Welcome to The Business of Thinking, the podcast for high achievers seeking mastery over motivation, as Richard Reed is joined by author, leadership expert, and business coach, Dr. John Dentico. This episode delves into Dr. Dentico's background as a Naval Officer , and explores the pivotal role of trust in every organization and relationship. Dr. Dentico emphasizes that trust is not built through talk, but is a byproduct of action and engagement. Listen in as they discuss the power of mutual trust , the necessity of being proactive and transparent with bad news , and the importance of embracing doubt and ambiguity to kickstart genuine collaboration.

This conversation offers vital insights for leaders and teams, challenging the traditional view of leadership. Dr. Dentico proposes that "leadership is what people do together" and advocates for a shift from focusing on an individual leader's traits to fostering organizational values. The discussion also covers the critical need for meaning and values alignment in the post-COVID work world, citing Victor Frankl's "Man's Search for Meaning".

Key Takeaways

Trust is the vital fuel for all organizations and relationships and is created through action and mutual engagement, not conversation.

Leaders should proactively deliver both good and bad news with honesty to build trust and integrity.

Embracing doubt and ambiguity opens the door for genuine, necessary collaboration, moving past the "big hug" of fake consensus.

Meaning is the greatest motivational force; creating meaning and a sense of mattering for people is key to addressing engagement problems.

Leadership should be viewed as an implementable process done collaboratively, rather than a set of traits held by one individual.

Episode Highlights

01:10 Dr. John Dentico’s journey from New York City to Naval Officer.

03:57 The two core lessons learned in the Navy: the power of trust and taking care of your people.

04:34 Discussing trust, psychological safety, and the importance of being safe to speak up.

05:34 Trust as a byproduct of action and the concept of mutual trust.

07:33 Building trust through consistency, authenticity, and honesty in communication.

10:08 The shift: Why modern leaders must embrace doubt and ambiguity to foster true collaboration.

12:00 The "big hug" problem: Why fake collaboration fails to engage people.

14:34 The power of meaning as the greatest motivational force and its link to engagement.

17:26 The role of ego in leadership and the first rule of leadership: "It's not about you".

18:36 From servant leadership to collaborative leadership: "Leadership is what people do together".

23:47 The mismatch between leadership training and organizational culture/reward systems.

24:43 The need for culture to be empathetic, authentic, and support vulnerability.

31:09 Post-COVID realization: People are seeking values alignment over just a paycheck.

34:35 Reflecting on Victor Frankl’s three ways to derive meaning.

38:21 Dr. Dentico's current projects: A Udemy course on interviewing and fractional work in strategic thinking.

🔗 Connect With John Dentico

Website: www.throttleupleadership.com

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

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Thank you for joining us on The Business of Thinking podcast. If you enjoyed this conversation, please subscribe and leave a rating! It helps us bring more insightful content on the psychology of high performance. Find more about Richard Reid’s work at www.richard-reid.com.

Production Credit: Edited and produced by @the32collective_ / https://www.the32collective.co/

Jez Rose joins Richard Reid on The Business of Thinking podcast to discuss his multifaceted career - from being a speaker and author to a ceramic artist and the first certified carbon neutral honey farmer. Jez explores the concept of "going all in" on life, which has been informed by personal experiences with loss and crisis. He delves into the psychology of high performance, arguing that the focus should shift from achieving it to sustaining high performance, which requires embracing self-reflection, pausing, and getting rid of the unnecessary - both physical objects and influences.

Key Takeaways

Sustaining High Performance is the Sweet Spot: High performance is achievable, but the real secret is sustaining it, which is much more difficult than the "easy route" of just pushing for more.

The Power of Pause and Reset: The most powerful notion is giving yourself permission to stop, press pause, and reset, allowing you to re-evaluate and remove what no longer serves you in both work and life.

Leadership is Psychology and Behavioural Science: Effective leadership is fundamentally about understanding the psychology of people, knowing what reinforces your team members' behaviour, and modeling vulnerability rather than pretending to have all the answers.

You Have Enough: A powerful realization is that you are enough and you have enough, which is a core Buddhist practice that can bring mental clarity and freedom by removing constant consumption and comparison.

Episode Highlights

Jez Rose's accidental journey into becoming the first certified carbon neutral honey farmer and how his environmental commitment aligns with the difficulty of "doing the right thing" in leadership and sustaining high performance.

