Unlocking Aliveness in Leadership

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Andy Rogers and Frances Armes interview modern everyday leaders about where they have come from, what makes them tick and what top tips they have to pass on to aspiring leaders who are listening Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. Jul 24

    Season 4: Episode 6 Everything Matters

    Everything Matters   Everything matters. It is not just about performance when client facing or presenting the next sales proposition. The way you behave back at base, in the privacy of your own office, or even in public spaces (such as Andy’s ‘train experience’ below) all matter. Everything matters. Andy tells the story of witnessing some extremely bad behaviour by contractors on a train journey. They were unaware, or even not caring, that anyone could hear. He was surprised and somewhat disgusted by this unprofessional behaviour at the time, but even more amazed to see the very same contractors in the reception of his office building later, waiting for a meeting with a senior leader in his company. They were not awarded the contract! Frances and Andy discuss this concept in depth during this podcast. We are a product of our behaviour, even when our guards down. As a leader, everything matters. Are you meeting your own values and those of the company by the way you behave and act towards others? Sometimes we think we can get away with things in our ‘back room’ whilst presenting a smooth image in the ‘front’. Andy and Frances debunk this myth. Find a way to be yourself and always act accordingly. It is not about your job title, position, or the meeting you are attending. It is about who you are as a leader and how you make the people connected with you feel. Everything Matters Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. Jul 3

    Season 4: Andy and Frances in conversation with Richard Pearman, Group Managing Director Tappex Group

    Frances and I are back once more interviewing another great leader for our podcast, Unlocking Aliveness in Leadership. We aim to get underneath the person, understanding what makes them tick as a leader. In this week’s episode we are in conversation with Richard Pearman, Group Managing Director for Tappex. Richard’s career history has been in manufacturing, giving him a unique take on leadership. Richard defines Leadership as “Driving success through a team and keeping them aligned through a clear vision and purpose.” He says, “When I was given the freedom to be bold and make decisions, as a leader, I was at my best,” and this is his motto for the people who work with him. He describes his purpose as “Creating an environment where everyone understands where we are heading and communicating it often. It’s about making sure that everyone is on the bus and keen on the journey.” Ultimately, it’s about creating an environment where people are excited to play their part, an environment he loves. “This is fun and who doesn’t like a bit of fun?”  🤩 Richard says that he is most proud of the teams that he has formed over the years that have achieved incredible results. For him, it is not necessarily about the results, but more about the way that the team has come together with passion and drive to achieve. For Richard, his leadership aliveness is all about the energy that he gets from the people around him. If they have a sense of achievement and fun it brings him alive as a leader. His top tips for current and future leaders are: ·     Be brave, if you believe something needs to change, do it. Don’t over think it. ·     Keep Change happening - Change needs to be constant Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. Jun 19

    Season 4: Episode 4 Andy and Frances in Conversation about Everything Matters

    In this episode of Unlocking Aliveness in Leadership, Frances Armes and I talk about a concept we are continually talking about with the leaders we coach and work with on development – everything matters. Our conversation was sparked by a simple 40-word sign that caught Frances’s attention as she was in an airport heading off on holiday…. KINDNESS TRAVELS Our colleagues are here to look after you on your travels – whether you’re in the air, on the ground or on the phone. Please show them the same kindness and respect. Abuse of any type doesn’t fly with us. A real life example of how we show up as human beings, as leaders, as customers impacts others around us and being intentional about how we show up even when we are not in the board room or in a team meeting, tells people who we are what we care about and how we interact with others. We dive into some personal stories when we didn’t show up as our best and what we learnt from those experiences, how we remind ourselves to embody the behaviours we do want to be known for and the impact this can have on people around us. We hope you enjoy listening Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. May 22

    Season 4: Episode 3 Andy and Frances in conversation with Marie Lindqvist, SVP Northern Europe Legends Global

    Andy and Frances are delighted to be back in conversation with our podcast, Unlocking Aliveness in Leadership. Today’s special guest is Marie Linquist, SVP Northern Europe for Legends Global.   Having spent her entire career within the Travel and Tourism and Entertainment Sectors, she notices that these roles are all about delivering the best possible service and experience to customers. This feels as if it is in her DNA.   Marie says that leadership is about giving people a sense of why, by articulating clear purpose and expectations. Once done, the leader’s role revolves around ensuring that the team are empowered to achieved, making sure that everyone has the relevant resources and tools to do their jobs. Leaders also need to stand up and be accountable when things are not heading in the right direction.   Marie is motivated by building things. She sees her role as an enabler to allow others to deliver to their best abilities. She feels alive as a leader when she is in flow; when things are heading in the right direction; and when she is building towards something. It is great to see the result of the effort that goes into the process - It makes her love what she does.   Her top tips for future leaders, as well as everyone who wants to achieve their objectives and have fun at work are:   1.   Invest in your Relationships: Get to know your colleagues: their drivers and motivators; what they like; what they don’t like; and what their triggers are. Expand your network and build those relationships. Spend time in Fika 🎂. 2.   Get to know yourself. Understand your own drivers, motivators and triggers so that you don’t get surprised by your own responses to situations. 3.   Surround yourself with a team that knows more than you. Have a team that can challenge you and help you learn as a leader. 4.   Choose your battles. Don’t waste your energy on pettiness. Think before you commence battle - is it worth it? 5.   Ask questions and don’t provide answers. 6.   Trust your capabilities (especially women). You don’t have to know everything and have 100% knowledge about a project. Take a leap of faith and trust yourself. 7.   Don’t take yourself too seriously – it is just a job! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. May 8

