Connect with Gina Gardiner on Linkedin:

linkedin.com/in/ginagardinerassociates

For more information visit her websites:

genuinely-you.com

enlightenedleadership.co

ginagardinerassociates.co.uk 

Connect with Russ Johns on Linkedin:

linkedin.com/in/nextstepnext

For more information visit his other websites:

russjohns.com

thepiratesyndicate.com

nextstepnext.com

Russ Johns  0:01  

Welcome to the #piratebroadcast, where we interview #interestingpeople doing #interestingthings where you can expand your connections, your community, #kindnessiscool and #smilesarefree. Let's get this party started.

I'm super excited to have another interesting guest. She's doing interesting things. We're going to be talking about that. I just want to a couple of public service announcements. If you would like to comment and share this content, if it's valuable, I'd love to hear about it. Drop some comments in today and ask some questions. We'll do what we can to answer them. With that, I just want to welcome and thank you so much all the all the gratitude in the world Gina for being here.I hope you're well and we're talking about leadership today. I just want to thank you for being here. How are you today? 

Gina Gardiner  1:04  

Thank you very much for having me on the show. I'm absolutely thrilled to be here. Really grateful. I'm absolutely fine. Thank you very much. Yeah, thriving.

Russ Johns  1:14  

Good, because I really, there's a lot of changes, and we were talking about that before the show started is that I think the big push right now is a lot of people are concerned about the future. I think what the result of that concern, really allows us to think about how leadership is going to look in the future paving the way in an unknown world and a new normal. Could you talk a little bit about what you're thinking of and in your leadership experience and what we can look forward to or what we need to look at in terms of leadership in the future and how that's gonna unfold as we evolve through this.

Gina Gardiner  2:05  

Thank you. It's my view that there are three constants in life . Death. As soon as we're born, we know that we're going to eventually Park this world, and taxes and change. One of the interesting things, I think, is that despite the fact that from the moment we are conceived until we die, and not only do we go through many changes, but we are the constant that we take in our life every second, every moment of every day. Yet we fear change. I understand that's hardwired into us from when we were cavemen and women that change was seen as a threat. I think the interesting thing for me is that the qualities of an enlightened leader and are really constructive and positive in times of Boom, but the time that they become so imperative is in times of challenging change. Enlightened leadership is leadership for life, not just for professional times, because one of the first principles of enlightened leadership is, in order to lead others effectively, you have to lead yourself first. By that I mean take radical responsibility for everything that you have your thoughts, your emotions, your actions and your words, how and when you take them or whether you take them or not. Everything that we do in life is our choice. Even not choosing, it is actually a choice. Every choice has consequences. Often it's when we don't make those active choices that the consequences are greatest. Yes, we are in uncharted waters.

But it's interesting, isn't it? If you look back over history, there's much we can learn. One of the things that we can learn from history, there's more millionaires are made in times of dire trouble than have ever been made in boom. I'm not talking about properties now. I'm talking legitimate businesses. Why? Because those are the people who have looked for opportunities whilst other people are seeing themselves as victims to circumstances and poor me and what can I do and it's all very difficult. When lightened leaders think, do you know what, I will survive. I don't know how I'm going to succeed. I don't know how. I'm going to look for opportunities and I'm going to be prepared to be flexible. I'm going to be prepared to be resilient. I'm going to stand in my power, where I'm not a victim to this, and please don't think I'm making light of the situation. Anything but.

Russ Johns  5:00  

Yes, 

Gina Gardiner  5:01  

My life experiences have taught me that if you focus on what you can do, and you have a mindset, which is based on, I will succeed, rather than I fear of failure, or even, I will fail, you're going to make a lot of different decisions that are going to serve you well moving forward. 

