A LOT with Audra

Ep17
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Audra Dinell: [00:00:00] Okay, welcome back to the third installment of this series. Welcome to a lot with Audra. I'm so excited to be back with Kristy Windish today, co-founder of True Compass and my teammate Kristen Selby. Hello. Welcome. Hello. Welcome back. So we have done two episodes previously. One is all about why I just like am trying to make the case of it's so important to

find work that's fulfilling to you, or if it's not fulfilling to you, build a life that's fulfilling to you. Like don't, don't settle. Do the work to figure [00:01:00] out what kind of life feels beautiful to you. The second episode was all about Kristi and I really just diving into like how our aptitudes can help us build that work in life.

And this third episode is gonna be about how knowing aptitudes can help build a really strong team. Because I know so many of our listeners are leaders in their businesses. They're entrepreneurs, building teams, shoot, they're even moms who may not have access to aptitude data on their growing families, but can at least be thinking in this lens when they are parenting.

So. I'm excited to talk together today about how our team used true Compass and the aptitude knowledge that we have to become stronger. Kristi, do you wanna kick us off maybe by sharing a little bit about our meeting? Sure,

Kristi Windish: yeah. I mean, you guys were such a great team to work with because you are so, open with each other. You're pretty [00:02:00] intuitive. You know, I feel like some of the things we discussed kind of confirmed what you already knew. And some of it was like, oh, I didn't think of it this way and didn't understand that, you know, that about myself.

But also just vulnerable enough with each other to share results and talk about strengths and weaknesses really openly. And so it was a great conversation and we loved working with the three of you For sure.

Audra Dinell: I agree. And we did our work together right in the first quarter as Kendra was coming on board right, as our head of community.

So this was 2022 second quarter, and Kristen and I had been working together for a year at that point. Adding Kendra was a brand new dynamic to our team. Intuitively we felt like she was a great fit. And of course her resume and, you know, our relationship with her which did previously, previously exists before she came onto our team.

If you listen to our team episode, you know that kinder was in our very first cohort at the thread, but all of those things lined up. However, [00:03:00] aptitudes really showed us what, like a true triple threat, strong team, the three of us uniquely are and kind of blew our minds. Right,

Kristi Windish: right. Yeah, I mean, I think it's good to know that you intuitively, you know, found good people and trusted your instincts.

But. It's nice to just be able to have some data to kind of back that up and then also recognize, oh, you have this strength that I have that maybe you didn't realize you have also, because you lean on these other strengths, you know, when we talk about Kendra has idea productivity just like you do.

Mm-hmm. But she also has these other, you know, analytical problem solving strengths and planning things that she really leans into. And so she may not and, you know, celebrate that, that strength. And so kind of being able to see it in black and white

Audra Dinell: can be exciting.

Well, and I think it prevents conflicts potentially, you know, once you can see people's aptitudes and just know where they're coming from.

Mm-hmm. Because again, it's. You can totally [00:04:00] do that with any of the other assessments strengths, Enneagram, et cetera. But something about aptitudes just really, I mean, you know, like I know Kendra is wired to do X, Y, Z, or Kristen is wired to be a detailed researcher. So anytime we need something on our team that we're looking at doing something new, we brought Stripe in for a processing system for our finances probably a year or 18 months ago.

Kristen was the one that deep dove into that research. If that were my job, we still would not be using Stripe.

Kristen Selby: I think one of the benefits of meeting with Kristi and her team was just to give our thread team language to use as far as you know, what our aptitudes actually were.

We knew that we loved each other and that we loved working together. And it was fun and it felt like it gelled, but it was like, oh, wow, look at this on paper. We are like this, like strong tripod of like three that really balance each other out. There's checks and balances here, you know, when. Audra is kind of the visionary ideation role on our team.

