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Transform Your Workplace

Transform Your Workplace

By: Xenium HR
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 The "Transform Your Workplace" podcast, renowned as a top-rated HR and leadership podcast, covers into all aspects necessary for creating an outstanding workplace. It features a diverse lineup of industry experts, authors, speakers, HR professionals, and entrepreneurs worldwide who share their insights and big ideas for organizational transformation. Every week, the podcast explores a fresh topic, encompassing various subjects such as human resources, effective communication, cultural development, personal and business growth, leadership, and the latest workplace trends, such as A.I.2012-2025 Xenium Resources, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Economics Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • The Small Behaviors That Build Trust (and the Common Ones That Destroy It) with Dr. Paul Zak

    The Small Behaviors That Build Trust (and the Common Ones That Destroy It) with Dr. Paul Zak
    Feb 17 2026
    Most leaders say they value trust. It shows up in mission statements and team meetings. But when trust breaks down, few can explain why performance slows, collaboration frays, or innovation quietly disappears. Dr. Paul Zak doesn't treat trust as an abstraction. As a behavioral neuroscientist with over 25 years of research, he studies trust the same way an engineer studies load-bearing structures. His work has identified the specific neurochemical, oxytocin, that drives human connection. And the behaviors that trigger it are simpler than most leaders expect. In this episode, Paul breaks down what trust actually looks like day to day, why autonomy outperforms surveillance, how recognition needs to happen to actually stick, and why human connection matters more than ever in a world shaped by AI and remote work. Whether you lead a team of five or five hundred, this conversation will change how you think about the small moments that drive performance. Timestamps 0:00 Introduction2:00 What trust actually looks like at work3:30 The role of oxytocin in team performance4:48 Why moderate stress builds stronger teams6:42 The adjective hack for better Monday conversations8:32 Why emotional states are contagious9:48 How the brain values experiences (and the 20-minute rule)12:28 The real cost of micromanagement and surveillance14:30 Coaching to high performance (and firing with dignity)16:22 Why forward-looking reviews beat backward-looking ones18:08 How home life and work life feed each other19:30 Trust in hybrid and remote work environments21:40 Vulnerability as a leadership superpower23:12 Ovation: How to celebrate wins the right way25:20 How to tell the difference between trust and manipulation27:30 Why recognition needs to be fast, personal, and peer-driven28:48 Celebrating failure to accelerate learning29:30 Why human connection matters more in the age of AI32:30 The loneliness epidemic and rebuilding social skills34:30 Simple trust hacks every leader can use today37:20 Where to find Paul Zak and the Six app https://pauljzak.com/ Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR Host: Brandon Laws In Brandon's own words: "The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders. About Xenium HR Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more Connect with Brandon Laws: LinkedIn Instagram About Connect with Xenium HR: Website LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube #trust #leadership #workplaceculture #neuroscience #oxytocin #teambuilding #remotework #employeeengagement #hrleadership #transformyourworkplace
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    39 mins
  • Why High Performers Burn Out First (and How to Stop It) with Guy Winch

    Why High Performers Burn Out First (and How to Stop It) with Guy Winch
    Feb 10 2026

    Most of us think burnout only hits people who hate their jobs. Psychologist and bestselling author Guy Winch says the opposite is true. In this episode, Guy joins Brandon to unpack the hidden ways work takes over our lives, from the autopilot trap and procrastination to evening rumination and self-neglect. Drawing from his new book, Mind Over Grind: How to Break Free When Work Hijacks Your Life, Guy shares research-backed exercises that any professional can use to reclaim their time, protect their health, and actually be present when they get home. If you have ever told yourself "it's just a busy season," this episode is for you.

