People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

Summary
In this episode, Andy sits down with Tom Rath, one of the most respected researchers on wellbeing and human potential, author of What's the Point? Turning Your Purpose Into a Superpower. Tom argues that we can be incredibly busy while slowly drifting away from what matters most, optimizing our schedules while our lives quietly leak away.
Andy and Tom explore why "follow your passion" can be harmful advice, how status seeking becomes career quicksand, and why our smartphones may be one of the greatest threats to purposeful living. They also discuss how many of us inherit ambitions from our parents that we never consciously chose, and how an honest awareness of mortality can sharpen our clarity, intentionality, and sense of purpose. Rather than treating purpose as one grand calling, Tom reframes it as something we create in small moments throughout the day.
If you're looking for a practical, and honestly a little uncomfortable, guide to leading and living with more purpose, this episode is for you!
Sound Bites
"Here's what I know with absolute certainty: you're wasting most of your day. Not because you're lazy, but because you've never asked the right question. You're so busy being busy that you've forgotten to ask why. You're optimizing your schedule while your life leaks away, hour by hour in meetings that don't matter and tasks that won't be remembered next week, let alone next year."
"If you fail to do those things in a day and take that initiative and have those meaningful and purposeful conversations, and you put those off until tomorrow, tomorrow never really comes because we get into that responsive mode."
"Passion by definition starts with you, and it's a little self-oriented, whereas I would argue purpose by definition has an other orientation to it, which is a much better idea for anchoring your energy in a day."
"If you're not connecting back with the impact that it made on one person that day, it fails to kind of count in the way we motivate ourselves and think about our work on a daily basis."
"I would argue that 90% of the purpose in life is built in those moments, not in some epiphany on a sunny day."
"I would estimate that at least 80% of people, maybe 90%, make it all the way to the very end of their career in their life without ever seeing what they could have been best at in life."
"Even as managers and leaders, if we don't take care of our own health and wellbeing first, we just have no shot at even being our best for other people that we manage."
"There's always someone making twice as much as you or 10 times as much as you, and there's always somebody with more followers or more listeners or more readers or whatever it might be."
"The eulogy virtues are about what am I doing today so I'll be a better dad, a better husband, a better friend, to help readers, to help people with the products I'm working on."
"I would argue that 80% of people I see out in public today, out in the wild, are essentially working for their smartphone."
"Their smartphone's running their life, and they're the ones salivating like one of Pavlov's dogs every time the darn thing blinks or buzzes or vibrates, right?"
"Having your phone out sends an implicit message to the other person that the little black box on the table matters more than the other person, and it degrades the quality of the conversation."
"The one thing we've all got in common is we have today to try and do some things that serve a purpose and help another person, and if you miss that opportunity, it's gone."
"None of them, none of the headstones say anything about those kind of resume virtues that we were talking about."
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
02:00 Start of Interview
02:08 Busy, Yet Drifting from What Matters
05:50 Rethinking the "One True Calling"
07:38 Why "Follow Your Passion" Can Backfire
09:26 From "What Do I Do?" to "Who Do I Help?"
11:20 How Our Parents' Paths Shape Us
12:11 When Admirable Influence Becomes a Limiting Script
15:01 Unlearning the "Always the Hardest Worker" Mindset
16:55 Are We Nudging Our Kids Into Our Dreams?
19:23 Status Seeking as Career Quicksand
22:02 Choosing Your Own Scoreboard
23:38 Smartphones and the Threat to Purpose
26:28 Making Technology Work for You
28:05 How Mortality Sharpens Purpose
30:52 What the Headstones Don't Say
32:33 Helping Kids Build Lives That Matter
35:21 End of Interview
35:48 Andy Comments After the Interview
40:20 Outtakes
Learn More
You can learn more about Tom and his new book at tomrath.org/whats-the-point.
For more learning on this topic, check out:
Episode 132 with Tom Rath. An earlier conversation with Tom, digging into his story and his research on wellbeing.
Episode 140 with Tom Rath. Another previous discussion with Tom on wellness and living with strengths.
Episode 31 with Adam Grant. Adam's first-ever podcast interview, where he shares insights on how to lead with meaning.
Episode 261 with David Epstein. A conversation about his book Range, a helpful complement on career decisions for kids and for us.