You know, Kendra and I can kind of put some [00:05:00] healthy boundaries around, you know, what is the top priority in, in this season or in this quarter and today during this team meeting, you know? And so I just feel like it gave us language to know, oh, that's like my specialist kicking in. And you know, Audrey's living in her visionary space right now. So let's like, like how can we reconcile those two things within the time together?

Audra Dinell: Right. And I think having that language and having that knowledge never left me feeling frustrated as the idea generator for the team, as the visionary, as the person who is constantly thinking more futuristic than any other member of the team.

When you or Kendra would bring back in? I would know that's because your timeline for what you're thinking. Well, Kendra is actually for what she's thinking is more mid-range than my long-term, so I would just see that I would literally visualize like this scale of like, oh, okay. Yes. Right, right. This is Kendra's strength and aptitude.

She's bringing back [00:06:00] into how can we be productive in the next three months though on this big vision to like take over the world, I don't know, in a year, right?

Kristi Windish: Yes. I think that was one of the really most important things that we talked about that day was your timeframe orientations, and

Audra scores 99th percentile on a long timeframe, which you knew about yourself. You've always known that you're a future forward thinker. But kind of getting an understanding of what does that mean for me? And sometimes it means you're drawn of things that take time to achieve and sometimes struggle to focus on the here and now and what needs to be done next, but also maybe don't always celebrate those short wins.

Yeah, those small wins, like, well, that's not where we wanna be.

Audra Dinell: Yes.

Kristi Windish: Whereas Kristen and Kendra are a little bit more mid-range, meaning that what's in focus for them is the next one to five years. And so being able to step back and say, okay, how are we gonna get to this long-term vision of [00:07:00] Audra's?

And they're also very analytical and detail oriented. And so being able to see it in black and white, it's not just, oh, this is their personality. Well, this is the underlying reasons of why they do the things that they do. And then, yeah, it just is able to be like, oh, I can appreciate these differences and not be frustrated

Audra Dinell: and know that all of these differences make up a really solid team you would not want.

Right. A team of. All high ideators and no executors, you know, or if we were all people who thought long range, then likely we would not be accomplishing goals because we wouldn't have that teammate to bring us into. Okay, but how does that actually look this quarter? Yes. So even though I love talking about our team.

You know, I want this podcast to be really helpful for other teams or leaders who are considering working with True Compass to maybe bring in your consulting to help them build a solid team. So I do think at the beginning you [00:08:00] said something that was really important, and that's how our team is able to be vulnerable with each other.

Mm-hmm. And open. Have you seen it go the other way?

Kristi Windish: A little bit, you know, we've worked with a couple of teams who especially if they are on the introverted side you know, one thing we know about people who are more introverted is that they really wanna process information before they share.

And so, discussing all of this and then saying, share how this shows up for you at work, they might be like, oh, I don't know. I wanna think this through before I say it out loud. And so, you know. Knowing what team you're working with on our end is helpful of, okay, we need to give these people time to process or maybe work with them individually before they share as a team.

Because not everybody feels comfortable sharing that, but I think being able to discuss it as a team helps them see each other differently and then learn how to lean on each other. You know, we talked about problem solving skills in the last [00:09:00] episode, I tend to see connections quickly and maybe wanna jump to solving a problem and go to the next problem.

But sometimes I need to take my time. And so having somebody more analytical like you do Yeah. With Kristen and Kendra might be like, okay, you know, how are we gonna implement this? What are all of the steps that need to get there? So it's not just big idea versus detail. It's also those problem solving skills.

You know, have I thought about this too quickly? I need someone who's gonna take their time. Whereas somebody who's on the lower end who likes to solve problems on the maybe a little bit more slowly might be taking too much time and say to somebody who solves problems quickly, Hey, can you give me your quick read on this?

And so being able to, you know, leverage those differences and appreciate, okay, I know I can come to this person when I need a quick answer and I know I can come to this person when I need really thought through. Yeah. A thought through, well thought out [00:10:00] answer can be really helpful for teams to be able to appreciate that.

