83 Taking Your Team from Average to Amazing with Dustin E. James
Release Date: 01/25/2023
152 Why Your Team Lacks Motivation and How You Can Improve It with Jim Pancero
Mindfulness Manufacturing
When you’re dealing with a disengaged team or low morale on the manufacturing floor, a motivation team might sound like a myth. But with the right mindset and workplace environment, you can improve morale, performance, and engagement. Learn more on the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast with guest Jim Pancero! Jim is a legendary sales and leadership coach and has over 40 years of experience working with manufacturing, warehouse, and distribution teams. In this episode, he shares insights on what truly motivates teams, touching on subjects like positive communication, building engagement, and...
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151 You Think People Don't Want to Work in Manufacturing? You're Asking the Wrong Questions with Chad Littlefield
Mindfulness Manufacturing
Do you want drive results, retain your team, and create a culture where people show up and stick around? Then it’s time to embrace the art of powerful questions! Through curious questions and intentional conversations, you can change the way people think and work. Learn more in this episode of Mindfulness Manufacturing with guest Chad Littlefield, a TEDx speaker, bestselling author, and the creator of We! Connect cards, which help leaders ask powerful questions and cultivate deeper conversations. Chad shares stories that highlight the power of questions, unpacks the struggles many leaders...
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150 Lessons from the Pentagon: Commanding Our Chaos with Angela Billings
Mindfulness Manufacturing
Are you ready to handle a crisis at your manufacturing plant? Find out in this episode, which is all about crisis communication and how to lead under pressure. This episode’s guest in Angela Billings, a seasoned strategic communication with over 20 years of experience in the Air Force—including during September 11th, when she was stationed at the Pentagon. She is also the author of Command the Crisis: Navigate Chaos with Battle-Tested Public Relations and Communication Strategies. Angela shares gripping stories from her career and firsthand experience at the Pentagon, plus offers...
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149 No Manual for Leadership: Building Loyalty, One Story at a Time with David Semersheim
Mindfulness Manufacturing
In modern manufacturing, many employees want more than just a paycheck—to truly feel engaged and show up as their best selves at work, they need to feel like they’re part of something bigger. This means that if you really want to build momentum, drive greater results, and find higher employee retention rates, you need to transform the way you interact with your team. How do you do this? It all starts with curiosity and storytelling! I recently spoke with a storytelling expert: David Sermersheim, a seasoned team leader, public speaker, and the founder of Celebrate Audio, a podcasting...
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148 Keep Talent, Crush Risks: The Power of Transparent Accountability with Christopher Santomassimo
Mindfulness Manufacturing
Are you tapping into your team’s full potential? As the manufacturing industry continues to grow, many leaders find themselves searching for ways to engage their teams, drive productivity, and create a culture where everyone shows up ready to reach their full potential. In this episode, learn more with Christopher Santomassimo, a lawyer and founding partner of Outside General Counsel (OGC) Solutions. With OGC Solutions, Chris assists companies with a wide range of legal and business issues, from employment claims to compliance counseling. With over 30 years of legal experience, Chris has...
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147 You Are Not a Machine: Leading with Energy That Lasts with Kathy Oneto
Mindfulness Manufacturing
In manufacturing, we’re all about meeting goals, staying productive, and keeping up with new and ever-changing technology and machinery. If you’re a busy manufacturing leader, it might feel impossible to balance your goals and your role in your plant with setting boundaries, prioritizing your energy, and avoiding burn-out. But there is a way to create a sustainable path toward your goals—and you can find out more in this episode of Mindfulness Manufacturing with guest Kathy Oneto. Kathy is a consultant, advisor, facilitator, and executive coach, who shares powerful lessons on how...
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146 Manufacturing with Meaning: How Vision Motivates Results
Mindfulness Manufacturing
In manufacturing, it’s easy to get caught up in day-to-day production numbers, KPIs, and hitting targets. But what about the bigger picture? How do we inspire our teams to not only do great work, but to actually want to be part of something greater? In this new episode with guest Simon Vetter, we dive deep into an overlooked-yet-powerful aspect of manufacturing leaderships: vision. Simon is a Vision Architect, executive coach, and speaker who helps leaders cultivate vision-driven, engaging environments. He’s also one of the authors of Leading with Vision: The Leader’s Blueprint for...
