👋 Howdy to the 761 new legends who joined this week! You are now part of a 16,487 person tribe flexing their cerebral horsepower together.

COMING IN HOT TODAY 🔥

🦄 How to coach a unicorn: Executive coach Jamie Bunn!
🧠 Applying a growth mindset: A great resource to up-level.
🚙 Breaking down the rise of Porsche: A banger listen.

If you’re interested in sponsoring these emails you can see our different partnership options here.

PARTNERS 💫

HOUSEKEEPING 📨

A quick piece of housekeeping from me is that we are getting ready to launch on Open Source CEO on Product Hunt. Head across to our page and give it a follow so you can upvote it when it goes live.

We are going live next Thursday and we will need your support make it to #1 for the day! Thanks fam!

LEADER OF THE WEEK 🎙

This week’s leader is someone I know quite well, my old executive coach, Jamie Bunn. Jamie and I worked together for a year or so while I was getting Athyna off the ground and still in Melbourne (I live in Buenos Aires right now) and if it weren’t for the move, we’d still likely be working together today.

I want to start by saying, I believe in coaches like Jamie. They can bring the best out of you in multiple ways. They share best practices, strategies and tactics they have seen in the past, act as a sounding board to your best (and worst) ideas … and they hold you accountable.

A great exec coach is like a school teacher that you love. One that you always remember fondly and can actively recall all the learnings they gave you. Jamie was that for me. And I hope we work together again in the future.

Anyway, without further fanfare, let’s dive into the mind of Jamie and the mind of a high performance coach.

Jamie Bunn - Executive Coach

Jamie is a battle-tested performance and leadership coach. He style infuses discipline and strategy into his work with CEOs and founders. Two decades in business & tech (including his own start-up success and a 2000 tech bubble burst lesson) have given Jamie a unique grasp on the challenges of modern leadership.

He has dual Undergrad Degrees in Business and Org Psychology, a dual Masters in Nutrition and Management, Nutritionist Certification by the Nutrition Society of Australia, Professional Coaching Certification by former Australian New Zealand Institute Coaching, and affiliate membership with Harvard's Institute of Coaching.

Jamie has worked with early stage founders all the way to execs at companies as large as Atlassian, fusing business know-how with psychology and health finesse.

What is your main day-to-day job as an executive coach?

In my role as an executive coach, my primary daily task is to guide and empower high-level leaders, such as CEOs, Chief People Officers, and startup founders, using a blend of performance and leadership coaching. I work closely with my clients, helping them enhance their strategic thinking, leadership skills and overall performance.

During a typical one hour coaching session, we identify strengths, address challenges, and work to unlock potential.

I provide coaching that uses insights from business dynamics, psychology, health, and neuroscience, with the aim to help these successful people achieve even more in their careers.

Explain your philosophy around leadership? How do you think about it? How do you train it?

Leadership, from a coaching perspective, is the art of guiding people towards their full potential. It is a blend of strategic thinking, effective communication, and emotional intelligence. And a strong leader has a good understanding of human behavior and motivation.

For me, leadership isn't only holding a position of authority, but inspiring and empowering others to excel. It's using your own strengths, leading by example, and helping foster growth of those around you. This approach aligns with Transformational Leadership Theory. The act of inspiring and elevating the performance of your team through a shared vision and purpose.

Training leadership involves integrating both self-awareness and skill development. By improving self-awareness, leaders get insights into their strengths, weaknesses, values, and leadership style. This self-awareness, influenced by Buddhism, is the foundation for authentic and compassionate leadership.

To train leadership, I use models like Situational Leadership Theory and Primal Leadership Model. I focus on improving communication to convey vision, fostering empathy to build strong relationships, and building resilience to navigate challenges. Mindfulness practices, again from Buddhism, also play a role making sure leaders remain present and able them to make balanced decisions.

My training is unique to each leader's context and aspirations. I use experiential learning, interactive exercises, and real-life case studies, simulating real-world of leadership.

Nutrition also influences my training. There is a strong connection between physical well-being and leadership effectiveness. Neuroscience research also. I encourage leaders to embrace a growth mindset, adopting continuous learning and adapting to evolving challenges.

