Welcome to Networking Unleashed, Building Profitable
Connections, the show where we explore how meaningful
relationships drive powerful results in business
and in life. I'm your host, Michael Foreman,
and today we're diving into a conversation that
sits at the intersection of uncertainty, innovation,
and human connection. My guest is a thought leader
in peak performance and adaptability. Someone
who knows what it takes to lead, connect, and
thrive when the stakes are high and the future
is unclear. He's also raising a flag for what
many overlook, that in an era dominated by AI
and automation, our human relationships, not
our resumes or technical skills, may be the most
valuable asset we have. We're talking about how
to build unshakable networks in shaky times.
How to connect with purpose when everything is
changing, and how to future -proof your influence
no matter what technology does exist. If you're
looking for clarity, courage, and connection
in the face of rapid change, this episode is
in your playbook. Alfredo, how did I do? First
of all, welcome to the podcast, and introduce
yourself. Michael, it is a pleasure to be here.
You did great. Thank you. Better than my real
life. Well, I am an executive coach. I have the
pleasure of speaking internationally and I talk
on peak performance and how people can achieve
their dreams and sustain them. And I have a very
specific way that I have found. to help people
achieve peak performance, which I will share
with those listening, which I think is a little
bit different from people usually call peak performance.
And I have evidence from years and years of working
with people that this really is effective. Wonderful.
That's wonderful. I can't wait to dive into it.
So let's start. In times of extreme uncertainty,
At the end of a crisis, when you ask people to
look back and tell you what is the most significant
factor that helped them go through the crisis,
most people would answer other people. The advice
of other people the people who didn't run away
from you when you needed them, your friends,
your family, your co -workers. At the end of
life, when we look back and they ask you who
influenced you, it's a mentor, it's a teacher,
it's a parent, okay? We live in a world of things
and projects and goals and success. But the core
of who we are always comes down to the people
we relate to. That's the most profound and significant
aspect of who we are. Absolutely right. When
I think back, listen, I've owned businesses before.
I was in the military. When I think back to the
positions that I've held, I don't think about
how much money I made or anything else like that.
I think about the people that surrounded me.
and were there during adverse situations. So
it's always the people that I remember and not
the job itself. Michael, that on my former life,
although once a rabbi, you are always a rabbi,
I was a pulpit rabbi. And one of the things I
had to do, unfortunately, I had to be at funerals
and give a eulogy. And always the eulogy came
down to relationships. And people were always
remember by helping people, by their motivation,
by what they build with others, by being a father,
a mother, a brother, a friend. Okay. Nobody came
and gave eulogies about how successful the person
was and how many cars and how many homes. Okay.
Or how many vacations the person. There is a
saying, a good name is like oil in the Jewish
tradition. Oil is precious, it's pure. A good
name is like oil, and that's what we should aspire
to. And that, by the way, is peak performance.
Peak performance is when you become the best
of who you are. Okay, let me just move on. You've
worked in high -pressure environments. How do
you adapt quickly? while still building and maintaining
meaningful relationships. Because adaptability,
paradoxically, is the art of maintaining your
core. In the world of... I lost you. Yes, because
this is counterintuitive, Michael. Adaptability
is the capacity of maintaining your core through
change. Usually people used to talk about change
management. Okay. And that was the theory in
consulting. We bring somebody who is an expert
on change management as if change can be managed.
That's a contradiction. Change cannot be managed.
Change is change. Okay. What we can do when we
talk today is adaptability instead of change.
And the way I see adaptability is that you give
the people working with you at your team, at
your corporation, at your foundation, you give
the gift of who they are at their core. Once
they know who they are at their core and you
strengthen who they are internally, then they
can withstand, change, and adapt. It's not...
Change or adaptability is not the process of
making the people around you shape themselves
according to the changes taking place. It is
giving them the tools to remain the best they
are through the change process. Very good. What's
one strategy for networking that becomes more
important? not less, when everything feels uncertain
or unstable? Well, look, I am not a natural networker.
