In this episode I outline a method of turning risk completely on its head that I developed which gets killer outcomes for everyone involved.   When most of us here the word Risk Management Plan we start thinking red tape, no more freedom and a group of expensive auditors at your door to analyse your business inside out.   If you’ve ever had the risk auditors turn up and trawl through your business telling you all the things you need to write a report on about you’ll stop major events happening you’ll know the meaning of paperwork.   Richard Branson. Never made a deal he could lose on.   “As an adventurer...I try to protect against the downside. I make sure I have covered as many eventualities as I can. In the end, you have to take calculated risks; otherwise you're going to sit in mothballs all day and do nothing.”   Throughout my business life I have always tried to keep on top of costs and protect the downside risk as much possible. The Virgin Group has survived only because we have always kept tight control of our cash. But, likewise, I also know that sometimes it is essential to break these rules and spend lavishly. Richard Branson   Don’t get me wrong, there is always a time and place for risk management plans. But they have a serious problem. Ask yourself a questions, when was the last time you got out your Risk Management Plan and assessed every aspect in detail?   The major problem with risk management plans is that they don’t get big buy-in.   In a business sense risk has a bad wrap. It defensive and often negative. And here is the MAJOR reason why.   It is all about stopping things happening. Stopping sucks the energy out of a room. It’s not motivating. It doesn’t draw people up to their best performance.   What I do with clients is flip it on it’s head.   How does risk assessment traditionally work: Risk is generally assessed against the impact and likelihood of bad event happening. It is at this point that it gets put into a matrix, given a code and then managed through a risk management plan.   This is where the psychology of high performance disagrees with this approach. The process loses focus on the outcome. Instead it sends people into the minute details of defence rather than that key steps to a positive and bigger outcome.   To spin it on it’s head what we do is put a new event up. E.g.   Zero Safety Incidents Successful $100M Business Deal Announced to Market Perfect Implementation of new business system   At this point we plot, the outcome on the traditional risk matrix. I.e. What is the current likelihood of the outcome happening and what is the size of the impact?   Now we optimise the hell out of it. Drive it up by increasing the likelihood and increasing the impact. What you’ll find is that people now are shoring up their plans with positive actions that are energising. What’s more you’ll note that the likelihood of failure also plummets.   What this means is you start to take calculated risks and have done everything you can to increase the likelihood of success.   YOUR PROCESS OF OPTIMISING RISK   Define the outcome Plot it on a matrix with the likelihood of success and positive impact on the business Record all your assumptions Partnerships Resourcing Budget Relationships with key stakeholders Plan how you can increase likelihood and impact through:   Chief, what I recommend you do then is flip it back on its head and do the traditional method to give it a different lens. And then return this method.   Stay epic   I’ve put all the show notes on the website at www.chiefmaker.com.au/63

In this episode we hear from Super Rugby Club, the Melbourne Rebels CEO, Baden Stephenson. Baden's path to CEO has been different to most as he transitions from coaching and operations and finally getting his first CEO role in 2017. He was heavily involved as a GM of rugby in the drama of 2017 when the Melbourne Rebels battled to keep their super rugby licence. At the conclusion of, he was selected to lead the club into the future. Questions I ask Baden: What did you learn from the elite sport side of rugby that has translated to the business and administration side? What was the most brutal feedback you ever received that you knew to be true? What do people misunderstand about professional sporting clubs? What are the major setbacks you’ve had? How do you lead high performers?   Key Points from Baden: On what he learnt from his wife’s battle with cancer: I think now when I'm dealing with people, I think it has certainly improved my emotional empathy for players and stuff, when they've got family issues, having gone through that experience myself. On the Rebels almost being cut and what it was like being in the inner sanctum: It was really tough. There's no way to sugarcoat it. It was highly emotional and highly stressful, and when you also throw in uncertainty ... It's just a character or a feeling that no one likes, and I found that you had from players, the staff to management ... that everyone deals with uncertainty in different ways, but it's not a nice thing to go through. And sometimes uncertainty might last a day or week, but this was odd going for months. I had players in tears in my office. I had wives and kids of players and staff that they're unstable relationships, and you know, do I enrol in school, do I take out a lease, what are we doing? What's the future hold? On what he learned from elite sport: I think what I have learned as a player, as a coach, administrator or management, is that it's not always gonna be a straight line, and you've gotta be flexible, and you're just gonna have to deal with the challenges and get back on the horse, and sometimes you get bucked off real hard, and ... in a position that I'm in, if I don't show resilience, I can't expect everyone else to show resilience That was something that I really learned and liked about Sydney University ... that it didn't matter what year it was or who was in the team or how the club was going ... but the expectations were very clear and high. What he learnt from mentors: when there was issues, he addressed them really quickly. He didn't let them manifest ... He dealt with them, and he did it in a personal way. On mindsets: Your emotions are contagious, and it's important that ... if people are up, often people will follow, and likewise if they're down, and I think that we had just gone through such a long period of sort of dark clouds hanging over the club that you almost forget ... And I would've been as guilty as anyone ... you almost forget that you're in a privileged position. You're working in sport. You've got a huge opportunity, and you're around like-minded people, so ... I think that understanding your mindset and what sort of attitude you bring into the workplace every day is something that, I think we're all working on. On the importance of making people feel valued: make sure that people feel valued in your organisation, and I think that, as we talked about before, sporting organisations can be quite brutal, but I think if you're going to get the best of them ... if people feel valued, they'll go over and above for you, and be passionate and be really driven ... if they're feeling valued See more at www.chiefmaker.com.au/62

In this episode we explore the incredible power of ritual and tradition in building your tribe and I share 3 magic traditions that will boost any team spirit and most importantly the role of the chief in leading them.   Traditions and rituals in a business sense are the stories, language, gatherings, symbols that give a team deeper meaning and a sense of belonging.   They reinforce what you stand for, what you believe in, what you have in common and that you share something.   Tradition comes from an inner space that is seeking meaning, deep human connection and understanding. All of us long for traditions, they nourish our spirits and when at their best, they ennoble us and those around us.   When work feels soulless, like it crushing your spirit, people are sacrificing, people aren’t committed to the team or their work. Won’t go the extra mile for each. Bicker and fight. Good people are leaving and average people are staying. Then there is a good chance you haven’t got the right rituals and traditions.   In a classic sense think anthems before a big sporting fixture, the All Blacks haka and traditional Australian response of uniting arm and arm and accepting the challenge, think huddles, think catchphrases, stories being told and annual trips, awards and celebrations.   These all have an inordinate effect on culture and spirit of a group whatever the size.   Team spirit flourishes with positive rituals and traditions and is toxic when they’re lacking or negative. In the words of The Inner Chief’s spiritual mentor, Damien Price:   “They express - beyond words, our common bonds, our core values, our reason for wanting to belong and our shared purpose. So often the best traditions are small and simple but speak straight to the heart of the matter.”   See more at Chiefmaker.com.au/61  

