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I’m Australian, and Australians seem to be wanderers.  Maybe it’s because we suffer from a “tyranny of distance” – which means that when we do travel, we don’t just do it for a week or two, we do it for years.  That’s why about 70% of bar staff in the UK are Aussies, with a similar percentage for ski instructors in Europe and Canada.

I’ve done my own share of living in different countries, but I’m put to shame by Grahame Maher, currently CEO of Vodafone Qatar.  In his time with the company he’s lead the Australian, New Zealand, Swedish, Czech and now Qatar organizations.

So he brings to this conversation a unique mix of loyalty to one company, but the perspective of living and working in many countries.  Even better, he is (in his own words) “a small business guy who never wanted to work for a big organization” and a baker by trade.  Intrigued?  You should be.

In this conversation, we look at:

• The tactics he used to move the Vodafone brand in New Zealand from 2% recognition to 96%
• The power of mission and values to drive Great Work
• What happened when an engineer accidentally turned off the network for 600,000 people’s phones
• How stories can carry the DNA of success (and why the right words matter)

Listen to my interview with Grahame here

The interviews are all between 25 and 30 minutes long.
You can either download them here as mp3s, or go to iTunes, type in “Great Work Interviews” and you’ll see them all there.

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I found the following here, and I wish I knew who to credit: It’s brilliant.

Pixar stretching for what’s new vs. Dreamworks on the production line.

Great Work vs. Good Work.

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We’re launching the second edition of my first book, Get Unstuck & Get Going on the stuff that matters in a little while. The first one was pretty awesome.  It combines my knowlege about coaching, creativity and facilitation and it won awards, got nice things said about it by people like Seth Godin, Anita Roddick of the Body Shop and Gay Hendricks, and I’ve had quite a few people tell me that it changed their lives for the better.  And the second edition is I think even better – streamlined, a totally fresh design, easier to use…

Today’s the last day to jump on the preregistration list. Here are four reasons why that might be something you want to do:

1. You get instant access to one of my most popular ebooks, The 12 Best Get Unstuck Questions In the World: And Why They Work So Well.

2. You get to vote on which cover the redesigned version will have. Anyone who votes is in with a chance of winning one of three copies of the book. (We open the survey up on Thursday, October 1st.)

3. You’ll get access to some exclusive bonuses when we do publish the book.

4. It’s free to preregister – and there is absolutely no obligation to buy.

So check it out and if you want to, sign up today. Both the ebook and the 12 Questions will be terrific tools to add to your Great Work kit.

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We relish news of our heroes, forgetting that we are extraordinary to somebody too.
~ Helen Hayes

I’m a big big fan of identifying your heroes. They’re often a terrific clue as to what Great Work might be for you, as it is something they’re doing or somehow that they’re being that is calling you forward. (Sort of like that scene from Jerry Maguire).

Here are four things I know about knowing your heroes

1. Often, getting clear on your heroes brings mixed emotions. As well as admiration, there is some degree of jealousy, inferiority, sense of lack. Or maybe that’s just me.
2. They’re human too, with their fair share of frailties and flaws. That’s actually part of the secret of their success.  And realizing this helps with #1.
3. You can contact them. Or at least, you can try. I’m in touch with a number of people I really admire – Seth, Chris, David, Molly, Andrea, not to mention the cool people of  The Great Work Interviews – because I rang them up to say hello. And that helps you connect with #2, which in turn lessens #1.
4. They can offer you a mirror to see your own potential greatness. What’s in them that you want to grow within yourself? What do they stand for that you want to stand for? Which takes us back to #1 but flips it on its head.

Speaking of heroes…

There are two upcoming opportunities to see some heroes of mine in action.

Friday October 16, Tom Peters, Marcus Buckingham, Jeff Jarvis and David Allen are speaking at The Art of… in downtown Toronto. These are three smart, thoughtful guys. I’ll be attending and it’s something I’m really looking forward to it. Are you coming too? If so, let me know.

And two days earlier – Wednesday October 14 – David Allen is speaking in Montreal on the Getting Things Done concepts. I count David as a friend and colleague, and he’s been kind enough to offer Box of Crayons readers a 15% discount on the event. Learn more about the seminar here, and to register and pick up your discount enter boxofcrayons on the checkout screen

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Before becoming the Chief Strategy Officer for Accenture National Security Services, Keith Lippert spent thirty-eight years in the US Navy and rose to the rank of Vice Admiral. In his final posting, he was the Director of the Defense Logistics Agency, a role he assumed just two months before the events of 9/11 and at a time when there was some discussion about doing away with the DLA.

Just to set some context, leading the DLA is no small thing.  It manages 5.2 million items and the twenty-three thousand civilian and military personnel deal with fifty-eight thousand requests for material a day.

In this conversation with Keith we talk about what had to happen to focus on more Great Work, how the burning platform of 9/11 was important but not sufficient to drive change,  and the role of communication is driving success.  Here are two gems from the interview.  Keith’s perspective on changing a legacy system, and the degree of maturity required to do that.  And that  in an organization focused on moving and managing material, the need to better focus on and engage the people of the DLA became critical.

Listen to my interview with Keith Lippert here

The interviews are all between 25 and 30 minutes long.
You can either download them here as mp3s, or go to iTunes, type in “Great Work Interviews” and you’ll see them all there.