What makes a company or corporation great? What makes them truly stand out amongst their competitors? The answer is excellent, innovative, and effective communication. This kind of communication provides productivity, adaptability, stronger relationships, and successful negotiations — and it brings an end to the tired, useless jargon that derails, distracts, and limits every situation. What organizations need is an innovative approach that creates open and effective communication, both internall...
Nov 16, 2020•13 min•Season 3Ep. 29
When was the last time you performed a random act of kindness? Allison Clarke is a certified speaking professional and an expert in leadership and influence. She’s helped thousands around the world break through the barriers to boost profitability, improve productivity, and increase team cohesion. Not your average speaker, Allison consistently challenges both her speakers and herself daily. For over five years, she’s carried out daily acts of kindness with strangers, colleagues, friends, and fam...
Nov 09, 2020•47 min•Season 3Ep. 28
What challenges do you have in building your team? Is your team focused solely on completing tasks? Is the group cohesive together and work together as a well-oiled machine? The landscape of business as we know it continues to change rapidly. What worked today may not work tomorrow, and almost certainly won’t ten years from now. Having the best team to accomplish the fast-paced demands of marketing, productivity, and customer service requires leaders that attract and embody more than just the te...
Nov 02, 2020•13 min•Season 3Ep. 27
Have you ever thought about being an entrepreneur and your business model is documenting your life with your girlfriend and two dogs—and earning a living? Sounds crazy, maybe even impossible… but it’s not! Jordan Kahana has, over the last four years, created content traveling the world with his girlfriend and two pups, Zeus and Sedona (AKA the Adventure Squad), producing photo, video, and interactive digital campaigns with both boutique and major corporations, such as ESPN, NFL, and Pepsi. He sh...
Oct 26, 2020•44 min•Season 3Ep. 26
Are you looking for a new way to generate ideas to solve your problems? Do you have the culture in place that accepts that all ideas are important ideas? Do you think of yourself as a creative person? What about your team? David Kelly, CEO of the legendary design firm IDEO, tells us about the importance of building creative confidence. In an experience in elementary school where a classmate was ridiculed by a peer during a project, that classmate shut down and quit the project. We often opt out ...
Oct 19, 2020•12 min•Season 3Ep. 25
Have you ever decided to take a new job during a chaotic period—like a pandemic? How do you transition a team from working in an office to working from home? How determined are you to meet your goal, even if it takes you an extra 100 days? Don Craig, Chief Financial Officer at the engineering firm of Haley & Aldrich, is going to share his story as it relates to those questions. He made the decision to become the CFO of Haley & Aldrich in the mindset of a pandemic, and he talks about the ...
Oct 12, 2020•49 min•Season 3Ep. 24
Everyone has an ego. Some are underdeveloped, others are well developed—and then there are the overdeveloped egos. An overdeveloped ego can, in some cases, ultimately transform into narcissism. Many CEOs have well-developed egos, and businesses need that in their leader. But what if your CEO is narcissistic? A narcissistic CEO stops listening to those around them and does things to feed their ego at the expense of the company. Let’s discuss how you can practice shelving your ego in order to be m...
Oct 05, 2020•11 min•Season 3Ep. 23
Racism is something you learn over time through your family, your culture, and your environment. The reality of it is that—as hard and shameful as it is to admit—at one point in my life, I was a racist. As I recognized that improv was a leadership philosophy and way of life, my awareness, attitudes, and beliefs changed even more dramatically. The improv concept of “Yes, and” teaches us to suspend our judgment, park our ego, listen to understand, and to be empathetic. It is not about pushing forw...
Sep 21, 2020•10 min•Season 3Ep. 21
What can we learn about leadership from someone who grew up in a small town? Natalie Siston is the founder of Small Town Leadership. She takes the lessons she’s learned from small town living and applies them to achieve significant business success. Whether you’re a corporate leader looking for an effective way to motivate today’s workforce, a manager striving to bring out the best in each individual, or someone hoping to make sure your work matters, big success starts by thinking small. To lear...
Sep 14, 2020•41 min•Season 3Ep. 20
We all get distracted when we need to be focused. In improv, being present is critical to the success of the ensemble, and in leadership, being present is critical to the success of the business. It’s impossible to remain focused every minute of the day, but there are exercises you can do to become more focused and a better listener, which will in turn make you a better leader. I outline three of these exercises you can do with your teams to be more present. To learn more, and for the complete s...
