July 10, 2025 • 28 mins
Welcome back to another soul-stirring episode of Inspirations for Your Life. I'm your host, John C. Morley — Serial Entrepreneur, Podcast Coach, and someone who’s learned firsthand how trust transforms not just teams, but the entire human experience. Today, we’re diving deep into a powerful truth: trust unlocks creativity, and force shuts it down. Whether you're a leader trying to ignite innovation or someone seeking to bring out the best in others, this episode will help you understand the emotional science behind motivation and creative energy. When people feel safe, they create. When they feel controlled, they shut down. It’s time to build a culture where creativity thrives and trust leads the way. Let’s get started. 🔑 Core Takeaways
1️⃣ Trust sparks innovation 💡 When people feel trusted, they are more likely to take creative risks and experiment with new ideas. Trust eliminates the fear of failure and opens the door to innovation. It shows your team that you believe in their abilities, encouraging them to contribute ideas that can lead to groundbreaking solutions. Without trust, people default to safety — and creativity dies in safe mode.
2️⃣ Force creates fear 😨 Applying pressure, micromanaging, or forcing compliance through fear only creates resistance. Instead of focusing on possibilities, individuals become preoccupied with avoiding punishment or criticism. This fear-based environment shuts down inspiration and promotes conformity over creativity.
3️⃣ Freedom fuels flow 🌊 Freedom in how tasks are approached allows people to enter a psychological state of “flow” — that sweet spot where productivity and passion align. When individuals are given autonomy, they naturally find unique ways to solve problems, often exceeding expectations. Freedom fosters a sense of ownership, which in turn drives innovation.
4️⃣ Creativity thrives in safety 🛡️ A psychologically safe environment gives people the confidence to voice unconventional ideas without ridicule. It’s in these safe spaces that teams can brainstorm freely, explore without fear, and take the kind of leaps that result in real breakthroughs. Safety is the soil in which creativity grows.
5️⃣ Leadership builds trust 🧭 Leaders set the emotional tone for a team or organization. A trustworthy leader listens, shows empathy, and supports their team even when things go wrong. By modeling trust, leaders inspire their team members to trust one another — creating a culture where collaboration and creativity become the norm.
6️⃣ Control kills curiosity 🧩 When everything is dictated from the top, curiosity fades. People stop asking “What if?” and start asking “What do I have to do?” Creativity relies on curiosity — and if your people feel controlled, they’ll never dig deep into innovation. Give them room to explore, question, and challenge the status quo.
7️⃣ Encouragement invites bold ideas 🌟 A few words of encouragement can spark game-changing ideas. When people are cheered on and celebrated for thinking differently, they become braver. This bravery leads to ideas that are bigger, bolder, and more impactful. Encouragement is one of the simplest, most powerful creativity boosters available.
8️⃣ Micromanagement stifles imagination ⛓️ Constant oversight doesn’t just annoy your team — it crushes their ability to imagine and explore. Micromanagement sends the message that you don’t trust them, and that kills motivation. Instead, offer support and guidance, then step back and let people think for themselves.
9️⃣ Openness leads to breakthroughs 🚀 When teams are open to diverse perspectives, ideas can collide and combine in beautiful ways. Encouraging openness means welcoming feedback, new methods, and untested concepts. This atmosphere leads to innovative problem-solving and creative breakthroughs you can't predict in a controlled environment.
🔟 Trust empowers ownership 🛠️ When you trust someone with a task or project,
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:20):
Well, hello everyone.
Good morning, I should say.
It is John C.
Morley here.
It's great to be with you on, yes,
Inspirations for Your Life.
Do check out believemeachieved.com for more of
my amazing inspiring creations, of course, after the
(00:42):
show or 24 hours a day.
So guys, it is great to be with
you here.
We have an amazing master topic for the
week and that is trust the process and
ditch the force.
Today's granular topic I'm happy to bring to
you is Trust Invites Creativity, Force Stifles It,
series four, show 28, episode number six.
(01:05):
So a big warm welcome to everyone.
If you are new to the Inspirations for
Your Life podcast or audio cast, if you
are coming back, well, of course, a big
warm welcome back to you.
I always love to have people that are
coming back and joining us.
And so hopefully you'll get lots of great
(01:27):
nuggets of information.
And it's my goal to give you the
tools that you can use to basically improve
the quality of your life.
All right, guys.
So before I do kick the show off,
I do want to invite you to go
get yourself some drink.
I have my RO water here.
I've already been drinking it for quite a
(01:48):
while.
Maybe you want to go get a snack,
could be a piece of fruit, could be
a drink or nuts or whatever it is,
healthy, sweet, tart or not, that's totally up
to you.
Feel free to get that and hurry on
back to the show so we can kick
this off.
So welcome, everyone, formally again, back to another
(02:08):
soul stirring, mind chopping episode of Inspirations for
Your Life podcast.
I am your host, podcast coach, serial entrepreneur,
engineer, video producer, graduate student and a lot
more.
And it is my privilege and pleasure to
be your host here today.
(02:31):
But, you know, what I want to say
to you is, you know, not only am
I your host and all these great things,
but I am someone who's learned firsthand how
to transform not just teams, but the entire
human experience.
And I think that's really important to mention.
But the entire human experience is what cultivates
(02:52):
and breeds new life into us to be
able to do new and better things.
So today I'm diving very deep into a
powerful truth.
Trust unlocks creativity and force shuts it down.
