Human beings are designed to connect. Lockdowns showed us how much we valued connection, but also how vital our habits were to helping us stabilise. But while habits include routine behaviours, they can also include thought patterns that lead to judgements of others. Sue Langley equips people to be the best they can be. She does this by applying positive psychology, emotional intelligence, and neuroscience. In her conversation with Dan and Pia, she explores how principles applied of positive psy...
Jul 28, 2022•45 min•Ep. 35
When Becky Malby discovered that her local water provider was dumping raw sewage into the nearby river on a regular basis, she was outraged. So she helped setup a citizen science project to test the local water and found that it was full of dangerous pollutants, contradicting the study the water company had conducted which labeled the river water safe enough to drink. Becky helps GPs within the NHS understand where the gaps are between those needing primary care and those who are making and gett...
Jul 21, 2022•43 min•Ep. 34
Accident and emergency nursing involves managing and working with ever-shifting teams, with people joining temporarily who bring skill and knowledge, but aren’t familiar with the team’s inner workings. This is one of the challenges facing NHS nurse Andy Boocock. Andy describes working, not only with his team in A&E, but when teams dovetail in emergency situations. This conversation involves a discussion on and examples of gallows humour, involving stories of a medical nature. Takeaways from ...
Jul 14, 2022•38 min•Ep. 33
Where do you go to half a fast-tracked career and make some quick cash? For Stephen Hunt, the answer turned out to be Internet advertising. But it was only ever a limited-time plan to create enough space for him to explore his real passion: music. Steve is the co-founder and COO of Music Health, a company improving mental health through music. Inspired by a 2014 film about music’s impact on people with dementia, Steve and his business partner Nick began work on an app that would do for dementia ...
Jul 07, 2022•47 min•Ep. 32
We all carry our psychological histories on our backs, and the weight of those feelings can affect how we work within a team. We Not Me producer Mark Steadman began to understand this as he learned more about how his neurodivergence contributed to team dynamics. Mark is a podcast producer, consultant, and coach. He works with individuals and small teams to help them access their potential to create impact, using their voice. He started his own community for changemakers and thought-leaders last ...
Jun 30, 2022•46 min•Ep. 31
There is a void of leadership following the pandemic, and everything feels uncertain. That uncertainty – precarity – is an area of study for generative leadership specialist Kathleen Curran. Kathleen defines herself as an “explorer with purpose”, and helps people not only bring their whole self to work, but fully inhabit it. She is a co-author on a book about precarity, with her contribution focusing on the word of certainty and normalcy that opened in the wake of the global pandemic. Takeaways ...
Jun 23, 2022•47 min•Ep. 30
If you look after your employees, your customers will be happier, and you’ll make more money. That’s the hypothesis Matt Phelan took, inspired by Richard Branson. But with that hypothesis in place, where’s the data to back it up? Before founding the Happiness Index, Matt began working with animals, then studied marketing, starting his own digital marketing agency just before the 2008 financial crash. As someone used to tracking the efficacy of digital campaigns, he began to explore how the assum...
Jun 16, 2022•35 min•Ep. 29
Husband-and-wife team Kristy and James Thomas have both suffered profound and untimely loss in their lives. But from that grief, they have been able to create a charity that impacts the lives of children all around Australia who are dealing with grief. The Thomas’ charity Feel the Magic brings children to Disneyland and puts on regular Camp Magic events, providing much-needed respite from and support throughout the grieving process. Their camps focus on four core values of empathy, empowerment, ...
Jun 09, 2022•37 min•Ep. 28
Jackie Weaver became an Internet sensation in February 2022, when her handling of a parish council meeting – and the councillors’ reaction to it – went viral. But Jackie has decades of experience coaching teams of all sizes, which she shares with Dan and Pia. Takeaways It’s easy to overlook the amount of ground we share, when in disagreement. Sometimes it takes a third party to help us see the common ground. Experience can bring with it a degree of calmness when approaching difficult situations....
Jun 02, 2022•43 min•Ep. 27
Expertise can allow us to flourish in our comfort zones, but when thrust into a new environment, we have to rely on others. For Janet and Reid Boswell, what started as a parish-wide mission to bring aid to post-earthquake Haiti ended up as a mini industry, delivering medicine and dental care to the people of Haiti. Takeaways from Pia and Dan The collaborative mindset was transferred from Haiti back home. Reid had to let go of his need to control, in order to work within a team. We need to journe...
