When work is better life is betterTM

Better@Work podcast is your new best friend at work. It’s packed with honest, practical advice and science-backed techniques from a diverse range of guests to help you achieve betterness in your work, and life.

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Cathal Quinlan, Better@Work founder

Why it matters

We spend a lot of our time at work, and so much of our energy, creativity and self worth is invested in our careers.

I get a real buzz out of helping people be better and happier at work. I share with you simple tips, practical tools and smart ideas that have helped me. 

In my podcast I talk to the ‘go-to’ people who have influenced my working life, including world-leading behavioural psychologists, neuroscientists and performance gurus. I ask them to reveal their professional insights as well as their personal stories of working life (good and bad). And I’m never shy in sharing my own experiences and mistakes!

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Hi. I’m Cathal (ka-hal)

I’m Cathal Quinlan. I’ve spent twenty years driving transformation within global organisations from the leading global investment bank Goldman Sachs to Australia’s oldest bank Westpac. I love leading teams, I’m a brain science hack scavenger hunter and I thrive on resolving workplace dilemmas. 

What I love most of all is helping people do better and be better. Creative yet organised, caring yet candid, I’m often told that my high-energy personality differs from the ‘normal’ corporate types. This has helped me solve problems in different ways. Deeply understanding human relationships, personalities and motivations is the key to leading significant change in people and teams.

Who am I?
Headshot of Cathal, founder of Better@Work

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📣 Our latest Better@Work podcast episode is out NOW

🎙Episode 16 - How to be an Extraordinary Leader Using The Science of Trust with Joe Folkman

🔎 Search 'better at work' wherever you get your podcasts from.

🤔 Do you want to be an extraordinary leader today at work?
Joe Folkman gives us the SMALLEST leadership behaviour change with the LARGEST impact.

⚖️ I have personally always found TRUST to be so critical at work, I need to trust my boss, my team and the company. From my experience without trust progress slows down, ideas are not shared and relationships break down. Joe's extensive research shows that out of hundreds of behaviours that influence trust, only THREE can account for the vast difference in the impact of individuals with high levels of trust and those not trusted at all.

We discuss:
- Joe’s background as a psychometrician (psychologist who uses data to predict outcomes) who studies leadership
- How trust in society can predict GDP
- The impact of low trust inside an organisation
- The correlation between trust and leadership effectiveness

💡Joe is a globally renowned psychometrician, best-selling author, and speaker on leadership, feedback, and organisational change. For over 30 years, Joe has been assessing and studying top leaders in every industry. He designs unique surveys and assessments utilising a database comprised of over a million assessments on over 100,000+ leaders. In his latest book 'The Trifecta of Trust', Joe has collected a mountain of compelling data to make the irrefutable case for the value of trust in leadership.

✅ And in let's take this offline, my friend Annette Sloan and I break down the three biggest takeaways, plus we answer a question from our listener James, who has been asked by his manager to move to an exciting new area, however James is worried to say yes...

🔍 search ‘better at work’ on Apple, Spotify or Google Podcast.

#betteratwork #trust #leadership #personaldevelopment
...

🔎 Search 'better at work' wherever you get your podcasts from.

🤔 Do you deal with conflict or difficult people at work?
If the answer is YES, you will be interested in our latest discussion with Amy Gallo. Amy is a workplace expert who writes and speaks about interpersonal dynamics, difficult conversations, feedback, and effective communication. Amy and I dive into, the reality of difficult relationships, how we may be contributing to the problem, and how to turn things around.

💬 We explore;
→ workplace boundaries.
→ health impacts of bad relationships at work.
→ how our own biases can seep into our relationships without even knowing.

📙 Amy Gallo is a contributing editor at Harvard Business Review. She is the author of the HBR Guide to Dealing with Conflict and Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone, and a cohost of HBR’s Women at Work podcast. As a sought-after speaker and facilitator, Amy has helped thousands of leaders deal with conflict more effectively and navigate complicated workplace dynamics

🚀 And in let's take this offline, my friend Annette Sloan and I break down the THREE biggest takeaways from Amy, plus we answer a question from our listener Claire, who has a younger team member experiencing a dysfunctional relationship with an important stakeholder.

