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Leader’s Kitbag – December 2019

Hi and welcome back to the 4iGroup monthly Leader’s Kitbag – our compilation of items to help leaders learn, lead better and thrive themselves.

As usual I’ve divided the content recommendations into reading, watching and listening.  Conscious of both potentially a little downtime ahead over the festive season, and that you may be looking to fill a little space under the tree for yourself or a leader you love, there are a few variations this time around – some gift ideas for leaders striving to make the world better, and full book reading recommendations.

To everyone, thanks in advance for your time and attention devoted to the Kitbag, as always I welcome your comments so do reply if you’ve got any thoughts or suggestions on this month’s recommendations. Also as it’s the season for giving, if you enjoy these monthly recommendations, please do give someone the chance to benefit as you do and share this email with them by forwarding it on or directing them to our website to join the Leader’s Kitbag community for themselves.

All the best,

Tim & all at 4iGroup

To Watch

Biggest Small Farm (1 hour 32mins) hit the screen in May, but for many including me went unnoticed.  I finally caught up with it online in October, and thought it well worthy of inclusion in the Christmas content list for several reasons.  Family time for a start, this is all about a couple coming together and making a dramatic life change as they do, and also a time with lots of food in front of us is a perfect time to reflect on where our food comes from, how out food system can be hugely productive for our health, our family’s health and the health of the planet.  Two regenerative agriculture books were on my Christmas reading list last year (Dan Barber’s Third Plate, and Josh Tickle’s Kiss The Ground) and this movie puts a personal, emotional and cinematic angle on the message of both of these books – click here to view the movie on your preferred platform via the movie website

The Game Changers (1 hour 25 mins) has been on my radar for a while, as someone who trifled with veganism myself for health reasons, I was interested in the focus in this film looking at the examples set by leaders across many sporting and endurance formats all around performance. I must confess, I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed Arnold Schwarzenegger’s pragmatism about behaviour change, as well as the wide range of perspectives covered. You might want to watch this if like me, you’ve become curious about veganism but need convincing of how it will benefit your performance, as well as your environmental and ethical stock – Click here to view various platforms to watch on

Icarus (2 hours) aired a while back, but I only a couple of weeks ago had a night to myself and made time for this. To my view, as an example of how ultra high performance is equally enabled by raw talent and precisely refined systems, the doping scandals that has revealed how systems can  conceal, corrupt eventually betray both the athletes and fans that look to the leadership example they set – Click here to see Icarus on netflix

I was asked on a podcast interview recently what I’m doing to share my ideas on leadership, and this is one I’ve been reluctant to share due to my perfectionist trait…however if you’re interested in checking in on a few of my latest ideas on leadership, and if the longer recommendations don’t hit the mark, you could take a look at my youtube channel (video’s 3-8 minutes). I’ve got a long way to go with my presentation to camera but please bare with me, I’m working on it, and the content at least I hope will add some value to your reflections on leadership – (click here to go to the channel on youtube)

To read (articles first, scroll down for full books)

For some quick reads over the holidays (20mins or less) take a look at these;

A longer article, but well worth the read (took me 15 mins, also available as an audio file that runs to 29mins) extensively exploring why great ideas often get dismissed in conventional corporates. The authors reference various anecdotes both familiar and novel to reveal some consistent themes that explain many of the seemingly obvious ‘misses’ or disruptive waves that very large businesses fail to navigate – Click here for the article on the Financial Times website

If you’re interested in looking back into our history to see examples of leadership, or simply best practice, which are in dire need of rejuvenation today, this might be of interest. An article (10mins) from earlier this year that I looked up having had a conversation in the agricultural sector about the Aboriginal approach to farming – something they confessed to being unaware of, despite their career long tenure in the sector. Whilst I highly recommend the book, since I’ve recommended a few already this Kitbag, here’s a good overview of both Bruce Pascoe and Dark Emu from The Australian earlier this year – click here to find the article on The Australian’s website

Don’t worry, as part of the post-Christmas dietary exclusions, you really shouldn’t cut out coffee or chocolate. At least not if you want to be smart, says the author of this article (6mins), citing neuroscience data showing improved cognitive output after ingesting both of these favourites – Click here for the article on Inc.com

I had a fascinating conversation recently with a client who design and install workspaces across the globe, about how complicated it has become these days to design an effective workspace. In the conversation I reflected on my view, much of which stems from my 15 years working in open plan corporate environments before I had the opportunity to design my own, and how much of my practices have been influenced by Cal Newport’s approach to deep work, and that in terms of where we do that work, the most conducive reflect a design ethos of varying spaces for maximum productivity, which this article (5mins) covers concisely – click here to review the article on medium