So whether you're a leader trying to ignite
innovation or someone seeking to bring out, well,
the best in others, this episode will definitely
(03:15):
help you understand the emotional science behind motivation
and creative energy.
When people feel safe, well, they just create.
When they feel controlled, they unfortunately shut down.
It's time to build a culture where creativity
thrives and trust leads the way.
Let's get started, everyone.
(03:35):
Are you ready?
All right.
So the core takeaways for today, number one,
trust sparks innovation.
When people feel trusted, they are more likely
to take creative risks and also experiment with
new ideas.
Trust eliminates the fear of failure and opens
that door to innovation.
It shows your team that you believe in
(03:57):
their abilities, encouraging them to, yes, contribute ideas
that can lead to groundbreaking solutions.
Without trust, people default to safety and creativity
dies in that safe mode, unfortunately.
Number two, force creates fear.
What's fear, guys?
False evidence appearing real.
(04:19):
Applying pressure, micromanaging or forcing compliance through fear
only creates resistance.
Instead of focusing on possibilities, individuals become preoccupied
with avoiding punishment or criticism.
The fear that they get is based on
(04:39):
the environment and they shut down their inspiration
and it promotes a problem for them.
And we need to have an environment that
allows creativity and not just stifles people in
conformity.
Because although we can have rules, we need
to allow some area for people to be
(05:00):
able to breathe and express.
Number three, freedom fuels flow.
Freedom in how tasks are approached allows people
to enter a psychological state of quote unquote
flow.
That sweet spot where productivity and passion just
align magically.
When individuals are given autonomy, they naturally find
(05:22):
unique ways to solve problems.
Often exceeding expectations, freedom fosters a sense of,
well, ownership, which in turn drives innovation.
Number four, guys, creativity thrives in safety.
A psychological safe environment gives people the confidence
(05:43):
to voice unconventional ideas without ridicule.
It's in these safe spaces that teams can
brainstorm freely, explore without fear, and take the
kind of leaps that result in, well, real
breakthroughs.
Safety, okay, is important to understand and it
is the soil in which creativity will grow.
(06:07):
Number five, leadership builds trust.
Leaders set the emotional tone for a team
organization.
A trustworthy leader listens, not because he has
to, but because he wants to.
He shows empathy and supports the team even
when things, well, they go haywire.
By modeling trust, leaders inspire their team members
(06:30):
to trust one another, creating a culture where
collaboration and creativity will become the norm.
Number six, control kills curiosity.
When everything is dictated from the top, curiosity
just fades.
People stop asking what if and start asking,
what do I have to do?
(06:52):
Creativity relies on curiosity.
And if your people feel being controlled, then
they'll never dig deep into innovation.
Give them room to explore, question, and challenge
the status quo, and you'll get some pretty
amazing creativity.
But unfortunately, that's not what happens.
(07:12):
I think it's important to understand what's going
on.
And so it's important that people get this.
And so I want to let you know
that people just don't seem to understand some
(07:35):
things.
And it happens because of the emotional environment
shutting down.
Number seven, guys, encouragement invites bold ideas.
A few words of encouragement can spark game
-changing ideas.
When people are cheered on and celebrated for
thinking differently, they become braver.
This bravery leads to ideas that are bigger,
(07:57):
bolder, and of course, more impactful.
Encouragement is one of the simplest, most powerful
creativity boosters that we have available today.
Number eight, guys, micro-management stifles imagination.
Say it with me, micro-management stifles imagination.
Constant oversight doesn't just annoy your team, it
(08:18):
crushes their ability to imagine and explore.
Micro-management sends the message that you don't
trust them.
And that kills motivation.
Instead, offer support and guidance, then step back
and let people think for themselves.
I think that's where you're going to see
the most success with you and your team.
Number nine, openness leads to breakthroughs.
When teams are open to diverse perspectives, ideas
(08:41):
can collide and combine in really beautiful ways.
Encouraging openness means welcoming feedback, new methods, and
untested concepts.
This atmosphere leads to innovative problem-solving and
creative breakthroughs.
You can't predict in a controlled environment.
I think that's really important for us to
(09:02):
have as a takeaway here today.
Trust empowers ownership, guys.
Trust empowers ownership.
And if trust truly empowers ownership, then this
will make sense for you.
When you trust someone with a task or
a project, they're more likely to take full
ownership.
Ownership breeds care, attention to detail, and pride
(09:23):
in one's work.
All the key ingredients for, well, creative excellence.
People don't just complete the task.
They pour their entire heart and themselves into
it.
Number 11, fear limits experimentation.
Now, I know you might say, John, well,
no, it doesn't.
It does.
(09:43):
When you have so many rules put on
you, that can be a real problem, a
big problem.
So fear makes people play it safe in
a fearful environment.
Nobody wants to be wrong.
So they just stop experimenting.
They completely stop everything except exactly what they're
being told to do.
But experimentation is the very engine of creativity
(10:06):
and genius.
By reducing fear, you invite your team to
try, to fail, to learn, and to ultimately
innovate.
Let's talk about Mr., what was it, wise
inventor of our time.
Remember Thomas Edison?
How many times did it take Thomas Edison
to create the light bulb?
(10:27):
How many times did it take him to
create the light bulb?
Well, he tested over 6,000 materials for
filament before finding a workable solution, while some
sources have said he has basically had over
999 successful attempts.
