Work From The Inside Out

Darcy Roberts wants people to love their work. For more than 20 years she held administrative roles across a variety of industries, including the arts, law, finance, banking, and executive search, working with people at all levels of the corporate world. Darcy had a natural gift for the work, but she didn’t actually like doing it. She had some interesting experiences during those decades, sitting...

Jenean Merkel Perelstein is a social-cultural anthropologist, who has studied behavior change across many cultures, from the markets and prisons of India to the boardrooms across America. She has implemented change strategies that have saved lives and made fortunes. This work is supported by her book, Finding Your Lighthouse, a Leadership Guide to Navigating Change. Jenean is no stranger to change...

Mike Smith still keeps in touch with his boss from Deloitte, his first employer after college graduation, 25+ years ago. How many of us can claim that? We know that most people, when they resign from a job, are actually leaving a boss. Remarkably, Mike's next move was to follow his boss as he became the CFO at the local NBC Philadelphia TV station. By the time he was 28, his boss was elevated...

Manbir Kaur’s first job after graduating from a prominent university in India was in banking, yet her degree was in computer applications. She felt wholly unqualified at first. And, she was starting out at 19. Manbir credits her father’s influence as he was an action-oriented, focused, hard-working, very positive, optimistic person who encouraged her to “grab the job and make your career”. He was...

Jacqueline Wales is a motivational speaker, professional coach, and the author of three books. She has helped countless people become more empowered, confident, and resilient. Her work focuses on leaders who dig into self-discovery, take accountability for their actions, and responsibility for their decisions. Jacqueline challenges herself daily to be better and challenges her clients to break thr...

Gary Ireland is an employment attorney. He helps executives in the areas of finance and banking, law, media technology, healthcare, and higher education maximize income and benefits when joining a company and enhanced severance, and asserting legal rights when leaving. He supports small businesses seeking to start and build companies saving money and solving legal problems by making strategic and...

In high school, Keith McCormick drove his math teachers crazy because he never got his homework done on time yet he did very well on standardized tests. As he put it, he was the classic ‘over underachiever’. Keith’s teachers accused him of being lazy, yet unlike most teens who might have absorbed it as a strike to their confidence, he got more curious and started reading education theory books to...

As a 5 year old, Todd Cherches would tell adults he wanted to be Superman when he grew up. His backup plan? To be Batman. He loved television, describing himself as a ‘TV Guide’, memorizing everything he could. By the age of 18, he had read the complete works of Shakespeare. As he says, “that’s one of the good things about having OCD, you don't give up on something until you're done.” In c...

Scott Perelstein is a change management specialist who closes the gap between strategy and implementation by guiding teams of planners and doers to move in the same direction. As a facility specialist for over 20 years, he has been in the facilities world as a contractor and owner, and a director. Scott specializes in bringing about change, focusing on inclusion from the highest level of administr...

Dr. Lynette Reed says it’s time for a reality check. Her mission is to help people and organizations feel more connected to the world around them and the relationships that are most important to them. She believes that when your expectations and reality connect, you will see an increase in personal self-awareness, improve relationships with others, and expand your understanding of how humanity imp...

From tracking criminals and terrorists on the dark web to creating marketplaces and new authentication systems, Mark Herschberg has spent his career launching and developing new ventures at startups and Fortune 500s and in academia. He helped to start the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program, dubbed MIT’s “career success accelerator,” where he teaches annually. At Harvard Business School,...

At nine years old, Jenny Lisk wanted to be Perry Mason. She loved the books and watched the TV show, imagining herself as a lawyer and doing something meaningful. In college, still aiming for a legal career, Jenny studied political science and economics and enjoyed Washington, DC-based internships in both Congressional and Senate offices. After graduation, Jenny secured a policy role with the Cham...

Like many young people, Dayna Del Val went off to college to fulfill dreams and ambitions. For her, it was to earn a theater degree, move to LA and become a movie star. There was no question in her mind that this was her plan. Instead, she ended up back in her hometown of Fargo, North Dakota giving birth to a beautiful baby boy. She was in the depths of despair, a young, single mother who had neve...