Audra Dinell: I agree. And one way that we've put it into play is I'll, as a leader, know that I need to give Kendra and Kristen. An agenda before a meeting that we're going to be brainstorming in or like label it as a brainstorm meeting. So we've really put, like you said, Kristen language around it and process kind of informally, but internally with our team I know they like to process things, so I'm likely not gonna spring something on them in a meeting if I am trying to be my highest version of myself.

I'm gonna kick an idea to them, give them time to process by telling them when we'll talk about it.

Kristen Selby: I feel like I've learned how to advocate for that processing time as well. Mm-hmm. , and just seeing this as a strength, as an aptitude that I have and that there's such value in it as a part of this team.

You know, I think sometimes processors think we're slower to arrive at an idea or a decision, or maybe there's [00:11:00] like more value in that, like quick thinking. But I've learned that there's a great deal of value when I can take time to process something kind. And I'm also really high on the concept organization.

Mm-hmm. So it's like distilling a bunch of information and really like getting to the core of it is something I love to do. I tell people I could just sit and think all day and I would just love it. And so Ara and Kendra, I mean, Kendra is kind of similar to me, but Ara really is great at allowing us that time and space to process.

Even when it feels like we need to make a decision quickly. I feel like you do a really good job of saying take your time and we can regroup.

Audra Dinell: Hmm. Thank you. Yeah. And Kristen and Kinder are also ones that I love to kick ideas off. Two, because the ideas being high ideator, so many ideas come and I'll make decisions really quickly, but then maybe those decisions won't stick.

Maybe the next day I'll have another thought on them. Right. So I know if I, I can just thought partner with the two of them because I [00:12:00] know when I kick them something, they'll be processing it when maybe I'm not, because I've already made a decision and then I'll be able to take just the information or the opinions, the perspectives that they bring, and add that to a just more solid, holistic decision making process.

Kristi Windish: I love that you said that you've learned to advocate for yourself, because that's one of the things that I really try to, when I'm pouring into people, like, you know, stand up for yourself and say, Hey, that's a great question. I'll get back to you tomorrow. Mm-hmm. and because sometimes when people are quiet

people will fill in the blanks and say, oh, she's not interested, she's not listening. She doesn't have an answer. When it's really more of that, I just wanna think through this before I feel confident sharing. And so, you know, teaching people to, to describe that to other people you know, just makes people understand them better and it, it's so important.

Audra Dinell: And so what would you say are the ways you've [00:13:00] advocated for yourself, Kristen? In this particular aptitude? I'm curious.

Kristen Selby: Yeah, I think it's just asking for time, like, I really wanna give you a thoughtful answer and it will be more thoughtful if you can give me 24 hours, you know, and just kind of putting the value, kind of kicking it down the street and, and ensuring whoever it's, I'm talking to that I'm really gonna spend some time on this because it's important to me and I wanna give you my best.

Mm-hmm. So that's one way. And I also think that in, you know, even in just conversation, sometimes I feel like I have to have all of the knowledge. So even with my kids, like if they'll ask me a question I really don't know, or I don't know, what I believe about it, my kids are middle age now, so they're asking deeper questions then like, can I have milk?

And so, I'm really finding myself saying like, I don't know, but I'm gonna get back to you on that. And, allowing myself as a parent not to have all of the answers. Or ask them like, what do you think about that? And I think , in turn, I'm teaching them that really putting thought into an answer [00:14:00] is important.

Audra Dinell: Yeah.

Speaking of your children, I love how you keep calling them middle aged.

Kristen Selby: I know. I am also middle aged. We're all just a whole vibe right now. Middle years, is that a better term? Are they in middle school? Yes. Well, yes, they are at 13, 9, 11 and nine. Oh yeah. So they're kind of, I feel like I'm a middle. I am.

I'm middle mom. Middle aged mom. All the things. Middle age, all around sounding it.