And it refers to the various experiments conducted
to find the right filament material rather than
separate attempts to invent the bulb itself.
(10:49):
But, you know, that's all part of the
process.
Each one of these, you don't want to
call them failures, these learning lessons taught him
that this wasn't the right filament.
Respect nurtures creative confidence.
Respect is the foundation of any creative culture.
When people feel respected for their ideas, they
(11:11):
become more confident, willing to contribute.
Respect validates effort, encourages contribution, and tells your
team you really matter, your ideas matter.
I was sharing to you what happened with
an unexpected situation happened to me the other
day, and I shared with you how something
very rude happened, where on basically it was,
(11:34):
I believe it was on Tuesday morning, this
team from India or Bangladesh was so entirely
rude to me that not only did I
lose hearing in my left ear for quite
a long time, over let's say an hour
and a half, and then close to two
hours to finally get my balance back, because
(11:54):
I was literally like dizzy.
And I think that's, you know, happening because
of a culture, okay?
I think that's a very, very important thing.
Does that make sense?
(12:21):
I hope it does.
And so I think
(12:54):
sometimes people get a little bit, let's say,
stifled because they don't know why something happens
a certain way.
I'll give you a perfect example.
I just had a person not too long
ago literally message me on LinkedIn.
I'm sure you've all gotten this before, right?
Message me on LinkedIn, and he said to
me, I'm messaging non-technical people, technical and
(13:19):
non-technical people like yourself.
He didn't even read my bio to know
that I'm an engineer.
They just fire off their crap at you.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is a sign
of disrespect.
Someone that obviously I definitely wouldn't want to
work with, and someone that I don't even
want to talk to.
Not to be rude, but respect nurtures creativity.
(13:42):
So as I said, when people feel respected,
their ideas and the person, they become more
competent and willing to want to contribute.
Respect validates the effort.
When these people were being rude to me
the other day and not even having the
decency to reach out to me.
(14:02):
Now, not only the people in Bangladesh and
India, where the heck they're from, the US
people that actually recruited our team and myself
to go out to a VIP office complex
didn't even have the decency to reach out
to me.
That's pretty bad.
Now, for privacy reasons, I'm not going to
(14:26):
mention the name of the company, but this
company has been around for a while, and
they provide comprehensive IT services for different things.
But unfortunately, they're kind of like a chop
shop.
And the reason I say that, they have
a strong presence.
Yes, they have engineers that they partner with,
(14:48):
and they provide a wide range of IT
services.
And they have something called White Glove IT
service.
But the thing is, they really started to
treat their contractors with disrespect.
And that's a problem.
Forget the fact that I had lost my
hearing.
Forget the fact that I was dizzy and
(15:10):
almost going to the hospital.
The way I was treated and disrespected is
saying, John, I don't ever want to work
with them again.
So here's the part of the show I
love.
I am going to give you a personal
story for each point today.
(15:30):
And it's my hope that these stories will
wake up alive and in you some hidden
desires.
They're like, oh, wow, that's an epiphany moment.
Like, I get it now, right?
You get it.
So respect is very important.
But many times, people are not respectful because,
(15:53):
well, they're too busy.
They're too worried about their money.
They're too worried about what the client's going
to think.
And also, that tells me that when they
don't have that kind of respect, we're probably
not going to come back to you.
So figure, well, why should I bother being
nice?
Well, because you've worked with this person for
(16:15):
so long.
So trust sparks innovation, right?
I think that's really important to know, all
right?
And so like I said, these are some
stories that I hope will literally, like I
(16:36):
said, light up something in your brain, make
a connection.
Oh, I get it.
I get it.
I get it.
I get it.
Like, I never thought of it that way
before.
No, you never thought of it that way
before because nobody presented it to you like
that, right?
So now that you are seeing it this
way, I'm hoping you will look at it
differently, right?
(16:56):
I think that's important to definitely realize.
So years ago, I led a team on
a tech startup project that had some high
stakes and some tight deadlines.
One of my junior developers hesitated to speak
up during meetings, but I saw potential in
him.
So instead of assigning his tasks directly, I
gave him a problem and said, take a
(17:19):
stab at this.
Solving it, no pressure if it doesn't work.
To my surprise, he came back a week
later with a prototype that none of us
had thought of, elegant, simple, and exactly what
we needed and probably were looking for.
This moment reminded me when you show trust,
people rise to the occasion.
Now, Tim didn't just meet the mark.
(17:39):
He redefined it.
If I had micromanaged him or dictated the
approach, that idea might have been, well, surfaced.
Innovation lives in the space where people feel
believed in.
Another reason I've chosen the slogan BelieveWeAchieve.com.
Number two, force creates fear.
I once consulted for a company where the
(18:00):
CEO ran things like a bootcamp.
Deadlines were threats.
Feedback was mostly criticism and creativity was practically
a fireable offense.
One of the most talented designers there told
me, I stopped caring about new ideas.
I just try not to get in trouble.
That broke my heart.
Force doesn't make people more productive.
(18:22):
It makes them more afraid.
Fear shrinks the mind.
It keeps you in survival mode.
No one creates magic when they're focused on
avoiding landmines, right?
I mean, you can't.
Number three, freedom fuels flow.
Back in my early podcasting days, over three,
four years ago, I bought a new audio
(18:43):
editor and basically brought on a new team
member to help with that.
I gave him full control of post-production
for one episode and no checklist, no do
this, do that, just the freedom to craft
it how he thought best.
