Episode 2

full
Published on:

10th Jan 2023

Suzanne Lesko | Xena, Warrior Advisor

In today's episode of the Happiness Squad, Ashish and Anil sit down with a very special guest, Captain Suzanne Lesko, USN (Ret.). Suzanne is part of an elite group of women, the 1% of the 1% club to rise to the rank of Captain in the U.S. Navy, and introduces herself as "Xena, Warrior Advisor." She has over 20 years’ experience in defense and national security-related communications, strategic and operational planning, program management, and high-risk training. 

She is a combat veteran and has provided high impact leadership training to various organizations, through her role as a technical advisor with Valiant Integrated Services, and as a subject matter expert with Wharton Leadership Ventures. Suzanne has also served as a Captain, US Navy Reserve, where she was a high-level focal point for public affairs activities in Central and South America and the Caribbean to support her active duty counterparts. Suzanne is a passionate advocate for women, peace, and security. 

Suzanne also founded the Global Awareness Through Education (GATE) Project, a global non-profit, which provides scholarships and leadership advancement to empower strong-willed women undergraduates from post-conflict zones to participate meaningfully in peace and security processes in their homelands.

During the show, Ashish, Anil and Suzanne discuss some of the practices that have allowed her to flourish, and unlock her full potential throughout her life and career.

Suzanne shares her gratitude for the small things in life, and her appreciation for life as she enters the next stage after 26+ years with the Navy.

They also offer insights into the importance of knowing your people - the direct connection that allows you to be aware when they're feeling "off," and helping them reach their own potential.


Join Ashish, Anil and Suzanne for this fascinating and informative conversation.


Enjoy!


What You’ll Learn in this Show:

  • The importance of being in a parasympathetic state when working in intense situations.
  • The importance of personal connection in a world so filled with technology.
  • The dichotomy of wealth vs. meaning, and why we need to stop differentiating between them.
  • Why we need to be aware of the lessons life is trying to teach us at all times
  • And so much more...


Resources:

Suzanne's LinkedIn

The GATE Project

Happinesssquad.com 

@MyHappinessSquad Instagram

Ashish Kothari LinkedIn

Anil Ramjiani LinkedIn

Happiness Squad Youtube Channel

Book:

Hardwired for Happiness: 9 Proven Practices to Overcome Stress and Live Your Best Life

Show artwork for The Happiness Squad

About the Podcast

The Happiness Squad
Welcome to Happiness Squad.

This is the podcast dedicated to helping you unlock your full potential by mastering the art and science of happiness.

We bring on the best leading experts on these topics to help you unlock your true potential and live with more joy, health, love, and meaning in your life.

Your host is no other than Ashish Kothari who is on a mission to provide you with an unfair advantage to be the masters of your experience and leaders in your industry.

Get ready to be moved, challenged, and enlightened on this podcast. It may change your life.

Thanks for being here and joining the squad!
Learn more: https://happinesssquad.com/

About your hosts

Ashish Kothari

Profile picture for Ashish Kothari
Ashish Kothari is the founder and CEO of Happiness Squad, a company focused on democratizing happiness and touching a billion+ lives over the next 20 years and helping them live with more joy, health, love, and meaning.

Prior to founding Happiness Squad and writing his best-selling book “Hardwired for happiness”, Ashish spent 25 years in consulting, including the last 17 at McKinsey and Co, a premier management consulting firm, helping thousands of clients and their organizations achieve breakthrough performance by building new mindsets and capabilities.

Ashish is a trained ontological coach and a lifelong student of human thriving.

Ashish Kothari

Profile picture for Ashish Kothari
Anil Ramjiani is an experienced senior leader at Nike, Inc., most recently as the Commercial Director managing key athlete partnerships and business with Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe, and Marcus Rashford.

Anil's passion is grounded in empowering people, unlocking potential, and driving performance. He has worked in consulting and corporate across the US, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia acquiring over 20 years of experience in strategy, brand, and general management at IBM, Adidas, and Nike.

He created the podcast and platform Live. Breathe. Believe., to enable reflection, motivation, and inspiration for his peers. #Knowyoutobeyou!