Audra Dinell: Yeah. And also speaking of kids, Kendra is not here today because, she had a sick baby at home, so we have her permission to speak about her and her aptitudes. Just FYI wanted to include that for some of you who are maybe wondering who's missing?

And Sierra has not taken this aptitude test with us yet. But I will say this would be a really good tool to use when you're hiring, especially if you're a small team like us. And every position counts so much. And like when I first started the thread, I had an idea of a person I wanted to be my first hire, and that person was very similar to me.

And I thought, I need this person who's gonna be very similar to [00:15:00] me and my skillset and my background. So that they can go do what I've been doing and I can move on to do different work. I think that was my skillset or my thought process, and I had a coach tell me, no, no, no. You need to hire someone who is opposite of you and thank freaking goodness.

Yes, she did. Because you know, just having a fully rounded, well-rounded team with all of these different aptitudes has been. It's a huge benefit to the thread as an organization. So do people often use this in their hiring practices?

Kristi Windish: You know, I think like many tools, people will say don't use it to hire because you don't wanna say what so can or can't do based on this test. But I think it's helpful if you have someone who's very self-aware, who can, in that hiring process say, here's what I know about myself. You know, so I find it not necessarily as a hiring tool, but [00:16:00] for that team tool and maybe moving people, you know, we've had a few people, HR departments send people our way and say, we really like this person.

We want them to stay at our company, but we're not sure what the best role for them. And so this is great. And I don't work with their boss, I work with the, with the person so that that person really understands how they're wired and how their gifts might be used in different departments from where they work.

And so that is a perfect use for this tool.

Audra Dinell: that's awesome. And I never would've thought about that, not doing it for a hiring tool, because you don't want to make assumptions. Right. So that's really, really good knowledge, right,

Kristi Windish: Just because you are wired a certain way, your interests and preferences may determine how you wanna use that aptitude or in what way you wanna use it.

Audra Dinell: Yeah.

Kristi Windish: You know, somebody who's really high on concept organization might be a great accountant, but if they don't like numbers, they're gonna to use that for very different skills of planning and organizing. [00:17:00] And so it, it doesn't necessarily on its own tell you exactly what someone can do. But it will give you a lot of insight into what their potential is, for sure.

Audra Dinell: So one other way that we have used this tool as a team is to sort of remove guilt. Yes. I love seeing our aptitudes because it just allows us to live in our lanes that we want to be in and that we're wired to be in and allows. All the other team members to be guilt free. So a couple of examples I can think of and then I'd love to hear if you have any others.

Kristen would be at our workshops. So we host workshops every other week for our cohort members. Kristen loves to be the one behind the scenes. I love to be the one at the front of the room. And we just kind of stay in our lanes and I don't feel guilty if at the end of the day, Kristen is the one sort of like, moving stuff along and packing stuff up.

And I am literally talking to everyone because on the introvert extrovert scale, and that's the [00:18:00] aptitude I would really say that we lean on for this. Mm-hmm. I know you're introverted. I also just know your interest is to be a key player behind the scenes to make something happen.

Kristen Selby: and I had to let go of guilt of, for like not being that like extroverted, peppy at the front.

Like I can do that for a little bit, you know, like on orientation day I can do that and I can put that roll on and it feels good 'cause it's new and like the energy in the room is different. but if I did that for every single workshop, I would just be completely drained. So it's like giving myself permission to let go of the guilt of not being like Audra.

Right. And owning my own lane and just seeing like the worth and the value there. 'cause I think otherwise we would just all, we would just talk the whole time.

Audra Dinell: Yeah. Which is why I have a podcast, but also for me. Seeing you in the back of the room, you know, just like cleaning up or this and that. You know, I would initially feel a guilt pull, like, oh, I've gotta help her.

But instead I get to pour my time into conversations with cohort members. And that fulfills me, that fulfills Kristen because she's, you know, [00:19:00] just in her lane doing her thing. And yeah, I just feel like this tool has helped our team stand in roles more guilt-free. Mm-hmm. Than if we wouldn't have had this.

