Iterative Leadership in the Digital Age

1 00:00:08,750 –> 00:00:12,750 Hello, everyone, and welcome to another episode of the Leadership Growth Podcast. 2 00:00:13,291 –> 00:00:16,375 I’m your host, Daniel Stewart, along with my brother, Peter Stewart. 3 00:00:17,041 –> 00:00:21,958 And we are especially excited to have a fantastic guest with us today. 4 00:00:23,000 –> 00:00:26,625 Boo Boucousis, welcome to the Leadership Growth Podcast. 5 00:00:27,166 –> 00:00:28,458 Daniel, Peter, thanks for having me. 6 00:00:28,708 –> 00:00:29,458 Very excited. 7 00:00:29,916 –> 00:00:33,833 Absolutely, especially to talk about such a fantastic topic, 8 00:00:34,458 –> 00:00:40,916 iterative leadership in the age of this digital, digital factor, digital front, 9 00:00:40,916 –> 00:00:44,250 digital marketplace, digital world that we live in. 10 00:00:45,166 –> 00:00:49,458 As we, before we dive into what leadership looks like in this digital age, 11 00:00:50,000 –> 00:00:52,750 I just want to share a little bit of background around Boo. 12 00:00:53,333 –> 00:00:55,666 So some of you may not even know his first name. 13 00:00:56,041 –> 00:01:01,083 So Christian “Boo” Boucousis is the CEO of Afterburner, 14 00:01:01,458 –> 00:01:04,791 a leadership company that has spent the last 30 years 15 00:01:05,166 –> 00:01:10,125 bringing fighter pilot precision and execution into business. 16 00:01:10,875 –> 00:01:15,666 His latest book, The Afterburner Advantage, is an Amazon bestseller 17 00:01:15,666 –> 00:01:19,458 in the leadership category and shares how this mindset 18 00:01:19,791 –> 00:01:22,416 has helped over 3,500 organizations 19 00:01:22,416 –> 00:01:24,250 and more than 2 million leaders, 20 00:01:24,708 –> 00:01:28,458 including two NFL teams that went on to win the Super Bowl, 21 00:01:29,041 –> 00:01:33,125 perform under pressure and lead with intention. 22 00:01:33,750 –> 00:01:34,291 I love it. 23 00:01:34,625 –> 00:01:37,500 So Boo, welcome again to the Leadership Growth Podcast. 24 00:01:38,291 –> 00:01:38,791 Thanks guys. 25 00:01:38,916 –> 00:01:39,666 This is going to be awesome. 26 00:01:40,500 –> 00:01:42,166 So give us a sense. 27 00:01:42,166 –> 00:01:45,916 I know I had mentioned to you, we might be diving into iterative leadership, 28 00:01:45,916 –> 00:01:50,208 but before we do that, give us a sense of your background, if you don’t mind. 29 00:01:50,208 –> 00:01:54,958 I see you are well suited physically, already in your background. 30 00:01:55,250 –> 00:01:59,875 Give us a sense of that background and what that has led to, 31 00:02:00,125 –> 00:02:03,708 to help kind of define how you support and build leaders today. 32 00:02:04,750 –> 00:02:05,000 Great. 33 00:02:05,083 –> 00:02:08,125 I’ve got to be very careful with this question because I can literally 34 00:02:08,916 –> 00:02:11,166 talk nonstop for 45 minutes from now. 35 00:02:12,458 –> 00:02:15,416 So I’ll try and give you the abridged version. 36 00:02:15,416 –> 00:02:19,958 So let’s use the way fighter pilots think, which is all about the destination, right? 37 00:02:19,958 –> 00:02:23,250 So we always start with the target, the destination where we’re going. 38 00:02:23,833 –> 00:02:27,458 So right now I’m the CEO of an organization that’s on a mission 39 00:02:27,458 –> 00:02:29,333 to build what we call flawless leaders. 40 00:02:30,000 –> 00:02:34,916 And we’re looking to build 2 million leaders in that five year period. 41 00:02:35,416 –> 00:02:41,041 And a flawless leader is a leader who transcends overwhelm 42 00:02:41,041 –> 00:02:43,916 and moves into a world of impact 43 00:02:43,916 –> 00:02:47,708 where they’re driven by impact, they create impact, 44 00:02:48,000 –> 00:02:54,000 and if you look at modern era, leadership is a force for good in the world. 45 00:02:54,541 –> 00:02:59,625 And being a good leader at the moment is actually pretty hard to do. 46 00:03:00,791 –> 00:03:01,500 The… 47 00:03:02,666 –> 00:03:04,583 Why am I passionate about this? 48 00:03:05,708 –> 00:03:10,666 Because my life has been very, a random cataclysm of events 49 00:03:10,916 –> 00:03:12,791 that have got me into this seat right now. 50 00:03:13,250 –> 00:03:16,625 So I’m obviously, if you’re listening to this, you’re not going to see it, 51 00:03:16,625 –> 00:03:18,166 but I’m wearing a flight suit, right? 52 00:03:19,208 –> 00:03:23,375 And, and for 2026, I’ve made a decision to wear a flight suit all the time. 53 00:03:23,583 –> 00:03:23,958 All right. 54 00:03:23,958 –> 00:03:25,666 Cause I need to try and embody this brand 55 00:03:25,666 –> 00:03:29,000 as deeply uncomfortable as that with that, as I am. 56 00:03:29,500 –> 00:03:33,375 Uh, and, and catching airplanes and wearing this thing. 57 00:03:33,916 –> 00:03:38,375 I appreciate that part of this journey and leading this journey 58 00:03:38,375 –> 00:03:41,541 is to be ambassadorial in what I do, right? 59 00:03:42,083 –> 00:03:47,750 So that also connects me to my core DNA 60 00:03:47,750 –> 00:03:49,791 and how that feeds into flawless leadership. 61 00:03:50,416 –> 00:03:56,000 So when I was five, I went to an air show in Australia and I was in a, in a state 62 00:03:56,000 –> 00:03:58,208 that we call Queensland, which is like Florida, 63 00:03:58,208 –> 00:04:00,458 you know, we have crocodiles instead of alligators. 64 00:04:01,125 –> 00:04:05,208 And, and at this air show, I was kind of introduced to this idea of fighter, 65 00:04:05,458 –> 00:04:07,916 fighter, fighter flying jets, the whole deal, right? 66 00:04:08,500 –> 00:04:13,083 And I was at this air show, watching these jets fly past and seeing the pilots 67 00:04:13,083 –> 00:04:15,875 in the cockpit and walking around in their flight suits and patches 68 00:04:15,875 –> 00:04:17,208 and these helmets and masks. 69 00:04:17,208 –> 00:04:19,458 And, you know, this was back in the late seventies. 70 00:04:19,458 –> 00:04:20,750 So star Wars was a thing. 71 00:04:21,083 –> 00:04:23,833 And I felt like, wow, this is like the movie, you know, brought to life 72 00:04:23,833 –> 00:04:27,500 and then the noise and, and probably the most memorable thing is the jet fuel. 73 00:04:27,625 –> 00:04:32,125 Just the smell of that, that the potency of, of the jet fuel 74 00:04:32,125 –> 00:04:37,041 and what that actually means in these, in these airplanes that are really engineered 75 00:04:37,041 –> 00:04:40,208 for combat and embody the warrior’s creed. 76 00:04:40,791 –> 00:04:43,625 And for me, it was just, I was going to be a fighter pilot. 77 00:04:43,750 –> 00:04:44,375 You know, that was it. 78 00:04:44,500 –> 00:04:46,666 I decided that was, that was my destiny. 79 00:04:47,458 –> 00:04:50,958 And that drove everything I did from that day forward. 80 00:04:51,041 –> 00:04:57,125 So I, a few years ago I was diagnosed with chronic ADHD, 81 00:04:57,583 –> 00:04:59,833 sort of 99.6 on the self-assess scale. 82 00:04:59,833 –> 00:05:03,083 And I did that because my son was struggling at school 83 00:05:03,083 –> 00:05:04,500 and the school wanted me to take a test 84 00:05:04,500 –> 00:05:06,500 to see whether it was hereditary and sure enough. 85 00:05:07,125 –> 00:05:10,458 And that explained a lot because during school, I really struggled academically. 86 00:05:11,333 –> 00:05:12,333 I loved sports. 87 00:05:12,333 –> 00:05:13,291 I was an athlete. 88 00:05:13,291 –> 00:05:16,000 I rode, I ran track, I played volleyball. 89 00:05:16,500 –> 00:05:19,541 Uh, and anything that required like effort really, 90 00:05:20,291 –> 00:05:22,708 that was really focused into something tangible, 91 00:05:22,708 –> 00:05:23,791 I was really, really good at. 92 00:05:24,208 –> 00:05:28,208 But get me in a chemistry lab or understanding the fundamentals of physics 93 00:05:28,208 –> 00:05:29,916 and I was tuned out, right. 