Hello KSKOers
I really enjoyed my conversation with Topaz Adizes. We talked about Topaz’s career journey from filmmaker to conversation convener. He facilitates transformative conversations between friends as well as strangers through providing the space for vulnerability. Through this experience, he has honed the art of crafting questions that encourage openness and connection. Take a watch - it’ll open up a different way of thinking about work based conversations!
Looking forward to joining you on your learning journey!
Asking the Right Questions: This episode highlights just how powerful questions can be. Adizes believes that asking the right question can flip challenges into opportunities. He’s created packs of cards or ‘decks of questions’ that help with personal growth and team-building. It’s a fascinating way to see how asking thoughtful questions can lead to better relationships and personal insights.
Rethinking Job Titles and Leadership: Adizes suggests rethinking our job titles to better reflect what we really do to unleash creativity and new ideas. It’s all about being self-aware in leadership. With more tech doing the heavy lifting, he notes that human touch and relational skills are key. Reflecting on these skills can make leaders more adaptable and connected in today’s world.
Creating Space for Growth and Connection: Topaz talks about setting up spaces where people can connect and grow. Meetings aren’t just about agendas. He suggests making sure they are clear in purpose and use structured questions to promote fairness and open conversation. His question decks are all about encouraging honest conversations, which can lead to stronger team ties and personal development. It’s all about harnessing the power of connection to bring people together.
Changing the Scene with Stories: Topaz talks about how switching your environment and using the power of storytelling can really change your perspective on life. Through ‘The Grace Experience’, he helps people rewrite their personal stories to unlock creativity and self-awareness. It’s a fresh take on how ‘where’ we are and the stories we tell ourselves can play a huge part in who we become.
Finding Balance Between Tech and Being Human: We explore the balancing act between our tech-driven world and our need to stay genuinely human. I call it balancing 'ultra-digitalism' with 'hyper-humanism.' As we get more tech-focused, Topaz suggests we hold onto self-awareness and those elements that create real human connections. It's a reminder that while tech is burgeoning, we need to stay true to what makes us human, especially in our work and everyday life.
Here are the top five actions you can take away from this episode to develop your self-aware leadership skills:
Redefine Professional Identity: Consider creating alternative titles for yourself to break free from what you role is supposed to be and expand your creative possibilities.
Engage in Meaningful Conversations: Use structured questions to facilitate deeper dialogue within teams. Embrace tools like Topaz’s decks of questions to enhance introspection and communication to improve team dynamics.
Embrace Self-Reflection: Regularly reflect on your experiences and relationships by asking profound, constructive questions. Adopt a mindset shift by looking for lessons and asking more positive questions.
Leverage Human Connection: Focus on creating and fostering spaces that promote cathartic, transformative conversations. Recognise the importance of relational skills and focus on not only what your team does but how they do it.
Clarify Meeting Agendas and Purposes: Ensure clarity in meetings by defining their nature—whether it's for brainstorming, analysis, or implementation. This helps avoid confusion and improves collaboration, making discussions more productive and aligned with intended goals.
Implement these tips, and come back to tell me what you discovered and what’s changed. Get on your self-awareness superhighway and enjoy the journey!
This episode is sponsored by….
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Nia is an expert leader who talks the talk and walks the walk. She is an academically awarded thought leader in self-aware leadership and practices self-aware leadership every single day in her role as a Director in a Children’s Charity.
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Harvard Reference: Thomas, N.D., 2024. The Self-Awareness Superhighway: Charting Your Leadership Journey. Knowing Self Knowing Others.
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