May 26, 2022•33 min•Ep. 26
Dan and Pia kick off season three with a look back at the previous season, with help from special guest Lucy Hovanec . The team discuss Episode 22 – Data from the heart , with Simon Shephard Episode 21 – Individual identity in teams , with James Prior Episode 24 – The Great Retention , with Suni Lobo Episode 18 – Building the right team culture , with Kevin Brownsey Episode 14 – The jazz ensemble , with Craig Scott Episode 20 – Critical teams , with Martin Bromely Episode 23 – Community teams , ...
May 19, 2022•56 min•Ep. 25
For Chief HR Officer Suni Lobo , psychological safety is key to teams feeling like they belong. It was put to the test during the pandemic, but her company’s ability to create a space where people felt able to do their best work, produced incredible results. In her conversation with Dan and Pia, Suni discusses employee compensation and the minimal role it plays in job satisfaction when offset against a sense of belonging. Using concrete examples from Silicon Valley, Suni shares how organisations...
Mar 31, 2022•33 min•Ep. 24
If one member of a team isn’t working towards the common goal, they won’t succeed. Social entrepreneur David Burns sees that in the work he does to help strengthen teams, viewed through the prism of sport. In his conversation with Pia and Dan, David highlights the importance of respecting and honouring people’s cultural values within teams, even at the risk of his work being misinterpreted r met with resistance. Takeaways from Dan and Pia A challenge can be flipped from something you have to do,...
Mar 25, 2022•28 min•Ep. 23
How do we create moments to reset? Just like a Formula 1 car pulling into a pitstop, slowing down and stopping completely in order to win a race – how can we create moments of mental and emotional rest during our working days? Simon Shepard is the CEO of Optima-life . He helps teams understand themselves better as individuals, and the role their physiologies play in their performance. Simon shares his frameworks for helping people understand the messages their body might be sending them. One of ...
Mar 18, 2022•35 min•Ep. 22
Amid various models of team management, it’s important to remember that each of us is an individual player. We bring our own unique perspectives to our teams, and that sense of personal identity can bring tension when offset against the goal of the team. James Prior, Global Head of Leadership Development at Gilead Pharmaceuticals, joins Dan and Pia to explore the symbiotic relationship between the individual and the team. Takeaways from Dan and Pia If we’re open to diversity, we can build a rich...
Mar 11, 2022•41 min•Ep. 21
Pia and Dan are joined by Martin Bromiley OBE, airline captain, charity trustee, and public speaker whose story of loss has fuelled much of the work he does today. In 2005, Martin’s wife Elaine was admitted to hospital following an emergency that occurred while she was under anaesthetic. During the investigation into her death, Martin identified that Elaine’s death was due to failures in the way the surgical staff operated as a cohesive team. Now, using his experience within aviation, he works w...
Mar 04, 2022•41 min•Ep. 20
Pia and Dan are joined by former corporate worker and now voluntary firefighter Sandy Quirinale . After her second son became interested in the fire service as a teenager, Sandy decided to sign up. She’s currently the only active female firefighter at her rural New Jersey station, and so brings her insight into diversity and teamwork within this highest-of-pressure situations. Takeaways from Dan and Pia Diversity allows for us to pick the right person for the job within a team. That in turn help...
Feb 25, 2022•34 min•Ep. 19
Dan and Pia explore creating safe cultures for people to thrive, with consultant Kevin Brownsey. Kevin is the CEO of Red Pill Consulting , a company that tries to help organisations change their culture. While some organisations strive for a “winning culture”, Kevin defines culture as the “beliefs that underpin the behaviours that drive the outcomes, not the outcomes themselves.” Takeaways from Dan and Pia Think about how we set the tone as team members or leaders. Are you standing by and lettin...
Feb 18, 2022•41 min•Ep. 18
Jim Molan spent 40 years in the army from the age of 17. Since retiring from the army in 2008 as a Major General, he has written a book about his time in Iraq, co-authored policy on border-control, and consulted internationally. Jim is now a Senator for the Liberal Party in Australia. When talking with Dan and Pia about how teams work together, Jim makes the observation that within the military, teams are formed and their work is rehearsed. He sets out his view on leadership within teams, and th...
Feb 11, 2022•40 min•Ep. 17
What is the future of remote team collaboration? Do we continue with Zoom meetings and the risk of fatigue they can bring, or is there a new approach we can take? Dan and Pia explore meetings in the metaverse, with the help of freelance technologist Ian Smith. They discuss virtual avatars, getting together in a 3D space, and examine where it’s appropriate to meet in a space where everyone looks like they’re in The Incredibles , and when it’s not. Links Horizon Workrooms Microsoft Mesh Microsoft ...
