joel down and in this conversation we go deep into the worlds of:

Radical Honesty - What does it mean? And where should it be used? Clue for anyone that’s ever given this a try… not everywhere…

The Beautiful and Hard Work of Co-Parenting – including mutual respect and monitoring ‘how we show up’

How to get through the killer phrase “I didn’t sign up for this” – anyone heard or said that before? And how to accept the fact that this job wasn’t meant to be a ‘fairytale’

How to handle and communicate our own capacity – and do the same for our co-parent

And the struggle for relatable/relevant knowledge for co-parents. Why it doesn’t exist and how we can step up and start to lead the charge.

We’re living in a world where the old rules of parenting no longer apply – for both genders. We need a new game plan, one that honors and respects the new shapes of our families. That in turn can help equip our children with better tools to build their own families. In whatever form that takes.

On that note – sit back, maybe invite in your co-parent – and enjoy my conversation with the amazing Joel Leon.

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Nancy Duarte - Telling the hard stories: Leadership and the epic storytellers of the future

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 19:00:43 GMT

In this episode I speak with Nancy Duarte - CEO and founder of Silicon Valley’s largest and most successful communications firm, Duarte Inc. Nancy has spent the last 30 years immersed in the world of human story telling and has been behind the scenes of some of the most compelling speeches - or as she calls them’ impassioned pleas’ – that we’ve ever seen. Including Al Gore’s ‘An Inconvenient Truth’.

She’s worked with the thought leaders of global brands like Apple, Cisco, Facebook, GE, Google, HP, TED, Twitter, the World Bank – I’ll stop now. She’s also renowned author of ‘Illuminate’, ‘Resonate’ and ‘Slide:ology’. Her TED talk ‘The Secret Structure of Great Talks’ has also been watched over 3 million times.

This conversation weaves between her observations as a storytelling expert - and her experiences as a leader since pandemic began. Where, like many of us, her skills as a communicator have been stretched to a WHOLE new place. If you want to dive into my original conversation with her, which was one of the most useful explorations of the structure of epic presentations I have ever had. I believe it’s episode:

Today we jump straight into…

The stories that resonate in the messy middle of a crisis
How to tell the hard stories – and there’s no getting around the fact that there are hard stories to tell right now. And why not every story is for everyone – and that’s just ok.
The three act structure – why it works - and how to use it in a virtual setting
And her take on what the epic stories – and story tellers – of the future will look like. And believe me – this woman is behind the scenes at many of the tech companies that are literally rewriting the future of storytelling as I say this. So if she speaks – I listen.

What I want you to reflect on her is not necessarily the tools – although please do. But her reflections as a leader of her own team. There are no obvious answers for anyone right now – and it’s easy to imagine that the experts must have it down - right? What I took from Nancy is that all the tools and strategies in the world don’t matter – if we can’t first find the courage to be seen. To show up in the chaos when we don’t have the answers. Or to stand in the fire alongside our people when it counts.

On that note – I’m going to leave you in the very safe hands of one of my own personal mentors – Nancy Duarte.

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Cody Keenan - Words to lead a Nation: Obama's speech writer on the keys to a powerful speech

Tue, 29 Sep 2020 19:00:17 GMT

Today’s we’re going to dive into that last word – Nation.

Unless… of course… you learn from the best.

In this conversation, we dive into…

One of the most powerful questions I have ever heard when it comes to owning your space in a room – or an arena… ‘Why are you the only one who can tell this story?’
The importance of starting and ending a speech on purpose - how to grab the audience’s attention from the first word and send them home with a fire to move forward.
Transitions and signposting – basically how to move seamlessly from one point to the next without losing your audience.
Why the best speeches are like jazz – a piece of advice that came from President Obama himself – where the pauses and low notes are what allow the high notes to shine.
Why you shouldn’t put anything in a speech that you wouldn’t say to a friend in a bar – try thinking about public policy this way and you’ll get what a mind flip that requires.
And surprisingly, and reassuringly, that even for the man who writes to a nation, on some of the most pressing issues of our time... self-doubt and imposter syndrome are par for the course. The question is, can you put them to work for you - rather than letting them run the show.

Oh and finally – if you write anything on a post it note and stick it to your desk today – let it be this: “What’s the story I want to tell – and why am I the only person who can tell it?”

In the meantime, settle back and enjoy my conversation with the incredible mind that is Cody Keenan....

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Gabor George Burt - Reimagineering: The path to finding your next blue ocean

Wed, 16 Sep 2020 00:50:10 GMT

What in your life, business or industry needs reimagining right now? I’m guessing for many of us it’s a lot. In my world – the world of influence, speaking at events and working with clients to make an impact with their ideas and expertise. Well that’s a world that pretty much needs reimagining from the ground up right now.

I’m of the belief that the those that will come out of this chapter - being held up as the influencers or authorities of whatever new age comes next – will be those able to reimagine. The ones with the grit and tools to translate the road forward – with clarity, certainty and no small amount of courage.

Which sounds like a great strategy when the road ahead is clear. But what happens when it’s not?

In those moments the big question becomes this – if this is a job you want to take on – that of the trusted authority or advisor in your space - and believe me there is a huge opportunity for those willing to do so at the moment. Then you need to pay attention to the answer to this question… How do I currently approach the process of reimagining a new path? What currently happens to my mind, energy, team and processes when the road disappears?

One of the wisest pieces of advice I ever heard is this: ‘How you do one thing is how you do everything’. How we handle the uncertainty of recreation in one area of our lives, is how we handle it everywhere. So, if the answer to the above question is not great – then well we need new tools.

My guest today brings exactly that and more. Gabor George Burt is one of the leading experts behind Blue Ocean Strategy – which as many will know was one of the most influential business books and approaches to growth strategy of the last decade. As part of that he then spent 10 years working with companies across the globe to identify and build their own Blue Ocean.

However, as time went on he discovered something strange. Although most companies loved ideas within Blue Ocean – they just weren’t able to implement. Confused as to why he set off on a journey of discovery that culminated in his latest book ‘Slingshot’. The principal idea being that – just like a slingshot – where there’s tension, there’s room for acceleration.

In this conversation we dive into:

· Going beyond the wall. How to use the ‘slingshot principle’ to transform the tension of disruption into accelerated growth.

· Why ‘Infatuation wears off’ – and no I’m not talking about online dating here. And how to ‘re-infatuate’ your target audience with what you have to offer.

· How to break down your next blue ocean into manageable lakes and seas. Then systematically apply creative thinking to find the edge.

· How to get other people past fear and onto the journey of reinvention – this includes a six question test that exposes exactly how we limit ourselves on the possibilities

· Why our childhood creativity is this amazing resource - that we all too often neglect

· And why all of this isn’t just about business – but the framework of a creative, energy fuelled and resilient life

What I want you to reflect on here is how you approach the process of reimagineering. Do you freeze, fight against it, collapse (internally or externally) at the enormity of it – or hold on for dear life onto what used to work in the thin belief that it’s possible things to remain unchanged. Even as change accelerates around you on a daily basis – as it is now.

Or do you show up energized and curios, willing to experiment and share what you find? Are you able to let go of perfect and double down on progress instead – or in the words of a friend of mine recently: ‘Willing to get scrappy and keep moving’.

For me – at the moment – I’m calling BS on myself. Although I’m pretty good at moving quickly – and fairly practised at disrupting myself – sometimes by choice – sometimes not. I’m also very good at fighting the process the entire way. Inviting in exhaustion by running the same mental monologues over and over again: ‘Why do things have to change again’ ‘I just built that, how can all that work now be redundant’ OR my favourite ‘I might just sit this one out, look busy and wait for it all to blow over’

Oh I do it quietly – but I do it hard core.

This episode is a call to become infatuated with the process of creation again – whether this is your first or 50th rodeo. Basically, falling back in love with the exploration – just like a child. Because when the stakes are higher than they have ever been – so too is the level of energy and curiosity we need to bring to the table.

On that note – enjoy my conversation with the creative visionary that is Gabor George Burt.

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Frances Frei - Unleashing and repairing trust as a leader

Tue, 01 Sep 2020 22:19:08 GMT

“Greetings everyone, my name is Julie Masters and welcome to another episode of Inside Influence. In which I delve into the minds of some of the world’s most fascinating influencers – or experts in influence - to get to the bottom of what it really takes to own your voice - and then amplify it to drive an industry, a conversation, a movement or a Nation.

Let’s talk about devotion. Songs, poetry and plays are written about it, films are made about it. We use it in association with family, children, partners.... But colleagues or employees...? Not so much. Sure, we want the best for the people we work with, but how many leaders can truly say they are devoted to the success of their people?

And success is the key word here, because helping someone become the best person they can be, so they thrive under your stewardship - and long after - is one of the most vital forms of influence there is.

My guest today is striving for more of us to do just that. Frances Frei is an American academic and author. She is the UPS Foundation Professor of Service Management and Senior Associate Dean for Executive Education at Harvard Business School. She is also the author of the recently released book: ‘Unleashed: The Unapologetic Leaders Guide to Empowering Everyone Around You’.

On top of that – she also leap into Silicon Valley – and became the very first Senior Vice-President for Leadership and Strategy at Uber, brought in at a time when Uber was under fire from pretty much every corner of the planet. Her job description? To try and restore trust at a time when it was at an all time catastrophic low.

Her first decision in that role says a lot about who she is – committing to wear an Uber T-shirt every day, until the people working alongside her were as proud to wear it as she was... but more on that later.

What brought her first into my world was actually her TED talk ‘How to Build and Rebuild Trust’. Where her insightful and – more than anything else - practical views on building trust in a world where it’s in short supply, became the first time I began to view trust as something tangible – that we can all build – quickly and predictably.

In this interview, we cover…

Unapologetic leadership – what it is, what it looks like and why it has nothing to do with refusing to take responsibility – in fact quite the opposite.

Devotion – yep that word again. If it makes you feel uncomfortable then stick with it. What does it take to be deeply devoted to the ‘wild success’ of another human being? More success than they could possibly achieve on their own. Then – if we can do it once – which we can – how do we take that impact and harness it to create a cascade effect - where it goes on to transform a team, an entire organisation (reference again her time at Uber) or a whole Nation.

How to set and hold high standards without disconnecting from the person you’re trying to support. Basically, how to play bad cop and still have someone feel like you have their back.

The taking and giving of radical responsibility – this one I have not stopped thinking about since this interview. It’s become almost a filter through which I run decisions. Total game changer.

The Trust Triangle; what the three points of the triangle are, how to achieve them and how to maintain them.

And how to look, square on and without flinching - at what Frances calls, the ‘devastating data’. This being where you currently sit in the eyes of your team, client base or community. And how to then use the information – rather than a brick to beat yourself with – as a benchmark to know when to celebrate.

In the meantime, sit back and enjoy my conversation with Frances Frei.

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Brant Pinvidic - Nailing the virtual pitch: How to seal the deal when you can't be in the room

Wed, 19 Aug 2020 07:28:58 GMT

Have you ever been in the situation where you had limited time to pitch an idea? A moment where you knew you had to immediately capture attention, establish credibility and build a compelling enough argument - and that your ability to do so would literally make or break what comes next?

I’ve found myself on both ends of this situation more times than I can count over the years. Having both made and received hundreds of pitches. Some successfully - some so unsuccessful I still have difficulty thinking about them without shuddering.

But the ones that went well - that ultimately ended up changing the course of my businesses and career - and the ones where I have been in the position to change the course of someone else’s business or career. Those successful ones all had a few things in common.

The largest of those? Is an epic FIRST 2-3 minutes.

So when someone sent me a book recently called ‘The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation’. I was ALL IN.

That book was written by my next guest - Brant Pinvidic - award-winning film director, veteran television producer, keynote speaker, top-rated podcast host (Rob Lowe being one of the most recent guests I tuned into) and columnist for Forbes.

With over 20 years of experience in producing, creating, and directing household TV shows and movies - Brant is widely recognized as one of the great creative leaders in Hollywood. Having given over 100+ successful film and television pitches over his career, Brant learnt that if he didn’t get them in the first three minutes - chances are he wouldn’t get them at all. Taking those business and storytelling lessons he developed a proven blueprint for leaders wanting to position their message with impact.

In today’s conversation we delve into the mechanics of what it takes to get your ideas over the line. Including:

Why three minutes is the key to creating an ultra-concise, ultra-compelling pitch for any idea, product, service or company.
The Fire Alarm Test – If someone pulled the fire alarm after three minutes of your presentation or sales pitch, have you done enough to make people want to come back and hear more?
The four core questions every successful pitch needs to address
Why being passionate about everything - often means you are credible about nothing.
How to close with a hook that guarantees action.
And the difference between situational doubt and self-doubt - in particular why one of those mindsets is self-defeating - and the other is self-preserving.

If now is the time to get others on board with your ideas, product, company or vision - those potentially hold the power to making it happen - then this episode is for you.

Enjoy my conversation with the master of the pitch - Brant Pindivic.

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Ben Jones - The now of digital storytelling: How to cut through in radically new times

Wed, 19 Aug 2020 07:03:29 GMT

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Marion Farrelly - Find your X Factor, turn it up and make it happen

Wed, 05 Aug 2020 05:18:45 GMT

And then – and here’s the kicker – what if I told you I could turn that engagement into action - to the tunes of millions of dollars in revenue - in the space of one week? And I would do that by persuading you to spend your own money to vote on the fate of a group of people that you don’t know – in a situation that doesn’t impact you or your life in the slightest? And what if I could do that every week? Week after week. In various different forms. To the tune of 8 billion interactions and counting.

So here’s the question - is that a formula you would be interested in knowing? My answer is a big fat yes.

And on that note – I arrive at today’s guest.

Marion Farrelly created, built and produced some of the most influential reality TV shows on the planet. Shows such as The X Factor, Big Brother, Celebrity Apprentice, Dancing with the Stars, The Farmer Wants a Wife. Her content has been watched more than eight billion times worldwide and she’s put more than ten thousand people on stage, who were then watched by hundreds of millions.

In today’s conversation we get into:

· The X-Factor – what it is, what it looks like and how to harness it from the fist moment – whether in a pitch, a video, or walking onto a stage. Casted over 12,000 people.

· The formula for turning engagement to action; i.e. getting people to ‘vote’ - either with their time, attention or money.

· The power of ‘sticky information’ i.e. how to have the largest impact with the least possible words.

· The A, B, C & D of presenting yourself in the best possible way whenever you’re required to step up.

· How to cut out the white noise; every industry has white noise – the words everybody else uses

· The difference between hoping something will happen – and making it happen.

· And, in what has been possibly the most obvious and yet insightful piece of advice in the history of this podcast. Why the antidote to stage fright is one simple sentence: ‘no one knows what you’re going to say and so therefore, you can’t get it wrong’. Sounds obvious, but believe me it’s worth spending some time with that one the next time you feel any fear around using our voice.

Imagine an election campaign so compelling you would pay to vote? Hard right? Hopefully not so hard by the end of this episode.

So, turn on, tune in, put down the hashtags and enjoy my chat with the explosion of energy that is Marion Farrelly...

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Margaret Neale - Getting more of what you want, a blueprint for battle free negotiation

Tue, 21 Jul 2020 22:00:18 GMT

Greetings everyone, my name is Julie Masters and welcome to another episode of Inside Influence. In which I delve into the minds of some of the world’s most fascinating influencers – or experts in influence - to get to the bottom of what it really takes to own your voice - and then amplify it to drive an industry, a conversation, a movement or a Nation.

If I asked you to think of a business negotiation, depicted in TV, film, theatre etc. chances are it’s a scene of high drama. It’s a desk-banging, horn-locking, hard-balling battle where someone (usually the most aggressive) leaves with everything and the little guy gets nothing.

Now, if I asked you to think back to the last negotiation you were involved in, I’m guessing it didn’t look much like that. But I bet it still had a feeling of edge to it; an understanding that the available outcomes fit into one of only two camps – what they want – and what you want.

But is this ‘us vs them’ version of negotiation due to the nature of the negotiation process itself? Or the human nature we bring to it?

According to my next guest - this battle orientated framework for negotiation – is as broken as it is ineffective.

Professor Margaret Neale is The Adams Distinguished Professor of Management at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University – as well as Negotiation Strategies Program Co-Director of the Executive Program for Women Leaders.

Professor Neale’s research focuses primarily on negotiation, and in 2015 she co-authored ‘Getting More of What You Want: How the Secrets of Economics and Psychology Can Help You Negotiate Anything, in Business and in Life’.

This book leverages decades of research to answer questions like: ‘Who should make the first offer?’ and ‘How to create a compelling pitch?’

What I loved about this approach is the definition of negotiation itself – which shifts the focus from a battle mindset – one I’ve never found comfortable or particularly effective - to one of ‘finding a solution to your counterpart’s problem that makes you BETTER OFF than you would have been had you not negotiated’.

Why is that important? Not many of us consider ourselves talented negotiators – but most of us, in one area or our lives or another, would get a gold star at problem solving.

In this episode we jump into:

How much preparation you should be doing for each negotiation - chances are it’s a lot more than you think – and here’s a clue – twice as much as you’re doing right now.

The 4 step structure for how to get what you want from a negotiation - including how to tackle most people’s least favourite part: The Ask.

Why – when heading into a negotiation – you should never solve the easy issues first. Why? Because leaving the big hairy stuff until last is the fastest way to end the negotiation in conflict.

The differences between how men negotiate and how women negotiate. This is not only hugely important for women to understand – but for any men who want to better support the women you lead, mentor or love in getting what they have earned – then these insights might change the way you approach it.

And finally, how to move someone out of survival mode and into learning mode – which let’s face it - is the only mode where solutions are found.

Right now, as we try to figure out what comes next in this pandemic - new rules are being written daily and everything about ‘the old way of life’ has the potential to be renegotiated. I know for myself, this sometimes feels like a huge opportunity – and other days like a daunting challenge - but here’s the choice: do you want to approach these negotiations a) ready for conflict Or b) ready to collaborate?

If the answer is the latter - then yeah, me too.

So, sit back, do whatever you need to do to negotiate some time for yourself – no easy feat these days - and enjoy my conversation with the fiercely sharp mind of Professor Margaret Neale.

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Jonah Berger - The Catalyst: How to change anyones mind without having to push

Tue, 07 Jul 2020 23:50:54 GMT

Now, some might say, that one of the ultimate forms of influence is the ability to change the mind of someone’s else.

Which shouldn’t be that hard right? Replace fact A with updated Fact B and then done. System overwrite. Opinion changed.

If you’re smiling right now – then I’m guessing you’re with me in that – never once – in my entire career of trying to get ideas adopted and actioned. Have I EVER had that experience.

Generally speaking, and by that I mean pretty much always, if we feel we’re being pushed to do something, we push back. If something new or novel is suggested, our brains automatically pick out every reason it’s a terrible idea before we even CONSIDER it.

Even when confronted with proven evidence that a change is needed research shows that - human nature (in its infinite wisdom) – then makes us MORE determined to double down on our current version of events.

So - when opposition is literally hard wired into our nature – and without access to Yoda and some serious Jedi mind tricks – then then question then becomes – how do you change someone’s mind?

My guest today has spent a career unpacking the hidden forces behind influence.

Professor Jonah Berger is a marketing professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and internationally bestselling author of Contagious, Invisible Influence and now The Catalyst.

At the heart of Contagious - which (without overestimating) is a complete must read - is why certain products, ideas, services, and behaviours catch on. While others stay on the side-lines.

The success of Contagious and resulting consulting requests for some of the worlds top tier firms – including Google, Apple, Nike - then led him to another insight. That there are two phases to impact. The first is getting someone’s attention – the second is converting that attention into action.

That realisation - and resulting research - led to his latest book ‘The Catalyst: How To Change Anyone’s Mind’; a counterintuitive approach to initiating change - which isn’t about pushing harder or exerting more energy, but instead lowering the barriers that prevent that change from happening.

· In this episode, we talk about what those barriers are – and how pushing against them, as instinctive as it feels, rarely works.

· We discuss the technique of providing a menu; and why giving someone options allows them to buy in while retaining control. Sounds simple, but apply it and you’ll find this one is a game changer.

· We look at the impact of movements – the role of protests - and the what next when it comes to harnessing attention into action.

· And finally, one for the world we currently find ourselves facing: How to lift the handbrake of uncertainty. Allowing people to experience what you’re offering, by temporarily removing the risk involved in changing their mind.

At this point I would usually provide a menu of ways to enjoy the podcast – along with some suggestions of what to reflect on – but in the spirit of this episode – I’ll leave that up to your own free will.

Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing – I hope you enjoy my conversation with the incredible Professor Jonah Berger....

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Chris Bailey - Hyper Focus: How to master distraction and create attention worthy work

Tue, 23 Jun 2020 22:09:28 GMT

Now, when you listen to this podcast, are you only listening to this podcast? Or when you listen to this podcast, are you cooking? Driving? Working? Working out? All of the above?

Chances are you’re not focussing solely on this podcast. Most likely, you’re doing something else. In fact, when you think about it – when was the last time you shut down all distractions and focused on one thing utterly and completely?

And why am I even asking these questions – what does any of this have to do with influence? The answer is – everything. If there’s one thing I know for sure it’s this – we can have no influence, not over ourselves, our organisations, our networks or our communities – without first mastering the ability to focus.

The most influential people you know are the most focused. I’ll say that again… The most influential people you know are the most focused. They are the most able to tune out the noise and focus on essential signals. And in doing so create a force strong enough to pierce through the noise in other people’s lives – long enough and consistently enough - to create an equally focused following.

Add to that – that there are no shortage of distractions right now. No shortage of screaming elements that are as urgent as they are important. The future of the economy, important social unrest in our societies, a pandemic, the health and wellbeing and continued isolation from our families, educating and entertaining our children at home, trying to keep our jobs and businesses alive – not to mention the ever ready call of social media - just to remind us of everything else we (probably) don’t have the time or bandwidth to even consider adding to our plate.

PLUS – and I will stop soon I promise – there’s this whispering opportunity many of us feel at the moment. The opportunity to look deeply at our lives, our careers, our businesses – and redesign them. For some it’s to include more breaks, more white space and more connection. For other’s it’s transitioning to a business model that will put us and our teams in the strongest possible position for whatever comes next.

So – have I made my case yet? Focus and how we deal with distractions has everything to do with influence.

My guest today has been making this case for over 15 years.

Chris Bailey believes in a ‘human’ approach to productivity and focus i.e. no spreadsheets in sight. A fact that makes me truly happy.

His fascination with focus first led him to dedicating a year after college – turning down a number of job opportunities – in order experiment with productivity. Primarily using himself as the guinea pig. These experiments included.... working a 90 hour week, watching 70 hours of TED talks in 7 days, and making himself bored for a month to see where his mind wandered. All this, with the aim to learn and share how we can focus more deeply, overcome procrastination and energise ourselves in the process.

The result of this 12 months was his first book ‘The Productivity Project: Accomplishing More by Managing Your Time, Attention, and Energy’. The book was a huge success, but then Chris noticed something – that his old unfocused habits were starting to creep back in – particularly when it came to technology. This led to his second book – the manual he needed and couldn’t find: ‘Hyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction’.

In this episode – the conversation I needed but previously hadn’t been able to find - we dive into…

1. The one thing that we (i.e. I) wanted to hear the most. That it’s not our fault we’re distracted. Apparently, we’re hard wired for novelty (for reasons we’ll get into) and that every time we discover a new and novel thing – hello social media - our brain gives us an addictive hit of dopamine. So, if you can give yourself a pass for that, and be kinder to yourself in those moments, that’s the first step to a better attention span.

2. Following on from that, how to embrace the break. That includes learning to read your own cues about when it’s time to take a break. And by the way, looking at your phone is not taking a break. Sorry about that.

3. The rule of 3. This is one of Chris’ top focus tips - each morning, he picks three intentions for the day - out of the many he has on his plate, and gets them done.

4. How not to fear White Space (another word for the ‘in-between time’ we often avoid or try to fill with stimuli). And how harnessing that space, that pause, is the key to becoming a more effective decision-maker.

5. And finally, the joy of email sprints – which I can promise you does not require active wear, but does get that never-ending monkey of your Inbox off your back.

So, no more distractions from me, time to press pause on whatever you’re doing - or at least one of the things you’re doing - and get set to consider a new way of working with the ‘force of focus’ that is Chris Bailey....

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Tom Asacker - The Business of Belief: Why desire and truth hold the keys to influence

Wed, 10 Jun 2020 03:08:24 GMT

=====

I’m sure you, like me and 99% of the population of this planet, would think of yourself as a rational person. The dictionary definition of rational is: ‘based on or in accordance with reason or logic’. ‘Reason and logic’; I’ll take those words – who doesn’t like to think of themselves as logical and reasonable?