💡 We hope you find the insights useful in having a better day at work.

🔍 search ‘better at work’ on Apple, Spotify or Google Podcast.

#betteratwork #podcast #conflict #personaldevelopment #workboundaries #stress
...

📣 Our latest Better@Work podcast episode is out now 👇

🎙Episode 14 - Get Ready for the Future of Work with Lawrence Goldstone & Caitlin Guilfoyle

🔎 Search 'better at work' wherever you get your podcasts from.

🤔 Do you find discussions on the future of work vague and lacking in tangible solutions?
YES according to a lot of you who asked us to tackle this topic. We chat with two leading experts on the future of work, Lawrence Goldstone and Caitlin Guilfoyle from PWC’s Future of Work. They provide practical and tangible ways to get ready.

🧠 This is a no jargon approach with insights into;
1) What we need to do as individuals to get ready for the future of work?
2) What organisations need to consider and change? and
3) Hybrid work, the pros, the cons and everything in between

💡Lawrence Goldstone is a Partner at PwC Australia, and leads the firms Future of Work agenda and is an expert in strategic problem solving, collaborative design, employee engagement and communications. Caitlin Guilfoyle is one of Australia’s leading Future of Work voices and specialists, developing research and thought leadership on the market trends that affect organisations and people, as well as supporting leadership teams, to help them prepare for their future of work.

🎯 If you are looking to stay ahead in the ever-evolving modern world of work, tune in to this insightful and fun chat with Lawrence and Caitlin (our first episode with two guests at once 😄).

✅ On top of all that, I debrief on the key insights with my friend Annette Sloan and answer a question from our listener Melanie, who is working in an organisation where she feels the culture is broken and every day feels challenging and political.

💡 This episode gives you the insights for all things modern work!!

#futureofwork #modernwork #betteratwork #career #personaldevelopement
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📣 Our latest Better@Work podcast episode is out now 👇

🎙Episode 13 - How Being More Self-Aware Brings Success in Work and Life with Tasha Eurich

🔍 Search ‘better at work’ wherever you get your podcasts from.

🚀 Could being more self-aware be the key to your success in 2023?

💡 According to our latest guest Tasha Eurich, self-awareness has countless proven benefits -- stronger relationships, higher performance, more effective leadership and can result in us living and leading lives with more joy, meaning, and success. Here’s the bad news: 95% of people think they’re self-aware, but the reality is closer to 15% actually are!

🎯 Luckily, Tasha has a simple solution that will instantly improve your self-awareness. As an organisational psychologist, she’s helped thousands of leaders improve their effectiveness, from Fortune 500 executives to early-stage entrepreneurs. Her book, Insight, reveals the findings of her eight-year research program on self-awareness, which she calls the meta-skill of the 21st century.

🧠 In this episode, we discuss Tasha's research into the psychology of self-awareness and how you can use Tasha's insights to increase your self-awareness, and improve just about any area of your life. Tasha is a lovely guest and we have a lot of fun in this chat!!

✅ On top of all that, I debrief on Tasha’s key insights with my friend Annette Sloan and answer a question from our listener Paul, who has been offered a role overseas and is trying to decide if it will enhance his work and life.

🤔 Great podcast episode on how we can better tap into our self-awareness

#betteratwork #podcast #research #business #personaldevelopment #selfawareness
...

📣 Our latest Better@Work podcast episode is out now 👇

Episode 12 - How to Handle Anxiety & Find Mental Wellness at Work

🔍 Search ‘better at work’ wherever you get your podcasts from.

🚨Help. One syllable, four letters, and hard to ask - I should know as previously saw it as a sign of weakness to ask for help.

Chester Elton suggests asking for help doesn’t mean you have given up. It’s just the opposite. Chester is the co-author of the New York Times and #1 USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling leadership books, All In, The Carrot Principle, and The Best Team Wins. His latest book, with Adrian Gostick, is Anxiety at Work: 8 Strategies to Help Teams Build Resilience, Handle Uncertainty, and Get Stuff Done.

