Are You Cynical? - Thoughts from Kevin

How can leaders bridge the growing generational divide in today's workplace? In this third episode of our special five-part series, Changing Your Culture in Twenty Minutes or Less, Kevin and workplace culture expert Jennifer Moss discuss the realities of generational stereotypes. With five generations now working together for the first time in history, misunderstandings and miscommunications are inevitable. Jennifer and Kevin challenge the lazy labels and instead encourage leaders to embrace explicit communication, check their biases, and reimagine onboarding and development with clarity and purpose in mind. They share the importance of explaining not just what needs to be done, but how and why, creating a more inclusive and effective workplace culture. Jennifer's Story: Jennifer Moss specializes in future-focused leadership development, expertly balancing employee well-being with performance. As an award-winning writer and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, she specializes in transforming workplace culture using data-driven leadership strategies. Her book The Burnout Epidemic tackled employee burnout and was among Thinkers50's "10 Best New Management Books for 2022." Her latest book is WHY ARE WE HERE?: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants (Harvard Business Review Press; 2025) https://www.jennifer-moss.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenleighmoss/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGW43a_jDAA4txctjAyaStg https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7221183318774403072/ This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations Why Are We Here?: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants by Jennifer Moss The Burnout Epidemic: The Rise of Chronic Stress and How We Can Fix It by Jennifer Moss Join Our Community If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below. Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group  

What if the most effective strategy for leading change isn't fear-based urgency, but love? In this episode, Kevin sits down with Mohammad Anwar to explore a rethinking of how leaders can approach change by centering people, building trust, and creating psychological safety. Together, Kevin and Mohammad discuss why traditional change management approaches fail, how fear activates resistance, and why prioritizing emotional intelligence and human connection leads to sustainable transformation. They dive into six behavioral principles that underpin "love as a change strategy," including embracing discomfort, practicing empathetic curiosity, and wielding influence effectively. Mohammad also challenges conventional models like Maslow's hierarchy, advocating instead for love and belonging as the true foundation of human needs. Listen For 00:00 Why change requires leadership 00:35 Podcast welcome and purpose 01:39 Introducing Mohammad Anwar 03:35 The big idea Love as a Change Strategy 04:59 Defining love in a business context 07:38 The problem with fear based change 08:30 How love became the strategy 09:38 Personal crisis and leadership turning point 12:35 Football story and love as performance fuel 15:19 Why Maslow's hierarchy misses the mark 17:22 The six principles of leading change 22:55 Why empathetic curiosity matters 26:41 The hardest principle embrace discomfort 29:48 Choose your hard 32:34 Where to learn more and get the book 33:27 Final reflection now what Mohammad's Story: Mohammad Anwar is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Love as a Business Strategy: Resilience, Belonging & Success and his latest book, Love as a Change Strategy. He is the President and CEO of Softway and Culture+. A proud American Leadership Forum Senior Fellow (Class 59), Mohammad's story is as bold as his ideas. At just 20 years old, while still pursuing his B.S. in Computer Science with a minor in Mathematics at the University of Houston, Mohammad launched Softway with his family. What began in 2003 as a small web development company for local merchants has since grown into a global, people-first consulting firm specializing in digital transformation, culture, communication, and AI integration—without sacrificing humanity. https://www.softway.com/ https://www.culture-plus.com/ https://www.loveasastrategy.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/manwarsoftway/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/teamsoftway/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/culture_plus/ https://loveasachangestrategy.com/ This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations Love as a Change Strategy: Innovation, Growth, and Transformation by Mohammad F. Anwar, Frank E. Danna, Jeffrey F. Ma, Christopher J. Pitre  Wisdom Takes Work: Learn. Apply. Repeat. (The Stoic Virtues Series) by Ryan Holiday  Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI by Karen Hao  Like this? Becoming a Change Maker with Alex Budak The Problem with Change with Ashley Goodall The Art of Change with Jeff DeGraff Join Our Community If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below. Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group   Leave a Review If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/itunes   