How an experience as a critical care paramedic trainee informed Jez's philosophy of being "all in" on life because you are never guaranteed the next day.

The "Seasonal Change Model" which suggests that navigating change involves four phases that mirror nature's seasons, offering a way to identify where you are and what comes next.

The tragic common pattern in businesses where high-performing teams are exhausted because leaders keep pushing for "a bit more" without focusing on sustainability.

The story of a diabetic employee who received a massive hamper of chocolate as a "catch-all" award, illustrating a failure of leadership to know what truly motivates or reinforces an individual's behaviour.

The quote by Lao Tzu, "To hold, you must first open your hand, let go," and the immense trust required to let go of comfortable but unhappy situations in life.

Timestamps

00:49:03 Jez's upbringing and the discovery of Buddhism

00:00:51:09 Jez Rose's accidental honey farm and being carbon neutral

00:03:41:00 Why "going all in" on life is his philosophy

00:05:34:14 Transition to a speaker/trainer and working with Disney and Lloyd's Bank

00:06:43:03 Career as a professional magician and TV presenter

00:10:29:23 The power of pressing pause and a blank new page

00:15:46:12 The real tragedy of high performance and sustaining it

00:17:38:07 The importance of knowing what drives individual team members

00:22:28:03 Moving away from annual appraisals to monthly check-ins

00:23:50:19 The problem with "nonsense" values that can't be lived

00:27:20:14 The Seasonal Change Model for navigating life changes

00:28:28:08 How to start the change process: cutting back physical objects and influences

00:33:57:17 The quote: "you can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending"

00:36:19:12 Leaders an

This episode of The Business of Thinking features host Richard Reed in conversation with Matt Phelan, co-founder of The Happiness Index. They skip the surface level talk and go straight into the psychology of high performance , exploring Matt's unique background, the founding of his company, and the power of data in measuring and transforming workplace culture. Matt shares a powerful philosophy from his farming roots: "You have to create the right environment and things take time" for growth.

Tune in to discover why Matt believes marketing teams are often 10 years ahead of HR teams in resource and data utilization , and his belief that "comparison is the fee for joy".

Key Takeaways

Farming Philosophy in Business: Matt's farming upbringing shaped his approach to business—focusing on creating the right environment for growth, accepting setbacks, and taking responsibility.

The Power of Data in Culture: The Happiness Index was built to add data and "light" to the subjective world of culture and HR, much like data transformed marketing.

Embrace Freedom and Growth: Matt’s transition from a restricted corporate role to entrepreneurship was driven by a desire for autonomy and freedom, embracing the scary but exhilarating "big ocean" of business.

Conversation is the Lowest Barrier to Entry: To begin developing an organizational culture, start conversations: ask colleagues what truly motivates them (unpeeling the "onion" of their answers) and collect that information.

Episode Highlights

Matt's unconventional upbringing on a farm in Harwich, Essex, and how it instilled principles of commitment and hard work.

Relatable experiences with the pandemic from a farmer's perspective, having already gone through crises like BSE (Mad Cow Disease) and Foot and Mouth.

The psychological resistance to data, even conclusive evidence, when it contradicts long-held beliefs or identity.

Matt's advice on normalizing uncomfortable reactions to data by explaining the role of hormones, urging people to lean in when data feels "icky".

The strategic decision to go "deep and not wider" with The Happiness Index, aiming to uncover more than the believed 9.5% of what makes us tick in the world of work.

Timestamps

00:00:48 Matt's Farming Background & Philosophy

00:01:44 The Farmer's Approach to Growth and Environment

00:04:45 Transition to Marketing and Entrepreneurship

00:06:05 The Founding of The Happiness Index

00:11:49 Resistance to Change and Conventional Wisdom

00:14:39 Normalizing Uncomfortable Data (Ego & Hormones)

00:18:00 Why Internal Comparison is Better than External Benchmarking

00:19:46 Future: Going Deeper and Connecting Culture to Performance

00:24:48 The Importance of Continually Checking In (People Change)

00:25:47 Final Takeaway: Stay Intrigued About People

🔗 Connect with Matt Phelan

Website: https://mattphelan.co.uk/

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

Instagram: @ matthewJphelan

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thehappinessindex

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If you enjoyed this conversation, please subscribe and leave a rating! It helps us bring more insightful content on the psychology of high performance. Find more about Richard Reid’s work at www.richard-reid.com.

Production Credit: Edited and produced by @the32collective_ / https://www.the32collective.co/