Yeah,

Kristen Selby: And I see that a little bit with you and Kendra as kind of visionary integrator a little. We were just talking about how, you know, you bring these big ideas and Kendra is the one typically to develop the system or process around that once we've decided like, this is something we wanna tackle.

And I think that she, I don't think she would mind me sharing, but I think that she sometimes feels like she's the boundary bully or like a little negative's not the right word, but just how would you describe it?

Audra Dinell: Yeah, we talk about that. She always says, Ugh, I feel like I'm the negative. Well, she doesn't always say, but she has set a time or

five. You know, I, I feel like I'm always the negative Nancy on the team, and we reassure her, no, you're not. No. Like we need that perspective that you are bringing, right? Because that's like your wiring, that's your aptitude. What aptitude would you say that is? Where,

Kristi Windish: [00:20:00] well, I think it's probably a combination of her planning, her concept organization.

Mm-hmm. You know, where she can, she knows all the steps that need to happen. Mm-hmm. And so that brings a really practical approach. Whereas you're like we'll get there. I know what it needs to look like at the end. In combination with some of her personality preferences. Yeah. And so that's why you have to look at this whole, all of it together,

Audra Dinell: but I can imagine sitting in rooms 10, 15 years ago and finding something like that more negative of like, Ugh, yes, all my ideas just get crushed. Instead of now being like, no, no, no. I have a lot of ideas. They're not all good ideas. And now I have someone to help me set healthy boundaries because she's gonna push back on the how or the timeframe or any of the details that, you know, my brain's not really locking into.

Yes. So just knowing our aptitudes has helped us as a team just like love each other well support each other in our strengths and take away any potential guilt. I'm sure it has taken away any potential conflict, you know, [00:21:00] I could imagine mm-hmm. That could have arisen in our team if we just didn't, know ourselves deeply and each other and look through this lens of aptitudes.

Kristi Windish: Yeah. I know when you talk about conflict, I think several tools are really helpful for teams, you know, an aptitude and that personality of, oh, this is how they're wired to see things. And so I'm not gonna take it personally that they see it differently than I do. You know, if it's the Myers-Briggs and you wanna talk about, are you more of a thinking a logical person or are you more a feeling and sensitive person?

People can get hurt, but if you can step back and say, oh, this person just sees things more logically. I don't need to take this personally. Then you can understand and appreciate each other and not have as many conflicts or, feel that conflict inside. Mm-hmm.

Audra Dinell: So what would you say to a team that is like, what team would be a perfect team to invest in understanding their aptitudes?[00:22:00]

Kristi Windish: I think a small team like yours that works together very very closely. And needs to figure out how to divvy up all of those responsibilities. It can be really helpful and especially with if they already have that good communication. For larger teams I think this information is helpful on that in more individual basis.

Mm-hmm. They can all kind of learn about aptitudes and have an idea, and the conversations might not be as good as that small, close-knit team, but at least they are aware, they are building awareness and then maybe as they develop just a better understanding of themselves, they can start to advocate for themselves and start to understand why someone on their team doesn't

it doesn't see things the same way that they do. So it can be good for large teams or small teams, but those small, close-knit teams can have those conversations and really talk [00:23:00] about, divvying up responsibilities and that's really helpful.

Audra Dinell: Yeah. This has been a game changer, I think for the Thread.

We've had this knowledge for three years, so I can't imagine what it would be like without it. But I do feel like this, I mean, we all walked away from that meeting just like wow and reference it all of the time. Truly, it has to be referenced at least once a month within our team for the past three years, and it has just been a game changer on building a super solid team.

I do have a random question. Yes. Is there any correlation between ideation and extroversion by chance?

Kristi Windish: No.