Sep 07, 2020•14 min•Season 3Ep. 19
Eric and Rebecca Scott are a married couple with the perfect combination of math and writing skills. Eric is a licensed CPA in Kentucky and is a Tax Senior Manager at Ernst & Young, focusing on a wide variety of technical topics. Rebecca, who was an autism behavioral intervention specialist before staying home to raise her two children, is now an accomplished author. Her book “Sensational Kids, Sensational Families: Hope For Sensory Processing Differences” chronicles the research, interventi...
Aug 31, 2020•45 min•Season 3Ep. 18
Do you listen to respond… or do you listen to understand? In my introduction to improv, I realized I was not that great of a listener. This was largely due to my inflated ego. To be a good listener, you need to adopt the “Yes, and” philosophy. Instead of pulling a conversation away from somebody else and back onto yourself, you need to add to it. There’s no room for ego. Active listening is hard. It takes intention, time, and effort. Start working on strengthening your listening skills every sin...
Aug 24, 2020•15 min•Season 3Ep. 17
Brannon Poe, the founder of Poe Group Advisors, has been facilitating advisors’ successful accounting practice transitions throughout the US and Canada since 2003. He’s also the creator of Accounting Practice Academy, an eight-week virtual workshop for accounting practice owners. He’s the author of the Account Practice Insights blog and hosts the Accounting Flight Plan podcast with other top thought leaders in the profession. He is also the author of several books, including “Accountant’s Flight...
Aug 17, 2020•48 min•Season 3Ep. 16
Leadership and improv are not opposing forces—in fact, improv is a strategic component of good leadership. It’s been proven by science. The key principle of improv is these two powerful words: “Yes, and.” Leadership in Hyperdrive: Powered by Improv™ and the power of “Yes, and,” is a way of adapting to a changing landscape, becoming more creative and collaborative, and showing that you do appreciate the people that you work with by taking time to listen and show empathy to them. It will produce t...
Aug 10, 2020•19 min•Season 3Ep. 15
Is your marketing strategy centered around clicks, funnels, artificial intelligence, and driving traffic to your website? Shouldn’t marketing be more human-centric? Instead of funnels, maybe we can lead people on a journey. That’s what Jürgen Strauss, the founder and chief innovator of InnovaBiz, joins us to discuss. InnovaBiz is a marketing firm helping organizations by building visibility, professional authority, and connecting with their ideal clients. They work to turn your business into a c...
Aug 03, 2020•53 min•Season 3Ep. 14
Do you put the needs of your team before yours? Do you engage with them or just deliver orders? Do you encourage them to do their best in a non-threatening matter? Do you get mad and let it fester or get over it quickly? David Veech joins us to discuss those questions and more. He’s had many different roles in life: infantry officer, husband, father, author, student, farmer, grandfather, and teacher. David now teaches organizations how to obliterate their obstacles, accelerate innovation, and el...
Jul 20, 2020•51 min•Season 3Ep. 13
Are you having trouble finding the time to focus on your most important work in order to move your business forward? Jake Kahana is a designer, entrepreneur, and teacher — and he’s going to address the above issue. He’s the founder of Caveday, a group of people (known as Cavedwellers) working on their most important work for a focused period of time — called a sprint. Cavedwellers start with the hardest things first, they monotask, and eliminate all distractions. It’s a fascinating process and i...
Jul 06, 2020•40 min•Season 3Ep. 12
Do you want to inspire friends, family, and strangers for the greater good? What impact are you making on your community? How do you rise when you fail? How do you deal with change in an uncertain environment? And do you know your personal why? These questions and more will be discussed by Ruben Minor, the president of RAM Enterprises, an organization that focuses on speaking, training, and coaching individuals and groups regarding leadership, team dynamics, relationship building, fundamental bu...
Jun 22, 2020•45 min•Season 3Ep. 11
Would you believe that improv is used in the medical world? Margot Escott is a clinical social worker, licensed therapist, and professional speaker who has presented workshops and seminars on the therapeutic value of humor and play for over 30 years. She has studied and performed improv and was trained by some very well-known improvisers such as Gary Schwartz and friend-of-the-show Jay Sukow. In her practice, she uses improvisational theater exercises combined with cognitive behavior education t...
Jun 08, 2020•41 min•Season 3Ep. 10
Can artificial intelligence enhance your accounting practice? It absolutely can. Jody Padar is the VP of Strategy with Botkeeper, a company that combines artificial intelligence and machine learning technology with high-quality skilled accountants to deliver a full suite of bookkeeping and pre-accounting solutions to accounting firms and their clients. She’s also the author of “The Radical CPA: New Rules for the Future-Ready Firm,” a book that sparked a movement within the accounting profession ...