In this episodes we hear from CEO and authority guru Steve Brossman on  Making on Sales Easy and and Being and Enterprise of One.   Steve is a former National Professional Track Champion and is the Author of two Amazon No.1 Best Sellers ‘Stand Up, Stand Out or Stand Aside’ and ‘The Authority Client Attraction System”.   He has created several 6 and 7 figure businesses of his own, including inventing and marketing an environmental product selling 4 million units into 26 Countries.     With over 20 years TV and video experience including hosting and producing his own TV Show on Ch 9 and appearing on TV in 5 Continents he is one of Australia’s most experienced Video presenter trainers.     Steve has spoken in 15 countries and trained over 32,000 Speakers, Coaches and Business Owners to Stand out in their market.     Recognised as real influencers Pam and Steve were invited to a high-level mastermind with Richard Branson on his own Necker Island.   With a desire to help professionals overcome their fear of selling Steve has created the Blueprint Conversion System. This breakthrough program is changing the way professionals market and sell their services.   Questions I ask Steve:   Why do people fear sales so much? How do people build authority within their organisation or as a small business? What is it like working Sir Richard Branson on Necker Island? What is the difference between an expert and someone with authority What is the biggest mistake people make in sales? What separates the top 1% of sales people from every other person?   Key Points from Steve:   One of my mentors once said, "You're not in the job of your profession, your profession is marketing what you do." An expert knows something, an authority is known for something.Now in corporate world, you could be an authority within the corporate world. What most people don't do is go and look at what their strengths are. Not only what their strengths are, but what that means to other people. I do work in the corporate world, and with individuals as well. I try and teach them to be their own what I call a personal enterprise. That they've got to run their own business within the corporate. They've got to be seen as a leader and authority to stand out in that business. That person is the go-to person for something. Work out what is your own uniqueness, what you want to be known for. What are the outcomes that you deliver for the people in your own organisation, or for your clients and customers, if you're a business owner. I love bringing sporting analogies, and you'll appreciate this one, is that once they're known for that, and they're delivering and exceeding the delivery, exceeding the values that they're providing for other people, they need to do it in two ways. They need to do it in their playing field, and that's with and for people that they're interacting on a daily basis. That's providing great service, and it's other people seeing that they're providing great service. So that's down on the playing field, but what they also should be looking at is the perception from the stands. The people that may or may not be interacting, but potentially are going to be responsible for, or actually reporting to those responsible for that person getting a promotion, or getting up the corporate ladder. That's the thing, it's not the fear of selling. If you're selling yourself, if you're a professional, it's the fear of personal rejection. The philosophy is sell the system, not yourself. When you take it away from selling yourself, and I get them to pictorialize their system in a way that it is a graphic blueprint. Because we absorb images, verbal is linear. "This is the system. This is my blueprint for success for you." Then they start saying, "Well, this is the different ways that we could help. This is the different value that we could have." They're collecting value as they're going along, and at the end of it, the perceived value was greater than the investment. Does it make sense we implement this sooner rather than later? So it's a collaboration, people like collaborating. As you're going through, you're collaborating, you're working with that person. They're coming in with some ideas, so you're co-creating a solution. By the time you get to end of it, they've co-created the solution, so the objections are not there. My definition of sales, and I heard it from a mentor many, many years ago, was professionally servicing other people's needs for a mutually beneficial gain. The people that just jump in, and just solve a need, are going to be just solving those needs. They're just order takers, and they're going to make much less sales. So the real good salesmen, elite salespeople, really understand more than just what the problem is. What is that problem causing? What are the emotional effects that that problem is going to cause? How can we solve all of those? They're the elite sales people. They take the time to understand more than just what they need to sell. The purpose is to take the viewer or the prospect along an emotional journey, where in the end, in their mind, they're making a logical decision to do whatever the next step is. If you've done it right, you've given them enough emotion. You've taken them on that emotional journey, but you still have enough facts in there, that in their mind they're making a logical decision. "I've got to do that. I've just got to have that," and that's what it's all about. I love LinkedIn, so they can connect with me directly on LinkedIn. I make it very hard for people to find me on the web. It's stevebrossman.com. If they do actually want to email me personally, I do respond personally. It's even harder, [email protected]. One of the biggest things that most people don't know is the way Richard actually operates. He works in two hour shifts, and the way he works is he just gets paid to think. You access his brain, he has got two assistants beside him. They'll ask a question or outline something, and he will answer and go into that. They'll start reporting that while the other person asks a question, and he just gets paid to think. The other thing that's interesting about him, it's almost embarrassing. When he's talking to you, and particularly when you're just sitting there having breakfast one-on-one, you feel embarrassed, because you feel as if he's trying to pick your brain. You feel as if he's trying to learn from you, and he remembers. That's the big thing, is you learn to be present. That's why he is very successful. He is present, he listens, but all he does is he gets paid to think, not do.

In this episode we talk about executing your Life Vision as part 2. If you haven’t listened to Episode 57 of building your Life Vision I’d recommend doing that first.   There is an old saying, “Vision without execution is just a dream”.  And, chief, I’ve got a confession so make this was me. I was a dreamer with all sorts of grand ideas about who or what I’d become. I always had new ideas and goals that all seemed to flow from my creative mind.  I was the line from poem “George Gray” by Edgar Lee Masters that I read in Ep 57 on building your life vision...“a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid.” I was stuck in my own sheltered harbour. Not willing to do the hard work break the boundaries, to look inside myself at the things I liked about myself the least or the limiting beliefs I held and grow beyond them.  It was only when I realised that all greatness requires challenge. It will requires a thousand steps one after the other to change my game. One must have a vision and one must execute. I’ve seen too many people with only one part of the pie.  In Life Vision Part 1 we did some dreaming and created your life vision. Now we focus on execution. We take specific planned action towards our goals. 

In this week’s episode we meet Katrina McCarter the Founder and CEO of Marketing to Mums. She is a Marketing Strategist, Best-selling Author, Speaker and Advisor, who specialises in helping businesses sell more to world’s most powerful consumer, Mums.   An award-winning businesswoman and mother of three, Katrina founded an award winning online shopping website for mums called Bubbler.com.au which she grew to a community of 150,000.   Katrina is the author of bestselling business book, Marketing to Mums, and is a regular contributor to business media.   See more at www.chiefmaker.com.au/58 QUESTIONS I ASK KATRINA   What is the biggest mistake organisations make in marketing to mums? What are the steps people should follow if they’re thinking about starting out on their own? How can people be more influential through their own work in large organisations? What is an intrapreneur and how can professionals be one? How have you planned the future of your life? How can people build more confidence in their work and in the early stages of starting their own business? What kind of structures should they put in place to be more effective?

In this episode we build your own Life & Career Vision. "George Gray" I have studied many times The marble which was chiseled for me-- A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor. In truth it pictures not my destination But my life. For love was offered me and I shrank from its disillusionment; Sorrow knocked at my door, but I was afraid; Ambition called to me, but I dreaded the chances. Yet all the while I hungered for meaning in my life. And now I know that we must lift the sail And catch the winds of destiny Wherever they drive the boat. To put meaning in one's life may end in madness, But life without meaning is the torture Of restlessness and vague desire-- It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid. - Edgar Lee Masters, 1868 - 1950 To leave the harbour chief we must start with a destination. One that inspires us and drives us to personal greatness. In this episode we will talk through creating your own Life Vision.    The very first time I did a vision board was in 2007. It was a transformative period of my life and I was reading self-help books by the dozen. They ALL said you need a vision. Without it you simply don’t know what direction you’re going. They said it’s like when you decide you want to go away for a weekend and what you do first is imagine what the perfect weekend would be like you create a vision in your head. Then you go about finding the right region, accommodation and activities that’ll help you achieve your vision. It all starts with vision. Without the vision you don’t even leave your home in the first place. 

In this week’s episode we meet Mastery of Money Guru Adam Carroll. Adam is an internationally recognized financial literacy expert, author and speaker. He is a two-time TED talk speaker, with one of his talks surpassing 2 million views. Adam is the founder and curator of www.MasteryOfMoney.com, and creator of the documentary film, Broke Busted & Disgusted. His passion is helping people build a bigger life, not a bigger lifestyle. See more at www.chiefmaker.com.au/56 QUESTIONS I ASK ADAM What did you learn from your $10,000 experiment on your kids? How do we cultivate Owners Mentality in ourselves and our people?   What is the biggest mindset shift you think we as individuals need to make? What do you mean by building a bigger life not a bigger lifestyle? KEY POINTS BY ADAM CARROLL   I think the biggest mistake is we wait. We wait for other people to recognise our greatness instead of claiming our greatness and helping other people see it. I've always in my life held high intention but low attachment. I have really high intention that things are going to happen, but I'm not directly attached to the outcome always. A good friend of mine one time told me he said when something is placed on your heart, that idea that burning desire, that thing that you absolutely must go do, your head will attempt to justify. It will say no Greg you can't do that, you’re not old enough, wise enough, rich enough, famous enough, et cetera. But your heart will never justify. Your heart will always want what the heart wants because that’s what God put in your heart for you to go do or the universe or whatever being you believe in. So, if there's something on your heart that continues to come up pursue it, go after it, it’s there for a reason and that is your service freedom. If you have re-orient your life to go do it by all means go do it. You said in chief maker be bold and make a difference. Bold is not just offering help but it’s asking for help. Because when we don’t ask for help we deny someone the ability to offer help or to give help See yourself as the architect of your own life If you’re going to build a big life, you have to ask yourself really big questions. The questions that people would ask themselves were around, I don’t know how to do this but if I did, what would I do first? Or they would say, I really want to live a vacation lifestyle, what would I need to do to live a vacation lifestyle? Then they let those questions simmer in their subconscious. You know as well as I do that your subconscious mind is the most powerful super computer ever designed. Its goal is to answer the question that are posed to it. There are three things required for shared ownership and I think that’s what you’re talking about is shared ownership. Not just one person owns it but everybody owns it, right. The three things required for shared ownership are information, so telling people all the information necessary to be informed of decisions that are being made. So information, decision making, meaning how many people are involved in the decision of do we do this, do we not, do we spend this money do we not, do we invest this do we not. The last thing is consequences. If there is information and there's decision making and there are consequences understood then we have shared ownership. Zig Ziglar says, money is not everything, it’s not the most important thing, but it certainly ranks right up there with Oxygen on the got to have it scale We will say and I have heard parents say I love my kids, I don’t want them to struggle. So as a result I take care of everything for them, I buy them what they need, I pay for their meals. When we go to the store and they want a toy I pay for it. So, what we started doing was saying I love my kids and I want them to struggle. Because people who struggle financially especially when they’re young and they make solid decisions with small amounts of money they become really successful adults who make solid decisions around large amounts of money. So that’s the goal is we try and give our kids the ability to make mistakes around money at a very early age so we can correct and change their behaviour down the road. The way I define love, I will greet each day with love in my heart. The whole idea was that love is the greatest weapon and the greatest shield because no one that I encounter when I use love can defend against it differently than lifestyle, is life for me is about financial freedom, it’s about time freedom, it’s about relationship freedom and it’s about service freedom, those four things, money, time, relationships and service. If I have the freedom to do all those four things I have a real big life. Behaviour is multi causal, it’s multi functional and it’s multi dimensional. So, we don’t know why people behave the way they behave, nor can we assume to know because there are so many different things that can impact behaviour.