    Season 4: Episode 2 Andy and Frances in conversation about authenticity at work

    Is it OK to be myself at work or do I need to be somebody I’m not   In this podcast episode Andy and Frances are discussing what does it take to bring your whole self to work and is that even possible.   They use the source from Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic who has written a book “Don’t Be Yourself: Why Authenticity is overrated (and what to do instead)”.   As leadership coaches they talk a lot about unlocking aliveness in leadership and have a belief that this means being you, in all its glory, your thoughts, understanding, questions and curiousness. When you are hired; you are hired for who you are, and what you stand for and not someone who leaves their whole self at the door.   Chamorro-Premuzic tells a story of one direct report, a 20 something, who came to his performance review wearing a T-shirt with “Just be you, they will adjust” emblazoned on it. “If we all wore that T-shirt, we would have total anarchy”, he says. “You get a lot of egotistical, self-indulgent, narcissistic entitlement masked by or disguised under the authenticity mantle, and it’s very unhealthy”.   He goes on to say, “It’s important to help people to understand that there are very few instances in which your right to be you overrides your obligation to others, and that work is not a place that invites you to impose or unleash your unfiltered or uncensored self.”   Frances and Andy got quite excited in this conversation about what does it take to be a human being at work rather than a human doing, and where the line is drawn on authenticity.   In their experience work is about bringing as much of yourself as possible, and not hiding that away, that’s where the aliveness is.   We think that it’s worth a listen. 😃   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Apr 17

    Season 4: Andy and Frances in conversation with Zarina Ward, Chief People Officer

    Andy Rogers and Frances Armes are very pleased to share the first episode of Season Four of our podcast Unlocking Aliveness in Leadership. In today’s episode we are in conversation with Zarina Ward, a Chief People Officer. Zarina spent the early part of her career in recruiting before moving into HR. Most of her career has been in professional. Zarina candidly talks about being a commercial HR leader, understanding what the organisation needs to achieve commercially and managing the workforce to achieve those goals. She shares her experience of linking commerciality with empathy and humanity, which she openly admits is a tough line to walk. When talking about what leadership means to Zarina, her answer of shaping the conversation and create followship, felt a very natural follow on from the discussion around being a commercial leader and Zarina shared a great quote from John C Maxwell “he who thinks he leads but has no followers, is only taking a walk”. When talking about her leadership purpose, Zarina was very clear, to leave everyone she works with better off, with some more skills, or something more than when she met them and some of her proudest moments came from developing great successors ‘making life a little bit easier for the people that are walking in your shadows and behind you’. As far as regrets, Zarina recalled a point in her life when she considered retraining as a life coach, and after discussion with those around her, decided to continue on the more traditional people focused career path and her reflection was she shouldn’t have listened to the naysayers. Zarina’s aliveness comes from seeing the tangible impact of her work, she also sees this in the pro-bono work as a trustee for an organisation that supports people who have experienced homelessness and how that real work impact makes her feel energised and engaged in something really worth while. One of the issues top of mind for Zarina at the moment is how being human at work is at odds with the commerciality piece and she sees people being treated as disposable assets rather than people who can be nurtured and developed. In today’s world she sees opportunities for velocity vs redundancy, but in practice people tend to focus on redundancy rather than velocity. Zarina’s top tips for leaders are: ·     Hone your feedback skills, both delivering and receiving ·     Adopt the mindset that you are never finished as a leader and keep learning from your experiences ·     Make leadership a real one to one experience Many thanks to Zarina for sharing her leadership thoughts with such candor and aliveness. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Jan 23

    Season 3: Episode 10 Andy and Frances are in conversation about change

    In this final episode of Season 3 of the podcast Unlocking aliveness in leadership Frances and Andy are discussion about what it takes to change. They introduce to the listeners the change formula (yes there is such a thing) and talk through some personal examples from their own history that bring this formula alive. The Change Formula ExplainedD × V × F > RWhere: D = Dissatisfaction with the current situation. People must feel that the current situation is not acceptable. V = Vision of the future A clear and compelling picture of what the future will look like. F = First steps (or Feasible first actions) Clear, practical actions that show how to begin. R = Resistance to change The natural human tendency to resist change. In their discussion, Frances and Andy delve deeply into the theme of personal transformation, highlighting the importance of examining each aspect of the change formula through honest self-reflection. By considering where we stand with our dissatisfaction, vision, and first steps, the conversation encourages us not only to recognise what actions are needed but also to identify any obstacles or resistance we might face in the process of change.   We hope that you enjoy 😀 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. Jan 9

    Season 3: Episode 9 Andy and Frances look forward to 2026 and discuss how we become more deliberate with our intentions

    Welcome to 2026 and our first Unlocking Aliveness in Leadership Podcast   In this podcast Frances and Andy are looking at the year ahead, discussing what it takes to be more intentional and deliberate about who you want to be, and what you stand for.   We use Seth Godin’s blog More like itself as inspiration for our discussion.   More Like Itself Every year, on the first weekend of the year, it’s probably worth replacing the dried spices in your pantry. The best, freshest spices still taste like the spice that’s on the label, but they taste more like themselves. That’s what successful brands and freelancers do as well. They relentlessly do the work to act more like themselves. First, we have to figure out what we are, what we stand for, and what people expect. Then we get a chance to be more like that. How do we become more like our true self this year?   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Andy Rogers and Frances Armes interview modern everyday leaders about where they have come from, what makes them tick and what top tips they have to pass on to aspiring leaders who are listening Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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