Well, I’ve got some news for you – and it’s probably not a surprise. We are not as rational as we think we are. You are not – and I am not.

According to my next guest, most of our day to day decisions are not carefully evaluated, thought through - or weighed-up. But instead based on beliefs, personal preferences and working assumptions – each one cross-checked against our environment, background, desires, feelings and mood at any specific time. And most of that… is done unconsciously without you even being aware. Sound hard to navigate? Unfortunately it is.

As I record this introduction, the aftershock, global protesting and heartbreak following the death in custody of George Flyod – is still very much ongoing. And if that situation teaches us anything – it should be how hard wired, unconscious (and often dangerous) our beliefs systems can be.

But it’s not enough to sit in that knowledge - what comes next is probably the most important question when it comes to understanding influence – what does it take to understand, direct – and in this case – redirect our beliefs into new behaviour?

My guest today has spent a good portion his life studying the gap between what we say is important – and what we actually do - both for individuals, companies and social movements.

A speaker, writer and advisor - Tom Asacker takes a different approach to creating momentum, and that approach is all about belief, desire and the physics of action. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies, co-founded a high-tech medical device company - won the George Land Innovator of the Year Award – and is now the author of ‘The Business of Belief’ focusing on the hidden logic of behaviour.

In today’s conversation we talk about....

· How to close the gap I mentioned earlier – taking your team, your community or yourself from ‘talking the talk’, to ‘walking the walk’.

· Why as a leader you have to embrace the desires and beliefs of those you are trying to influence – especially when the horizon is uncertain. And I don’t mean just acknowledge those beliefs (which actually was a shift in my thinking), but instead find a place where you can authentically own them as your own.

· How to get over the past experiences and stories that impact how you show up - so you can arrive at a situation open, but still armed with certainty.

· And why it’s physically impossible to hit a baseball – I know this sounds like this would have nothing to do with influence – but it has everything to do with waiting for the right moment… vs. swinging with intent and trusting you have the muscle to follow through when the angle becomes clearer.

What I want you to reflect on in this episode is how hidden and hard wired our beliefs can be. We are complex and multi-dimensional beings – who bring our entire history and belief system with us to any table or conversation. However, by accepting that - and by committing to the excavate – understand – and work with someone’s beliefs – including our own – we start to walk the fastest and most powerful road to influence that I know.

So, take a seat, let the logical world go for awhile – hard as that is right now - and open your mind to the thoughts and (ever flexible) beliefs of Tom Asacker.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Scilla Elworthy - A three times Nobel Peace Prize nominee on non-violent communication

Tue, 26 May 2020 22:47:33 GMT

Now, at the time of recording and publishing this episode we are still in the grips of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some lockdowns are easing, some are being extended - but wherever you’re at in your lockdown, we are all at a point where it’s something we’ve been dealing with for months - rather than for days or weeks.

For many, or for most in fact, the stress and the strains of those months are very real and there’s a high chance that conflict is a lot more familiar part of your life than it was pre-pandemic. That conflict might be light – children arguing over toys or homework – more intense – as many of us deal with financial and family crisis points – or critical – if – as is the case for far too many - your home isn’t a safe place – and the main emotional and physical dangers lie more within your four walls than outside.

For some people, dealing with – and trying to resolve – conflict - is their life’s work. And it’s one of those people who is my guest for this episode.

Dr Scilla Elworthy was put on her ‘path’ at the young age of 13 - having watched a life altering news broadcast in 1956 which literally jolted her into action. That small moment changed her life, which in turn, helped change the lives of countless others.

Dr Elworthy is best known for founding the Oxford Research Group; an organisation set up in 1982 to develop communication between nuclear weapons policy-makers and their critics - for which she was nominated three times for the Nobel Peace Prize.

In 2003 she left her role there as executive director and set up Peace Direct; a charity which supports peace-makers and peace builders in areas of conflict. She is also a member of the World Future Council, has advised Desmond TuTu and Sir Richard Branson in setting up ‘The Elders’, and was Awarded the Niwano Peace Prize in 2003.

Today her full attention is on developing Business Plan for Peace - resulting in her 2017 book The Business Plan for Peace: Building a World Without War .

Her latest booklet - which has literally just been released – is called: ‘The Mighty Heart: How to transform conflict’. It takes the experience of people who have been preventing and resolving conflict for decades; some on the front-line, others within families or schools. And distils their experiences into practical, non-technical advice on how build your own mighty heart.

So what’s a mighty heart? Put simply, it’s having the courage to meet conflict with compassion, curiosity – and unshakeable presence.

How do we do that? Keep listening. In this conversation we dive into:

· How to deal with a bully without becoming a thug yourself, and how to overcome violence in all its forms without resorting to force.

· Why it’s important to realise that whilst it’s okay to be angry at ‘the thing’, it’s not okay to be angry at the person who holds the opposing view on that ‘thing’; get mad at ‘the thing’ together and resolve it.

· Self intervention - how to take a step back when we feel too close to the trigger point - very important this one, and very relevant for these times.

· How to take a stand clearly and calmly – and with full gravity - so you are not dismissed. Quick Tip - it’s important to literally take a ‘stand’.

· And how we build certainty through self enquiry. Especially in those 3am moments. One of my favourite moments in this conversation is listening to how Scilla – literally – deals with her dragons when they arrive at 3am.

For me – speaking to Scilla was both a deep honour and reminder that the most powerful forms of influence are not force, aggression or interruption. Which I know sometimes is a hard truth to hold onto.

In the long run of history – or any relationship - the only lasting genuine peace always comes from a willingness to firstly show up – for ourselves before anyone else. Then to get curious about both sides of the story – even when that feels impossible. And finally, in the decision to fiercely and compassionately hold our ground – even (and especially) in the moments when our knees shake and our voices break.

Writing this introduction actually sent me off in search of a poem I hadn’t read in years, it’s by Rumi and it’s the closest (and shortest) summation of the beginnings of peace that I have ever found: “Out beyond the ideas of right and wrong there is a field – I will meet you there’.

So, find whatever resembles a peaceful place for you right now - and enjoy my conversation with the truly indescribable, Dr Scilla Elworthy...

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The Next Right Thing - Brandon Webb on pivots, staying fluid and harnessing with fear

Mon, 18 May 2020 23:57:56 GMT

Hi – this is Julie Masters and you’re listening to The Next Right Thing – a mini-series from The Inside Influence Team. Designed to provide some actionable certainty in uncertain times. Specifically – and the situation we’re all facing right now – the COVID-19 pandemic.

The idea behind this series is to go out to some of the most popular guests from past episodes of Inside Influence – and ask them one question: ‘What are the most important things you are focusing on right now (tools, ideas, strategies) - or advising your clients to focus on - that you know for sure work in uncertain times?’

The intention being that somewhere in there, you will find inspiration for your next right thing – a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I speak with… Brandon Webb. Former US Navy SEAL sniper, New York Times bestselling author and Entrepreneur. He has received numerous distinguished service awards - including the Presidential Unit Citation (awarded to him by President George W. Bush), and the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation medal with “V” for valour in combat.

After ending his Navy career, he then went on to embark on an entrepreneurial journey that – first time out of the gate – literally resulted in him losing everything. Undeterred - he dove deep into the pivot and went on to found Hurricane Media - a digital content network now valued at over $100 Million dollars

This episode jumps around a bit but the there's 3 or 4 gold nuggets I want you to listen out for...

In this episode, we talk about mental management Navy SEAL style, getting off the X and staying fluid, drown-proofing (literally a concept that changed my life – professionally and personally) and surrounding yourself with the right people when the terrain gets unclear.

You may notice a fair amount of background noise in this episode – for those of you that are particularly sensitive to that – I totally get it. It’s just the trade off we had to make to get this one out there. Interesting side story…

If you want to dig even further into Brandon’s genius – you can also hunt down our previous conversation - which I believe is episode No. 38.

But for now, and as always with these episodes – and all of the Inside Influence conversations come to think of it - I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right move.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Next Right Thing - Chris Voss on renegotiation and how to deal with it

Mon, 18 May 2020 23:44:41 GMT

The idea behind this series is to go out to some of the most popular guests from past episodes of Inside Influence – and ask them one question: ‘What are the most important things you’re focusing on right now (tools, ideas, strategies) - or advising your clients to focus on - that you know for sure work in uncertain times?’

The intention being that somewhere in there, from these incredible minds, you might be able to find inspiration for your next right thing – a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I speak with… Chris Voss – previously the FBI's lead kidnapping negotiator. During his 24 year tenure in the FBI, he was trained in the art of negotiation at Scotland Yard and Harvard Law School. He is also a recipient of the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement – as well as teaching business negotiation at a number of prestigious universities. He’s also the author of the EXCELLENT book: Never Split The Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It.

In this conversation we drill down into something very specific… How to deal with everything being renegotiated. Most of us have had to deal with either making – or taking – those ‘renegotiation’ phone calls more than we could have ever imagined over the last few weeks. Either with suppliers, team members, landlords or customers. They can be deeply uncomfortable, emotionally intense and hard to navigate. As a blue print to work from – Chris walks through a four point system for handling renegotiation phone calls. As well as how to deal with two of the biggest derailers in phone negotiations – what to do when the other party goes silent – and what to do when they won’t stop talking.

What I want you to listen for in this conversation… is that these tools apply whether you are making – or taking the phone call. Managing your state i.e. tone of voice to set the tone. Creating engagement - through emotionally intelligent guesses as to what the other party might be facing. Reflecting back – and naming the elephant in the room - by labelling what you have heard them say. And then asking thought shaping, collaborative questions that usually begin with ‘How do we…’. Emphasis on the WE.

I’ve said it a hundred times – and it’s never more true than now – influence isn’t something you either have or do not have. It’s not a power bestowed from on high by a divine force to some and not others. It’s a set of tools you can claim and choose to master at any point. But first, like any mastery – you have to decide to claim it and commit to the practice.

If you want to hear more tools from Chris Voss and his experiences in the FBI… you can hunt down our previous conversation - which believe it or not was actually episode No.1. WOW – how far we’ve come. In particular his insights on ‘why ‘yes’ should be the last thing you want to hear in a negotiation’ is a TOTAL game changer.

Chris also has an amazing newsletter… blackswanltd.com – actionable and brief. Also a masterclass for $90 – insane. 10 videos.

So… other than staying well and looking after each other - I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Next Right Thing - Tiffani Bova on growth zones, tuning out the noise and jobs to be done

Mon, 18 May 2020 23:27:47 GMT

The intention being that somewhere in there, from these incredible minds, you might be able to find inspiration for your next right thing – or to put it another way - a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I speak with… Tiffani Bova. Global customer growth and innovation evangelist at Salesforce AND Wall Street Journal bestselling author of – ‘Growth IQ - Get Smarter About the Choices that Will Make Or Break Your Business’.

What impresses me most about Tiffani isn’t her credentials – which are extensive – or her laser focused approach to solving the growth challenges of some of the world’s top tier firms. What has always impressed me during the few times we have been able to spend some time together - is her ability to peer into the clutter – into the never-ending predictions, statistics and trends – especially at times like right now - and translate them with a level of certainty, clarity (and perspective) that only comes from having done the work.

In todays conversation we talk about… Stabilised decision making – and why’s it’s vital during any crisis. The Growth Zone – what it is – what it looks like – and how we will know when we’re there. Which consumer habits are temporary and which are now here for good. And the one that hit me the hardest – the idea of ‘Jobs to be done’ and how it needs to be the guiding light for whatever you do next.

What I want you to reflect on here… isn’t actually related to growth – but more related to influence. Tiffani has one of the most finely attuned ‘question radars’ that I have ever come across. Her success as an analyst, author, influencer and leader is in my opinion down to one thing – she listens hard to the questions of her target market, and makes it her absolute mission to answer them. There. That’s it. That alone is an insanely powerful next right thing.

If you want to dig even further into Tiffani’s insanely smart mind and Growth IQ as a set of tools and strategies… you can also hunt down our previous conversation - which I believe is episode No. 42. You can also find her book on Amazon – highly, highly recommended.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say I again - this series very much a ‘by the seat of your pants’ kind of thing… lockdown means we’ve had to work with what we have in terms of equipment and internet speeds. So sound quality isn’t always perfect. But – as I’m learning to embrace - that’s not the point.

The point is that we’re showing up – with intent that somewhere in here – imperfections and all - you will find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

So… other than staying well and looking after each other - I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Next Right Thing - Joe Newman on parenting in crisis, structure and compassionate discipline

Mon, 18 May 2020 22:47:04 GMT

In this episode I speak with… Joe Newman. Joe describes himself as an expert in helping parents in crisis. When we first brainstormed this series - he was top of my list to reach out to. As one of the first children to be diagnosed with ADHD. A label that taught him that he was “broken,” – he went on to shatter expectations and re-build his identity as a teacher and champion of children labelled by society as ‘difficult’ or ‘beyond help’. Founder of Raising Lions – he is also author of the book by the same name ‘Raising Lions: The Art of Compassionate Discipline’. In other words – how to hold structure in situations – and with children – where structure doesn’t come easily.

Honestly, I think I have used his tools more in my parenting journey than any other source. And – as I say at the beginning of this podcast – I think if this lockdown has taught me anything over the past six or seven weeks – it’s how to apologise. Two kids under three, two businesses in chaos and two parents trying to find their way through without destroying their sanity or each other. That’s a situation – by anyone’s definition - that needs some tools.

In todays conversation we talk about… structure and why it’s vital. Mutual recognition – including why starting your sentences with ‘I need’ – far from being selfish – is one of the most powerful lessons we can teach our children in creating intimacy. Why the fight is never about the thing – insert homework, wearing shoes or use of the iPad – but about power, autonomy and dignity. And the powerful shift from right and wrong – to cause and effect.

What I want you to reflect on here… is actually a quote I heard from Joe the first time we spoke. It’s a quote from Peggy O’Mara and it says this: ‘The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice’. Seriously: ‘The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice’. Doesn’t that just slay you?

Those words I feel have been seared on my brain since the moment I heard them. But here’s what I’ve realised, the more I’ve thought about it. Our words become the inner voices or our children – yes – but those words start as our own inner voice. The voice, the tone and the language we use on ourselves. In our best and worst moments.

So, maybe we can start there – the next time we hear something coming out of our mouths that we don’t feel is perhaps our best selves – by asking ‘where do I say this to myself’, ‘when did I first hear those words’ and ‘how can I be gentler, more resourceful or present in those moments’. Maybe by tending to that inner voice, we can become a better inner voice for the people that we love.

If you want to dig even further into Joe’s tools and strategies and the work of Raising Lions… you can also hunt down our previous conversation - which I believe is episode No. 54. Obviously check out the book – and if you sign up for his newsletter I believe he’s also running free Zoom Q&A’s for parents in crisis. So definitely worth checking out.

So… other than staying well and looking after each other – now the time to sit tight, listen up and hopefully find somewhere in here - the fuel you need for your next right thing.

The point is that we’re showing up – with intent that somewhere in here – imperfections and all - you will find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Flip Flippen - Finding Your Third Story: Calling BS on the first two stories keeping you small

Wed, 13 May 2020 00:16:35 GMT

Now, if I asked the question: what is the one big topic, or theme or take away or, let’s face it, obsession of Inside Influence, then the answer would be this: storytelling.

Sometimes that feels light…

Storytelling is in our DNA; from the dawn of humanity to today and beyond, storytelling is who we are - it’s how we connect, and how we engage – it captures our attention and compels our actions more than any other ONE thing on the planet.

So that might help explain why, storytelling (that is, telling our individual and collective stories to other people) has quite rightly had its fair share of airtime on this podcast. But one thing I don’t feel like we’ve spoken about often enough – and that I intend to rectify now – is the impact of the stories we tell ourselves. No these stories are usually about ourselves and our abilities – or lack of for the majority of us. And how these stories impact how we show up – WHETHER we show up – and our ability to stand out ground when the road gets tough.

Things like… I’m not a good leader… I know in my gut that this needs to be said or done – but I’m not the person to do it… Or the biggest one that I see – I’m too old, introverted, different, small, large - who do I think I am to stand out, make waves or be seen.

These stories – as I said usually about ourselves and our abilities – my guest today refers to as our ‘second stories’.

Which if you’re anything like me makes you wonder – if this is my second story – how bad must my first story have been? Which we will get into – including how to rewrite any story that’s keeping you stuck to create a Third story. Which is the one that will ultimately shape the person you want to become. In short, your third story cuts the BS, and enables you to live the life you’ve always wanted to.

But first, let me tell you about the man behind this way of thinking and todays guest.

Flip Flippen is a New York Times’ best seller, he’s a serial social entrepreneur, philanthropist, respected speaker, thought leader and, perhaps most surprising and impressive of all - father to 20 children. Can we just sit and comprehend that for a second. Just trying to get shoes on two children in the morning is challenging enough, my brain literally melts trying to imagine 20.

Flip started-out working with kids who had become involved in gangs, setting up a very successful non profit organisation – before (and after one fateful day which we will talk about) going on to found numerous companies - including one of the largest educator training companies in North America.

Last year, along with Dr Chris White he released the book: ‘Your Third Story: Author the Life You Were Meant To Live’.

Which brings us back to today – talking about our first, second and ultimately third story. I won’t ruin it by going too deep into the definitions – but in short your first story is the one you were given, the second is the one you tell yourself to justify the first – and the third is when you throw away the whole God damn book. And this time write your own.

I LOVED this conversation. It’s impacted me in untold ways since as a leader, parent and just human being in this world. If you’ve ever had that sneaking feeling that there are maybe other words you want to say, or challenges you would dare to attempt – if you could just step back from the script for awhile. Then this is the episode for you.

Today we dive deep into...

· How to write your Third story; the prerequisites you need to consider and the questions you should be asking yourself...  

· The drivers for change; be that either an emotionally compelling reason from within you, or an external force that backs you into a corner... enter stage left COVID-19  

· How you can become mindful of the stories you programme into your children

· Forgiveness. The benefit to you to forgive, and the impact it can have on everyone around you when you dare to take the leap. And make no mistake about it – forgiveness is one of the most daring acts of bravery we can commit ourselves to 

· And finally - how to see off the story dragons who want to eat your third story for breakfast...

Now, speaking of dragons, I had a few tech dragons attacking my mic for this recording, so I apologies for the lower quality than usual, but luckily Flip sounds fantastic.

So sit back, get settled and prepare to look inward, guided by the story master himself Flip Flippen.

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The Next Right Thing - Justin Dry on the path from High Touch to High Tech

Sun, 03 May 2020 23:38:32 GMT

The idea behind this series is to go out to some of the most popular guests from past episodes of Inside Influence – and ask them one question: ‘What are the most important things you’re focusing on right now (tools, ideas, strategies) - or advising your clients to focus on - that you know for sure work in uncertain times?’

The intention being that somewhere in there, from these incredible minds, you might be able to find inspiration for your next right thing – a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I speak with… Justin Dry – Co-Founder + CEO of Vino Mofo, an online wine retailer and community that began in a garage - and then a campervan - and then became one of the fastest growing online wine retailers on the planet. With an annual turnover of more than $50 million – and collaborations with power houses that include wine rockstar Gary Vaynerchuck.

Justin and his team has done what many would say was impossible – and the challenge that so many are facing right now. Which is take a category that previously relied on high touch – face to face interaction – and pivot it into a high tech, high engagement online community. That - rather than diminishing the experience – takes it to such another level that their best form of marketing is the customers themselves.

In this conversation we talk about… the pivot from high touch to high tech – the impact of lock down on our digital attention (including what he sees working right now) – and why relentlessly obsessing about your story is still the number tool of engagement.

If you want to dig even further into Justin’s experiences in creating, building and globally scaling Vino Mofo… you can hunt down our previous conversation - which I believe is episode No.62.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – audio not perfect.

So… other than staying well and looking after each other - I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Next Right Thing - Bill Coletti on Crisis EQ, the messy middle and critical communication

Sun, 03 May 2020 23:01:56 GMT

The idea behind this series is to go out to some of the most popular guests from past episodes of Inside Influence – and ask them one question: ‘What are the most important things you’re focusing on right now (tools, ideas, strategies) - or advising your clients to focus on - that you know for sure work in uncertain times?’

The intention being that somewhere in there, from these incredible minds, you might be able to find inspiration for your next right thing – a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I’m joined by… Bill Coletti - a crisis communications and reputation management expert with more than twenty-five years of experience managing high-stakes crises, issues management, and media relations challenges for Fortune 500 companies and global political campaigns.

Bill’s expertise is focused on one thing – how to approach, handle and lead in critical moments. In the moments when all the bets are off – and a normal Tuesday suddenly becomes the pivot point for your entire career, business – or in the case of some – political legacy.

In this conversation we talk about… The A-B-C (Always be communicating) approach to crisis communication. How to excel during the messy middle phase – when a new normal has sunk in and no end is still in sight – and whether there is such a thing as over communicating with your team and stakeholders.

What I want you to reflect on here… that the leaders that will excel during these times – or during any time that involves a critical moment – aren’t the ones with all the answers. As leaders it’s often easy to fall into the trap of ‘the great reveal’. the ‘da da’ moment. Not the destination – but the map.

What we want is someone to translate the path with a level of certainty. To share our process of decision making – and not our perfection.

If you want to dig even further into Bill’s knowledge and background… you can hunt down our previous conversation – where we talk more about influencing critical moments, developing a Crisis EQ and the Power of an Apology - which I believe is episode No. 57.

In the meantime stay well, look after each other – and I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Next Right Thing - Linda Cruse on frontline leadership, the Recovery Zone and being capable

Sun, 03 May 2020 23:01:38 GMT

The idea behind this series is to go out to some of the most popular guests from past episodes of Inside Influence – and ask them one question: ‘What are the most important things you’re focusing on right now (tools, ideas, strategies) - or advising your clients to focus on - that you know for sure work in uncertain times?’

The intention being that somewhere in there, from these incredible minds, you might be able to find inspiration for your next right thing – a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I speak with… Linda Cruse – frontline humanitarian, leadership expert and author of ‘Leading on the Frontline – Remarkable stories and essential leadership lessons from the worlds danger zones.’

Linda has worked alongside some of the world’s most influential figures including HH The Dalai Lama, Sir Richard Branson and HRH The Prince of Wales, and with companies, foundations and universities including GSK, Virgin Unite, Cadbury, Rabobank, KPMG, Merrill Lynch, the World Bank.

Her main message being this – when crisis comes – and we find ourselves on the frontline in whatever form - we need to stop focusing on being charitable – and start focusing on being capable.

In this conversation we talk about… Leading from the frontline – what she has learned works when all traditional structure and hierarchy falls away. The concept of charitable vs capable – and why there are 7.7 billion hero’s on this planet right now. And how recovery actually works – not the sanitised ‘plan on a spreadsheet’ kind – but the messy ‘making it up the next right thing at a time, when the ground is constantly shifting beneath us’ kind.

What I want you to reflect on here… is that in crisis and uncertainty – those that emerge as the leaders – both as individuals and brands – are often not who you would expect. As frequently as it’s the top dog – it’s someone you may never have noticed before. Someone who decides, for whatever reason, that now is the time to stand up and contribute the best that they have to give – with certainty. Essentially, those that make the decision to focus more on ‘capability’ than ‘catastrophe’.

If you want to dig even further into Linda’s knowledge and background… you can hunt down our previous conversation - which I believe is episode No. 22. You’ll also hear her talk about ‘Race For Good’ which is an online platform (I think maybe app) that she’s developing to allow capable people around the globe to collaborate on solving some of the world’s greatest issues. At the time of publishing it’s not yet finished – but keep an eye out in the coming weeks.

Not perfect – showing up…

So… other than staying well and looking after each other - I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Next Right Thing - Ty Montague on pivoting the quest, Story Doing and doubling down

Sun, 03 May 2020 23:00:43 GMT

The intention being that somewhere in there, from these incredible minds, you might be able to find inspiration for your next right thing – a point of certainty amidst the uncertainty.

In this episode I speak with… Ty Montague – Founder at co:collective and author of: ‘True Story: How to Combine Story and Action to Transform Your Business’. Using his own words Ty considers himself a traditional advertising ‘refugee’ - having decided to pivot (recognise that work from any conversations recently?) his entire career when he noticed - and couldn’t explain why - Starbucks could be on every corner - yet not spend a single dollar on traditional advertising.

Ty took that one question and went on to build a philosophy, a methodology, a company and a global reputation on the answer. All based around one premise – if you want to stand out, build trust and engage your target market – particularly in when there is no business as usual to be found. Then you need to shift from Story Telling. To Story Doing.

In this conversation we talk about… Pivoting the Quest – knowing when to double down on your messaging and when to change direction. The importance and process of defining a few transformative actions to focus on in uncertainty. And why these two questions should be on Post It notes above your desk right now: “When this crisis is over what story do I want people to tell about me (or us)?” And “What story do I want to tell about myself?”