In this episode we build your own Life Scoreboard.   Like most successful professionals, you probably started your career with clear ideas about what you wanted to do and who you wanted to become. Then, as time progressed, you got caught up in the corporate life. Before you knew it, you were running from one meeting to the next, and what you expected of yourself started to come second to what others expected of you. Add to the equation the responsibilities that come with a family and a mortgage and it’s easy to see why so many of us fall into this trap. We look forward to time away from work, but the four weeks of leave most of us take a year don’t ever seem enough.   It just doesn’t feel like living.     Years fly by, seemingly at the speed of light, and no matter how hard you try you can’t seem to slow it down. You may even have started to feel a little lost, disconnected from our soul, and of control as the year has progressed you don’t feel as comfortable in your own skin. You’re not coming from a place of personal strength and centredness. And worst of all you know you’re not reaching your potential in any area of your life.   One of the many great lessons I’ve learnt from elite sport is their infatuation with analysis and then how they present data as useful information to athletes and coaches. One particular scoreboard really resonated with me. This was the elite athlete scoreboard at the QLD Reds for their academy players. Every player had a set of measures they needed to reach in every part of their game. It was the technical, tactical, mental, physical, social elements of their development. They had benchmarks they had to achieve every year and this was updated regularly in red, amber, green when a particular element was out of sync. Essentially they could identify when players were out of balance and how that was affecting other parts of their game. They wanted well-rounded and growing young men and women in their programs.   This gave them a baseline for taking intentional action to stay in balance.  As Michael E Gerber said: "The difference between great people and everyone else is that great people create their lives actively, while everyone else is created by their lives, passively waiting to see where life takes them next. The difference between the two is the difference between living fully and just existing."                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       —Michael E. Gerber About 10 years ago I developed my first vision board for my life and then I added to it a Life Scoreboard. This Life Scoreboard is a pictorial representation of how I’m performing in all the most important elements of my life. Things like my relationship with my wife and kids, wider family, best friends, my career and legacy, finances, health, mastery, travel, spirit and dreams.   I use this scoreboard religiously. It gives me immediate insight into how I can improve an element or two to improve my overall life. And whenever I’m feeling down, out of whack I return to this. It normally takes about 5 mins and I’m back on track at least with some actions to take.   The thing is we’ve all met the guy or gal that is all about their fitness. They spend all their time thinking that the fitter they get the happier they’ll be while so many other elements are suffering. The same of the social butterfly who has a fear of missing out syndrome out of control but as a result never re-centres, loses their fitness or the spiritual guru who spends all their time in meditation but becomes disconnected from the world. In the end, your Life Scoreboard is about YOUR journey and what is RIGHT FOR YOU. No one else’s scoreboard is yours. We are all so beautifully unique. So treat it as a process of reconnection to WHO YOU TRULY ARE.   I want to talk you through a Four Step Process now for you to develop your own Life Scoreboard:   Define each of categories The elements of your scoreboard are totally up to you. We’ve provided an example but you need to work out what is most important to you. On each element give yourself a gut-feel score out of 10 Score yourself out of 10 On any item that you scored lower than 7 define anything you can do in the next 48 hours to boost that score Pick low hanging fruit Identify ways you can boost scores by combining pursuits and any other longer activities to get your score higher Kill two birds with one stone   Remember, this is about YOU. Think deeply as to why you’re giving certain scores. What is the root cause? How can you bring your greatest self to the table.   The Life Scoreboard is a vital tool in becoming the CHIEF of your Career and Life. Use it wisely, use it often and I guarantee you’ll find yourself coming from a play of personal centredness and power. Then and only then are you a true CHIEF.   For a detailed example and steps I’ve created a page with all those resources at www.chiefmaker.com.au/55.

In this episode we meet Alex Mandossian. Alex has helped his clients generate over $203 million in sales from TV spots, infomercials, national retail catalogs, direct mail, web marketing and postcards. Here is what Mark Victor Hansen, public speaker and best-selling author of Chicken Soup For The Soul and One Minute Millionaire series, has to say about Alex:  “The first time I watched and heard Alex Mandossian give a marketing presentation, my pen ran out of ink because I took so many notes! Alex’s greatest gift is the way he uses the power of stories to make his marketing strategies stick in your mind.” He has coached George Foreman, Larry King, Russell Brunson, Jay Abraham, Brian Tracy, Jack Canfield, Brendon Buchard, Alexandria Brown, Barbara DeAngelis to name a few. He is the also the subject of many books on marketing and selling, the author of Alexisms, host of the iTunes top podcast All Selling Aside and just an all round good bloke.

In this episode I countdown the top 5 lessons from the first year.   When I chat to listeners they all tell me they’ve got a favourite guest from the show and every chief has been mentioned. It just goes to show that there is NO single way to be a chief.   In putting this list together I studied the transcripts of 28 episodes and found the most common themes and I’ve included one quote from each of our chiefs and gurus.   Righto Chiefs counting down from 5 to 1 here are the Top 5 lessons from the last year.     Go to www.chiefmaker.com.au/53 for full summary. 

This week’s episode welcomes Jame Whittaker. James has interviewed more than 100 of the world’s most revered business leaders, cultural icons and athletes to unlock their secrets to success. People like Oprah Winfrey, Lewis Howes, Bob Proctor, Barbara Corcoran...in all 100 legends of our time. Today, the bestselling author, speaker, entrepreneur and film producer draws on his unique experience to give people the tools to take ownership of their financial, physical and mental health. His book and new movie are “Think & Grow Rich: the Legacy”.   More at www.chiefmaker.com.au/52

In this episode we dive deep into Meticulous Preparation. Most of you have heard me wax lyrical about systemising high performance by using a High Performance Lifecycle like Prepare, Perform, Recover, Review. This is a powerful model and really comes to live when every step is respected and completed like a pro. 10 years ago I went off the grid and spent 3 months living in the remove mountains of China with the Shaolin Kung Fu Monks. See more at www.chiefmaker.com.au/51

In this episode we here from Mitch Matthews, keynote speaker, success coach, and best selling author. He speaks to student, corporate, non-profit, and association audiences around the world on the power of dream, think, do. In 2006, Mitch started the big dream gathering. Originally it was supposed to be something his friends and family could do for a few hours to get clear on their dreams. But this simple concept became a movement that hasn't stopped since. Thousands of dreams have been launched as a result. He's become a world-respected thought leader on coaching and workplace mentoring, plus he's created a coach training programme that has been utilised around the globe.

Presence and gravitas. Such a holy grail. When I think of people that have truly had presence they are have such charisma, they’re enigmatic...there is something in the ether, their spirit seems different to everyone else...like it expands to fill the room. People that master true presence are magnetic and in demand...others line up to spend time with them and their cut-through to find key insights and get the job done is revered by those around around them. In this episode, I’ll share 3 common pitfalls and 5 challenging steps to mastering true executive presence.

In this episode we hear from Keith Wootton, founder and CEO of AV1. Keith tells his remarkable story from growing up in Ireland, moving to Australia and how he almost accidentally became the CEO of a business that produces over 1,000 events per year. We talk about how he finds inspiration from unusual and different fields and how he crafts the culture that attracts the best people to his team.

It’s time for a heart to heart. Chief to chief. About YOUR FEARS. Fears can be big. They can be small. But they are insidious. Subtle creatures that sabotage our success. And they will eat away at your performance. And while they are powerful motivators, as Yoda so eloquently put it,  “fear leads to the darkside”. Do not be sweet-talked by the power of fear. It only breeds negative attitudes and behaviours and they stop us becoming our greatest selves.