Not only did he clean up the audio
(19:04):
perfectly, but he also added some subtle background
music pauses for effect and transitions that took
the episode to an entirely new level.
That's when I firsthand knew that freedom leads
to ownership and ownership leads to excellence.
When we give people space to find their
rhythm, they often exceed what we thought possible
for them.
Number four, creativity thrives in safety.
(19:27):
During a brainstorming session with my team, I
made a point to tell everyone there are
no bad ideas today.
That one sentence shifted the entire energy in
the room.
Someone suggested a concept that sounded crazy at
first, but sparked the chain reaction that led
us to one of our most successful campaigns.
If we hadn't created that safe space, we
(19:49):
might've missed it.
Creativity, my friends, is fragile.
It doesn't show up where judgment lurks.
Safety isn't a luxury in innovation.
It's the launchpad.
Leadership builds trust, guys.
There was a time when one of my
managers, as I told you I was working
for in the government agency before I left
(20:11):
that company that didn't treat me so well,
made a costly mistake that affected a client.
And by client, it was basically somebody there
that was a student of ours.
Instead of reprimanding him publicly or laying blame,
I pulled him aside, acknowledged the mistake, and
asked, what did we learn from this?
He walked away not just with relief, but
(20:31):
with renewed determination to do better.
However, he wasn't so kind when something came
up that he thought I should have known.
He blasted me in front of a whole
bunch of people.
And that's the kind of environment I don't
want to be part of.
And so leadership should be a two-way
street, not just one way.
(20:51):
Control kills curiosity, guys.
I once shouted a leader who insisted on
reviewing every single email his team sent, every
single one.
The result, people stopped asking questions.
They stopped dreaming.
They just waited for instructions.
The room was silent, not in a focused
way, but in a drained way.
Control doesn't organize.
It suffocates.
(21:12):
When curiosity dies, so does innovation.
Let your team breathe, wonder, and wander.
That's where brilliance actually lives.
Encouragement invites bold ideas.
Early in my career, I gave a team
member a simple piece of feedback after a
presentation.
That was one of the most original approaches
(21:33):
I've seen.
Well done.
His eyes lit up.
A week later, he pitched a campaign so
daring, it made everyone nervous, but it worked,
big time.
Encouragement is fuel.
It doesn't take much, but it powers boldness.
A few sincere words can open a dam
of creativity waiting to plop.
(21:53):
Micromanagement stifles imagination.
And some of the big CEOs from publicly
traded companies still don't get this.
I once had a client who couldn't let
go of anything.
She'd assign tasks and hover over every step.
Her team began to disengage.
They'd wait for her input instead of bringing
ideas to the table.
(22:14):
One team member told me, why try when
it's just going to get redone anyway?
That experience taught me that micromanagement isn't about
standards.
It's about insecurity.
It breeds more insecurity.
Wanted imagination?
Let go a little.
Openness leads to breakthroughs.
(22:36):
I worked on a joint venture with professionals
from three completely different industries, tech, education, and
wellness.
At first, ideas clashed, but once we embraced
the friction and stayed open, something magical transpired.
We developed a product that wouldn't have been
possible inside any one of us, of our
silos.
(22:56):
Innovation is born in contrast.
Openness invites the unexpected, and the unexpected often
leads to genius.
Trust empowers ownership.
Years ago, I gave a new hire full
responsibility over a community outreach initiative.
I told him, this is your baby.
Run with it.
He not only owned it, he rebranded it,
grew it, and made it one of our
most recognized programs, all because he knew I
(23:19):
trusted him.
Ownership is born from belief.
Again, believemeachieved.com.
When you show someone they're trusted, they start
acting like it, and the results speak volumes.
Remember, guys, fear limits experimentation.
In a startup I mentored, the founder once
scolded a developer for a failed product test
in front of the team.
(23:40):
After that, no one wanted to try anything
new.
Progress stalled.
When I stepped in, I encouraged small experiments
and celebrated the effort, not just success.
Slowly, innovation returned.
Fear freezes the future.
If your team is scared to mess up,
they'll never reach beyond the status quo.
I think that's something that many people don't
(24:01):
get.
I don't care whether they have a one
-digit, two-digit, three-digit, four-digit, or
10-digit salary.
I'm being facetious here.
But a lot of them have this ego,
and they don't realize that it takes a
team to run the company, not them only.
Respect nurtures creative confidence, our last one for
today.
I'll never forget the time someone on my
(24:21):
team presented an idea I didn't fully understand
at first.
I didn't dismiss it.
I asked him to explain more.
I listened, and by the end, I was
convinced.
His confidence soared after that, and he became
one of our most consistent idea contributors.
Respect, guys, is the secret.
It's like that amazing ingredient that makes the
(24:42):
chocolate cake yummy in creativity.
When you show that every voice matters, every
voice matters more, and everyone starts to realize
what actions are.
When people start to feel a certain way,
they're like, wow, I did that.
(25:03):
When the boss or manager says, hey, you
did a good job, they feel so empowered.
I think it's important to understand that, really
important.
(25:27):
I know you're probably saying this is hard
to understand.
I know that some people give up because
of one feeling.
Now, the feeling that I had yesterday, that
feeling didn't make me give up the way
(25:47):
I was treated badly.
It just said, John, you need to respect
yourself more.
You need to not only do that, but
you need to expect respect more from others
as well.