What I want you to reflect on here… Those that are doing it well right now – are not necessarily changing direction – but finding ways to take their existing mission – or Quest - and expanding it. To include community, connection and a wider purpose for existing.

If you want to dig even further into Ty’s insanely smart mind and Story Doing as a concept… you can also hunt down our previous conversation - which I believe is episode No. 69. You can also find his book on Amazon – highly recommended.

So… other than staying well and looking after each other - I hope somewhere in here you find the fuel you need for your next right thing.

This series very much a ‘by the seat of your pants’ kind of thing… the intention is to keep these short – as least for now we’re going to release as we record. We’ll probably also leave in a lot of the imperfections we usually edit out.

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James Clear - Atomic Habits: How to shrink time, achieve more and do the deep work

Tue, 28 Apr 2020 22:45:27 GMT

Now, hands up if you have a set routine whilst listening to this podcast. Maybe you listen whilst you’re in the gym or on your commute?

In times of crisis we are either catastrophic or catalytic – The habits we develop during this time – they will become the catalysts to who we become next.

In this episode we talk about:

● Forming and enforcing new habits in this new environment - and what four things you need to focus on to cement those new habits.  

● How to make the immediate outcome of your habit satisfying – even when the greatest returns may feel in the distant future – i.e. developing killer abs.

● The vital practices of Habit stacking and habit squashing - and how to master both.  

● Why identity always trumps motivation when the going gets tough. First asking yourself “Who is the type of person I want to become?” and “What would they do right now”?

· And Warren Buffet’s two-list rule; how the most dangerous things on your to-do this are the ‘good’ uses of your time (and also that you're a rose bush and not a tree, but that’ll make a lot more sense later).

So, pick a chair, corner of the garden or just get comfy into whatever your life in lockdown looks like – and enjoy my conversation with James Clear....

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Jeremy Heimans - New Power: The shift from currency to currents, and viral to vital

Tue, 14 Apr 2020 21:38:58 GMT

_________________________________________________________________________

Now, it’s a pretty reliable fact of life that new will always replace old. New ideas, new approaches, new ways of thinking and communicating, new tech, new platforms; new music.

However nostalgic you feel about the old, the new will usually get you eventually.

But who’s heard of the phrase New Power? Well, whether you’ve heard of it or not there’s a pretty high chance that New Power has influenced your life in some way. Anything from riding an Uber or booking an AirBnB through to contributing to the MeToo or the Extinction Rebellion Movements - all these things fall under the banner of New Power.

So what is New Power? Well, unlike old power which is traditionally driven by command and control, New Power is an open, collaborative and usually tech driven force. And if used correctly, New Power is probably the most influential tool on the planet today. The fact that in under a year – from the age of 15 to 16 - Greta Thunberg can go from protesting alone outside Parliament – to mobilising millions of people in protest around the world… is testament to that.

So how do we harness this New Power and make it work for our businesses, our organisations or our beliefs? Step forward my guest for this episode: Jeremy Heimans - entrepreneur, political activist and author of the book: ‘New Power: How Power Works in Our Hyperconnected World - and How to Make It Work for You.’

Not unlike Greta, Jeremy started his activism young; aged 8 in fact, and by the age of 12, his first steps into New Power involved trying to stop the Gulf War - armed only with a fax machine. History may have had different plans there, but un-phased Jeremy went on to form GetUp; an Australian political organisation. Following its success, in 2007 he went on to co-found Avaaz.org, an online activist network that now has over forty million members across the globe.

Two years later and now based in New York - he co-founded Purpose; a social impact agency working alongside brands like Google, Starbucks and the World Health Organisation. Developing the strategies, campaigns an tech to thrive in a new world. A world fuelled by currents of attention rather than currency – and letting go of control rather than tightening your grip.

If, like me, that sounds in equal parts terrifying and exciting. Stay curious. New Power isn’t coming. It’s already woven deep into the fabric of all our lives. In this episode we jump into…

● The four vital things to consider before launching a new movement, vision or community.

● What every organisation needs to learn from the ‘Occupy Wall Street’ movement – including why you should occupy yourself before you get occupied.

● How to reach the people you’re targeting - and once you get to them - how to set off the spark that drives them to participate.

● How New Power is enabled by more than just tech; yes the tech has changed, but alongside it so have we…

● And most importantly, how old power still has a place in this brave new world – which parts of structure and control we need to hold onto (like seeing actual Dr’s rather than self-diagnosing on internet forums at 2am – cue me hanging my head in shame) and how to apply them in a world where the power now belongs in the hands of the many – rather than the few

As I’m recording this intro we’re deep into the COVID-19 pandemic – over 1.6 million cases and climbing. Thinking back to this interview, and now knowing the world we’re launching it into. It’s interesting to reflect on how relevant understanding new power has become.

Any leader that now needs to motivate and harness the collective power of their teams remotely – needs New Power. Any organisation that previously relied on face-to-face interaction and now needs to pivot into engaging or creating online communities – has to understand New Power. Anyone isolated, struggling with loneliness and leaning on the support of online communities of friends or the likeminded – is grateful for New Power. The government itself, as it tries to spread community awareness and participation in reducing the spread of the virus – is banking on New Power. We may have felt we had more time to understand and try to consciously and responsibly harness this new force. But maybe we don’t. Maybe this is the moment. The pivot point when New Power finally comes into its own.

On that note, I’ll leave you to sit back, or head out for your blissful 30 minutes of the outside world - and enjoy my conversation with the force of nature who is Jeremy Heimans.

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Brant Pinvidic - The 3 minute rule: How to say less to get more from any pitch

Tue, 31 Mar 2020 21:00:09 GMT

Greetings everyone, my name is Julie Masters and welcome to another episode of Inside

Influence. In which I delve into the minds of some of the world’s most fascinating influencers

– or experts in influence - to get to the bottom of what it really takes to own your voice - and

then amplify it to drive an industry, a conversation, a movement or a Nation.

The largest of those? Is an epic FIRST 2-3 minutes.

So when someone sent me a book recently called ‘The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation’. I was ALL IN.

In today’s conversation we delve into the mechanics of what it takes to get your ideas over the line. Including:

Why three minutes is the key to creating an ultra-concise, ultra-compelling pitch for any idea, product, service or company.
The Fire Alarm Test – If someone pulled the fire alarm after three minutes of your presentation or sales pitch, have you done enough to make people want to come back and hear more?
The four core questions every successful pitch needs to address
Why being passionate about everything - often means you are credible about nothing.
How to close with a hook that guarantees action.
And the difference between situational doubt and self-doubt - in particular why one of those mindsets is self-defeating - and the other is self-preserving.

If now is the time to get others on board with your ideas, product, company or vision - those potentially hold the power to making it happen - then this episode is for you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Julian Treasure - The art of listening so you can actually be heard

Tue, 17 Mar 2020 17:00:09 GMT

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If I asked you to list all of the skills you learnt at school, what are some of the things that would make that list? For me, it would be things like the square root of a triangle - algebra - obviously being British - the bloody history of the Empire - and various fun facts about frogs.

Now the next question you can probably see coming… outside of the occasional hero moment at trivia… how many times have you actually found yourself using those skills?

Today’s conversation on Inside Influence is a second time guest. The first time I had the pleasure of speaking to him it was to discuss the universal challenge of ‘How to be Heard’. This time we wanted to flip the focus - and concentrate on the largest and most undiscussed part of that equation - our ability to hear someone else.

And it all came from one question he asked me during that original conversation. And it was this… how come - with all the skills we learn at school - the most fundamental skill - the one that’s the most likely to dictate the success of our relationships, careers, businesses and parenting - never gets taught. The art of listening.

Not hearing - which is something we do involuntarily. But the art of truly listening and processing the world of another human being.

Today I’m thrilled to welcome back Julian Treasure. Founder of The Sound Agency and author of ‘How to be heard’. Julian’s five TED talks have been watched more than 80 million times. His latest, ‘How to speak so that people want to listen’, now in the top 10 TED talks of all time. He is also regularly featured in the world’s media, including TIME Magazine, The Economist and the BBC.

Today we dive into the deep deep world of listening including:

The difference between listening and hearing. Listening = position of curiosity
The circle of influence… why the way I speak impacts the way you listen – and the way you listen impacts the way I speak.
The four C’s of conscious listening
Our relationship to silence – how most of us either jump on it, fill it or retreat from it – and why how we deal with it is often the key to gravitas.
The four leeches that suck the power out of communication - and how to avoid them
And how to hear the people around you with fresh ears - by avoiding falling into listening autopilot - ‘I know how this is going to go…’

For anyone that wants to go even further into both Julian’s work on listening - and how to speak so that you are heard - he also has a new course called ‘How to speak so that people want to listen’ on his website speaklistenbe.com. He’s given me a sneak peak and I can promise you it will change the way you approach every single piece of communication in your life.

So - usually I would pick a subset of people that I think this podcast would resonate most with - but this one is for everyone, everyday. So let’s start now. Turn off the distractions if you can, settle in with a curious mind - and dive into a world where our ability to stop talking long enough to listen - will literally dictate the quality of every single one of our relationships - and every single one of our results.

Enjoy my conversation with the sound master himself - Julian Treasure.

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Jason Harris - The Art of Soulful Persuasion: Playing the long game and turning to face the strange

Tue, 03 Mar 2020 22:16:27 GMT

So here’s todays question... is it possible to persuade soulfully?

To influence without (at least partially) resorting to force, manipulation, interruption or

volume? And if it is possible - when you really get down to it - to the business of standing out

and generating results at scale - is effective enough in the long run to commit to mastering

as a skill?

Some would probably say right now that we live in a world where fear drives the majority of

persuasion. In the business world - we call that fear by many different names. Urgency,

authority, scarcity - all of which usually mean the same thing - and for a long time have

informed the majority of the marketing, advertising and sometimes leadership messages we

receive.

But in a world where trust is harder to find - and our ability to tune out the messages (and

people) we don’t want great than ever. Is there another (potentially more effective) way to

stand out? My guest on today’s episode would argue (persuasively) that there is...

Jason Harris is the CEO of powerhouse creative agency Mekanism. A creative agency that

works with brands such as Peliton, HBO, Ben & Jerrys, Dropbox, Under Armor – the list

goes on. He is also the author of ‘The Soulful Art of Persuasion - 11 Habits That Will Make

Anyone a Master Influencer’, it’s pretty much a grassroots guide to influence in a world of

distrust. HIGH RECOMMENDED. In it he draws on the latest in-depth research on trust,

influence and habit formation – to make a compelling argument that being persuasive in

todays world - means rejecting an ethos of quick - and instead embracing a commitment to

playing the long game.

In this conversation, Jason and I dive in and out of topics including:

- Why playing the long game is the key to coming out in front – and why hearing ‘no’

can sometimes be the best opportunity to stand out

- How to apply a philosophy of ‘Never Be Closing’ - and still win more business in the

long run

- The art of giving yourself away – and the tools to not to let it take over your life

- Why learning to write, own and articulate your unique story - is the key to cut through

in a cynical age

- And the importance of ‘turning to face the strange’, I loved this one – basically why

your inner freak – you know the one – the one you pretend you don’t have – is

perhaps the greatest super power you own

Today’s conversation is for anyone trying to work out how to make an impact in a world of

diminished trust. And like most common sense it pretty much applies at every level.

From the bottom line of how you communicate in moment to moment situations – to the top

line of what the future of persuasion actually looks like - in a world where ‘Daisy Methods’

(you’ll understand more about that after listening) – appear on the surface to get the lion’s

share of attention. Basically, the clouds and the dirt of influence.

So grab a notepad, or a coffee... or a protein bar... yep still on the F45 challenge. DM me

your condolences. And enjoy my interview with Jason Harris.

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Joseph Michelli - How to disrupt an industry the AirBnB way

Tue, 18 Feb 2020 17:00:38 GMT

In a business landscape that’s changing rapidly - it’s no secret that the companies staying ahead of the curve are getting better and faster at reinventing themselves. Spotting opportunities, responding to competition, or - more frequently - even becoming their own competition.

But what - and this is a question I’m asking a lot at the moment - sits in the DNA of a company that can reinvent an entire category? Or a business that completely reinvents itself - or an individual that sparks the momentum that reinvents an entire conversation?

Some might say it’s being really clear about what your target audience wants… and others, including the prime example we’re looking at today, might just agree with the immortal words of Henry Ford: ‘If I had asked them what they wanted - they would have said faster horses”

My guest today is Joseph Michelli - is a psychologist-turned best selling author - who has dedicated his career to decoding how category reinventors such as Starbucks, Zappos and now Air BnB change the game.

In his latest book, The Airbnb Way, Michelli and his team took an unprecedented inside look at the influence of one of the largest disruption stories of our time. To give you some perspective on that... Air BnB now has over 4 million listings in 220+ countries - higher than the top five major hotel brands combined. In 2016 - in New York City alone - the estimated hotel revenue lost to Airbnb was totalled at $365 million. Four years later... there’s only one direction that number would have gone in.

The research of Joseph and his team involved interviewing hundreds of Airbnb hosts and guests in over 11 countries - what they found - was that the same five words kept playing on repeat. The power of belonging, trust, hospitality, empowerment and community.

So in today’s podcast, we take a deep dive into those words and quite a few more. The ground we covered including:

What it takes to truly reinvent an industry or product
Designing for trust - staying in a stranger’s house!
The power and influence of powerfully designing and telling your story
The noble art of hosting - probably the biggest one for me
The line between giving people options, and giving them too much choice

If you’re working hard to create something that cuts through business as usual - then this conversation is definitely for you.

So if you’re anything like me and this year has kicked off with a commitment to cut back on caffeine - pour yourself a herbal tea - get out your notepad and pen and enjoy the incredible insights of Joseph Michelli.

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Valerie Young - How to beat Imposter Syndrome and thrive on the other side

Tue, 04 Feb 2020 17:00:35 GMT

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And secondly - here’s the biggie - have these thoughts ever stopped you from shooting for something - or asking for something - that really mattered?

Today’s topic is a deeply personal one for me...

I know for me there has been countless times in my life, not just my career, where I’ve thought to myself “”? And now that you’re here, how on earth are you going to pull this off?”

So - as one of the first in the year - I went on a mission to find the No 1. Voice on the planet on imposter syndrome.

Find we did - and her name is Valerie Young,

I...:

Just exactly how far-reaching the effects of imposter syndrome are - here’s a clue it doesn’t belong to an age group or a gender - in fact - the further up the tree you go - the more likely you are to deal with it
What it can do, to even the most capable of people - and why it’s vital that we learn to deal with it or miss out on vast amounts of potential
The tools to re-frame that voice in our heads when it appears - to literally take the ‘freeze effect’ and use it as fuel
Developing new responses to failure and mistake making - this one has been huge for me this past year. Starting with my conversation with Mark Schulman - drummer for Pink and the phrase ‘Am I free to fail?’
Why the belief that we are imposters relies on one fundamentally untrue assumption
And what to do when we feel that cycle of self-doubt kick in

And that involves first believing that we deserve to be there.

So grab your favorite biscuits, I’m all in on Tim Tams at the moment - make sure you’ve got your pen and paper handy - and let 2020 be the year you finally let that imposter go.

Enjoy my conversation with - Valerie Young.

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Justin Dry - How Vino Mofo redesigned an industry built an epic tribe

Tue, 21 Jan 2020 20:00:13 GMT

One of the things I notice a lot in talking to people about influence - and influencers - especially those that have managed to harness attention long enough to redefine or reinvent an entire industry - is the assumption that it must be sexy.

Like the hero’s journey - only in a cool T-shirt. A one way upward trajectory - where you can always see a light beconning at the end of the tunnel, and everything you try either works - or provides an obvious answer around what will.

Yet never - in 20 years of working with, talking to influencers - have I heard anything like that version of events.

Usually it starts with a feeling - a nagging thought that something is missing - a product, a service, a conversation. And then begins a seemingly never ending process of figuring out what happens next. And that generally involves years of starting conversations you have no idea how you’ll finish. Experimenting with strategies you’re not sure you fully understand. Selling ideas or products you have no clue how you’re going to build. And sitting on the office floor once everyone has gone home - trying to remember why you started.

I saw a diagram on Instagram the other day… what people think it looks like - what it actually looks like. AND THAT - IN MY EXPERIENCE - IS ABOUT AS TRUE AS IT GETS.

For my next guest - that squiggely line began in a garage - and then a campervan - and then became one of the fastest growing online wine retailers on the planet. With an annual turnover already of more than $50 million- and a Global Tribe of Wine Lovers who - and trust me I’ve met a few - you can’t stop evangelising about their love for all things Mofo.

As Co-Founder + CEO, my guest today Justin Dry has done what many would say was impossible - reinvent one of the oldest - most weighed down in tradition - categories imaginable. Wine.

I first met Justin when I was asked to interview him on stage at a corporate event. So much gold came from that conversation - around what worked - but more importantly what didn’t - when it comes to starting, scaling, hacking attention, using social fuel and combining the powers of human interaction with cutting edge content. That all I remember is walking away feeling like ‘why didn’t we record that?!?’.

In today’s conversation we talk about:

The incredible, unexpected, journey of vinomofo - I don’t always dive into back story - it’s just not that kind of podcast - but with Justin I did - for specific purpose
How grassroots storytelling is at the heart of building any tribe
Practical tools on how to use online platforms to gain traction (including when to and when not to double down) - and what he sees coming next when it comes to online attention
How to translate what works in a traditionally face 2 face (i.e. high touch) model (such as buying wine) into digital channels
How to manage the issue of control when it comes to creating a culture where everyone is responsible for building digital engagement
His favorite and most expensive mistake - and what it taught him about being grown up
And how the 5 love languages has transformed the way Justin’s manages team Mofo

What I love about Justin and the Vino Mofo story - is not only that it’s a story about being willing to back yourself, over and over again. Which is key number one in influencing anything - or anyone. But that it always, always - comes back to how many times you’re willing to get curious, reset, follow your gut and ask the question.

A small shout out finally also to Justin and his amazing partner Asher - who - just last week - welcomed baby Matisse into the world. She’s gorgeous - and it’s hard to imagine how much wine would have been consumed in her honor over the past seven days. Congratulations guys. Enjoy the cocoon - and the caffeine.

So - without further delay - pour yourself a glass - and enjoy my conversation with the Head Mofo himself - Justin Dry.

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Celeste Headlee - How to have conversations that matter

Tue, 03 Dec 2019 16:35:47 GMT

Start with an announcement… This will be the last episode of Inside Influence for 2019. We’ve been on air now for two years - and come rain, shine, tech malfunctions, childbirth or recording in cupboards during blizzards - we’ve loved delivering an episode every two weeks.

This year I’ve decided to do it a little differently - and we’ll be taking an extended break over Christmas. However fear not - normal programming - actually no scrap that - bigger and better programming - will resume on the 15th of January 2020.

As a quick word to the creators out there - you’ll know what I mean when I talk about that essential tension between consistency and creativity. The irony being that while they’re both 100% vital to doing anything worthwhile - they often make uneasy bedfellows. I don’t have a universal answer to that balance - and to be honest I’d be watchful of anyone that claims they do. However what I have learnt over the years is that taking an intentional break - or deliberate pause - is often the moment that things just naturally move to the next level. As someone much wiser than me once said - ‘this is your train set - so drive it.’ And that includes choosing when to take a pit stop.

So - while we peer under the bonnet, check the oil and figure out which parts of the show we want to supercharge next year. I’d love your feedback. What would you like to hear more of? Less of? How can we support you in having more of these conversations out there in the world? All ideas are good ideas so hit me and the team up on social, via the website or good old fashioned web mail at content@juliemasters.com

OK… public announcement over - let’s move on to today’s guest.

Here’s the question… is there any more important skill than being able to sustain a coherent, confident conversation? Can you think of any other super power that holds more possibility? Or more strength?

As a business owner, leader and parent - I can promise you that any time I have looked at the priorities of skills that I need to develop - for myself - and in those I’m here to support - it hits number one on the list every time.

Imagine if you could broach that subject that’s painful or uncomfortable for you - and deepen rather than fracture your connection with that person. Or ask for what you want OR stand up for something you truly believed in.

Fast forward a year - what would your life and relationships look like now? Which would still be there? And how fiercely open minded would you have become?

And probably more importantly in the world right now - where intolerance and our seeming inability to hold constructive dialogue with those that disagree with us - that hold different views and values. Online and Offline. What would our teams, communities and governments look like if we knew how to successfully tackle hard and yet vital topics - with curiosity, respect and an intention to move forward together - rather than score a point?

Someone asked me - ‘would you rather be right or would you rather be in relationship?’. For me the answer is always the latter. And let me tell you that’s hard. That’s a hard commitment to keep. Especially when what’s at stake is high. But there is a difference between mindlessly complying - and being open to other perspectives. You don’t have to agree in order to accept - and once someone feels truly accepted - that’s a place when bridges start to be built.

My next guest in this episode is what I would consider a certified master in having powerful conversations. An award-winning journalist and author - throughout her 20-year career in public radio she has anchored programs including Tell Me More, Talk of the Nation, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition - some of America’s top rated radio programs. She is also the author of ‘We Need to Talk: How to Have Conversations That Matter’. Synthesising everything she has learned about how to navigate respectful and important conversations.

As an NPR host and journalist, Celeste has interviewed hundreds of people from all walks of life. From Nobel prize winners, truck drivers, plumbers to Heads of State. Sometimes on topics that fit with her personal viewpoints - and other times with people she disagrees with deeply.

And once again it’s in the latter - where the most surprising moments can be found.

In our conversation, Celeste and I danced - yes I’m going to say danced for this one - our way through some of the science, art and profound moments that are possible when you start committing to having conversations that matter. Including:

Staying open enough to be amazed by everyone you meet - and that means everyone. I know full well you’re picturing one person right now that you’ve already pegged as an exception.
How to actually begin difficult conversations. Often the hardest part right?
The toughest conversation she’s ever had - and what she would do differently if she could do it over again.
How by both focusing on and verbalising your intent in a difficult conversation - has the ability to change everything - and act as a rudder when things get off track
The power of the human voice on physiological level - this bit quite seriously blew my mind - in fact I think if you listen you can hear my brain scramble when we get to this point. Definitely a rabbit hole I’ll be jumping down over Christmas.
And the role of empathy, when to use it - how - and why it starts with a commitment to stop saying the phrase – ‘I know exactly how you feel.’

If I was going to end this podcast year on any note - it would be this one - we need to get better at having difficult conversations. Openly, frequently, respectfully and intentionally. Even when we don’t know what to say. And especially when we don’t agree.

So - let’s start here. Pour a cup of tea, chai frappe latte - or whatever floats your caffeine boat. Is that a thing? I have no idea. Either way, pick a conversation in your life that deserves either a second OR first attempt. And get ready to learn from one of thee best on the planet when it comes to navigating what should come next after the words…. ‘We need to talk’.

One of the fiercest, funniest people I’ve had the pleasure of spending time with - Celeste Headlee.

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Ben Jones - Inside the UnSkippable future of storytelling

Wed, 20 Nov 2019 17:00:25 GMT

In the time it will take me to introduce my next guest - 2400 hrs of video will be uploaded to YouTube. Today alone - 5 billion videos will be watched - which - if you do the maths - should equate to 5 billion opportunities to interrupt and capture the attention of those eyeballs right?

Wrong. More like 5 billion opportunities to get lost, unseen and be drowned out in one of the noisiest rooms on earth.

So, in a world where we now have the ability to pause live TV, fast forward adverts, pay for ‘interruption free’ viewing and tune out billions of dollars of carefully crafted attempts to steal our attention. Or - in the world of my next guest - simply press ‘SKIP’ on the bottom right hand corner of the screen after 5 seconds.

The question becomes - how do you make sure the stories you tell are UnSkippable?

That was the question I asked my next guest the first time we met - nearly two years ago in the middle of a Boston blizzard. His response - and the data he was able to provide from having LITERALLY studied those 5 billion daily hours of Youtube viewing. Answered more questions for me about online storytelling than any conversation since. Hence - why he’s back today.

My next guest is Ben Jones – Creative Director at Google and Head of Unskippable Labs. A team within Google that started the day Ben decided to put his own credit card on the line - brave man - to try and figure out exactly what makes a Youtube story or specifically advertisement - so compelling that it’s unskippable.

In that conversation we broke down the Netflix Effect - and how it continues to defy the rules of attention (clue: if human attention spans are really at their lowest point - 8 seconds at last check - then why are we binge watching more TV series than ever before?), we talked about ideal story lengths, production values and the incredible results of how long we are literally willing to watch a video of a brick wall. I’m not joking - as it turns out - and Bens credit card bill will attest - the answer is a ridiculously long period of time.

If you’re business is in any way dependant on trading attention, storytelling, or any form or content marketing - definitely go back in the archives and check it out.