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145 Big Freakin' Change: Leading Manufacturing Through Uncertainty with Cara Moeller Poppitt
Mindfulness Manufacturing
Modern manufacturing leaders are currently facing unprecedented shifts, from tariffs and labor shortages to rapidly evolving new technologies. In the words of recent Mindfulness Manufacturing guest Cara Moeller Poppitt, manufacturing is seeing some “big freakin'’ change!” As the founder of two award-winning companies, Cara ranks among the top 2% of all female entrepreneurs. Through her speaking and coaching, she now guides thousands of other business leaders toward unlocking their full potential, breaking down barriers, and taking bold action to achieve their highest aspirations....
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144 From the Casino to the Factory Floor: How to Play to Win with Joel Block
Mindfulness Manufacturing
What does successful manufacturing leadership have in common with winning big at the casino? It’s all about being an advantage player! In this episode, guest Joel Block breaks down the strategies you need to win big, whether you’re at the casino or on the manufacturing floor. Joel is a former professional blackjack player, who later took his talents to Wall Street to work in venture capital and hedge funds. He’s a dealmaker, strategist, and trusted advisor who helps others grow the mindset they need to outpace the competition and win the game. In this episode, Joel shares unique stories...
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143 Beyond the Hammer: Transforming Manufacturing Leadership with Brian Gottleib
Mindfulness Manufacturing
In manufacturing, many leaders try to use the same tools to address different problems. But just like a hammer won’t work for all projects around your house, your routine leadership approach might not work for all your team members. This means you need to go “beyond the hammer” and find ways to have deeper interactions with your team. The hammer analogy comes from Beyond the Hammer: A Fresh Approach to Leadership, Culture, and Building High Performance Teams by Brian Gottleib. In this episode, Brian shares more about the lessons and insights in Beyond the Hammer, plus offers actionable...
info_outlineOn the manufacturing floor, you don’t want your leadership and your team to be average . . .you want to be amazing! To learn more about how leaders can find the energy and inspiration to take themselves and their team to the next level of success, I’m excited to welcome my friend Dustin E. James to the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast. Through his work with Moments Leadership, Dustin uses motivational speaking and interactive learning experiences to help organizations find greater engagement, creativity, and inspiration. In this episode, he takes stories from his past experiences and turns them into lessons leaders can use to connect with their teams, find new inspirations, and manufacture greatness in their organization.
1:40 – Energy comes in many different forms
3:00 – What is the balance between having a routine and bringing fresh energy into work every day?
3:10 – There isn’t a single person on your team who doesn’t want to be recognized for their good—when your team feels like they’re being acknowledged for doing more than just the average, they’ll continue to show up with new energy and motivation
4:34 – As a leader, it’s your job to show your team how amazing they are
8:00 – We all have bad days filled with struggles, challenges, but there is always a life lesson to be found in hard experiences
8:25 – Even when you are doing something challenging or difficult, there are still opportunities to grow your own mindset or help or inspire someone else. You never know when you’ll find a great lesson!
8:45 – If we want to learn new lessons and find new energy, we have to show up and be present every day instead of just embracing “average”
11:09 – As a leader, it’s important to know your team member’s individual goals and what motivates them
12:22 – In order to really connect, you need to know what makes each team member tick!
14:03 – “I see that you’re doing your best” can be a powerful way to start conversations and better connection with your team
15:19 – As a leader, it’s important to recognize that your team members are often doing the best they can and embracing that fact can help you build trust and move forward in productive ways.
16:08 – Trying to get someone to improve to change their behavior can be a big drain of energy—what are some ways to deal with this?
17:16 – Everyone on your team has something good that can be said about them
19:04 – At the end of the day, it all comes down to showing up and being there as a leader to your team. There’s always going to be new challenges, but it’s up to you to find lessons and energy in each day
20:00 – Always give your very best. Don’t show up to be second!
21:52 – Our best days are always ahead of us
Connect with Dustin E. James
Moments Leadership website