Chester and I discuss the #1 issue in the workplace, anxiety. Anxiety in the workplace has always been present, however, rates of anxiety, have increased significantly since 2020 and more people are quitting for mental health reasons. Chester outlines the signs of anxiety, strategies for leaders to help reduce it and ways to normalise mental health conversations in workplaces.

On top of all that, I debrief on Chester’s key insights with my friend Annette Sloan and answer a question from our listener Sarah, whose boss exploded when she answered a question from someone more senior.

🔍 search ‘better at work’ on Apple, Spotify or Google Podcast.

🧠 Check out now to help make for a better 2023 in work and life.

#anxiety #betteratwork #stress #gratitude #learning #careers
...

** Season 2 - New Podcast Alert** 🚀 🚀 🚀

🙂 So excited to be back, first episode is...

How to Build a Successful Career with William Cowan

In our latest Better@Work episode we chat with William Cowan, author, and career strategist. We discuss the mistakes people make when attempting to take the next steps in their career. We dive into the simple ways to articulate your strengths and learn how you can really secure your dream role.

William Cowan has over 30 years of experience in senior management positions and has served as an advisor to boards and chief executives worldwide. He is an amazing leader in career transition management and has formalised an approach that produces outstanding results. In 25-plus years, he has provided practical guidance to over 1,000 senior executives, as well as many others including university graduates

In this episode we cover how to…
✅ Build your career move using a clear, structured process to identify and secure attractive career opportunities
✅ Learn the ways to articulate your special strengths
✅ Develop a network and make it work for you
✅ Conduct a successful meeting with a future employer

Tune in and find out why we don’t want you saying ….“I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore”

On top of all that, I debrief on William’s key insights with my friend Annette Sloan and answer a question from our listener Dianne, who applied for a more senior role and was unsuccessful.

🎧 To listen search ‘better at work’ on Spotify, Apple or Google Podcasts
...

📣 Podcast Season 2 Launches Today 🚀 🚀 🚀

🙂 Annette Sloan and I are very excited to be back helping you have more better days at work.

🎧 Check out our new 2 minute trailer to learn more about Better@Work, including a preview of the world-leading 🧠behavioural psychologists, neuroscientists and 🎯 performance experts who join us on each episode to give their practical tips for a better day at work. Plus the trailer provides details on the topics we will be covering in season 2!!!

Have a listen here ⬇️

podfollow.com/better-at-work
or
Search "better at work' on Apple, Spotify or Google podcast 🎙

Hit SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss an episode ✅

We hope you will enjoy the new season 🙌🏻
...

Better@Work at the Australian Podcast Awards!! 🏆🏆🏆
We started our show in May and to be nominated and attend this event was mind blowing 🤯🤯🤯@australianpodcastawards
We loved meeting all the other shows and chatting to some incredible people, we are pumped for this endorsement for our show and have some exciting things planned for season 2 🚀🚀🚀🚀
...

We are a finalist in the Australian Podcast Awards!!! ...

That’s a wrap for season 1, 10 episodes and so much learning and fun. The Better@Work podcast was created to help you have a better day at work and from the listeners numbers and engagement we could not be happier 🙌

To my friends on Instagram and Facebook you have been amazing, you shared the podcast, commented and inspired the episodes, you have been incredible 🙏

We are finalising the line-up for season two, if you have any topics or guests you would like to hear from do let us know 💡

Please subscribe to the podcast and check out any episodes you missed in season 1 and make sure you get the first episodes from the new season in a few weeks 🚀

Subscribe ⬇
http://hyperurl.co/betteratworkpod

Thanks also to all our amazing guests, you were all so inspiring Caroline Webb Bruce Daisley Tessa West Floyd Woodrow Mollie West Duffy Jennifer Moss Amy Jen Su Melody Wilding, LMSW Margaret Moore, aka Coach Meg Erica Keswin
Big thanks to my lovely co-host Annette Sloan Darcy Milne Tracy James Anna Gibson Peter Crocker Phoebe Adler-Ryan Matthew Atkins
...