In today’s conversation - we go even deeper into the wilderness. Diving into the what is - and what is to come in the world of online storytelling - including topics such as:

The bottom line traits that ALL unskippable stories all have in common
How data can - and increasingly will - change the way we tell stories. Including machine learning and why it’s not time for Creative Directors to retire just yet. Good news or bad news - depending on how you look at it.
The emergence of intent signals, what they are and and how we can use them to get more sophisticated about the stories we tell, to who and when
How and when to pull the lever of customising content - to avoid wasting time and money
Whether our ability to make good decisions when it comes to content - actually impairs the more data we have access to
The number one metric to double down on when it comes to amplifying what works
And obviously - what Ben sees coming on the horizon for digital storytelling

I always love having people back on the show - it’s an opportunity to jump back in and explore the extra 10% of the iceberg we rarely have time to touch. In Ben’s case, and with 250 UnSkippable experiments and counting up his sleeve - it’s an iceberg of knowledge that just keeps on growing.

So sit back, stretch out, stride through, sip on - I could literally keep going here - and enjoy my reunion with the man at the forefront of the future of storytelling. Ben Jones.

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Ty Montague - Why StoryDoing is the new Storytelling

Tue, 05 Nov 2019 17:00:28 GMT

Here’s today’s question - what Quest are you on? And then the next question - what’s the natural enemy of that quest? Not necessarily a person - but maybe an idea, a viewpoint - or a traditional way of doing things?

For regular listeners of the podcast, you’ll know that a frequent topic of conversation is the power of storytelling. Whether it’s in the shows we binge watch on Netflix, the ads we skip past on YouTube, or the way we communicate our ideas in person or from a platform.

The impact of a well crafted story is one of the most primal - and powerful - forms of influence on the planet. Not to mention the fastest way to cut through. And the most reliable tool in converting that cut through into action.

Storytelling in business isn’t a new concept, we’ve been wondering how businesses should tell their brand story since ‘marketing’ began - literally since the origins of the word - where it began with stallholders trying to get their products to stand out in the town ‘marketplace’.

So what’s changed? And what’s the next iteration of storytelling? Especially in a digital age where we can no longer out-shout, out-spend and out-interrupt to guarantee our target audiences attention?

Today’s guest has built a career around these questions. And the belief that brands that will dominate in the future - and are in fact dominating today - are those that have taken storytelling to the next level - the level beyond simply telling - and into ‘story-doing’.

Ty Montague - and his cofounders at co:collective - help companies innovate their customer experience using the methodology of Storydoing. Using his own words Ty considers himself a traditional advertising ‘refugee’ - having decided to pivot his entire career when he noticed - and couldn’t explain why - Starbucks could be on every corner - yet not spend a single dollar on traditional advertising.

Ty took that one question and went on to build a philosophy, a methodology, a company and a global reputation on the answer. Then writing the stand out book - that if it isn’t already should be on the curriculum for every world-class marketing MBA: ‘True Story: How to Combine Story and Action to Transform Your Business’.

In today’s conversation we dive into:

The difference between story-telling and story-doing? How the best companies aren’t just telling their stories, but building their entire customer journeys around them
The bottom line (practically and from an execution standpoint) behind what a story-doing company does that works
The importance of carefully defining a ‘Quest’ and a clear enemy - and why it’s at the core of our very humanity to gravitate towards those that stand for - and against - something important
How to strategize for the iconic? This one was big for me - it’s one thing to aim to become an iconic brand - but few understand the grassroots strategy behind bringing that word to life.
Why a pile of free T-Shirts can tell you more about your brand story - than a thousand surveys or data points
How to humanize your brand - by developing stories that authentically resonate
Plus how Ty see’s story-doing playing out in the next horizon - when it comes to new emerging technology
Not to mention a few golden soap box moments - on how commiting to this new paradigm - literally has the power to solve some of the largest issues of our time.

There were a lot of ‘aha’ moments for me in today’s conversation, but one of the biggest stand-outs was just how logical Ty’s philosophies are.

This is a man who’s spent decades on the front line of building ideas - brands - and stories - that actually stick. And - as I find we uncover more often than not on this podcast - what he discovered in the arena - turns out to be the opposite of traditional wisdom.

So - get ready to stop chasing impact unicorns - identify the gaps in your story - and start fiercely advocating for your Quest. You’ll definitely want your notepad for this one. Enjoy my conversation with storyteller from the front line - Ty Montague.

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Safi Bahcall - The Art of the Loonshot: How to drive innovation that changes the game

Tue, 22 Oct 2019 17:00:31 GMT

Imagine getting a call from Barack Obama. In and of itself, that doesn’t sound like a usual day at the office. But beyond that, imagine getting a call from then-President Barack Obama asking you to work on the US Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. A team of individuals who role it is to advise the office of the President on the scientific and technological issues requiring attention the highest levels of Governemnet.

If you’re a second-generation physicist, son of two astrophysicists and a biotech entrepreneur working on a cure for cancer - when that call comes - you vaguely consider faking the flu - and then jump straight in with both feet.

This was the position that my guest today found themselves in. Luckily for Safi Bahcall, working on what he calls ‘loonshots’ is in his blood. Having already become fascinated - for very personal reasons that we’ll get into - with what (all too often) makes good teams kill great ideas. Safi started to research some of the great ideas that have already influenced the course of humanity - and what he found was surprising.

Thanks to NASA, we’re trained to think that the key to innovation is to aim for moonshots - seemingly huge audacious goals. However - what he found - was that it wasn’t in fact moonshots that created the first long distance phone call, or that created the technology that helped the Allies to win the second world war - it was something else. Something he now calls - a loonshot.

Safi studied at Harvard and received his PhD in physics from Stanford. He was also a Miller Fellow in physics at UC Berkeley and worked as a consultant with McKinsey. Having co-founded a biotechnology company developing new drugs for cancer. He then also went on to lead its IPO and serve as its CEO for 13 years. To add to that extraordinary list of accolades - he is now also the author of a book you have to check out - Loonshots - How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas that Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries’.

This interview was one of my favorite types - the type that goes far and wide, fusing a variety of different worlds - in order to create an altogether new perspective on an important topic. Some of those threads included:

The real difference between a moonshot and a loonshot (and the fascinating history behind the concept of moonshots)
Why understanding the molecular structure of water - at exactly 32 degrees Fareinheight - is pivotal to structuring teams that aren’t afraid to take important risks
How the traditional viewpoint ‘culture eats strategy for breakfast’ should be replaced with ‘structure eats culture for lunch’
Why every organisation that requires innovation as it’s lifeblood - in that read every organisation - needs to have an Chief Incentives Officer
How to love your artists and soldiers equally in order to effectively fill the gap between innovation and execution - this one huge for me...
And finally - why any type of innovative ‘loonshot’ thinking requires mental space - and one of the best tools I have comes across in a long time to quiet the never ending mental chatter of your mind

If you ask Safi his greatest weapon in attempting to achieve the impossible - he will tell you it’s curiosity. Curiosity that came from having astrophysicists for parents. Curiosity that took him from consulting to the United States military, to starting his own Biotech company to cure the greatest health issue of our time - and that it’s this curiosity that’s at the heart of anyone that’s ever been crazy enough to attempt a loonshot.

So - get curious. Sit back, strap in - and join me for an epic fusion of the unexpected, at the surface unrelated, but utterly compelling ideas - of Safi Bahcall.

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Bill Coletti - Crisis EQ, critical moments and the power of an apology

Wed, 09 Oct 2019 17:00:21 GMT

I’m sure we’ve all had days that have felt like we did nothing but fight fires. Nothing but intensely analyse, inspect and wrestle with problems, both big and small, that at times feel like the sheer volume might crush us, or our organisation entirely.

I can definitely tell you, from my own days of feeling like that, the last thing I often felt like I had, was a clear idea of how to address these issues in a manner where everyone wins. In fact some of the time it felt more like frantically getting one fire under control - just to move on and deal with the next.

So I want you to imagine if every day was one of those days. If everyday your job was to tackle some of the biggest crises happening in an organisation, or in the media - and work out how to get them through it.

My worst nightmare - and the reality for my guest this week. He walks alongside CEO’s, executives and organisations in some of their darkest hours, helping them work out exactly what they need to do in the midst of a crisis - to come out with their reputations intact (preferably increased - because that’s the opportunity not often talked about in crisis situations).

As a reputation management and crisis communications expert, Bill Coletti knows his way around the most complex and sensitive situations a business may face.

Having provided reputation defense to numerous high profile clients such as AT&T, American Airlines and Xerox, the thing that stood out to me most about Bill’s incredible approach to his work? He cares. I know that shouldn’t be a surprise - but I’ll admit it - the image I had in my mind of a reputation manager before this conversation was something along the Mad Men vibe - a spin doctor there to protect those than can pay from the worst of their actions.

What I found? Couldn’t have been further from that stereotype.

Bill’s approach to the people behind these crises, is deeply rooted in compassion. For those that have been impacted by the situation - but also for those in the midst of the fire, having to make very tough decisions with their livelihoods on the line... some due to their own mistakes - and others who just woke up one morning to a raging inferno they didn’t see coming. AND THAT is what elevates him to the best in his field.

As much as I wanted to get into the strategies, techniques and tactics he’s road tested over years of being the front line - most of our conversation today is about people. And how to manage the expectations, responses and behaviour of people at critical moments:

In today’s conversation with Bill we talked about:

Crisis EQ - what it is, why it’s vital and how - like any other muscle - it takes training
How to get unstuck when a crisis first starts to unfold - when everyone is in flight or fight and you can feel the panic starting to spread
Why most of us either ‘passively engage’ or over react when there’s an issue - and how to replace those responses with a process he calls Active Decision Making
The importance of storytelling in controlling crisis
A simple three-recipe for an effective apology… clue.. it doesn’t involve the words ‘if’ or ‘but’
And finally - having the courage to speak truth to power. In critical moments there is often significant fear, not of the situation itself but of swimming against the tide and offering a different, unpleasant point of view - how to overcome those moments and share what you know constructively.

One of the moments I knew I would enjoy this conversation as much as I did was when, in researching Bill’s work - I came across his love for a particular quote which has been one of my lifelong favourites:

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Maya Angelou

In critical moments - when the stakes are high, emotions are stretched - and every new piece of information feels like a missile - it’s easy to forget that it’s often not what we do that makes the difference - but how we do it. And that’s what Bill unpacks.

So, sit back - stride out - and pull into mind some of the critical moments you have in your life right now - organisationally, personally or socially - how much of an impact would it make if you had a blueprint ready to go?

With that in mind - enjoy my conversation with one of the best in the business, Bill Coletti.

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Katherine Brown - Transforming complexity into action

Tue, 24 Sep 2019 18:00:14 GMT

I want you to imagine the most complex challenge on your horizon at the moment - it might be a global issue, one within your network or organisation. Here’s the question - did it arrive with a roadmap? A simple route to get from A to B? Or even some guide posts around where to start?

I’m guessing the answer is no - because - let’s face it - the more complex or high stakes the issue – the more complicated the solution.

Why? Because it inevitably involves more stakeholders and collaborations to cross the finish line. Which means successfully navigating a whole series of competing agendas. Not to mention getting the attention of those who usually (if they are in a large enough position of power) do not hand it over easily.

AND THEN - once you’ve herded the right big cats into the room – to use the words of my next guest - you need to become fluent enough in their language – to be able to translate the problem and opportunity in such a way that they are willing to commit to the solution - not just for that day - or while it’s easy - but for the long term.

Get it wrong at any of those points and the process falls down. Do not pass GO. Do not collect $200. Do not solve the problem. Still up for it? I hope so.

From the outset - my guest today is in the business of harnessing big money. Specifically harnessing how that money it spent and invested in new ways - in order to create solutions to some of the world’s most complex problems.

As Head of Sustainable and Impact Investing for the World Economic Forum, Katherine Brown describes her day job as ‘transforming complexity into concrete action - and navigating ambiguity to find shared value’. A far cry from where her journey began - killing time in the cloakroom of a pizzeria reading investment books. More on that later...

Her role at the WEF essentially involves challenging traditional models of financial investment - including how we leverage emerging digital technology - so returns (and success) aren’t just only measured in dollars - but also in social and environmental outcomes. Posing one of my favorite questions at the highest level - what if we choose both?

In today’s conversation Katherine and I cover a lot of territory. Including:

The art of getting the right people in the room, at the right time and curating a constructive conversation
The significance of building a lighthouse - or an easily identifiable target when it comes to engaging those stakeholders
Flipping the story we tell as change makers - from risk to opportunity - and why risk will always get our attention - but only opportunity will keep us committed to a solution in the long term
The pivotal role investors and big business has to play in solving some of our world’s biggest problems
Why to be successful you have to be willing to ‘go there’’ – we’ll talk about where that is in the later parts of the conversation.
Why the Velocity, Scope and Systems of the 4th industrial revolution has the potential to solve some of the greatest challenges of our time - if we can leverage it

Anyone that’s in the business of behavior change - particularly change where the stakes are high - will tell you that collaboration at any level can be frustrating. That’s before you get to global issues such as the 70 million people are forcibly displaced globally every year and trillions of potential dollars in aid investment.

Getting any positive action in motion is complex, it’s messy.

And yet - on the 20th of September - just seven days ago as I record this. Sixteen year old climate change activist Greta Thunberg called for one of the biggest climate change action strikes the world has ever seen. 4 million students and workers mobilised and took to the streets - in a mass climate protest that could well change the course of history.

Almost exactly one year before? In August 2018 - at 15 years of age - Greta had sat alone striking outside her native Swedish Parliament. I guarantee you no one gave her a road map to get between those two points in time. Or permission to start. So it is possible.

And you know the best place to start? Listening to those who are getting it done.

With that in mind, sit back, strap in, buckle up and enjoy my conversation with the seismic force that is Katherine Brown.

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Nigel Risner - Truth, trust and intuitive influence

Tue, 10 Sep 2019 18:00:29 GMT

Here is the primary question I went into my interview with this week’s guest thinking about…

What kind of leadership influence actually creates impact? Real impact.

Sure as leaders we can request, motivate, incentivise - reprimand. But what happens when those tools don’t work? When we’ve tried everything we know - and the results are still falling way too far short? When we have that sneaking feeling in our gut that it’s us rather than them - and that a better leader could get this train back on track.

It’s hard to admit those moments - because it means we have to stretch when we already feel stretched enough. Learn new tools and - hardest of all - admit to those we’re supposed to inspire that in this moment we’re as unsure as anyone else.

And yet - it’s in those moments - according to my next guest - that we have the choice to do something different. To develop tools that are some of the most potent we have available as leaders.

These tools are counter-intuitive. They involve slowing down - especially when you need results fast. To stop talking even when everyone is looking to you for answers. To really listen to our teams - and consider their purpose in going to work in the first place - rather than purpose we have given them. To trust the people around us implicitly until proven otherwise - and then tell the truth fast when things aren’t working. Essentially they involve unlearning everything we think we know as leaders.

My guest today is the entertaining and unreservedly direct Nigel Risner. Nigel is a globally recognised specialist in company turnarounds - and author of ‘The Impact Code’.

His journey into leadership began at 21 - as one of the youngest CEO’s of a financial services company in London. He started with the total sum of £12.80 in his pocket - and went on to lead that company through massive growth - eventually becoming the largest independent brokerage in the Country.

But of course that’s not the end of the story. The course of true love - or true leadership - never ran that smooth. I also can’t think of many masterful CEO’s or Founders that I know that hit the bullseye on the first shot. Or the second or the third for that matter.

Then came the financial crash of the 1980’s - and after a chain of events Nigel found himself making a previously inconceivable choice - to drive a mini-cab in the Company Bentley in order to pay the bills.

What happened next - and the lessons he learnt - fire tested all the tools he now teaches when it comes to helping companies and teams successfully emerge from what would be considered ‘near fatal’ situations.

In today's conversation Nigel and I go head first into:

The importance of telling the truth quickly
The art of deep trust - until proven otherwise
What it takes to show up intentionally and powerfully as a leader
Why 17 mins is the magic number - I won’t go into more detail here - but it’s worth writing down
How to turn Feedback into Feedforward. A simple twist that completely changes the outcome.
And the vital leadership pivot from coach to commentator

I first heard about Nigel in a Facebook message that arrived one morning from a friend I admire. It said: ‘You need to check this guy out. He’s interesting.’

So now I’m saying the same to you. Grab a coffee - get ready to dive into a world of what it takes to drive leadership impact - when the road most travelled disappears.

Enjoy my conversation with Nigel Risner.

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Joe Newman - Parenting when the road gets tough

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 18:00:22 GMT

How do we raise, mentor, or lead the young people in our lives to be bold? In other words - how do we raise or lead lions and not lambs? It’s a good question and one that I’ve heard asked a lot - especially since becoming a parent. Which - along with running a business - and therefore leading teams of all ages - through good times and bad - has been one of the most significant (and therefore terrifying) journeys inside influence of my life.

But I digress - raising lions vs. lambs. A great question - but here’s a better one - and this is one you don’t hear asked out loud very often. But it’s there in the background for parents and leaders - like a quiet panic you don’t want to voice.

Can we actually survive raising lions? If we in-still that kind of strength, that kind of passion, the ability and NEED to question and test every hypothesis - every boundary - to take nothing for granted. Especially the instructions of those supposedly in charge. Do we - as parents and leaders - in our most quiet and overwhelmed moments - even want that?

And yet... don’t we need more of those skills? Especially now - with so many global issues requiring the type of fierce leadership - that increasingly only seems to come from younger generations. From those that haven’t learned to shut up and do as they’re told.

But let’s be honest - raising lions isn’t easy. Leading lions isn’t easy. In many cases families don’t survive. Teams fall apart. Governments collapse. Those in charge end up squashing the very passion they were hoping for - swapping innovation for speed - and diversity for consensus.

So here’s my question again. How do you lead lions without taming them? How do you raise passionate, robust, fierce human beings - without surrendering your sanity?

To get some insights into this question we hunted down my next guest - the incredible Joe Newman.

Joe was one of the very first children globally to be diagnosed with ADHD. A label that taught him to feel “broken,” and accept the diagnosis that he had limited potential.

Since then, Joe has dedicated his life to shattering that label, re-building his identity - and challenging our notions of the interplay between potential, passion, obedience and leadership. For the past 30 years he’s worked with children from every walk of life - all considered to have extreme behavioural issues.

In doing that he has shown repeatedly that - by changing the ways we interact - by getting deeply curious - and by respectfully holding our ground - behind those issues is more often than not EXTREME potential.

His work AND perspectives on parenting, power and relationships - have been shared and discussed by thought leaders across the world.

He has also since written the incredible book ‘Raising Lions - The Art of Compassionate Discipline’. Sounds like a book for parents - and it is. But here’s the thing - there’s not a single leader I know that doesn’t struggle with compassionate boundaries - with channeling the passion, friction and diversity in their teams. Same tools - just different language.

In today's episode, Joe and I jump into the shifting waters of:

The personal attributes of a ‘Lion’ and what it takes to lead one.
Whether labels are useful - for children and adults - or whether they are just permission to separate from our actions
What does a child – or an adult for that matter – who can self-regulate actually look like? This one is important - because we all know you can’t be what you can’t see. If we can learn to recognise it - and move towards it when we do - our chances of becoming go through the roof
Why lions love conflict - and how to use that to propel constructive action
How to use consequences effectively and respectfully
And finally how to ‘meet someone’s hand’ and powerfully answer the inherent question in all lion interactions ‘I have power - do you?’

One of my greatest curiosities when it comes to influence - is how often and unintentionally we get it wrong. No one wakes up thinking they want to hurt or fail the ones we love or lead.

Unfortunately the usual suspects of influence - those we see so often being successful in the short term - charisma, bravado, force or sitting on the fence and avoiding any real conflict - rarely if ever get us where we need to go in the long term.

You can’t force someone to respect you, or listen to you, or love you, or collaborate with you. And trust me I’ve tried. Nor does anything get any better by avoiding the transformative friction that comes from conflict. Or by taming and caging diversity.

We need lions. But first we have to believe that we can survive them - or better than that - thrive because of them.

So - grab your coffee, or relax into whatever traffic jam you’re stuck in - and prepare to be challenged in all the best ways by the force that is Joe Newman.

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Julie Masters - Five keys to 10X your influence

Tue, 13 Aug 2019 18:00:07 GMT

Now this episode - is a little different to any other episode of Inside Influence that we’ve ever done.

One of my favourite parts of putting together the last 52 Episodes of The Podcast has been tracking down world class people to talk to - some of our ideas have worked beyond what I had hoped - poets, musicians, politicians, CEO’s, world record breakers - the list goes on. And some - well - haven’t. Which - lets face it - is just part and parcel of creating anything at all. Sometimes you win - sometimes you end up face down in the dirt wondering how you got there.

Just as an aside on that - for anyone thinking about putting together a podcast (which I would wholeheartedly recommend by the way) - please never attempt any interview that involves three languages and a four way - real time - translation. As we found out recently it makes a fascinating mime show - but not so much great audio.

Anyway - pretty much the driving force of every episode we have ever done - has been to get inside how we influence ourselves (our own stories and reactions), how we influence others (either one on one or from a platform), or how we influence at scale (i.e. amplifying an idea or message that has the power to change the world).

Most CEO’s and leaders that I meet are on at least one of those journeys. In a world where everyone has a platform, noise is high, brand engagement and trust are low - and storytelling by algorithm now drives the majority of behaviour. Standing out - and converting that attention into action - is probably the largest challenge business challenge of our time.

In today's episode of Inside influence these are the issues we’re going to get into. However - for this week only - it will just be me. No guest.

Today’s episode is a compilation of a few different speeches I have given recently - mainly for large corporations - most in industries that are currently suffering from a dive in trust. The common theme for each essentially being the question: ‘How do you become the most influential and trusted authority in your space?’.

The pieces we’ve chosen hopefully answer some of the most commonly asked questions I get in regards to influence. These include:

How to identify your unique space as a micro-authority
How the digital world has changed the role of branding - and branded marketing - in driving opportunities, sales, conversations and change. Leaving humans as the most influential force on the planet.
Why harnessing your unique skills and experience – or the unique skills and experience of the people within your organisation – is now the No 1 key to cut through
The methods to designing a strategy to become the go-to expert in your space.
Tools to focus more on out-contributing - rather than out-spending and out-interrupting your competition
How to harness the power of epic storytelling
The power of co-creation - and how to amplify your impact by joining forces with those that already have the eyes and ears of your target market
And why becoming the primary translator for your chosen audience is the most powerful decision you can make

So - as I said - today is a little different to usual programming. If you like it let me know on the usual social channels. We can try and do more. If not then - just like the multi translation episode - we’ll chalk it down to experience and keep moving. With that in mind, kick back, drive safe (or walk slow) and get ready to take a deep dive into standing up, being seen and harnessing the power of their voice.

My name is Julie Masters and this is Inside Influence.

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Matthew O. Jackson - Human networks: How to amplify influence in a Digital age

Tue, 30 Jul 2019 18:00:41 GMT

Here are some questions that have been on my mind recently:

Is there a science behind how and which ideas become mainstream? Could there be a formula to driving a movement through a human network - at maximum impact and speed? Is it possible to develop a framework that would predict what we pay attention to, what we ignore and what we actually act upon?

And… if the answer to any of those questions was yes… then could it be used to predict some of unexpected situations (politically and culturally) - that have occurred globally?

Essentially - is there something predictable here that I’m missing when it comes to who and what ideas gain the most influence.

My next guest has dedicated a career to - among many other things - understanding this science. The science of human networks. In particular decoding how our position in these networks impacts the most important decisions of our lives.

So why is that vital to the question of influence? Well - our networks - and where we sit in our networks - write the story of pretty much every choice we make.

Traditionally these networks were the people we grew up with, the people we worshiped with and the people we worked with. However now and perhaps most influentially - they are the people, groups and platforms we spend our digital lives interacting with online.

These networks make up the fabric of our lives - our identities - our choices - and everything we believe to be true.

And yet - amazingly - very little is known about the science of human networks. In particular how ideas spread from one part of a network to another. A fact my next guest - Matthew O Jackson - aims to change.

Matthew is the author of ‘The Human Network - How Your Social Position Determines Your Power, Beliefs, and Behaviors’. He is a Professor of Economics at Stanford University, an external faculty member of the Santa Fe Institute, and a senior fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research.

He is also a member of the National Academy of Sciences; a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and former Guggenheim Fellow. Having reached more than a million students via his popular online courses on social and economic networks.