Full books recommended for holiday reading for leaders…

For those looking forward to some downtime, relaxing by the pool or in the evenings with a good read or 8, here’s my Christmas reading list compiled from my favourite reads this year;

Rebel Talent, Francesca Gino – still there as the only follow-on from last year’s list, I’m yet to see a better portrayal of the need for organisations to not only be open to, but actively seek and out and engage those who look at their jobs differently, flex or even fully break the rules to get massively beneficial breakthroughs in product development, innovation and customer outcomes.

Range, David Epstein – following right on from Rebel Talent, this book picks apart the ‘over-expert’ syndrome endemic in so many societies and organisations at the moment, and contents convincingly that those who combine roles, industries and expertise across numerous fields are the most productive, intuitive and innovative people amongst us, and if you want to achieve great things, these are the people you want on your team.

Leadership Hacks, Scott Stein – normally I don’t just shy away from, I run like hell away from the term ‘hacks’. On this occasion, I was prepared to grin and bare it, and am glad I did. I came across Scott as a fellow podcast guess on Zoe Routh’s show, and really enjoyed… WHAT ABOUT THIS BOOK? Combination of ancient wisdom and practices with contemporary challenges and techniques.

The Art of Gathering – How We Meet and Why It Matters, Priya Parker – in this age where everyone seems to be ‘meeting bashing’, Elon Musk is out there telling everyone at Tesla to walk out of a meeting room once they’ve done their bit, I think we’ve almost gone too far away from the previous trend of meeting for meeting sake. What this book masterfully does is get right into the human side of meetings, the social bonds we depend on for phycological safety (a must have for innovation and productivity, let along reducing stress) and takes a pragmatic view on how organisations can maximise all these benefits, whilst maintaining fluid agile frameworks and minimal meeting duration to achieve the overall goal – achieve more success.

Give and Take, Adam Grant – Adam has been one of my favourite authors on organisational development since Originals (2016). With Give and Take, he’s nailed another key topic close to my heart, how working in the service of others enables you to best ‘bring people on the journey’, driving extraordinary gains in team formation, productivity, customer engagement and overall outcomes.

Atomic Habits, James Clear – perfect for sustaining those New Year’s resolutions, this book will provide a progressive framework for making significant changes by reducing them to almost forgettably small increments, the 1% improvement per day factor, which when ‘stacked’ against currently established benefitical habits, can lead to massive progress over time. I’ve used this book since I first got a copy in March this year, and it’s been at the heart of much of my productivity and focus throughout 2019.

Drawdown, Paul Hawken – whilst many of the subject matter on climate change is either deeply data driven science, hard to digest and difficult to find much optimism in, let alone excitement, Drawdown takes a refreshingly different approach. Yes, there’s some statistics, but what there is much more of is very accessible, positive and actionable advice on how we can all contribute to this process.  Whether you consider the call to maintaining a viable ecosystem for humankind to progress an economic, political, social or engineering challenge, there’s something for all comers here and a clear message – we can fix this, and here’s how. A must read for all leaders interested in how we can lead to make a better world.

Blowing the Bloody Doors Off, Michael Caine – one of my favourite actors, who has been a prominent feature in some of the most poignant and enjoyable movies on my list of best cinema, brings a reflective and candid view to not just what he’s accomplished over a 50 year career, but how the values and pragmatic approach he has stayed true to in life has kept him on the path, which so many of his peers have strayed far from.

To listen (a range of podcasts, and something I’ve not suggested before…)

I greatly enjoyed this interview with Cameron Schwarb, who any of you who are AFL fans will already be familiar with. For those like me who are not close followers of this Aussie sport, Cameron was made CEO of one of Australia’s oldest and proudest sports clubs in his early 20s. He went on to have a series of highly successful, transformational CEO-ships, before leaving executive life to focus on art and leadership coaching. His candour and openness about his struggles, passions and believes was inspiring – you can find the episode here on the Men of Abundance podcast

Ever wondered whether stories matter any more? As a leader, certainly I’ve had to make an active effort to bring more fiction into my reading list, having been shown the benefit of doing so for developing my EQ. Further more, this podcast discusses the preeminence of stories in our modern lives, particularly when it comes to how companies commercialise them to bring customers to stores on and off-line and align products with lifestyle, in what they refer to as ‘narrative economics’ – click here for the episode on Hidden Brain

