#32: Q&A with Dr. Ryan Gottfredson — 4 Critical Mindsets for Success

March 25, 2020 by Cal Walters in Intentional Living, Leadership

Is your way of thinking the best way to think?  This is a question Dr. Ryan Gottfredson asks in his brand new book, Success Mindsets, currently available in audio and E-book format and scheduled to be released in print form on May 5, 2020.

Is your way of thinking the best way to think?

This is a question Dr. Ryan Gottfredson asks in his brand new book, Success Mindsets, currently available in audio and E-book format and scheduled to be released in print form on May 5, 2020. While many have focused narrowly on different mindsets, Dr. Gottfredson pioneered a widespread study and synthesis of all critical mindsets for achieving success.

On this podcast episode, we explore 4 specific mindsets each person can cultivate to achieve greater success:

a growth mindset;
an open mindset;
a promotion mindset; and
an outward mindset.

Dr. Gottfredson is a mental success coach and cutting-edge leadership consultant, author, trainer, and researcher. He helps improve organizations, leaders, teams, and employees by improving their mindsets.

In addition, Ryan is a leadership and management professor at California State University-Fullerton (CSUF). Dr. Gottfredson did his undergraduate work at Brigham Young University, and he holds a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Human Resources from Indiana University.

To supplement the insights gained from Success Mindsets, Dr. Gottfredson provides a free mindset assessment to help you examine the way you think, and he provides tools for improving your current mindsets, such as the Digital Mindset Coach.

Dr. Gottfredson also works with organizations to develop their leaders and improve their collective mindsets and culture. He has worked with top leadership teams at CVS Health (top 130 leaders), Deutsche Telekom (500+ of their top 2,000 leaders), and dozens of other organizations.

As a respected authority and researcher on topics related to leadership, management, and organizational behavior, Ryan has been featured in Harvard Business Review and has published over 15 articles across a variety of journals including: Journal of Management, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Business Horizons, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, and Journal of Leadership Studies. His research has been cited over 2,000 times since 2014.

As we explore each of these 4 success mindsets—growth, open, promotion, and outward—reflect on which ones you think you have cultivated more than others. Sometimes thinking about the way you think is hard to do—it’s called metacognition—but as you will hear Ryan say, everything starts with our mindset.

Connect with Dr. Gottfredson on LinkedIn and find his work on ryangottfredson.com.

During this episode, Dr. Gottfredson recommended The Five-Minute Journal:

The Five Minute Journal: A Happier You in 5 Minutes a Day | Original Creator of The Five Minute Journal - Simple Daily Guided Format - Increase Gratitude & Happiness, Life Planner, Gratitude List

By Intelligent Change

Dr. Gottfredson also recommended the following books during this episode:

Bonds that Make Us Free: Healing Our Relationships, Coming to Ourselves

By C. Terry Warner

Principles: Life and Work

By Dalio, Ray

Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration

By Catmull, Ed, Wallace, Amy

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#30: Q&A with Doug Crandall — Integrity, Authenticity, and Referent Power

March 12, 2020 by Cal Walters in Intentional Living, Leadership

Doug Crandall is a graduate of West Point and the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Doug Crandall is a graduate of West Point and the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He has led multiple units in the Army, and spent time in operations at Amazon. For five years, Doug taught leadership, advanced leadership, and leading organizations through change at West Point, where he won the Excellence in Teaching Award and exceeded the academy average in every area of teaching feedback during each semester that he taught. In this interview, you’ll see why Doug was such an effective teacher at West Point. He’s very approachable and an incredibly gifted story teller. His stories and personal examples have a way of sticking with you.

He’s the co-author of four books: Permission to Speak Freely, Say Anything, Leadership Lessons from West Point, and Hope Unseen, which is the inspiring story of Scotty Smiley, the US Army’s first blind active-duty officer. Three of Doug’s books were Amazon Top New Releases, and his books have sold more than 60,000 copies worldwide and continue to gain momentum in Europe and Asia. Doug has also published articles in the International Journal of Servant-Leadership and written case studies for both Stanford and Harvard business schools.