In this episode we talk about the vital skill of written communications. Leaders spend from 2 to 6 hours per day writing and yet very few have had any formal training in writing skills outside of university. Most top executives receive 100 - 300 emails per day so if you want your message to get through you'd better have a system and a method for getting cut through.  The way to get cut-through is simpler than most expect a clear structure, simplified message and know your audience! We've all heard that before...so why don't we do it? Perhaps its because we love to prove how smart we are though our writing? Well research now shows that this actually has the opposite effect. Complex messages decrease trust. To explain this in more detail I've invited Paul Jones to share his wisdom and strategies. He is the ​​​c​o-founder ​of corporate training company, ​Magneto Communications, and business-writing software, Credosity​. He's a corporate communications expert​ hell-bent on helping business people communicate clearly.

  In this episode I cover a strategy for assessing and building your own powerful senior executive network both inside and outside your current business.  In the busy-ness of modern corporate life it can be so easy to let yourself get isolated from not only external trusted advisors but also high quality senior executives within your own organisation. The truth is most of us underestimate just how powerful an ambassador in your corner can be for pushing through key projects, cutting through red-tape and attracting new career opportunities. At the same time we discount the power of detractors that end up closing doors and resisting everything we do.  Here is a simple strategy to define your networks current state so you can take precise action:  Draw a map of your current network internally Rate them as Critical, Important or Neutral for your projects and career Rate their level of support for you as an Ambassador, Neutral or Detractor (and colour code them Green for Ambassador, Amber for Neutral, Red for Detractor) Take action on the most important people Repeat the process for your external network  [SECRET TIP: Put on the executives that don’t currently have a relationship but you should or would like to have a relationship with] Now that you have a heat-map of your network it can help to assess why some of the key people are red, why others are amber and others green. Think about these five factors for each relationship: Know: Do they know you well, can they put a face to a name and do they know your story Like: Are you a likeable person around the office, are you interested in other people's stories (including theirs), are you trying to help them and others so business isn't always about your agenda Trust: Are you authentic and do you overtly demonstrate integrity Capable: Can you get the job done and lead change Reliable: Do you turn up all the time not just some of the time Some tips on how to get access to key executives that you don't know yet:  Hint - find ways to cross paths at conferences / meetings Ask if they are open to meeting to discuss your career (how to get and keep a CEO mentor) Like and share their content on social media If they are doing small workshops / 1:1s at conferences then buy-it Get into a mastermind of other senior professionals Remember, building a powerful executive network takes a long-term consistent effort. You have to keep giving without counting the cost and help others achieve their dreams and goals. Once your network is activated you'll come to realise the amazing benefits of the world paying you back for all you've done. It's a magnificent way to do business.  Stay epic

In this episode we hear from Mal Bundey, CEO & MD of Pact Group Holdings Limited.  Malcolm Bundey is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Pact. Prior to joining Pact, Malcolm held several senior executive leadership positions for the Graeme Hart owned Rank Group. He  relocated to the United States with Rank in 2007 where he was President & CEO of Evergreen Packaging a US$1.6bn paper packaging company.    He was most recently President & CEO of both Graham Packaging and Closure Systems International (CSI), a combined US$4.8bn global rigid packaging, closures & equipment company owned by The Rank Group. Mr Bundey was previously a Partner at Deloitte in Corporate Restructuring and Management Consulting, spanning over 16 years from 1987 to 2003.  See more at www.chiefmaker.com.au/44

In this episode we talk about one of my favourite Albert Einstein quotes: "Try not to become a person of success, but rather try to become a person of value."  This quote has now been mentioned by so many countless successful business people that I’ve lost count. When you’re focusing on your own success and climbing the ladder it repels other people.  They see you as a competitor and resist and so it’s tiring, hard work and strains relationships. Why? Because they can sense your hidden agenda, you don’t listen quite as well as you should, you don’t allow wisdom to enter the conversation and your presence / gravitas goes out the window. For full summary go to www.chiefmaker.com.au/43

In this episode we meet international bestselling author, finance and investment expert, radio broadcaster, newspaper columnist and public speaker, Noel Whittaker, one of the world’s foremost authorities on personal finance. Noel reaches over seven million readers each week through his columns and broadcasts on over 50 radio stations. He is one of Australia’s most successful authors, with 20 bestselling booksachieving total worldwide sales of more than two million copies. His first book, Making Money Made Simple, set sales records and was named in The 100 Most Influential Books of the Twentieth Century. For 30 years, Noel was the Director of Whittaker Macnaught, one of Australia’s leading financial advisory companies, with more than two billion dollars under management. In 2003, he was awarded the Australian Centenary Medal in recognition of his services to the financial services industry. In 2011 he was made a Member of the Order of Australia for service to the community in raising awareness of personal finance. Noel shares a lifetime of wisdom and lessons learnt on personal finance, excellence and success. We focus on:   • His incredible career journey • The powerful messages he received from mentors and most influential books that shaped his career • The role of money, honesty and passion in a great career • ...and much more! Ways you can support Noel's legacy: • Book - Pickup a copy of Think and Grow Rich - The Legacyby James Whittaker • Movie - Watch Think and Grow Rich- The Legacy

In this episode we talk about the importance of reputation. Every single action you take, every single day or the weeks adds or subtracts to your reputation and it is perhaps the most important element to rapidly accelerating up the corporate ladder and for attracting opportunities. It is made up of stories and labels people carry for you and in essence is, “what people say about you when you’re not in the room.”   People naturally assess you against three factors:  1. Are you likeable and do you care about others and the greater good or just yourself 2. Are you good at your job and reliable 3. Do you have integrity and honesty   All these shape what people say and think about you. It’s important to remember that you also carry these labels for the people around you as well and they might be affecting your relationship with them. You can improve your reputation by:    a. Being intentional and values centred in how you live everyday b. Caring for others and giving to the greater good / cause c. Being good at your job d. Being well rounded and not one-dimensional   Check out more www.chiefmaker.com.au/41

In this episode we meet Read to Lead CHIEF Jeff Brown. He is the founder of the Read to Lead podcast and community Before beginning Read to Lead, he spent 26-years in radio and co-hosted an award-winning and nationally syndicated morning show from 2002 to 2008 with over a million daily listeners. The Read to Lead Podcast began in 2013. Since then he's been fortunate to interview a number of New York Times bestselling authors including John Maxwell, Seth Godin, Dan Miller, Daniel Pink, Simon Sinek, Chris Brogan (not once but twice), Gary Vaynerchuk and Liz Wiseman among others. It has been a top #10 Business and top #3 Career podcast in iTunes, is an iTunes Essentials podcast (Book Lovers), and has been nominated Best Business Podcast no fewer than three times. I’ll ask Jeff to share about:   His 26 year career on US Radio and what led him to being on main morning drive show with over a million listeners What is the most important lesson he learned from going out on his own that is so important for leaders still in the corporate world Which of his over 200 guests has stood out the most The importance of learning, taking action and relationships. ...and much more You can connect with Jeff on Twitter or Instagram @THEjeffbrown and to learn more about read to lead just visit here: http://readtoleadpodcast.com

In this episode, Part 2 on confidence, I talk about confidence ‘boosters’ and how they can help take your game to a whole new level. The 7 boosters we focus on are: Mindset Reframing Fear Getting in flow Putting on your game face Rehearsal and scenario modelling Building a game plan Decision making frameworks If you've got a confidence issue or just want to lift your game then this will definitely serve up some new ideas. 

In this episode we hear from Golf Coaching legend Peter Knight on mastering your craft. Peter Knight is one of only four master golf professionals in Australia. He is the author of Iron Golf Mind and has over 25 of years successfully coaching at State and National level as well as driving golf programmes for the Australian Institute of Sport, Golf Australia, Taiwan Golf, Golf Victoria, NSW Golf and NSW Institute of Sport. In 2012 he was one of three coaches in Victoria recognised for his contribution to coaching in Australia over the past 100 years. His book is called Iron Golf Mind: Five lessons to achieve an amazingly strong mindset for golf. And might I add - your career and life in general.  During this far reaching interview we explore: His 5 C's of Optimal Performance - Confidence, Concentration, Commitment, Composure and Competitiveness What is mastery and how you can apply it in your work How do you build the right routines around your performances The most important question you should ask yourself everyday if you want to master your profession You can connect with Peter on Facebook here @MelbourneGolfCoach.

In this episode I talk about confidence and the critical role it plays in performance and career progression. The topics is huge and I’ve split it out of over two minisodes. In this episode we’ll focus on 7 big blockers that most of us can take practical action to turnaround if pay close attention to our performance. 