See, when you respect yourself first more, other
people will respect you.
When you value yourself more, other people will
value more.
(26:08):
It's just the way it goes.
You've got to be the one that sees
the value in you.
Once you do, other people are like, oh,
wow, I didn't know you basically were, quote
unquote, that valuable.
It's kind of funny.
When you make yourself in demand, you are
in demand.
(26:28):
You could charge a higher price tag as
well.
I hope that this episode today about trust,
inviting creativity, and understanding that force stifles it.
I know a lot of people will say
that force is the way to go.
But I want to tell you something, guys.
It obviously is not the way to go.
(26:53):
It's not the way to go.
If you can understand maybe why you want
to be forceful, is it to get things
done faster?
Is it to appear bigger or better than
somebody?
Well, you see, that doesn't really matter, guys.
At the end of the day, it matters
(27:14):
how you feel and how others feel.
I think those are important things.
I hope that you will take the time
to rewatch this episode.
Think about how this applies to your own
daily life, whether that's with your family, whether
that's with your friends, whether that's with volunteers,
(27:35):
even your personal intimate relationships.
Think about this because just thinking about this
alone can change the thought pattern and the
trajectory to how you're going to respond.
Remember, I've said to you that thoughts become
things.
We change our words.
We change our thoughts.
(27:57):
We change our thoughts.
We change our mind.
We change our mind.
Well, we change our life.
That is what we all want today, isn't
it?
Ladies and gentlemen, I'm John C.
Morley, serial entrepreneur.
It's always a privilege, pleasure, and honor to
be with you guys here on the amazing
inspiration of your life.
Do check out BelieveMeAchieved.com for more of
my amazing, inspiring creations.
I'll catch you real soon, everyone.
Well, hello everyone.
Good morning, I should say.
It is John C.
Morley here.
It's great to be with you on, yes,
Inspirations for Your Life.
Do check out believemeachieved.com for more of
my amazing inspiring creations, of course, after the
(00:42):
show or 24 hours a day.
So guys, it is great to be with
you here.
We have an amazing master topic for the
week and that is trust the process and
ditch the force.
Today's granular topic I'm happy to bring to
you is Trust Invites Creativity, Force Stifles It,
series four, show 28, episode number six.
(01:05):
So a big warm welcome to everyone.
If you are new to the Inspirations for
Your Life podcast or audio cast, if you
are coming back, well, of course, a big
warm welcome back to you.
I always love to have people that are
coming back and joining us.
And so hopefully you'll get lots of great
(01:27):
nuggets of information.
And it's my goal to give you the
tools that you can use to basically improve
the quality of your life.
All right, guys.
So before I do kick the show off,
I do want to invite you to go
get yourself some drink.
I have my RO water here.
I've already been drinking it for quite a
(01:48):
while.
Maybe you want to go get a snack,
could be a piece of fruit, could be
a drink or nuts or whatever it is,
healthy, sweet, tart or not, that's totally up
to you.
Feel free to get that and hurry on
back to the show so we can kick
this off.
So welcome, everyone, formally again, back to another
(02:08):
soul stirring, mind chopping episode of Inspirations for
Your Life podcast.
I am your host, podcast coach, serial entrepreneur,
engineer, video producer, graduate student and a lot
more.
And it is my privilege and pleasure to
be your host here today.
(02:31):
But, you know, what I want to say
to you is, you know, not only am
I your host and all these great things,
but I am someone who's learned firsthand how
to transform not just teams, but the entire
human experience.
And I think that's really important to mention.
But the entire human experience is what cultivates
(02:52):
and breeds new life into us to be
able to do new and better things.
So today I'm diving very deep into a
powerful truth.
Trust unlocks creativity and force shuts it down.
So whether you're a leader trying to ignite
innovation or someone seeking to bring out, well,
the best in others, this episode will definitely
(03:15):
help you understand the emotional science behind motivation
and creative energy.
When people feel safe, well, they just create.
When they feel controlled, they unfortunately shut down.
It's time to build a culture where creativity
thrives and trust leads the way.
Let's get started, everyone.
(03:35):
Are you ready?
All right.
So the core takeaways for today, number one,
trust sparks innovation.
When people feel trusted, they are more likely
to take creative risks and also experiment with
new ideas.
Trust eliminates the fear of failure and opens
that door to innovation.
It shows your team that you believe in
(03:57):
their abilities, encouraging them to, yes, contribute ideas
that can lead to groundbreaking solutions.
Without trust, people default to safety and creativity
dies in that safe mode, unfortunately.
Number two, force creates fear.
What's fear, guys?
False evidence appearing real.
(04:19):
Applying pressure, micromanaging or forcing compliance through fear
only creates resistance.
Instead of focusing on possibilities, individuals become preoccupied
with avoiding punishment or criticism.
The fear that they get is based on
(04:39):
the environment and they shut down their inspiration
and it promotes a problem for them.
And we need to have an environment that
allows creativity and not just stifles people in
conformity.
Because although we can have rules, we need
to allow some area for people to be
(05:00):
able to breathe and express.
Number three, freedom fuels flow.
Freedom in how tasks are approached allows people
to enter a psychological state of quote unquote
flow.
That sweet spot where productivity and passion just
align magically.
When individuals are given autonomy, they naturally find
(05:22):
unique ways to solve problems.
Often exceeding expectations, freedom fosters a sense of,
well, ownership, which in turn drives innovation.