Russ Johns  5:24  

Yeah,

Gina Gardiner  5:25  

My belief that those people who are who have a vision, who are clear about the fact that they want to lead with and for me, it has to be lead with integrity, model the behaviors that you want from others, and compassion, because I think we lead a world with greater compassion in it, and the courage to do what's right, rather than to go what for what's easy and expedient. Interestingly, these are the principles I've used in my own very successful, organization since 2005, with other organizations, and the interesting thing for me is that people who start to embody being an enlightened leader, find that their businesses are more profitable. They're more productive, better working relationships, better health for everybody, better work life balance, in that they have a life and it's not all about work and making money.

Russ Johns  6:27  

It's interesting, What happens, a terrible thing happens when you take ultimate responsibility for your actions, you have no one else to blame. You become the victor and not the victim. 

Gina Gardiner  6:42  

Absolutely.

Russ Johns  6:44  

As you recognize that change is inevitable, and we're going through it or we might be in the middle of it or we might just be starting that people in leadership roles and people that have Leadership. Leadership is a funny thing because anybody can be a leader, if they choose to be a leader. Setting the example, taking the initiative, taking responsibility for their actions, I think it's really important for us to understand that we're all in a leadership role to some degree right now, in the changes that are taking place. 

Gina Gardiner  7:23  

I would take away that to some degree.

Russ Johns  7:29  

The wisdom, the wisdom, the holiness in our own lives. 

Yes, 

Gina Gardiner  7:35  

Aren't we? We choose to be all we can other people lead our lives. Let me give you an example of our personal life. If you give other people the responsibility of your emotional well being and how often have you heard, he made me angry or she made me upset or I'm frustrated with whoever they can only do that if you give them permission to do that.

Russ Johns  8:00  

Right!

Gina Gardiner  8:01  

Very often by default it is because you don't give yourself permission to be responsible for your own emotions. The same is true of your words. 95% of everything we think, say or do is habitual, does not cross our conscious mind at all. Which, by what people say very often by the tone of voice, or were triggered by the situation and we do things because that's the way we've always done. 

Russ Johns  8:27  

Yeah, that's the way we've always done and that's a dangerous concept to follow. 

Gina Gardiner  8:34  

When you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got. Now, what's fascinating about this situation, if you take away all of the the terrible grief and pain that many people are feeling, and I don't want to make light of that. If you take away that we are being given the universe is offering us an opportunity to rethink to recalibrate, to do things in a somewhat different way. Now not to throw the baby out with the bathwater, let's take the best of what was going on. Let's start to work together differently. I don't know about in states, but one of the things that has been so wonderful about this period of time in the UK, is the way in which people are connecting. Let me give you examples. I was watching television program. This is about four weeks ago, bearing in mind I've been out of the house three times in the last eight weeks. All right. The guy on the television well known actor was saying he lived in the same street for 10 years. The houses are quite close together. It wasn't they had huge properties where they didn't see anybody. He did 10 years and he'd never spoken to any of his neighbors. 10 years. 

Russ Johns  9:56  

10 years and you never talked to his neighbors.

Gina Gardiner  10:01  

Now the in the UK It started off very small that people went out on a Thursday night at 8pm and clapped for the NHS and all of the key workers. It's grown to become something huge. In history, they went out to clap and they started to talk. They now go out regularly and if they've got musical instruments, they go and head during a concert and all that social distancing. He made a real connection with the people that he lives close by to. I mean, eight weeks ago, if I said to you, that people are recognizing and valuing porters in hospitals, cooks in the hospitals, dustbin men. The people whose jobs are vital, you've got no recognition. I mean, I will need you there anytime you got recognition as if you were a football or or sportsman or celebrity? 

Russ Johns  11:01  

Yeah, 

Gina Gardiner  11:02  

How ordinary people doing extraordinary things on a day by day basis, which has always happened to some extent, recognition. 

Russ Johns  11:15  

Isn't it ironic, though, that it takes it a global pandemic for a neighbor to meet another neighbor? 