In this episode we hear from Kate Erickson, chief implementer at Entrepreneurs on Fire. I met Kate about a year ago and hear her speak on systems, efficiency and automation and she honestly stopped me in my tracks. The energy and focus was mesmerising.   Kate is an absolute GURU in personal effectiveness. Everything is personally tested on a daily basis and while they focus on entrepreneurs the lessons are just as applicable for the corporate world - which by the way is where she started.

Take 3 deep breaths before you listen to this episode. Centre the soul. The 'busy-ness' syndrome is in plague proportions and is driving so many managers towards burn-out, low quality work, strained relationships and disconnecting from their purpose and meaning. Recovery is our great weapon in bringing our true spirit and greatest performances to the table. Without effective recovery we can not perform at our best and we look like we need development rather than a promotion. In this episode I cover the importance of recovery and a range of 'active' and 'passive' recovery techniques that work in the corporate world. 

Marcus Aurelius said that he was indebted to his grandfather for teaching him that “on an education one should spend liberally”. In this episode we cover the importance of learning from the gurus in your field and I give you two challenges. To reach the top, we stand on the shoulders of giants—the undisputed masters of their fields. The powerful and influential may appear to be entirely self-made, but ask them about their teachers and influencers. The length of their list might just surprise you.

A lot of leaders do not make use of 1:1s and yet they are one of the greatest opportunities to inspire your people and lift their performance. In addition, your people's careers and lives are in your hands and you have a responsibility as a leader to coach, develop and support your people. Many people complain about the performance of some of their team members and yet they either don’t do 1:1s or do them very poorly. And this often means that individuals lose interest, they don’t feel valued and they certainly don’t bring the extra effort that is sitting stored away inside of them.    I cover a 4 step process for running inspirational and effective 1:1s - Check-in, Operations, People, Strategy (COPS). 

Every now and then you’ll get a serial low performer that is a toxic presence in your team. They can be incredibly stubborn and many leaders find dealing with these people the hardest part of their work. In these cases it is unhealthy for both them, yourself and likely several other people in the team if they don’t seriously change their ways or move on. I cover a three step process for removing them from your team Coach, Counsel, Shoot.    This is sounds tough and brutal but it really just a framework for either improving or removing low performers.    Great Chiefs are brilliant at shifting low performers into better performance or moving them on. They understand the importance of getting the right people on the bus and letting the wrong people off at the next stop. Shifting this individual can be a huge relief for everyone involved. Many time I’ve seen whole teams take a collective sigh of relief. They didn’t realise how much of an impact the person was having. They spread their wings and really fly. And when it this process is done with respect for the low performer at every single point it removes much fo angst.    Every leader I’ve ever helped through this process comes out the other side really proud of their courage and effort. They grow as people and as leaders. 

In this episode we take an entirely new angle. I’ve been wanting to bring in some gurus on particular topics and it brings me great pleasure to start with our spiritual guru Damien Price on Spiritualism and how it fits in the corporate world.    Damien Price is a Christian Brother and has taught for over thirty years in schools throughout Australia and New Zealand. Over the past twenty years Damien has been involved in working with disadvantaged youth, homeless men and women, refugees and Asylum Seekers. Damien has Masters Degrees in Counselling and Pastoral Guidance. Damien’s Doctor of Philosophy degree focused on the sense of self that youth grew into as they engaged with homeless people over an extended period of time. He is now Regional Ministry Coordinator for PNG, Philippines and Timor Leste in a role that has him travelling and organising all over SE Asia. Some of the questions I ask Damien include:  • What is God and/or who was God and where do people get it wrong? • What is Religion and where do people get it wrong? • What is the ultimate purpose of life?  • Your often describe yourself as a monk. Why is that the most fitting description of you?  • What are the vows you take a Christian Brother? Why do you cherish them and what role do they play for you?  • You took a break from the Brothers. What drew you away and ultimately what brought you back?  • What is the most stinging feedback you’ve ever received and how did it shape you?  • What have you learned about yourself over the past five years?  • What mistakes do busy professionals make that is costing them their spirituality? • On a day to day basis what's the most powerful action someone can take to keep and develop a strong spiritual connection? • Does spirituality fit in the boardroom?

In this episode we cover the power of high performance lifecycles and how to use them to automate the pursuit of excellence.    The pursuit of excellence lies at the heart of all great performers. It means mastering your craft and continually working to improve yourself. It also means leading your team to work collectively to improve itself. The long term benefits have an incredible compound effect on your ability to get results and rise above the pack.    I outline:  - the Prepare, Perform, Recover, Review (P2R2) Lifecycle - How to lock this into as a system that drives performance - How to optimise each step - Some tricks to stay focused and embed the system

In this episode we hear from John Lee Dumas, Founder of Entrepreneurs on Fire.  John is the founder and host of Entrepreneurs ON FIRE, an award winning Podcast where he interviews today’s most successful Entrepreneurs 7-days a week. JLD has grown EOFire.com into a 7-figure business with over 2000 interviews and 1.5 million monthly listens.  Some of the questions I ask John:  • What was the most important lesson you learnt from your time as a soldier in Iraq that shaped you the most?  • You spent time in law firms, real estate and a number of other industries early in your career. Eventually you took a different path to be start podcasts and be an entrepreneur. What were you really looking for that you found in podcasting and EOFire?  • What advice would you give to a middle / snr manager of a large organisation that is stuck in their career, fighting politics and can’t seem to find a way forward?  •  If someone, is thinking that they might like to start their own business. Can you explain what a side-hustle is and the most important principles to get it right?  • What is a final message of wisdom and hope you think is vital for the next generation of executives? 

Most of us at one time or another have had a boss who seems totally disinterested in our work. They’re the opposite of micro-managers, leaving us completely to our own devices and at times in more senior regional roles can go missing for weeks at a time. Here is what you can do.

In this episode we hear from Hetty Johnston, AM, Founder and Chair of Bravehearts. You can support Hetty’s work through Bravehearts at www.bravehearts.org.au CHANGE OF PLAN Normally I put a detailed set of show notes. In this case, I’m electing not to. This will make sense when you’ve heard this episode. Hetty is someone you have to listen to. She is one of the most influential leaders of modern Australia and summary notes just won’t do her justice. So find an hour to really focus on this session. Hetty tells the FULL story of her life and the horrific circumstances that led to the beginnings of Bravehearts after her daughter disclosed she was being assaulted. She also shares some of her techniques for negotiating with Prime Ministers, staying resilient and gives the ultimate career advice if you want to be a GREAT chief.   ABOUT HETTY JOHNSTON AM   Hetty is the Founder and Chair of Bravehearts & Australia’s leading child protection advocate. https://bravehearts.org.au/who-we-are/founder-chairman/   For over 20 years Hetty has been leading the charge in child protection and has built Bravehearts into powerful not-for-profit with global reach. She and her team are regularly asked to speak and advice on their most important work all over the world.   Hetty’s most recent accolades include:   Australian Businesswomen’s 2016 Hall of Fame Inductee Queensland Australian of the Year 2015 Logan’s Wall of Acclaim 2015 Inductee Member of the Order of Australia (AM) 2014 Author of national awareness campaign, ‘White Balloon Day’, ‘Sexual Assault Disclosure Scheme (SADS)’, ‘Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure’ child protection CD-Rom and her autobiography, ‘In the Best Interests of the Child’ (2004)   Just some of her responsibilities include:   Chaired the Queensland Child Protection Week Committee for three years; Held a position on the Board of NAPCAN (National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect); Was a participant on the Federal Government’s Working Party on a ‘National Approach to Child Protection’; Currently sits on the Federal Governments working party on Cyber-Safety; Working with the Federal Government’s Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.   She is consistently sought after by media for commentary on issues pertaining to child protection and has been the subject of personal profile in many print media, talk back radio and television documentaries such as Australian Story.   Hetty is a truly GREAT chief. She has battled resistance to change for 20 years from every angle imaginable and from some of the powerful groups in our community. And through it all she has stayed, strong, focused, warm and immovable. I’ve know Hetty personally for over a decade. She is a force of nature when it comes to leading change across our society and through all this has maintained a warmth and kindness, never forgetting that this is ABOUT THE KIDS. Recommended Books by Hetty Johnston The Gift of Fear - https://www.amazon.com/Other-Survival-Signals-Protect-Violence/dp/0440508835/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522021749&sr=8-1&keywords=the+gift+of+fear

In this episode I talk about why you should run across a desert (and love it). Huh? What I really mean is why you should do something epic. In 2007/8 I conducted a personal growth experiment by tackling the Gobi March a 250km ultra marathon across the toughest terrain in the world. This is a bit of that story and what I discovered on…and didn’t expect.

