The Shift

In this solo episode, Trisha turns the CQ lens on herself, examining a habit she caught in her own listening since her conversation with Mike Newton in Episode 82. What is your thumb actually doing when a song comes on? Trisha unpacks four different doors music uses to move us — the beat, being moved, surprise, and story — and realises she's only ever really been opening one of them. What does it...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Mike Newton, CQ Fellow, certified CQ Facilitator, and Director of Organisational Health and Belonging at Young Life. Music reaches us in ways that argument and logic simply can't — but what happens when that same power is used intentionally to shift how we see each other? Could a song be the beat beneath the bridge that connects people across cultural differences...

This week, Trisha steps back from a full episode to point you towards two conversations worth your time. She recently appeared as a guest on Victoria Rennoldson's Culture Cuppa podcast — and being on the other side of the microphone had her reflecting in ways she didn't quite expect. The episode, Leading Across Difference , is a candid conversation between two Cultural Intelligence (CQ) practition...

In this special episode, Trisha steps back and hands the mic to three voices from three continents — each responding to the same question: what does it feel like when someone says, "We're all the same"? What emerges is something that Cultural Intelligence (CQ) frameworks can name but can't fully capture on their own — the lived experience of cultural blindness. From South Africa, the United States...

In this solo episode, Trisha unpacks a concept that often masquerades as unity but can quietly erase the experiences of those it claims to include. What happens when "treating everyone the same" actually means treating everyone as if they share your starting point? How do well-intentioned statements like "I just see you as a person" land on someone whose difference has shaped their entire life? Dr...

In this solo episode, Trisha explores what happens when astronauts return from space transformed by what they've seen — and whether Cultural Intelligence (CQ) might help us experience something similar without leaving Earth. What can the Artemis II crew's awe and perspective shifts teach us about seeing ourselves as one crew on a fragile lifeboat? How does the overview effect connect to figure-gro...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Dr. David Livermore, researcher, author, and one of the world's leading voices on Cultural Intelligence (CQ), in Part 2 of their conversation on the Prism framework for global leadership. What does it actually take for a leader to see their own archetype clearly — and what gets in the way? This conversation explores how Prism and CQ work together, challenges the...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Dr. David Livermore, renowned social scientist, professor at Boston University, founder of the Cultural Intelligence Center, and author of the bestselling Leading with Cultural Intelligence , now in its third edition. After more than two decades of CQ research, what happens when the framework itself needs to grow and shift? Dr. Livermore shares the research journ...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Chika Miyamori, Chief Culture Officer at Ideal Leaders and founder of CQ Lab in Japan, whose lifelong mission is building bridges across differences and turning them into power. What happens when a strong organisational culture becomes its own blind spot? Chika draws on her corporate career spanning Suntory, HP, and GE across more than 50 nationalities, weaving t...

In this solo episode, Trisha unpacks what happens in the split second after a racist joke lands — and what Cultural Intelligence (CQ) has to do with it. What does it mean when your gut reacts before your thinking can catch up? How do biased jokes connect to something far more serious — and what does it take to decide, in real time, who you want to be? This episode explores the ADL Pyramid of Hate...

In this episode, Trisha is joined by returning guest Ned Legaspi, CQ Fellow, cultural intelligence consultant, and author of Culturally Intelligent Storytelling for Southeast Asian Creators , for the third instalment of CQ at the Movies. Together they turn Ned's Bamboo Framework on the Australian film The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson — a powerful retelling of a colonial-era story rew...

In this special episode, Trisha and returning guest Ned Legaspi — cultural intelligence consultant, CQ Fellow, and author of Culturally Intelligent Storytelling for Southeast Asian Creators — put the Bamboo Framework to work by analyzing a film together. The movie? The Thai sensation How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies . What makes a story travel across borders without losing its cultural sou...

