
Do Something Different: A Leadership Podcast
Do Something Different is a podcast for high-achievers who want to grow their impact. Each week, former Apple executive Rusty Gaillard helps you build the skillset and mindset to break free from the conventional corporate leadership model and create meaningful, lasting impact for your company, your team, and your career. Come away empowered and inspired to put these simple, practical leadership tools to use: share your honest opinion, give candid feedback, delegate effectively while maintaining high standards, and take back control of your schedule.
Episodes
27 episodes
Leadership for Nice Guys. Or Don't Be Like Justin Baldoni.
Is it possible to be too nice as a leader? We examine this question using the tension between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively as a real-world lens into leadership challenges. Explore how excessive niceness can become a barrier to...
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Episode 26
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15:48

Gen X Grit Meets Gen Z Curiosity: Leading Across Generations
In this episode of Do Something Different, Rusty Gaillard sits down with Erin Mantz, VP of Marketing at Zeno Group and founder of Gen X Girls Grow Up. They dive into the importance of your first boss, how generational traits s...
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Season 1
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Episode 25
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22:34

SEVERANCE Teaches You Leadership Lessons?
Ever feel like your corporate experience is just a little too similar to dystopian fiction?From emotional avoidance to culture as control, Severance hits uncomfortably close to the reality of corporate life—and offers a blueprin...
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Season 1
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Episode 24
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14:33

3 Ways to Make Better Decisions
Leaders often find themselves with competing decision-making frameworks: impact vs. optics, managing risk vs. capturing potential, what you want vs. what you should do. This is a recipe for bad decisions.There's also a fundamental proble...
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Season 1
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Episode 23
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15:10

Manage Your Team like a CEO
There's a big gap between how most managers lead their teams and how the best CEOs drive organizational success. A good CEO builds a team that makes strategic decisions, executes independently, and continuously improves. Many mid-level leaders ...
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Season 1
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Episode 22
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19:47

How to Win Every Interview... And More Job Search Tips with Andy Mowat
At a senior level, jobs aren't posted... they're whispered. Join CEO of Whispered Andy Mowat for this conversation on how to run a successful job search. You'll learn:Why clarity and specificity are critical to an effect...
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Season 1
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Episode 21
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17:27

5 Steps to Earn More Respect as a Leader
Most professionals claim they want to be respected as leaders, but they act like they want to be liked. This disconnect prevents many talented individuals from achieving their full leadership potential and earning the respect they desire. Disco...
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Season 1
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Episode 20
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10:56

More Strategic Decisions in 3 Steps
Despite best intentions, many high achievers make suboptimal decisions in the workplace. The combination of stress, information overload, social pressure, and authority figures creates an environment where even the smartest professionals fall i...
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Season 1
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Episode 19
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15:35

3 Steps to Mastering Influence
Influence is about changing how others think and act, not simply directing them what to do. Discover why transformational influence—the kind that creates lasting change and builds strong relationships—requires a completely different approach th...
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Season 1
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Episode 18
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23:21

How to appear more confident
Many accomplished professionals hit a ceiling not because they lack skills, but because they overuse "pleaser" behaviors that undermine their executive presence. This episode exposes how an over-reliance on being likeable and gettin...
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Season 1
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Episode 17
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16:14

Mastering Executive Presence with Cindy Skalicky
What is executive presence, and why do so many talented leaders struggle to develop it? That is the theme of this conversation with Cindy Skalicky.Through practical examples and proven frameworks, this episode reveals why focusing solely...
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Season 1
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Episode 16
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27:34

Less is More: 4 Steps to Productivity
This episode tackles the counterintuitive truth about high achievement: doing more isn't always the path to greater success. Learn why many successful professionals get trapped in patterns of overwork and discover the CALM framework for breakin...
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Season 1
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Episode 15
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15:42

Learn to Speak for Yourself, Because Your Work Doesn't
The ingrained belief that "my work speaks for itself" - while admirable - is not true. It may be a major factor keeping you from reaching your full potential and gaining the recognition your contributions deserve. Learn why "the work speaks for...
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Season 1
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Episode 14
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24:00

How to Delegate Effectively: A Practical Guide
Many high achievers struggle with deeply empowering their team. Learn why letting go might be the key to unlocking your next level of leadership. Rather than focusing on doing more, explore how doing less - strategically - could transform both ...
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Season 1
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Episode 13
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20:15

Overcoming lack of discipline
Do you consistently avoid doing things you know would make you more successful? In this episode, Rusty tackles the hidden truth about why high achievers struggle to implement important changes. Learn why defaulting to "I need more discipline" o...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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24:49

Master motivation with 1 simple question
Many people struggle maintaining motivation to achieve their goals. It's why so many people don't achieve their New Year's resolutions. In this episode you will discover a powerful perspective shift that can transform how you approach change - ...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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22:44

Setting better goals for 2025
Are your New Year's resolutions setting you up for another unfulfilling year? This episode tackles the common pitfall of traditional goal-setting that keeps ambitious professionals stuck in patterns of busyness and disconnection. Through examin...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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13:03

3 Actions to Go from Manager to Leader
High achievers often get trapped by their own success.Learn why the mindsets and behaviors that fueled early career wins often become barriers to reaching senior leadership roles. Discover why the relentless drive to do more, better, an...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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22:11

5 Rules for More Confident Decisions
Smart, high achieving leaders often make sub-optimal decisions. In this episode, learn how our brain's built-in bias toward risk and safety can derail confident decision-making, and uncover the biological reason why focusing on pot...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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23:02

3 Easy Habits to Command More Respect at Work
Struggling to command respect at work? This episode tackles why blaming external factors - like company culture or difficult colleagues - completely misses the point. The discussion explores how habitual behaviors, particularly those of high ac...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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16:23

Increasing Your Executive Presence in Meetings
Meetings with senior leaders are a prime opportunity to demonstrate executive presence. But they make many leaders anxious. In this episode, we tackle the uncomfortable truth about why capable professionals often stay silent in high-stakes conv...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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14:39

Navigating Challenging Times: A Thanksgiving Reflection
On Thanksgiving, most of us practice gratitude. It's easy during the holidays, but finding gratitude in the midst of difficulties requires a fundamental shift in perspective that can transform how we experience and overcome obstacles.
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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6:38

Getting Promoted: 3 Actions to Take Today
Has your career progression slowed down? In this episode of Do Something Different, we tackle promotion and career advancement - specifically why many high achievers hit a plateau and struggle to reach the next level. Learn why the behaviors th...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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21:00

Delivering Effective Feedback
Is performance review season making you anxious? In this episode, Rusty Gaillard tackles the elephant in the room: why most leaders either avoid giving feedback or do it poorly. He reveals why treating feedback as a time management problem comp...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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9:19

Conquering Fear of Failure
Are you a high achiever who's built your career on being smart and avoiding mistakes? In this episode, Rusty tackles the paralyzing pressure that successful professionals face when it comes to making mistakes, especially in high-stakes situatio...
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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17:51