Number four, guys, creativity thrives in safety.
A psychological safe environment gives people the confidence
(05:43):
to voice unconventional ideas without ridicule.
It's in these safe spaces that teams can
brainstorm freely, explore without fear, and take the
kind of leaps that result in, well, real
breakthroughs.
Safety, okay, is important to understand and it
is the soil in which creativity will grow.
(06:07):
Number five, leadership builds trust.
Leaders set the emotional tone for a team
organization.
A trustworthy leader listens, not because he has
to, but because he wants to.
He shows empathy and supports the team even
when things, well, they go haywire.
By modeling trust, leaders inspire their team members
(06:30):
to trust one another, creating a culture where
collaboration and creativity will become the norm.
Number six, control kills curiosity.
When everything is dictated from the top, curiosity
just fades.
People stop asking what if and start asking,
what do I have to do?
(06:52):
Creativity relies on curiosity.
And if your people feel being controlled, then
they'll never dig deep into innovation.
Give them room to explore, question, and challenge
the status quo, and you'll get some pretty
amazing creativity.
But unfortunately, that's not what happens.
(07:12):
I think it's important to understand what's going
on.
And so it's important that people get this.
And so I want to let you know
that people just don't seem to understand some
(07:35):
things.
And it happens because of the emotional environment
shutting down.
Number seven, guys, encouragement invites bold ideas.
A few words of encouragement can spark game
-changing ideas.
When people are cheered on and celebrated for
thinking differently, they become braver.
This bravery leads to ideas that are bigger,
(07:57):
bolder, and of course, more impactful.
Encouragement is one of the simplest, most powerful
creativity boosters that we have available today.
Number eight, guys, micro-management stifles imagination.
Say it with me, micro-management stifles imagination.
Constant oversight doesn't just annoy your team, it
(08:18):
crushes their ability to imagine and explore.
Micro-management sends the message that you don't
trust them.
And that kills motivation.
Instead, offer support and guidance, then step back
and let people think for themselves.
I think that's where you're going to see
the most success with you and your team.
Number nine, openness leads to breakthroughs.
When teams are open to diverse perspectives, ideas
(08:41):
can collide and combine in really beautiful ways.
Encouraging openness means welcoming feedback, new methods, and
untested concepts.
This atmosphere leads to innovative problem-solving and
creative breakthroughs.
You can't predict in a controlled environment.
I think that's really important for us to
(09:02):
have as a takeaway here today.
Trust empowers ownership, guys.
Trust empowers ownership.
And if trust truly empowers ownership, then this
will make sense for you.
When you trust someone with a task or
a project, they're more likely to take full
ownership.
Ownership breeds care, attention to detail, and pride
(09:23):
in one's work.
All the key ingredients for, well, creative excellence.
People don't just complete the task.
They pour their entire heart and themselves into
it.
Number 11, fear limits experimentation.
Now, I know you might say, John, well,
no, it doesn't.
It does.
(09:43):
When you have so many rules put on
you, that can be a real problem, a
big problem.
So fear makes people play it safe in
a fearful environment.
Nobody wants to be wrong.
So they just stop experimenting.
They completely stop everything except exactly what they're
being told to do.
But experimentation is the very engine of creativity
(10:06):
and genius.
By reducing fear, you invite your team to
try, to fail, to learn, and to ultimately
innovate.
Let's talk about Mr., what was it, wise
inventor of our time.
Remember Thomas Edison?
How many times did it take Thomas Edison
to create the light bulb?
(10:27):
How many times did it take him to
create the light bulb?
Well, he tested over 6,000 materials for
filament before finding a workable solution, while some
sources have said he has basically had over
999 successful attempts.
And it refers to the various experiments conducted
to find the right filament material rather than
separate attempts to invent the bulb itself.
(10:49):
But, you know, that's all part of the
process.
Each one of these, you don't want to
call them failures, these learning lessons taught him
that this wasn't the right filament.
Respect nurtures creative confidence.
Respect is the foundation of any creative culture.
When people feel respected for their ideas, they
(11:11):
become more confident, willing to contribute.
Respect validates effort, encourages contribution, and tells your
team you really matter, your ideas matter.
I was sharing to you what happened with
an unexpected situation happened to me the other
day, and I shared with you how something
very rude happened, where on basically it was,
(11:34):
I believe it was on Tuesday morning, this
team from India or Bangladesh was so entirely
rude to me that not only did I
lose hearing in my left ear for quite
a long time, over let's say an hour
and a half, and then close to two
hours to finally get my balance back, because
(11:54):
I was literally like dizzy.
And I think that's, you know, happening because
of a culture, okay?
I think that's a very, very important thing.
Does that make sense?
(12:21):
I hope it does.
And so I think
(12:54):
sometimes people get a little bit, let's say,
stifled because they don't know why something happens
a certain way.
I'll give you a perfect example.
I just had a person not too long
ago literally message me on LinkedIn.
I'm sure you've all gotten this before, right?
Message me on LinkedIn, and he said to
me, I'm messaging non-technical people, technical and
(13:19):
non-technical people like yourself.
He didn't even read my bio to know
that I'm an engineer.
They just fire off their crap at you.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is a sign
of disrespect.
Someone that obviously I definitely wouldn't want to
work with, and someone that I don't even
want to talk to.
Not to be rude, but respect nurtures creativity.