Chat with PMeLa
You can chat directly with PMeLa—the podcast's AI persona—to get episode recommendations and answers to your project management and leadership questions. Visit PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/PMeLa to chat with her.
Join Us for LEAD52
I know you want to be a more confident leader–that's why you listen to this podcast. LEAD52 is a global community of people like you who are committed to transforming their ability to lead and deliver. It's 52 weeks of leadership learning, delivered right to your inbox, taking less than 5 minutes a week. And it's all for free. Learn more and sign up at GetLEAD52.com. Thanks!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!
Talent Triangle: Business Acumen
Topics: Purpose, Leadership, Career Development, Passion, Wellbeing, Intentionality, Status, Comparison, Digital Distraction, Mortality, Parenting, Meaningful Work, Project Management
The following music was used for this episode:
Music: Summer Awakening by Frank Schroeter
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Music: Tuesday by Sascha Ende
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Summary
In this episode, Andy sits down with Attia Qureshi, a coach and negotiation expert who is co-author, with John Richardson, of Never Settle. There's no shortage of great negotiation advice out there, yet in real conversations with real stakes and real emotions, that advice often fails to turn into action. This book tackles that gap between insight and habit.
Attia shares why emotions are not a distraction from negotiation but central to it, why getting clear about what you actually want is harder than it sounds, and how we leave value on the table without realizing it. You'll hear practical stories, from resetting a difficult relationship with a glass of lemonade to expanding the pie in a salary negotiation, plus small daily exercises for building resilience to rejection and learning to say no in a way that strengthens relationships rather than damaging them.
If you're looking for practical, doable ways to become a more confident negotiator and influencer, this episode is for you!
Sound Bites
"You can get more by caring about what the other person needs and building a strong relational foundation."
"People are not born amazing negotiators. They develop that skill over time, just like people are not born confident."
"You have to practice that small step out in the real world where the stakes are low and build that skill day after day, month after month."
"You and I have probably already negotiated half a dozen times today."
"When someone gives us something, we want to return the favor."
"New studies now show that 90 to 95% of decision-making comes from unconscious emotional processing."
"So many of us quit before we even start."
"But if we do have a goal and we do prepare for the conversation, our likelihood of success is double."
"A good negotiation doesn't always mean getting 'yes' at the end of it."
"I always tell my students, people can almost always help you. It depends on if they want to or not."
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
02:06 Start of Interview
02:17 Growing Up: Early Lessons in Conflict
07:10 Negotiation and Confidence Are Skills, Not Personality
08:04 Life Is Full of Everyday Negotiations
10:30 Why Negotiation Training Often Fails
12:30 Resetting a Difficult Relationship
17:20 Influence vs. Manipulation
22:33 Emotions, Fear, and Building Resilience
28:00 Using the Emotion Wheel
29:36 Getting Clear on What You Really Want
33:39 Expanding the Pie: Creating Value
40:50 The Power of Saying No
47:27 Teaching Kids to Negotiate
51:23 End of Interview
51:55 Andy Comments After the Interview
55:22 Outtakes
Learn More
You can learn more about Attia and her work at AttiaQureshi.com.
For more learning on this topic, check out:
Episode 157 with Dr. Robert Cialdini. Known as the godfather of influence, his name came up several times during today's discussion, making this a great follow-up.
Episode 412 with Scott Walker. A former Scotland Yard hostage negotiator who shares a lot of practical lessons about influence.
Episode 385 with Vanessa Patrick. She wrote one of the best books on how to say no, a fitting companion to today's conversation.
Chat with PMeLa
You can chat directly with PMeLa—the podcast's AI persona—to get episode recommendations and answers to your project management and leadership questions. Visit PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/PMeLa to chat with her.
Join Us for LEAD52
I know you want to be a more confident leader–that's why you listen to this podcast. LEAD52 is a global community of people like you who are committed to transforming their ability to lead and deliver. It's 52 weeks of leadership learning, delivered right to your inbox, taking less than 5 minutes a week. And it's all for free. Learn more and sign up at GetLEAD52.com. Thanks!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!