Leadership to me is simple. Strategy, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and a dedication to guiding others towards excellence.

What is culture? What do you see in the best culture builders?

I view culture through the lens that Edgar Schein proposed. Shared assumptions, articulated values, and visible artifacts shape an organization's character and interactions. Culture is an ecosystem that influences how we collaborate, make decisions, and contribute to the organization's goals.

The best culture builders have a strong grasp of human dynamics and organizational psychology. They cultivate an environment where authenticity, inclusiveness, and a common purpose can thrive. These leaders promote open communication while nurturing trust and psychological safety. Drawing further from Schein's Culture Model, they align their culture with their strategic objectives, making sure to integrate assumptions, values, and behaviors.

In coaching culture builders, I bring together empathy and strategic foresight. Mindfulness practices, again, are a cornerstone. Mindfulness leafs to self-awareness. And self-awareness leafs to active listening. Meaning leaders are attune to their teams' needs, enhancing relationships and mutual understanding.

These leaders use empathy and manage emotions effectively. This creates an environment that inspire collaboration and innovation. Positive psychology-based team strengths profiling is another asset to a leader. Applying the Basadur Profile to team dynamics during problem-solving, enhances creativity and creates an environment of collective ownership.

The best culture builders understand people. And they embody, understand, and exploit the assumptions, values, and behaviors inside an organization’s culture. Great culture builders also combine emotional and social intelligence, fostering a trust, collaboration, and shared vision.

How do you set goals? What is the framework you go to?

I view goal-setting somewhat unconventionally. I combine Self-Determination Theory (SDT), Peter Drucker's Management by Objectives (MBO) and my own Vision, Mission, and Mastery Path framework when setting goals. This approach crafts an great system for integrated goal-setting.

At the heart is Self-Determination Theory. A prominent psychological framework that underscores intrinsic motivation, autonomy, and competence. Infused with my Vision, Mission, and Mastery Path framework, this approach aligns personal and organizational aspirations, fostering a sense of purpose that resonates with CEOs and founders seeking holistic success.

Drawing from Drucker's MBO, I contextualize goals within a broader strategic vision. Goals, objectives, and targets are milestones on the journey towards organizational mastery. Considering both the individual and the collective transcends the simplistic, non-integrated nature of most goal-setting approaches. Those that often lack the depth needed for true success.

So, how do I set goals? It starts by building a vision that resonates with the values of the organization and its leaders. From there, we map out a mission & vision in actionable terms. This mission is broken down into mastery paths - different phases that encompass strategic objectives. These objectives empower individuals and teams to take ownership and exhibit their competence.

In summary, goal-setting harmonizes intrinsic motivation, strategic alignment, and progressive mastery.

What recommendations do you have for making great decisions?

Making great decisions requires a blend of methodologies. I like to leverage the Eisenhower Matrix, Complexity vs. Impact Matrix, and the Basadur Problem Solving Method, and others for making great and impactful decisions.

Firstly though, you need to have strategic alignment. Begin with your overarching vision, mission, and mastery paths. Ensure the decision aligns with your long-term goals and resonates with the core values of your organization.

Next you can also utilize the Eisenhower Matrix to categorize tasks based on their urgency and importance. This matrix aids in prioritizing day-to-day decisions, allowing you to focus on high-impact task that really move the needle. Not all decisions are equal; some demand immediate attention, while others contribute more profoundly to your long-term success.

I also like to employ the Complexity vs. Impact Matrix to assess the complexity of each decision against its potential impact. This matrix helps you differentiate between decisions that require a deeper analysis due to their complexity and those that, despite their simplicity, could generate substantial returns. Balancing complexity and impact ensures efficient allocation of resources.

For hyper-complex decisions, the Basadur Problem Solving Method works well. This four-step approach—generating, conceptualizing, optimizing, and implementing—encourages diverse thinking styles and collaborative problem-solving. Engage your team to gather diverse perspectives, fostering innovative solutions that encompass both creativity and feasibility.

In my opinion, making exceptional decisions as a CEO or Founder involves an intricate blend of these methodologies. By using the tight tools, you can navigate complexity, prioritize effectively, and drive your organization towards sustained success.

