My Favorite Mistake: Business Lessons from Failures and Success
Unlock Leadership Excellence: Tune into “My Favorite Mistake” with Mark Graban Are you a leader aiming to boost effectiveness, insight, and innovation? Join Mark Graban on ”My Favorite Mistake” (and no, it’s not the Sheryl Crow song), where top business minds, C-suite executives, and industry innovators share their pivotal mistakes and the powerful lessons they’ve learned. The Concept Embrace the transformative power of mistakes. Discover how errors can fuel leadership growth and creative problem-solving, turning each misstep into a masterclass in improvement and innovation. The Stories Dive into captivating interviews with international entrepreneurs, tech pioneers, accomplished athletes and entertainers, healthcare leaders, and award-winning authors. Each guest reveals how their significant mistakes shaped their careers and led to groundbreaking insights. The Breadth Explore a wide range of topics, from leadership psychology and organizational culture to process innovation and sustainability. Gain valuable perspectives to navigate the ever-changing business landscape. The Approach Guided by Mark Graban, an author and seasoned consultant, each episode delves into Lean Management (based on the Toyota Production System) and psychological safety, uncovering strategies for individuals and organizations to learn from their mistakes. Why Subscribe? Engage with Thought-Provoking Dialogues: Challenge conventional wisdom and explore new perspectives. Access Tools and Frameworks: Gain actionable insights for a competitive edge. Discover Innovative Opportunities: Learn how to turn mistakes into catalysts for innovation. Develop Emotional Intelligence and Resilience: Enhance your leadership skills and agile thinking. Transform your approach to leadership and success. Subscribe to “My Favorite Mistake” today and embark on a journey of relentless improvement through the power of learning from mistakes.
Episodes
Monday Jan 25, 2021
Using Shame as a Leadership Tool with Sabrina Moon
Monday Jan 25, 2021
Monday Jan 25, 2021
Engineer, founder & CEO of the Problem Solving Institute
Show notes and more: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake35
Joining me for Episode #35 is Sabrina Moon, founder & CEO of the Problem Solving Institute. She's an engineer and a certified Dare to Lead™ facilitator.
Today, we talk about her favorite mistake of using shame as a leadership tool, and we discuss what we were exposed to in our early days at General Motors -- the "command and control" leadership style (as Jamie V. Parker brought up in Episode #8). How did Sabrina learn to become more self aware about her leadership style and the impact it had? What was the transformation process that she went through? Sabrina also shares what she has learned from Brené Brown about leading.
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Wednesday Jan 20, 2021
Mistakes Running a Chiropractic Practice with Dr. Kelly Henry
Wednesday Jan 20, 2021
Wednesday Jan 20, 2021
Chiropractor, entrepreneur, consultant, and author
https://www.markgraban.com/mistake34
Joining me for Episode #34 is Dr. Kelly Henry, a chiropractor who has owned clinics, but now helps others in his role as "The Customer Experience Doctor." He is also the author of the newly-released book Define and Deliver Exceptional Customer Service: Proven strategies to maximize your profits. The book is currently the #1 new release in the Amazon "customer relations" category
Enter to win a signed paperback copy of his book!
In the episode, Kelly talks about his "favorite mistake," which was an underperforming chiropractic office in Phoenix. The business was "harder than he thought" and he reflects that he should have had coaches to help him. We talk about chiropractic schools don't really teach much about starting or running a practice (a problem that is common across various medical specialties).
Kelly was later very successful when he purchased an existing practice with a built-in patient base. He's learned a lot about improving the customer experience and customer retention over time, which he shares in his book.
We talk about why the employee experience and the customer experience go "hand in hand," how a small bump in customer retention leads to a big bump in profit, and what healthcare organizations can do beyond surveying patients on their experience.
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Tuesday Jan 19, 2021
Bonus: Billy Taylor Follow Up Conversation on Episode #5
Tuesday Jan 19, 2021
Tuesday Jan 19, 2021
Billy was our guest on Episode #5 and it's our most-listened-to episode by far (by a factor of 5X).
I hosted Billy Taylor on LinkedIn Live today, to do a "watch party" of his episode, followed by some additional conversation and I'm sharing that audio here. See the recording of the watch party and the follow up conversation.