Talent Triangle: Power Skills
Topics: Negotiation, Influence, Leadership, Project Management, Reciprocity, Emotional Intelligence, Resilience, Saying No, Stakeholder Management, Relationship Building, Value Creation, Confidence
The following music was used for this episode:
Music: Quantum Sparks (Full Version) by MusicLFiles
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Music: Tropical Vibe by WinnieTheMoog
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Summary
In this episode, Andy sits down with Fred Marshall, entrepreneur, founder of Quantum Learning, and author of Thrive: The Antidote to Future Shock. Fred introduces his Super Eight, eight interconnected areas of life that shape our ability to adapt, lead, and grow in a world of accelerating change.
Together, they explore why doing all the seemingly right things, the endless life hacks, can still leave you feeling off. Fred makes the case that attention is the single variable that governs almost everything, and that you can ignore almost all of the change coming at you and still thrive. You'll hear about managing your neural net, guarding your time with two 90-minute focus blocks, clearing the open loops that clog your thinking, and choosing the relationships and ecosystems that lift you up. Fred also walks through PANDA, a simple five-step method inspired by a panda that helps you stop a mental spiral and regain focus.
If you're looking for a practical, hopeful way to lead through an age of AI and constant change, this episode is for you!
Sound Bites
"You can ignore almost all of it."
"So everything, everything you look at, every book you read, every text you read, everything you do is shaping your neural net."
"If you look at that rock, you're gonna hit that rock."
"Two 90-minute blocks a day is my new normal."
"If you want time to go fast, turn on your computer, open your iPad, or look at your phone."
"An open loop is something that needs to get done, that's not done yet, that's still taking up space in your head."
"The worst thing is to think of something when you can't act on it."
"The people you surround yourself with have an enormous impact on your life and how you think and how everything unfolds, and it's probably the most important choice you make is who you hang out with."
"If you develop relationships with people in a growing ecosystem, you're gonna have a great career, you're gonna have a great life."
"I want to prepare people so that it's, it's more of surfing a big wave rather than getting overwhelmed by a tsunami."
"And I think if you're in your head and you're spiraling, getting out of your head and into action is how you really close the loop."
"But if you can just stop for a second and give that person your full attention, even if it's just for a minute, it's so powerful."
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
01:47 Start of Interview
02:00 Getting to Know Fred
04:29 What Most People Get Wrong About Change
06:29 Designing Your Life
08:03 The Life Hack Paradox
08:34 Attention: The Single Variable
10:20 The Super Eight and the Neural Net
13:00 Guarding Your Time: Fred 3.0
15:38 Take Care of Your Cells
16:09 Rethinking Sleep and Open Loops
17:46 Minimum Viable Exercise
21:23 The PANDA Method
26:22 Designing Your Relationships
28:32 Riding Growing Ecosystems
31:00 Building Systems for the Future
34:12 Applying It at Home
36:48 End of Interview
37:19 Andy Comments After the Interview
40:32 Outtakes
Learn More
You can learn more about Fred and his work at thrivefutureyou.com.
For more learning on this topic, check out:
Episode 437 with Nada Sanders. A conversation about future-prepping your career in the age of AI.
Episode 382 with Hal Hershfield. Ideas from his book Your Future Self that remain completely relevant to our times today.
Episode 313 with futurist Brian David Johnson. A discussion that changed how Andy thinks about trying to predict the future.
Chat with PMeLa
You can chat directly with PMeLa—the podcast's AI persona—to get episode recommendations and answers to your project management and leadership questions. Visit PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/PMeLa to chat with her.
Join Us for LEAD52
I know you want to be a more confident leader–that's why you listen to this podcast. LEAD52 is a global community of people like you who are committed to transforming their ability to lead and deliver. It's 52 weeks of leadership learning, delivered right to your inbox, taking less than 5 minutes a week. And it's all for free. Learn more and sign up at GetLEAD52.com. Thanks!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!
Talent Triangle: Power Skills
Topics: Artificial Intelligence, Change Management, Leadership, Attention, Focus, Productivity, Resilience, Relationships, Systems Thinking, Future of Work
The following music was used for this episode:
Music: Imagefilm 034 by Sascha Ende
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Music: Fashion Corporate by Frank Schroeter
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Summary
In this episode, Andy sits down with Cornelia Choe, leadership advisor and founder of global CEO peer groups, author of The Panoramic Leader: How Great Leaders See Differently, co-authored with Marshall Goldsmith. Cornelia's core idea is that the "mental maps" we form early in life quietly shape how we lead today, and that our decisions are only as good as the world we're actually able to see.