In today's conversation Matthew and I unpack:

The digital tipping point in human revolutions - how, when and why ideas take hold
Why influence and popularity are distinctly different - and how the person with the least contacts is often the most influential
The importance of being the primary translator - or ‘centre star’ - for your target market.
How not enough people focus on the ‘halo effect for building influence - where it’s who you know rather than how many people you know that makes the difference
How to go about identifying the most influential people within your network
And finally - some of the key patterns that make an idea or a movement contagious

There is a quote by Sonia Sotomayor that Matthew uses in his book that I love: ‘Virtue in obscurity is rewarded only in Heaven. To succeed in this work you have to be known to people’.

Understanding human networks is essentially that - understanding the science of becoming ‘known’. Which I would suggest, whatever work you do - is usually the key to taking it to the next level.

So grab a cup of coffee, a notebook and pen and get ready for a crash course in global movements, historical figures and network based influence.

Enjoy my conversation with the fascinating Matthew O Jackson.

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Dorie Clark - Influence to income: Turning expertise into demand

Tue, 16 Jul 2019 18:00:06 GMT

How do you go from an idea to influence to income? Often we only hear about the two polarities. We hear about people who have a great idea, who put a lot of time and effort into building their influence with very little results. And then there are the multi-millionaires who are living in a New York loft apartment who, just last week, we're living in their parent's basement but then they discovered this Killer system and now they are uber-successful. So what does it take to actually build a business as an influencer?

My next guest is Dorie Clark, author of the groundbreaking book 'Stand Out' where she first came to my attention. It was named the number one leadership book of 2015 by Inc magazine and named one of the top 10 business books of the year by Forbes, and is a Washington Post bestseller. She's also recently just published a new book which is what brought us to talk this time.

It's called 'Entrepreneurial You' and I would urge you to go out and get it. In this episode, we discuss how to find your breakthrough idea. We discuss the keys to building a following when starting from scratch. Why most success stories you see on Facebook aren't true and why fear plus 10 percent is the magic number when it comes to turning it expertise into income.

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Dorie Clark - How to Stand out: A MasterClass in influence

Tue, 09 Jul 2019 18:00:20 GMT

Over the course of the Inside Influence Podcast, my intention has been to bring you some of the brightest minds in the world of Influence.

However, every now and then, I come across a person who is the embodiment of what this podcast is about. A person who can in every sense of the word claim mastery as an influencer of influencers.

As some of you might know - I’ve spent the last few weeks bunkered up with my newborn son. One of the challenges of committing to consistency with anything is that - when life takes over - you need some support.

So, while I was on Maternity leave the Inside Influence team took over and curated a list of the hottest questions we have been asked over the past year. When they showed me the list I knew there was only one person I would go to to answer them, and that person is the Incredible Dorie Clark.

For our regular listeners, you would be aware of Dorie's influence genius, however for those of you who have not heard of Dorie... fear not! She is about to become your number one guru on the art of standing out as a global authority in your space.

If you needed more than just my word - Dorie is in fact the author of the groundbreaking book Stand Out, which was named the #1 Leadership Book of 2015 by Inc. magazine, one of the Top 10 Business Books of the Year by Forbes - not to mention a Washington Post bestseller. The New York Times described her as an “expert at self-reinvention.”

Dorie has also just recently published a new book – Entrepreneurial You. Which I would urge you to go out and get. Believe me, in all my years of working in this field - it’s rare that anyone actually talks about the grassroots tactics of what it takes to build a business as an influencer. Creating influence is one thing - turning it into income is another.

Some of the questions we explored include:

How to identify trends and distill your breakthrough idea.
How to turn your influence into income. Again this is where most people - even some of the most well known or famous people you might know - can often get stuck. You can’t pay your mortgage with ‘likes’ - or at least that’s what my accountant says.
How to get influence cut through as quickly as possible i.e. traction
Proven methods to identify your niche, add real value and then amplify your impact
The common mistakes that industry influencers make in the early days - and how to avoid them
Plus - just a ton more.

This episode is pretty hard and fast. Dorie takes the questions and just dives straight in - with none of the usual rambles or segways from me.

However - for those of you who missed Dorie’s original hour long Inside Influence episode don’t worry. We will also be re-releasing the original interview “From Influence to Income” this time next week as an added bonus. If you caught it the first time around and haven’t managed to yet implement the ton gold she delivered - well - then definitely worth a refresh.

Enough from me - enjoy, kick back and soak up the incredible one-on-one wisdom of Dorie Clark.

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Itay Talgam - The Leadership Maestro: Lead like the great conductors

Tue, 25 Jun 2019 18:00:11 GMT

As a leader, it is our ability to influence harmony within a culture that determines our success. There needs to be a focus on both listening and guiding an individual. We must have an ability to hear the voice of one and the voices of many. As leaders we are the conductors in a symphony where the influence we have will determine the magic in the music we create.

Todays guest is the incredible Itay Talgam. I have wanted to interview Itay for quite some time for one purpose, and that is to decode how leaders can create influence like the greatest conductors on the planet. Conductors who influence, listen, guide and unite individuals in creating musical magic all while performing live in front of huge audiences...where any mistake is there for the world to see.

Itay Talgam is an orchestral conductor turned into ‘conductor of people’ – A producer of the symphony that is influence. He has mastered the creation of human harmony and cooperation passing on key leadership and influence skills to Fortune 500 companies, nonprofits and universities, and at conferences around the world, including TED, Google’s Zeitgeist, and the World Economic Forum at Davos.

With a lifetime of experience behind him Talgam conducted many orchestras in Europe – being the first Israeli conductor to perform with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra and with the Leipzig Opera house. He also performed in the United States, and, naturally, conducted and recorded many times with all of Israel’s major orchestras, including the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the New Israeli Opera, Jerusalem Symphony, and the Israel Chamber Orchestra.

While your office is clearly not a stage, and your team are more than likely not professional musicians, there is so much that can be learned about influence in decoding the mindset, methodology and the magic of some of the worlds greatest composers. Talgam's anecdotes and insights will change the way you think about listening, humility and the path to unpredictable brilliance. They will equip you for exceptional leadership and influence.

In today's episode we discussed:

The Intersection between the office and the conductor's podium.
The sheer gravity of silence as a tool of influence
What it is to create space for others in leadership
How do you go about creating a community of listeners
How do you ensure other peoples stories are shared
The balance between direction and enabling self expression in leadership.
Why creating space to simply enjoy your creation revitalises your role in leadership

So as always kick back, and get ready to tune into the music of influence. A space where leadership and influence express themselves via graceful movements, expression, emotion and sound.

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Chris Voss - High stakes negotiation: How to negotiate like your life depends on it

Tue, 11 Jun 2019 18:00:54 GMT

He is the founder and CEO of The Black Swan Group and he’s also also the author of Never split the difference which is a book that I genuinely cannot recommend highly enough. If negotiating persuading or influencing is a part of your daily life which I can promise you it is. In our conversation we jumped in to a number of really fascinating ideas. The first of which was how yes is actually the last thing we want to hear which blew my mind because I had assumed that negotiation was all about getting to a Yes and apparently not one single hostage negotiation technique is designed to get a yes. What are they designed for. You’ll have to listen. We talk about high stakes conversations. How does he prepare. His mental state going into these conversations where literally lives are on the line. We talked about delivering bad news. How to do it quickly and efficiently and get straight into what’s next.

I invite you to sit back and listen and take a fascinating peek behind the curtain of what has to have been one of the most interesting careers I’ve ever heard of. And as a result take some tools and in the words of Chris start negotiating like your life depends on it.

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Dr Kristy Goodwin - The Digital Parent: The new dilemma (Part 2)

Tue, 28 May 2019 18:00:02 GMT

In the last episode of Inside Influence, I spoke to the incredible Dr Kristy Goodwin - children’s technology and development expert, a speaker, author and parent - about The Digital Dilemma.

We unlocked the challenges faced by parents, leaders and teachers in influencing young people in a new digital age. An age where digital devices increasingly - and soon to be literally - are woven into every fabric of our environment.

The episode was full of perspective changing information - or at least I know it was for me - which is why today as bonus episode - and for the first time for Inside Influence listeners we are backing it up with a Part Two.

For those of you who missed last week’s conversation - I would recommend downloading part one - although not essential it will be helpful in giving you some background context to Kristy’s work - however if you did miss it, we covered everything from infobesity to techno tantrums, brain science to boundary setting and Kristy (very generously) offered up a toolkit of proven parent strategies to manage your child's relationship to digital devices….100% guilt free.

At the heart of the conversation we explored one of the most profoundly influential positions we will ever hold as a human being… The Influence we have as parents, mentors and leaders in helping a new generation make healthy choices - in particular around what and who they allow into their worlds.

As I mentioned in the first episode - this used to be as simple as closing the front door - finishing school, heading home and forgetting about it for the day. Now that world - and all it’s opinions, personalities and messages - follows us home in the form of digital devices.

In part two we discuss the following:

The right and wrong environments for digital devices
How to engage young people - in particular young children - in conversations about digital safety
Why technology can in fact support our relationships - but should never supercede them
How to manage the mine field of early exposure to sexuality, body image norms (or apparent norms) and exposure to porn. This one is I know on the mind of a lot of parents I know, in particular those of young boys.
How to protect our children from cyber bullying.
And the most influential question for us all: Are we being controlled by digital or is it possible to develop boundaries - healthy and resilient boundaries - where we can take the best of this new world - and leave the worst?

Now it bears repeating in the words of Dr Kristy herself - these are 100% guilt free conversations. Feeling guilty about our relationship to technology isn’t going to help anyone. It’s just going to keep us all further stuck in the dark - and prevent the type of conversations that are needed if we’re going to navigate this new world. None of us know the rules here. So let’s talk.

On that note - for the second time - grab a cup of tea - a bar of dark chocolate - or your running shoes - whatever floats your boat and enjoy Part Two in my conversation with the incredible Dr Kristy Goodwin.

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Dr Kristy Goodwin - The Digital Parent: The new dilemma (Part 1)

Wed, 22 May 2019 07:28:12 GMT

Do you remember the world before the internet? A world where children built Forts, rather than play Fortnite, and setting boundaries was as simple as closing the bedroom door. Or in my case - the day your Father received one too many outrageous phone bills and unplugged the telephone for a week. Teenage. Life. Over. As. I. Knew. It.

Compare that to some of the stories from my next guest….

In a world of influence, there’s possibly none more powerful - or wide reaching - as the influence we have on the next generation.

Maybe I’m thinking a lot about it at the moment - new baby on the way - young daughter I can feel already watching my every technology move. Someone asked me recently - boyfriend beaming into her eyeballs. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR THAT?

Yet this isn’t just a question for parents - this is a question for peers, teachers, mentors, relatives and leaders of young people. Or really for anyone trying to navigate a digital age where no one - not even the technology creators themselves - fully understand the rules (or consequences) of the game.

So how do we face this new digital dilemma with optimism rather than fear? How do we instill OR MODEL a resilient, healthy and empowered relationship with the technology that increasingly fuels every facet of our lives?

That’s the reason why today, I am introducing a 2 part podcast series with the incredible Dr Kristy Goodwin. Kristy is a children’s technology and development expert, a speaker, author and parent who has committed her life to translating the latest research on leading young people through a digital age. And it starts - you guessed it - with first leading ourselves.

Most importantly - what I want you to notice is that Kristy doesn’t believe in guilt. Which in a world where all our decisions in relation to technology - seem to be increasing coming under fire - in particular when it comes to digital devices and parenting. Is as refreshing as it is insightful.

In part one of this podcast dive into:

Info-beasity, and address what it takes to tame the information beast.
Why our ancient brains are struggling to cope in a digital world.
Tips to prevent and manage techno-tantrums
How our own digital habits inform how our children engage with devices - TIP - that age old parenting phrase ‘do as I say and not as I do’ - which is a from memory from my childhood - is about effective now as it was then.
Effective (parental war zone tested) strategies to implement digital boundaries.
The neuroscience governing our engagement with digital platforms.
AND finally - and this one totally changed my perspective - why we should avoid using (or removing) digital devices and connectivity as a punishment tool

So - grab your digital device of choice - find a quiet spot - drop the guilt - and prepare to make some empowered choices in relation to how technology can enhance - rather than control - your life and the lives of those you love and lead. Enjoy my conversation with the crazy talented… Kristy Goodwin.

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Jay Baer - Talk Triggers: How to harness word of mouth

Wed, 08 May 2019 03:54:03 GMT

Now for anyone that’s been listening to the podcast for awhile - you’ll know I FIRMLY believe that the days of out-spending, out-shouting and out-interrupting our competitors is over.

What do I mean by that? I mean that if you want to stand out in a new age of influence - in an age where what gets talked about, what gets remembered, what (in the words of my next guest) is considered ‘remarkable’ enough to share within our networks - isn’t ‘business as usual’ - OR ‘marketing as usual’.

In fact - I believe it was Robert Stephens, founder of Geek Squad - who said the immortal words ‘advertising is a tax paid by the unremarkable’.

The challenge now is not to constantly interrupt what people are interested in - but to BECOME what they are interested in. To provide a service or information so valuable - so engaging - or so unexpected - that word of mouth - or word of mouse - literally takes care of itself.

My next guest Jay Baer would describe these moments as Talk Triggers. A Talk Trigger being any strategic, operational differentiators that compel word of mouth. NOTICE THE WORD STRATEGIC THERE - NOT ACCIDENTAL - NOT HOPEFUL - BUT AN ACTUAL PLAN TO CREATE CONSISTENT AND PASSIONATE WORD OF MOUTH. Sounds simple - yet as he points out - nearly every organisation has a…. We have social media strategies, marketing strategies, sales strategies etc.

Now word of mouth has always been the backbone of any business - but in a digital landscape - where voice search, reviews and algorithms all tie back to the sentiment of the crowd. If you don’t have a plan - you are missing one of the biggest opportunities available.

Jay has spent 25 years in digital marketing and customer experience, consulting for more than 700 companies, including 34 of the FORTUNE 500. His current firm – Convince & Convert – provides word of mouth, digital marketing, and customer experience advice and counsel to some of the world’s most important brands.

Jay’s Convince & Convert blog was named the world’s #1 content marketing blog by the Content Marketing Institute. He is also the author of three best selling books - including “Youtility: Why Smart Marketing is About Help not Hype”, “Hug Your Haters”, and his latest book with co-author Daniel Lemin, “Talk Triggers - The complete guide to creating customers with word of mouth”.

It is fair to say that Jay understands every aspect of what it is to build a brand around earned influence. And the great thing about earned influence - rather than hype or the number of followers you can amass - it’s really hard to lose once you have it.

Now a warning about this conversation - it’s pretty rapid fire - so grab a pen and paper now. In it we sprint our way through:

Why so many people confuse influence with audience
Why relevance is the new killer app
Why contribution takes courage - and the fears that will hold you back
How to hardwire ‘help over hype’ into your marketing strategy
The 4 requirements to designing a compelling talk trigger
Why in this day and age building a marketing campaign around earned influence shouldn’t be the Wild West - but instead driven by data, AI and machine learning
AND finally - why real influence is always earned.

So sit back, grab yourself a coffee and enjoy the insights of one of the most experienced thought leaders on the planet when it comes to brand influence. My conversation with the outrageously talented - Jay Baer.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Mathews - The Impact Zone: Surfing fear at 50 feet

Tue, 23 Apr 2019 18:00:45 GMT

Now I have a bit of an obsession with fear. Or - at least I didn’t realise I had - until looking over some of the amazing guests we’ve had and have lined up for the podcast this year. And realising that fear - or at least mastering fear - seems to be a constant and underlying theme.

So that raises the question of why - what has fear got to do with influence - and why can’t I seem to leave it alone. I’ll tell you why - other than because it’s a daily dance of my own in one way shape or form. As it is for anyone that’s ever tried to do or say anything in the public domain - or any domain for that matter.

I think it’s because - over the years of working alongside influencers - I have met and worked with one too many brilliant people, one too many brilliant ideas, companies, brands and products. One too many people with something important to say or contribute. Who have all been left on the sidelines as a result of this statement: ‘I will do this… when I feel more...’

Sound familiar? Essentially - I will show up, stand up, be seen - and offer the full force of what I have to offer. When I feel less fearful.

So - in that sense - fear - or the ability to move towards it, harness it, rewrite it’s stories and relinquish it’s control over when and how we show up. Is the ultimate key to influence. Without it - the rest - negotiation tools, presentation skills, content algorithms, leadership habits - all mean nothing at all. So - there’s my why.

Now back to this episode. As a metaphor for negotiating with fear - surfing a 50 foot wave has to be on top of the list. As one of Australia’s best big wave surfers, my next guest Mark Matthews understands better than most the the intersections of fear, focus and staying in place when backing out seems like the only sane option. In fact - one of my favorite moments in our conversation is where he talks about ‘Holding the line’.

I don’t know if many of you will remember that infamous scene from Braveheart before the great battle - possibly showing my age here - where Mel Gibson shouts ‘HOLD!’ over and over again as the charging army gets rapidly closer. Mark talks about how he literally uses this technique, this phrase - over and over again when at the crest of a wave - to keep himself in position until that exact right second. Basically - to prevent himself from reacting to adrenalin by backing out or moving too fast.

Unbelievably - as you’ll hear - Mark was frightened of the ocean as a child and spent his childhood visits with family to the ocean sitting on the beach. YET - he went on to carve out a niche as one of the top big wave surfers in the world. Having surfed many of the world's heaviest and biggest waves including Cape Fear, NSW, Teahupoo (hope I got that one right), Tahiti, Maui and - well - if you know anything about big waves - you’ll be able to recite the rest. He has won three Oakley Big Wave Awards and is considered one of the best big waves surfers in the world.

Then - while in surfing in Australia in 2016 - Mark fell feet first onto a shallow reef - waking up later in a helicopter in a full body brace. He had tore his artery, nerve, multiple ligaments and fractured his shin. After an artery transfer he was assured by Dr’s that he would keep his leg - but with that kind of nerve damage - he would never be able to surf again. What followed was a new journey into fear. The fear of starting again. Only this time against the odds - and while the whole world was watching.

In this epic conversation Mark and I dive into:

The role of risk analysis in dealing with fear
How to ‘hold the line’ when you’re so committed you can’t back down
Why pushing any boundary starts with being unreasonable
How to ignore the feelings that make you want to run - and swap fear for focus
The power of embracing the pain - to stop the brain shutting you down.
How to consciously choose your next adrenaline kick to take you to the next level
AND why you should always train for wipe out scenarios - in order to push past where other people would choke.

I loved my conversation with Mark. He’s unassuming, humble - and yet driven to take on challenges that will blow your mind. Just quickly Google his name and look at the images that come up - that will be enough for you to get a sense of what I’m talking about.

So - if you know you have a 50 foot opportunity or challenge coming your way - or maybe feel like you’re surfing one right now - then this is for you. Sit back, buckle up - and enjoy my conversation with phenomenal big wave surfer Mark Matthews.

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Koelle Simpson - Leading wild horses: The silent language of authority

Wed, 10 Apr 2019 00:43:40 GMT

What can we learn about the art of influence from taming a creature as wild as the horse?

How do we decode a silent language that speaks with feelings and desire rather than cognitive thoughts or words?

How do we begin to understand the silent network of communication that exists within our subconscious mind, and how is it possible to gain insights into some of the most profound parts of human condition by spending an hour horse whispering?

Today, I am honoured to explore all of these questions and more with a world renowned life coach, horse whisperer and the founder of the Equus Coaching Movement, Koelle Simpson.

Koelle's incredible journey into horse whispering came as a result of experiencing trauma as a child that ultimately led to her destiny. In order to heal, a young Koelle would spend hours with the horses in a neighbouring paddock, and in that process began to connect with these beautiful animals in a deeply transformational way. It was during this time, she began to develop a level self awareness, as the horses through their behaviour acted as mirror always reflecting Koelle's internal state. The language of her emotions.

With clarity of purpose, from that point forward Koelle went to to study with the some of the worlds greatest equine teachers Including Monty Roberts, and best selling author, life coach and o magazine columnist Dr Martha Beck.

Today, Koelle is the founder of the Koelle Institute for Equus Coaching. The Institute has evolved into a remarkable community of highly skilled coaches dedicated to creating transformational leadership experiences through encounters with horses.

Koelle is a woman of global influence, with her work being featured in O Magazine, BBC Business Report, The National Journal, The OWN Network and she is a Tedx speaker. She works with individuals and organisations all of the world decoding the silent language of authority through the lens of her journey as a horse whisperer.

In today's podcast we covered the following:

We learn more about the art of horse whispering.
Why active and honest connection is at the heart of trust?
The role of emotions as a silent tool in communication - The horses language?
Self Awareness and why we disconnect.
How we can create emotional intention.
What causes stress and anxiety in how we connect
Why vulnerability is the strongest component in leadership
What we can learn from the matriarch mare?
How do we lead a fearful herd?
Why Trust is an action in the present moment.
What makes us suppress expression?
Why our deepest truth is always held in the body.

So as always grab yourself a cup of tea, and get ready to hear the extraordinary story of a young woman with a gift for translating the silent language of the horse. After all a horse does not hear words, or have the same thoughts we have. This animal has an innate ability to deeply feel and experience the world via emotion. In observing the horse we are given a window into our soul, showing us with no filters… exactly what we are showing the world.

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Tiffani Bova - Growth IQ: Finding the momentum in disruption

Tue, 26 Mar 2019 17:00:10 GMT

If you could identify one superpower that would set your business on fire what would it be?

You would imagine growth strategy would go hand in hand with running a successful business, but the reality is that many business leaders fail to see the opportunities right in front of them. That is why Growth IQ is the magic elixir enabling business leaders to harness the growth opportunities that are ripe for the picking.

Today's guest, Tiffani Bova is the global customer growth and innovation evangelist at Salesforce and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of ‘Growth IQ: Get Smarter About the Choices that Will Make or Break Your Business’.

Having spent her career decoding the art of Growth IQ, she is a top influencer in customer experience, digital and the future of work. She is a master of sales transformation and business model innovation, a highly sought after speaker and business influencer. She is also the host of ‘What's Next! with Tiffani Bova’ which has featured guests from Arianna Huffington to Dan Pink, and continues to rank as one of the top 100 business and marketing podcasts on iTunes, and won top Sales and Marketing Podcast by Top Sales Magazine in 2017.

Tiffani is Magazine’s 37 Sales Experts You Need to Follow on Twitter, a LinkedIn Top Sales Influencer, a Brand Quarterly Magazine Top 50 Marketing Thought Leader, and one of the most Powerful and Influential Women in California according to the National Diversity Council. She has appeared on MSNBC and Yahoo Finance and is a regular contributor to Forbes, Harvard Business Review, Marketing Matters on Wharton Business Radio - SiriusXM and Huffington Post in addition to a variety of industry-leading podcasts.

In today's podcast we cover off;

Why great storytelling and great data are a formula for sales success
Why the best leaders are also the best storytellers
Why business growth is never a quick fix
How to maximise your sales with the people and resources you already have
The role of purpose in the pursuit for growth
Why the experience wins the sale
We decode the higher expectations of tomorrow's customer
Asking for a symphony of feedback
The art of collaborative selling
Key insights into influence from one of the worlds best

When it comes to the intersection of epic business influence, sales and digital growth Tiffani is a global leader whose journey is only just beginning, and that is why I couldn't more excited about having her on board as an Inside Influence guest. Grab yourself a coffee, sit back and get ready to grow with the one and only author of Growth IQ, the incredible Tiffani Bova.

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Beau Lotto - Limitless: How to thrive in uncertainty

Tue, 12 Mar 2019 17:00:46 GMT

Many of the guests I’m drawn to on Inside Influence – come about because I believe they provide a different lens on the subject of influence. FBI Negotiators talking about high stakes conversations – orchestra conductors sharing their lessons in leadership – big wave surfers on how to master fear.

Today’s interview takes that different lens – twists it, turns it into an optical illusion – and then reflects back at you the very assumption that made you perceive it as a lens in the first place. Sound un-necessarily complicated? Maybe – and yet it’s vital to understanding the most fundamental tool of influence. How you perceive and respond to the world around you.

Every piece of information you receive – about people, situations, tools (from this podcast or other sources you follow) – is ultimately only ever shaped by the meaning you give it. How do we choose what meaning to give things? By cross referencing that particular piece of information – piece of stimuli - against a series of assumptions – all of which were formed by our past experiences.

So again – why is this important to influence? As a bottom line – your assumptions dictate how you respond in any situation. Every decision you make, about how to proceed, who to trust, whether to leap into the next opportunity, how to navigate that next high intensity conversation, whether to stand up and be heard on stage or in the boardroom – are all 100% dictated by these assumptions that were created somewhere in your past.

So our history determines what we look at - and what we look at creates our history. Cycle after cycle of thinking you’re running the show – only to realise that – in fact – an out of date show (usually with a very inexperienced script writer) is running you.

Unless, in the worlds of my next guest – Beau Lotto - you can learn how to deviate.

