This Working Life

Have you ever been in a room with a leader who has you hanging on every word, and leaves you feeling inspired?  Some would say that person has  ‘executive presence’.  But what do they have really?  And are the qualities that make employees willing to really listen to and follow a leader, changing?

Finding it hard to get your brain into gear? You might feel your mind wandering a bit, daydreaming of being somewhere else. To help you get you back on track, one of the world’s top experts on attention, Dr Gloria Mark from the University of California Irvine, explains how our attention spans have declined and what we can do about it.  And Sydney University Associate Professor Paul Ginns provides...

The psychology of performance is not just for elite sports, it can also help you do better at work. As the Paris Olympics kicks off, we share some lessons about performance and wellbeing and help you adapt them to your own career.

Like it or not, redundancies are a part of the career cycle for many of us.  Whether it’s happening to you or someone you know, hear stories from people who have been through it, and those who help them, about how to prepare for and navigate that phase. 

In 2021 we asked experts to gaze into a crystal ball and give us their predictions for how work would change as a result of a global pandemic. Were the futurists right, and what changes do they see coming in the next few years? 

Laughter is good for us, but sometimes jokes and funny quips just don't land, especially when they're delivered by your boss. If you're a leader or you report to one, here's how to use humour to make work a more enjoyable experience for all concerned.

Put a pin in it, leverage that, circle back, LMK (let me know) - ugh! Some of us are drawn to use jargon and buzzwords, while others are annoyed by them. Learn when and how to use jargon so that you can avoid miscommunication at work.

How is the use of artificial intelligence in meetings, recording transcripts, generating notes, listening in (!), affecting your work, and how do you feel about its presence in the 'room'? Learn what AI can do in meetings, to improve productivity and team building, and what's still to come.

Job cuts have been announced,  a restructure is imminent, you've got a new boss, AI is about to change your job. These events are all part of regular working life, so what can you do? Learn why we struggle with uncertainty at work, and get some skills to help you cope.

They’re usually the last step in the process, but reference checks are an important part of a job hire. And if you get them wrong, you can have a real situation on your hands. What's best practice when it comes to reference checking: whether you’re hiring, trying to be hired, or giving a reference for someone else?

The junior person feels like they’re being micromanaged, but the manager feels like the job is not being done properly. When does good supervision tip into micromanagement? Shona Ryan had such a difficult time being micromanaged as a millennial worker, that she decided to  research the topic.  We hear what she learned, and get advice from an expert on how to break the pattern of micromanagement.

You’ve probably got a focus music playlist but did you know being musically trained can help you in other jobs? And no, it’s not too late if you didn’t learn the piano when you were a child. Guest: Dr Diana Tolmie - Musician and Senior Lecturer in Professional Practice at the Queensland Conservatorium And thanks to Sophie, George, Mark and Deirdre for sharing their stories. And if you liked this e...

Our childhood phantasy careers (different to fantasy with an ‘f’) help uncover our unconscious motivations and can unlock job satisfaction in our careers. Here’s how to figure out yours. Guest: Paul Harvey - Lecturer and Executive Coach at the INSEAD Business School And thanks to Afrouz, Karen and Ryan for sharing their stories.

"Don't we all hold many things? We all have to work jobs often we don't fully politically or ethically agree with because we have to pay our rent." When we have the privilege to choose what work we do, how do we ensure we're ethically aligned with that career choice? And once we’re working in a job, how can we ensure we’re behaving ethically day to day? Guests: Dr Tim Dean - Senior Philosopher, Th...

“I can honestly say this is a question that I’ve never encountered before.” New Yorker magazine reporter and author of Supercommunicators - How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection, Charles Duhigg answers your questions about how to navigate tricky conversations at work, sharing advice and skills to truly connect with colleagues. Thank you to listeners Lorissa Garcia, Louise Thomson and Tan...

A new person joins the team and immediately sparks fly... or perhaps you start seeing a colleague in a different light and the friendship turns into something more...  Workplace romances are common and it’s no wonder - we spend a lot of time at work, and we have a lot in common with people in the same industry as us. But what are the rules around falling in love or flirting at work? And what are t...

Feel like you're cycling through the same old ideas? Or just tired and out of inspiration?  Albert Read has some tips on how to use and strengthen your 'imagination muscle'. Guest: Albert Read is managing director of Conde Nast and author of The Imagination Muscle. During the conversation, the concept of the T-shaped worker came up - which is being both a generalist and an expert. You can listen t...

From creativity to collaboration, to growth and generosity, we can easily name values. But can we as easily apply them in our day-to-day work?  Hear how we can more effectively identify and apply values in our jobs and why it’s so important to do so.  Guests: Greta Bradman - Psychologist and CEO/Founder, The Compass AI  La’Kita Williams - Founder and CEO, CoCreate Work

We all know the impact stress can have on our minds and bodies. But it turns out that it’s not the stress itself that’s impacting our health - it’s how we think about it. In the fifth and final instalment of This Working Life's special series about your health at work, we hear stories of work-related stress and our expert panel tell us how to change our stress mindsets so we can harness its power...

We all know what we need to do to be healthy and feel good so why aren't we doing it? In the fourth instalment of our special series about your health at work, we’re hacking health habits to help you feel more energised and creative in your workday. Hear personal stories and expert tips on how to overcome the afternoon sugar slump, move more without going to the gym, and sleep better to power up y...

Have you ever cried at work or been yelled at in front of your colleagues? In this third instalment of our series about your health at work we’re digging deep and talking about emotions at work. You’ll hear why it’s good for you to talk about your feelings at work, what selective vulnerabilities are and why you should know about them, how leaders need to be more emotional, and what the detrimental...

One in five of us are living and working with chronic pain. So why aren't we telling our colleagues and bosses about it? If you live with chronic pain yourself or someone on your team does, we have the answers for you to help you navigate it in the workplace and learn the surprising key that can help alleviate it.   Guests Dr Duygu Biricik Gulseren - Assistant Professor, York University Kathy Hubb...

Welcome to a special series about your health at work. In Everything's fine... we'll be diving into topics that can be tricky to talk about with our bosses and colleagues, particularly when it comes to our wellbeing. When asked "how are you?" we might say "everything's fine" with a brave smile. Sound familiar?  From physical pain to mental strain, over five episodes you'll be hearing personal stor...

On average, Australian women are paid $18,461 less than men per year. The recent report released by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency shows a gender pay gap across every sector in Australia. But what’s behind that yawning gap? Professor Lyndall Strazdins from the Australian National University calls it the “massive unresolved problem of our time”. It’s been dubbed the ‘Hour-Glass Ceiling’. So w...

So you may have witnessed some tense conflicts at work. Someone may have even raised their voice at you. But how can we harness the power of conflict at work? In this episode we dig into how to nail negotiation and conquer conflict at work with William Ury - Co-Founder of Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation and author of Possible: How We Survive (and Thrive) in an Age of Conflict.