94 00:05:31,125 –> 00:05:34,750 But because I had this passion of this destination to become a fighter pilot, 95 00:05:35,250 –> 00:05:38,333 you know, it motivated me to do the things that as a jock at school, 96 00:05:38,333 –> 00:05:39,041 I didn’t want to do. 97 00:05:39,041 –> 00:05:39,833 Go to the nerd… 98 00:05:40,500 –> 00:05:43,875 the, the, the kids that struggled at school, the lessons after school, 99 00:05:44,458 –> 00:05:46,333 uh, and doing the, the extra yards. 100 00:05:46,333 –> 00:05:48,416 And that one-on-one time really helped me. 101 00:05:48,833 –> 00:05:52,833 And I was so bad at school that I repeated my final year of high school. 102 00:05:52,833 –> 00:05:56,500 So I, I didn’t get the marks that I wanted in the first time around, 103 00:05:57,000 –> 00:05:57,875 and I did it again. 104 00:05:58,500 –> 00:05:59,791 Uh, and I still struggled. 105 00:06:00,083 –> 00:06:05,208 And I got just the bare minimum marks that I needed to become a fighter pilot. 106 00:06:05,708 –> 00:06:10,041 And in Australia, we have a direct entry pathway to be a fighter pilot. 107 00:06:10,041 –> 00:06:11,916 We don’t have to have a college degree to be a pilot. 108 00:06:12,583 –> 00:06:14,416 Uh, we can just join straight from school. 109 00:06:14,416 –> 00:06:16,916 And I’d already started flying. 110 00:06:17,250 –> 00:06:19,791 You know, I was flying at high school at nighttime. 111 00:06:19,791 –> 00:06:23,083 I was going to a community college and doing all my aviation subjects. 112 00:06:23,708 –> 00:06:27,291 Uh, I flew first solo in an airplane when I was 15 years of age, 113 00:06:27,291 –> 00:06:29,958 I had my private pilot license at the age of 17. 114 00:06:30,916 –> 00:06:34,250 And I was flying around the country and holding down three jobs 115 00:06:34,250 –> 00:06:38,208 at a video store at a bar, um, and mowing lawns to pay for that. 116 00:06:38,791 –> 00:06:40,458 Uh, and whilst at school, 117 00:06:40,458 –> 00:06:42,791 I was applying to be a fighter pilot from the age of 17. 118 00:06:43,458 –> 00:06:45,375 Uh, so, so I was, I was in the system. 119 00:06:45,375 –> 00:06:46,166 I was there all the time. 120 00:06:46,166 –> 00:06:46,958 I was learning, I was learning. 121 00:06:46,958 –> 00:06:51,041 And eventually, you know, I got to the final hurdle, 122 00:06:51,041 –> 00:06:54,958 which is an officer selection board where there’s four people assessing you. 123 00:06:54,958 –> 00:06:56,791 There’s like a psychologist, a recruiting officer, 124 00:06:56,791 –> 00:06:58,000 and then there’s a pilot, right? 125 00:06:58,000 –> 00:07:00,958 Uh, uh, a, um, Lieutenant Colonel pilot. 126 00:07:02,291 –> 00:07:04,208 And he sort of said to me, he goes, 127 00:07:04,208 –> 00:07:07,291 “Look, you know, you’re, you’re barely getting through on the academics here.” 128 00:07:07,958 –> 00:07:08,208 Um… 129 00:07:09,166 –> 00:07:13,583 “But your passion for being a fighter pilot and for, for the job is, is very real.” 130 00:07:14,208 –> 00:07:20,125 And he said, “You got, unfortunately you scored on the math assessment here, 131 00:07:20,666 –> 00:07:23,250 0.1% below the benchmark. 132 00:07:23,250 –> 00:07:25,458 Technically shouldn’t be in the room with us right now.” 133 00:07:26,666 –> 00:07:30,791 So he asked me this really simple question, which was, you know, 134 00:07:30,791 –> 00:07:32,666 “You’re flying at 200 miles per hour, 135 00:07:34,125 –> 00:07:36,875 and an airplane next to you is flying 300 miles per hour. 136 00:07:37,083 –> 00:07:39,083 Which aircraft gets to the airfield first?” 137 00:07:39,083 –> 00:07:42,666 And I said, the 300 mile per hour, he goes, yep, there’s your 0.1, away you go. 138 00:07:43,291 –> 00:07:46,708 So, so for me, what I’ve learned in my DNA 139 00:07:48,125 –> 00:07:51,875 is that often we create a self-limiting belief, which I’ve never had. 140 00:07:52,250 –> 00:07:53,125 I’ve never suffered that. 141 00:07:53,750 –> 00:07:56,375 Uh, I’ve, I’ve always been free of that burden, which, 142 00:07:56,375 –> 00:07:58,625 which is very, I’m very grateful for that. 143 00:07:59,416 –> 00:08:05,125 But at the same time, as I moved from being a fighter pilot into business 144 00:08:05,125 –> 00:08:07,208 and now into being a bit more of a coach, 145 00:08:08,125 –> 00:08:10,458 I’m very aware of this self-limiting belief 146 00:08:10,458 –> 00:08:13,500 that most humans are run as their internal program. 147 00:08:13,833 –> 00:08:16,458 So through that, I, you know, I went through pilot course, 148 00:08:16,458 –> 00:08:18,291 I was selected to be a fighter pilot. 149 00:08:18,291 –> 00:08:21,375 I was a fighter pilot for about nine years. 150 00:08:21,375 –> 00:08:22,750 I was in the air force for 11 years. 151 00:08:23,458 –> 00:08:25,583 And then I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. 152 00:08:26,208 –> 00:08:29,041 Uh, and that autoimmune disease was arthritic in nature. 153 00:08:29,041 –> 00:08:32,625 And when you’re pulling seven and a half G in a fighter jet and you’ve, 154 00:08:32,625 –> 00:08:35,208 you’ve got compression of the spine every day, 155 00:08:35,500 –> 00:08:37,000 it was very, it was deeply uncomfortable. 156 00:08:37,000 –> 00:08:40,708 And I was diagnosed because effectively my neck froze, I couldn’t move. 157 00:08:40,708 –> 00:08:42,833 And anyway, so, so then I went into business. 158 00:08:42,833 –> 00:08:47,500 And I started a business in Afghanistan in a post-war reconstruction. 159 00:08:48,458 –> 00:08:50,666 And that business was very successful. 160 00:08:51,166 –> 00:08:52,416 It grew rapidly. 161 00:08:52,833 –> 00:08:56,750 Um, we had nearly 6,000 staff when we sold it 162 00:08:58,083 –> 00:09:00,375 and I didn’t know what I was doing at any point in time. 163 00:09:00,625 –> 00:09:03,291 Uh, all I kind of had was the fighter pilot stuff 164 00:09:03,291 –> 00:09:04,916 that I was unaware of that I was using. 165 00:09:06,208 –> 00:09:09,958 Then I went into property development, built a, we, we, we set a world record 166 00:09:09,958 –> 00:09:11,958 building a 17 story tower in Australia 167 00:09:11,958 –> 00:09:15,083 using totally unique construction methodology. 168 00:09:15,791 –> 00:09:19,250 And then when I finished that, I found out about this company called Afterburner. 169 00:09:20,458 –> 00:09:23,291 And a friend of mine was running it in Australia and he invited me to an event 170 00:09:23,458 –> 00:09:24,291 and I went and watched it. 171 00:09:25,041 –> 00:09:30,291 And when I watched this keynote of a fighter pilot on stage helping business, 172 00:09:30,416 –> 00:09:32,458 because I’ll be honest at first, I was like, this is just a gimmick. 173 00:09:32,500 –> 00:09:35,083 Like what could a business possibly learn from a fighter pilot? 174 00:09:35,750 –> 00:09:40,291 I was struck by something and it was like, it was like this mass synapses occurred 175 00:09:40,291 –> 00:09:43,333 and I was like, oh my gosh, I didn’t realize that the successful side 176 00:09:43,833 –> 00:09:48,041 as the business founder was fueled by the mindset and ways of working 177 00:09:48,208 –> 00:09:50,500 as a fighter pilot, which is what the presentation was all about. 178 00:09:51,166 –> 00:09:55,291 And at that point in time, the universe creates a pathway for you, right? 179 00:09:55,875 –> 00:09:58,625 This, this mate of mine had been running the company for 11 years. 180 00:09:58,708 –> 00:10:00,458 And after that keynote, he said, you know what? 181 00:10:01,000 –> 00:10:02,041 I want to join the air force. 182 00:10:02,041 –> 00:10:02,791 Do you want to take over? 183 00:10:03,833 –> 00:10:05,458 And I was like, yeah, I like this. 184 00:10:05,458 –> 00:10:06,291 And I came to America. 