Make Your Life Feel Longer, with John K. Coyle, Olympic Speed Skater and Design Thinking Expert

d'Skills in Action

Make Your Life Feel Longer, with John K. Coyle, Olympic Speed Skater and Design Thinking Expert

If you watched the 1994 Winter Olympics, you may recognize today’s guest.

Because he ended up taking home the silver medal in speed skating that winter with his team.

Today’s episode is exciting and thrilling as our guest shares his adventurous journey.

From 55 times he almost died, his thoughts about the perception of time, to how he led the shift from contract cellphone plans to non-contract plans... you’ll be hanging onto every word John shares. He even shared, for the first time in a public forum, the personal story behind a poem he wrote that has since been shared with hundreds of thousands of people.

Join me in our episode today as I take the journey to the great mind of an Olympian, storyteller, keynote speaker, author, and a leading expert in "Design Thinking” and Innovation --- John K. Coyle

This episode is an idea of flow, adventure, risk, and creativity combined in one.

A Danger Seeker

“In a lot of cases in life, bigger risks mean bigger rewards” ---John Coyle

John’s whole life, he’s sought out thrills. Intentionally. And in moderate numbers each year. He described himself as a kid who’d go to a haunted mansion on the hill at midnight with no flashlight.

From a young age, John's fearlessness and resilience set him apart. As he said,

I think I'm a dopamine resistant.”

He fearlessly embraced physical challenges that others would shy away from.

He made tough decisions that others wouldn't dare to make.

When faced with a lack of success on the Olympic team, John took a leap and decided to train on his own.

This audacious move earned him triumphs beyond imagination, breaking US and world records and proving that daring choices could lead to tremendous achievements.

Throughout his life, John's willingness to embrace uncertainty and go against the grain paid off.

In this section, pay special attention to how anyone can use seeking danger, thrills, and stories to increase the perception of time. Your life will be more fulfilling.

Losing Creative People

Reflecting on my own generation, Gen Z, I note how college made more sense in their time when company routes were prominent.

John unveils how swiftly shooting down ideas dampens creativity and causes talented minds to withdraw, leading to a decline in business growth and potential failure,

"So, it's about what's that calculated risk, and divergent thinkers, creative thinkers, are just capable of thinking far outside of the comfort zone than your convergent thinkers, and if you shut them down all the time, if you don't absorb them, if you fire them or if they leave, then you just don't have that pool of ideas that can help a business grow beyond its current boundaries. And that's how businesses die."

I'm left pondering the significance of nurturing a culture that welcomes innovative ideas, disruption, and calculated risks...

"So now they're essentially permanently shut down. They just don't bring ideas anymore. And then the third strike happens is they leave because people join companies, and they leave leaders. The reason they leave leaders, 52% of the write-in votes is my boss is not open to my ideas. So now you've just had an exodus of all your creative people, and this is how big companies go out of business."

Amygdala Driven Moments, Time Perception

Our conversation takes an intriguing turn as we discuss his research on the curious phenomenon of time perception, and the complexities of neuroscience and its rapid advancements.

He explains that we live in moments, capturing snapshots of experiences every two to three seconds, creating a vast pile of memories.

“It gets more interesting when the amygdala, which sits next to the hippocampus on both sides, wakes up. And it only wakes up for two reasons. Never do that again or always do that again.”

The role of the hippocampus in writing memories to long-term storage and the significance of the amygdala in shaping recallable moments are thoroughly explored.

"What's really interesting about amygdala driven moments is they tend to stay at the top of the stack. They're almost never discarded, and there's more density in the photo. Image sense sounds, emotions in those. So, when the amygdala's awake, you're going to have this multiplying factor.”

These profound insights offer a glimpse into the intriguing realm of neuroscience...

where our perception of time intertwines with the intricacies of memory formation, all awaiting discovery and understanding.

Get to Know John!

John K. Coyle is one of the world's leading experts in "Design Thinking” and Innovation. A highly sought-after speaker and lecturer, John is a graduate of Stanford University with a degree in Engineering - Product Design (Design Thinking) and Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School of business 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 four-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. Learn more at his website www.johnkcoyle.com

Mentioned and Links

JohnKCoyle.com | Facebook | LinkedIn

Insta: @coylejohnk | Twitter: @coylejohnk | Email