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The Leadership Podcast

The Leadership Podcast

We Study Leaders

June 10, 2020

TLP206: Prisoners of Our Own Perspective

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John Rogers is the author of The Renaissance Campaign – a mindset that has put him at the helm of a billion-dollar transportation company, working alongside Michael J Fox promoting the advancement of stem cell research, and testifying in front of the U.S. Senate. His core worldview posits that most all challenges can be solved with the right mix of holistic thinking coupled with an effective high-impact campaign. 

Key Takeaways

[3:45] If you don’t have revenue, you’re not a business. Leaders often find themselves so busy working in the business that they end up not working on the business. The same holds true in government.

[7:15] Whether it be non-profit, business, or government, they’re not making conscious time to create space for the long-term picture and the health of the organization. A piece of this is that they don’t know how and they don’t have the discipline.

[12:05] The Cassandra Syndrome is something that occurs when you know what’s going to happen, but nobody believes you. This applies to things like climate change and artificial intelligence.

[14:30] Our society has become so wonderfully specialized, but that can also get in our way.

[15:35] Today’s problems require multiple heads with multiple expertise to solve for.

[16:15] In order to get holistic thinking into an organization, it first starts with getting some creatives in the door.

[18:55] In order to break out of silos within your organization, you need to have diversity of thought.

[23:55] John immerses a wide variety of people in a room for a couple of days and doesn’t give them a break. This is to see how they work under pressure.

[26:35] John’s coach made him go through an exercise to use three words to describe himself in all areas of life. It was a tough challenge because of all the words that you end up leaving behind.

[34:45] John shares a little bit about the stem cell work he did with actor Michael J. Fox.


The Leadership Podcast is sponsored by W.S. Darley & Company.  

Founded in 1908, Darley remains a family owned and operated business, providing the highest quality equipment solutions to our country’s warfighters and firefighters.  

Learn more at darley.com and darleydefense.com


Quotable Quotes

“We have short-term challenges that leaders have to navigate, but we have bigger, long-term challenges at the same time.” Share on X “We are all prisoners of our own perspective.” Share on X “The naysayers, they disappear, they get swallowed up.” Share on X

Additional Resources

  • Johnrogers360.com
  • Connect with John on Twitter: @_JohnRogers360
  • Tom Wujec — “First, tell me how you make toast” — TED Talks
John Rogers

These are the books mentioned in John’s interview

The Renaissance Campaign: A Problem-Solving Formula for Your Biggest Challenges

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The Renaissance Campaign: A Problem-Solving Formula for Your Biggest Challenges
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The Renaissance Campaign: A Problem-Solving Formula for Your Biggest Challenges

Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries

Buy This Book Online
Buy from Amazon
Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries
Buy now!
Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries

The Leadership Podcast is proud to announce a new initiative with thoughtLEADERS to provide very short podcasts called “chalk talks.” They’re “bitesize” hacks on common (but challenging) leadership issues. Interested in learning more? 

You can only access the Chalk Talks by subscribing to our newsletter at The Leadership Podcast.

Beyond the Uniform offers over 300 free episodes to help military Veterans succeed in their civilian career. This includes overviews of potential career paths, deep dives on necessary skills to succeed, and reviews of other free services that support the military Veteran community. You can find more info at BeyondTheUniform.org.

Filed Under: Podcast Tagged With: change, leadership

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