I am a guy who likes to advise people. I am a
consultant, a speaker. Those are very lonely
activities. And it's actually a kind of activity
that you parachute at the place, do your job,
and goodbye. Okay, then I had to train myself
to network. I am also an introverted. Okay, at
parties, I go to the corner, sit down and with
a glass of something and looking at my watch.
Then one thing that I do is each time I come
to my office, the first hour and a half I network.
When I am fresh, okay, with all my energy. I
begin my day networking. I mostly network at
LinkedIn. That's my natural environment. Professional.
I have made so many connections. And the key
is to be honest. People know today, after a second,
your first two words, you are trying to have
an open conversation or you're looking for something.
although we are we are all looking for something
and that's basically the implicit thing there
are ways and ways to look for something there
is way to look for something out of a real connection
and because you care about somebody else and
you look for advice and give advice and there
are ways in which basically you are a salesperson
selling yourself and that doesn't go far being
authentic being authentic is the first thing
and what i say about networking, as I'm sure
you do as well, is to network with what's called
a servant's heart. It's you're looking to give,
not receive. And if you're authentic, you're
looking to give and not receive, then you don't
come across as salesy or anything else like that.
Then I have a formula for peak performance. I
want everybody to listen because this is the
formula and the very short formula. And basically,
I haven't seen it anywhere else. I got to this
formula after helping a lot of people and reading
a lot and testing it. This is the way it goes.
Positivity plus purpose equals peak performance.
Now, what is purpose? Okay. The definition of
purpose is giving the best of you for the benefit
of others. That is the definition of purpose.
Usually people confuse purpose with goal. Goal
is an extrinsic game. It's the end of the journey.
It's extrinsic. It's strategic. Purpose comes
before the goal. As we say, purpose first. And
purpose is the best of what you have for the
benefit of others. If you do that, then it comes
back to you in what we call fulfillment. And
fulfillment comes in different ways. Gratitude,
which is when somebody comes to you and say,
you did so well for me. That's the greatest thing
that could happen to you. That somebody else
acknowledges you. for what you've done for them.
The other one is growth. When the person doesn't
come to say thank you, but you see them growing,
like your kids or somebody at your company, okay?
And you see their growth. And the third one is
inner growth, okay? How you grow by helping others.
Which percentage is inner growth? 10%. Most of
our growth of a person, 90 % happens in relationship.
10 % is the fulfillment, which is internal. But
that's the formula. Positivity and purpose equals
peak performance. And that is, it resonates with
me and hopefully everybody else. The relationship
factor, the giving factor, if everybody were
to network and be to get along that way, I think
the world would be a much better place. That's
our small corner of the world. Let me just change
this conversation to a little AI conversation.
What soft skills tied to networking and communication?
will become critical differentiators in an AI
-powered workforce. Okay. Look, I'm not sure
about how to define it, but I tell you what I
think is happening. Okay. I think that human
connection is going to become a luxury. Okay.
Okay. As it's going to become a luxury, it's
going to be more wanted. Right. And more precious
because it's going to be a lack of it. Okay,
then technology is going to increase and real
human connection is going to decrease. And the
companies which are going to succeed in the long
term are the companies who are going to value
the human connection. And those who want to take
the shortcut of replacing humanity with technology
may win in the short term, but they will lose
the most important thing, which is the creativity,
the empathy, and the motivation that only humans
can bring. Then when we talk about human resources,
by the way, it's interesting. Maybe I never liked
resources because we are not resources people.
OK, I don't like this term that, you know, the
department that works with people is called human
resources. But I like now the word human. And
I think that the word human for human resources
is going to become more and more crucial. now
and in the years to come, because the main task
of human resources is going to be actually humanity.
And within that, what I recommend I work with
is with positive psychology, which is the tool
and the science I use when I work with companies,
positive psychology, which is the science of
flourishing and strengths. And I think that...
Using methodologies like positive psychology,
we have to strengthen the humanity and core of
people as we go into the AI revolution. Okay,
so since we're on the subject of in the future,
how can individuals future -proof their careers
by intentionally building the right kinds of
relationships now? Well, look, relationships
are a process. Okay? And relationships are about
persistence. Okay? On the relationship world,
I always talk about you never know. Okay? The
best things that happened to me with people were
the unexpected ones I didn't know. A person that
a year later, I meet again, or I contact again.
or they contact me from an occasional conversation
I had a year ago. Okay? And that's magical. It's
magical when people tell me, Alfredo, I remember
this keynote speech you gave, or this workshop
you gave, and changed actually my view of things.