Sher Downing, PhD is an EdTech strategist who loves bringing people, learning, and technology together. As CEO of Downing EdTech consulting, her company provides eLearning design for entrepreneurial programs, affiliate partnerships with leading vendors, and professional coaching for those in the EdTech industry.  Sher is a pioneer with over 32 years of experience in the digital arena during the ev...

Andy Lopata has been a specialist in professional relationships and networking for over 20 years. He was called one of Europe's leading business networking strategists by the Financial Times, and a true master of networking by the Independent and Forbes.com. He is the author of five books. Andy is a fellow and a board member of the Professional Speaking Association UK and Ireland, and a fellow...

Jeff Wald has been frustrated with the way people talk about the future of work for quite some time. He says, “ Too many so-called experts make predictions outside the evidence available in the world of work; specifically, the history of work, the data trends and patterns, and how companies actually engage workers. Predictions made without this ... can be, in many cases, harmful. I wanted to provi...

Like many young boys, Harsha Boralessa dreamed of playing professional sports and in his case, that was cricket. When he was nine, he played for one of England’s professional teams and by the time he was 19, he was playing top-level cricket at his university. While he thoroughly enjoyed cricket he knew that moving into another career would be best as he had no future in the sport. Yet, Harsha cred...

At 26, Perry Marshall had a lot to look forward to in life. He was happily married, anticipating the birth of his first child and working as an engineer. Then, one day he was called into a meeting and was laid off. Perry quickly transitioned into a sales job as he didn’t want to “start all over” in another engineering role and felt it would be the easiest path to supporting his young family. Two y...

Kathy Robinson has been working since she was 11 years old when she had a paper route. She grew up in a middle-class suburban environment near New York City and had modest expectations for herself, thinking she might want to become a teacher. As a kid, she loved the arts. She went to college majored in business (a practical choice) and minored in the arts.  Kathy went to work on Wall Street as an...

As Laura Rotter graduated college with an English Literature degree in the mid-1980s, the U.S. was in an economic recession. It wasn’t the best time to find employment and yet she was fortunate to land a role as editor of a business industry newsletter which opened her up to the business world. Laura was always naturally curious and found herself fascinated about different industries and how they...

When Jennifer Nash was just 3 years old, she took classical ballet classes and piano lessons. She studied piano through high school and dreamt of attending Julliard to study classical piano. But her Dad wanted her to have ‘more practical skills’ to lean on, so she went to college and studied liberal arts. She triple majored in French, German and International Business, spending one of her undergra...

self-sufficient to find success. After living in a place she couldn’t call home , Cassandra had two options: stay miserable, or figure out how to create the life she knew she wanted. At 16, this motivation helped her leave a home stricken with verbal and physical abuse.  After college and many years in a successful corporate career, she decided to pursue her own entrepreneurial interests.  I thoug...

As a young child, Michael Zipursky recalls being surrounded by many different types of people, languages, and cultures. His family moved from Toronto to Israel when he was 2. They lived there for 4 years and then returned to Canada, this time to Vancouver, and again, he remembers being amongst people from different cultures and speaking many languages. So while it felt normal to a degree, Michael...

Happy Thanksgiving to my U.S. subscribers! While it may seem like a stretch to celebrate a holiday this year, I have spoken with many people who are clear about what they are grateful for. Chris Palmore is one of them and he has dedicated his life to the expression of gratitude. Chris Palmore has learned that gratitude is a powerful remedy for all the negativity that we encounter in this world. Gi...

Woo Hoooo! Episode 100 of the Work From The Inside Out podcast is here! This is a proud moment for me. I was joined for this special episode by my dear friend and podcast “twin”, Jenny Lisk. Two years ago, Jenny and I each launched our podcasts on the same day. We are each still going strong, whereas most podcasts stop broadcasting after 12 episodes. I am fascinated by serendipitous connections, a...