(13:42):
So as I said, when people feel respected,
their ideas and the person, they become more
competent and willing to want to contribute.
Respect validates the effort.
When these people were being rude to me
the other day and not even having the
decency to reach out to me.
(14:02):
Now, not only the people in Bangladesh and
India, where the heck they're from, the US
people that actually recruited our team and myself
to go out to a VIP office complex
didn't even have the decency to reach out
to me.
That's pretty bad.
Now, for privacy reasons, I'm not going to
(14:26):
mention the name of the company, but this
company has been around for a while, and
they provide comprehensive IT services for different things.
But unfortunately, they're kind of like a chop
shop.
And the reason I say that, they have
a strong presence.
Yes, they have engineers that they partner with,
(14:48):
and they provide a wide range of IT
services.
And they have something called White Glove IT
service.
But the thing is, they really started to
treat their contractors with disrespect.
And that's a problem.
Forget the fact that I had lost my
hearing.
Forget the fact that I was dizzy and
(15:10):
almost going to the hospital.
The way I was treated and disrespected is
saying, John, I don't ever want to work
with them again.
So here's the part of the show I
love.
I am going to give you a personal
story for each point today.
(15:30):
And it's my hope that these stories will
wake up alive and in you some hidden
desires.
They're like, oh, wow, that's an epiphany moment.
Like, I get it now, right?
You get it.
So respect is very important.
But many times, people are not respectful because,
(15:53):
well, they're too busy.
They're too worried about their money.
They're too worried about what the client's going
to think.
And also, that tells me that when they
don't have that kind of respect, we're probably
not going to come back to you.
So figure, well, why should I bother being
nice?
Well, because you've worked with this person for
(16:15):
so long.
So trust sparks innovation, right?
I think that's really important to know, all
right?
And so like I said, these are some
stories that I hope will literally, like I
(16:36):
said, light up something in your brain, make
a connection.
Oh, I get it.
I get it.
I get it.
I get it.
Like, I never thought of it that way
before.
No, you never thought of it that way
before because nobody presented it to you like
that, right?
So now that you are seeing it this
way, I'm hoping you will look at it
differently, right?
(16:56):
I think that's important to definitely realize.
So years ago, I led a team on
a tech startup project that had some high
stakes and some tight deadlines.
One of my junior developers hesitated to speak
up during meetings, but I saw potential in
him.
So instead of assigning his tasks directly, I
gave him a problem and said, take a
(17:19):
stab at this.
Solving it, no pressure if it doesn't work.
To my surprise, he came back a week
later with a prototype that none of us
had thought of, elegant, simple, and exactly what
we needed and probably were looking for.
This moment reminded me when you show trust,
people rise to the occasion.
Now, Tim didn't just meet the mark.
(17:39):
He redefined it.
If I had micromanaged him or dictated the
approach, that idea might have been, well, surfaced.
Innovation lives in the space where people feel
believed in.
Another reason I've chosen the slogan BelieveWeAchieve.com.
Number two, force creates fear.
I once consulted for a company where the
(18:00):
CEO ran things like a bootcamp.
Deadlines were threats.
Feedback was mostly criticism and creativity was practically
a fireable offense.
One of the most talented designers there told
me, I stopped caring about new ideas.
I just try not to get in trouble.
That broke my heart.
Force doesn't make people more productive.
(18:22):
It makes them more afraid.
Fear shrinks the mind.
It keeps you in survival mode.
No one creates magic when they're focused on
avoiding landmines, right?
I mean, you can't.
Number three, freedom fuels flow.
Back in my early podcasting days, over three,
four years ago, I bought a new audio
(18:43):
editor and basically brought on a new team
member to help with that.
I gave him full control of post-production
for one episode and no checklist, no do
this, do that, just the freedom to craft
it how he thought best.
Not only did he clean up the audio
(19:04):
perfectly, but he also added some subtle background
music pauses for effect and transitions that took
the episode to an entirely new level.
That's when I firsthand knew that freedom leads
to ownership and ownership leads to excellence.
When we give people space to find their
rhythm, they often exceed what we thought possible
for them.
Number four, creativity thrives in safety.
(19:27):
During a brainstorming session with my team, I
made a point to tell everyone there are
no bad ideas today.
That one sentence shifted the entire energy in
the room.
Someone suggested a concept that sounded crazy at
first, but sparked the chain reaction that led
us to one of our most successful campaigns.
If we hadn't created that safe space, we
(19:49):
might've missed it.
Creativity, my friends, is fragile.
It doesn't show up where judgment lurks.
Safety isn't a luxury in innovation.
It's the launchpad.
Leadership builds trust, guys.
There was a time when one of my
managers, as I told you I was working
for in the government agency before I left
(20:11):
that company that didn't treat me so well,
made a costly mistake that affected a client.
And by client, it was basically somebody there
that was a student of ours.
Instead of reprimanding him publicly or laying blame,
I pulled him aside, acknowledged the mistake, and
asked, what did we learn from this?
He walked away not just with relief, but
(20:31):
with renewed determination to do better.
However, he wasn't so kind when something came
up that he thought I should have known.
He blasted me in front of a whole
bunch of people.
And that's the kind of environment I don't
want to be part of.
And so leadership should be a two-way
street, not just one way.
(20:51):
Control kills curiosity, guys.
I once shouted a leader who insisted on
reviewing every single email his team sent, every
single one.
The result, people stopped asking questions.
They stopped dreaming.