When are you cynical? It's a simple question—but an important one. Because cynicism doesn't just affect how you see the world. It affects what you learn, what you notice, and how you lead. In this episode of Remarkable TV, I explore what really happens when we become cynical—and why cynicism is less a personality trait and more a mental habit and choice. When we're cynical, we stop being curious, we stop learning, and our attitude (and the attitudes of those around us) suffers. The good news? Any habit can be changed. I'll share a simple but powerful replacement strategy that can help you move from cynicism to curiosity—so you can see more possibilities and lead more effectively. If you want to grow as a leader and a human being, make sure you subscribe here on YouTube—and check out the Remarkable Leadership Podcast for even more leadership insights every week. My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast. I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button. Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERs: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/  Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media:  https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://twitter.com/KevinEikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/ About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's). About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.  

Are your one-on-one meetings building your culture or just filling your calendar? In this second episode of our special five-part series, Changing Your Culture in Twenty Minutes or Less, Kevin is joined once again by workplace culture expert Jennifer Moss to explore the often-overlooked power of effective one-on-one meetings. Kevin shares a simple three-part framework to make your one-on-ones more engaging and efficient: talk about non-work, their list, and your list. This joint-ownership model transforms these meetings from a task into a tool for connection, clarity, and performance. Jennifer adds insights on how effective one-on-ones can shift leadership from a push strategy to a pull strategy, where people want to participate rather than feel forced. Jennifer's Story: Jennifer Moss specializes in future-focused leadership development, expertly balancing employee well-being with performance. As an award-winning writer and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, she specializes in transforming workplace culture using data-driven leadership strategies. Her book The Burnout Epidemic tackled employee burnout and was among Thinkers50's "10 Best New Management Books for 2022." Her latest book is WHY ARE WE HERE?: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants (Harvard Business Review Press; 2025) https://www.jennifer-moss.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenleighmoss/ https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7221183318774403072/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGW43a_jDAA4txctjAyaStg This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations Why Are We Here?: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants by Jennifer Moss The Burnout Epidemic: The Rise of Chronic Stress and How We Can Fix It by Jennifer Moss  

How can leaders ensure their message lands with clarity, confidence, and influence? In this episode, Kevin Eikenberry sits down with Dr. Laura Sicola to discuss how leaders can strengthen their influence by mastering their leadership voice. Laura introduces her "vocal executive presence" framework, built around the three Cs: Command the room, Connect with the audience, and Close the deal. Kevin and Laura break down the three communication channels every leader uses—verbal, vocal, and visual—and why alignment across all three is essential for credibility. They unpack common leadership communication pitfalls, such as overwhelming others with too much "relevant" information instead of focusing on what is truly essential, and how habits like vocal fry, weak openings, or cluttered slides can quietly erode influence. Laura also shares memorable frameworks, including the 60-to-60 rule for opening meetings and the "prismatic voice" to remain authentic in different situations. Laura's Story: Dr. Laura Sicola is an executive communication coach, 3x TEDx speaker, and author of Speaking to Influence: Mastering Your Leadership Voice. With over two decades of experience working with Fortune 500 companies, global nonprofits, and government agencies, she empowers leaders to show up powerfully and speak with confidence in high-stakes conversations. Her proprietary "Vocal Executive Presence" framework helps leaders command the room, connect with their audience, and close the deal. She is a cognitive linguist by training and former faculty at the University of Pennsylvania. Her TEDx talk has nearly 7 million views, and her client list includes Amazon, Intel, HP, Kaiser Permanente, and the U.S. Department of Commerce. https://laurasicola.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/drlaurasicola https://x.com/LauraSicola https://www.facebook.com/drlaurasicola/ https://www.youtube.com/@LauraSicolainc https://www.tiktok.com/@laurasicola https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/speaking-to-influence/id1515649028 This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations Speaking to Influence: Mastering Your Leadership Voice by Dr. Laura Sicola Mental and Emotional Release by Dr. Matt James and Tris Thorp Like this? Influence Redefined with Stacey Hanke You Have More Influence Than You Think with Vanessa Bohns Increase Your Leadership Influence wirh Jake Thompson  

