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The Lift with Ben Brooks

The Lift with Ben Brooks

By: Ben Brooks
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Ben Brooks (PILOT) on The Lift: real conversations about leadership, growth, and getting what you want at work. On The Lift, we pull up to see the bigger picture from accomplished leaders who know how to get things done in a rapidly changing world. Host Ben Brooks dives deep into a relevant leadership topic each episode and connects the dots to leave you with powerful distinctions that you can use as a leader.

© 2026 PILOT Inc.
Economics Leadership Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • Replay: Margaret Andrews on managing yourself to better lead others
    Jul 14 2026

    Ask almost any leader if they're self-aware and most will say yes. But research shows only 15% actually are. That gap – between who we think we are and how others experience us – is where most leadership development needs to start.

    Unfortunately, it almost never does.

    Margaret Andrews, who has spent two decades teaching this at Harvard, is here to help close the gap.

    Topic Highlights

    – Why the best boss you ever had probably wasn't (always) the smartest person in the room

    – Six questions that reveal more about your leadership than any 360 assessment will

    – The difference between changing your personality (you can't) and changing your behavior (you absolutely can)

    – Why “if you want to change how people think, you have to change how they feel” is the most underused insight in leadership development

    Guest Bio

    Margaret Andrews is a Harvard executive education professor, founder of The MYLO Center, and author of Manage Yourself to Lead Others.

    Episode Links:

    Manage Yourself to Lead Others

    The MYLO Center

    Managing yourself first: Margaret Andrews on self-awareness and leadership

    Connect with Us:

    theliftpod.com

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    Subscribe to The Lift

    Find Ben online: LinkedIn | Instagram

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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    35 mins
  • How to fire people properly - Part 2: The logistics of letting someone go with James Bryton and Dr. Dennis Davis
    Jul 7 2026

    “You're not a good fit.”

    “The company's going in a different direction.”

    Every manager thinks these phrases are legally safe. But according to attorney James Bryton, they're basically an engraved invitation to a lawsuit. And a lot could be avoided if leaders took a different approach to letting people go.

    This is part two of our two-part series about letting people go with empathy and dignity.

    Topic Highlights:

    – The “middle lane” of firing and why it's where most separations actually belong

    – Why “not a good fit” is one of the most legally dangerous things you can say in a termination meeting

    – The thoughtful approach to choreography for letting someone go

    – Why how a termination ends matters more than almost everything that preceded it

    Guest Bio:

    Dr. Dennis Davis is a clinical psychologist and national training director at Ogletree Deakins. James Bryton is Of Counsel at Littler Mendelson, the world's largest employment law firm, and a former civil rights litigator.


    Episode Links:

    How to fire people properly - Part 1: When waiting too long goes wrong

    Connect with Us:

    theliftpod.com

    Let’s stay in touch

    Subscribe to The Lift

    Find Ben online: LinkedIn | Instagram

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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    37 mins
  • How to fire people properly - Part 1: When waiting too long goes wrong with Dr. Dennis Davis
    Jun 30 2026

    Most leaders know when someone isn't working out, for months – sometimes years. So why does it take so many of them so long to do anything about it? Dr. Dennis Davis has a theory, and it has a lot more to do with the manager than the employee.

    This is part one of our two-part series about letting people go with empathy and dignity.

    Topic Highlights:

    – The real cost of the “performing-at-35%-is-better-than-zero” rationalization

    – Why the "myth of niceness" is actually the least kind thing a manager can do for an underperformer

    – The skill/will matrix: a simple diagnostic tool for knowing whether you have a performance problem, a motivation problem, or a fit problem

    – How PIPs are too often used incorrectly, and what doing so says about your organization's integrity

    – Why employee success is ultimately contingent on your leadership style

    Guest Bio:

    Dr. Dennis Davis is a clinical psychologist and national expert in conflict resolution at Ogletree Deakins, a multinational law firm specializing in labor and employment law.

    Episode Links:

    Ogletree Deakins

    Full Article

    Connect with Us:

    theliftpod.com

    Let’s stay in touch

    Subscribe to The Lift

    Find Ben online: LinkedIn | Instagram

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    Show More Show Less
    38 mins
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