We talk about fulfillment. Do you remember fulfillment
with somebody? It means you're very good at what
you do. Look, you are not good at what you do.
At the end of the day, people make you good at
what you do. Because at the end of the day, it's
about serving others. Okay, then I am not sure,
Michael, how good I am at what I do. I do it,
I am a professional, and I care about what I
do, and I try to learn every day. Okay? But...
How good I am is going to come from the reaction,
not the judgment, but the reaction in terms of
the impact I have on people. Because it's not
about my ego, although I have a healthy one.
It is ultimately about how I serve people. You
can be a consultant and a keynote speaker. If
you don't go on stage or to a corporation with
the aspirations that when you leave, you're going
to leave behind something that is going to help
people achieve what they want. True, true, very
true. Okay. In times of change, how do high performers
stay connected? Not just to people, but to purpose
and vision. I want to focus for a second. I spoke
about purpose. I want to talk what I mean by
positivity. The first part. Okay. It is amazing,
but research shows that 70 % of Americans are
blind to their inner strengths. There is an epidemic
of strength blindness. It's amazing. We know
from positive psychology that there are 24 strengths
that everybody has. Those are strengths, 24,
which are found across time and geography, from
the Greeks to the Eskimos. There are 24 because
there are a lot of strengths, but these 24 are
repeated throughout humanity, history, and geography.
And everybody has them, but people do not know
they have them. And they don't know which one
they prefer, which is worse. Then we have this
blindness. And if you would know your top five,
of the 24, your top five, we know from research
also that your capacity to flourish will be nine
times higher. And if you apply them, we know
from research that your capacity to flourish
will be 18 times higher. In other words, 70 %
of Americans are working, living way below their
capacities by ignorance of what they already
have, which is a shame. It makes me so upset
because I go to corporations, I go to teams,
and I do the question, tell me what your top
strengths are. They don't know. I never thought
about it. I don't know. I said, will you call
a plumber to your home who doesn't bring a toolkit?
You're going through life without your five top
strengths toolkit. Then the first thing I do
when I work with executives or when I work with
corporations or with foundations, the first thing
we do is a strength. assessment a positive psychology
strength assessment everybody gets the 24 strengths
in order of hierarchy we have all of them and
we can use all of them but the time the top five
is where you feel more authentic energetic and
motivated and once you know those top five people
thrive because they go from using them unintentionally
to applying them intentionally and that actually
as i said before adaptability is the capacity
to maintain your core through change then once
you know the core five strengths you can go through
crisis and through change because you can maintain
your core okay that kind of brings us to our
next question of What are the key differences
between someone who survives uncertainty and
someone who thrives from relationship -building
standpoint? Because surviving means that you
focus on the moment, you narrow your vision.
If a tiger is coming now into this room, All
my attention is going to be on the tiger. That
will be very helpful either to fight against
the tiger if I am unwise or to run away. Okay,
then strategies of survival are good for the
moment, poor for the long run. Strategies of
growth. are maybe not so good in the immediate,
but build and create for the future on the long
term. Once you know your top strength, instead
of being reactive, you are so solid internally
that it's almost like having an armor. And you
are more immune to the fluctuations that present.
And as you are more immune, paradoxically, you
are more creative. And then you adapt better.
I believe that. I truly believe that. That's
where all of our creativity comes from, all different
points of our life. But that is a very important
aspect of what you're speaking about. How do
you see trust and empathy evolving as currency
in business, especially as technology accelerates
everything else? Can you repeat the beginning?
How do you see trust and empathy evolving as
currency in business, especially as technology
accelerates everything else? No, everything is
trust and empathy. Look, what is the main...