Are your desires helping you move forward—or quietly getting in your way? In this episode of Remarkable TV, I share a simple but powerful leadership lesson inspired by intermittent fasting. While the example starts with food, the real message is about how momentary desires—often driven by habits and situations—can pull us off our long-term path. Desire is powerful. It can motivate us. But if we don't keep it in perspective, it can also distract us from the future we truly want. My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast. I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button. Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERs: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/  Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media:  https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://twitter.com/KevinEikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/ About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's). About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.  

What if changing your culture didn't require a massive initiative, but just twenty focused minutes at a time? In this special five-part podcast series, Kevin Eikenberry is joined by Jennifer Moss for a practical, thought-provoking exploration of how leaders can create meaningful cultural change through small, intentional actions. How can leaders rebuild a sense of community at work when time feels scarce and connection feels optional? In this episode, Kevin and Jennifer focus on how leaders can strengthen community by intentionally creating small but powerful opportunities for connection. This conversation centers on the growing loss of connection in modern workplaces and why community is not a "nice to have," but a strategic priority. Kevin and Jennifer explore research showing that friendships at work drive engagement, retention, psychological safety, and performance, yet are steadily declining as workloads increase and people default to working in isolation. They share practical examples to create opportunities for people to come together, like stepping away from desks to eat together, celebrating small wins, and starting meetings with brief personal connection activities. Listen For 00:00 Introduction and series overview 00:35 Meet Jennifer Moss 01:26 How this series was created 02:22 What changing culture in 20 minutes really means 03:22 Why community matters at work 04:18 The loss of connection at work 05:05 Why friendships at work matter 06:17 Being a leader and a human 08:12 What we mean by rituals 09:27 Lunch as a culture building ritual 10:25 Gratitude and recognition rituals 11:24 Celebrating small wins and milestones 12:29 Kevin's virtual team ritual example 14:26 Remote work and intentional community 15:56 Making time for rituals 16:49 The now what question 17:36 Subscribe and series preview Jennifer's Story: Jennifer Moss specializes in future-focused leadership development, expertly balancing employee well-being with performance. As an award-winning writer and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, she specializes in transforming workplace culture using data-driven leadership strategies. Her book The Burnout Epidemic tackled employee burnout and was among Thinkers50's "10 Best New Management Books for 2022." Her latest book is WHY ARE WE HERE?: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants (Harvard Business Review Press; 2025) Join Our Community If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below. Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group   Leave a Review If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/itunes   

How can disruption become a powerful tool to reshape your future? Patrick Leddin joins Kevin to discuss how leaders and individuals can reframe disruption as an opportunity for growth. Drawing on his collaboration with bestselling author James Patterson and research from hundreds of interviews, Patrick introduces the Positive Disruptor Loop (Discern, Behave, Achieve, and Refine) and explains how to apply it to personal decisions, team dynamics, and organizational challenges. Patrick and Kevin also discuss how our responses to disruption shape our success, why discernment and reflection are crucial leadership practices, and how embracing disruption can unlock both innovation and stability. Listen For 00:00 Change, resistance, and disruption 01:23 Guest introduction Patrick Leddin 03:30 Big idea of the book purpose plus disruption 04:32 COVID and the origins of the research 06:09 James Patterson and self disruption 08:15 Redefining disruption as opportunity 10:38 Disruption as a life skill and leadership skill 15:19 The Positive Disruptor Loop overview 16:17 Discernment choosing how to respond 18:11 Strengths and behavior in disruption 19:03 Achieving impact at multiple levels 20:31 Refinement and learning through reflection 22:46 Why discernment and reflection matter most 25:25 The five disruption roles explained 27:03 Context and conscious leadership choices 29:56 Resilience built through experience 32:03 Personal insights and fun 34:06 Where to learn more and final thoughts 35:45 Final challenge what action will you take   Patrick's Story: Patrick Leddin, PhD, is the co-author with James Patterson of Disrupt Everything and Win: Take Control of Your Future. He has extensive hands-on leadership experience: in the 82nd Airborne Division as an airborne ranger infantry officer and in the private sector as a senior business consultant at KPMG Consulting and FranklinCovey. He founded and built two successful companies and is a sought-after global speaker, a top-ranked podcast host, and the author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller The 5‑Week Leadership Challenge: 35 Action Steps to Become the Leader You Were Meant to Be. While on the faculty at Vanderbilt University, he served as director of the Program of Business Studies and led the Disruption Project, a multiyear study of success in the face of disruption. https://patrickleddin.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickleddin/ https://www.facebook.com/patrick.leddin https://www.instagram.com/patrickleddin This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations Disrupt Everything―and Win: Take Control of Your Future by James Patterson, Patrick Leddin PhD The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab 12 Months to Live: A Jane Smith Thriller by James Patterson, Mike Lupica Like this? Leading Through Disruption with Tony Hunter The Disruption Mindset with Charlene Li The Upside of Disruption with Terence Mauri Join Our Community If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below. Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group   Leave a Review If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/itunes   