Feb 04, 2022•39 min•Ep. 16
For over a year Chuck Anderson underwent a battery of tests to find out why he was feeling so physically unwell. After moving from the US to Sydney and still finding no answers, he was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and ADHD. After cycles of depression and anxiety, Chuck was finally given information on mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), which changed his life dramatically for the better. Since then, Chuck has co-founded Living to Thrive with his partner, to help organisations build...
Jan 28, 2022•41 min•Ep. 15
Professional double-bassist Craig Scott of the Sydney Conservatorium joins Dan and Pia to discuss the ultimate team: the jazz ensemble. “There’s probably no better example of democracy than a jazz ensemble – individual freedom, but with responsibility to the group,” –Michelle Obama Jazz improvisation follows a set of rules that enable creativity within a structure, so that out of a predictable pattern can come something different each time it’s performed. Within an ensemble, each member might ge...
Jan 21, 2022•43 min•Ep. 14
In their first episode of season two, Dan and Pia explore the three Cs needed for success: clarity, climate and competence with the help of Dr Jessica Tonissen. Download the Three Cs cheat sheet Dan, Pia, and Jess review some of the key takeaways from season one of the We Not Me podcast: Three things sales teams need to do to be more effective : episode 4 with Anna Britnor Guest Bringing head and heart to teams : episode 6, with Lucy Hovanec Teamwork on set : episode 8, with Erik Thomson Agile t...
Jan 14, 2022•51 min•Ep. 13
When you help people help, you help people hope. Gillian Coutts , Country Director at Potential Project discovered this when working within her community during Australia's border closing following the COVID outbreak. In her work, she saw teams come together in extraordinary ways, but she also shares findings from a UK study that has been replicated elsewhere, that show how we often see ourselves as having compassion, but not our neighbours. In her discussion with Pia and Dan, Gillian explores t...
Nov 26, 2021•37 min•Ep. 12
For global leadership consultant Sahera Sumar , "diversity is a fact, but inclusion is the mindset", and it's possible for teams to be diverse but not inclusive. Sahera felt like she denied her heritage in order to feel accepted and fit in at work. Many organisations run programmes to try and combat unconscious bias, but this is only the start of the journey, and there's much more work to do to foster inclusivity within teams. As part of her work as a leadership consultant, Sahera builds on the ...
Nov 19, 2021•30 min•Ep. 11
Customer-centric companies are laser-focused on providing great experiences for their customers. For Stuart Dalziel, teams play a pivotal role in bringing experiences that create ease in customers' lives. Using examples from café chains to high-end hotels, Stuart breaks down how teams share knowledge, roles, and responsibilities, in service of the Peter Drucker axiom: "The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer". Links Squadify...
Nov 12, 2021•33 min•Ep. 10
Every member of a squad is of equal value, regardless of their department, seniority, or pay scale. It's important to check egos at the door when forming a squad and embarking on a new project. Those are some of the principles held by Natalie Peters , change and transformation lead at Australian bank NAB. After 20 years working in HR, Natalie began exploring the world of agile project management and human-centred design. In this discussion with Pia and Dan, she debunks some of the common myths a...
Nov 05, 2021•36 min•Ep. 9
Actor Erik Thomson is no stranger to being part of a team, whether that be on the production set of a feature film or TV series. In his conversation with Dan and Pia, Erik discusses the importance of recognising everyone's role in a production, from lighting a scene to walking the red carpet at Cannes. For Erik, building a solid working team is about breaking social barriers away from work. He emphasises the importance of clearing the eyeline so the actors can work distraction-free, and explores...
Oct 28, 2021•35 min•Ep. 8
Sports teams have been evaluating their effectiveness for a long time, with the singular goal of improving performance. This week, Dan and Pia are joined by former Australian rugby player Owen Finegan , to look at the way businesses and not-for-profits can use data in the same way sport has for decades. Owen played and coached professional rugby for 16 years before moving into the non-profit world, where he now sits as CEO of the Kids' Cancer Project . He took his learnings about honest – someti...
Oct 21, 2021•33 min•Ep. 7
For civil engineering General Manager Lucy Hovanec , purpose can breathe life into teams, and in order to lead, self-knowledge is crucial. In this discussion, Lucy shares with Dan and Pia her toolkit for working with teams across cultural divides and around the world, to help them wake up excited to come to work: Asking questions to make sure everyone is aligned on the task at hand Assessing the climate of a team and creating conditions for success Using the Example, Impact, Change model of deli...
Oct 14, 2021•37 min•Ep. 6