In episode ten of Better@Work, we chat with Erica Keswin about the power workplace rituals have to connect us to purpose and take teams to new levels of performance. I am a huge fan of Erica as I strongly believe in workplace rituals and have seen how positively they can impact culture.  
 
In our chat, we take a look at why it's so important to create rituals in the workplace and how they lead to more engagement, productivity and purpose. Erica has discovered the 3 P's that go into why rituals are so crucial: Psychological Safety, Purpose and Performance. She dives into the science and psychology behind rituals. She defines a ritual as something that we assign a certain meaning or intention, which happens with repetition (whether daily, weekly, quarterly), and which goes beyond its practical purpose. Rituals can help us feel a sense of connection to those participating in a ritual with us. And engaging in a ritual can give us a sense of purpose. While many people think of rituals as things that you do alone, rituals are actually built into workplace practices in all sorts of ways, including onboarding, meetings, and the celebrations of professional milestones. 
 
📕 Erica is a workplace strategist who has worked for the past twenty years with some of the most iconic brands in the world as a consultant, speaker, author, and professional dot-connector. Her bestselling book, Bring Your Human to Work: Ten Sure-Fire Ways to Design a Workplace That’s Good for People, Great for Business, and Just Might Change the World, was published by McGraw-Hill in the fall of 2018. Her second book, Rituals Roadmap: The Human Way to Transform Everyday Routines Into Workplace Magic (McGraw-Hill), was published in January 2021 and made the Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly and USA Today best seller lists. She was named one of Marshall Goldsmith’s Top 100 Coaches in 2020, as well as one of Business Insider’s most innovative coaches of 2020. 
 
This episode is so fun as Erica and I share such a passion for employee engagement, you will leave with some great ideas for creating meaningful, yet simple rituals at work.
 
🎧See link in my Instagram bio to listen to the podcast now 🎙
...

In episode ten of Better@Work, we chat with Erica Keswin about the power workplace rituals have to connect us to purpose and take teams to new levels of performance. I am a huge fan of Erica as I strongly believe in workplace rituals and have seen how positively they can impact culture.  
 
In our chat, we take a look at why it’s so important to create rituals in the workplace and how they lead to more engagement, productivity and purpose. Erica has discovered the 3 P’s that go into why rituals are so crucial: Psychological Safety, Purpose and Performance. She dives into the science and psychology behind rituals. She defines a ritual as something that we assign a certain meaning or intention, which happens with repetition (whether daily, weekly, quarterly), and which goes beyond its practical purpose. Rituals can help us feel a sense of connection to those participating in a ritual with us. And engaging in a ritual can give us a sense of purpose. While many people think of rituals as things that you do alone, rituals are actually built into workplace practices in all sorts of ways, including onboarding, meetings, and the celebrations of professional milestones. 
 
📕 Erica is a workplace strategist who has worked for the past twenty years with some of the most iconic brands in the world as a consultant, speaker, author, and professional dot-connector. Her bestselling book, Bring Your Human to Work: Ten Sure-Fire Ways to Design a Workplace That’s Good for People, Great for Business, and Just Might Change the World, was published by McGraw-Hill in the fall of 2018. Her second book, Rituals Roadmap: The Human Way to Transform Everyday Routines Into Workplace Magic (McGraw-Hill), was published in January 2021 and made the Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly and USA Today best seller lists. She was named one of Marshall Goldsmith’s Top 100 Coaches in 2020, as well as one of Business Insider’s most innovative coaches of 2020. 
 
This episode is so fun as Erica and I share such a passion for employee engagement, you will leave with some great ideas for creating meaningful, yet simple rituals at work.
 
🎧See link in my Instagram bio to listen to the podcast now 🎙
...

In episode nine of Better@Work, we chat with the amazing Margaret Moore aka “Coach Meg,” who is the founder and CEO of Wellcoaches, an evidenced-based wellness coaching school, that has trained over 14,000 coaches in 50 countries over the past 20 years.

We might assume coaches are used only in the world of sport, however, Margaret has been helping people from all walks of life discover their strengths and identify opportunities to maximize their potential — in work, in relationships, and in life. The former biotech exec founded the Wellcoaches School of Coaching to help wellness professionals best serve their patients. Since then, she’s has added students from the business world, front-line healthcare workers and the police.