In this episode we hear from Brad Gordon, former CEO of Acacia Mining Limited. We cover the importance of getting out from behind your desk, how to create a game that inspires your people and attracts the best talent.  ABOUT BRAD Until recently, Brad Gordon was the CEO of Acacia Mining Limited. Prior to that he has also been the CEO of Entrepid Mines Limited, Emperor Mines Limited and was Managing Director of Placer Dome, New Guinea. Key Questions I ask Brad Gordon: • What you do love about mining and being underground?  • Were there any setbacks along the way? • What is your secret sauce? The thing you can do better than almost anyone else?  • So what advice would you give to someone who's in that middle level of their career and all of a sudden they're stuck, they're not going up any further? • Do you have any moments when you doubt your abilities? What do you do in those moments to keep going?  • Did anyone give you any feedback to you personally that really rang true for you? That was important for the young Brad Gordon to hear?  • What you have learned about yourself over the past 10 years? • How do you stay focused? • Where do leaders in the middle and senior management waste their time and effort?  • How do you get the right people on your team?  • Where do people get transformations right and where do they go wrong? • What is the final message of wisdom and hope you think is vital for the next generation of executives?

In this episode we are going to cover How to get and keep a CEO mentor. Every CEO I’ve met has had a mentor of some sort in their career. Interestingly, in most cases, these were through a reporting structure and weren’t formal mentoring relationships. How to convince a CEO to mentor you CEOs are insanely busy people in very high demand. And yet, every one of them I have met finds time to mentor several of the next generation. The fact is they want to help and give back, but they don’t want to waste their time. It is unlikely that you can offer them much from spending time with you except for giving back. So that is the lever to pull. Here are a few steps that have worked time and again when I’m connecting with big chiefs.

In this episode I cover one my personal mottos “Ownership Precedes Victory” and how to use it to really take control of your career and become a great Chief Life in the chaos of the modern business world can be crushingly difficult. The rapid pace of change in technology, as well as new customer and employee expectations is now amplified by a hyper-competitive global landscape. Executive teams now have to navigate their companies through transformational change just to survive. For those reporting to the executive team, and leading the operational charge towards big targets and new cultures, it can be incredibly complex and difficult to stay in front of the game. They work hard all day, every day, on an endless list of tasks at work and home. The politics, red tape and antiquated systems suck their energy and many begin to wonder if there is more to life than this. It feels like the world is happening to them, rather than they’re happening to the world. After spending the last decade with some of the best in business and sport, it is now crystal clear that their intelligence and relationships, while undeniably important, are only a part of their success. They became great Chiefs not because they are lucky with intelligence or networks, but because they have taken to heart a powerful philosophy: ownership precedes victory. They take personal accountability for the outcome of every challenge they face, relationship they enter, and business they lead. They demand ownership of it and they will not share the blame with others It is this hunger to accept the mantle of responsibility that separates the good from the great. But in practice ownership can be brutally difficult because it is between you and you. And the best are their own hardest markers. As one CEO said to me recently, “You can’t lie to the person looking back at you in the mirror.” This is what ownership is all about. Can you be truly honest with yourself? Using this little philosophy can be like an internal call to arms when challenges arise. Instead of shrinking in the face of a challenge or a difficult person, ownership is about rising up to your full height and using every resource, connection and strategy at your disposal to get a new outcome. In a work context take stock for a minute and ask yourself whether you have taken true ownership of the outcomes in the following: Your relationship with my boss (hint – your boss is your customer, how would they rate you as a customer?) Key stakeholders and peer relationships Low performers in your team Your company targets and results Your personal development and the development of your team? Sometimes we just need a little reminder that the qualities and habits that make one great are not natural. They are learned and earned and 100% in our own control. It isn’t a quick fix – it takes lots of soul searching and all of your personal power. But when you rise above the challenge by taking the harder road and knock it out the park, your victory is so much sweeter. Remember – OWNERSHIP PRECEDES VICTORY. Stay epic Greg

In this episode we hear from Geoff Lloyd, CEO and MD of Perpetual Limited. SUPPORT GEOFF IN THE CEO COOK OFF FOR OZ HARVEST HERE ABOUT GEOFF Geoff joined Perpetual in August 2010 as Group Executive of Perpetual Private and led the development and implementation of the growth strategy for this business. He took on the additional responsibility of Head of Retail Distribution in September 2011 and was appointed Managing Director and CEO in February 2012. Geoff was previously General Manager of Advice and Private Banking at BT Financial Group following the Westpac Group merger with St.George Bank. Before the merger, he led St.George’s wealth management portfolio. He held many senior positions at BT Financial Group, including Chief Legal Counsel and Head of the Customer and Business Services Division. Geoff is the Chairman of the Financial Services Council, an Advisory board member of The Big Issue and the Patron of the Financial Industry Community Aid Program.   He is a Patron of Emerge Foundation and is also Chairman of the University of Technology Sydney Law Advisory board. Key Questions and Answers from Geoff (curated for clarification and brevity): What did you learn from the police force? In the police force, I got to learn a lot about people and what I still take with me is that you don’t judge too quickly. Take the time to step back and see what else might be going on, what’s driving an outcome, because what you see is normally just the surface of a thing. When it involves people in complex environments, there’s always emotion. So that’s something I’ve tried to take with me where I don’t judge too quickly, stand back, ask questions and observe.   What did you learn from your first move interstate to Sydney with ASIC? It was the first time I learned about stretching myself out of what you might call a comfort zone, and how it can lead to just so many unforeseen, unplanned, unexpected outcomes. And so for me, that was probably the first time I’ve learned that as you actually stretch yourself and take real risk, it is not just a little bit that comes from that. It is quite amazing and you really don’t know what you can achieve until you’ve tried.   What drives you internally? You’re this,very aspirational man, you want to grow again and take your game to another level. What drives that? I’ve learned for a long time that there’s always evidence of how you can keep getting better and you just don’t know what you can achieve. And so having that mindset, of being curious…if you aren’t finding evidence and keep getting better, then you’re going to plateau. And so for me it’s about that looking forward, being curious. If I don’t have a 110 percent passion and energy for something, it becomes 50 percent and so I need to be operating at that level to truly find rewarding outcomes, whether it’s philanthropic, social, business or family.   Do you have in moments when you doubt your abilities? What do you in do in those moments to keep going? Yeah, I do. You know, if you don’t, if you can’t look in the mirror and get a bit paranoid, then you’re probably not able to really find evidence of how to keep getting better. I’ve tried to find different times in my career where I’ve hit inflection points and probably the most successful times the more paranoid I get. You’ve got to have enough confidence to know you’re going to be able to follow on to what the  next challenge is… I get energy from others. So, getting access to and making sure I’ve got the right network, that’s really important. But equally I’ve always had this philosophy that you’ve got to hire the best people you can listen to them, trust them, invest in them and then make sure you’re having some fun along the way, you know, because it’s, it’s a very serious game that we play. If you can get that sort of talent around you then your job as a leader is really about being their guide and helping guide them rather than do or carry out the activity. Great leaders are able to step back and be able to motivate people through how they give them that guidance and help set direction and boundaries.   Why did you switch from General Counsel into other more broader roles and how did that lead to CEO level roles? I actually started to think differently about my career and stretch myself beyond being tall and skinny in a career or a profession to being broad. Think about it as the goal is to grow skills and experience over the next three to five years rather than, I want this job or that job. I think if you just go off the job titles, you might never know how good you can be and how different the work that you can do will be   Did anyone give you any feedback to you personally that, that really rang true for you? That was important for the young Geoff Lloyd to hear? BT was a very driven meritocracy, with enormous amount of opportunity. So running too fast can happen and it happened for me. And so learning about not stepping on others around you, but picking others up around you is what you’re going to be judged for. And, that it takes time. Actually there’s no shortcuts to hard work. I’ve tried lots of them. it’s just about hard work. It’s actually about focus and it’s about making sure that you’re true to yourself. Don’t try to be somebody else. I’ve worked for some great leaders and I’ve picked up their characteristics and often said, ‘oh, well, if I can be like that’. And you can’t be, you can pick up those characteristics and learn from them. But then you have got to be you again. Today we would talk about authentic leadership. You just have to be, you. How was the final step to CEO different? The step was quite different because as much as I’ve worked in large organizations, ran much bigger teams in the past than at perpetual, when you become the CEO, there’s nobody else that’s coming. It’s words that we’ve used around the executive team that ‘nobody’s coming’. It’s us. You know, you run two and a half thousand people in a bank, there’s always somebody else who can ask or the decision can go to. So the big gap is…Nobody’s coming.   Does ‘Ownership Precedes Victory’ resonate with you? I think you’ve got to have courage or otherwise you’re not going to keep challenging yourself. If you don’t you’re not going to keep challenging your team, you’re not going to take the right amount of risk and you won’t see the other sides of the benefit that can come with that risk. So make sure you’ve got the courage is the key, that conviction of something you’ve started to create change. Maybe that’s the words that gravitate more with me.   How do you stay focused? I suspect that at perpetual I will be remembered for at least two words. Hopefully it’s clarity and focus. I think complexity kills businesses. I’m a big believer in that a quality businesses can’t do lots of things. What are the few things that you can do incredibly well and be the leader at. And then once you become a leader at anything, it’s very hard to stay there. Everyone’s coming after you. For us at perpetual and for me it’s about clarity on a few things. Do them really well and then move to the next few things. Try not to be distracted by a long list, we try to prioritise on what we can do and then draw a line under number three. And you know, often the team will hear me say, just tell me the top two. Actually, I’m not interested in the top three. We also had to try to focus on what we’re not going to do and write that down because a lot of businesses are good at telling you what they do, but if you can articulate what you’re not going to do, it brings more clarity to that focus around what you’re going to do   Where do leaders in the middle and senior management waste their time and effort? I think often getting too much into the detail because if you’re a leader, you’ve got to have sort of three hats. You’ve got to do work, improve your work and lead your team. And you’ve got to have, at least a third of each of those….So you’ve got to dedicate time and focus to leadership, not just doing. And I think it’s easy to go back to the doing. You know, I had somebody put it in my mind a long time ago, a phrase called ‘being a guide, not a guru’. I think as you become more of a leader and your sole job, which is mine, is leading, not doing. So the job is to guide people not to be the technical guru. It took me a long time to learn that. As a lawyer, you want to be the smartest person in the room when it comes to the topic on ‘x of the law’. And that’s not your job as even the general counsel, because my job was to hire the smartest people in the room, trust them, invest them, listen to them, guide them because it was their job to be that smart. It’s not mine. And so that stuck with me for a long time. So maybe they should be more of a guide than a guru because your job is to hire the gurus as a leader.   How important is it for young people coming through and in middle management and senior executives to have a network? I think it’s vital. You know, I also chair the Financial Services Council now, a leading industry body and one of the things we’ve reintroduced is a group called ‘the circuit’. I call it the 30 somethings and it’s actually about bringing interesting topics to a forum of 40 to 100 of all of our members staff.   What was the most important thing you learned in Harvard? How bad Australians are at negotiation. I think that was a really big part of that program and you know, just seeing our cultural norms. We are ranked in the bottom five countries in the world in negotiation!   You’ve been CEO here for six years now, and the share price has gone from $19 to just shy of 50 which is a remarkable period of growth for the company. How important is it for individuals to build a track record, perhaps not as spectacular as that, but to keep thinking about change and transformation? I’ve worked with a gentlemen named Andy Meikle who has left a couple of thoughts with me over the years and one was, you know, high performers create a track record that you can leave on the table and they can leave the room and it speaks for itself. It is important to be able to think about not the way you would tell the story, how the story would tell itself. And that doesn’t have to be about share price growth.   What is the difference between Change and Transformation? I had this view that change is what happens to you. Transformation is what you do to yourself. So with change, you react to your competitor, you’re reacting to, it puts out a new product, you react. Transformations are where you have that honest, courageous look and say we’re going to go from x to y and it’s going to be tough and we’re going to have to have clarity, courage, and control which are three woods, we used a lot. Clarity of what we would or wouldn’t do, control because the market is going to tell us what’s wrong and we also needed to keep the courage to hold the course because we couldn’t possibly plan for everything to that level of detail.   How would you define a GREAT Chief? I think it’s someone who is able to bring passion and energy to the way they communicate to people and the way they support and develop and grow everyone around them. It means you’ve able to motivate, support and nourish people in your community.   What is the final message of wisdom and hope you think is vital for the next generation of executives? I still believe that there’s no shortcuts, it’s all about hard work. But remaining really very curious, have curiosity in your life and you can define what that means and make sure you’ve got the courage.   SUPPORT GEOFF IN THE CEO COOK OFF HERE   Recommended Books by Geoff Lloyd. Repeatability : https://www.amazon.com/Repeatability-Enduring-Businesses-Constant-Change-ebook/dp/B0070YQQI4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1520487587&sr=8-1&keywords=repeatability Founders Mentality: https://www.amazon.com/Founders-Mentality-Overcome-Predictable-Crises-ebook/dp/B01BO6QMC8/ref=pd_sim_351_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=WSXZ3BEMWMND0FWN22E7