As technology seems to be ever more significant in our work lives, and more and more fundamental to how leaders interact with, manage and drive performance of their teams, are we curious at all about how emotion, connection and relationships will be impacted? Or, even better, how these technology platforms could become enables of these very necessary components of human work. This podcast (29mins) from my favourite Aussie podcast, FutureTense, examines exactly this dilemma and where the future opportunities might lie – click here for the episode on the ABC website

This one is on the long side (1 hour 50 mins), but is brilliant. Another of my favourite actors, Edward Norton, both promoting his latest brilliant work displaying how secretive and deceptive leadership can be, through the lens of power-broking in New York, as well as revealing more than I was aware of his own leadership in tech start-ups, theatre companies and philanthropic endeavours – click here for the episode of the Rich Roll podcast

Ok, not exactly a leadership broadcast, but given the time of year and that many of us will be considering our waistlines or at least the lifestyle approaches to food that have gotten us those waistlines, I thought this podcast worthy of inclusion. What I liked about this is the diversion from all of the popular diet approaches – that their way is the way – this approach is completely against that cookie-cutter approach, essentially you need to run a series of experiments to determine what’s the best way for you to manage your health, performance overall lifespan through food – click here for the episode on the Dr Gundry podcast

And something completely different, a little bit of me to share with you. If like me, you have a long road trip ahead of you this festive season, this might be of interest.  I’ve been building this playlist to accompany me on my commutes, and I’m looking forward to getting through most of it on a return trip to the Mornington Peninsular, which I’m calling a 15 hour round trip.  As diverse as my interests are, on this list you’ll find some very recent, and some from before I was born, so I hope a little something for everyone – click here for the playlist on Spotify

And just one final thinga few gift ideas for leaders who, like us at 4i, are doing their part of make the world better…

I’ll start with one related to coffee, as most days should (see article on coffee & chocolate above if you’re not with me already!) I do love the convenience and efficiency of my Nespresso, but I hate the waste and I’m sorry, I simply don’t have the time to scrape the coffee out of the pods, clear and recycle them. This however, is a solution that awaits me under the Christmas tree, a life-time reusable coffee pod for Nespresso, just grind your beans and load ’em up and away you go! – Click here to see the pods on the EverGreen website

TenTree – I love the clothing from this Canadian firm, not only do they use a super-comfortable fabric combining organic cotton, recycled plastic and sustainable cellulose, they also plant 10 trees for every items sold, hence the name. You can’t say better than that, especially when the clothes look even me look cool (at least that’s what my wife tells me!) – click here to see the range for men and women on the TenTree website

OuterKnown – more clothing I know, but this brand is a cut above for sure. Founded by Kelly Slater, their manufacturing plant in Vietnam is entirely solar powered, recycles 90% of the water used in production, and the remainder is used to produce building materials from the manufacturing waste. How many Aussie manufacturers can claim that kind of positive impact? I’ve had a couple of pants and shirts for a year at this stage, and they all look and wear as good as they did when they first arrived, highly recommended all round – check out OuterKnown gear on the main site here

United by Blue – of a similar approach, but this time on the ocean, I’ve been buying clothing, outdoor gear and kitchen items from UbB for a few years. It’s all super durable, well styled and they take rather than plant rather than TenTree, taking a pound of ocean plastic off the beaches and into recycling plants for every item sold – click here to see the range of clothing, outdoor and kitchen wear on the United by Blue website

Earthing Australia, fellow B1G1 member, if you’ve read, enjoyed and benefited from any of my articles on sleep as a powerful driver of leadership performance, you’ll be familiar to my use of blue-light glasses and earthing mats. Well, this is where I get them from, Sydney based Earthing Australia. 4i also has in common with Earthing Australia that we are both B1G1 members, Earthing Australia donate to a range of positive impact projects for each product purchased. Click here to heck out the range of wellbeing beneficial products on the Earthing Australia website

Vivobarefoot – here’s one that’s definitely on my Santa list, to expand my collection of work and play footwear from this awesome, natural movement enabling brand, and a pair that are manufactured from sustainable materials as well as looking cool (for a Dad at least…) click here to see this example and the whole Vivo Australia site.

Last but not least, if this article has been shared with you, you’ve enjoyed it and would like to receive future editions of the monthly Leader’s Kitbag, you can join the community by clicking here