Inside Job

Do you consider a coworker lazy if they clock-in, do the bare minimum, and clock out? Are you telling yourself a story about their motivations without knowing what they actually are? A recent experience Eric had with a client who came to terms with the fact they were being judgmental of their coworkers, led to the realization that most of us carry a lot of judgment around at work and in our person...

Both of us had the chance to experience boredom on recent trips, and it sparked the idea for this week's episode of the podcast because boredom sometimes gets a bad reputation. Boredom also comes up quite often in our work with our clients. They're usually not sure what it means or what they're supposed to do about it. It's precisely those topics we want to dive into today so we can figure out wha...

If you want to be more successful, you just need to work harder… right? Asking what success means or looks like for you is one of the most foundational questions you can ask yourself. It's something we work on often with our clients and something we frequently redefine for ourselves. Take a listen to this week's episode to find out our thoughts on how success should be measured. Plus, you don't wa...

New year, new… goals? In this first episode of 2024, we reflect on the goals, or questions, we set for ourselves going into 2023. Did we achieve them? Did we under or overestimate the barriers to accomplishing our goals? Are we setting the same goals in 2024 or are we changing things up? We also explore some of the themes we noticed while working with our clients on their goals in 2023 and what ou...

Here at The Inside Job Podcast, we a love a good year-end review. So, of course, we had to wrap up 2023 with one of our own. In this special episode, we recap the last year of the podcast and what it's held for us, what it's taught us, the things we're still thinking about, our expressions of gratitude, and some things to help you catch up if you've fallen a little behind on the episodes. Listen i...

Are you using the end of the year to reflect on what it's been like and what you want out of 2024? Is it time to channel your inner Jerry Maguire and write a mission statement? As the title of the episode suggests, we're talking about manifestos, mission statements, and declaration. More specifically, how and whether they have a place in our personal practices of tuning into ourselves, setting goa...

Why are we so tired all the time? Why aren't we getting the rest and care we need to help ourselves feel more energized? In almost every conversation with a client, exhaustion is sitting there with us and part of the conversation. Sure, we can blame the pandemic, the state of the world, etc. But, this show is called The Inside Job, after all, so let's explore that. In this episode, we try to under...

Is happiness a destination you strive to reach? Does an overly positive social media post make you want to throat-punch someone? For about a year now, Eric has been wanting to talk about toxic positivity on the show, and it's an idea we've tossed around quite a bit before deciding to finally bring it to you on the podcast this week. We ultimately decided to start the conversation by talking about...

Erica Keswin was just named for the Wallstreet Journal Bestseller list… again. She's a former management consultant turned workplace strategist who helps companies improve their overall company performance through people. Erica's third book, The Retention Revolution , was just released and she calls it the final piece of the human workplace trilogy. The throughline of her books is that creating a...

In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday here in the United States, we're doing something a little different on the podcast this week. We're borrowing from the Atomic Habits author, James Clear, and changing the format of the show to a 3-2-1 style. In this episode, we share some pieces of media that have resonated with or inspired us recently, a few things we're grateful for, and an idea that we'll be...

When is enough when it comes to quitting, ending, or leaving something? This week's episode comes from recent conversations Nayla's had with two different friends who are experiencing a difficult year in their business and are wondering if it's time to close up shop. In fact, those conversations mirrored other ones she's had recently with her coaching clients who are unsure if it's time to move on...

A recent conversation with a client about their struggle to meet the goals they set for this year helped us come to some realizations about the goals we all set for ourselves. Since we know this is the time of year when people start to reflect on whether or not they met their 2023 goals, we figured this would be the perfect time to share what we see when people are frustrated by the goals they set...

Al Dea is the Host of The Edge of Work podcast, a former management consultant, and currently a talent development consultant. Al's belief in the power of people led to the work he does today where he helps companies attract and develop talent and creates leadership programs to help those leaders rise to their potential. In our conversation with Al, we discuss the importance of relationships at wo...

If you're a listener of this show, you've likely asked yourself how you can become better in some way. This topic was inspired by a few different sources; questions we've received from listeners over the years and tough conversations we've had to have with our clients. So, if you want to know how you can become better or be more coachable, take a listen to the practical tips we have for you in thi...

Do you work hard and play hard? Has that way of doing things led to feelings of exhaustion or problems in the workplace? In episode 181, we referenced a report on The U.S. Surgeon General's Framework for Workplace Mental Health & Well-Being, and we haven't been able to stop thinking about it since. As a result, we're pulling from that report again today as we focus on a couple of things that have...

What do you do when life starts getting a little too lifey? How do you use lifey those moments to help make things easier or better after things calm down? In the year since Eric shared the expression, "Sometimes life gets a little lifey," Nayla's said it about 6,000 times. This week was no exception, and it's the inspiration for this episode. This week, we want to talk about some exercises we can...

What if I, as an employee, feel like I don't matter? As a leader who wants their team to feel like they matter, how do I create an environment that fosters that feeling? This episode was inspired by not only our clients who ask us these types of questions on a regular basis, but also by a GQ interview with a member of the band Blink 182 and recommendations from the U.S. Surgeon General about workp...

This week, we're continuing our conversation with the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of The Design Gym, Andy Hagerman. In this conclusion to our conversation, we discuss what it really takes to become inspired and get creative when solving a problem in our work or lives, and how all the tools from design thinking can help us take care of our mental health and overall wellbeing. Listen in and join...

Our guest this week and next is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of The Design Gym, Andy Hagerman. The Design Gym is a boutique, independent innovation and strategy consultancy that has been helping organizations unleash the potential of their staff for more than a decade. Nayla and Andy met years ago through a mutual friend, and he's worked with some of Nayla's students and organizations over...

This episode was inspired by a recent conversation Eric had with his tattoo artist while he was getting his latest tattoo. The artist struggles with back problems and has found that he isn't allowing himself the time to heal because he feels like he needs to keep grinding at work. What was especially interesting about this conversation was the same points were brought up by our clients who regular...

We think it's fair to say that since the start of social media, we've all dealt with somewhat of an epidemic of cynicism. But, what happens when it seeps into the workplace? While we've been kicking this idea around as a podcast topic for a while now, we've both had clients recently share how cynicism has been part of the narrative in their careers, so we figured it was time to address this issue...

This week's topic came to us in the form of multiple questions from our listeners and clients about time. One form these questions often come in usually start with, "How long do I have to …" You can finish that question with things like how long do I have to stay in a role, how long do I have to wait to get news about this promotion, or how long do I have to keep someone on my team who's giving a...

What do you do when you see someone in your workplace exhibiting behaviors that make you uncomfortable? We've all had a boss who thought yelling was an effective form of communication, a coworker who used aggressive tactics in order to get what they wanted, or a team member who decided to expense some personal items. Bad behaviors are often tolerated in the workplace, but doing so can lead to far...

It's not you, it's me. That line doesn't just apply to romantic relationships. If you're noticing you've had a problem with just about every supervisor or manager you've had, then it might be time to look inside to see if there's some work to be done on yourself. We've spent a lot of time talking about how to manage people better, but not a lot of time talking about how to become more manageable....

How often do you stop yourself from going after something you want? How often is your reason for stopping yourself related to who you are or what you're capable of? So often in life, we find ourselves wanting to do something like writing a book, applying for a new opportunity at work, or starting our own business, but we question who we are to even think of going after those things. After all, are...