185 00:10:06,291 –> 00:10:07,500 I met the founder, Jim Murphy. 186 00:10:07,500 –> 00:10:10,833 I went to some events and, and I ran this business in Australia 187 00:10:10,833 –> 00:10:12,208 and throughout Asia for eight years. 188 00:10:13,916 –> 00:10:17,500 And then three years ago, I was on a telephone call with the founder 189 00:10:17,916 –> 00:10:19,333 and I’m like, dude, you sound tired. 190 00:10:19,333 –> 00:10:22,666 Like, you know, he’s been running the company for 27 years. 191 00:10:23,583 –> 00:10:24,791 And he goes, man, I’m so over it. 192 00:10:24,791 –> 00:10:25,875 I’m done doing this too soon. 193 00:10:25,875 –> 00:10:27,958 And as a joke, I said, I’ll buy the company off you. 194 00:10:29,166 –> 00:10:29,958 He’s like, give me an offer. 195 00:10:30,125 –> 00:10:32,958 And I gave him an offer and I was on the plane three months later. 196 00:10:32,958 –> 00:10:35,750 And within eight months I was living in the U.S. where I am now. 197 00:10:36,166 –> 00:10:40,708 So, so there’s a lot of destiny in, in where I am now and what I do. 198 00:10:41,000 –> 00:10:44,833 There’s a lot of discomfort for me in, in what I do as well, because 199 00:10:45,125 –> 00:10:46,791 there’s a lot of very smart people in the world. 200 00:10:46,791 –> 00:10:47,750 There’s a lot of ideas. 201 00:10:47,750 –> 00:10:48,583 There’s a lot of leadership. 202 00:10:48,708 –> 00:10:53,291 There’s a lot, there’s a lot of opinions, but I just really believe that 203 00:10:53,625 –> 00:10:56,875 the way fighter pilots are trained to lead, the way we’re trained to work, 204 00:10:57,000 –> 00:10:58,125 the way we’re trained to think 205 00:10:58,791 –> 00:10:59,541 is… 206 00:11:00,958 –> 00:11:02,041 without doubt 207 00:11:03,250 –> 00:11:06,500 —and I’ve worked with nearly 400 businesses over the last 10 years— 208 00:11:07,416 –> 00:11:14,541 is without doubt, the most powerful system that a human being can use 209 00:11:15,166 –> 00:11:16,708 to not just be a good leader, 210 00:11:17,500 –> 00:11:21,666 but to actually live the life you want and not to bust through 211 00:11:22,083 –> 00:11:23,625 a lot of the myths you’re telling me about. 212 00:11:24,375 –> 00:11:26,416 And that’s the fundamental nature of iteration. 213 00:11:28,041 –> 00:11:29,791 So when we talk about iterative leadership, 214 00:11:30,750 –> 00:11:32,625 when we talk about that word iteration, 215 00:11:32,625 –> 00:11:35,500 all it means is what I am today, 216 00:11:36,166 –> 00:11:37,000 I can iterate. 217 00:11:37,000 –> 00:11:38,375 I can grow a little bit tomorrow. 218 00:11:38,666 –> 00:11:39,500 That’s a free pass. 219 00:11:40,416 –> 00:11:41,958 No, one’s going to stop me from growing. 220 00:11:42,458 –> 00:11:46,583 There’s nothing in the world that stops me from trying something new. 221 00:11:47,375 –> 00:11:49,916 But what I don’t know how to do because no one’s shown me is 222 00:11:50,125 –> 00:11:52,000 how do I do that structurally 223 00:11:52,625 –> 00:11:58,250 in a way that I just improve a little tiny bit each day rather than, 224 00:11:58,708 –> 00:12:00,208 “Oh, I want to lose weight.” 225 00:12:00,208 –> 00:12:01,666 “I want to run a marathon.” 226 00:12:01,666 –> 00:12:03,208 “I want to start a hundred million dollar business.” 227 00:12:03,208 –> 00:12:04,208 “I want to run a unicorn.” 228 00:12:04,875 –> 00:12:06,250 That’s all great intention. 229 00:12:07,291 –> 00:12:07,583 -Yeah. 230 00:12:07,583 –> 00:12:08,958 But as a fighter pilot it’s… 231 00:12:10,541 –> 00:12:13,666 we have this really unique microcosm where we turn 232 00:12:13,666 –> 00:12:19,791 really big complex things into utterly simple focused execution 233 00:12:20,166 –> 00:12:23,708 each and every day in an environment that’s high speed, 234 00:12:23,791 –> 00:12:25,041 that’s overwhelming, 235 00:12:25,583 –> 00:12:27,208 where you’re constantly distracted, 236 00:12:27,833 –> 00:12:31,541 but yet we managed to successfully win 99% of the time. 237 00:12:32,791 –> 00:12:36,458 In life, we successfully achieve our life dreams 8% of the time. 238 00:12:37,166 –> 00:12:40,208 In business strategy sits somewhere between 20 and 50%, 239 00:12:40,208 –> 00:12:41,333 depending on what you read, 240 00:12:42,250 –> 00:12:45,666 and the missing link to get from 50, even if it’s just up to 70% 241 00:12:46,375 –> 00:12:47,166 is just 242 00:12:47,958 –> 00:12:49,041 reprogramming 243 00:12:50,291 –> 00:12:51,666 your brain a little bit. 244 00:12:52,291 –> 00:12:54,250 And through that reprogramming, 245 00:12:54,750 –> 00:12:57,750 you automatically update what you do each day, 246 00:12:58,125 –> 00:13:01,333 how you see the world, how you bring curiosity into your life. 247 00:13:01,333 –> 00:13:05,875 So like I said, to be careful with that question, because there’s a big answer. 248 00:13:07,625 –> 00:13:12,916 But I, but I love it, Boo, in what you’re sharing, because in many ways as, 249 00:13:12,916 –> 00:13:18,416 as you’re sharing the backstory of how you really got to this point, 250 00:13:19,000 –> 00:13:21,708 you’re illustrating this principle of iterative leadership, 251 00:13:22,458 –> 00:13:27,875 you know, as you think about the kids smelling the, the jet fuel at that air show 252 00:13:28,208 –> 00:13:30,750 to the scrappy teenager working three jobs, 253 00:13:31,208 –> 00:13:33,375 trying to figure out a way, how do I get into pilot school? 254 00:13:34,000 –> 00:13:37,208 To all of the iterations to eventually where you’re at now, 255 00:13:37,916 –> 00:13:40,291 as a CEO of a business teaching leadership, 256 00:13:40,625 –> 00:13:44,958 you didn’t just wake up one morning and say, all right, here I am. 257 00:13:46,041 –> 00:13:51,625 It was all of those little steps that have led you and looking at opportunities 258 00:13:51,625 –> 00:13:54,958 that changed or challenges that occurred and forcing a pivot, 259 00:13:55,541 –> 00:14:00,416 but then taking advantage of opportunities and working your tail off the whole way. 260 00:14:01,000 –> 00:14:02,958 Um, so I love that, that story. 261 00:14:02,958 –> 00:14:06,666 So let’s, let’s dig into this concept of leadership a little bit more, 262 00:14:06,666 –> 00:14:13,166 as you’ve alluded to these principles of how do you see leadership really changing 263 00:14:13,375 –> 00:14:15,708 or being different now in this digital age? 264 00:14:17,583 –> 00:14:19,958 You’ve got to look at what, when we talk about digital age, 265 00:14:19,958 –> 00:14:23,666 what we’re really now talking about is creating a parallel consciousness, 266 00:14:23,875 –> 00:14:25,708 like that’s, that’s where we are with AI, right? 267 00:14:25,916 –> 00:14:30,708 So, so we’re historically, we’ve always needed human consciousness 268 00:14:30,708 –> 00:14:33,708 and intelligence to make decisions, to drive strategy. 269 00:14:34,125 –> 00:14:36,875 We’re moving into an era where there’s going to be platforms 270 00:14:36,875 –> 00:14:38,500 that do that much better than we do, 271 00:14:39,208 –> 00:14:43,250 not, not just cause it’s AI, but because it’s got a wonderful contextualized memory 272 00:14:43,708 –> 00:14:46,291 that we just forget stuff as human beings that AI never forgets. 273 00:14:46,875 –> 00:14:52,166 So if you think of the way we lead today is a slightly refined model 274 00:14:52,166 –> 00:14:54,583 of how we used to run a village back in the medieval times. 275 00:14:55,208 –> 00:14:58,791 You know, we, we have a village chief, a CEO, uh, we have warriors, 276 00:14:58,791 –> 00:15:00,916 we have sales teams, we have hunter gatherers, 277 00:15:00,916 –> 00:15:02,416 we’ve got the support and contracts teams. 