232: 5 Meeting Fixes That Instantly Make You a Better Manager | Mamie Kanfer Stewart
Release Date:
October 21, 2025
Release Date: Oct 21
Can better meetings fuel massive transformation in your work culture—and even give you back hours every week? In this energizing episode of The Learn-It-All Podcast, Damon Lembi sits down with Mamie Kanfer Stewart, host of The Modern Manager podcast, author, and leadership coach, to answer that question (spoiler: yes!). The conversation tackles the untapped ROI of running effective meetings, why managers—not just executives—are the heartbeat of organizations, and how the right systems unlock professional development time for everyone. Mamie shares practical tools, from crafting Personal Operating Manuals to leveraging AI for better note-taking and recaps, and offers her best techniques for improving feedback, building trust, and making meetings matter.
Whether you’re drowning in unproductive calls or leading hybrid teams, this episode is brimming with real-world strategies to free up your calendar, engage your team, and drive better results.
What You’ll Learn:
The culture-building power of shining a light on others, not yourself
How Peter’s “Good Shepherd” philosophy (inspired by seminary days) became the foundation of his leadership style
What it means to truly be “counted on”—and how personal adversity shaped Peter’s drive and fairness meter
Practical tools for overcoming imposter syndrome and building self-belief, including the science of affirmations and visualization
Why fit trumps credentials during hiring, and how to handle mis-hires with candor
Inside Peter’s “leadership toolbox”—relationship-building, chameleon skills, candor, and the art of constructive feedback
Behind-the-scenes negotiation stories, including a $2B Wall Street face-off and the lessons of win-win bargaining
How music, photography, and creative passions make you a better leader and problem solver
Tangible strategies to boost employee engagement—and transform dysfunction into unity
Why leaders should be hero creators, not the heroes themselves
In This Episode:
00:00 – Why the fastest way to buy back time is fixing your meetings
01:40 – Why managers are the lifeblood of organizations
02:43 – Can you be both a manager and a leader?
04:10 – The biggest challenges facing modern managers (AI, diversity, hybrid work)
06:35 – Using Personal Operating Manuals for team alignment
10:21 – The art and science of receiving feedback
13:40 – 3 practical ways to invite upward feedback as a manager
17:11 – How meetings drive engagement (or crush it)
18:21 – When to have a meeting vs. just send an update
19:56 – Pre-work: the tool that transforms meeting ROI
22:03 – Nailing clear outcomes and knowing when a meeting is successful
23:42 – Avoiding the classic meeting mistake: missing the decision maker
27:31 – How to calculate the actual dollar cost of bad meetings
29:57 – Are virtual brainstorms as valuable as in-person?
32:14 – AI notetakers: hype vs. reality in meetings
35:31 – What “AI-ready” means for the modern manager
40:17 – Staying future-ready: How to keep learning when you’re super busy
41:15 – The ripple effect of better meetings on team culture and personal growth
43:44 – How hybrid and tech have changed “good meetings” since 2017
46:26 – Lessons from parenting you can use to manage teams better
48:33 – Where to connect with Mamie Kanfer Stewart
About Mamie Kanfer Stewart
Mamie Kanfer Stewart is passionate about helping people thrive at work. She is the host of The Modern Manager podcast, author of Momentum: Creating Effective, Engaging and Enjoyable Meetings and Founder of Meeteor, a training firm focused on productive meetings. In addition, Mamie is an executive coach and trainer who works with entrepreneurs and managers to build the mindset, skills and habits they need to successfully manage themselves and their teams so everyone can be their best selves and do their best work.
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