They just waited for instructions.
The room was silent, not in a focused
way, but in a drained way.
Control doesn't organize.
It suffocates.
(21:12):
When curiosity dies, so does innovation.
Let your team breathe, wonder, and wander.
That's where brilliance actually lives.
Encouragement invites bold ideas.
Early in my career, I gave a team
member a simple piece of feedback after a
presentation.
That was one of the most original approaches
(21:33):
I've seen.
Well done.
His eyes lit up.
A week later, he pitched a campaign so
daring, it made everyone nervous, but it worked,
big time.
Encouragement is fuel.
It doesn't take much, but it powers boldness.
A few sincere words can open a dam
of creativity waiting to plop.
(21:53):
Micromanagement stifles imagination.
And some of the big CEOs from publicly
traded companies still don't get this.
I once had a client who couldn't let
go of anything.
She'd assign tasks and hover over every step.
Her team began to disengage.
They'd wait for her input instead of bringing
ideas to the table.
(22:14):
One team member told me, why try when
it's just going to get redone anyway?
That experience taught me that micromanagement isn't about
standards.
It's about insecurity.
It breeds more insecurity.
Wanted imagination?
Let go a little.
Openness leads to breakthroughs.
(22:36):
I worked on a joint venture with professionals
from three completely different industries, tech, education, and
wellness.
At first, ideas clashed, but once we embraced
the friction and stayed open, something magical transpired.
We developed a product that wouldn't have been
possible inside any one of us, of our
silos.
(22:56):
Innovation is born in contrast.
Openness invites the unexpected, and the unexpected often
leads to genius.
Trust empowers ownership.
Years ago, I gave a new hire full
responsibility over a community outreach initiative.
I told him, this is your baby.
Run with it.
He not only owned it, he rebranded it,
grew it, and made it one of our
most recognized programs, all because he knew I
(23:19):
trusted him.
Ownership is born from belief.
Again, believemeachieved.com.
When you show someone they're trusted, they start
acting like it, and the results speak volumes.
Remember, guys, fear limits experimentation.
In a startup I mentored, the founder once
scolded a developer for a failed product test
in front of the team.
(23:40):
After that, no one wanted to try anything
new.
Progress stalled.
When I stepped in, I encouraged small experiments
and celebrated the effort, not just success.
Slowly, innovation returned.
Fear freezes the future.
If your team is scared to mess up,
they'll never reach beyond the status quo.
I think that's something that many people don't
(24:01):
get.
I don't care whether they have a one
-digit, two-digit, three-digit, four-digit, or
10-digit salary.
I'm being facetious here.
But a lot of them have this ego,
and they don't realize that it takes a
team to run the company, not them only.
Respect nurtures creative confidence, our last one for
today.
I'll never forget the time someone on my
(24:21):
team presented an idea I didn't fully understand
at first.
I didn't dismiss it.
I asked him to explain more.
I listened, and by the end, I was
convinced.
His confidence soared after that, and he became
one of our most consistent idea contributors.
Respect, guys, is the secret.
It's like that amazing ingredient that makes the
(24:42):
chocolate cake yummy in creativity.
When you show that every voice matters, every
voice matters more, and everyone starts to realize
what actions are.
When people start to feel a certain way,
they're like, wow, I did that.
(25:03):
When the boss or manager says, hey, you
did a good job, they feel so empowered.
I think it's important to understand that, really
important.
(25:27):
I know you're probably saying this is hard
to understand.
I know that some people give up because
of one feeling.
Now, the feeling that I had yesterday, that
feeling didn't make me give up the way
(25:47):
I was treated badly.
It just said, John, you need to respect
yourself more.
You need to not only do that, but
you need to expect respect more from others
as well.
See, when you respect yourself first more, other
people will respect you.
When you value yourself more, other people will
value more.
(26:08):
It's just the way it goes.
You've got to be the one that sees
the value in you.
Once you do, other people are like, oh,
wow, I didn't know you basically were, quote
unquote, that valuable.
It's kind of funny.
When you make yourself in demand, you are
in demand.
(26:28):
You could charge a higher price tag as
well.
I hope that this episode today about trust,
inviting creativity, and understanding that force stifles it.
I know a lot of people will say
that force is the way to go.
But I want to tell you something, guys.
It obviously is not the way to go.
(26:53):
It's not the way to go.
If you can understand maybe why you want
to be forceful, is it to get things
done faster?
Is it to appear bigger or better than
somebody?
Well, you see, that doesn't really matter, guys.
At the end of the day, it matters
(27:14):
how you feel and how others feel.
I think those are important things.
I hope that you will take the time
to rewatch this episode.
Think about how this applies to your own
daily life, whether that's with your family, whether
that's with your friends, whether that's with volunteers,
(27:35):
even your personal intimate relationships.
Think about this because just thinking about this
alone can change the thought pattern and the
trajectory to how you're going to respond.
Remember, I've said to you that thoughts become
things.
We change our words.
We change our thoughts.
(27:57):
We change our thoughts.
We change our mind.
We change our mind.
Well, we change our life.
That is what we all want today, isn't
it?
Ladies and gentlemen, I'm John C.
Morley, serial entrepreneur.
It's always a privilege, pleasure, and honor to
be with you guys here on the amazing
inspiration of your life.
Do check out BelieveMeAchieved.com for more of
my amazing, inspiring creations.
I'll catch you real soon, everyone.
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