Leading Generous Teams

We cannot wait!  More incredible guests coming your way.  In the meantime, learn more about our work here:  Top Five Movement is a contemporary, neuroscience-focused behaviour change organisation that helps people think clearly, communicate effectively, and perform at their best, especially in the moments that matter most. Find us at www.topfivemovement.com

A lot of leadership effort is proactive and long-term, and it’s so easy to (and can feel good to) get sucked in by your teams to put out day-to-day operational fires. However one leader we’ve worked with closely has taken a deliberate approach to creating the bandwidth that allows him and his team to focus on the future. This is what we talked about with Matt Carmichael, Chief Information Officer,...

If you’ve been in our world for a hot minute, you’ll have heard us talk about the mental run up. The mental run up is made up of automatic thought patterns in response to an upcoming situation. Some we’re not aware of, and some are easy to brush off as “I’m an overthinker.” But they can be a drain, pulling you further away from the task at hand. They’re often happening behind the scenes without us...

Getting to the end isn’t good enough. Whether it’s to the end of the year, the end of a restructure, or the end of a transformation project. It’s not about transactions and checklists. It’s about how you lead. This is what we talked about with Rohan Charrett, an Executive with Greater Western Water on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week. In this episode, we discuss: What’s more important...

Being a passionate leader is an outdated goal. In fact, trying to run your team on passion alone is akin to running a team on adrenaline. It’s just not sustainable. And it can get in the way of strong leadership. This is what we talked about with Sacred Heart Mission CEO, Hang Vo on our Top Five Movement Leading Generous Teams podcast this week. Within a second of meeting Hang, you know she’s a pa...

We work with a lot of teams in crisis. And where leaders are blindsided by incident after incident, we see the opportunity for people to find a performance edge and not miss the leadership lessons this crisis will bring.    This is what we talked about with Kelly Quirke, Royal Canin ANZ’s Vet Advocacy Director on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week.    We discussed how Kel has captured th...

When discussing imposter syndrome, it’s really common to find articles to “overcome it” but the truth is, your imposter syndrome can give you an edge. This is what we talked about with The Brain Cancer Centre CEO + Carrie’s Beanies 4 Brain Cancer GM, Sammy McGuane on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week. We discussed how Sammy leverages his imposter syndrome to drive purpose. In 2017 Sam b...

As a leader, you bring a load of experience to the role. When people are looking for answers to problems, you naturally come up with ten of them. But sharing your solutions too soon can send your team backwards. This is what we talked about with Tanya Hendry, Deputy CEO of Whitelion Youth this week of our Top Five Movement leadership podcast, Leading Generous Teams. Tanya has over 20 years’ experi...

Sometimes, it’s unavoidable. You’ve landed with a leader who isn’t generous. It’s bad but not bad enough to leave. So what do you do? On the podcast with Ann-Marie Chamberlain, we spoke about how to make the most of a bad leader so you don’t miss a hidden opportunity. Ann-Marie is a multiple award winning executive and community leader, board member and experienced coach. In her “spare time” you’l...

We’ve all heard the saying it’s all about timing, which eludes to waiting for the right time in the calendar or season. But what if it’s not about waiting. It’s about getting into the right mindset before you nosedive into those tricky and charged conversations. That’s what we spoke about with John Thwaites in this week’s Top Five Movement Leading Generous Teams podcast. John is a Co-Chair of the...

When you’re not feeling like you’re on your game, motivation’s waning, and you can’t talk yourself out of your funk, no matter how many positive affirmations you recite, it’s time to look towards your team. In this episode with Patty Kinnersly, Chief Executive Officer of Our Watch + Vice President of the Carlton Football Club Board, we discuss a really powerful technique to use your team to change...

A client recently shared that we’ve made their team unbreakable.  Why? As a team of award-winning mindset coaches, we deliver innovative leadership programs that disrupt unhelpful thinking + patterns, develop new perspectives, raise the bar on solutions, and help your leaders create high performing teams. Led by Clare Desira, International Coach of the Year and Fellow of the Centre for Sustainabil...