Hope Unseen: The Story of the U.S. Army's First Blind Active-Duty Officer

By Smiley, Cap. Scotty

He was a Founding Partner of the “Blue Rudder” Leadership Development Company, where he delivered high impact leadership development programs throughout the US, Europe, and Asia. He currently works at The Referent Group, a company in the healthcare leadership coaching industry, with another one of my good friends and mentors, Dr. Tom Hustead. Doug lives in Washington State and is passionate about his family and his faith. You’ll hear him talk about many of the leadership and life lessons he pulls from everyday life like coaching girls basketball.

A special thank you to my friend Lance Dietz for helping me craft some questions for Doug.

I really think you’re going to enjoy learning from Doug. Despite all Doug has accomplished, I’m impressed by his humility and authenticity. He’s also an incredible story teller. We discuss integrity, the struggle between being competent as a leader and authentic, his biggest lessons after years of teaching and coaching leadership, how to create a culture where people can speak freely, and many other powerful topics.

Below are books we discuss during the interview (note: these are Amazon affiliate links so I receive a small percentage for each purchase made through these links):

It Worked for Me: In Life and Leadership

By Powell, Colin

Leadership Lessons from West Point

Jossey-Bass

Say Anything: How Leaders Inspire Ideas, Cultivate Candor, and Forge Fearless Cultures

By Crandall, Doug, Kincaid PhD, Matt

Permission to Speak Freely: How the Best Leaders Cultivate a Culture of Candor

By Crandall, Doug, Kincaid Ph.D., Matt

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#29: Q&A with Dr. Joe Ross — Mental Toughness, High Performance, and the Caring Leader

February 28, 2020 by Cal Walters in Intentional Living, Leadership

Today, I'm super pumped to bring you an interview I did with the first person to ever introduce me to the concept of high performance at West Point, Dr. Joe Ross (Retired, US Army). Joe has a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Walden University and a Masters of Education in Psychology and Athletic Counseling from Springfield College.

Today, I’m super pumped to bring you an interview I did with the first person to ever introduce me to the concept of high performance at West Point, Dr. Joe Ross (Retired, US Army). Joe has a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Walden University and a Masters of Education in Psychology and Athletic Counseling from Springfield College.

Dr. Ross is also a 1995 West Point graduate, where he was a three-year letter winner and co-captain of the 1994 Army Football team. As an Infantry Officer, Joe led 144 soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division and deployed to Kosovo in 2001. The Secretary of the Army commended Joe’s unit for capturing two insurgents on the Central Intelligence Agency’s (CIA) top ten most wanted list and bringing the Serbian and Albanian leadership together to start a dialogue of reconciliation. Joe also managed all logistics for over 1,000 personnel, directed human resources for over 4,000 personnel, and helped write the Soldier’s Creed.

In 2009, Joe joined the Army Football coaching staff as the Special Teams and Fullback Coach, where he helped lead Army Football to the 2010 Armed Forces Bowl victory. At West Point, Joe also served as the Director of the Military Enhancement Program and was asked to collaborate on a Presidential committee to review and design procedures for wounded warriors in transition.

Joe is now the President and Co-Founder of HigherEchelon, Inc., an Organizational Performance consulting firm with offerings in leadership, technology, and engineering to both public and private sector clients. Joe has consulted with Fortune 100 companies, college and professional sports teams, top tier Universities, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Defense. Joe led the creation of Higher Echelon’s flagship program, The Resilient and Adaptable Leader ©.

Dr. Ross and HigherEchelon’s success leading government and commercial programs has been recognized numerous times by industry. In 2019, HigherEchelon was named Contractor of the Year at the Madison County Small Business Awards and won the Program of the Year award at the D.C. GovCon award ceremony for their work piloting the VA Women’s Health Program, which was recently expanded by Congress.