Beau is a professor of neuroscience at the University of London, and a Visiting Scholar at New York University. His work and research over the past 25 years has focused on the biology and psychology of perception. In layman's terms - he studies the science of how we see the world. And how that knowledge can be used to unlock our ability to create, innovate, influence – and ultimately affect change.

In 2001 he founded the lab of Misfits, a neuro-design studio that was resident for two years at London's Science Museum. He is also the author of the bestselling book ‘Deviate – The Science of Seeing Things Differently’

In today's assumption busting conversation we cover off:

Why your aim should always be to know less than you did yesterday (especially about the people and situations you think you know the most about)
Why we are usually blind to our assumptions – especially those we inherit – and how to identify and decode our programmed responses
How to stop focusing on answers and start becoming obsessive about asking better questions
Why how you perceive yourself LITERALLY determines what you see in the world – this one blew my mind – I’ll let Beau explain – but in essence how powerful you feel yourself to be changes your physiology and the patterns you are able to identify.
How to use play – or if you dislike that word - experiments – to first overcome our hatred and then start to thrive in uncertainty.
And finally why – as leaders, parents and influencers - having an awareness of our biases and assumptions – and then being able to deviate - gives us choice.

So... grab yourself your caffeinated beverage of choice… or for this one maybe a glass of wine… and get ready to jump into a world where your perceptions of what’s true – are a mile away from what’s actually possible. Welcome to the world of Beau Lotto.

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Julian Treasure - How to be heard: Keys to speaking powerfully

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 17:00:22 GMT

What is it to truly listen consciously? To listen for context, listen for culture, listen for values or even more significantly listen for meaning. In schools we are taught the most basic and complex skills of maths, reading, science and history - but what we are never taught - is one of the most important life skills available to us. To consciously explore and interpret the world as it arrives through our ears.

Technology and digitisation has in some ways amplified our communication, yet at the same time - according to our next guest - the use of the human voice has become marginalised.

Today we send texts and emails, snapchats, and emojis... all fantastic tools (if not a little bewildering on the emoji front)… but before these tools… before language itself there was only the human voice.

As most of us know – or have at the very least felt. There is a huge difference between hearing words - and deeply listening to another human being. We’ve talked about it before on this podcast in a multitude of ways. From FBI Negotiators to monks. Yet our next guest is someone I have been hoping we could bring to you since the beginning of this series.

Julian Treasure is a true master of influential communication - whose vision is to transform the world by inspiring people to listen consciously and speak powerfully.

I believe his insights and message contains one of the most powerful tools of influence available. The ability to fully and intentionally understand - and be understood by - another human being.

Julian is a sound and communication expert. He is the founder of The Sound Agency - a company dedicated to asking and answering the question “How does your brand sound?”

He is also the author of the books ‘How To Be Heard’ and ‘Sound Business’. His TED talks have also been watched more than 40 million times - I’ll say that again - 40 million times – that's 4-0 - a testament to just how much thirst there is for this topic and its impact.

His latest talk, How to speak so that people want to listen, is now in the top 10 TED talks of all time. In addition Julian is regularly featured in the world’s media, including TIME Magazine, The Times, The Economist and the BBC.

In today's podcast we unlock the following keys to listen into influence,

The difference between hearing - and consciously listening (If you can ingrain this one distinction in your life - I promise you this will be time well spent)
How the voice alone - regardless of the words - always tells a meaningful story.
Why the vast majority of people don’t listen - and how to overcome the habit
How our addiction to outrage inhibits our ability to listen.
Why the most powerful leaders are ALWAYS the most powerful listeners
The power of silence as a sound.
And why listening to someone as if it was ‘for the first time’ – can help love last over a lifetime

In a nutshell Julian is an extraordinary human being with a unique vision… To enable a world that listens consciously and can express itself powerfully.

To be honest, as a leader, a partner, parent and friend - I can’t imagine a goal - or an intention for those you love and do business with - more powerful than that one.

So - sit back - breathe into every word and every silence. As an exercise try to take this time as an opportunity - not only to absorb the message - but also to practice listening as one of the highest disciplines of influence. It’s not easy. But it’s worth it.

Enjoy my conversation with the incredible - Julian Treasure.

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Karen Palmer - Neuro storytelling: The future of persuasion

Tue, 12 Feb 2019 17:00:02 GMT

What happens when we fuse technology with storytelling? When we hack the brain in order to overcome fear, and ultimately influence how we experience the the world around us - through understanding the world within us?

Our next guest refers to herself as a storyteller from the future.

Karen Palmer is an Award Winning Multi-Disciplinary Immersive Filmmaker. Merging Film, Gaming, Technology and Neuroscience to create Emotionally Responsive Experiences.

Karen's most notorious project - and the one that caught our attention - was created in 2016 when she created a film called Riot. Riot is an extraordinary fusion of tech and storytelling. It takes viewers through an immersive, 3D experience of an actual riot - the only difference being - through the use of AI, facial recognition and 3D technology - everything that happens is dictated by the emotions of the viewer.

So each viewer has a unique experience of the RIOT - how the characters behave, whether the action slows down or speeds up. Based purely on how they emotionally respond to the story itself. In other words - how the film watches them.

So why is that important - other than I believe being the method of storytelling we will all consider to be normal ten years from now. It’s important because it gives viewers a real time experience of how their own emotions and responses (often subconscious in the form of facial expressions and body language) significantly impact how they experience the world.

Have you ever wondered how your internal stories - your internal narrative - about events, people, situations - impacts how the story of your life literally unfolds? If not, you should. It’s one of the most life (and influence) altering lines of exploration. And if you have - Karen’s work will blow your mind.

In addition to RIOT - Karen is also a pioneer of ‘neurogaming’ (basically where immersive tech meets gaming). In which your mind once again becomes a remote control in an incredible experience that includes film, wearable technology and neuroscience. Think Fortnite on crack.

Her works Syncself and Syncself 2 are live-action video games – the difference being that you interact with them by wearing an EEG headset on your brain, measuring your level of focus - and then adapting the game to reflect your state of mind back to you.

And - as if this lady isn’t fascinating enough - she also merges her passion for cutting edge neuro-storytelling with her other passion - parkour.

You’ve probably seen footage of parkor before - insanely agile people clambering up and leaping over urban walls, buildings and obstacles - all in one long continuous movement of gymnastics meets martial arts. What I didn’t know before this conversation - was the philosophy of mindfulness that sits behind it.

Just like RIOT, Syncself and neuro-gaming - Karen uses this parkor as an immediate feedback loop - a way of a way to train her mind to stay in a state of total focus. Because let’s face it - there’s no immediate feedback loop more compelling than falling face first onto concrete.

So - some of the topics we dove into in this conversation include:

Why neuro-storytelling is the future - and how we can use it to build new neurological pathways in our brain

How seeing ourselves - our biases and triggers - reflected on the screen - will help us to take better control of our own lives

Why courage is simply a software download - and how to run an ‘erase and install’ on your own mind

The doors that this type of future storytelling opens for humanity. In particular how we teach empathy and accelerated leadership.

Why we will soon be taking the leap from bio-hacking (think Fitbits - and the various other wearable technology now available) to brain-hacking

And finally... why you never have to be the unwilling participant in someone else’s story

A conversation with Karen is a little like Parkour in itself. Leaping in and out of exhilarating topics, arcs and ideas - yet always with the same intention. Seeking to understand how the future of storytelling can (and will) not only revolutionise how we entertain and communicate important ideas. But also fundamentally change the role we consider ourselves to have - as continual writers of our own experience.

So... grab yourself a coffee - or whatever your adrenaline kick of choice. And get ready to be mind blown. Many of you that have either listened before - or met me in any capacity - will know that I consider storytelling to be one of the most powerful tools of influence. This one takes it to a whole new level.

Enjoy my conversation with the fascinating Karen Palmer.

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Brandon Webb - Mastering fear: A Navy SEAL's guide

Tue, 29 Jan 2019 17:00:16 GMT

We all feel fear. Many of us (even those you least expect) live with it as a daily companion. What we do with it is the difference between freezing – the bunny in the headlights – without the ability to move or adapt. Or proactively seeking fear as one of nature’s best tools to sharpen our ability to influence.

So how do you feel it and still stay present – stay able to master your inner landscape - despite the adrenaline running a thousand miles an hour?

In todays Interview we dive into the world of mastering fear with the extraordinary - Brandon Webb.

Brandon is a former US Navy SEAL sniper, New York Times bestselling author, Experimental aircraft pilot, and Entrepreneur. After leaving home at age sixteen – he joined the US Navy to become a Navy SEAL. His first permanent assignment was as a helicopter Aircrew Search & Rescue (SAR) swimmer - and Aviation Warfare Systems Operator. As a SEAL Brandon completed four deployments to the Middle East.

He also received numerous distinguished service awards - including the Presidential Unit Citation (awarded to him by President George W. Bush), and the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation medal with “V” device for valour in combat.

After ending his Navy career early after over a decade of service – he went on to embark on an entrepreneurial journey that – first time out of the gate – literally resulted in him losing everything. Undeterred - He went on to found Hurricane Media - a fast growing military focused digital content network - which is today valued at over $100 Million dollars.

Yet… and yet… what peaked my interest in Brandon at first wasn’t his incredible journey – but in reading a preview chapter I had been sent on his latest book ‘Mastering Fear – A Navy SEALS Guide’. In which he talks first about trying to teach his best friend Kamal to swim.

Helping a close friend through a crippling fear that had been with them for a lifetime – which he did successfully in one week - set about a process where he decided to break down everything he had learned about mastering fear. Both as a SEAL’s – and in his own entrepreneurial journey – at the crux of it was this quote from the book:

‘it’s not about becoming physically stronger, or tougher, or more aggressive. It is about learning how to identify and change the conversation in your head. Every battle, triumph, the defeat you have ever had - first took place in your mind.’

In today's podcast we cover off…

● The importance of ‘keeping the sharks out of your head’

● This difference between mastering fear vs overcoming fear – PIVOTAL ‘if you see fear as the enemy, then you’ve already lost’

● A simple model to switch the mental switch on fear – Known as the ‘SEALS secret weapon’.

● How do use the ‘charge’ from fear to sharpen ourselves – most successful people I know literally move towards that charge when they feel it

● The practice of drown proofing – and why it’s essential to replacing fear with a sense of clarity – knowing that you’ve already mentally faced the worse

And why – in the words of Mike Tyson – “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth”.

If you’ve ever heard the quote “What would you do right now if you were not afraid?” – it’s one of my favorites - after listening to this interview I dare you to not change it (as I did) to “What would I do right now if I focused this fear?”

So... grab yourself that coffee – Red Bull – or whatever your caffeine of choice – nothing like facing fear with a healthy shot of adrenaline. And get ready to journey inside one of the most ‘misunderstood’ and underutilized parts of the human condition.

Enjoy my conversation with the incredible Brandon Webb.

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Future Crunch - The radical act of optimism

Tue, 15 Jan 2019 17:00:33 GMT

We live in a digital world – not news to many of us that woke up next to our mobile phone this morning. But in this world three quarters of adults now have a device that we spend on average 8.5 hours a day attached to (9-10 hours for teenagers – another podcast).

With this digitisation we have now entered a world where our attention is the primary currency. Some of the largest organisations in the world are now focused purely on buying, earning and trading (i.e. selling) our attention as their only product. Algorithms are being constantly written and rewritten to pull us further and further into a silo of information – that then leads onto the next – and the next. Which raises one very interesting question.

What actually works when it comes to winning the war for our attention? Massive companies are asking this question now – 5 billion hours. They have discovered some amazing things about story telling, about product placement…

But the answer. The real answer – as always with human beings - involves getting really primal.

If you look at what drives our most basic operating system. It’s fear and survival. Possible dangers and threats will always get our attention before good news, opportunities – or reasons to celebrate. Unfortunately – as the majority of media and advertisers have always known – when it comes using fear, drama or outrage as a tool – we are hard wired to stand to attention.

My next guests would call the use of fear as a tool to influence your attention – a mind virus. So – how do you inoculate yourself? How do we pull back some of our most precious resource – so we can use it instead to create – not from fear – but from a place of optimism, hope and resilience? Because let’s face it – regardless of how you feel about some of the world’s largest question marks right now – AI, digitization, immigration, changes in the workforce, the impact of social media on children – reactions that come from fear are rarely ever the solution.

In this episode we dive into the Radical Act of Optimism - as we spend time with the incredible Dr Angus Hervey and Tane Hunter the co founders of Future Crunch.

Future Crunch are a a global movement of scientists, artists, technologists and entrepreneurs - who believe science and technology are creating a world that is more peaceful, transparent and abundant. With gold plated facts at the heart of the narrative they present an optimistic and narrative on the the story of the human race in the 21st century. The mission is to foster intelligent, optimistic thinking about the future – In order to assist us in reframing how we allow fear and negativity to influence us, and even more significantly influence the world in which we live.

In this fascinating conversation we discuss…

● Our consumption of information the same way we would a diet – where balance and conscious choice is the key to health

● Why the evidence and facts must always be sacred if you want to drive epic influence

● The implications of world driven by bad news, and the mind virus of fear

● Why storytelling is the most powerful tool to evolve humanity

● The Influence of optimistic thinking and overcoming the neuroscience of negativity

● And why some media – reality TV I’m talking to you - should come with a smokers warning

So get ready for a dose of optimism based upon cold hard facts. To challenge your thinking on change and disruption - and reframe the opportunity of new technologies such as data, automation and robotics in order to create a better world. Some of the examples these guys use about how this is already happening will blow your mind.

Significantly this is an opportunity to become more conscious in the news we share - and the news we choose to consume. Stepping back just far enough from drama, fear and outrage – to recognize it as simply that – a tool that is used to capture your attention.

So – enough pre-amble – please sit back and enjoy my conversation with my new double dose of brains crush.

Dr Angus Hervey and Tane Hunter – otherwise known as Future Crunch.

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Julie Masters - Inside influence: The best moments of 2018

Tue, 01 Jan 2019 17:00:07 GMT

Happy New Year. My name is Julie Masters and welcome to the first episode of Inside Influence for 2019!

Normally I would be delving into the minds of some of the world’s most fascinating influencers, authors, thought leaders or movement makers in an interview style decoding their journey of Influence - however today we have something special to welcome the new year not only in style, but with a tool kit that will empower you to show up, stand out and make the most of your influence in the coming year.

In 2018 we had a year of extraordinary guests. While we would have loved to feature snippets from every interview we understand your attention span at Christmas maybe a little like a goldfish (we know ours is). Instead we have called on our family and friends (a big thank you - you know who you are), to shortlist the best of the best. This is what we call influence.

In this podcast you will experience a mash up of tools, insights, audacious ideas and radical acts of influence with the intention as always to get to the bottom of what it really takes to own your voice - and then amplify it to drive an industry, a conversation, a movement or a nation.

In todays interview we dissect what I believe to be the three core areas of influence. These three areas are how we influence ourselves, how we influence others and finally how we create the kind of influence that changes the world.

Our guests today in no particular order include:

DANIEL FLYNN

LISA MESSENGER

STEPHEN SCHEELER

NANCY DUARTE

MARK SCHULMAN

LINDA CRUSE

JAMER KERR

JUDY ATKINSON

COLIN JAMES

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Tim Gard - Persuasion, resilience and developing a comic vision

Tue, 25 Dec 2018 17:00:40 GMT

For some of us we don’t have a funny bone in our bodies, while for others being funny comes naturally without very little thought or effort. For Tim Gard using humour is not only natural but is also a skill he has chosen to master as a tool yielding epic influence.

Tim has had first hand experience of what it is to earn a living in stressful environments - having worked in State and Federal Government in Human Services and (as you’ll hear more about) also spending time as a fraud investigator.

He was in fact known as the ‘Funny Fed’ – as he continually – and consciously developed humour as a way to diffuse situations, create connection and immediately disarm even the most challenging of conversations.

Tim is now one of the most successful speakers on the planet when it comes to using humor as a tool in business and in life. He is the creator of Comic Vision – a method and philosophy of using humor to influence – first yourself – and then other people. He is also the author of ‘Just Plane Funny’ and co-author of ‘Motivational Leaders’ and ‘Humor Me’.

I have known (and travelled with) Tim for more than a decade - I have witnessed him get of airplanes with fake chicken feet hanging out of his luggage – because ‘no one is going to accidently take home a bag with chicken feet hanging out of it’. Hand out his own policy manuals at hotels - when faced with the immortal line ‘I’m sorry Sir but that’s against our policy’. And – and I’m not joking here – literally sit on a flight drawing in a coloring book made up entirely of pictures of himself… just to dissuade anyone from sitting next to him. Side note – that strategy is always and without exception – successful.

So – other than just being one of my favorite people on the planet – and incidentally also the MC at my wedding (who could forget a room of 60 people playing nose flutes between speeches) – why did I ask Tim to be on the podcast? What has humor really got to do with influence?

In being around Tim I have learned so much about using the skills of a humorist to break states and behaviors – in people and situations – that have obviously been stagnant for years. I’ve learned how humor can immediately and effectively de-escalate situations, or disarm opponents in a way where no other communication or negotiation skill comes close.

Humor has this way of cutting through the noise – of breaking down walls – of building bridges - and of holding attention – that I have come to believe makes it one of the most underestimated tools of influence available.

That’s not even counting what Tim and these tools have given me – the ability to use humor to walk through life lightly, to stay in a resilient and resourceful state - and maintain perspective in heavy situations. As he says – ‘do it first for yourself – and then for other people’.

In this conversation we break down:

● How and Why Hillary Clinton was able to 'diminish the question - but not the person' by using humor in her response to Donald Trump when it came to her business experience.

● The role of ‘planned spontaneity’ and why it’s easier than it sounds

● How to actively use humor to solve problems (aka the Chicken Feet)

● Why it’s essential to stay present to the stories around us every day

● Why when using storytelling as a tool – the goal should always be to ‘live and relive’ rather than ‘tell and retell’

● How to 'dismount' gracefully when an attempt at humor fails

So... sit back and prepare to tune in your own style of Comic Vision. Because – like everything – it looks different for us all. Please enjoy my conversation with the irrepressible and irreplaceable – Tim Gard.

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Chris Helder - The underestimated power of useful beliefs

Tue, 11 Dec 2018 17:00:17 GMT

In this episode, we are diving into the world of inner influence chatting to a true master of Influence, Chris Helder.

Chris is one of world's most sought-after keynote speakers and he is the author of three bestselling books: The Ultimate Book of Influence which has been published in five languages - Useful Belief, which is one of the highest selling Australian business books of all time, and Cut The Noise which (speaking directly to the parents amongst you) is about achieving better results with less guilt.

For anyone who has seen Chris speak (and if you haven’t – YouTube is a feast of videos) you’ll know that his energy as a storyteller is another level. In fact I often show videos of Chris speaking when teaching presentation skills – I do that as he’s one of the best examples I know of deliberately setting your internal state to not only harness and amplify energy – but also use body language to switch on every one of the senses of an audience.

First time I saw him speak… these guys don’t need a speaker – they need a miracle – now I don’t know that I would go so far as to call Chris a miracle – but what he did that morning was nothing short of miraculous.

So – other than all that – why did I ask Chris if he was willing to come onto the podcast?

We’ve known each other a very long time. In fact well over a decade. During that time I’ve watched him break down the art of influence for hundreds of times. Then there was a period of time where – as both our lives evolved and changed – we hadn’t spoken to each other for awhile. At least from the outside that period of time seemed to coincide with a time for him of deep introspection. When we did next speak he put something to me – something he had been thinking about – that he felt sat at the absolute root of our ability to influence at every level – and it blew my mind.

Ever since I’ve known him – Chris has had a saying: "The most important words we say all day - are the words we say to ourselves, about ourselves, when we are alone by ourselves". Which raises an interesting question – if that’s true – why does positive thinking so rarely work?? The place that Chris reached – after a career of driving change in this area – is that positive thinking in and of itself is doomed to fail – what we need instead are useful beliefs.

The key here is the word useful. Sometimes things in life are not positive. Sometimes bad things happen to good people. No amount of positive thinking is going to change that. The truth is - there is no absolute truth. I know that sounds annoying. Especially if you’re trying to navigate yourself through uncertainty – either home, life, economy. But it’s worth the time (at least the next hour) to really think about it.

Once you know the truth, once you have all the facts – it becomes agnostic. The only thing that makes a difference after that point – the only thing that stands between you a clear strategy or overwhelm – is the story you choose tell yourself about the situation – and whether it’s useful or not.

I managed to catch Chris in a rare quiet moment, back stage at an event of I was recently at an event with Chris – we had a choice between getting some food and having this conversation – I think it was pretty worth it.

Some of the areas we dove into include:

● The Future of Thinking in the next economy.

● How we manage fear and move through guilt with ease

● The Power of Accelerated Focus

● The Reticular Activating System – and why you need to know what that is when it comes to developing Useful Belief

● How do you break through unhelpful ‘mental loops’

● How to gain clarity through ‘Time Travel’ – and not the kind that involves Michael J Fox and a DeLorean

This podcast is for anyone ready to look at their beliefs around change, influence – and our ultimate ability to master our state and get clear (or useful) in any given moment. It was a special conversation with someone special from my world. Please enjoy my conversation with the powerhouse that is Chris Helder.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bahia Shehab - The revolutionary power of 1000 No's

Tue, 27 Nov 2018 17:00:21 GMT

In this episode, we dive into the nuts and bolts of one simple word…. NO. As its definition NO is described as just ’a negative answer or decision’. However in reality - for many of us - summoning the courage to say No often feels impossible.

With that in mind, what if there were more ways to say No? What if there were a thousand ways? Today we dive into what it is to say no with clarity and conviction – and even look deeply at the question of whether it’s possible to say a fiercely powerful ‘no’ - with kindness.

Today’s conversation is with the incredible artist and Art Historian Bahia Shehab. In Arabic the literal translation for the word ‘No’ is ‘No and A Thousand Times No’. It’s this concept – a thousand times no - that started as an artwork, became a book, reformed into a protest, and went on to be heard as one voice of a revolution.

It was during the Egyptian revolution in 2011 – the first day of which (25th of January) is literally referred to now as The Day Of Anger - Bahia was overcome with rage against the dictators, the violence – and what became military rule. Like many of the people I meet and the people I know - she describes herself as ‘a quiet person’. Shouting and screaming on the streets wasn’t something that came naturally to her.

So instead of screaming – after witnessing the endless stories and images of atrocities – flooding both her City and the internet – she realized she could no longer choose to stay at home safely with her children. She had to find some way to contribute her voice.

So she chose a way of communicating that she did know – a way that drew on her talents as an artist.

Having been invited in 2010 to participate in an exhibition to commemorate 100 years of Islamic art in Europe. She had researched and collated over 1000 symbols for the word ‘no’ in Arabic script - producing both an artwork and a book documenting their history.

So she went back to these symbols - and began spraying them on the streets, in public squares. Channeling these 1000 ‘no’s’ (in her own words ‘just like ammunition’). No to military rule. No to violence. No to dictatorship. No to beating women.

The impact of her work – and the work of the many, many Egyptian artists on the streets at that time – started conversations, provoked debate and above all – at a time when a regime could literally turn off all the phones in a country – allowed the voiceless to be heard.

Bahia has since been selected as one of BBC’s 100 Women for two consecutive years. Been invited as a TED Global Fellow – and became the first woman from the Arab region to receive the UNESCO Shar-jah Prize for Arab Culture.

In this conversation we cover:

● The challenges of saying a fierce No – when being loud doesn’t come naturally

● Why actions (and art) can often be louder than words

● Exactly why a small word can be so powerful – both to hear and to say – that it’s able to both start and stop a revolution

● Why street art can be pivotal in starting and monitoring progressive conversations

● The innate power of storytelling - as a tool to remember the past, shape the future and avoid making the same mistakes.

● Finally the role of empathy when setting boundaries, and why a kind ‘No’ can be one of the most powerful acts of love – and sometimes – alter history itself

One quote that has stayed with me from this conversation is this… “You can crush the flowers, but you can’t delay spring."

This episode is for anyone that’s felt – or currently feels – crushed by the word ‘no’. By the strength it takes to express it – and to hear it – and then to deal with the consequences that inevitably follow. In particular it dives into the story of one woman (who also represents the many others both in Egypt and globally) who are brave enough to show up and - not only say it - but say it without resorting to violence.

Anyway – enough of me. You may notice the internet drop in and out a few times with this one – unfortunately the connection wasn’t fantastic in Cairo on this day – but sometimes you just have to work with what you have. Please enjoy my conversation with Bahia Shehab.