When leaders encourage their team to “switch off” they don’t always realise it can be demotivating and inaccessible. For many, the idea of switching off is actually daunting. Like a void of space and time that could be used to be making a difference.  Also, you’re not a lightbulb. You don’t have an on and off switch. It’s not that black and white. The best thing you can do is learn to go from “on”...

Role clarity. It seems so simple it’d be easy to miss. Of course there’s a job description when the contract is signed, but how do you use that as a tool to support mental fitness and wellbeing in your team? One of the most important ingredients for a successful team is when they know what their role is and how it fits into the purpose of the organisation. This is what we spoke about with Barb Bro...

Leaders are often looked to as experts. But they’re not. The strongest leaders surround themselves with experts, which means, you don’t know the answer a lot of the time. When leaders feel like they should know, they miss the opportunity to invite their team to step into their strengths, rally around you, draw out their skills and talents to solve the problem in ways you couldn’t imagine. This is...

People think that a collaborative team is being a yes person, never disagreeing, and singing kumbaya in a circle.  But actually, leading a collaborative team takes some hard decisions. This is what we talked about with Kelly O’Shanassy, CEO of the Australian Conservation Foundation on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week. We discussed how she fuels herself and her team/ to make the hard de...

Inherited a team that is stuck in old ways of thinking + working? The ol’ “Hire for attitude, train for skill,” doesn’t cut it anymore. We’ve all heard the saying “Hire for attitude, train for skill,” and that’s nice, but how often do you get to build a team from scratch?  More often than not, our teams are a patchwork of other people’s decisions and history. So when you inherit a team, the “hirin...

Shallow or strategic? What comes to mind when you think of the highlight reel of your work? It’s shallow. Like you’re glossing over what still needs to be done. You just don’t have time for it. And yet, in my conversation with Lyn Morgain, CEO of Oxfam on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week, we discussed the strategic importance of learning how to share the joy and those moments of highli...

INVITATION: Unstoppable Leadership  with International Coach of the Year Clare Desira  Positive thinking won’t cut it. To lead today, it’s not just about equipping your team with the right technical skills, it’s about knowing how to fuel a helpful, encouraging, and productive culture, even during change. Described as the most refreshing take on mindset, resilience, leadership and productivity, Top...

Don't hire us...  Have some fun with this idea around 7 Reasons NOT to hire Clare Desira as a speaker or Top Five Movement to work with your team . And book some time with our team here: https://topfivemovement.com/lets-chat/ You can read the reasons over here: https://topfivemovement.com/building-team-resilience-and-wellbeing/

That’s what I discussed with Sheree Lowe, Executive Director, Social and Emotional Well-being of Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week.  Sheree Lowe is a Djab Wurrung and Gunditjmara woman with a strong connection to South West Victoria, she has lived most her life on Wadawurrung Country in Ballarat. Sheree has been a...

Hope.   It’s usually reserved for 11th hour miracles and when you’ve surrendered to exhausting all options. Broad hopeful thinking doesn’t create change however, used strategically, hope can supercharge your bigger picture and your energy on a daily basis.   That’s what I discussed with Dermot O'Gorman, CEO of World Wildlife Fund on our Leading Generous Teams podcast this week.   Dermot is a...

Quick episode + invitation today for you.  We’d love to take you behind the scenes of how we leverage neuroscience to do just that.  To lead today, it’s not just about equipping your team with the right technical skills, it’s about knowing how to fuel a helpful, encouraging, and productive culture, even during change. In our 45 minute workshop, we’ll fuel your mindset so you can lead your team + l...

One of the biggest lessons for people working in leadership and for-purpose roles is the need to be able to navigate uncertainty and work within ambiguity.  The stock standard advice is to learn how to get comfortable during change. But that’s outdated thinking. The landscape has shifted and we’re living in a constant state of change. Rather than wanting to get comfortable, it’s time to get confid...

Reflection feels like a void, or a nice idea that other people have time for. But not leaders who are working in spaces where social opportunities never end and the resources are already stretched.  But did you know that reflection can give you access to untapped resources and better decision making in as little as 30 seconds? That’s what I discussed with Doug Taylor. CEO of The Smith Family on ou...