SUMMARY:
In a time where innovation and visionary thinking are essential to organizational growth and survival, how can leaders inspire and teach teams to try new things and grow? In this episode, Danielle Strickland interviews Brett Hagler, co-founder and CEO of New Story, which is pioneering new ways to house the under-resourced, and also changing how nonprofits engage with supporters. Through the launch of New Story, and also personal challenges, Brett shares a powerful, practical approach to innovation.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
BIAS TOWARDS LEARNING. Not only does a learning posture expedite growth, it can help recast “failure” as an opportunity for learning and growth.
RECOGNIZE A POTENTIAL CALLING. Brett describes the experience of helping families in Haiti as “addicting,” and joyful. One way to recognize a place of potential calling is to find the place where the deep needs of the world and your deepest joy intersect.
STARTING SMALL AND MOVING QUICKLY REAPS BENEFITS. Not only can you lower the barrier of entry and jumpstart your idea, you can also gain momentum and validation from potential investors and allies.
STARTING WITH “THE ONE” CAN YIELD DISRUPTIVE INSIGHTS. Maintaining an intense focus on staying small and solving a problem for “one” (i.e., building the first house) can actually teach you how to come up with new models for an entire industry.
FOCUSING ON THE LONG-TERM CAN BE PARALYZING. Rather than focus on a multi-year strategy or plan, start small, learn by doing, and iterate along the way.
ASSUMING ITERATION HELPS TO AVOID THE FALLACY OF THE SUNK COST. It is easy to think that the way you’ve always done something is the way you should do it now, or that it’s too costly to change. Realize the solution you think you’re working on right now may simply be the jumping off point to an unexpected solution you cannot currently see.
A POWERFUL RECIPE FOR INNOVATION AND DISRUPTION. New Story was able to innovate by identifying problems and pain points in an existing industry, designing solutions for those problems, proving those solutions and then sharing them with others.
INNOVATION DOES NOT EQUAL “TECHNOLOGICAL” OR “EXPENSIVE”. Innovation starts with the mindset of delivering better solution for your customers. Ask yourself, “What would it take to improve this?” and reverse engineer your answer.
BOLD IDEAS ATTRACT BOLD PEOPLE. If you want to attract innovative and forward-thinking employees, investors or allies, your idea should not only be appealing to them, it should also be attainable.
DISCOMFORT IS THE “NORTH STAR” OF COMPELLING VISION. If you want your organization to be stretching and pushing forward, your vision should be difficult enough that it makes you a little uncomfortable to share it.
RESIST THE ILLUSION THAT YOU ARE IN CONTROL. We can control our attitude and our effort—which is critical—but we cannot control the results. Adversity will happen.
A LEADER IS MORE THAN THEIR SUCCESS OR FAILURES. For leaders, having a strong sense of identity and security apart from the success and failure of their organization is liberating, and can actually free them up for more risk and innovation.
RELATED LINKS:
Global Leadership Network
The Global Leadership Summit
Danielle Strickland
Brett Hagler
New Story
Fast Company Most Innovative Companies: New Story
Charity Water
Mission of Hope
Liz Bohannon on Iteration
Todd Henry on Stretch, Sprint, and Step Goals
Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer (Affiliate Link)
Brett Hagler
CEO | New StoryDanielle Strickland
Pastor, Author | Justice AdvocateAshlyn Ochoa
Host | The Global Leadership PodcastEp 93: Innovation, Demystified–Brett Hagler & Danielle Strickland
TOPICS IN THIS PODCAST
Leading OrganizationsIn a time where innovation and visionary thinking are essential to organizational growth and survival, how can leaders inspire and teach teams to try new things and grow? In this episode, Danielle Strickland interviews Brett Hagler, co-founder and CEO of New Story, which is pioneering new ways to house the under-resourced, and also changing how nonprofits engage with supporters. Through the launch of New Story, and also personal challenges, Brett shares a powerful, practical approach to innovation.
On This Podcast
Brett Hagler
New Story
After a life-changing trip to Haiti when he was 24, Brett co-founded New Story to employ new technology and rethink the traditional charity model. When he started the organization, he couldn’t have known it would grow as fast as it has. Through New Story’s innovative approach, Brett’s team has achieved nearly $55M+ in revenue within five years while funding 2,000+ homes for 11,000+ people and broke ground on the world's first 3D printed community in Mexico. Brett’s been recognized on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list in 2016, named one of the Top 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs by Goldman Sachs, and his company was named among Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Companies in the World” four times. With a staff of nearly all millennials, Brett showed the corporate and nonprofit worlds that thinking differently can have an exponential impact. Bold risks, like launching a 3D printer for homes for the world’s poor, has proven technology solves real problems and that people with a dream who take action can make a massive impact. He’s brought his story to a variety of organizations, including Architectural Digest, Goldman Sachs, Y Combinator, DocuSign, Q’s Annual Leadership Conference, Plywood Presents and Sotheby’s International Realty. He’s also been featured in NPR, WSJ, Forbes, Huffington Post, the CBS Morning Show, CNBC and more.
