52: Looking Back and Looking Forward

It’s been 1 year since I launched The Modern Manager podcast. To celebrate, I take a look back at some of my favorite episodes and lessons learned, and share plans for the future, including some exciting changes.   Get all the free mini-guides (episodes 1-52) in a single download.   There is a new community! Join the Modern Manager community to get the full guides, guest bonuses, access to the forum and more. Join before June 30th and get two special bonus gifts: a Modern Manager mini-notebook (usually reserved only as a thank you gift for my guests) and Meeteor meeting log to help clarify your meeting outcomes.   Subscribe to my newsletter to get episodes, articles and mini-guides delivered to your inbox.   I'm launching a new course for managers! Share you thoughts and get 10% off when the course launches: www.mamieks.com/new-course   Key Takeaways: Lesson from Elise Keith: Productive meetings is a mindset - when you expect meetings to be a waste of time, you don’t invest time preparing for them which results in the meeting being a waste of time, further proving they’re a necessary evil. Break this mental downward spiral by seeing meetings as an important place where work gets done and preparing appropriately. Lesson from Rob Toomey: Before responding to a colleague or team member, pause and consider how you can communicate in a way that’s best for them rather than what’s easiest for you. Lesson from Tara Mohr: Rather than trying to argue with someone’s inner critic, help them recognize that it’s their inner critic who is speaking out of fear, rather than a voice that is speaking from your aspirations or potential. Lesson from Robleh Kirce: When giving feedback, start by getting permission to speak with them about feedback. Share your observations without judgement by focusing on facts and the impact. Then open the conversation to hear their thinking. Lesson from Jesse Fowl: To help unleash more creative and risky ideas, focus on learning rather than success. Treat ideas that generate learnings (both what works and what doesn’t) as equally valuable.   Additional Resources: Episode 10: Effective Meetings with Elise Keith Episode 14: Personality and Preferences with Rob Toomey Episode 26: Quieting the Inner Critic with Tara Mohr