Can you be friends with the people you lead—and still hold them accountable?

Lauren Seymour believes you can. And she has some credibility on the subject.

Lauren leads a team of roughly 600–700 people at Insulet, and she’s one of the best leaders I’ve ever watched when it comes to building genuine relationships while still having hard conversations and holding people accountable.

In this conversation, we talk about:

• Why relationships can actually make accountability easier
• How to give difficult feedback without crushing someone
• The difference between authenticity and oversharing
• Lauren’s “trust triangle” for involving her team in decisions
• How to lead people you don’t naturally connect with
• What to do when you and your boss probably aren’t going to be BFFs

If you lead people—or work for someone who does—there’s a lot here you can put to work immediately.

Subscribe to How to Lead for practical conversations about becoming a better leader at work.

Music licensed through Soundstripe.
Code: ZPOTOQKSGDXGFBG8

What if self-leadership isn’t primarily a discipline problem, but a relationship problem?

In this episode, Clay explores the relationship between who you are today and the person who has to live with your decisions tomorrow. He shares three practical ways to become more generous to “future you."

And one simple question that can change how you approach your work, calendar, and leadership.

David Cain, “Do Things You’ll Love Yourself For”

(Read the article on Raptitude)

This summer, we're revisiting some of our most popular episodes.

How to End a Meeting - the last in a three part series.

Enjoy!

Produced and edited by ⁠Sound of a Rose⁠.

This summer, we're revisiting some of our most popular episodes.

How to Run a Meeting - the second in a three part series.

Enjoy!

Produced and edited by ⁠Sound of a Rose⁠.

This summer, we're revisiting some of our most popular episodes.

How to Start a Meeting - the first in a three part series.

Enjoy!

Produced and edited by Sound of a Rose.

A quick update about the future of the Podcast and our plans for the summer.

Everyone wants to stand out at work. Berry Mansfield figured out that the secret isn't being the loudest or the smartest — it's being the easiest. Berry has built an entire career on one principle: be easy to work with. In this episode, he traces how that idea carried him from accounting all the way to the president's chair, and why the simplest principles are usually the most powerful ones.

In this episode, Adam sits down with Jenni Catron, leadership expert, founder of The 4Sight Group, and author of Culture Matters , to talk about one of the most important and most overlooked responsibilities of any leader: building a healthy organizational culture. Jenni brings clarity and practical wisdom to a topic that can feel abstract, and this conversation will leave you with both a better understanding of why culture matters and what you can actually do about it.