To view Bahia’s Ted Talk Click Here: https://www.ted.com/talks/bahia_shehab_a_thousand_times_no?language=en

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Vinh Giang - A magicians guide to mastering attention

Tue, 13 Nov 2018 17:00:42 GMT

In this episode, we journey from mastery to magic decoding the magician's secrets with the incredible Vinh Giang. While it’s fair to say I research all of my guests in great detail, I literally had to pull myself away from the computer as I could have easily lost days in total awe of Vinh's genius.

Vinh has a gift for translating the magician's code in a business context. He demystifies the illusions of magic and has created seriously compelling content empowering audiences with the tools to navigate technicality vs performance and craft vs charisma. He is fascinated by the human psychology behind the tricks, the nature of perception, and the art of illusion. He uses these tools as metaphors to unlock the audience's mind to an array of new possibilities.

Vinh explores concepts such as timing, practice, skills, connection and of course the influence of the magician over the audience. His ultimate goal whether it is in business or life is to see the possible in the impossible. To feel the magic in the metaphors and to find the solutions that set success in motion.

As a speaker, Vinh has partnered with many organisations including globally recognized names such as HSBC, Microsoft, and Gartner. As an innovator, Vinh founded the first online training platform to teach magic, and as a result, was honored to be awarded South Australia Young Entrepreneur. As an awarded magician, he has created magic for audiences all over the world.

Growing up in a refugee family Vinh always valued hard work as the road to success, and this attitude is evident in his mission to educate others on the mastery behind the magic and the process behind the perception.

During the interview, I was again in sheer awe of Vinhs ability to communicate the impossible to make it possible and could have easily lost hours in conversation. To summarise, we covered off some of the following key points in our discussion...

The power of following your passion

The balance between technical skill and performance

The unwritten agreement to be a master of illusion in magic

Understanding our vehicle for influence

The body and voice as our most powerful instrument

How we hold, keep and control attention

The power of rate, pitch, and pause when presenting

The sight, sound and synch audit when reviewing our presentations

Understanding the voice as the tool to impact

What is mastery and how is it achieved

The power of perspective in challenging whats possible

Why magic lives in the unknown

Why talent has nothing to do with success

Why great teachers craft the experience

Get ready to soak up tips, tools, and insights from a true master of communication, influence, and performance. Vinh is on a mission to assist others to 'never die with the music still inside', and this podcast is a guide that will allow you to begin to understand your song, your rhythm, and what it takes to master that melody and ultimately create magic in the lives of those with whom you influence.

USEFUL RESOURCES

Vinh's free community to improve your communication skills http://www.stage.community

In person workshops: http://www.vinhgiang.com/communication-skills-workshop/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Schulman - Hacking the Rockstar mindset

Tue, 30 Oct 2018 17:00:39 GMT

In this episode, we are going to be fusing the world of influence and rock n roll...

A few months ago - I had the huge privilege of being introduced - and being able to spend some time with the incredible Mark Schulman - who at the time of this interview was in the middle of touring as the lead drummer for multi platinum - global phenomenon - Pink.

In addition to having performed for over 1 BILLION PEOPLE during his career - alongside world class performers such as Cher, Billy Idol, Simple Minds, Beyoncé and Tina Turner. Mark is also the author of the very fitting Conquering Life’s Stage Fright. In which he interviews global powerhouses like Tony Hsieh (CEO of Zappos), Jeremy Piven (well known Actor from the Entourage) and Alan Bean (Apollo 12 Astronaut) - out of sheer determination - and a personal commitment - to decode the magic of world-class performance.

In other words what it takes to show up, reframe your fears and own what you’ve got with every cell in your body.

What I loved about listening to Mark talk about the learnings from - and the process of writing - that particular book. Is that it’s a philosophy that sums him up entirely. While others are partying hard on the tour bus - Mark is sat with his headphones on - trying to unpack what makes masterful performers great - so he can show up even harder at the next location.

I first met him on a cold winter’s morning in Sydney - I’m not sure what I was expecting - maybe someone vaguely (and understandably) tired after performing in front of an insane 21,000 people the night before. But the man that burst through the door - and quickly shot out again determined to make me a coffee - literally lit-up-the-room. As I would soon find out - this is one of the most engaged, curious and energised human beings that you could ever spend time with.

Which speaks to the heart of this concept of the rockstar mindset - that attitude and energy are the PRIMARY fuel of any kind of world class performance - and everything, down to the phone call you just took - and the Tweet you’re about to send - is a form of performance.

Like any field, mastering performance at a world-class level - isn’t about faking it. Or just putting a show. It’s about choosing your state, harnessing your energy, commiting to a lifetime of consistency, showing up and leaving everything you’ve got in the arena.

So what did we talk about. During our conversation, we went rockstar hard into so many questions I had since first starting to learn about Mark’s career - including:

Why what we perceive as fear - can be reframed as something manageable with some simple mental tools - One of those that I really want you to listen out for is the question ‘Am I free to fail…?’ - which I have literally used a hundred time since this interview
The habits and rituals that literally transform paralysing fear into excitement
What it means to ‘pick the stick back up’ and carry on - after any major set back
How to embody 'real' confidence - and the difference between that and rockstar certainty
How to get out of your own way - and be of service - choosing the words ‘I get to do this’ rather than ‘I have to’ do this before any performance
What he took from interviewing some of the most incredible performers of our time - and the moment that motivated him to seek them out
And why to him having a rockstar mindset is less about fame - and more about understanding that there are no small moments - every moment is critical

So… get ready to flex your rock star muscles and soak up the insights of the insanely intelligent and insightful human being. Whether you’re a musician, a parent, a CEO, a doctor, a carpenter - or someone contemplating the next great leap. This episode is for the that moment - that moment when you have to choose between showing up with every shred of what you’ve got - or letting an opportunity to make real (and memorable) impact pass you by.

So please - sit back - and enjoy my once in a lifetime conversation with Mark Schulman.

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Colin James - Mastering communication: Lessons from the mentors mentor

Tue, 16 Oct 2018 19:00:09 GMT

If I asked you what it takes to be truly influential I'm sure most of you would say the ability to be able to communicate, whether it's commanding a meeting or an auditorium. How you use your body, your hands, your voice, to demand attention and create impact makes all the difference in the world and for any of you that's ever seen a TED talk, you will know that those that stand out and get shared millions of times have a craftsmanship to what they do and how they explain their ideas.

I've spent many many years working with thought leaders who get up on stage and share their ideas and there's one person who I always look to as an inspiration when it comes to being a true master of communication.

Our next guest is the one that I would usually point you in the direction of and after this particular episode I would recommend you check him out on YouTube, there's a number of amazing videos there.

So without any further ado our guest this week is Colin James. From speaking, facilitating and teaching others how to master their own skills, he is an absolute legend. In this episode we talk about storytelling:

How do you find ideas for stories to bring your presentations to life.

We talk about making it personal. Where's the line between you, your professional self, your authentic self and the self that you want to share.

We get really down into structure, what that means, the technical science behind building an amazing presentation.

We'll also talk about dealing with difficult people, how you hold a difficult space? How do you use your personal gravity to command a room and get everybody on board?

So here's the mentor of great mentors. I've seen him hold his space and command attention in many rooms of influential people, often totally terrifying people who all know how to be heard above the noise and he has the power to silence them all.

He is a true craftsman of communication and that is a rare thing and I am so pleased to be able to share just some of his wisdom with you today.

Colin James

Over the past 25 years Colin James, has worked with senior executives around the world and has deep experience working with groups both large and small, taking cultural diversity and the variety of delivery platforms in his stride. From a young age, Colin’s dream was to be a teacher and he realised that to be an effective and engaging teacher he needed one key skill — and that was to master the art of communication.

Colin James Website: https://www.colinjamesmethod.com.au/

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Steve Rayson - How to go viral: Insights from 100 million Facebook videos

Tue, 02 Oct 2018 20:00:55 GMT

This episode is about one thing. Content.

All courtesy of my next guest - who has to be one of the biggest experts in digital influence out there. Or more specifically, an expert in what makes a piece of content – whether that’s a headline, a blog, a video, a social post or an article – actually get traction.

His name is Steve Rayson and he heads up a company called Buzz Sumo. For those of you that haven’t come across Buzz Sumo before – you should. It’s of one of the primary tools I use when figuring out how to help clients stand out and get cut through in their particular space.

To put it in a nut shell - Buzzsumo analyses millions of pieces of content - across all major digital platforms – in order to tell you what key topics, headlines, questions and trends are gaining the most traction - including who the key influencers are in that space.

To give you an example – they recently analysed 500 million Facebook posts, 100 million Facebook videos and 100 million articles - some of the largest Facebook research studies to date – to figure out what posting times, types, styles and structures got the most traction. That’s one hell of a lot of data – and one hell of a lot of insights. Some of which we dive into in this conversation.

Anyone that knows me – knows I can nerd out on stuff like this. However there is a reason…

If you are trying to stand out in your industry by creating compelling content – as I know many of you that I hear from are – then you know how much time and resources it can take. The biggest mistake I see people making is going out there blind – trying to imagine what people want to hear from you, what they will find engaging – or worse still just using your own tastes as a guide.

One of the biggest questions I get asked about digital influence and storytelling is this - what should I post about, where and when? The answer I always give is – I don’t know – but you should.

As content creators – in the world of earning and keeping attention. It is your job to find out. What are your audience interested in? What are they searching for? WHERE are they searching for it? How do they prefer to consume their content? What’s the key to getting them to share so you can hopefully go viral? Answer those questions first - and you’ll be miles ahead of the game as an industry influencer.

So… that’s why I stalked Steve from the other side of the planet to get him in the show. That’s also what we are going to be geeking out over today. Using the insane amounts of data he and his team have access to – in order to answer to some pretty big content questions. Including:

· What’s the most compelling structure for a blog headline, and are there any specific words that reliably get the most clicks?

· What are the absolute key things we need to know when creating compelling online video content?

· Are there hacks to using newer platforms like Facebook Live and Instagram Stories? A key for anyone just starting out – ignore the rest and go straight to this part

· Plus what’s the ONE thing that separates content that actually gets engagement - from content that just sits there and gathers dust.

If content is king, then consider this episode a guidebook from the King’s chief of strategy.

So grab a pen, paper, a napkin, your dog – I don’t mind – whatever will sit still long enough for you to get these tools down. So you can go out there tomorrow and develop a content strategy that is clear, streamlined, informed – and most importantly - effective.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike Kinney - The art of turning up: A pro wrestler's guide to confidence

Tue, 18 Sep 2018 20:00:00 GMT

My next guest is… Cowboy Gator McGraw

Yes you heard right, although these days he also goes by the name Mike Kinney.

Mike, (I’m still working up to calling him Gator), is a former pro-wrestler, the type of wrestling that made Hulk Hogan famous, turned global TED sensation after his talk on ‘turning up’ received over 1.1million views on YouTube.

He starts his now famous Ted talk like this: Picture it: a big, sweaty, tattooed man in a cowboy hat and chaps, is in the ring as the arena full of fans cheer him on. Their hero:"Cowboy" Gator Magraw. Gator bounces off the ropes and is quickly body-slammed to the mat. His wild opponent leaps into the air,crashing down onto Gator's rib cage. Gator struggles to breathe, wondering: "Is this really what my father wanted for me?".

It doesn’t seem like the most obvious career progression does it? From dominating in the ring as a fictional character, to being the real you on centre stage for the world to see via a TED talk - this all happened as a result of Mike’s core belief, something we’ll be talking about today: You are more than you think you are.

I have to admit, this conversation did not turn out how I thought it would. I assumed that we’d have a bit of a light hearted conversation about confidence maybe something to share with your children about standing up and absolutely owning it, afterall, the man has wrestled some quite scary dudes wearing trunks and chaps, I can’t think of a bigger embodiment of confidence than that. But I was wrong.

This conversation took us way deeper than that and now, with hindsight, I can see why.

When we talk about owning your influence, being an influencer, leading an industry, more often than not conversation will turn to personal brand. Defining what it is that makes you unique and ensuring that shows up in every interaction someone has with you.

Mike, and the world of wrestling, is perhaps the most extreme version of identifying what you stand for and making sure that gets recognised. He tells a story of his first time at wrestling camp when he and his class mates had to identify who they wanted to be in wrestling moving forward – forever – talk about a leap of faith. And he realised something – the best fighters, were the ones who were authentically themselves, but turned up.

What does that mean?

Well being ‘turned up’ means being unshakable in your belief in your capability, it means knowing your value, it means shutting out the negative talk and the pleas from your inner critic to just retreat before you make a fool of yourself.

It means bringing every fibre of your being into whatever room, or ring, you are walking in to and driving towards the thing you want most.

I don’t know about you, but there are days when I don’t so much want to turn up but turn off – and so if today is one of those days then this is for you.

We talk about:

· The 5 lessons to turning up your strengths

· The 5 keys to becoming unforgettable

· And ultimately, in those dark moments of self doubt, when you feel like you don’t know what you are doing, how to dust it off,

stand tall and show up

I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve watched a wrestling match, but if this sport produces humans as inspiring and authentic as Mike, perhaps I’ll be watching more often.

Sit back, relax and I hope you enjoy this whirlwind conversation with Mike Kinney, Cowboy Gator McGraw.

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Lisa Messenger - Building, breaking and remaking an empire: The collective journey

Tue, 04 Sep 2018 20:00:00 GMT

Now I’m usually a firm believer in the phrase ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ but Lisa, and the organisation she sits at the helm of, break this mould time and time again – as you’ll have heard from the preview clip at the start of this episode.

She has also co-authored 16 books, in fact this incredible woman can write a book in the time it takes me to think of a decent title. She is also an absolute authority when it comes to the world of start-ups and entrepreneurship.

And I say that, because more than anyone in this space, she absolutely walks her talk.

I’m also lucky enough to call her one of my dearest friends, someone who has celebrated the business wins with me, and poured the tea while I mourned the business, and personal, losses.

Now, I’ve wanted to interview Lisa on this show for a while, but diaries and life got in the way. And actually, now I’m incredibly grateful it took us this long to get this conversation locked in.

If we had managed to sit down a year ago then this conversation would’ve probably been different. We would’ve talked about what it takes to run a media empire (although don’t worry, we do definitely talk about that), we would’ve spoken about the hustle, scaling up and again, we do cover that.

But at this time is Lisa’s journey, having closed her incredibly successful magazine, these insights come with even more richness, because she’s sat with me, looking at this journey with the beauty of hindsight as she asks herself, what’s next?

In this conversation you’ll hear Lisa, with her trademark vulnerability and openness share the lessons she’s learnt at every point along her journey, from her first venture, to her first book, her first big win, her first big loss and the last issue of The Collective:

In particular, the lessons I’ve really drawn from this centre around:

- Self belief – How to understand the particular value you can bring and having the guts to state that

- Purpose – unearthing the power that sits behind your bigger ‘why’

- Hustle – tips for getting the doors to open and putting the right people in the room

- Getting the easy yes – knowing what it will take to make yes the easiest answer for investors, customers and staff

- And perhaps most importantly, Walking away – knowing when it’s time to let it all go

And, as you listen to these insights, just know that she’s about to apply these lessons all over again, for her next contribution to helping others realise their potential.

If you get one thing out of this conversation I want it to be this:

It takes great strength and grit to have an idea and stick with it, sometimes against all reason, to make it succeed in the world. But sometimes, it takes even greater strength and courage to know when the time has come to walk away, and just let it burn.

Lisa has taught me, more than anyone else, that our lives are made up of many brilliant and exciting chapters, and that we can’t begin to write the next one, until we are able to put the pen down on the last one.

So this is me and Lisa – sat on her bed, eating blueberries with her dog – talking start ups, opening doors, hustling, purpose, leading when it feels like you haven’t a clue, and how to know when the time has come to walk away.

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Stephen Scheeler - The digital CEO: Leading in the age of Facebook

Tue, 21 Aug 2018 20:00:00 GMT

My next guest is the former Facebook CEO for Australia and New Zealand, Stephen Scheeler. A role which saw him play an integral role in the company’s unprecedented rise from quirky Silicon Valley startup to media and technology titan.

During his time here he co-collaborated with the greatest minds in tech and business, Mark Zuckerberg, Sheryl Sandberg and other luminaries of the silicon sphere.

Today he’s the founder of The Digital CEO, Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Company and he continues to share his wisdom with the leaders of heavy hitters such as Qantas, Google and the Australian Government.

As part of this podcast, and those who have listened before will know this, we take a look at all angles of what it takes to be an influencer in your space, in the hopes that, whether you are wanting to command more respect in a boardroom, or generate attention and engagement with a cause you care about, we can give you the tools and insights needed to be the authority.

In a business context there’s no better example of a person of influence than a CEO, and at the top of the top of influential CEOs there are the rare few who can say that they have played a part in guiding a business from little known start up, to a global phenomenon.

Which is why, when you have the opportunity to meet one of these individuals, the unicorns of the CEO space, you grab them with both hands and make them tell you their story.

I think all of us, whether you are in the media industry, or not, can appreciate that we are navigating business in a time of relentless change and unequivocal speed.

To put the pace of change we face here today into perspective, it took 40 years for 50 mil radios to be bought, 14 years for 50 mil TVs to be sold and only 1 year for 50 million Facebook accounts to be created.

And if you think that’s where the craziness of these stats stop, you’re wrong, because it took only 4 months for 50 million Wechat accounts to be set up.

So what can we, as business leaders, do to navigate through thischange? And better yet, what can we do to shape it?

One of the most fascinating parts of my discussion with Steven is when we discuss the rise of Facebook, not as a social channel, but as the leading source of news on a global level.

He shares a story, which I won’t spoil, but he shares a story about how a media mogul of the old world press asked for his insight into how on earth Facebook was able to seemingly come out of nowhere to be his biggest competitor.

The punchline of that story will floor you, and perhaps give you an insight into how disruption really is the result of industries taking their own power and scale for granted.

If I was to sum up the value on this discussion it lies in that one story, how, as the leader of a business can you make sure that you aren’t just reacting to the rapidly changing world around us, but how can you get out in front and lead it?

Because by the time you realise disruption is coming, it’s already too late.

Other things we discuss, we talk about:

- Fake news – how can we navigate a world of click bait to create businesses that are able to inspire trust

- Curiosity – how the key to navigating disruption lies in asking questions

- The new ways of telling stories that cut through in a world of earned attention

- The balance between high tech and high touch in navigating automation and AI

There’s a saying that the ability to learn from someones entire lifetime of experience lies in a cup of coffee, well in this case it’s a podcast and it was an absolute privilege to extract learnings from a CEO who has truly walked his talk and lead on the cutting edge!

Please enjoy my chat with the digital CEO himself, Stephen Scheeler

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Nancy Duarte - Resonate: The secret structure of great presentations

Tue, 07 Aug 2018 20:00:00 GMT

Greetings everyone, my name is Julie Masters and welcome to another episode of Inside Influence. In which I delve into the minds of some of the world’s most fascinating influencers – or experts in influence - to get to the bottom of what it really takes to own your voice - and then amplify it to drive an industry, a conversation, a movement or a nation.

And when you think about that, about moments where someone has used their influence to drive a nation, a few iconic moments will come to mind for all of us.

Moments where, one person stood up, and through their own human story, united a tribe of people behind an audacious idea: I’m of course thinking of speeches like

Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’

Winston Chrchill’s ‘we shall fight them on the beaches’

And our own Julia Gillard’s ‘I will not be lectured on Misogyny by this man’

These are all just words, impassioned cries for action and change from one person’s heart to another, but from these words, a tide of change was created.

And that’s what we are diving into with today’s guest, the power that words, stories and presentations have in taking an idea and giving it life and gravity.

My next guest is the CEO and founder of Silicon Valley’s largest and most successful communications firm, Duarte Inc – Nancy Duarte.

Nancy has spent the last 30 years immersed in the world of human story telling and has been behind the scenes of some of the most compelling, as she calls them’ impassioned pleas we’ve ever seen including the Al Gore’s ‘an inconvenient truth’ and countless TED talks. She’s worked with the thought leaders of global brands like Apple, Cisco, Facebook, GE, Google, HP, TED, Twitter, and the World Bank.

She’s also a renowned author and has books that have shaped the way many of my own clients now communicate including illuminate, resonate and the communications bible ‘slide:ology’

She’s been the master of the crazy world of presenting since way before speaking was cool, back in the days of projectors and transparencies, where you had to draw your idea onto a sheet of plastic.

In this conversation we cover some serious ground so I suggest you grab your notebook, your iPad or an envelope, whatever you can lay your hands on as we explore:

1. The one pattern all the world’s greatest speeches have in common

2. The power of using contrast when building frenzy behind your idea

3. How to create action on the back of any presentations by ‘illuminating’ a new path

4. Why we sabotage our own ideas – and how to let the struggle transform us

So, think of this as an absolute masterclass in how to convey an idea in its most potent form. Whether that’s across a board room table, a kitchen table, or a lectern to drive serious change.

After this hour, you’ll have the world’s most powerful tools, so now there’s no excuse.

So this is me and Nancy Duarte – geeking out over the power of presenting - enjoy

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Dr Harald Harung - Decoding performance: The science of feeling invincible

Tue, 24 Jul 2018 20:00:46 GMT

My next guest has spent over a decade studying and decoding the brains of the world’s highest performers, in the hopes of figuring out what these remarkable talents have in common, and what we can do to in our every day lives to lift our own performance.

His name is DR Harald Harung and he is the author of the book Excellence through Mind-Brain Development: The Secrets of World-Class Performer. In his global study Harald and his colleague, Frederick Travis, travelled the globe conducting experiments and exercises with the top 1% of performers in the world – and ‘top performers’ in this case are defined as those at the very peak of their game who have consistently sustained this level of performance over a long period of time, whether that’s a CEO of a top 10 fortune 500 company with outstanding results over the last 10 years, or a swimmer that has achieved gold in all major championships for the last 8 years.

Why this is important is that Harald wasn’t interested in short bursts of exceptional achievement, he focussed purely on those who managed to reach and then sustain this peak for extreme lengths of time.

And in this episode I was lucky enough to sit down with him and unpack some of the fascinating things he found out.

These findings include:

· Why your age and experience level has next to nothing to do with your ability to perform

· Why the highest performing brains are those with the greatest amount of integration – what that means, and how we get it.

· How, the top performers in the world, all spend a great deal of time thinking of others and why that could be a key driver in outstanding achievement

· The top 3, easy and achievable, habits we can all put into practise that will lift our game exponentially.

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Linda Cruse - Stop being charitable and start being capable

Tue, 10 Jul 2018 20:00:16 GMT

My next guest has been described as one-part pioneer, one-part entrepreneur and one-part magician.

With an ability to make the impossible possible – it was Richard Branson who said that, high praise, but thoroughly deserved.

Her name is Linda Cruse and she’s spent the last 20 years on the front lines of the world’s biggest disasters, doing what she can to help. But it’s her particular brand of help, that made me so determined to get her on the show.

Like many others, I’m frustrated that the world isn’t fixed yet.

I’m frustrated that, despite countless telethons, children are still starving, I’m frustrated that, despite brilliant ad campaigns, victims of war are still left hopeless and my heart breaks, often, at the realisation that despite charitable giving increasing exponentially year on year, over half the world’ population lives in poverty.

By harnessing the intellectual power of the most innovative leaders in the corporate space, and directing this brain power to answer the world’s toughest problems, Linda has had a hand in generating an impact that most not for profits could only ever dream of.

Linda flips the paradigms surrounding ‘charity’ on their head, and if you get one thing from this episode, let it be that the impossible is made possible, not by money, but by influence and collaboration.

And If you want to know more about the amazing work she does, and get notified about her upcoming book then head over to www.lindacruse.com and sign up to her newsletter.

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Dee Madigan - Decoding politics and persuasion in the Age of Trump

Tue, 26 Jun 2018 20:00:00 GMT

It’s been nearly 2 years since Donald Trump was elected, and however you feel personally about his time so far as president, we all have to agree, that on the day that an ex reality TV contestant got elected to the highest office in the world the rules of influence were officially rewritten. And so we thought now would be the perfect time to share a conversation I had a little while ago, with a woman who has more understanding of what it takes to make, or break a political candidate, than almost anyone else in the country.

Her name is Dee Madigan – you’ll know her from Gruen – she’s won pretty much every advertising award going, has been the creative brains behind 10 political campaigns and is the driving force behind Campaign Edge, a dedicated political strategy agency.

In this conversation we looked at what it takes to get someone elected, the impact social media has had on the process, the public’s exhaustion with perfection and polish and what these factors mean for our political leaders moving forward.

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Kamal Sarma - How to be heard, win win conversations and lessons from a Monk in the City

Tue, 12 Jun 2018 20:41:00 GMT

My next guest is someone I have known for many years, Kamal Sarma.

al is the expert in how to Develop the Focus of a Warrior and the Peace of a Monk - in fact that's actually the title of one of his critically acclaimed books.

