The biggest barrier to growth is often not a lack of talent, effort or ideas. It is the complexity that quietly accumulates inside organisations, consuming time, energy and attention. Lisa Bodell believes that when leaders focus on removing unnecessary work, rather than adding more, they create the space for better thinking, stronger performance and more meaningful results.

Lisa is a futurist, keynote speaker, and founder of FutureThink. Her work has helped organisations including Google, Pfizer, Citigroup and the U.S. Navy simplify how they operate.

Lisa explains why subtraction is a powerful leadership skill, how unnecessary rules and processes damage culture, and why simplicity creates a competitive advantage. She also explores the opportunities and risks of AI, the importance of protecting thinking time, and what leaders must do to build organisations where high performers thrive.

Takeaways

• Simplicity creates focus, helping leaders prioritise what matters most daily.
• Complexity grows when organisations continually add without ever subtracting.
• The best leaders think like sculptors, removing unnecessary work deliberately.
• Subtraction should be viewed as focus, not loss or failure.
• AI creates value when it frees humans for better thinking.
• Fear prevents people challenging outdated rules, processes and assumptions regularly.
• High-performing cultures require accountability, clarity and meaningful work expectations.
• Leaders should protect thinking time instead of executing calendars endlessly.

Follow Lisa Bodell
https://lisabodell.com/
https://www.futurethink.com/

Lisa’s books
Why Simple Wins: Escape the Complexity Trap and Get to Work That Matters https://amzn.to/4doNYuM
Kill the Company: End the Status Quo, Start an Innovation Revolution https://amzn.to/498E9Ql

Books recommended
The Social Animal: A Story of How Success Happens by David Brooks https://amzn.to/4vuVoEm Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Honesty is not a value to put on the wall. It is a behaviour, a skill and a choice leaders must practise every day. Dom Thurbon is an entrepreneur, researcher, writer and speaker who has spent nearly 20 years helping leaders and organisations change behaviour through disruption. He has built and sold two global businesses, worked as a partner at EY, co-founded Alchemy Labs and written several publications.

Dom explains why truth is so difficult inside organisations, how silence becomes a form of dishonesty, and why leaders must go first. He reveals how cultures gradually drift away from honest conversations, often without anyone intending it. The result is frustration, disengagement and problems that grow larger because nobody feels safe enough to speak up.

Dom says that honesty is not simply a value to aspire to but a skill that must be learned and practised. He challenges leaders to stop seeing themselves as passengers in culture and instead recognise their role in creating it, one conversation, one decision and one behaviour at a time.

Takeaways

• Truth is not a value; it is a skill leaders practice.
• Silence often causes more damage than outright dishonesty ever does.
• People frequently choose acceptance and belonging over difficult honest conversations.
• Every interaction teaches others what behaviour is acceptable and rewarded.
• Small problems become major failures when truth is repeatedly ignored.
• Leaders create honest cultures by demonstrating vulnerability and going first.
• No news rarely means good news; it often signals fear.
• Honest organisations are built through behaviours, not values statements alone.

Follow Dominic Thurbon
https://domthurbon.com/

Dominic’s book
To Be Honest: How making truth happen builds better businesses, lives and societies https://amzn.com/1923186434

Books recommended
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Pat Lencioni https://amzn.to/43Sruho
Determined: Life Without Free Will by Robert Sapolsky https://amzn.to/440O87a

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Senior leaders do not get ownership from their leaders simply by setting expectations. According to leadership coach and author Kylie Paatsch, ownership grows when people feel known, trusted, supported and clear about what matters.

Kylie is a leadership coach and speaker who has spent more than 30 years leading at every level and more than 20 years coaching and facilitating senior leaders from mid-level through to C-suite.

Kylie explains why leading leaders requires a shift from doing to enabling, why transactional meetings flatten energy, and how unclear expectations are often mistaken for people problems. She shares her Know, Show, Grow model for building trust, loyalty, responsibility and initiative in leadership teams.