What does it mean to be at peak performance for a leader?

To me, being at the pinnacle of performance means mastery of yourself, your team and your environment. However, you can’t hit peak performance until you have some of the fundamental needs met, akin to those explored by Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. In this case, the Leadership Hierarchy of Needs.

On top of these foundational needs are the flow state requirements, which I again break down into self, team, and environment. Reaching peak performance as a leader is like conducting a symphony, where each note must resonate in harmony to create a masterpiece.

I also believe that leaders operating at their best have a profound commitment to a growth mindset. Leaders who perceive challenges as opportunities for growth and learning empower not only themselves, but also their teams to push boundaries and innovate. This avoids creating a shaming and blaming culture, and definitely links back to the question earlier about how to create a great culture.

Great leadership both achieves and transcends conventional metrics of success. They, and their team, are able to reach a state of flow on a regular basis, and certainly when it matters most. They embody high EQ and primal leadership, they show extreme agility and adaptability, they embrace a growth mindset and consequently create dedicated and talented followers.

How do leaders enable those around them to excel?

Leaders need to demonstrate both robustness and resilience in themselves, and hence ‘walk the walk’, whilst supporting their team to do the same. Successful leaders also understand that fostering excellence requires more than just managerial directives and supervision. It involves nurturing a culture of empowerment and shared vision, all while recognizing the profound impact of emotional intelligence.

Enabling those around them takes all of the above, plus a deep understanding of how a culture works and how to influence without drawing on authority too excessively. The cultural climate set by the leader needs to be self-sustaining as much as it needs to be cultivated. This takes unbelievable finesse and insight into both human nature and team dynamics.

One of the fundamental tenets of enabling excellence is creating an environment where psychological safety flourishes. The model proposed by Amy Edmondson resonates deeply here. When team members feel secure in voicing ideas, asking questions, and taking calculated risks, innovation thrives. By acknowledging and valuing diverse perspectives, you, as a leader, tap into a reservoir of untapped potential.

So, to finish with actual hacks that readers can use, I suggest using both the Basadur Profile tool and any reputable strength finder profile tools. By understanding and validating team members’ problem-solving styles and strengths, leaders immediately create psychological safety as well as the platform for the team to excel. With this self and social awareness in place, it allows for the Leaders and their teams to self-manage themselves and Socially Influence each other.

Immediately the team is moved steadily up the Leadership Hierarchy of Needs and the pursuit of individual and team flow state can begin.

And that's it! You can follow Jamie here and apply to work with him here.

COMMUNITY HALL OF FAME 🌮

As we pass 1000 downloads on our Gumroad store, I’d like to take a moment to shout out one Robert Jacques. Robert was the first person to make a $1 payment in our store a few months back.

This is important because still as of today, all of our tools are free. No payment required.

But the man, the myth, the legend Robert Jacques said ‘hold my beer’, whipping out his card and paying a one time payment of 100 cents into the coffers of our business.

You are a good man Robert Jacques, you crazy bastard. And today we proudly welcome you as the 3rd member of our Open Source CEO Hall of Fame. 👑 

BRAIN FOOD 🧠 

Tuned into another standout episode of Huberman Lab this week. How to Enhance Performance & Learning by Applying a Growth Mindset is a gem for anyone interested in health and fitness, with its unique perspective on leveraging a growth mindset for personal development.

Kudos to the bearded wonder-man, Andrew Huberman, for consistently raising the bar.

ASK ME ANYTHING 🗣

I want to be a trusted resource for you. If you think anything I know in relation to brand, culture, global teams, sales and growth would help you unblock a problem in you weeks shoot me a line.

Ask in the comments or reply to this email and I will do my best to answer it in a future edition. 🙌🏼

HOW I CAN HELP 🥳

Here are the options I have for us to work together. If any of them are interesting to you - hit me up!

🌏 Hiring global talent: Check out my startup Athyna.
🧰 Want to outperform the competition: See our suite of tools & resources.
👀 Reach thousands of tech leaders: Advertise with us here.

And that’s it! Feel free to reply to this email and spill your thoughts in a deeper more personal way as I'd love to hear what you thought of this edition.

See you next time. ✌️