278 00:15:02,916 –> 00:15:07,250 Uh, the way we replicate that in life, we have a mother and father 279 00:15:07,250 –> 00:15:10,083 that’s got disassociated a bit with two, two people working. 280 00:15:10,708 –> 00:15:13,916 You look at a football team, any charity organization, 281 00:15:14,500 –> 00:15:17,708 everyone’s in service to the chief is, is how we kind of operate. 282 00:15:18,375 –> 00:15:21,833 And that’s fine when you’ve got time, 283 00:15:22,166 –> 00:15:25,458 when you’ve got time to take some information from the frontline 284 00:15:25,458 –> 00:15:28,666 and go through all the different layers to get it to a leader, 285 00:15:29,041 –> 00:15:31,125 and then for them to make a decision and come back down. 286 00:15:31,708 –> 00:15:34,666 So, so this model is wonderful for the industrial era. 287 00:15:35,333 –> 00:15:38,666 It’s wonderful for steady static businesses that do the same thing 288 00:15:38,666 –> 00:15:43,333 each and every day, but it is certainly not equipped for this new age, 289 00:15:43,333 –> 00:15:49,375 which is in service to outcomes, in service to destinations, rather than an individual. 290 00:15:50,333 –> 00:15:53,958 And in the world of fighter pilots, that’s the system we operate in, 291 00:15:54,416 –> 00:15:57,083 in that we have a hierarchy in how we operate a squadron. 292 00:15:57,083 –> 00:15:59,041 We have a commanding officer that looks after everything. 293 00:15:59,041 –> 00:16:02,916 You’ve got a, an executive officer that looks after the flying and operations. 294 00:16:02,916 –> 00:16:03,708 You’ve got an admin office. 295 00:16:03,958 –> 00:16:07,333 So you’ve got a hierarchy, which is the nice, safe, bureaucratic, 296 00:16:07,500 –> 00:16:08,291 you know, makes you fit. 297 00:16:08,375 –> 00:16:09,625 That’s the human side of leadership. 298 00:16:10,500 –> 00:16:14,916 But every day we decouple from that and we create mission objectives 299 00:16:15,291 –> 00:16:18,166 and the commanding officer might be a wingman for me on that day 300 00:16:18,500 –> 00:16:20,625 and on that day in service to the objective, 301 00:16:20,875 –> 00:16:22,958 the C the commanding officer is in service to me 302 00:16:23,458 –> 00:16:28,208 because I’ve been given the gift of leadership on that mission to execute. 303 00:16:28,833 –> 00:16:30,458 And that’s what we try and create in business. 304 00:16:30,458 –> 00:16:32,916 We say, we need to missionize everything that you do. 305 00:16:33,416 –> 00:16:37,541 You can’t just have a KPI that sits there and we, we measure it, 306 00:16:37,916 –> 00:16:39,583 you know, at the end of the quarter. 307 00:16:40,291 –> 00:16:44,500 That KPI has to be able to be broken down into a daily outcome. 308 00:16:44,500 –> 00:16:45,875 And if you think of it in terms of… 309 00:16:46,541 –> 00:16:51,416 we need to shift leadership and teams from what do I need to do today 310 00:16:51,416 –> 00:16:53,041 to what do I need to achieve today? 311 00:16:53,583 –> 00:16:57,375 And that just shift in mindset around achievement versus doing 312 00:16:58,125 –> 00:17:01,750 sets you up to be free of the digital distractions, 313 00:17:01,916 –> 00:17:03,833 to be free of the reactive notifications, 314 00:17:04,666 –> 00:17:07,791 to, to really start to invest in what do I need to do 315 00:17:08,125 –> 00:17:09,750 to achieve what I need to achieve today? 316 00:17:10,583 –> 00:17:10,833 -Yeah. 317 00:17:10,833 –> 00:17:15,125 -So that, that fundamental difference in terms of, 318 00:17:15,125 –> 00:17:20,083 I call it the digital vortex, speed, overwhelm, and the battle of attention, 319 00:17:20,958 –> 00:17:27,375 is something that legacy leadership models just are not equipped to deal with 320 00:17:27,375 –> 00:17:33,916 and all traditional leadership models create in the speed of digital is chaos, 321 00:17:33,916 –> 00:17:36,000 disconnection, disengagement, confusion, 322 00:17:36,583 –> 00:17:38,750 because the world is moving much faster 323 00:17:38,750 –> 00:17:41,333 than the decision-making that’s occurring in the hierarchy. 324 00:17:44,166 –> 00:17:48,250 So keep talking in terms of this iterative leader idea. 325 00:17:48,666 –> 00:17:54,208 If you could paint the picture of what an iterative, iterative leader looks like, 326 00:17:54,541 –> 00:17:55,916 what are the kinds of habits? 327 00:17:56,291 –> 00:17:57,375 What are the activities? 328 00:17:57,666 –> 00:17:58,666 What are the outcomes? 329 00:17:58,791 –> 00:18:05,041 What’s the mindset versus what are the things that is not an iterative leader? 330 00:18:05,500 –> 00:18:08,500 Because I think that’s also a tremendously helpful, 331 00:18:08,708 –> 00:18:12,875 and you’ve already begun talking about kind of the command and control idea, 332 00:18:12,875 –> 00:18:17,416 the unilateral, the one voice without a communication. 333 00:18:18,250 –> 00:18:20,166 What is that iterative leader? 334 00:18:20,500 –> 00:18:25,208 What, what are the practices that we want to pursue to achieve that, that mindset? 335 00:18:26,791 –> 00:18:29,875 Well, the first thing is to be aware of this concept of iteration for starters. 336 00:18:30,375 –> 00:18:32,250 You, we, we live in a linear world. 337 00:18:32,333 –> 00:18:33,750 We just think everything’s A to B. 338 00:18:34,083 –> 00:18:35,916 You know, I set targets, I work hard, I get there. 339 00:18:36,416 –> 00:18:41,500 You know, whereas iteration is, I have a target, I get there or I don’t get there. 340 00:18:41,500 –> 00:18:44,208 And I ask myself, why did I get there or why didn’t I? 341 00:18:44,333 –> 00:18:45,541 And what can I do differently tomorrow? 342 00:18:46,208 –> 00:18:50,208 So when we talk about iteration, it’s bringing the practice of intentional reflection, 343 00:18:50,708 –> 00:18:52,500 and when I talk about intentional reflection, 344 00:18:52,500 –> 00:18:56,500 I’m saying reflecting in the context of where you’re going, 345 00:18:56,791 –> 00:18:58,291 not just reflecting for the sake of it, 346 00:18:58,791 –> 00:19:04,375 not just, not, there was a great study done in 2015 by UC Berkeley. 347 00:19:04,375 –> 00:19:08,750 And, um, and Harvard, and they stuck a whole bunch of people in a white room 348 00:19:08,750 –> 00:19:11,416 and a white chair for six to 15 minutes. 349 00:19:11,416 –> 00:19:14,000 And they said, “Hey, how did you enjoy that experience?” 350 00:19:14,750 –> 00:19:17,083 And most people didn’t really enjoy it. 351 00:19:17,625 –> 00:19:20,166 So then they gave half of the room, something to think about 352 00:19:20,666 –> 00:19:22,375 and half of the room, nothing to think about. 353 00:19:22,833 –> 00:19:25,625 And the people that had something to think about, enjoyed the experience 354 00:19:25,625 –> 00:19:27,708 twice as much as the people had nothing to think about, 355 00:19:28,625 –> 00:19:30,416 then they also added another layer to it. 356 00:19:31,041 –> 00:19:34,833 And they put a machine that gave people an electric shock 357 00:19:35,458 –> 00:19:39,500 and they put the machine on the table and they, and they said, 358 00:19:39,500 –> 00:19:42,041 “Don’t touch the button because you’re going to get a severe electric shock.” 359 00:19:42,875 –> 00:19:46,250 And being… people being left with their own thoughts for six to 15 minutes 360 00:19:46,708 –> 00:19:49,041 would rather give themselves a severe electric shock, 361 00:19:49,041 –> 00:19:53,041 75% of men and 28% of women would rather hit the button 362 00:19:53,541 –> 00:19:54,625 and get an electric shock 363 00:19:54,625 –> 00:19:57,416 than be stuck with their own thoughts and reflecting and thinking. 