Gina Gardiner  11:22  

I think it's mind blowing. What I would say to you is, I believe that the universe has so often tried to get us to rethink things, to get rid of our junk values and to start looking at what's really, truly important. It's given us the old Pope, but it's needed to give us a real slap around the face before we start to take notice. It's interesting that the environment is beginning to recover. I hope that what we will take out of this is an opportunity to reflect on what's truly important and to start and people are being incredibly Not everybody, but a far more people are being overtly kind, compassionate, thoughtful, putting themselves out for other people that they may not even know. 

Russ Johns  12:11  

I think there's a lot more empathy being broadcast. There's, and I applaud the caregivers and the first responders and the people that are essential workers that are out there every day doing things and we have to rethink about it's almost like a reset. Don't you feel like it's almost like it's an opportunity to reset how we're thinking and what we're really thinking is important. 

Gina Gardiner  12:42  

I'm smiling because I'm just about to say to just take about where the almost 

Russ Johns  12:47  

Okay. Thank you for pointing that out. 

Gina Gardiner  12:54  

It is an opportunity. 

It's up to us whether we take it. I often hear people To say, Well, I can't do anything about the political situation, it's all too big. Actually, each of us has our part to play. People have heard me speak before will have heard this before. If you think you're too small and insignificant to make a fundamental difference, spend a night in the room with a mosquito. Something very small can make a big difference. As you go out of this pandemic, and as you reemerge if you've been in lockdown, how about you walk past people socially distance of course, that you say hi. How are you? 

Russ Johns  12:56  

Yeah. 

Yeah.

Gina Gardiner  13:43  

How about if you you know, random acts of kindness have been grateful for the things that that we have. We in the Western world have got no idea what it's like for some people who haven't got enough food to eat got no clean water, and then you add the pandemic and they got no chance. We are so well blessed and yet we whinge. We moan, and we do not take leadership of our life and recognizing that we are the common denominator in our lives, and we have so much power to impact positively or not.

Russ Johns  14:24  

Gina, I think that brings up an excellent point that I'd like to expand a little bit for the community here is, some people feel and they've grown up in an environment that they need permission to do almost everything. Sit here, do your job this way, show up on this time, go do this stand in line, be organized and I think there's a lot of people that just need the opportunity to have permission to take ownership of their own life and responsibility for their own life. What do you see in your leadership, in your teaching, in your coaching and being in the community? How do you see that actually being displayed in in tactics or steps? What steps can an individual take to start small where they think, okay, I can be responsible for this piece of my, my life? 

Gina Gardiner  15:29  

I think it's a really interesting question. I think many people if you listen to that voice in your head, whose permission Are you waiting to hear? I've met clients who are 50 60 70 who are still listening to what their parents used to say and whether or not what my parents approve of this. Even when they left that, then it's would my boss approve that? Would my Community approve of that? I'm going to live my life through everybody else's approval rather than mine. I would say that it goes back to enlightened leadership, one of the things about enlightened leadership. I think one of the reasons it's so successful, actually, it's two is one is that people give themselves permission to live in line with their core values. The second part of that is they know what those core values are and out a lot about values. Often you go into an organization and they've got the values on the wall, haven't they, as you walk in,

Russ Johns  16:36  

Nobody can remember what they are.

Gina Gardiner  16:40  

When I'm working with people, it's not just what is the core value, but what are the behaviors that you need to experience in order to know that those values are being met? What are the behaviors you need to engage in in order to know that other people know that you're meeting those values? There's often a mismatch between the but how we need our values met, and how other people need their values met. The enlightened leader has the capacity to create a shared understanding of a what those values are, and what behaviors are required from everybody, no matter what their role in order for those values to not only be met, but to be seen to be met by everyone.

Russ Johns  17:30  

 Yeah, and for everyone to take ownership in that as well. 

Gina Gardiner  17:35  

If you wait for somebody else to tell you, then you're going to miss so many opportunities. It's like you're handing them the purse strings, you're handing them the emotional power to make your decisions for you. Your virtual power. Everything is being handed over to somebody else, which keeps you very, very firmly in victory, because you have to put up with what they give you. 