Andy and Cornelia explore why so many new executives fail within their first 18 months, what she calls a visibility problem rather than an execution problem. They dig into practical tools: microtranslations for sharing ideas others can absorb, optimistic fear that lets us move forward without ignoring real risk, and the balcony-and-dance-floor balance of perspective and proximity. Cornelia also shares how getting up close to stakeholders, and even to her own kids, opens up options we couldn't see before.
If you're looking for practical ways to see more clearly and make better decisions in an uncertain world, this episode is for you!
Sound Bites
"And the truth is, sometimes the problem is not that we lack data, it's that we're not seeing broadly enough."
"And if you truly believe something, stick with it, keep it on your map, and have the courage to go through with it."
"But the problem is it's no longer enough to be right in today's world, and having an incomplete picture is just as dangerous as getting it wrong."
"Optimistic fear is the ability to keep the risks and the danger in mind, yet to still go forward and to use our fear to fuel our momentum going forward."
"We don't need to have everything solved, but just getting up close can reward us with a lot of options."
"I mean, in some ways you could argue that our brain's autopilot is not a bug, it's a feature."
"You don't have to accept everything you hear or everything your stakeholders tell you, but we do need to think about it and, in a thoughtful way, choose to accept it or not."
"And in a world that's constantly changing, this is going to be an even more crucial skill because your decisions are only as good as the world you see, and the most successful leaders learn to see more in today's world."
"It's just a good reminder to me that a smart, well-intentioned person can see situations quite differently."
"Our identity is created by the people around us, the people who share their perspectives with, and the perspectives that we allow to become part of our mental maps."
"I heard someone once say that we're all driven by just a few lines of code that run in the background, and as a former software developer, I can relate to that."
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
01:48 Start of Interview
02:00 How Early Life Experiences Shape Our Maps
07:50 Why New Executives Fail in the First 18 Months
12:20 Microtranslations
16:01 Optimistic Fear vs. Pessimistic Fear
21:53 Keeping Curiosity Alive and Getting Off Autopilot
25:59 How We React When Our Map Is Challenged
29:25 The Balcony and the Dance Floor
34:41 How Our Circles Shape and Narrow Our Maps
38:33 Panoramic Leadership at Home
41:20 End of Interview
41:57 Andy Comments After the Interview
45:00 Outtakes
Learn More
You can learn more about Cornelia and her work at substack.com/@corneliachoe.
For more learning on this topic, check out:
Episode 489 with Marty Dubin. It's a book about blind spots and how they can easily derail us, an excellent complement to this discussion.
Episode 318 with John Stepper. He's the author of Working Out Loud, and his approach to developing people has a lot of similarities to the leader circles that Cornelia runs.
Episode 54 with Roger L. Martin. Roger is often in the top 10 of the Thinkers50, and we talk about how you can hold opposing ideas at the same time, very aligned with this book.
Chat with PMeLa
You can chat directly with PMeLa—the podcast's AI persona—to get episode recommendations and answers to your project management and leadership questions. Visit PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/PMeLa to chat with her.
Pass the PMP Exam
If you or someone you know is thinking about getting PMP certified, we've put together a helpful guide called The 5 Best Resources to Help You Pass the PMP Exam on Your First Try. We've helped thousands of people earn their certification, and we'd love to help you too. It's totally free, and it's a great way to get a head start.
Just go to 5BestResources.PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com to grab your copy. I'd love to help you get your PMP this year!
Join Us for LEAD52
I know you want to be a more confident leader–that's why you listen to this podcast. LEAD52 is a global community of people like you who are committed to transforming their ability to lead and deliver. It's 52 weeks of leadership learning, delivered right to your inbox, taking less than 5 minutes a week. And it's all for free. Learn more and sign up at GetLEAD52.com. Thanks!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!
Talent Triangle: Power Skills
Topics: Leadership, Decision-Making, Mental Models, Stakeholder Engagement, Perspective, Curiosity, Self-Awareness, Change, Psychological Safety, Executive Effectiveness, Project Management
The following music was used for this episode:
Music: Brooklyn Nights by Tim Kulig
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Music: Energetic Drive Indie Rock by WinnieTheMoog
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license