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The Iowa Idea: John Coyle
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”
In this episode of The Iowa Idea Podcast, I sit down John Coyle. John is the founder of the online Design Thinking Academy, and a graduate of Stanford University’s D-School and holds an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School. At Stanford, John’s advisor and mentor was IDEO founder David Kelley. A former head of innovation for a Fortune 500 wireless telecom, John has also been the SVP of innovation for a leading strategy consultancy. John is a world class athlete in two sports (cycling and speedskating) and an Olympic silver medalist, as well as an NBC Olympic Sports analyst. John is an award-winning author of two books, including the 2018 best seller: Design For Strengths: Applying Design Thinking to Individual and Team Strengths. John is also a thought leader in the field of “chronoception” – the neuroscience and psychology of how humans process time – and framing it as “when action and awareness merge, time stops and performance goes through the roof.”
John and I discuss how a design thinking mindset, combined with persistence, fueled his success at an Olympic level. We dig deep into the importance to understanding one’s strengths and the power of asking “what are you best at?” John’s journey and his insights help drive individual and organizational achievement. John talks about two tools that impair our ability to deal with complex problems – Maslow’s Hammer and Occam’s Razor.
It was an honor having John join me on the show. I really appreciated John’s stories and perspectives. I thank him for sharing his time and insights. I hope you enjoy the episode.
About John
John K. Coyle is one of the world’s leading experts in “Design Thinking” and Innovation, and a highly sought-after speaker. John’s presentations are always an audience favorite because he combines the exhilarating stories of a champion athlete with the data and intellect of a professor and best-selling author.
John is the founder of the online Design Thinking Academy, and a graduate of Stanford University with a degree in Engineering – Product Design (Design Thinking) and Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School with an MBA in organizational behavior, marketing and entrepreneurship. A former head of innovation for a Fortune 500 wireless telecom, John has also been the SVP of innovation for a leading strategy consultancy. John is a world class athlete in two sports (cycling and speedskating) and an Olympic silver medalist, as well as an NBC Olympic Sports analyst, and a guest lecturer on Innovation at several leading universities (Kellogg, Marquette, CEDIM). John is a two-time TEDx speaker, and an award-winning author of two books, including the 2018 best seller: Design For Strengths: Applying Design Thinking to Individual and Team Strengths. John is also a thought leader in the field of “chronoception” – the neuroscience and psychology of how humans process time.
As a speaker and writer, John’s special talent is weaving facts, examples and business principles into engaging, accessible stories which bring his topics and frameworks to life. People leave John’s programs inspired and empowered to make significant, positive changes in their business and personal lives.
Links
John’s website – www.johnkcoyle.com
Design Thinking Academy – https://academy.johnkcoyle.com/p/innovation_leadership_master_bundle
Credits
Episode produce by Spark Consulting Group (www.inspiredbyspark.com) in Iowa City, with support from Executive Podcast Solutions (https://www.executivepodcastsolutions.com/)
The Iowa Idea Podcast music written and performed by Paisley Bible (https://paisleybible.bandcamp.com/).