Takeaways

• Leading leaders requires influence, not simply managing people and tasks.
• Transactional meetings destroy connection, energy, ownership and meaningful team engagement.
• Clear expectations prevent confusion disguised as resistance, disengagement or poor performance.
• People want leaders who make them feel heard and understood.
• Ownership grows when leaders enable thinking instead of fixing everything.
• Trust strengthens when leaders consistently match their actions with words.
• Leaders often know performance metrics better than they know people.
• High challenge backed by high support unlocks stronger leadership performance.

Follow Kylie Paatsch
https://kyliepaatsch.com.au/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyliepaatsch/
https://www.instagram.com/kyliepaatschleadership/

Kylie’s book
The Connect Effect: How to Build Loyalty, Ownership and Engagement with Your Leaders https://amzn.com/1998528847

Books recommended
Dare to Lead by Brene Brown https://amzn.com/1785042149

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Entrepreneurs often build the business they want, then try to fit their life around it. The better path is to define the life you want first, then build a business that supports it. That’s according to Brian Brault, a seasoned entrepreneur, leadership educator and former global chair of Entrepreneurs’ Organisation.

Brian built and scaled multiple companies, including Advanced Facilities Services, and now works through Legacy of Significance to help founders, leadership teams and families align leadership, purpose and relationships.

Brian explores the danger of staying in the zone of excellence instead of the zone of genius, why relational authority matters as businesses scale, and why legacy is ultimately shaped by how we live, lead and serve others.

Takeaways

• Entrepreneurs create better businesses when they design their lives first, not last.
• The zone of excellence can quietly drain energy, purpose and long-term fulfilment.
• Great leaders build more leaders instead of creating dependent followers around them.
• Relational authority matters more than positional authority as organisations grow and scale.
• Businesses scale faster when founders stop believing they must do everything.
• Healthy conflict strengthens teams when people feel safe, heard and respected.
• Entrepreneurs often regret sacrificing relationships in pursuit of power, status or money.
• Leadership is ultimately about serving others, building trust and creating meaning.

Follow Brian Brault
https://legacyofsignificance.com/

Books recommended
Discover Your True North by Bill George https://amzn.to/42PpgyV

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Great leadership is not about having all the answers. It is about creating clarity, communicating with empathy and helping people perform at their best under pressure. Leadership expert Leah Mether argues that the “soft skills” of communication, accountability and psychological safety are now the hardest and most valuable skills in business, especially in a world increasingly shaped by AI and constant change.

Leah works with leaders and teams across Australia to strengthen communication, leadership and workplace culture, particularly in high-pressure and male-dominated industries.

She explains why unclear expectations create conflict, why “difficult people” are often misunderstood, and why discomfort should not be confused with psychological unsafety. Leah also explores leading through uncertainty, balancing empathy with accountability, and why human skills will become the defining advantage in the future of work.

Takeaways

• Clear expectations prevent confusion, stress and wasted time across teams.
• Psychological safety still allows tough conversations and honest feedback at work.
• Great leaders balance empathy, accountability and clear communication under pressure.
• Technical skill alone rarely creates strong, effective and trusted leaders.
• Most workplace conflict starts from assumptions instead of upfront clarification.
• Strong leaders challenge ideas without attacking people or damaging trust.
• Human skills matter more as AI reshapes workplaces and leadership roles.
• Leadership starts with understanding how others experience your behaviour.

Follow Leah Mether
https://www.leahmether.com.au/
https://www.leahmether.com.au/category/video/

Leah’s books
Soft Is the New Hard: How to Communicate Effectively Under Pressure https://amzn.to/42xPOoa
Steer Through the Storm: How to communicate and lead courageously through change https://amzn.to/4wlQtGO

Books recommended
Red Brick Thinking by Donna McGeorge https://amzn.com/1394360843

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feeling stuck is not always a warning sign. Often, the discomfort, uncertainty and challenge people try to avoid are the very conditions that produce growth.

Performance consultant, speaker and author Andrew Horsfield discusses why so many capable people mistake struggle for failure. Drawing on his work with leaders in business, elite sport and education, Andrew explains the difference between productive struggle and burnout, why busyness can become a form of avoidance, and how reflection creates awareness and better decision-making.