May 25, 2020•47 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Brian Walter is the co-founder of Extreme Meetings Inc, and for over 25 years, he has specialized in transforming meetings from boring to exciting. Brian is also the past president of the National Speakers Association Board of Directors from 2017 to 2018. Brian brings his approach, knowledge, and leadership style into this discussion about leadership during a pandemic, and he has some great advice for keeping a positive attitude even in the face of a crisis. As we hopefully begin the slow proces...
May 11, 2020•51 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Kay Francis is a professional keynote speaker and the author of the book The Funny Thing About Stress: a Seriously Humorous Guide to a Happier Life. Laughter is one of the best coping mechanisms in dealing with stress. According to an article published by the Mayo Clinic in April 2019 titled "Stress relief from laughter? It's no joke" when it comes to relieving stress, more giggles are just what the doctor ordered. To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: petermargaritis.com Resour...
Apr 27, 2020•49 min•Season 3Ep. 7
In times of heightened stress, one way of coping is to reach out to the experts that know how to deal with disasters effectively. One such expert is Jennifer Elder, the self-proclaimed “Diva of Disaster” and author of Faster Disaster Recovery: A Business Owner's Guide to Developing a Business Continuity Plan. She talks about what we can do to change our mindset, change our approach, and change our attitude in dealing with this global pandemic. To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visi...
Apr 13, 2020•37 min•Season 3Ep. 6
We are all dealing with the stress of the unknown circumstances regarding the coronavirus pandemic. Improv has always been an incredibly impactful way to deal with the daily stressors of life and — in the midst of this global situation — is more useful than ever in helping to cope with overwhelming levels of stress. Jay Sukow joins us today to talk about how we can use the principles of improv to help make a difficult situation more bearable. To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit...
Mar 30, 2020•50 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Christopher Jones speaks, coaches and advises leaders to become the type of leader others want to follow — as he calls them, authentic leaders. The very first time Christopher was put into a leadership position he failed miserably. He had thought before getting that position, “How hard can this leadership thing be?” He had worked with great leaders and terrible leaders beforehand, and those that were great made it look so easy. But once he got into that role, he realized it’s just so much more c...
Mar 16, 2020•50 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Peter Frampton has found a way to make accounting come alive. Peter is a financial literacy advocate. He's a Co-Founder of Color Accounting International, which teaches finance to non-financial people using a breakthrough graphical system. What lights Peter up is awakening people to a life of abundance. A better understanding of accounting will only help you and your employees become better stewards of your organization. The more that you and your employees have a basic understanding of accounti...
Mar 02, 2020•52 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Dino Tripodis spent twenty-four years as the morning co-host on WSNY 94.7 FM, nicknamed Sunny 95 in Columbus, Ohio. He is also a headlining comedian, podcaster, actor, producer, writer, published author, professional speaker, and philanthropist. Dino is the co-writer, co-producer, and actor in the 2017 movie, The Street Where We Live. Dino shares how he has stumbled through his various careers in life, how our experiences in life shape us, and how we can use that to find common ground and relate...
Feb 17, 2020•1 hr 14 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Brian Comerford and Nick Lozano are co-hosts of the Lead.exe podcast, which covers topics ranging from leadership, emotional intelligence, design thinking, and many more. Brian is a digital leader and serial entrepreneur, notable as co-founder of Radiovalve.com, an I-radio station among the first generation of web casters. Nick is a technologist and entrepreneur. He has experience in working in technology and leading teams at Accenture, CornerStack, and a major trade association. They discuss ho...
Feb 03, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Happy New Year! 2019 was a very good year for this podcast. The show was originally titled Improv is No Joke and on April 30, 2018, the name was changed to Change Your Mindset with Peter Margaritis, CPA. The overarching theme of this podcast is leadership, with a heavy emphasis on improv as a leadership enhancer. We are currently lining up guests for the upcoming season and need your help. What topics would you like to hear more about, and what guests would you like to see interviewed on the sho...
Jan 20, 2020•13 min•Season 2Ep. 46
How do we keep our best and brightest employees? What is the true cost when an employee leaves the company? Are we at risk of losing some of our most talented, tenured, and loyal employees? Is a quarterly financial reporting model having an effect on our retention strategy? Those questions and more will be answered by Cara Silletto, the Chief Retention Officer in her consulting firm. To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: petermargaritis.com Resources: Learn more at: wereduceturn...
Jan 06, 2020•54 min•Season 2Ep. 45