Russ Johns  18:06  

Yes.

Gina Gardiner  18:07  

That's constructive and positive. Great, but often it isn't. Oh, something very different. I know when you when you talk to people who are in a private situation where they're being abused, for example, verbally, emotionally physically, the problem is that that's what they believe they deserve. If they believed that they deserved better they wouldn't put up with it, they would walk away. It's interesting for me that one of the reasons why the enlightened leadership program has been structured as it has. Half of the enlightened leadership program is about leading the set. The other half is about leading others. If you fall into the work context, and you've got a boss who's bullying you, or you feel that the boss is bullying you. You have a responsibility to do something about that. Now I'm not suggesting that you believe that you can't change other people. You can only change the way in which you react. 

Russ Johns  19:13  

Yeah. Vikki O'Neill had a great one, it's a choice a decision to impact people positively. It's good to see so many people helping others during this time. I think it's important to understand that there's still a lot of change that we can take ownership on, there's a lot of change that we're working through. Like you said, the planet is is even changing. As we reset, and we have an opportunity to be different, act different, and and help others be seen as being different. I think there's a lot of people that are working together in order to take ownership of their own life and the lives of other people around them. Encouragement, empathy, like we were talking about, I think there's so many things that we can actually do. I really, I'm a proponent of kindness, there's generosity. I believe that #smilesarefree, take one down, pass it around and it's really a simple act. Like you said, random act of kindness is, and it's a simple thing that is so powerful, and you don't know what change is going to be placed in someone's life. If you can just be kind and a compliment, or open a door or do something productive and positive in their life. It can change the day, the way they feel about the day and the way the outcome of their their week. 

Gina Gardiner  20:47  

I think that is so powerful. You know, I was working with one of the companies that I work with consistently and I do their training, customer service training. One of the things that they We talked about this he never know what's going on in anybody's life. 

Russ Johns  21:05  

Right. 

Gina Gardiner  21:06  

By the way in which you noted someone and truly see the and the in smile, make contact with them and say hi, how are you and actually wait for an answer. You may be the only person that I've spoken to all day, not recognizing that you do value them, and you may not know them and you may never meet them again. Here human being to human being, you can make that contact that interaction means something. 

Russ Johns  21:38  

Yeah, Sherry lolly posted. We can always help someone. 

Gina Gardiner  21:44  

Absolutely true. Isn't it interesting how by helping someone that we help ourselves, but I was given a very, very salutary lesson in 2006 about helping. I've always loved helping people. It's been my life.

Russ Johns  22:00  

Yeah. 

Gina Gardiner  22:00  

I've always found it easy to ask for help and receive it. 

Russ Johns  22:04  

Oh,

Gina Gardiner  22:08  

Just share this story with you. I was on a course in in California and I was working with a partner. We were talking about helping and how lovely it wants to help other people. You may not know but I'm a wheelchair user, I ran an award winning school for 20 years from my wheelchair. In 2006 when this happened, and I was not as I'm now can walk short distances, but at that time, I was pretty well wheelchair bound. My partner said to me, you know, you say you find it hard to help. He got quite stroppy with me. How dare you really enjoy helping other people and not give them then the opportunity to feel that good about helping you. I listened to this but then the course was over and I had another couple of days Before I flew back to the United Kingdom. I went off to do some Christmas shopping was December, and I went off in my wheelchair. I'd hide in a big electric wheelchair went off shopping came back to the hotel, and the hotel was like a mile long drive that was very steep. About a third of the way up the drive. The wheelchair conked out he had run out of battery. 

Russ Johns  23:22  

Oh, no. 