In this episode I want to talk about a deep mindset shift that can lead to meteoric improvement in performance. And that is different between viewing yourself as a Professional or an Amateur. In general terms, an Amateur is someone who turns up and has a crack. They go through spurts of increased interest and their performance spikes and troughs. They don’t take the pursuit as as an artform they are looking to master. And that is where the big line is drawn. Mastery. Being a professional executive means learning to love the fact that this is YOUR artform and you want to build yourself over a lifetime into the sharpest professional you possibly can be. They want to be the best as leading an organisation or whatever their ‘profession’ is. This isn’t something they start doing once their in a big role. No, they do this from the outset. Before they earn the big bucks and have the big job because in essence that is why they end up getting the big job over others. Full summary can be found at www.chiefmaker.com.au/podcast

Why leaders micromanage and how you can adjust your approach to improve the working relationship so that it is a. more effective and b. less soul destroying.   Before you dive in and start trash talking your overbearing boss - it is wise to seek some understanding as to why they might be micromanaging you. Take a few minutes to think deeply and through their eyes about what might be causing them to dip down. Full summary can be found at www.chiefmaker.com.au/podcast

Our CEO this week is Angela Buglass, who has recently returned from 15 years in the UK where she held the role of VP Marketing for LF Beauty, part of the global sourcing giant Li & Fung. Her experience includes roles with leading players Procter & Gamble, L'Oreal and Estée Lauder (working on the AVEDA brand). Angela is now the CEO of Trilogy International Limited which you may know through beauty products like Trilogy, Ecoya, Goodness and CS&Co. Her work has taken her from NZ all around the world and back again and her stories are inspirational, insightful and so wonderfully down to earth. Full summary can be found at www.chiefmaker.com.au/podcast  

Kung Fu the most difficult situations with SARS (Smart Automated Response Systems) Have you ever found yourself in a situation and not known what to do? Ever tried to stop a certain scenario at work from happening but it always seems to repeat itself? Ever lose confidence at key moments? In this episode we will be talking a technique that emerged through my work in elite sport and an in particular in martial arts and how you can translate this to the business world. Full summary can be found at www.chiefmaker.com.au/podcast

