40 Strategy Blog

So many business owners fall into the trap of focusing only on the end outcome: are sales up or down, did the product sell or not sell, are we profitable? But in reality, we should be focused on measuring the stepping stones along the way that they can control: sales leads collected, on time delivery, managing discretionary expenses, etc.    In this, business is much like sports. Focusing solely on the end outcome (did you win or lose?) can only get you so far. You also need to focus on what you’re doing in the lead-up to the games. Our guest this week is an expert in preparing athletes for those moments — and helping them measure progress along the way.    Bill Maxwell is the Director of Athletic Performance for Olympic sports, with a primary focus on men’s basketball, at the University of Iowa. Before that, he was an assistant strength and conditioning coach at the University of Kansas, where he oversaw strength and conditioning programs for the Jayhawk Olympic...

The beginning of each year is an opportunity for rebirth and growth. And the process for making dramatic steps forward in your life or business is actually quite simple — it’s just not easy. This episode will give you a roadmap for the difficult things you can do to improve as a leader, radically change your life, and make a bigger impact on your company. And that advice is coming from one of the world’s top experts in the field.   Dov Baron is the founder and CEO of Dov Baron International. He is a preeminent expert in helping leaders create life and work meaning. His models and strategies of the Emotional Source Code and the Anatomy of Meaning are used by leaders in business and government worldwide. He’s also been named a Top 30 Global Leadership Guru five times and an Inc. Magazine Top Leadership Speaker twice.   Listen to the full conversation for more on how to establish your priorities, how to actually dedicate time to those priorities, the top ways leaders can show...

We often think of a business only in terms of whether it “succeeded” or not. But some of the best ideas, companies, and concepts have all been built from a culture of setting giant “moonshot” goals — and frequent failures along the way.    Someone who knows all about the concept of “moonshot thinking” is our latest guest, Varun Puri. Varun is co-founder of Yoodli, an AI-powered speech coach. Varun is on a mission to empower people to improve their lives with more effective speaking. You will love this podcast and hearing from this extraordinary leader’s drive to positively impact people.   Prior to Yoodli, Varun was a Product Manager at GoogleX, where he worked on a project to bring internet to rural areas using invisible lasers. He also ran special projects for Sergey Brin, one of Google’s founders.   Tune into the full episode for more on why thinking big (almost *too* big) is so important for innovation (and building a successful business), what he learned f...

Every business owner has heard the word “branding” — but do they actually know how to build an effective, memorable one? Most don’t. And that lack of good branding is keeping great ideas, products, and services from reaching more customers.    But our guest this week is on a mission to help organizations build brands that people remember — and that their customers want to connect with. Isabelle Mercier is a “no-nonsense” dynamo, born to catapult heart-centered entrepreneurs and business leaders to build impactful brands, businesses, and lives. As one of North America’s top business influencers, bestselling author, two-time TEDx speaker with over 3 million views, and TV show host, Isabelle brings over 25 years of branding, marketing, and customer experience expertise.   Listen to the full episode for more on the essential components of great branding, the downside of having a “mission statement” (plus how a business can improve on that concept), and how Isabelle’s chil...

So many problems within a workplace can be traced back to one issue: communication. Leaders who can master this skill are the ones who reach their goals, develop better teams, and steer their organizations towards greater success.    Our guest this week is one of the top experts in helping leaders become better communicators. Antoni Lacinai is an international keynote speaker and workplace communication expert, at the cross point of conscious leadership, customer focus, and employee engagement.    Listen in to the full episode for more on the importance of empathy within work environments, the “communicative superpowers” that leaders need to develop in order to effectively lead their teams, why most arguments or confrontation in the workplace can be traced back to misunderstandings, and more advice from Antoni for company leaders.   Here’s a Glimpse of What You’ll Learn: The top reasons, according to Antoni, why people don’t get along, especially in th...