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Lenny's PodcastRadical Candor: From theory to practice with author Kim Scott
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Episode Details
EPISODE INFO
- Released
- December 10, 2023
- Duration
- 1h 26m
- Channel
- Lenny's Podcast
- Watch on YouTube
- ▶ Open ↗
EPISODE DESCRIPTION
Kim Scott is the author of Radical Candor, currently the #1 most recommended book on this podcast. The book has sold over 1 million copies and has been translated into 23 languages. Before writing, Kim was a CEO coach at Dropbox, Qualtrics, Twitter, and other tech companies. She was also a member of the faculty at Apple University and before that led AdSense, YouTube, and DoubleClick teams at Google. This spring she’ll be launching Radical Respect, which she considers to be a prequel to Radical Candor. In today’s conversation, we go deep on Kim’s popular framework, including:
- What separates radical candor and obnoxious aggression
- Tactical advice on delivering constructive feedback
- How well-meaning empathy can become ruinous
- Strategies for effectively soliciting and responding to feedback
- The importance of having regular career conversations
- The false dichotomy of a good leader versus a kind person
- A sneak peek into Radical Respect
— Brought to you by Jira Product Discovery—Atlassian’s new prioritization and roadmapping tool built for product teams: https://atlassian.com/lenny/?utm_source=lennypodcast&utm_medium=paid-audio&utm_campaign=fy24q1-jpd-imc Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/radical-candor-from-theory-to-practice Where to find Kim Scott:
- X: https://twitter.com/kimballscott
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimm4/
- Website: https://www.radicalcandor.com/
Where to find Lenny:
- Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
- X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Kim’s background (03:13) A brief overview of Radical Candor (06:46) How people fail with ruinous empathy, manipulative insincerity, and obnoxious aggression (08:37) The impact of radical candor on Kim’s life (14:16) How to communicate feedback effectively (20:34) A story illustrating the problem with ruinous empathy and manipulative insincerity (27:50) How to get over the need to be liked (31:31) How to have career conversations with your direct reports (29:40) Reflections on how Kim handled an underperforming employee (33:31) Best practices for soliciting feedback as a leader (35:53) How to respond to feedback (39:22) How often to ask for feedback (41:48) Whether or not to accept “no feedback” as an answer (50:48) Investing time in feedback (54:04) How to ask for feedback as an employee (57:42) Why obnoxious aggression is not the best way to deliver feedback (1:01:23) A notable example of problematic management (1:03:43) Why context matters when diagnosing obnoxious aggression (1:07:39) Empathy is a good thing, but empathy can paralyze (1:10:47) Reflections on the limitations of radical candor in a society riddled with biases (1:14:41) Kim’s new book, Radical Respect (1:15:51) Tactical advice to get better at radical candor (1:16:46) Lightning round Referenced:
- Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Candor-Kick-Ass-Without-Humanity/dp/1250103509
- Radical Respect: How to Work Together Better: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Respect-Work-Together-Better/dp/1250623766/
- The Office (American version) on Peacock: https://www.peacocktv.com/stream-tv/the-office
- Radical Candor diagram: https://www.radicalcandor.com/our-approach/
- Career conversation templates: https://review.firstround.com/the-power-of-performance-reviews-use-this-system-to-become-a-better-manager/
- A behavioral scientist explains why we should reacquaint ourselves with the telephone: https://news.uchicago.edu/story/nicholas-epley-explains-why-phone-calls-can-connect-us-better-zoom
- How to get promoted: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-get-promoted
- When They Win, You Win: Being a Great Manager Is Simpler Than You Think: https://www.amazon.com/When-They-Win-You-Manager/dp/1250279666
- Peter Kazanjy on X: https://twitter.com/Kazanjy
- Christa Quarles on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christaquarles/
- Jason Rosoff on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-r-rosoff/
- Andrew Grove: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Grove
- Columbo on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Columbo-Season-1/dp/B008SA89HA
- Squid Game on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81040344
- Leveraging mentors to uplevel your career | Jules Walter (YouTube, Slack): https://www.lennyspodcast.com/leveraging-mentors-to-uplevel-your-career-jules-walter-youtube-slack/
...References continued at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/radical-candor-from-theory-to-practice Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com. Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
SPEAKERS
Kim Scott
guestLenny Rachitsky
host
EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Lenny's Podcast, featuring Kim Scott and Lenny Rachitsky, Radical Candor: From theory to practice with author Kim Scott explores Kim Scott Turns Radical Candor From Abstract Framework Into Daily Practice Kim Scott joins Lenny to break down Radical Candor as the practice of simultaneously caring personally and challenging directly, contrasted against obnoxious aggression, ruinous empathy, and manipulative insincerity.
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