Billy's company: http://linkedxl.com/
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Sunday Jan 17, 2021
Sunday Jan 17, 2021
Forrest Tuff, the founder and CEO of One Vision Productions, professional speaker, business coach, author.
Show notes: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake33
Joining me for Episode #33 is Forrest Tuff, the founder and CEO of One Vision Productions, an award-winning, multimedia production company. He does so many things...
Forrest is a creative person who is also business savvy (he calls himself a “filmpreneur”). He has 180+ movie credits that include documentaries, indie films, and a major motion picture with Twentieth Century Fox. He is the host of the Tuff Talk Show… and he was also a Division I basketball player.
Today, we talk about his "favorite mistake" of leaving a regular job (something others thought was a mistake). We talk about his views on the possibility of mistakes in making movies and taking three-point shots. We talk about his coaching through the SCORE program and how he defines servant leadership.
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Thursday Jan 14, 2021
Not Pushing Back on the Client’s Framing of the Problem with Michele Parrish
Thursday Jan 14, 2021
Thursday Jan 14, 2021
Consultant, founder and managing partner of Parrish Partners... MIT Leaders for Global Operations alum.
Show Notes: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake32
Please subscribe, rate, and review via Apple Podcasts or Podchaser!
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Joining me for Episode #32 is Michele Parrish. She is a consultant and she is founder and managing partner of the firm Parrish Partners. Michele was previously an executive at Intel and one thing we share in common is that we're both graduates of the MIT Leaders for Global Operations Program.
In today's episode, Michele tells a story related to advising a CEO who called her in with a very particular problem in mind. Michele learned about the need to push back and to not be shy about disagreeing with the client about what the problem really might be. We'll talk about the importance of “emotional intelligence” (something she teaches about), systems thinking, and the need to slow down to pause and reflect.
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Sunday Jan 10, 2021
Sunday Jan 10, 2021
Emergency physician and CEO of KaiNexus, a technology company in Austin, TX
Show notes https://www.markgraban.com/mistake31
Click here to enter to win a free "My Favorite Mistake" coffee mug!
Joining me for Episode #31 is Dr. Greg Jacobson, an emergency medicine physician and the CEO/co-founder of KaiNexus, a technology and software company. In the interest of full disclosure, I will mention that I have worked with KaiNexus, in various capacities, since 2011 and I have an ownership stake in the company.
That said, Greg is one of the most interesting people you'll ever meet. Many startup CEOs launch their company at night while working their day job. Greg started KaiNexus during the days while working some nights as an E.R. doc.
In today's episode, Greg (always the overachiever) shares FIVE favorite mistakes from his career:
Not reading more
Not figuring out work/life balance
Struggling with the diffusion of CEO attention as the company grows
Not being appreciative enough
Not doing his own due diligence
We'll talk about all of that, the importance of creating a culture of continuous improvement in a company, and much more. I think you'll enjoy the conversation, as I did.
Please subscribe, rate, and review via Apple Podcasts or Podchaser!
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Wednesday Jan 06, 2021
Isao Yoshino & Katie Anderson on Mistakes, Leadership, Learning, and Culture
Wednesday Jan 06, 2021
Wednesday Jan 06, 2021
Toyota veteran Yoshino and business consultant Anderson... Japanese and American learning together.
Show notes: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake30
Enter to win a free "My Favorite Mistake" coffee mug! (through Jan 22)
Joining me for Episode #30 is Katie Anderson, the author of the book Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn: Lessons from Toyota Leader Isao Yoshino on a Lifetime of Continuous Learning. We are also joined by Mr. Yoshino, the subject of the book, who joined us from Japan. You can download a sample chapter via Katie's website.
I get the very unique opportunity to ask each of them about their “favorite mistake.” Mr. Yoshino tells a story from his early days at Toyota, where he learned the importance of not blaming individuals for systemic problems. He later retired from Toyota after nearly 40 years of work in Japan and the United States.
Katie then tells a story, from early in her career, about being a “bull in a china shop” during meetings and getting feedback that caused her to reflect and change.
We then talk about lessons from Toyota and their book, including the importance of creating a culture where it's safe for people to speak up about mistakes — either in a factory or in a hospital. Why is it important for leaders to create the conditions for people to be successful? Why should leaders take responsibility when mistakes happen? Why is intentional reflection the key to learning?
