Why your hard work isn't paying off and what's really slowing progress

913. When something's broken at work, we reach for the big fix — the reorg, the new tool, the strategy overhaul. But ask people to describe their perfect coffee and they'll say rich, dark, bold. Put a cup in front of them and they reach for weak and milky. Rachel Cooke applies that same gap to work, where what's holding you back usually isn't strategy. It's the thousand small snags you've stopped noticing. Here's how to find one and ease it from right where you sit.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

 912. Your boss used to have answers. Now they've got questions. It feels destabilizing - but Rachel makes the case that this is the opening of a lifetime. When certainty disappears, the old rules about who has the answers go with it. Four bold moves for a moment that's wide open.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

911. You can spend an entire day on video calls and still not have one real conversation. The connection that used to come free with the office doesn't come free anymore. After a trip to California wine country, Rachel Cooke found herself fixated less on the wine than on the village each winery had built around itself, and on what that says about connection in a remote, global, AI-driven workplace. Three reasons to build your own village, on purpose.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

910. What do you do when there's no template for the career you want, no obvious next step, and no one waiting to hand you the opportunity? Comedian, actor, and writer Billy Eichner built his entire career by refusing to wait to be chosen. In this conversation, he and Rachel Cooke get into how you bet on yourself when the path doesn't exist yet, how to keep going through constant rejection without letting it paralyze you, and why the wish to be chosen never fully goes away, even after you've made it.Billy is the force behind "Billy on the Street," a co-writer and star of "Bros," and a familiar face from "Parks and Recreation" and "The Lion King." Here he opens up about his new audio memoir, "Billy on Billy," the parents who built his confidence by never instilling shame in him, the artists like Madonna and Barbra Streisand who taught him defiance, and his belief that success can come from love rather than trauma. If you're trying to go off script and build something no one else can see yet, this one will give you the nerve.Listen to "Billy on Billy: An Audio Memoir" Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

909. Your strategy is sound. Your people are talented. Everyone's working harder than ever. So why aren't the results showing up? Rachel makes the case that when work breaks down, we inspect the people when we should be inspecting the work - and shares four questions that reveal the hidden friction quietly taxing your team.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On a road trip, tackling a summer cleanup, or just catching up on podcasts? QDT has you covered with Summer Saturday encores from your favorite shows. See the full Summer Saturday lineup on Spotify and enjoy this episode, which first aired in September 2020.Episode 616 - Burnout is more than just a feeling—untamed, it can pose a real medical risk. Dr. Greg Hammer, an intensive care physician, Stanford University professor, and author of the book GAIN Without Pain: The Happiness Handbook for Medical Professionals, shares his simple, medically-backed framework for conquering burnout and finding your healthier, happier place.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

697. We get a lot of mixed messaging when it comes to managing the tension between speed and efficiency. We need to be sure—to have the data, to have done the research and the analysis before deciding or implementing. But also, we need to be agile, move quickly, test-and-learn, and not fall into analysis-paralysis. How do we find the middle ground?Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. The episode transcript can be found here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On a road trip, tackling a summer cleanup, or just catching up on podcasts? QDT has you covered with Summer Saturday encores from your favorite shows. See the full Summer Saturday lineup on Spotify and enjoy this episode, which first aired in February 2020.Episode 582: Saying "no" is actually makes you more successful at work. These essential strategies will help you set workplace boundaries with grace. Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

909. Blake Mycoskie built TOMS into a $600 million brand and gave away more than 100 million pairs of shoes — then fell into a seven-year battle with clinical depression after selling the company. He talks with Rachel Cooke about why outward success never made him feel like enough, the limiting belief that drove him for decades, and the small, everyday practices — not the dramatic interventions — that finally pulled him through. He also shares what he's learned interviewing guests like Matthew McConaughey, Kevin Love, and Jewel (whose memoir "Never Broken" he recommends) on his mental wellness podcast "No Magic Pill," plus the story behind Enough, the brand he founded to fund mental health organizations. If you're a high performer who ties your worth to your latest win, this conversation is for you.Content note: this episode discusses depression and suicidal ideation.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On a road trip, tackling a summer cleanup, or just catching up on podcasts? QDT has you covered with Summer Saturday encores from your favorite shows. See the full Summer Saturday lineup on Spotify and enjoy this episode, which first aired in April 2020.Episode 594: In times of crisis, negative thoughts lurk around every corner. Use these techniques to rediscover your optimism and bump up your productivity.Modern Mentor is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Rachel Cooke!Find more from Rachel at LeadAboveNoise.com.Have a question for Modern Mentor? Email: [email protected] Discover more from Modern Mentor!FacebookLinkedInNewsletterTranscripts available on your podcast app or QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.