Presence: Presence starts with positive leadership

Presence: Presence starts with positive leadership

Author: brucedaisley.com April 24, 2024 Duration: 38:30

Flow is the state of being in which people become so immersed in the joy of their work or activity “that nothing else seems to matter.”

Presence is to be in a flow state of connection with others.


Here’s the last discussion about the Happiness Track

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Emma’s new book Sovereign

HBR: The Best Leaders Have a Contagious Positive Energy

HBR: Proof That Positive Work Cultures Are More Productive


Today is the first of series of podcasts about an idea that needs more consideration in our workplaces. The idea of presence.


Emma Seppala is a psychologist and lecturer at the Yale School of Management – she also runs the Women’s Leadership program there. I first spoke to Emma about 6 years ago when I came across her book the Happiness Track. The hypothesis of that book was in many ways the sweet spot of this podcast: the notion that if you make workers happy then they do their better work. Emma had a new book out this week called Sovereign and it felt like a great reason to have a new conversation. 

The conversation leads into the next block of podcasts which are all about the idea of presence. Over the last 4 years we’ve seen discourse from CEOs about wanting workers back in the office but in many ways they’re putting things the wrong way wrong. A lot of us find ourselves making our way into work and sitting on video calls all day. Or having headphones on because its so noisy. We got home at the end of the day thinking ‘what was the point of that’. 


When bosses say they want us to be present in the office, what they actually describe is something different. They talk us about us interacting, having ideas, watercooler moments. Bosses say they want us to be present in the office, but what they really want is presence, for us to be in each others company.

For me presence is related to flow

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Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley.


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There’s a conversation happening about how our jobs shape us, and Eat Sleep Work Repeat sits right at the heart of it. Host Bruce Daisley approaches workplace culture not with prescriptive advice, but with genuine curiosity, digging into the science and social dynamics behind why we work the way we do. Each episode feels like a thoughtful exploration, blending research from management, psychology, and sociology with real-world stories. You’ll hear discussions that challenge conventional wisdom about productivity, teamwork, and wellbeing, moving beyond simple fixes to understand the deeper systems at play. This podcast recognizes that improving work isn't just about office perks; it's about examining the rhythms, relationships, and expectations that fill our days. It’s for anyone who has ever wondered how to make their team more resilient, their own work more meaningful, or simply how to disconnect at the end of the day. With millions of listens, it’s become a trusted resource for rethinking the modern work experience. The tone is engaging and accessible, turning complex ideas into practical reflections. For more from Bruce Daisley, visit brucedaisley.com.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Eat Sleep Work Repeat - better workplace culture
Podcast Episodes
Fortitude, Winning Workplace Culture and the Future Forum [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:38
Two things on the podcast today - at the end of the episode there is a discussion with former guest, Brian Elliott from Slack's Future Forum.Ahead of that I want to make an announcement about what I've been working on -…
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“There are two kinds of companies: One is going to embrace work-from-anywhere, and the second is in denial — I feel those companies will lose their workforce. You have to make a choice, as a leader, what kind of company…
Dan Coyle can fix your culture [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:08
If you find yourself becoming interested in the magic of workplace culture one of the go to authors of the subject is today's guest, Dan Coyle.Dan's 2018 book The Culture Code allowed him to go deep with some of the most…
The world's WFH expert is confident for offices [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:06
We're going deeper into the evidence today with two brilliant guests. Anne Raimondi is COO of Asana who were smart enough to have started a major piece of research into how work is evolving just before the world turned u…
Understanding the status game of work [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:11
Status is a fundamental need for humans.Such a fascinating discussion today. I recently read Will Storr's brilliant book The Status Game and was so taken with it I invited him on the podcast.He quotes Professor Brian Boy…
An eye-opening perspective from inside commercial real estate [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:40
Caleb Parker is one of the most intelligent commentators on the future of our workplaces (Twitter, his website) and this conversation with him did not disappoint. Caleb is the founder of a flexible workplace offering, Bo…
Home/Hub/Hybrid - How Lloyds Bank are creating workplace 'pull' [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:45
Last year I did a few episodes looking to see how firms were tackling the return to the office (the return to work - THE PLACE) but they were all small workplaces. Organisations that could make nimble actions, I wanted t…
Redesigning work with Lynda Gratton [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:34
Professor Lynda Gratton is one of the world's leading experts on business and the future of work. She's on speed dial with the top CEOs and is a regular at Davos and the World Economic Forum. Her HBR cover article about…
Clear thinking for 2022 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:22
Two outstanding conversations trying to make sense of what is happening around work. Firstly I chat to Brian Elliott who leads the Future Forum, a group led by Slack. they released a new report surveying workers in the U…