364 00:19:57,875 –> 00:20:01,708 So, so we have this primal urge as humanity to be busy. 365 00:20:02,416 –> 00:20:04,458 And busy doesn’t mean doing the right things. 366 00:20:05,208 –> 00:20:07,375 Busy means doing something. 367 00:20:08,416 –> 00:20:10,250 So we have to break that cycle, right? 368 00:20:11,291 –> 00:20:14,625 And as fighter pilots, we break the cycle through the practice of debriefing. 369 00:20:15,958 –> 00:20:19,541 And the way in which we debrief at Afterburner, we call that ORCA. 370 00:20:20,375 –> 00:20:23,833 And ORCA is a mnemonic for Objective Result Cause Action. 371 00:20:25,208 –> 00:20:28,333 So when we, when we start reflecting, the first question we ask is 372 00:20:28,333 –> 00:20:31,916 what’s the objective, what am I going to reflect on in the context of where I’m going? 373 00:20:33,416 –> 00:20:33,916 Right there. 374 00:20:33,916 –> 00:20:34,583 That never happens. 375 00:20:35,291 –> 00:20:36,291 30 years of business. 376 00:20:36,291 –> 00:20:40,916 We’ve never once in 30 years ever met a company or a team 377 00:20:40,916 –> 00:20:42,166 that ever has done this, 378 00:20:42,666 –> 00:20:45,333 whereas fighter pilots do it every single day, 379 00:20:46,208 –> 00:20:46,416 right? 380 00:20:46,791 –> 00:20:49,583 And when you do it every single day, it stops becoming a practice 381 00:20:49,583 –> 00:20:50,958 and it starts becoming a mindset. 382 00:20:50,958 –> 00:20:52,166 It starts becoming a habit. 383 00:20:52,166 –> 00:20:53,541 It’s how you live your entire life. 384 00:20:54,416 –> 00:20:59,416 So ORCA is set the objective, which means we have to have one. 385 00:21:00,000 –> 00:21:03,375 We have to create that intention and turn it into something that can be measured. 386 00:21:04,250 –> 00:21:09,250 The, then the R is results, or you can, you can put reality in there if you like, 387 00:21:09,833 –> 00:21:11,500 but it’s basically, where are we? 388 00:21:11,833 –> 00:21:14,875 And as a leader, your job is to take people into the unknown 389 00:21:15,541 –> 00:21:16,875 and to grow them along the way. 390 00:21:17,166 –> 00:21:22,458 So realistically every day, you should be doing new things. 391 00:21:22,833 –> 00:21:25,291 Something new should be happening because you’re moving forwards. 392 00:21:25,958 –> 00:21:28,083 So there’s always going to be this gap. 393 00:21:28,375 –> 00:21:32,333 And then we call it the execution gap between where are you going 394 00:21:33,125 –> 00:21:33,833 and where you are, 395 00:21:34,583 –> 00:21:37,208 and this gap is zero emotion. 396 00:21:38,166 –> 00:21:40,041 And it’s all based on what’s right. 397 00:21:40,041 –> 00:21:40,833 Not who’s right. 398 00:21:40,833 –> 00:21:44,541 It’s a, it’s a full, uh, lean into your metrics. 399 00:21:44,750 –> 00:21:47,000 So if it doesn’t have a number, it can’t be debriefed. 400 00:21:47,708 –> 00:21:53,041 The C in ORCA is the cause, or you might call it curiosity, where we have… 401 00:21:53,666 –> 00:21:57,416 everyone who’s involved in the execution to arrive at that objective, 402 00:21:58,041 –> 00:22:02,500 unpacking their personal performance as to what they did that didn’t deliver 403 00:22:02,916 –> 00:22:04,625 or what they didn’t do to deliver that. 404 00:22:05,125 –> 00:22:06,583 And often it’s not personal. 405 00:22:06,583 –> 00:22:08,166 It’s just a breakdown in communication. 406 00:22:08,166 –> 00:22:09,208 I didn’t understand something. 407 00:22:09,208 –> 00:22:10,333 We got a little bit out of sequence. 408 00:22:11,291 –> 00:22:12,750 And it’s just a bit of a course-correct. 409 00:22:12,750 –> 00:22:15,958 And the A in ORCA, which is the most important part of a debrief 410 00:22:17,125 –> 00:22:20,833 and the most important part of the fighter pilot mindset is act. 411 00:22:21,666 –> 00:22:22,166 Do something. 412 00:22:22,791 –> 00:22:24,000 Don’t just pontificate. 413 00:22:24,500 –> 00:22:25,958 Don’t just intellectualize. 414 00:22:26,583 –> 00:22:27,916 Don’t create more work. 415 00:22:28,000 –> 00:22:30,333 Just do one small thing first thing in the morning, 416 00:22:31,041 –> 00:22:33,291 that’s going to incrementally close that gap for you. 417 00:22:33,875 –> 00:22:37,750 So when we talk about the iterative leader, the iterative leader is 418 00:22:38,250 –> 00:22:40,791 fundamentally fueled by this conversation. 419 00:22:41,916 –> 00:22:46,666 Their entire existence should be facilitating this conversation 420 00:22:47,375 –> 00:22:52,750 to align their teams, to allow everyone to be fully engaged in the process, 421 00:22:53,250 –> 00:22:57,000 to learn what’s actually happening rather than what you perceive is happening, 422 00:22:57,000 –> 00:23:01,708 because 95% of leaders’ decisions are actually based on perception, not reality. 423 00:23:02,625 –> 00:23:07,666 And, and really connecting the intention and future of the company 424 00:23:07,666 –> 00:23:08,916 to the day-to-day execution. 425 00:23:09,500 –> 00:23:12,166 That is the iterative leader. 426 00:23:12,166 –> 00:23:13,291 I own that space. 427 00:23:14,541 –> 00:23:16,833 They bring the ideas into execution 428 00:23:18,083 –> 00:23:20,000 and they allow the organization 429 00:23:20,625 –> 00:23:24,083 the opportunity to have conversations that they’ve never had before. 430 00:23:24,375 –> 00:23:27,458 -These are great suggestions, Boo, and good tools. 431 00:23:27,458 –> 00:23:31,666 So I’m going to, I’m going to take the part of the skeptic that might be listening to this, 432 00:23:32,166 –> 00:23:34,958 saying, “Okay, I’m hearing this guy, 433 00:23:35,666 –> 00:23:38,291 and he’s telling me that I’m supposed to take time to reflect, 434 00:23:38,750 –> 00:23:41,416 supposed to implement a new system called ORCA, 435 00:23:41,666 –> 00:23:42,833 which sounds nice, 436 00:23:43,291 –> 00:23:47,416 but, and I’ve got 18 personalities I’m trying to keep track of on my team, 437 00:23:47,416 –> 00:23:49,375 and I’ve got this to do and that’s doing that. 438 00:23:49,875 –> 00:23:50,500 I don’t have time. 439 00:23:50,500 –> 00:23:53,250 There’s just too much pressure to get all these…” 440 00:23:53,750 –> 00:23:56,750 What advice do you give to that leader who’s saying, 441 00:23:57,000 –> 00:23:58,625 “This all sounds nice in theory, 442 00:23:59,416 –> 00:24:01,875 but how do I actually have time to implement it? 443 00:24:01,875 –> 00:24:02,875 I’m already underwater.” 444 00:24:03,208 –> 00:24:03,458 -Yeah. 445 00:24:03,458 –> 00:24:05,708 Well, you don’t have time because you’re not, you’re not debriefing. 446 00:24:05,708 –> 00:24:06,791 You’re, you’re managing chaos. 447 00:24:06,916 –> 00:24:07,500 That’s why. 448 00:24:07,500 –> 00:24:08,666 You’re creating the busy. 449 00:24:09,166 –> 00:24:10,333 It’s, it’s on you. 450 00:24:10,708 –> 00:24:13,625 So the reason you’re busy is because you’re not leading effectively. 451 00:24:14,208 –> 00:24:15,708 A good leader is not busy. 452 00:24:16,208 –> 00:24:20,875 So step one, you’re telling yourself a story and the story makes you feel good 453 00:24:21,250 –> 00:24:24,166 because when you feel busy, you feel good, but you’re not effective. 454 00:24:24,583 –> 00:24:26,666 So first of all, stop telling yourself the story. 455 00:24:26,916 –> 00:24:30,125 Second, I’ll give you 75% of your day back. 456 00:24:31,000 –> 00:24:34,791 If you start thinking and using this as a way to talk, a way to plan, 457 00:24:35,000 –> 00:24:36,958 a way to email, uh, a way— 458 00:24:37,375 –> 00:24:42,250 I’m going to take your existing time and get you to think differently, 459 00:24:42,750 –> 00:24:44,166 speak differently, 460 00:24:44,625 –> 00:24:45,750 think differently. 