Audra Dinell: Okay. Because that's the thing, like if, like let's say on a larger team, you have everyone do their aptitudes and someone is a high ideator who is a quiet, introverted person, like, oh my gosh, what a freaking goldmine.

The next time, you know, you need some ideas that maybe haven't been said already. I mean, going to [00:24:00] your high ideation introvert could be your secret weapon.

Kristi Windish: Yes. Yeah. Yeah. It's all inside. Mm. But they don't share it as readily because they're on that introverted side. They might just feel like

they want to be sure about those ideas. Where as an extrovert with high idea productivity is just really saying everything that comes to mind and processing their thoughts out loud. And that is a pro and a con.

Audra Dinell: Chris and I are laughing because our process around that is voice texting. Yes. So we have come up with a formal voice texting process where, you know, I'll use the words like I'm verbal processing and then we'll text one another, like a quick snippet after the voice text is done of like, Hey, this is just business update, no rush.

Kristen Selby: It like prepares my heart for, you know, the level of processing that is going to be required. Because like probably a year ago we were just voice texting, so I'd get these like seven minute voice texts from Ara and I was like, oh gosh.

[00:25:00] That's gonna be a lot for me to do today. Right? Like, I just wanted to go into action mode. Mm-hmm. But. Now she's so like, she's so beautifully, like recaps what her voice text is about, and then I am just prepared and I can give it the attention I want when I'm able. Yes. So it works well.

Audra Dinell: We call those, those ones TED Talks.

TED Talks. They're not all seven minutes.

No, they're not. No. Just the really important ones. But I do think a year ago when you brought that up, that could have been like a source of tension. Mm-hmm. Unbeknownst to me, or it could have been something that could like have stirred inside of you and slowly eroded like your fulfillment as a team member on the thread, but instead communicating that.

Yeah. Yes.

Kristen Selby: That was huge.

Audra Dinell: Yeah.

Kristen Selby: And it works so beautifully now.

Kristi Windish: Yeah. I mean, and you guys are unique in that way where you are able to communicate. All of those things to each other. And sometimes on a larger team, you're like, well, I, I don't know if I can have this discussion in a big group.

Yeah. And so that's why this [00:26:00] teamwork can be helpful. But I think for some teams it's really understanding your aptitudes kind of on that individual basis. And then learning, you know, kind of meeting with me one-on-one of how can I bring this to my group. And so that might just be a more effective way to use it and advocate Yeah.

And advocate for yourself.

Kristen Selby: Really just boils down to like showing up authentically. Right? Yeah. And just giving yourself permission to do so. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Mm.

Audra Dinell: Beautiful. Okay. Kristi, you have generously offered for any teams who want to work with you based on our listeners and our community a discount.

So if you are a leader and you're interested in bringing this to your team, Kristi would love to offer you a discount. It's thread 10, T-H-R-E-A-D 10. And that's through her website. Where can they find you? If they wanna book? Even a call or a, just even a, can you do, you do calls first to kinda talk through?

Yes.

Kristi Windish: Yeah. And actually we [00:27:00] recommend that if you go to our website. Www true compass llc.com. You'll see book a consultation and you can just hop on our calendar and book a call and we'll call you at that time. So if you don't wanna play phone tag, it's an easy way to do that and we can talk about maybe what the best step for your team will be.

You know, is, is it the whole team? Do you wanna start with a couple of people? However you wanna do it. And then we are also at true Compass on Facebook and at True Compass Wichita on Instagram. So. Check us out.

Audra Dinell: Yeah, it's a good investment. Like I said, our team is much better off having worked with Kristi and Robin and would highly recommend.

Alright. Thank you all so much for listening. We would love if you have enjoyed this podcast to share it, share it with your friend, share it with a fellow leader or entrepreneur, also subscribe. Hit that subscribe button. Smash it. As my kids would say, subscribers help us keep this podcast going and [00:28:00] help others find out about the work we're doing.

Thank you all. We'll see you next week.