    Key Timestamps

    [00:00] Why even mental health experts miss their own burnout

    [02:30] The survival mode trap and how autopilot takes over your life

    [05:30] The Goldilocks zone: how stress improves performance until it doesn't

    [06:30] Why more strokes happen on Mondays and how a simple brain hack can ease the Sunday scaries

    [09:15] Reframing procrastination: why treating dreaded tasks as nuisances gets them done faster

    [11:45] Challenge state vs. threat state: the mindset shift that changes how you perform under pressure

    [14:30] The mind whisperer exercise and how to prep your brain before high-stakes moments

    [15:45] Rumination: why replaying work conflicts at home is unpaid overtime that damages your health

    [20:30] The "locating your job stress" exercise that turned 90% stress into 10%

    [23:30] Role curation: how to take charge of your career growth when your manager won't

    [26:00] The red light, green light technique for managing after-hours emails without losing your evening

    [30:15] Canaries in the coal mine: identifying your personal early warning signs of self-neglect

    [34:30] The empathy effort exercise for switching from work mode to home mode

    [36:45] Triple dipping: how to squeeze a month of happiness out of a single weekend away

    A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

    Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR Host: Brandon Laws

    In Brandon's own words: "The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders."

    About Xenium HR

    Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

    Connect with Brandon Laws: LinkedIn Instagram About

    Connect with Xenium HR: Website LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
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    44 mins
  • Designing Meetings That Actually Get Work Done with Rebecca Hinds

    Designing Meetings That Actually Get Work Done with Rebecca Hinds
    Feb 3 2026
    Are your meetings indistinguishable from 1940s wartime sabotage tactics? You're not alone. In this episode, Rebecca Hinds, author of Your Best Meeting Ever: Seven Principles for Designing Meetings That Get Things Done, reveals why corporate meetings have become the single most dysfunctional practice in modern organizations—and how to fix them. Brandon and Rebecca explore a radical idea: what if we treated meetings like products, applying the same design principles that make great products great? From "meeting doomsday" (a complete calendar reset) to Amazon's study hall approach, Rebecca shares actionable strategies that organizations like Slack, Dropbox, and Shopify have used to declare war on meeting bloat. You'll discover why double-booking has become a toxic badge of honor, how the visibility bias makes us associate presence with productivity, and why crowdsourcing your agenda using the "Dory method" can transform boring monologues into engaging collaboration. Rebecca also tackles the AI paradox—why more meeting bots might be making your meetings worse, not better—and shares the "iron rule" that every leader needs to embrace. If you've ever walked out of a meeting wondering what you just accomplished (or why you were even there), this episode is your blueprint for change. Don't miss Rebecca's insights on why meetings are the most important—and least optimized—product in your organization. KEY TIMESTAMPS 00:01 - Introduction and welcome to Rebecca Hinds 00:08 - Brandon introduces Rebecca's book Your Best Meeting Ever: Seven Principles for Designing Meetings That Get Things Done 00:24 - Rebecca explains why meetings are the most important yet least optimized product in organizations 00:58 - The fascinating 1943 OSS sabotage manual story: how wartime meeting sabotage tactics mirror modern corporate meetings 01:33 - Why we use meetings as a "lazy substitute for smart thinking and real work" 03:24 - The toxic "badge of honor" culture: why busyness in meetings signals importance but kills productivity 04:08 - What does it mean to treat meetings like a product? Introduction to the seven product design principles 04:18 - Meeting debt explained: How meetings accumulate technical debt just like software products 05:57 - Meeting Doomsday: The 48-hour calendar cleanse and complete reset strategy 06:13 - Case studies: How Slack, Dropbox, and Shopify implemented organization-wide calendar purges 08:05 - The IKEA effect: Why employee involvement in rebuilding calendars creates lasting change 26:15 - Amazon's study hall approach: How six-page memos and silent reading time revolutionize high-stakes meetings 27:19 - Fighting boring meetings: The Dory method for crowdsourcing agendas 27:37 - User-centric meeting design: Why the organizer and biggest talker are the most satisfied (and why that's a problem) 29:28 - The automation paradox: Why AI and meeting bots might be making bad meetings worse 29:57 - Calm technology: The right way to integrate AI into meetings without letting bots outnumber humans 32:12 - The iron rule of meetings: Treating attendees' time as more valuable than your own 33:39 - Where to find Rebecca's book and connect with her work 34:09 - Closing and final thoughts A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR Host: Brandon Laws In Brandon's own words: "The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders." About Xenium HR Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more Connect with Brandon Laws: LinkedIn | Instagram | About Connect with Xenium HR: Website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
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    36 mins
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