In this solo episode, Trisha unpacks a powerful question: What if the most important cultural intelligence work isn't happening in training rooms at all? Drawing on Malcolm Gladwell's concept of the "overstory"—the shared narratives hovering above us that shape what we consider normal—Trisha explores how stories themselves shift these invisible cultural frameworks. From a 1978 TV drama that gave A...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Ned Legaspi, a CQ Fellow and cultural intelligence consultant who spent three decades pioneering diaspora storytelling with ABS-CBN Global, the Philippines' leading media conglomerate. Why do some stories resonate across continents while others remain culturally bound? What if the key to global storytelling isn't neutralizing culture, but deepening it? Ned introd...

intelligence combined with kindness and connection. What happens when we face global tensions, political uncertainties, and fractured communities? How can we move beyond understanding to action that truly builds bridges? Discover why cultural intelligence alone isn't enough and how adding kindness and meaningful connections transforms the way we navigate differences. Trisha previews conversations...

Content note : This episode addresses recent acts of terror and may be difficult for some listeners. In this solo episode, Trisha responds to the recent Bondi Beach shooting with a gentle but powerful reminder: cultural intelligence isn't just for crossing borders—it can be lifesaving in times of crisis. What happens when fear spikes and communities fracture? How do we stay motivated to understand...

In this episode, Trisha interviews returning guest Lucy Butters, a master facilitator in cultural intelligence with the Cultural Intelligence Centre and author of the new book "Cultural Intelligence in Practice: Expert Insights for Trainers in a Multicultural Globalised World." What happens when a CQ trainer discovers that the most challenging cultural contexts aren't in distant lands, but close t...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Emma Jordaan, founder and CEO of Infinite Consulting, TEDx speaker, and author of Dubai Decode, who helps leaders navigate cultural dynamics in one of the world's most diverse workplaces—the UAE. What happens when your team knows you're making the wrong decision but stays silent because "you are the boss"? How do you bridge the gap between having cultural knowled...

In this episode, Trisha reviews five powerful transformation stories to uncover what practitioners can learn about creating conditions for genuine perspective shifts. What if we stopped trying to teach people into transformation and instead learned to cultivate the conditions where change becomes inevitable? Through stories of systemic awakening, identity work, and unexpected wisdom from a 10-year...

In this solo episode, Trisha examines a critical question that every global professional using AI should consider: Are artificial intelligence systems as globally representative as we assume? Drawing on groundbreaking 2010 research about WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialised, Rich, Democratic) populations in psychology, she explores whether today's AI models might face similar challenges. Throu...

In this episode, Trisha explores how teams can move beyond cultural stereotypes to build environments where everyone feels valued and understood. What happens when cultural training leaves participants feeling uncomfortable about their own backgrounds? How can we shift from oversimplified country-based assumptions to embracing the complexity that exists within every individual? Sparked by a story...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Amel Derragui, a truly global citizen, business coach, and powerhouse behind The Time is Now and the Cosmopolitan Table. Born in India to Algerian parents and raised across Serbia, Algeria, and Uganda, Amel has built her career helping women create portable businesses while navigating cultures worldwide. What happens when a 14-year-old witnesses racial fights at...

In this episode, Trisha revisits her conversation with Dr. Tanya Finnie, introducing it with context about Tanya's newly released book "From Shadows to Safari." What happens when someone grows up witnessing apartheid's segregation, yet is raised with values that challenge the system around them? How do early experiences of injustice shape a lifelong commitment to bringing people together across cu...

In this solo episode, Trisha explores whether the same cultural intelligence capabilities that help us work across cultures might also be tools for building peace. Drawing from insights at the International Positive Psychology Association World Congress, Trisha examines Peter Singer's concept of expanding our "moral circle" and Barbara Fredrickson's research on positive emotions, sparked by reflec...

In this episode, Trisha interviews Andrew Sykes, author, speaker, and founder of Habits at Work, who brings the science of behavioural change into business performance. Andrew is a lecturer at the Kellogg School of Management, where he helps leaders build trustworthy organisations. Drawing from his powerful personal shift during the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa, Andrew explores how trust i...