Since 2012, Joe has also been the lead consultant for Army Game Studio in developing GoArmy Edge, a free software application adapted to help football athletes learn their team’s playbooks, make proper reads and play calls, and mentally practice their assignments in a virtual environment before taking the field. GoArmy Edge takes virtual coaching, simulation and training to a new level through unprecedented detail and customization, helping improve football team performance through more effective and safer player practice capabilities.

Additionally, Dr. Ross leads numerous government programs including the General and Flag Officer Transition courses for the Army and Navy, and a cognitive training pilot for the TSA.

On this interview, we discuss Joe’s influences growing up, his tips for high performance, having a mental edge, his keys to leadership, leading through change, transition advice he gives to military generals and flag officers, and many other exciting topics.

You can follow, or connect with, Joe on LinkedIn here.

Find out more about HigherEchelon at their website or on LinkedIn.

Below are books Joe recommended during the interview related to high performance and leadership (note: these are Amazon affiliate links so I receive a small percentage for each purchase made through these links):

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don't

By Jim Collins

Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Good to Great)

By Jim Collins, Jerry I Porras

Putting Out of Your Mind

By Dr Bob Rotella

The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance

By W. Timothy Gallwey

Hockey Tough

By Saul L. Miller

Heads-Up Baseball : Playing the Game One Pitch at a Time

By Tom Hanson, Ken Ravizza

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#28: Q&A with Bob Burg (Bestselling Author) — Becoming a Go-Giver

February 13, 2020 by Cal Walters in Intentional Living, Leadership

Last year, I read a lot of books, but one book that made a particularly lasting impact was The Go-Giver.  A special thank you to Graham Cochrane and his podcast for introducing me to this book.  The Go-Giver tells the story of an ambitious young man named Joe who yearns for success.

Last year, I read a lot of books, but one book that made a particularly lasting impact was The Go-Giver. A special thank you to Graham Cochrane and his podcast for introducing me to this book.

The Go-Giver tells the story of an ambitious young man named Joe who yearns for success. Joe is a true go-getter, though sometimes he feels as if the harder and faster he works, the further away his goals seem to be. And so one day, desperate to land a key sale at the end of a bad quarter, he seeks advice from the enigmatic Pindar, a legendary consultant referred to by his many devotees simply as the Chairman. Pindar takes Joe (and us as the reader) on a journey, where Joe meets 5 “go-givers” and learns the 5 counter-intuitive laws of stratospheric success.

“The Go-Giver is the most important parable about business—and life—of our time.”

— Adam Grant

“If you follow the principles in this fantastic little book—if you really strive to be a go-giver—you’ll find that Zig Ziglar was right: You really can have everything in life you want if you help enough other people get what they want.”

— Dave Ramsey

And today, I’m honored and excited to bring you an interview with Bob Burg, co-author of The Go-Giver. Bob is a sought-after speaker at company leadership and sales conferences sharing the platform with today’s business leaders, Olympic athletes, broadcast personalities, and even a former U.S. President.

Bob is the author of a number of books on sales, marketing and influence, with total book sales of well over two million copies. The Go-Giver, coauthored with John David Mann, itself has sold over 925,000 copies and has been translated into 28 languages. It was rated #10 on Inc. Magazine’s list of the Most Motivational Books Ever Written, and it was on HubSpot’s 20 Most Highly Rated Sales Books of All Time. The American Management Association named Bob one of the 30 Most Influential Leaders, and Richtopia named him one of the Top 200 Most Influential Authors in the World.

The Go-Giver series has now expanded to The Go-Giver Leader, The Go-Giver Influencer, and their newest edition, Go-Givers Sell More.

Bob is an advocate, supporter and defender of the Free Enterprise system, believing that the amount of money one makes is directly proportional to how many people they serve. He is also an unapologetic animal fanatic, and is a past member of the Board of Directors of Furry Friends Adoption, Clinic & Ranch in his town of Jupiter, Florida.