461 00:24:46,333 –> 00:24:49,166 That is going to give you all your time back. 462 00:24:49,875 –> 00:24:53,791 Uh, and I know this happens and we at Afterburner know this happens 463 00:24:53,791 –> 00:24:57,500 because when we do our embedded programs with leaders, 464 00:24:57,916 –> 00:24:59,833 the feedback we get the most is, 465 00:25:00,083 –> 00:25:03,583 “Boo, I think I’m going to be out of a job, I’m not actually doing anything anymore. 466 00:25:04,041 –> 00:25:06,666 And it’s like, yeah, you’re actually being a leader now. 467 00:25:07,375 –> 00:25:08,750 You actually have the big picture. 468 00:25:09,166 –> 00:25:12,750 You’re actually guiding and empowering your people to do the work. 469 00:25:13,291 –> 00:25:15,625 Oh, by the way, in a lot of organizations, 470 00:25:15,625 –> 00:25:17,875 they reduce their head count by 20 to 30% 471 00:25:18,458 –> 00:25:20,833 because all of a sudden they don’t need all the people to do the work 472 00:25:21,083 –> 00:25:22,500 because the work’s actually getting done. 473 00:25:23,166 –> 00:25:26,375 So it’s, it’s, and you’re right on the money. 474 00:25:26,375 –> 00:25:29,500 That is the first thing everyone says when it says the debriefing sounds good. 475 00:25:29,500 –> 00:25:30,125 Don’t have time. 476 00:25:30,875 –> 00:25:32,625 And I’ll give it back. 477 00:25:33,666 –> 00:25:36,875 We as a team will give you back 75. 478 00:25:37,041 –> 00:25:39,416 You will have meetings that go for 15 minutes 479 00:25:40,166 –> 00:25:42,000 and they’ll probably really go for about eight. 480 00:25:42,666 –> 00:25:45,833 We will fill your day with time to think, 481 00:25:46,208 –> 00:25:48,916 to, to just focus and just get things done. 482 00:25:49,416 –> 00:25:52,666 We’re going to remove you from the overwhelmed chaotic world 483 00:25:52,958 –> 00:25:57,000 of the digital era and equip you with the mindset and skillset 484 00:25:57,375 –> 00:26:00,875 to actually take disruption and turn it into opportunity. 485 00:26:01,833 –> 00:26:05,541 And right now, if you, if you, to give you a really topical point 486 00:26:06,291 –> 00:26:09,125 is everyone’s struggling with what does a human do? 487 00:26:09,291 –> 00:26:10,750 What does an AI agent do? 488 00:26:11,416 –> 00:26:13,875 And it’s the wrong question to ask. 489 00:26:14,625 –> 00:26:17,250 The question to ask is what does the company need to do 490 00:26:18,000 –> 00:26:19,458 in order to get to where we’re going? 491 00:26:20,083 –> 00:26:21,416 And once we engineer that, 492 00:26:22,166 –> 00:26:24,416 let’s figure out who’s better at doing it, a machine or a human. 493 00:26:25,125 –> 00:26:29,375 So, so it’s, again, the way we come at leadership is we come at the problem first, 494 00:26:30,083 –> 00:26:33,208 and we do not frame it in the context of what we need to be. 495 00:26:33,750 –> 00:26:38,541 Uh, in our organization, we saw AI as a thing, right? 496 00:26:38,666 –> 00:26:40,750 And we didn’t know what that thing was in February. 497 00:26:41,666 –> 00:26:46,125 But as we turn into December, we’re a fully AI native organization. 498 00:26:46,458 –> 00:26:49,125 We’ve created agents for coaching, for selling, for marketing. 499 00:26:49,583 –> 00:26:55,166 And we went from zero AI into a AI native organization 500 00:26:55,166 –> 00:26:58,166 and reduced our head count by 40% in the process. 501 00:26:58,625 –> 00:27:00,916 Because we were very clear in our destination, 502 00:27:00,916 –> 00:27:02,625 and we just did the work to figure out how to do it. 503 00:27:05,166 –> 00:27:10,041 What, what you’re describing is something we often call, uh, leader work. 504 00:27:10,625 –> 00:27:15,416 So it’s the work that leaders need to do, and it’s helping leaders recognize 505 00:27:15,666 –> 00:27:17,458 what leader work actually is. 506 00:27:18,000 –> 00:27:21,541 Because leader work is fundamentally having conversations 507 00:27:21,541 –> 00:27:23,125 to set clear expectations, 508 00:27:23,541 –> 00:27:26,000 to be able to coach and guide and support, 509 00:27:26,000 –> 00:27:29,875 to be able to then have interactive collaboration, 510 00:27:30,416 –> 00:27:33,375 and not so much to dive in and do the work yourself. 511 00:27:33,833 –> 00:27:34,958 It’s to build the team. 512 00:27:34,958 –> 00:27:37,958 It’s to be able to prioritize and remove distractions. 513 00:27:38,500 –> 00:27:41,208 And yet it’s, it is remarkable to your point, 514 00:27:41,875 –> 00:27:44,416 how we as humans inherently think that’s, 515 00:27:44,750 –> 00:27:46,583 that’s not what we should be doing. 516 00:27:46,916 –> 00:27:50,875 Cause it’s just so satisfying in the moment to put out the fire. 517 00:27:51,250 –> 00:27:52,083 We feel needed. 518 00:27:52,166 –> 00:27:53,041 We’re the hero. 519 00:27:53,458 –> 00:27:55,125 We can come and save the day. 520 00:27:55,416 –> 00:27:58,375 It’s our identity that we haven’t shifted. 521 00:27:59,041 –> 00:28:04,250 And so Boo, keep, keep going in terms of talking about 522 00:28:04,625 –> 00:28:07,791 how does a leader remove distraction? 523 00:28:08,875 –> 00:28:13,500 How does a leader help prioritize not only for him or herself, 524 00:28:14,125 –> 00:28:15,291 but for their team. 525 00:28:15,708 –> 00:28:20,375 Because there’s going to be all sorts of emergent new activities 526 00:28:20,375 –> 00:28:23,416 and needs that are all seemingly important. 527 00:28:24,750 –> 00:28:25,875 What is the process? 528 00:28:25,875 –> 00:28:29,458 What, what are the things, what are the tools or ideas to help a leader 529 00:28:29,750 –> 00:28:34,750 prioritize for themselves and for others and remove some of these distractions? 530 00:28:36,125 –> 00:28:37,208 It’s look, it’s a good question. 531 00:28:37,208 –> 00:28:40,166 And I, and I go back to the reason why there’s so much emerging things 532 00:28:40,166 –> 00:28:43,583 and change and chaos is because the leaders are just not doing a good job. 533 00:28:44,000 –> 00:28:47,166 Like the, the, the, it’s a, it’s a self-licking ice cream. 534 00:28:47,583 –> 00:28:51,291 You know, it’s, we, we, we are creating the problem set that we’re solving. 535 00:28:51,291 –> 00:28:54,916 It’s, it’s not, it doesn’t exist without you as a leader. 536 00:28:54,916 –> 00:28:58,500 And we, and you see that because there are leaders that can run very focused, 537 00:28:58,500 –> 00:29:02,666 high-performing teams in the digital world and they’re called startups. 538 00:29:03,125 –> 00:29:07,666 Uh, and then you’ve got legacy organizations that are so entrenched 539 00:29:07,666 –> 00:29:10,916 in the doing work and rewarding effort rather than results, 540 00:29:11,166 –> 00:29:12,458 you know, the participation medal, 541 00:29:12,916 –> 00:29:14,833 that you’re, you’re, you’re a creator. 542 00:29:15,041 –> 00:29:19,875 So, so, you know, when we talk about leaders, you know, doing the conversation work, 543 00:29:20,250 –> 00:29:21,291 well, let’s dig deep on that. 544 00:29:21,291 –> 00:29:22,458 It’s not the conversation. 545 00:29:22,458 –> 00:29:23,916 It’s the quality of the conversation. 546 00:29:24,458 –> 00:29:26,833 It’s the quality and the value of the work that you do. 547 00:29:27,208 –> 00:29:28,500 And it shouldn’t feel like work. 548 00:29:28,666 –> 00:29:31,875 It should feel like natural facilitative growth. 549 00:29:32,666 –> 00:29:35,083 So when we talk about new and emerging, 550 00:29:35,541 –> 00:29:38,291 the reality is no matter how new something is, 551 00:29:38,291 –> 00:29:40,250 it doesn’t get adopted that fast. 552 00:29:40,416 –> 00:29:41,333 There’s plenty of time. 553 00:29:41,833 –> 00:29:44,166 You know, AI is a five year, 10 year journey. 554 00:29:44,375 –> 00:29:47,750 Like it’s, there’s no point panicking about it because the more we panic, 555 00:29:47,750 –> 00:29:50,041 the more we just do stuff that doesn’t work. 556 00:29:50,041 –> 00:29:52,750 There’s just Band-Aid, Band-Aid, Band-Aid and the patient’s dying. 