In this episode you’ll hear from Greg Steele, CEO Arcadis Asia Pacific.   He is also the Chairman of Engineering Aid Australia and on the board of Roads Australia. He was the Managing Director of Hyder Consulting before the Arcadis takeover. I came across this special man at a mindfulness conference where his authenticity and honesty about the challenge of keeping balance in the corporate world blew the audience away. I couldn’t wait to get him on the show. We cover the importance of making sense of things, making choices and making things happen. And how to drive change, using diversity as a strength and mindfulness to keep you focused.   Subscribe on iTunes here: https://itun.es/au/87Pqkb.c Subscribe on Android: http://tunein.com/radio/The-Inner-Chief-p1004701/ http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=141429   Key Points: Greg’s top quotes from this episode include: 1) Back yourself but be prepared and don't be afraid to speak your piece. I think one of my early lessons in my career that was very formative. 2) I liked the notion of strategy. I think I was born with a competitive streak. I liked the notion of out-competing, outperforming and other companies. The whole notion of financial performance, HR, really having a broader view of an organisation. Strategy is the thing I guess I fell in love with. Trying to find a way to outperform and win. That's what I liked more than anything and I guess that's where my ambition started to grow. 3) Some of the biggest lessons learned for me was listening to bosses in team meetings and then walking out saying I will never do that. This guy or girl has just totally demotivated the whole staff with that speech. Yeah, funny enough a lot of my lessons learned and maturity came through what not to do. 4) I wasn't a strong candidate for my first attempt at a CEO role. I reflected on that, and I said, things are not going to change, people have got me pigeon-holed as a business development, strategy, marketing type person. I had to change. For the second time in my career, I changed jobs, went back to Hyder. A company I thought was a huge opportunity. Really, not a pay cut but really a backward step. A backward step because I had to do some things to change people's perception. I was never going any further in my current role unfortunately. At Hyder I took on the strategy of the clients but also all the corporate services. Legal, HR, all those things that I needed to help broaden my career. Not quite a P&L but nevertheless getting some real experience in lots of different areas. I did that and there was some changes in leadership both nationally and globally. Out of that within two years, I was the CEO.5 5) I made some mistakes, of course. Some mistakes early on and then I realised, I have to think about this, I just can't make off the cuff decisions here. There's a lot more depth I needed in a couple of areas. I was a little bit concerned about the financial aspect in the matrix but in the end having a very good CFO and I still currently do, is we really play a good team. 6) A big mistake leaders make I think is there's a propensity of people in leadership roles to try and do too many things. I think focus is key to leadership and a successful organisation. Making choices, is you just would love to do some things and you just can't. 7) Three keys to leadership a) Making sense of things - Where is the marketing heading, what's happening here, what are our competitors up to? Okay, where do we need to go? Differentiate b) Making choices – Choices need preparation, understanding, thinking through, having data, some factual evidence as to the decision you're making. It might originally be led from a gut feel, which most of my big decisions are. Gut feel is telling me this, now let me do some research on this. How do I convince others and give the business case for what I'm doing is. c) Making things happen - In the end, I always have a saying, strategy is easy, implementing strategy is the hard thing. Making things happen. This is where understanding people, the Lencioni work of teamwork and having an open, collaborative organisation but still being tough on accountability. I think it is really important that you bring people on the journey and try to seek ownership of big decisions. Once again, little saying I have, “participation leads to ownership, leads to commitment”. Often in a strategy, I'll get about 70% there themself, and I'll stop short of that. I never try to perfect it. Then I'll get others involved to genuinely help polish it up, finish it up. Even other big ideas to help shift it and to get them on-board. Then once the decision is made, you've got some ownership and therefore their commitment to make things happen. I guess that's the key element for me. 8) I think being mindful and I practise coming to work. I now shut off when I get home. That's home, I really don't like text or emails and I avoid those. I've gotten much much better at that, much better. Then in a presence sense, making sure when you're with a person that you're really present. I can look back now and see me thinking about three or four things whilst I was talking about to a person as opposed to giving that person full attention. Meditation, once again not enough but a couple of sessions a week. Half an hour, that ideally should be done daily. 9) A big mistake a lot of organisations make - I think trying to do too much. It's getting back on that focus and try to achieve too much. The one time it hit very hard, the organisations nowadays not too much fat in them. They're really running close to the wire. Once you keep adding initiatives and things like that, that might be a right thing to do but not the right time. I'm very mindful now. If I ask someone to do something, what's the ripple effect? I always think through. If I ask that person to do that, they're going to go to that person who is going to go to that person, who is going to get them to do something and suddenly, you've got half a dozen people working on something. That might be only just a win. 10) You got to be very mindful of the impact of your thinking and getting people to do stuff for you. I think most of the time wastage is trying to do too much and really getting to that “making choices”, getting back to that. Having some clear choices and then driving that through. Our strategy at Arcadis has barely changed. Little tweaks around the edges as the market moved but people come up to me and go, "Strategy is the same as it has been for the last three, four years, Greg." That's great; we know where we're headed. It's really consistent, we know where we're aiming for, it's quiet, it's this sector, it's this market. Where the guy before me apparently every management course he went to, he'd came back with a new strategy. Flavour of the month type of stuff and that can really stress an organisation out because they never know where they're headed. Just have that consistency. 11) On making culture change: I have a saying; sometimes you just got to put a head on a stake in the foyer of the office and let people walk past it and say, "He is serious about this." We let some people go who weren't serious about global excellence centres. You're not driving this, this is in our culture, you're removed from a performance perspective. This is our strategy; you're not doing it. People just see that you're serious about it. In an intervention sense, my exec team was Ten people. I said 10% women in that, not good enough I'm leading this. We're not making enough in roads. Whilst we've moved from 22% to 28% women in the organisation over three-year period, and we're doing lots of fabulous things though not moving quick enough. I need to show people I'm serious plus I am a huge believer in diverse teams make better decisions. We had our city executives of Brisbane City, Melbourne, two of those females. I added them to the regional executive team. Much to the cries of ‘don't do it’, the team's too big from the people in the existing exec team. I did it, so 25% of the exec team are now women. After the first meeting, you can see the change dynamics and a few people came up to me, the naysayers afterwards, and said, "I can see why you did it, I understand." Some things you just got to go against whatever everyone is advising you and just go with your gut. 12) On what Greg looks for in new executive team members: I look for potential and their learning agility. They are probably the two key things. You see often people get promoted to positions, and they weren't necessarily the best performance on paper, but they've had a go at some things. You can see there's that curiosity, there's that drive to try some things. I want people to challenge me. I want them to come with ideas and say I want to try this and do that. I far prefer a direct report who will do that as opposed to do what they're told. 13) On learning: Yeah, I think you just got to test and try some things. You got to fix an issue or a problem. I remember the chairman of Hyder, Sir Allan Thomas was in his 70s, would come and spend a week here in Australia with me. He was just legendary with clients. He'd point to me a few times, he says, "You've got an issue here, and you're walking around and admiring it." He says, "You don't walk around issues and admire them. You go up and grab it by the neck, and you grapple with it, and you deal with it." I often reflect very warmly on my time with Sir Allan, and as soon as I do see an issue or an opportunity, I think I'm a lot quicker to get in there and try some things. I think in today's time it's difficult to let people learn by mistakes, but it's still the best way of learning. 14) Final message of wisdom and hope: I think moving forward with such a dynamic pace of change nowadays in technology. I think some of the fundamentals still need to be there in a leadership sense. Teamwork, bringing people along for the journey. To be very agile, you always think that agility. You got to be more agile than we have in the past because the disruption is occurring. Really building agile organisations so limited bureaucracy, empowering people is very important in this regard. There can't be an empowerment without accountability. Driving empowerment but ensuring that accountability is there. You got to build that culture that can move quickly. Then some of the things into the future, I think sustainability is going to be core as we keep moving into the problems we're having in the world.   Recommended Books & Articles Patrick Lencioni – 5 Dysfunctions of a Team The Discipline of Market Leaders, Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema https://www.amazon.com/Discipline-Market-Leaders-Customers-Dominate/dp/0201407191/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512688374&sr=8-1&keywords=discipline+of+market+leaders The Kaleidoscope: https://hbr.org/2004/02/success-that-lasts  

In this episode we will be talking about another pattern that has emerged through many of the CEOs on the show and that is “Taking the Path Less Travelled”.   Have you ever found yourself boxed in to a role or industry? Ever felt stuck in your growth or feel like your network and knowledge set is limited to your profession and industry? Ever had the nagging gut feeling that you need to do something drastic to change things up but you find any number of reasons why you shouldn’t? Feel like the dream of rising to the top of just having a more meaningful career is slipping away? One pattern that has come up time and again is one where they have come to a sort of cross-roads where they feel they are potentially going to be stalled.   WHAT IS TAKING THE PATH LESS TRAVELLED? It can mean shifting industries, roles, organisations or something that expands your horizons. The key here is to aim to build wide ranging experience and knowledge that you can use to become better, smarter and more connected. Normally these kinds of shifts only happen a few times in your life. Make no mistake though, they are life and career defining and therefore should not be taken lightly. This is making a move that is often against most other people’s advice but you know in your heart, in your gut that it is the right move.   WHEN SHOUD YOU TAKE IT? There are a number of situations when taking the path less travelled could be a good move: You’re stuck or boxed in your career progression Internally your real chances of going forward are low and getting lower as more competition rises up You’ve stopped learning and growing You feel like you’ve now gone down one path of professional skill almost as far as it can go. Going further won’t add to your wisdom or experience significantly. The well so to speak is drying up and you need to fresh taste of new water to expand your mind Industry is taking a seismic shift in direction and you want to get on the front foot The profession or industry your in is wrong for you The business you’re in is wrong for you An opportunity arises that must be taken You’ve lost the energy and spark that makes work fun and is critical to leading big transformations THE BENEFITS? This is what Chiefs are looking for. Someone that is willing to do something different, take a calculated risk to get ahead. Someone that is bold and tried something. Expansion of your knowledge set, growth and wisdom Momentum in your career again New networks New opportunities Fun and renewed energy for life HOW DO YOU DO IT? For all those that have taken the path less travelled successfully there are a thousand who took it and failed. They jumped too fast without being considered or didn’t listen to their intuition. Assess the root cause of the current situation Review your life and career vision / plans Listen to your gut, what does it say? Talk to a trusted friend who brings out the best in you Assess the risk and increase the upside and decrease the downside Stay focused and go with 100% commitment