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...
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142 HR Partnerships in Executive Coaching with Kristin Rivait and Joe Carrothers
Mindfulness Manufacturing
When there’s a leadership shift in a manufacturing organization it leads to major change—and brings its own unique challenges like new team dynamics, cultural shifts, and general growing pains. With the right approach, a change in leadership can also lead to valuable opportunities for growth. Just ask Joe Carrothers and Kristin Rivait from SWT Group. Joe is the president of SWT Group who moved from being the CFO to being the president of the organization, and Kristin is SWT Group’s HR director who worked closely with Joe during this unique leadership transition. In this story-filled...
info_outlineIn all industries, poor behavior and high emotions can lead to massive issues . . . and this is especially true in the aviation industry, where small errors can be the difference between a safe flight and a deadly accident. In this podcast, I’m joined by Shawn Dawley, the president of OT2 Consulting and a former Air Force pilot. Shawn often draws on his own combat experience to help leaders overcome challenges and inspire their teams, and has many great lessons about the importance of emotional intelligence, building healthy team dynamics, and finding the balance between intellect and emotions.
0:42 – Leadership is all about the balance between intellect and emotions
2:17 – In the aviation industry, crew relationships and emotions play a critical role in the safety and success of each flight
5:52 – Processes can only get better when there is a healthy environment and a positive organizational dynamic where people can point out issues and speak their mind
7:00 – If a leader is in a bad mood or creating a hostile environment, others might be less willing to draw attention to issues or voice their feedback
12:23 – Poor decision-making does just happen when you’re angry—it can even happen when you’re euphoric or excited
13:32 – When you’re at your “emotional worst,” it can be very difficult to make important decisions
14:42 – We all have emotions and “triggers” that make us feel certain ways—how we react is what sets up apart
16:15 –What role does our nervous system play in making us feel emotions or have specific reactions to stressful situations?
17:57 – By recognizing your triggers and response, you can improve your behavior and emotional intelligence
19:06 – Even if you give the exact same feedback to two different team members, it will land differently to each of them because they have different life experiences
20:56 – To understand a team member’s behavior reactions, form a relationship and find out more about their past experiences
21:56 – Leadership is innate to the human condition
23:16 – Take the time to listen to what others have to say
25:01 – Think about the qualities of people you admire—are you showing those same qualities to your own team?
Connect with Shawn Dawley
Shawn would also love to hear your feedback! Find him on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnmdawley to stay connected.