I've said it for a long time: leadership is leverage. In this episode of Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast, I explain why leadership is the key lever for creating greater focus, better collaboration, clearer communication, and stronger results in any organization. Big goals are rarely achieved alone. But simply putting people together doesn't guarantee success either. Leadership is what aligns effort, directs focus, and turns potential into performance. If you want better outcomes in your organization, the fastest and most effective place to invest is in your leaders. If this message resonates and you're thinking, "We need more of this," my team and I may be able to help. Reach out to us for a no-obligation conversation at [email protected]. My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast. I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button. Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERs: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/  Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media:  https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://twitter.com/KevinEikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/ About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's). About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.  

Podcast Better! Sign up with Libsyn and get up to 2 months free! Use promo code: RLP How can simply asking better questions make you a more effective leader? Kevin sits down with Dominic Ashley-Timms and Laura Ashley-Timms to discuss moving from directive leadership towards an approach centered on inquiry. Drawing on their experience working with leaders globally, they share practical insights into how small changes in how we engage, particularly through purposeful, well-timed questions, can lead to greater team engagement, reduced burnout, and a culture of accountability. They present the STAR® model—Stop, Think, Ask, Result—as a tool for developing more purposeful leadership styles. They also explain how to establish coachable moments, highlight the importance of truly listening, and share strategies to help others develop a stronger sense of initiative and responsibility. Their Story: Dominic Ashley-Timms and Laura Ashley-Timms co-authored their best-seller, The Answer is a Question – The Missing Superpower That Changes Everything and Will Transform Your Impact as a Manager and Leader. They are the co-founders of Notion, an international performance improvement consultancy established in 2000. With a team of experts, their company has been recognized for its work with FTSE and Fortune 500 clients with a string of awards for innovation, learning design and commercial impact for their measurable solutions, beating out industry titans. Driven by their mission to transform management and leadership globally, they created the scalable STAR® Manager experiential program, which led to an unprecedented invitation from the UK Government to subject STAR® Manager to the largest scientific study in the world - independently evaluated by the London School of Economics - to assess its impact. https://starmanager.global/podcast/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-ashley-timms https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominic-ashley-timms/ This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations The Answer is a Question: The Missing Superpower that Changes Everything and Will Transform Your Impact as a Manager and Leader by Laura Ashley-Timms, Dominic Ashley-Timms  The Focus Fix: Finding Clarity, Creativity and Resilience in an Overwhelming World by Chris Griffiths, Caragh Medlicott  Current Affairs by Cairo Smith Like this? Flourishing as a Leader and Coach with Lisa Zigarmi The Coaching Effect with Bill Eckstrom Coaching Power with Luciana Núñez Join Our Community If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below. Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group   Leave a Review If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/itunes