And I can honestly say that Bob is a Go-Giver in real life. From the moment I reached out to Bob to ask him to be on the podcast, he was humble, generous, and kind. And you’ll see in this interview that he was very authentic and honest about areas he has tried to improve in his own life. I really think you’ll enjoy this interview.

Below is a short video overview of the Go-Giver:

During the podcast, Bob mentions the following books:

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

By James Clear

The Simple Abundance Journal of Gratitude

By Sarah Ban Breathnach

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

By Benjamin Franklin

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#27: Q&A with David Marquet (Bestselling Author) - Leadership is Language

February 03, 2020 by Cal Walters in Leadership

Today, I am bringing you an interview with former Navy Captain, best-selling author, and a true leadership expert, David Marquet.  Here are a few quotes about David Marquet: "I don't know of a finer model of this kind of empowering leadership than Captain Marquet." Dr. Stephen R.

Today, I am bringing you an interview with former Navy Captain, best-selling author, and a true leadership expert, David Marquet.

Here are a few quotes about David Marquet:

“I don’t know of a finer model of this kind of empowering leadership than Captain Marquet.”

— Dr. Stephen R. Covey, author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

“To say I’m a fan of David Marquet would be an understatement. I’m a fully-fledged groupie. He is the kind of leader who comes around only once in a generation. He is the kind of leader who doesn’t just know how to lead, he knows how to build leaders. His ideas and lessons are invaluable to anyone who wants to build an organization that will outlive them.”

— Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why, Leaders Eat Last, and The Infinite Game

I can relate to Dr. Covey and Simon’s thoughts on David. He is a true leadership hero for me, so it was really special to get to do this interview.

A little bit of David’s story for those that are unfamiliar. He graduated in the top of his class at the US Naval Academy, graduated #1 from his nuclear power school class and the submarine officer basic course. David has always been a brilliant guy, but over his years in the Navy, he learned that being a great leader is not all about being the smartest guy in the room.

After years of proving his competence, David was awarded his very own command of a nuclear submarine. He was told he’d be taking over the USS Olympia, so he spent an entire year studying every aspect of the ship, becoming an expert on all the ship's capabilities. But about two weeks before taking over the Olympia, he was reassigned to take over the Santa Fe. He knew nothing about the Santa Fe, but its crew had a reputation for being the worst in the fleet. With only two weeks before taking over, he knew his typical leadership approach of being the smartest person in the room and just giving orders wasn’t going to work.

So aboard a nuclear submarine — a place that few would feel comfortable taking a lot of risk and doing experiments — David tried an entirely different approach to leadership. Instead of viewing his crew as followers that simply followed his orders, David empowered them to think, to take initiative, and he ultimately developed them into leaders. He moved from the leader-follower model he had been taught to viewing everyone as a leader. And the results were truly remarkable. His leadership turned the ship around. They went from worst in the Navy to receiving the best evaluation in Navy history.

Even after David departed the Santa Fe, it continued to win awards and promoted a disproportionate number of officers and enlisted men to positions of increased responsibility, including 10 subsequent submarine captains. When Dr. Stephen R. Covey visited the ship, he said it was the most empowering organization he’d ever seen and wrote about David’s leadership practices in his book, The 8th Habit.

Captain Marquet and Dr. Covey aboard the Santa Fe.

David first shared his leadership principles in the #1 Amazon Bestseller, Turn the Ship Around! A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders. Fortune magazine named it the #1 must-read business book of the year, and USA Today listed it as one of the top 12 business books of all time.

And, on February 4th, David is releasing his new book, Leadership is Language: The Hidden Power of What You Say and What You Don't, which I have had the chance to read and it is truly an incredible book. Some books give you a nugget of wisdom here and there, but David’s books challenge me to take my leadership approach to a new level. His books are transformational and paradigm-shifting. Leadership is Language has been endorsed by Adam Grant, General (ret.) Stanley McCrystal, and Liz Wiseman, author of Multipliers.

You can connect with David Marquet at his website, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

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