557 00:29:53,333 –> 00:29:56,041 Uh, and then you go out of business because someone who was really focused 558 00:29:56,041 –> 00:29:58,500 on being AI native figured it out before you did, 559 00:29:58,833 –> 00:30:00,291 and they’re running a much leaner operation. 560 00:30:00,750 –> 00:30:06,333 So, so I want to bust the myth of leadership and, and, and, and be really confronting 561 00:30:06,833 –> 00:30:11,041 in saying that what you understand about leadership today 562 00:30:11,375 –> 00:30:17,708 is built on generations of people operating in businesses where humans did everything. 563 00:30:18,250 –> 00:30:19,291 That is not the future. 564 00:30:19,291 –> 00:30:21,500 There is no documentation whatsoever. 565 00:30:22,000 –> 00:30:23,791 The people that are holding onto this myth 566 00:30:24,166 –> 00:30:26,250 that our AI is not really going to replace humans. 567 00:30:26,250 –> 00:30:27,500 It absolutely is. 568 00:30:27,916 –> 00:30:29,208 There is no question about it. 569 00:30:29,208 –> 00:30:30,916 Only question is how long is it going to take? 570 00:30:31,583 –> 00:30:36,750 So, so it’s, so, so it’s uncomfortable to think that all, particularly as a leader, 571 00:30:36,750 –> 00:30:39,083 like you start to get into your forties, fifties, and sixties, 572 00:30:39,833 –> 00:30:43,458 it’s very uncomfortable to think everything I’ve learned is irrelevant moving forward. 573 00:30:43,875 –> 00:30:44,958 And that’s a big statement. 574 00:30:44,958 –> 00:30:47,125 It’s not irrelevant, but a lot of it just isn’t, 575 00:30:47,125 –> 00:30:48,125 isn’t important anymore. 576 00:30:48,958 –> 00:30:51,000 Think of the whole concept of experience 577 00:30:51,666 –> 00:30:53,625 that we put people in leadership roles 578 00:30:53,625 –> 00:30:55,708 because of all the other times they’ve done product launches, 579 00:30:55,708 –> 00:30:57,375 all the other times they’ve run a production line 580 00:30:57,833 –> 00:30:59,000 and we need their experience. 581 00:30:59,541 –> 00:31:01,208 With AI, you don’t need experience anymore. 582 00:31:01,875 –> 00:31:02,375 You don’t need it. 583 00:31:02,666 –> 00:31:03,041 It’s there. 584 00:31:03,416 –> 00:31:06,583 You can just ask, you can just pull contextualized data 585 00:31:06,916 –> 00:31:09,208 from a platform that gives you the benefit 586 00:31:09,666 –> 00:31:12,166 of a consciousness that’s way more experienced 587 00:31:12,166 –> 00:31:14,583 and has a much better memory than a leader. 588 00:31:14,583 –> 00:31:18,166 And also they’re not infected by the cognitive biases that we have as humans. 589 00:31:18,791 –> 00:31:22,750 So you’ve got to, you know, what, what I’ve certainly learned over the last few years is, 590 00:31:22,916 –> 00:31:25,875 you know, for me as a fighter pilot, I just did it, right? 591 00:31:25,875 –> 00:31:26,708 I never thought about it. 592 00:31:26,791 –> 00:31:27,750 Well, why do we do it this way? 593 00:31:27,750 –> 00:31:28,500 And what are we doing now? 594 00:31:28,500 –> 00:31:32,333 I, you know, I just plugged into the machine and did what I had to do. 595 00:31:32,500 –> 00:31:34,166 Whereas now I reflect on it. 596 00:31:34,250 –> 00:31:37,625 And one of the things I’ve learned is to be a fighter pilot 597 00:31:37,625 –> 00:31:39,875 is a reprogramming process of a human being. 598 00:31:40,041 –> 00:31:40,541 That’s what it is. 599 00:31:41,166 –> 00:31:45,708 And, and a human at their fundamental level, we’re an animal 600 00:31:45,708 –> 00:31:48,041 that just has a bit of a computer on top of it. 601 00:31:48,583 –> 00:31:50,250 You know, the, the, the human intelligence. 602 00:31:50,666 –> 00:31:53,000 But underneath that we’re the same as a dog, a cat, 603 00:31:53,416 –> 00:31:55,375 you know, a tiger, a lion, 604 00:31:55,875 –> 00:32:00,291 and we have to understand that all of those primal drivers 605 00:32:00,666 –> 00:32:03,583 have a lot more strength than our consciousness. 606 00:32:03,708 –> 00:32:08,000 So we’re talking about less than 1% of the brain power 607 00:32:08,000 –> 00:32:10,083 gets plugged into the intelligent part of the brain. 608 00:32:10,791 –> 00:32:13,750 So when we talk about distraction, 609 00:32:14,541 –> 00:32:16,541 we’re talking about a primal piece of programming 610 00:32:16,916 –> 00:32:21,333 because distraction was encoded into a human being to survive. 611 00:32:21,875 –> 00:32:23,541 Because a hundred thousand years ago, 612 00:32:23,541 –> 00:32:25,750 you’re walking around a bush and you hear a rustle in the bushes. 613 00:32:26,500 –> 00:32:29,083 It’s pretty important to be distracted by the rustle in the bushes, right? 614 00:32:29,583 –> 00:32:31,375 If you were like hyper-focused 615 00:32:31,375 –> 00:32:33,125 and you didn’t hear anything around you, you’d get eaten. 616 00:32:33,916 –> 00:32:36,750 So, so distraction is a primal survival mechanism 617 00:32:37,583 –> 00:32:39,666 that you have a choice to 618 00:32:40,208 –> 00:32:43,750 buy into it or to actually put a bit of human consciousness in there and say, 619 00:32:44,083 –> 00:32:45,500 Hey, it’s just a distraction. 620 00:32:45,500 –> 00:32:46,208 It ain’t a big deal. 621 00:32:46,750 –> 00:32:47,541 It’s just an email. 622 00:32:48,166 –> 00:32:49,250 It’s just the notification. 623 00:32:49,833 –> 00:32:50,666 It’s just a message. 624 00:32:52,791 –> 00:32:56,375 And when we talk about how fighter pilots, you know, when we mission execute, 625 00:32:56,708 –> 00:32:59,458 it’s somewhere between an hour or three hours of focused time, right? 626 00:32:59,458 –> 00:33:00,250 Focused execution. 627 00:33:01,041 –> 00:33:06,750 So, so if you create that as a leader and you create 90 minutes a day where 628 00:33:07,416 –> 00:33:10,500 there’s no technology in front of you, you’ve got a pen and a piece of paper. 629 00:33:11,291 –> 00:33:14,833 And we at Afterburner have some structures that you can go through 630 00:33:14,833 –> 00:33:16,000 to collect your thoughts. 631 00:33:16,833 –> 00:33:19,625 You’ll find after sitting there for about 20 to 30 minutes, 632 00:33:19,625 –> 00:33:23,291 all of a sudden, boom, it hits the deep flow, the focus, 633 00:33:23,791 –> 00:33:27,625 and all the connections that are in your subconscious automatically start to come to life. 634 00:33:28,291 –> 00:33:31,583 And that, when we talk about leaders work, that’s it. 635 00:33:31,583 –> 00:33:34,375 90 minutes of, of just being focused. 636 00:33:35,041 –> 00:33:37,625 Then it doesn’t feel like work because it starts to get fun 637 00:33:38,250 –> 00:33:39,958 because you start to surprise yourself. 638 00:33:39,958 –> 00:33:41,791 And you’re like, ooh, ooh, ooh, look at that. 639 00:33:41,791 –> 00:33:42,708 And I thought about this and I thought— 640 00:33:42,833 –> 00:33:46,000 and all of a sudden you start to build this, uh, 641 00:33:46,500 –> 00:33:50,166 this, this pathway of where I need to take my people 642 00:33:50,541 –> 00:33:52,666 and what in terms of what they need to do 643 00:33:53,125 –> 00:33:55,541 in terms of helping them understand where they need to go 644 00:33:55,541 –> 00:33:56,791 and then coaching them to get there. 645 00:33:57,416 –> 00:34:01,041 So the work, the work should be invested in focus and growth, 646 00:34:01,458 –> 00:34:02,375 not in doing. 647 00:34:02,375 –> 00:34:06,958 And you mentioned Daniel, the superhero effect in my, in my new book, 648 00:34:06,958 –> 00:34:10,000 Flawless Leadership that comes out next year. 649 00:34:10,500 –> 00:34:14,208 I call it the Avenger effect in, in this, in, in the way that 650 00:34:14,208 –> 00:34:16,583 the human reward system is designed. 