PODCAST PEOPLE: A Summary from the Real Leaders Podcast
“This is a business that is not only about bringing about all of those things inside of us that are gifts that we can recognize, but growing a culture in our company that recognizes the gifts in one another.”
David Kahl is the founder and CEO of Fully. Fully creates and sells workplace furniture designed to inspire a positive business mindset and a healthy, supportive workplace where everyone can feel and do their best.
The following is a summary of Episode 109 of the Real Leaders Podcast, a conversation with Fully founder and CEO, David Kahl. Watch, read, or listen to the full conversation below.
Transitioning from Big Business
After a successful career as a Wall Street accountant, and witnessing the events of 9/11, David was presented with a personal and professional wake-up call:
“I want to know that I’ve done something that makes this world that we’re in a little bit better, helps us to love one another a little bit better, invites more empathy, transparency, leaning into who we are as people and connecting with one another. And I hadn’t been doing that for the first 30 years of my life. But I had a lot of my life left to do.”
Emotional awareness has given David a more holistic view of the workplace and revolutionized his business mindset:
“Leading with that emotional awareness is, I think, really important for leaders, especially in the kinds of times that we find ourselves in. There’s waves I think of when we need to practice a lot of emotional intelligence. This is one of those times when having the skills and the experience to do that really pays off as a CEO and leader.”
B Corp Benefits
Fully is the result of a re-worked business mindset and holds strongly to its values as a dedicated B Corporation:
“We practice a lot of empathy. We practice a lot of mindfulness. And we certainly love to be able to lead with vulnerability and transparency and all that we do. But at the same time, recognizing that we have an opportunity and a responsibility to take care of all of the stakeholders around us as well, [we] believe really strongly in this idea that businesses have a responsibility to make the world better.”
David asserts that the transparency and collaboration built into Fully’s company culture is the reason for Fully’s success, both internally and externally:
“I think it’s really important in our culture to realize when we’re in meetings or when we’re in a group, one of the big gifts we have is a big diversity of perspectives, a big diversity of life experiences. We’re going to be able to find out some great things as a company, when people feel the refuge of being together and that they can speak their mind, disagree with respect and compassion. And if we’re in a room of people, there’s nobody in that room smarter than all of us together.”
Transcript
Download the full conversation here:
Connect
Find out more about Fully here: https://www.fully.com/