Danielle Strickland
Justice Advocate
Danielle Strickland is currently based in Toronto, Canada. She loves Jesus and she loves people. She is the author of 6 books with her most recent being Better Together: How Women and Men Can Heal the Divide and Work Together to Transform the Future. She is host of DJStrickland Podcast, ambassador for Stop the Traffik, as well as the co-founder of Infinitum, Amplify Peace, The Brave Campaign and the Women Speakers Collective. Danielle is a mom of 3, wife to @stephencourt and has been affectionately called the “ambassador of fun.”
Ashlyn Ochoa
The Global Leadership Podcast
Ashlyn Ochoa has served in a variety of roles at the Global Leadership Network since 2016. The product of her talented work, strategic creativity, and valuable leadership has been experienced in the production of The Global Leadership Podcast, as well as many of the GLN’s leadership events and videos that have been translated and contextualized in more than 123 countries. As a valuable leader with a voice of positive influence, she is the host of The Global Leadership Podcast, one of the most popular leadership podcasts in the world. As of 2022, in addition to hosting the podcast, Ashlyn leads national event strategy and production at Bethany Christian Services, where she works in her passion to serve children and families. Beyond her professional roles, her greatest joy is found in being a wife and mom. Experience her positive energy, inquisitive mind, and wisdom as you tune in to The Global Leadership Podcast!
Show Notes
SUMMARY:
In a time where innovation and visionary thinking are essential to organizational growth and survival, how can leaders inspire and teach teams to try new things and grow? In this episode, Danielle Strickland interviews Brett Hagler, co-founder and CEO of New Story, which is pioneering new ways to house the under-resourced, and also changing how nonprofits engage with supporters. Through the launch of New Story, and also personal challenges, Brett shares a powerful, practical approach to innovation.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
BIAS TOWARDS LEARNING. Not only does a learning posture expedite growth, it can help recast “failure” as an opportunity for learning and growth.
RECOGNIZE A POTENTIAL CALLING. Brett describes the experience of helping families in Haiti as “addicting,” and joyful. One way to recognize a place of potential calling is to find the place where the deep needs of the world and your deepest joy intersect.
STARTING SMALL AND MOVING QUICKLY REAPS BENEFITS. Not only can you lower the barrier of entry and jumpstart your idea, you can also gain momentum and validation from potential investors and allies.
STARTING WITH “THE ONE” CAN YIELD DISRUPTIVE INSIGHTS. Maintaining an intense focus on staying small and solving a problem for “one” (i.e., building the first house) can actually teach you how to come up with new models for an entire industry.
FOCUSING ON THE LONG-TERM CAN BE PARALYZING. Rather than focus on a multi-year strategy or plan, start small, learn by doing, and iterate along the way.
ASSUMING ITERATION HELPS TO AVOID THE FALLACY OF THE SUNK COST. It is easy to think that the way you’ve always done something is the way you should do it now, or that it’s too costly to change. Realize the solution you think you’re working on right now may simply be the jumping off point to an unexpected solution you cannot currently see.
A POWERFUL RECIPE FOR INNOVATION AND DISRUPTION. New Story was able to innovate by identifying problems and pain points in an existing industry, designing solutions for those problems, proving those solutions and then sharing them with others.
INNOVATION DOES NOT EQUAL “TECHNOLOGICAL” OR “EXPENSIVE”. Innovation starts with the mindset of delivering better solution for your customers. Ask yourself, “What would it take to improve this?” and reverse engineer your answer.
BOLD IDEAS ATTRACT BOLD PEOPLE. If you want to attract innovative and forward-thinking employees, investors or allies, your idea should not only be appealing to them, it should also be attainable.
DISCOMFORT IS THE “NORTH STAR” OF COMPELLING VISION. If you want your organization to be stretching and pushing forward, your vision should be difficult enough that it makes you a little uncomfortable to share it.
RESIST THE ILLUSION THAT YOU ARE IN CONTROL. We can control our attitude and our effort—which is critical—but we cannot control the results. Adversity will happen.
A LEADER IS MORE THAN THEIR SUCCESS OR FAILURES. For leaders, having a strong sense of identity and security apart from the success and failure of their organization is liberating, and can actually free them up for more risk and innovation.
RELATED LINKS:
Global Leadership Network
The Global Leadership Summit
Danielle Strickland
Brett Hagler
New Story
Fast Company Most Innovative Companies: New Story
Charity Water
Mission of Hope
Liz Bohannon on Iteration
Todd Henry on Stretch, Sprint, and Step Goals
Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer (Affiliate Link)
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