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<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

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<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and Goala giving.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host

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<v Speaker 1>Paul Fellavaledo.

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<v Speaker 2>Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.

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<v Speaker 2>It's episode seven forty. Today we're doing something a little different.

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<v Speaker 2>I want you to imagine I walked into your office

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<v Speaker 2>right now with a cardboard box, no warning, no explanation.

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<v Speaker 2>I look around and say, you have sixty seconds. Put

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<v Speaker 2>in this box. Anything that should not be in a

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<v Speaker 2>leader's office. What goes in? Because offices tell stories, people think.

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<v Speaker 2>Leadership lives in meetings, speeches, strategic plans, and performance reviews.

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<v Speaker 2>Sometimes leadership is sitting right there on your desk. Your

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<v Speaker 2>office is not decoration. It is a mirror. Today I

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<v Speaker 2>want to remove a few things from yours. Not because

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<v Speaker 2>minimalism is trendy, because clutter creates friction, and friction creates

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<v Speaker 2>bad leadership. So item number one, the chair that faces

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<v Speaker 2>you instead of them. Look around. How is your office arranged?

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<v Speaker 2>Does your desk create distance? Do people walk in and

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<v Speaker 2>immediately feel like they're being interrogated. I once heard someone

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<v Speaker 2>say your office should feel like a conversation not a courtroom,

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<v Speaker 2>and that's stuck with me. If every chair is lower

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<v Speaker 2>than yours, farther away than yours, are positioned awkwardly, people notice.

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<v Speaker 2>Employees decide within seconds whether this room is safe. So

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<v Speaker 2>try this. Move the chairs sit beside. People occasionally create

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<v Speaker 2>angles instead of barrier. You do not lose authority by

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<v Speaker 2>making people comfortable. You gain information and information wins. Item

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<v Speaker 2>number two. Awards that expired ten years ago. I know

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<v Speaker 2>this one hurts. The plaque, the Employee of the Month,

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<v Speaker 2>the conference certificate, the trophy. Listen carefully, keep meaningful accomplishments,

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<v Speaker 2>remove museum exhibits. If somebody walks into your office and

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<v Speaker 2>learns more about who you used to be than who

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<v Speaker 2>you are becoming, you have a problem. Replace one old

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<v Speaker 2>award with something current. A project roadmap, a customer letter,

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<v Speaker 2>a team photo, a quote that challenges you. Leadership is

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<v Speaker 2>not preserved in amber. Your office should communicate motion Item

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<v Speaker 2>number three, the pile of I'll get to it. Every

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<v Speaker 2>office has one papers, sticky notes, random printouts. That pile

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<v Speaker 2>is not paper. That pile is stress. It's delayed decisions.

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<v Speaker 2>So I want you to ask one question. If this

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<v Speaker 2>pile disappeared tonight, would anyone notice? If the answer is no,

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<v Speaker 2>throw it out. Leaders lose energy carrying unfinished business. Create

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<v Speaker 2>three folders instead action, waiting, archived, Everything gets assigned. No

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<v Speaker 2>orphan paperwork. Item number four the giant desk calendar full

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<v Speaker 2>of firefighting. I see leaders do this all the time.

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<v Speaker 2>Their schedule becomes proof of importance. Back to back meetings,

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<v Speaker 2>no breathing room, no thinking time. Their calendar says, react, react, react, react.

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<v Speaker 2>Where's your leadership time? Block? Seven minutes a day, seven

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<v Speaker 2>intentional minutes, no phone, no email, no meetings. Think and

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<v Speaker 2>ask what am I missing? Who needs recognition? What problem

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<v Speaker 2>is coming next? Your office should remind you to lead,

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<v Speaker 2>not survive. Item number five the candy bowl. Nobody talks about.

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<v Speaker 2>Stay with me. This is not about nutrition. Every office

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<v Speaker 2>has symbols. A candy bowl, a coffee station, open door,

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<v Speaker 2>the guest chair, the whiteboard. What symbols exist in your office?

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<v Speaker 2>Because culture leaks through objects. If your office says come in,

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<v Speaker 2>people will. If it says do not interrupt, people obey,

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<v Speaker 2>So design intentionally. One leader I know keeps blank thank

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<v Speaker 2>you cards visible. Another keeps an empty chair and calls

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<v Speaker 2>it the customer seat. Everything communicates. Item number six, the

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<v Speaker 2>hidden door policy. You say your door is open, but

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<v Speaker 2>is it. If employees have to schedule three meetings and

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<v Speaker 2>send two emails to talk to you, your office is closed.

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<v Speaker 2>Remove unnecessary gates. You do not need to become available

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<v Speaker 2>every second. You do need to become reachable. Try office hours,

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<v Speaker 2>Try walking meetings. Try spending thirty minutes per day outside

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<v Speaker 2>your office. The best leaders are often found where the

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<v Speaker 2>work happens. Item number seven. Remove the fake productivity props.

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<v Speaker 2>Multiple monitors, seven notebooks, six apps open, five half read

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<v Speaker 2>leadership books. Looking busy is not leading. What's in your

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<v Speaker 2>office exists only to make you feel productive, be honest.

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<v Speaker 2>Remove one thing simplify. Complexity makes leaders feel important. Clarity

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<v Speaker 2>makes leaders effective. Item number eight. Remove one thing that

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<v Speaker 2>no longer represents you. This is your challenge today, before

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<v Speaker 2>you end work, Remove one object, just one thing that

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<v Speaker 2>represents old thinking, old habits, old identity. Replace it with

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<v Speaker 2>something intentional. Because offices are not storage units, they are

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<v Speaker 2>command centers, and command centers should reflect where you're going,

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<v Speaker 2>not where you got stuck. If somebody walked into your

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<v Speaker 2>office today and had to describe your leadership style using

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<v Speaker 2>only what they saw. What would they say? That question

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<v Speaker 2>might tell you more than your annual review ever could.

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<v Speaker 2>So take ten minutes this week and just stand in

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<v Speaker 2>your doorway, look at your office like a visitor would

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<v Speaker 2>see it, and just ask yourself, does this room create clarity?

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<v Speaker 2>Does it create connection? Does it create conversation? Does it

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<v Speaker 2>create momentum? Leadership leave's finger prints everywhere, even on your desk.

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<v Speaker 2>This has been the seven Minute Leadership podcast, and I

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<v Speaker 2>thank you for listening.

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<v Speaker 1>For more Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot

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<v Speaker 1>com