Gina Gardiner  23:24  

Now, I wasn't with anybody. There was nobody around. My mobile phone wasn't working. There was no connection. I thought, What do I do now? A taxi ride coming up the drive and the gentleman got out didn't speak much English, but he could sink the problem. He parked his taxi and he started to try and push my wheelchair up the hill. Not easy. Then a couple minutes later, another taxi arrived and there were three people in the car and he waved them down explain the problem and they started to push him pushing each other and so this went on until by the time I got back to the to the hotel foyer, there was 17 people pushing my wheelchair. I was a complete spectacle. They taught me the lesson that each of those despite the fact that they were exhausted in pushing my wheelchair up hill, they had done something which made them feel good. They went away feeling that they had done something. Please, when you're talking about helping other people, that it's just as important to receive graciously. 

Russ Johns  24:33  

That's absolutely important. It's absolutely critical. Gina, I really love the fact that you're sharing these these stories with us, this wisdom and experience that we all have to share and going forward in our life. It's amazing to me to think that if we're really aware of our surroundings and what's going on and willing to open up the idea that we can offer help and assistance, and we can receive it. It's a two way street. Like Vicki O'Neill, she said, I love helping people. And I agree. It's very hard for me to ask others for help. I'm not really sure what that's about in and we may have to have another episode for to talk about why it's so challenging. It's really one of those things that a lot of people don't ask for help. They even when they're desperate, they don't ask for help. I think it's a lot a lot has a lot to do with our pride and our, you know, ego gets in the way and it's like, why wouldn't we allow someone the opportunity to, to assist us in when we need it most. I think there are so many people helping each other out in the in these times right now.

Gina Gardiner  26:03  

I think it's a poor sense of self worth I don't deserve is a big part of the reason. And I think people are frightened to being rejected. What if they say no. without getting emotionally entangled with the outcome, so somebody says, I'm really sorry, I haven't got time. See, that is the reaction, but just simply that they haven't got time. 

Russ Johns  26:28  

Yeah. 

Gina Gardiner  26:29  

If you are poor sense of self worth, then that can be a bit tricky. Everything starts with you, the relationship you have with you, is absolutely vital. It's reflected in the relationship that you have with everybody else, and also the way in which you interact with the world. 

Russ Johns  26:48  

It comes full circle. 

It does. It starts with us responsibility, ownership, self awareness, understanding. Spend some time with yourself today thinking about how you can actually improve. Take responsibility. I think this is a time right now where we can improve our skills, our awareness our understanding our empathy our compassion.

Gina Gardiner  27:22  

I agree with you wholeheartedly.

Russ Johns  27:24  

Yeah. I love the fact that we're here Gina and talking and this time goes by so quickly. Thank you so much for being flexible and being on here and I look forward to future conversations. I really appreciate you and what you're doing and how do people how's the best way for people to connect with you because 

Gina Gardiner  27:48  

Thank you, and my websites, the two websites genuinely-you.com that's genuinely dash, the word you calm, and you can find lots of free stuff but also my programs for personal development, and leadership, but if you're particularly interested as a business owner or leader, and you want to become an enlightened leader, and use this time to really get yourself into a strong position, go to enlightenedleadership.co that's enlightened leadership calm, and you can contact me through the website or at ginagenuinely-you very happy to answer you. 

Russ Johns  28:24  

I think you're on LinkedIn as well. 

Gina Gardiner  28:26  

I am indeed, yes. Genuinely you Facebook, lots of places to find me. 

Russ Johns  28:32  

Thank you so much. As you know, #kindnessiscool and #smilesarefree. You #enjoyyourday. Thank you so much, Gina. Appreciate you. 

Gina Gardiner  28:43  

My pleasure. Thank you very much for having me.

Russ Johns  28:47  

Thank you for joining the #piratebroadcast. If you found this content valuable. Please like comment and share it across your social media channels. I would love the opportunity to help others grow in their business. #ThePiratessyndicate is a platform where you show up we produce the show. It's that easy. If you want to be seen, be heard and be talked about, join #thepiratesyndicate today.

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