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Monday Jan 04, 2021
Not Knowing Who She Wanted to Work With: Kim Thompson-Pinder
Monday Jan 04, 2021
Monday Jan 04, 2021
"The extraordinary word ninja" - author, publisher, book coach...
Show notes: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake29
Joining me for Episode #29 is Kim Thompson-Pinder and she calls herself the “the extraordinary word ninja." Kim is Owner/Chief Visionary Officer at RTI Publishing House, and she is the author of five books. Her most recent title, being released soon, is Author to Authority (click for a free preview). Kim is also host of a podcast of the same name.
You'll hear Kim talk about that colorful phrase and why she uses it. You'll learn about her favorite mistake of getting overwhelmed with clients -- how she just "fell into" this sort of work and she didn't clearly define who she would want to work with. Is it a mistake to not have a book? Maybe not, but Kim will talk about the value of having a "signature book" that defines you and your business.
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Sunday Dec 20, 2020
Sunday Dec 20, 2020
Actor, comedian, writer, director... entertainer Mark Teich
Show notes: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake28
Joining me for Episode #28 is Mark Teich, an actor, comedian, writer, and director. Mark and I were high school classmates, both graduating from Livonia (MI) Churchill High School in 1991. I played drums in the pit orchestra for at least four musicals that Mark acted, sang, and danced in (he later earned BFA degrees in all three disciplines). We catch up about high school days a bit in the episode, if you'll forgive us.
Mark honed his improv skills in Chicago and New York performing and writing in famed troupes such as The Second City and the Upright Citizens Brigade. He also enjoyed a highly successful comedy career culminating in four certified gold CD's, a certified gold DVD, two Comedy Central Presents specials, five worldwide tours… He performed at a sold-out Carnegie Hall with comedy partner Stephen Lynch. He has starred in four Disney cable shows… has been seen on shows like "Monk" and "New Girl," and the movie "Leatherheads."
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been watching, say, a football game on TV… and there’s Mark Teich in a commercial. He’s been in commercials for more than 80 companies including Bacardi, Dell, Subway, Little Caesars, IHOP, Fidelity Investments, and TempurPedic… channeled MC Hammer in a Hallmark commercial that was named “World’s Best Commercial.”
He is currently starring as “Uncle Vin” in an online series called The Finchers, Presented by Viewsonic.
Today, Mark shares his "favorite mistake" which involves following others instead of charting his own path for his career. We also talk about actors auditioning for jobs and parallels to those of us who are "auditioning" in terms of sales presentations or other competitive settings.
I think you'll enjoy the conversation, as I did. This was a lot of fun and I appreciate Mark making the mistake of joining me for a really fun episode to end the year with.
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Thursday Dec 17, 2020
Making Business Decisions Out of Ego with Trav Bell
Thursday Dec 17, 2020
Thursday Dec 17, 2020
Australian, coach, "bucket listologist"
Show notes: https://www.markgraban.com/mistake27
Please subscribe, rate, and review via Apple Podcasts or Podchaser! We also have a new Facebook page for the podcast.
Joining me for Episode #27 is Travis (Trav) Bell, coming to us from Victoria, Australia. He's not our first guest from Australia, but he is our first Aussie accent!
Trav is a self-appointed "Bucket Listologist" a.k.a. "The Bucket List Guy." He is a coach and a Certified Speaking Professional, and is also Founder & CEO of his coaching firm. Trav previously founded & franchised a chain of personal training studios across Australia and that's one of the things we'll talk about today in the context of his "favorite mistake."
"Making business decisions out of ego," is how he describes his favorite mistake.
You can find him online via his websites TheBucketListGuy.com and BucketListCoach.com.
He also has a new book just out called My Bucket List Blueprint, available through Amazon.
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About Mark Graban
Mark Graban is an author, speaker, and consultant, whose latest book, The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation, is available now.
He is also the author of the award-winning book Lean Hospitals: Improving Quality, Patient Safety, and Employee Engagement and others, including Measures of Success: React Less, Lead Better, Improve More.
He serves as a consultant through his company, Constancy, Inc, and is also a Senior Advisor for the technology company KaiNexus.
Mark hosts podcasts, including “Lean Blog Interviews” and “My Favorite Mistake.”
Education: B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University; M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, and M.B.A. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Leaders for Global Operations Program.