In this episode, the Coach’s Coach details what effective coaching really means; how leaning into doubt, or “our shadow,” can help us reveal patterns we need to change; and why organizing our minds can set us up for sustainable success. She shares how getting into moments of flow every day is nourishing, how we can all be better coaches and we hear her story of not making it in Toronto.

📕 Margaret Moore is an executive wellness coach and co-author of Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life: Train Your Brain to Get More Done in Less Time and Organize Your Emotions, Optimize Your Life. She has driven the professionalization of health coaching in two related domains: constructing a theoretical base for the practice, and evaluating results to establish best practices. Margaret is the co-director of the Institute of Coaching at McLean Hospital (a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School) and the founder and CEO of Wellcoaches Corporation, a leading coach training school.

This episode is super informative and Margaret teaches us how to apply some of the latest research in neuroscience in our everyday lives, making them less stressful and more relaxed.

🎧See link in my Instagram bio to listen to the podcast now 🎙
...

In episode nine of Better@Work, we chat with the amazing Margaret Moore aka “Coach Meg,” who is the founder and CEO of Wellcoaches, an evidenced-based wellness coaching school, that has trained over 14,000 coaches in 50 countries over the past 20 years.

We might assume coaches are used only in the world of sport, however, Margaret has been helping people from all walks of life discover their strengths and identify opportunities to maximize their potential — in work, in relationships, and in life. The former biotech exec founded the Wellcoaches School of Coaching to help wellness professionals best serve their patients. Since then, she’s has added students from the business world, front-line healthcare workers and the police.



In this episode, the Coach’s Coach details what effective coaching really means; how leaning into doubt, or “our shadow,” can help us reveal patterns we need to change; and why organizing our minds can set us up for sustainable success. She shares how getting into moments of flow every day is nourishing, how we can all be better coaches and we hear her story of not making it in Toronto.



📕 Margaret Moore is an executive wellness coach and co-author of Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life: Train Your Brain to Get More Done in Less Time and Organize Your Emotions, Optimize Your Life. She has driven the professionalization of health coaching in two related domains: constructing a theoretical base for the practice, and evaluating results to establish best practices. Margaret is the co-director of the Institute of Coaching at McLean Hospital (a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School) and the founder and CEO of Wellcoaches Corporation, a leading coach training school.



This episode is super informative and Margaret teaches us how to apply some of the latest research in neuroscience in our everyday lives, making them less stressful and more relaxed.


🎧See link in my Instagram bio to listen to the podcast now 🎙
...

In episode eight of Better@Work, we explore with Melody Wilding how some of us sense and feel more than our colleagues at work and this can actually be a superpower instead of a liability.

Being a driven but sensitive individual is an interesting mix. You have all the desire for high achievement and go-getting but can also overthink everything, which slows you down. This overthinking can lead to putting too much pressure on yourself, experiencing imposter syndrome, having trouble “turning off” at the end of the day, overworking, and on your way to burnout.

Building on the work of Dr. Elaine Aron around highly sensitive people (HSPs), Melody shares how Sensitive Strivers are high-achievers who are also biologically and genetically different in being more sensitive to emotions and the world around them, because they process information more deeply than others, are often more susceptible to stress, emotional overwhelm, and overthinking.

The good news is that sensitivity, combined with a strong desire to be the best version of ourselves, can make Sensitive Strivers powerhouse performers. Melody’s research found managers consistently rate people with higher sensitivity as their top contributors. The key is learning to manage your mind and emotional responses in more productive ways.

📕 Melody is a Human Behaviour Professor, Executive coach and Author of “Trust Yourself, Stop Overthinking and Channel Your Emotions for Success at Work”, who was recently named one of Business Insiders Most Innovative Coaches.

This episode with Melody is insightful and informative in understanding sensitivity, how to harness it and also protect and channel your deep empathy into opportunities. Melody makes this super actionable and practical, and it was a true joy to have this conversation with her.

🎧See link in my Instagram bio to listen to the podcast now 🎙
...

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