Podcast: Michael Gelb, Genius Thinking for Better Workplaces

One of our most impactful stories illustrating Barry-Wehmiller’s philosophy of responsible freedom is that of Jimmy, who works in our BW Papersystems company.

You can read the full story in a past post. To summarize, at one point it had been so long since anyone actually listened to Jimmy, he stopped giving his ideas or suggestions and was written off as “lazy.” That was wrong in so many ways. When we finally invited him to share his thoughts, it revolutionized not only his personal satisfaction, but also the efficiency of his work. It became more fulfilling for him and a more productive part of our business.

True leaders create space for individuals to be passionate about their work and feel a sense of ownership. Nobody wants to be managed, bossed or supervised. We must inspire creativity in our people. Those ideas are the backbone of a culture of continuous improvement and a culture where people feel like they matter.

Michael Gelb has been applying the principles of genius thinking to personal, leadership and organizational development for more than 40 years. He has worked to inspire creativity in the workplace and his journey has led him to my friend and Everybody Matters co-author, Raj Sisodia. This fall, they will release a new book, The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World.

Michael joins Brent Stewart and Mary Rudder on this week’s Everybody Matters Podcast to talk about inspiration, creativity and how that leads to helping people in organization feel like they matter.