651 00:34:17,291 –> 00:34:20,666 It’s saving the day, the wonderful way to be rewarded. 652 00:34:21,166 –> 00:34:26,791 So subconsciously leaders try and create themselves in the image of Iron Man, 653 00:34:27,500 –> 00:34:29,750 where my job is to save the day. 654 00:34:30,541 –> 00:34:34,125 And then everyone pats me on the back and says, “Geez, Boo, lucky you were here.” 655 00:34:34,500 –> 00:34:35,500 Lucky we had you. 656 00:34:36,000 –> 00:34:38,583 Because if you weren’t here, everything would have fallen apart. 657 00:34:39,041 –> 00:34:42,500 So there’s, it’s almost demotivating to build a team, 658 00:34:42,500 –> 00:34:46,000 to defer that reward further down, right? 659 00:34:46,000 –> 00:34:51,875 So, and, and the reason that the reward system that we’re missing 660 00:34:52,416 –> 00:34:54,375 is organizations don’t win enough. 661 00:34:54,708 –> 00:34:55,000 Right? 662 00:34:55,416 –> 00:34:57,291 So as fighter pilots, we win every day. 663 00:34:57,541 –> 00:35:00,041 We, we win every 99% of the time, every now and again, 664 00:35:00,041 –> 00:35:02,041 we have a bad day, three, three, four times a year. 665 00:35:03,333 –> 00:35:06,791 But we win every day because we map out what winning today looks like. 666 00:35:07,291 –> 00:35:11,625 So if, if a leader can, if a leader can shift from saving the day 667 00:35:12,416 –> 00:35:15,125 into designing the wins, 668 00:35:15,541 –> 00:35:18,333 then all of a sudden we start to feel good 669 00:35:18,500 –> 00:35:22,125 because we’re winning all the time and I’m getting stuff done, I’m, I’m moving. 670 00:35:22,208 –> 00:35:24,291 My work is actually delivering results. 671 00:35:24,291 –> 00:35:25,291 This makes me feel good. 672 00:35:25,333 –> 00:35:26,625 It feels less like work now. 673 00:35:27,041 –> 00:35:28,250 It feels more like action. 674 00:35:29,750 –> 00:35:34,208 So all of these, I mean, I can’t really understate the paradigm shift 675 00:35:34,208 –> 00:35:35,791 we’re looking at here with flawless leadership, 676 00:35:36,000 –> 00:35:38,000 like in terms of cognitively, 677 00:35:38,291 –> 00:35:41,416 in terms of the action-based, the processes that we use, 678 00:35:41,833 –> 00:35:48,583 it is a, it is a very, new way of, of showing up as a person, as a human being. 679 00:35:49,208 –> 00:35:49,583 -Yeah. 680 00:35:50,541 –> 00:35:53,541 So let’s, let’s kind of sum this up. 681 00:35:53,875 –> 00:35:58,791 In a minute or less, Boo, minute or less, what’s the one thing 682 00:35:59,333 –> 00:36:05,458 that a leader should be able to start doing to help become a iterative, effective leader? 683 00:36:06,458 –> 00:36:06,916 Debrief. 684 00:36:07,166 –> 00:36:07,583 That’s it. 685 00:36:07,708 –> 00:36:08,750 I’ll give it to you in two seconds. 686 00:36:09,458 –> 00:36:10,333 That’s all you need to do. 687 00:36:10,666 –> 00:36:16,041 Do nothing else, but every single time before you open your mouth, 688 00:36:16,541 –> 00:36:18,291 before you send an email, 689 00:36:18,750 –> 00:36:21,416 before you write a PowerPoint presentation, 690 00:36:21,541 –> 00:36:25,375 ask yourself what am I trying to achieve here? 691 00:36:26,166 –> 00:36:27,625 What is my objective? 692 00:36:28,875 –> 00:36:32,000 And, you know, again, I’ve done hundreds of these. 693 00:36:32,208 –> 00:36:37,500 I’ve sat in a room, multi-billion dollar organizations, 50 leaders in a room, 694 00:36:38,166 –> 00:36:41,333 and asked them, what is the point of your existence in this business? 695 00:36:42,625 –> 00:36:43,875 And they, no one can answer it. 696 00:36:44,583 –> 00:36:45,166 They don’t know. 697 00:36:45,708 –> 00:36:47,916 And that is a crying shame. 698 00:36:48,416 –> 00:36:51,416 That is not, that doesn’t, it doesn’t need to be that way. 699 00:36:51,916 –> 00:36:54,750 Because all they do is react to the world around them. 700 00:36:54,958 –> 00:36:55,958 So what do I do? 701 00:36:56,500 –> 00:37:01,208 And, and, and we pose the next question is I bet you just react all day. 702 00:37:01,208 –> 00:37:01,708 Is that what you do? 703 00:37:01,708 –> 00:37:03,250 And everyone laughs and they’re like, yeah, that’s what I do. 704 00:37:03,250 –> 00:37:04,958 I just react all day and solve problems all day. 705 00:37:05,416 –> 00:37:05,625 Cool. 706 00:37:05,958 –> 00:37:11,000 So let’s, so let’s now sit down and spend a few hours designing what a, 707 00:37:11,000 –> 00:37:16,416 what a quarterly win looks like, a monthly win looks like, a weekly win looks like, 708 00:37:16,666 –> 00:37:18,083 and what is a daily win for you? 709 00:37:18,208 –> 00:37:19,791 Like, like let’s really map that out. 710 00:37:20,333 –> 00:37:23,666 And let’s just define three things a day that you’re going to achieve. 711 00:37:24,500 –> 00:37:28,583 And through that process, all of a sudden you see the, 712 00:37:28,833 –> 00:37:30,750 the weight start to lift off these leaders. 713 00:37:31,333 –> 00:37:33,375 The, the wins just start to come. 714 00:37:33,916 –> 00:37:36,166 So I took two minutes, but I only, 715 00:37:36,500 –> 00:37:38,375 I took two minutes to explain the two seconds. 716 00:37:38,500 –> 00:37:39,000 I hope that’s okay. 717 00:37:39,416 –> 00:37:39,958 (laughing) 718 00:37:39,958 –> 00:37:40,791 I love it. 719 00:37:41,041 –> 00:37:42,208 Boo, thank you. 720 00:37:42,416 –> 00:37:45,833 And thank you for being on the Leadership Growth Podcast. 721 00:37:45,958 –> 00:37:47,250 This has been fantastic. 722 00:37:47,791 –> 00:37:51,166 And guys, look, thank you for the wonderful service you’re doing 723 00:37:51,375 –> 00:37:53,708 for the world to bring those two words together, 724 00:37:54,291 –> 00:37:56,041 leadership and growth. 725 00:37:56,500 –> 00:38:00,250 Those two words alone is what’s going to right the ship for humanity. 726 00:38:00,708 –> 00:38:04,541 If we do both of those things and we invest in those two things, 727 00:38:05,125 –> 00:38:07,250 I’m really positive about the future of humanity. 728 00:38:08,458 –> 00:38:08,750 -I love it. 729 00:38:08,750 –> 00:38:09,666 -Well, it makes a difference. 730 00:38:09,666 –> 00:38:11,666 And I appreciate the endorsement. 731 00:38:11,666 –> 00:38:14,833 And really what you’ve helped to highlight today is 732 00:38:15,125 –> 00:38:22,416 the ability for leaders to really unleash and untap that ability to win every day, 733 00:38:22,958 –> 00:38:24,250 which is what people want to do. 734 00:38:24,625 –> 00:38:26,541 And, and I just, I love the way you framed that. 735 00:38:26,875 –> 00:38:27,666 So thank you, Boo. 736 00:38:28,666 –> 00:38:29,000 -Fantastic. 737 00:38:29,000 –> 00:38:30,250 -Thanks guys. It’s been an absolute pleasure. 738 00:38:31,083 –> 00:38:33,375 -To all our listeners, thank you for joining us. 739 00:38:33,458 –> 00:38:36,833 Please like, and subscribe, and look forward to listening to future 740 00:38:37,166 –> 00:38:40,375 Leadership Growth Podcasts as we talk about tips and tools 741 00:38:40,375 –> 00:38:43,416 to help us all become better leaders. 742 00:38:43,958 –> 00:38:44,833 Thanks again, everyone. 743 00:38:44,833 –> 00:38:45,291 Take care. 744 00:38:45,375 –> 00:38:45,583 Bye. 745 00:38:46,458 –> 00:38:49,458 If you liked this episode, please share it with a friend or colleague 746 00:38:49,750 –> 00:38:53,625 or better yet, leave a review to help other listeners find our show. 747 00:38:54,250 –> 00:38:56,916 And remember to subscribe so you never miss an episode. 748 00:38:57,833 –> 00:39:00,958 For more great content or to learn more about how Stewart Leadership 749 00:39:00,958 –> 00:39:03,416 can help you grow your ability to lead effectively, 750 00:39:03,916 –> 00:39:06,125 please visit stewartleadership.com.