People see an AI revolution and there is fear
that we are going to lose our jobs, that we are
going to be replaced by technology, that we are
going to become obsolete. It is true that part
of the solution is to have reassurance from corporations,
from the government, that we are safe. You are
not going to get that, by the way. That's an
illusion. Okay. Then what you, the only thing
that is going to carry you through those moments
is empathy and trust. Empathy and trust. And
companies, companies who are going to work on
that are going to motivate, we know this from
positive psychology, gratitude. Optimism, motivation,
complementing your employees are the most important
aspects for growth and success. There is one,
people who are listening, they need to remember
one thing. On a nutshell of what I am talking
about, I would say the following. We need to
move from the culture of fixing to the culture
of nourishing. Okay. We're in a culture where
we are trying to fix each other. In education,
the teachers are looking at what the student
doesn't do well. He's not good at math. We have
to solve that. But the kid maybe is great at
art and he's going to be an artist. We have to
maximize what the person is doing great, the
five top strengths. Quarterly reviews are corporations.
What you are not doing great, we need to fix.
It's true, we need to do the basic things right,
but the manager's job is actually to elevate
what the person is doing great according to the
keys of her strength. We need to move from the
culture of fixing to the culture of nourishing.
That's what positive psychology teaches. We focus
on... What it works, we have this obsession.
And this comes, by the way, from the origins
of consulting at corporations. Consulting originally
at corporations and businesses was borrowed from
the medical field. Some people don't know that
organizational consulting and organizational
management came to borrow its model. from the
medical field, and then that's why we use diagnostics
and diagnosis, okay, and reviews and all that
language. We have to do with sickness. Then our
beginning point is what's wrong. Okay, I never
bring me as a consultant very few times. They
bring me as a consultant usually when there is
a crisis. I love when they bring me as a consultant
when things are going well and now we want to
do it. Absolutely. Absolutely. Let's bring this
podcast full circle. And if someone listening
today wants to build a network that sustains
them through the next wave of disruption, where
should they start? They need to start with knowing
their four strengths, the five top strengths
of positive psychology. Okay. As I said, 70 %
of people are blind. Basically, you do not have
your top toolkit of what you are capable at your
best, then you cannot function optimally. That
blindness is unnecessary and can be dispelled
in 20 minutes. Alfredo, I am so glad you came
on the podcast today. You were a wonderful guest.
I appreciate you giving me a little backstory
about your past. And I can't imagine a better
guest to come on to tell how you are going moving
forward. So if somebody wants to get hold of
you to be coached, to be trained, anything like
that, how would they do? I can't leave your audience
without telling them how to get the top five
strengths. Then I'm going to make it so easy.
You text me. the word positive. Just text the
word positive to this number, 33777. Okay, you
just text the word positive to 33777 and you
will get a two -page of how by yourself to get
your top five strengths of positive psychology.
As simple as that. And your life will change.
Sounds beautiful. That sounds beautiful. But
how can they get hold of you? There, you will
see, I'm going to be surprised, okay? No strings
attached, okay? Those who want to go a little
bit deeper into the five trends, they can set
a meeting with no commitment with me. Okay. Just
to talk about it. Okay. And my schedule is going
to be there. Okay. I like to connect with people.
Again, it's about networking. Okay. Okay. Then
instead of sending you a connect with LinkedIn,
we can set a more intimate discussion to review
your five -step strengths and see if we can move
somewhere from there. That's perfect. Alfredo,
thank you so much for coming on my podcast. And
I wish you nothing but the best. And hopefully
I'll speak to you soon. Thank you, Michael. Thank
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-U -P -K -I -D -S .org. Well, that's a wrap,
folks. A huge thank you to our special guests
for sharing such incredible insights today. And
of course, a big shout out to you, our amazing
listeners, for tuning in and spending your time
with us. Remember, networking isn't about being
perfect. It's about being present. So take what
you've learned today, get out there, and make
some meaningful connections. If you enjoyed this
episode, don't forget to subscribe, leave us
a review, and share it with someone who could
use a little networking inspiration. Let's keep
the conversation going. You can find me on Apple,
Spotify, YouTube, or my website, Michael. Remember.
Until next time, keep practicing, keep connecting,
and keep building those relationships. This is
Michael signing off. Take care and happy networking.