He shares practical strategies for building a more intentional life, including how to align daily actions with long-term priorities, transition between roles with purpose, and recognise whether your effort is genuinely moving you forward.

Takeaways

• Growth often feels uncomfortable before it becomes meaningful, rewarding and transformative.
• Burnout begins when effort loses meaning, direction, recovery and emotional balance.
• Busyness often distracts people from uncomfortable truths requiring honest reflection and change.
• Progress matters more than perfection when building meaningful work, leadership and relationships.
• High performers struggle most when trying satisfying everyone instead of leading courageously.
• Reflection helps people recognise harmful patterns before burnout quietly takes control completely.
• Living intentionally requires aligning daily decisions with deeply important long-term personal values.
• The most fulfilling lives are built through challenge, purpose, growth and connection.

Follow Andrew Horsfield
https://andrewhorsfield.com/

Andrew’s book
Better: Escape Average, Beat Burnout, Own Your Life https://www.booktopia.com.au/better-andrew-horsfield/book/9781764492508.html

Books recommended
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield https://amzn.to/4daErqX

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The future is not something technology decides for us. According to applied futurist Brian David Johnson, leaders must keep humans at the centre, retain their agency, and actively shape what comes next.

Brian David Johnson is an applied futurist who helps governments, militaries, corporations and startups build actionable visions of the future. He was the first futurist at Intel Corporation, influencing decisions impacting billions of devices. He is Director of the Threatcasting Lab at Arizona State University, a senior fellow at Phaedrus, and a prolific author of nonfiction and science fiction. His work focuses on human-centred innovation, emerging technologies and preparing organisations for future risks and opportunities.

Brian discusses artificial intelligence, human labour, resilience, science fiction prototyping and why optimism is a deliberate act. He explains why leaders should ask what they are optimising for, what they should never automate, and how better stories help build better futures.

Takeaways

• Technology doesn’t decide the future; humans must actively shape it.
• Leaders fail when they focus on tools instead of people.
• Artificial intelligence is software; humans remain responsible for outcomes.
• Efficiency alone creates fragile organisations vulnerable to disruption and attack.
• The future of work requires redefining value of human contribution.
• Optimism is a choice that enables action rather than fear.
• Strong cultures reward questioning, failure, and early problem discovery.
• Storytelling helps leaders explore futures more effectively than spreadsheets.

Follow Brian David Johnson
https://www.phaedrusllc.com/
https://threatcasting.asu.edu/

BDJ’s books
What You Need to Know About AI https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0CNLZ3Q1C/
The Future You https://amzn.com/0062965077
Science Fiction Prototyping
https://amzn.com/3031006682
Wizards and Robots https://amzn.com/B06XWR7KZJ
21st Century Robot https://amzn.com/B00PTBV4AK

Books recommended
Future Shock by Alvin Toffler https://amzn.to/4vL2oxH
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the second of this two-part series Andres Zylberberg, Richard Peake and I continue to answer the rest of the 25 questions entrepreneurs must answer to build an enduring great company.

After exploring vision and strategy in part one, this conversation moves into leadership, execution and the economic engine. We discuss why second-level leaders matter, why accountability must be documented and reviewed, and how effective meeting rhythms, priorities and metrics help turn strategy into consistent results.

We also examine the financial disciplines that give leaders real confidence, including Profit Per X, productivity, working capital, customer lifetime value, acquisition cost, forecasting, resource allocation and return on invested capital. The result is a practical framework for building stronger leadership, better execution and compounding business freedom.

Takeaways

• Second-level leaders determine whether growth compounds or quietly stalls.
• “A” players lift standards, accountability and performance across the business.
• Scorecards turn vague expectations into clear ownership and better coaching.
• Execution improves when priorities, metrics and meeting rhythms work together.
• Strong meetings create timely decisions, alignment and genuine business momentum.
• Profit Per X clarifies how the business truly creates value.
• Realistic forecasts build confidence, commitment and better strategic decision-making.
• Disciplined execution creates stronger profits, freedom and long-term business value.

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners

Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/

Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)

Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth

Enjoying the show? Leave a review

Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.