It’s a big claim – but it’s one that he’s in the unique position to be able to make - because he was one, a monk that is, for 8 years in fact. And since then he’s used the skills around clarity, focus and resilience to dominate in the competitive and fast paced world of venture capitalism.

I first met Kamal after a mutual friend introduced us over ten years ago. At that point he was new to the world of thought leadership – and I was new to the world of meditation. We swapped expertise and what followed was many beautiful peaceful evenings with a monk visiting my home.

Since then he’s become an expert – and I’ve stayed a complete meditating novice. However I have been fortunate enough to access his brilliant insights on many occasions – all of which have been transformative in my own journey with influence.

More recently Kamal has distilled everything he has learnt into his latest book… ‘The Art of Win-Win Conversations: How to Navigate Your Most Challenging, Complex and Critical Conversations Through Connection’

Anyone who has ever sat in a high stakes business conversation, or an emotion fuelled negotiation with a loved one, will know that a win win is the holy grail of conversation outcomes. It’s like the unicorn in the room – a way to get everyone’s needs met.

Interestingly - Kamal defines a win/win best as a conversation where all parties have their needs met.

And therein I think lies the key - so often we don’t get to the bottom of what our partner, client or colleagues actually need. Which when you think about it is a big ask – as more often we’re not even able to fully articulate our own.

Have you ever had that situation – where you would ask for what you need – if only you knew what it was? We can always think of what we don’t want, a thousand way we want someone not to behave – a million situations we want not to occur.

But what we actually want? A clean request we can make that would possible, reasonable and respectful – now that’s difficult. Actually no – sometimes that feels more like impossible.

So now you can see why I so wanted him on the podcast.

What Kamal and I explore in this conversation goes to the heart of what conversation is about - a desire to connect, and in order to connect, we need to feel heard. Once the other person feels truly heard, Kamal's belief (and increasingly my own) is that misunderstanding is often removed, conflict dissolves and the opportunity for connections becomes limitless.

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Karina Holden - Into the Deep: Saving our planet one story at a time

Tue, 29 May 2018 20:06:00 GMT

Karina is the producer genius that has sat behind some of my favourite shows and films over the years, from hard hitting pieces like ‘Go Back to Where You Came From’ – a show that quite literally had the entire of Australia talking and reflecting on how we treat so called ‘boat people’ as was the rhetoric at the time, to hilarious shows like Luke Warm Sex which shone a light on how we approach learning about intimacy.There’s no doubt that her career is a remarkable one, but the particular angle I wanted to take with this conversation was around, not just crafting a wonderful story, whether that’s following the Masai tribe in Africa or tackling the ancient art of spider wrestling in Japan (and don’t worry, you’ll hear about that in a minute) but actually how you go about creating a piece of story telling that actually provokes meaningful change. This is a powerful conversation for anyone who has identified an injustice, and wants to cause people to rise up, and do something about it, and if you do enjoy this episode and want to see more of Karina's awesome work then head down to your local cinema on May 30th and check of advanced screenings of her latest masterpiece, Blue - https://au.demand.film/blue/

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Matt Hall - Decision making at 4000km/ph: A Red Bull pilot's guide to leadership

Tue, 15 May 2018 20:30:37 GMT

My next guest is Red Bull air racing pilot Matt Hall. Matt is a third generation pilot, a former RAAF Fighter Combat Instructor, which if you are a fan of Top Gun you’ll get just how impressive that is, he’s an international unlimited aerobatic competitor and in 2009 became not only the first Australian to ever compete in the Red Bull Air Race World Championship but also the first Rookie to finish a Red Bull race and indeed the entire season on the podium. We looked at what it takes to truly lead at speed. In particular, how do you put your trust in the skills and expertise of others, when one wrong call could end your career and quite possibly your life. And when the inevitable does happen, the crash occurs, and your faith is well and truly shaken, what do you do next? What checks, rituals, tools do you put in place to make sure that you don’t allow one mistake to impact the way you lead moving forward? So this is me and Matt Hall talking the highest of highs, the lowest of lows, and how to lead at speed – enjoy!

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James Kerr - Legacy: Lessons in performance from the All Blacks

Tue, 01 May 2018 16:00:00 GMT

My next guest is the only person that has ever been allowed to go behind the curtain, to study what it is that makes the legendary All Blacks such an unrivalled force in the sporting world.

James Kerr is his name and he has spent most of his professional career studying the culture, patterns and habits of the world’s top performers including the Navy Seals, Manchester City FC and The All Blacks, the fascinating insights of which have formed the foundation of his widely acclaimed book Legacy.

It’s his belief, that by unpacking what it is that makes these teams so extraordinary, we can all lead better teams, businesses and even lives that first made me sit up and take notice of this brilliant man.

think it’s pretty clear to anyone who has ever heard of the All Blacks, which let’s face it, is everyone, why I would be so keen to sit down with the man who’s spent more time studying them up close than anyone out there – as a team, they are the pin ups of high performance, from the moment they step onto the pitch, to the closing of the Hakka, to the end of the game, the influence they have over the pitch and over their opponents is mesmerising. That even I, someone who actively avoids sport, can understand that what they do and how they do it is truly special.

But I found myself, in this conversation, being surprised by the layers of Influence these players master on a day to day basis. From self influence, not letting high stakes situations crush you, to the influence of the collective, working together towards a higher order purpose as a team.

It’s this that I think will be the most powerful takeaway as you listen to James talk – a higher order purpose, bigger than one individuals ego or performance, brought to life by captivating stories and delivered daily through habits and rituals is really the difference between an All Black, and every one else.

But how can you use this everyday to create a performance mindset within your own teams?

In this episode we dive deep into:

Intensity vs. hustle – how to shoot for your goals without your team burning out

Mental tricks for standing your ground – the tools players use to keep a cool head on the field and how these can work in your high stakes situations

The power of totems – why there are wine gums in every All Blacks locker room

Fierce Rituals – how the Haka has never lost its spine chilling power

Shared mission – why the man who lays out the jerseys is as important as the men who wear them

So this is me and James, peeling back the curtain and giving you unfiltered access to the tools of the sporting legends that are The All Blacks team…Enjoy!

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Leonard Brody - The New World Order: What to do with power now it's in your hands

Tue, 17 Apr 2018 16:00:00 GMT

My next guest has been called “the controversial leader of the new world order”, wow, what a title to live up to, but live up to it he does.

Co-founder of citizen journalism site NowPublic - one of the largest news agencies in the world, Leonard is an award- winning entrepreneur, venture capitalist, bestselling author and a two-time Emmy nominated media visionary. In his talks — for clients ranging from the United Nations to Visa and Pepsi — Leonard Brody addresses the rapid pace of change, innovation, and disruption facing us all, and what to do about it. His expertise in this area is unrivalled, so much so that he's been invited to share his insight with the world leaders at the G8 summit and the UN.

The old rules of influence just don't apply any more. The biggest brands aren't products anymore, they are people, the most trusted voices aren't journalists any more they are thought leaders, the biggest funders aren't banks any more they are crowdfunders – and with this democratisation of power, comes unprecedented opportunity, this man is the absolute authority on what this power shift means for us and for those seeking to take hold of their own influence and how to navigate this new world moving forward.

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Jessica Watson - Leadership and loneliness: 210 days at sea

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 16:00:00 GMT

This week’s guest is legendary sportswoman, adventurer, speaker and author Jess Watson.

Jess has navigated some of the world’s most remote oceans and has spent 210 days alone at sea where she became the youngest person to sail solo, nonstop around the world. And if that wasn’t enough to convince you of her awesomeness, she did it at 16, an age when I know I was busy trying to grow out an 80's perm.

I’m not going to spend too long in this interview delving into the physical details of her journey, there’s many an article, documentary and book on that (and I hear rumours a motion picture is in the works). Instead I’m way more interested in hearing from this extraordinary women, about the mental side of tackling such a monumental task.

So, in the next hour, you are going to hear us go deep on a few key areas:

- How do you build and then lead a crew when it’s your life on the line? And when they are infinitely more experienced than you?

- How do you find the courage to voice an audacious dream and shut down the critics? Even when that critic is you.

- How do you get buy in from people when what they are buying into seems impossible?

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Ben Jones - Unskippable: Storytelling in a Digital Age

Tue, 20 Mar 2018 22:30:11 GMT

Do you think advertising is only focused on brand awareness? You’re not alone.

However Creative Director of Google’s Unskippable Labs, Ben Jones, believes the key to influencing consumers these days lies in storytelling – thanks to our intense relationships with digital platforms.

Ben has spent decades creating advertising campaigns and, on a hunch, performed a brief experiment that uncovered something astonishing. The industry didn’t really understand viewing habits anymore. In fact, despite our demand for content, it’s surprisingly one of the most challenging times for advertisers.

I caught up with Ben to talk about his discovery that consumer habits have changed, and we are hungrier than ever for stories. In one hour he shared with me how the rise of mobile has given us the space to explore passions beyond what we could have dreamed, how Netflix has become the master of catering to our attention spans and recognising choice points is vital in the creation of compelling content.

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Judy Atkinson - The (Lost) art of Deep Listening

Thu, 08 Mar 2018 22:52:16 GMT

For those of you who have listened to this podcast before, you'll have heard me talk about an unhelpful belief that so many of us around the people who can and can not influence.

This belief is that only the extroverts, the ones who are completely at home in front of people, whose voices do not wobble when they speak, can really create change. And certainly owning your own voice on stage or in a meeting is a vital component of become an authority in your space, but it's not the only thing.

In this episode, we are going to turn the volume down a little, and we are going to go deep on listening deeply.

Have you ever been in the company of someone who has mastered this skill? It's magnetic. When someone truly shuts down their own ego, their own internal monologue, and focuses single-mindedly on your story, or your truth, it's hard not to fall in love with them.

You walk away feeling seen, you bare things to them that perhaps you've barely allowed yourself to acknowledge until that moment.

Now imagine that skill being applied, not at a dinner party or at a boardroom, but in aboriginal communities with men and women who have experienced real trauma. Who have been forcibly removed from their homes and alienated from their culture, and their families.

That's where my next guest started her journey, working with the disenfranchised, the over looked, who had been so deeply abused that the only way to communicate their suffering was through violence because nobody has taken the time or had the capacity to listen - deeply.

She found a way to connect to them in a trans formative way through deep listening - to heal, not just them, but their entire communities as well.

In so many ways, if we all became better listeners, we'd hear the problems that need solving, whether on a global scale or in our own families and we'd gain a clearer understanding of how to solve them.

I'm Julie Masters and Welcome to Inside Influence, the podcast where it's my job to talk to interesting and influential people about what it takes to create change, a movement, gain traction behind an idea and then extract these lessons so we can begin to use these in our own lives and on our own paths of influence.

This week's guest is Judy Atkinson - and it's safe to say, and you'll hear this in my voice throughout this conversation, I m in quiet awe of her. Judy is an expert in understanding healing and recovery from trauma in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

At the core of her approach to healing is her focus on listening. She understands that, In order to heal, the stories behind the trauma must be heard.

Because of this skill she was an integral part of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Task Force on Violence Report, for the Queensland government. She's an author, a retired lectured, a TED speaker and she continues to receive humanitarian and academic awards for her transformational work including the 2011 Fritz Redlich Memorial award for Human Rights and Mental Health from Harvard University.

In this conversation - which, by the way, happened in a car park in boiling hot Lismore because this was the only way I could make this happen, and it really needed to happen, - I wanted to talk to Judy about the process of listening deeply - how do get yourself in the mindspace to absorb someones story.

· Once you are in that mindset - how do you stay there?

· How do you ensure you are creating a safe space for the other person to open up?

· And what do you do if you don't necessarily like, or feel comfortable, or feel qualified to deal with what comes out?

· And what do you do next?

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Bronwyn King - Your money, your influence: How to change the world without becoming an activist

Tue, 20 Feb 2018 17:00:00 GMT

1 billion, that’s the number of deaths due to tobacco that will have happened this century.

8 billion, that’s the amount of money that used to be invested in the tobacco that now, isn’t

Bronwyn King is the person responsible for that last number, and as an oncologist, she’s spent her career trying to stop the effects of the first number.

But it was only when she sat down with her financial planner to look over her family’s money, did she realise that she and millions of other Australians were unknowingly funding the very thing that was killing them through the investment of their super fund.

But instead of getting angry, really angry, stomping her feet and yelling at the front door of the tobacco industry, (which is something I feel I might do) and instead of throwing her hands up and putting this injustice in the ‘stuff it – way too hard’ bucket she did something way smarter.

She got forensic about her own ability to influence. She went to the power brokers of the tobacco industry – the people that invest in them, and compelled them to change.

And if that isn’t the ultimate example of owning your own influence, I don’t know what is.

In the next 30 minutes you’ll hear us talk about what happens when a cause finds you. We look at some of the tools she used to get a seat at the table with some seriously powerful people. We talk about using compelling language, finding the right buttons to push, how to make simple requests and how sometimes you need to go against the ‘activist norms’ to make change happen.

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Daniel Flynn - How to start a Global Movement: Lessons from Thank You

Tue, 06 Feb 2018 17:00:00 GMT

The Australian bottled water industry is worth a whopping 600 million dollars a year. Now that's a lot when you think about the fact that we can access water for free every day from the taps in our homes.

Here's another fact that's possibly more heartbreaking than it is interesting. The number of people who don't have access to clean water is close to three times that, it's 900 million people. Now if you're anything like me you hear that number and you just want to throw your hands up in the air, too hard, way too big.

However at the age of 19 my next guest came across those same two numbers and he made a different choice. He created a thriving company, a company which to date has donated nearly six million dollars in profits to get safe water sanitation food and maternal health programs to people in need.

So what does it really take to turn a moment of passion you know the moment of that's just not good enough into a global movement. Not only a movement but a profitable company with the infrastructure and strength to actually tackle some of the world's largest social issues.

Welcome to my interview with Thank You's founder Daniel Flynn.

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Yossi Ghinsberg - From the Amazon to Hollywood: Storytelling with soul

Tue, 23 Jan 2018 17:00:00 GMT

One trek through the rainforest, one life changing decision and one three week incredible fight for survival. It all sounds like the plot of a Hollywood movie right? Actually now it is, but before this story became a big screen blockbuster, one man lived through it and that man is my next guest, Yossi Ghinsberg. Stories connect us emotionally. They turn us into the heroes of our own journeys. And if you're looking to increase your own influence we are literally hardwired to engage with stories more so than any other form of communication. So what does it take to tell epic stories and not only that, what does it take to tell them in such a way that your audience is literally transported through time and space?

In this episode I find out from Yossi what gives a story soul. We talk about how to prepare to be truly present on stage and we look at what it takes to let your own story go, and allow others to interpret it in their own way.

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Julie Masters - My Top 3 New Years resolutions to lift my own influence

Tue, 09 Jan 2018 17:00:00 GMT

Happy New Year everyone. Welcome to 2018.

Now with this episode we decided to do something a little bit different and we decided just to keep it really simple.

Firstly because it's Christmas and we wanted a break. Secondly because, if your attention span is anything like mine during this time of year, simple is just good.

So for this one I wanted to share, and actually actually start a conversation with you, about New Year's resolutions. Now I know that that's a contentious topic. Some people love them some people hate them, but for me I find it a really useful way every year to just focus my thinking right down into what I want to do differently this year.

So I'll share a few of mine and these are based totally on what I've learnt from the people I've interviewed for this podcast so far. And I wanna hear a little bit more about yours as well. And I want to invite you to publicly share what your influence resolutions are going to be for this year and how you're planning on executing them via my social accounts:

Insta @Jules.Masters

LinkedIn: Julie Masters

Twitter: @Jules_Masters

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Silvia Damiano - How to rewire your brain for influence

Tue, 19 Dec 2017 17:00:00 GMT

How does your biology impact your intuition? How can understanding of neuroscience help you be a better leader? And what can a brain scan tell us about depression?

Sylvia Damiano is a self described part Gloria from Modern Family and part neuroscientist. And if you think that that would make for an awe inspiring combination. It does. She has spent her career immersed in getting to grips with how our brains actually work. More recently she's taken this deep understanding and applied it to the modern world of leadership and influence. What that's resulted in is a new view of leadership, where instead of command and control, leaders instead need to master attractorship which she described as developing the skills and awareness to invite, rather than demand, cooperation.

Silvia is giving our listeners exclusive discounts to her online training courses (15% off for 15 days) by using the code: 15juliemasters, just head to www.aboutmybrain.com/create-the-leader-in-you

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John Hall - The keys to content cut through

Tue, 05 Dec 2017 17:00:00 GMT

John Hall is the creator of one of the world's most influential influence agencies and yes that is a bit of a mouthful. The name of that agency? Influence and Co. Check them out online, they have been ranked the number one company dominating content marketing in the world. What these guys don't know about getting cut through in magazines and online isn't worth knowing. In the last few years alone they have provided content has been featured in thousands of the world's largest publications all on behalf of different corporations and individuals looking to stand out in their marketplace. John Hall himself is regularly featured in Forbes, he's created a best selling book which is now out, called 'Top of Mind' and he's graced the stage of some of the largest conferences in the world. He has been described as one of the most powerful people in media that you've never met in inc. magazine. In this episode I managed to grab John on the run to talk about a number of different things to do with content and influence. A few of those include:

Charisma vs. credibility. What's most important?

What makes a piece of content compelling?

How do you put yourself in a position of visibility to grow your business or brand?

And why failure really isn't that different to success.

So for now sit back and enjoy my conversation with John Hall.

Visit my website to hear more about the work I do, www.juliemasters.com or follow me on insta @julesmasters

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Dorie Clark - How to move from Influence to Income

Tue, 21 Nov 2017 17:00:00 GMT

How do you go from an idea to influence to income. Often we only hear about the two polarities. We hear about people who got a great idea, who put a lot of time and effort into building their influence with very little results. And then there's the multi-millionaires who are living in a New York loft apartment who, just last week, were living in their parents basement but then they discovered this Killer system and now they are uber successful. So what does it take to actually build a business as an influencer?

It's called 'Entrepreneurial You' and I would urge you to go out and get it. In this episode we discuss how to find your breakthrough idea. We discuss the keys to building a following when starting from scratch. Why most success stories you see on Facebook aren't true and why fear plus 10 percent is the magic number when it comes to turning it expertise into income.

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Alison Hill - Stand out, do the work and be seen

Tue, 07 Nov 2017 21:15:12 GMT

Tell me what you're paying attention to. And I will tell you who you are. That's a quote from this episode's guest Alison Hill. Alison started her career as a professional psychologist or head mechanic. She likes to call it where she spent many years tweaking the minds of top performers as an in demand coach with some of the world's largest companies including BHB McDonald's. The names go on. I actually met Alison for the first time a number of years ago very briefly and she stood out to me as a woman of impeccable energy. I can't think of a better description than that, she just has this sense about her as a woman who very much owns her own space. So when I got off the plane about six months ago in Melbourne and I saw this giant light box with her, having launched her own book "stand out - a real world guide to get clear find purpose and become the boss of busy" I knew we had to get her on the show. So as you know in this podcast we take a behind the scenes look into influence and I want to talk to Alison about how we influence ourselves. I'm a big believer that your ability to influence is 100 percent correlated to what or who you let in i.e. what you allow to influence you where you put your attention or time. The stories you tell yourself the distractions you allow to take over. So we talk about getting forensic about that about how you manage create and defend your own boundaries.

Secondly we talk about freaking out checking out and burning out or words which unfortunately we're generally all too familiar with either in ourselves or in the people we love. How do you notice. How do you turn that ship around. How do you get back on track so you can live a standout life. Thirdly we talk about choosing to stand out and how it will always ultimately cost you your old identity. And how you get around that how you get around the resistance associated with that Allison has her own amazing journey. Standing out or choosing to stand out as a speaker as an author and step out from behind the brand and it all started with a post it note that said "do the work be seen" that she stuck to her desk. And if nothing else I hope that as a result of listening to this episode you leave with some tools to do the same.

Buy the book: http://www.alisonhill.com.au/stand-out-1

Find out more about me and the work I do at juliemasters.com or follow me on instagram at jules.masters

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Henry Mason - A futurists guide to knowing what's next

Tue, 24 Oct 2017 16:00:00 GMT

For anyone looking to be an authority in their industry I can promise you that being able to stay five steps ahead of the others in your space is one of the keys.

How exactly do you track trends? Where do you look? How do you take something on the fringe of what's going on, and make it relevant to the people that you're interested in influencing? How do you use that to drive the next big game changing conversation in your industry?

And what if what if the answer to all of that was to firstly stop looking where everybody else is looking?

Henry Mason is the master of determining trends over fads, this London based think tank has been across the innovations that are transforming today for many years - he decodes for us how to get ahead of what's next.

Find out more about me and the work I do at juliemasters.com or follow me on instagram at jules.masters

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Allan Parker - The road to consensus from a U.N. facilitator

Wed, 04 Oct 2017 01:50:51 GMT

I want you to imagine that for the first 30 years of your life you couldn't read. Then fast forward 10 years and imagine finding yourself at the world investment forum having been invited to facilitate 462 people. One hundred ninety three countries countless languages. And your role is to make sure that they are all heard. It's all recorded and that an agreement is found. That's the role and the history of our next guest Alan Parker.

When we first put this podcast together he was one of the very first people I decided that I had to have on the show. In the hour we spent together we talked about introverts versus extroverts, we talked about conflict and getting people out of pre-programmed adversarial responses, we talked about having an intention rather than answers. We talked about consensus and what it takes to produce more than everybody wants, as opposed to what everybody wants and how that differs with a large number of stakeholders to a small number of stakeholders. He is just some kind of Sensei in this world and I hope you take something pivotal from this because I guarantee you there's more than one lesson in here to be learned about influence and dealing with group like conversations.

Find out more about me and the work I do at juliemasters.com or follow me on instagram at jules.masters

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Janine Garner - Who has your back? How to build a high impact network

Wed, 04 Oct 2017 01:50:24 GMT

Former U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt once said I'm not the smartest fellow in the world but I sure can pick smart colleagues. Building a high impact community of people around you who are smarter or more experienced than you in a variety different areas is one of the largest things you can do to fast track or up the ante on your own influence. Essentially having a speed dial of your own A Team, I know it's certainly been one of the challenges in my own journey. How do you find the right people and then when you found them how do you approach them. How do you not sound like some strange deranged stalker. How do you come across as professional but still be open enough to discuss some of the actual challenges and roadblocks that you're currently facing? How do you get that mix right?

Luckily for me obviously and luckily for you my next guest has decoded it all. Janine Garner is the author of the newly launched "It's who you know - how a network of 12 key people can fast track your success". She spent 20 years working across the world in corporate marketing roles with some of the world's largest brands. She then went on to be the founder and CEO of the little black dress group which is one of the most influential women's networking groups in the country. She was listed as one of Australia's most inspiring women by Madison magazine. And if that is not all impressive enough she like me started out in Australia knowing no one as a backpacker so we chat a little bit about that.

We went right in to the difference between how we're all connected right now but not really connected We've got more contacts than ever before but less engagement and we're feeling less engaged and less connected than we have done previously. We talk about finding your board, finding your board of people around you who's going to help you get where you want to go. We talking about value exchange, we talk about how do you know when it's time to move on from a certain contact or a certain group of contacts. And how do you make that shift. We also talked about the role of courage. Big one for me. Role of courage and certainty in a reaching out and getting those connections.

Buy the book: http://janinegarner.com.au/product/its-who-you-know/

Find out more about me and the work I do at juliemaster.com and follow me on instagram jules.masters

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Chris Voss - How to negotiate like your life depends on it

Sat, 30 Sep 2017 07:17:05 GMT

My next guest Chris Voss was the FBI lead kidnapping negotiator and what that means is he had to understand influence at a level and with stakes that you and I can barely imagine. During his 24 year tenure in the FBI He was trained in the art of negotiation at Scotland Yard at Harvard Law School. He is also the recipient of the Attorney General's Award for Excellence in law enforcement and has taught business negotiation at a number of prestigious universities around the world. He is the founder and CEO of The Black Swan Group and he's also also the author of Never split the difference which is a book that I genuinely cannot recommend highly enough. If negotiating persuading or influencing is a part of your daily life which I can promise you it is. In our conversation we jumped in to a number of really fascinating ideas. The first of which was how yes is actually the last thing we want to hear which blew my mind because I had assumed that negotiation was all about getting to a Yes and apparently not one single hostage negotiation technique is designed to get a yes. What are they designed for. You'll have to listen. We talk about high stakes conversations. How does he prepare. His mental state going into these conversations where literally lives are on the line. We talked about delivering bad news. How to do it quickly and efficiently and get straight into what's next.

I invite you to sit back and listen and take a fascinating peek behind the curtain of what has to have been one of the most interesting careers I've ever heard of. And as a result take some tools and in the words of Chris start negotiating like your life depends on it.

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