Leadership Lessons from a Global Journey (ft. Spriha Srivastava)
Spriha Srivastava on journalism, justice, and kindness
OPENING QUOTE:
“At the end of the day, we are all humans, we all have our personal lives and we bring along those personal lives to work every day. So, for me, it's very important to be respectful and kind towards each other.”
- Spriha Srivastava
GUEST BIO:
Spriha Srivastava is the London bureau chief and the international executive editor for Insider, overseeing 100 journalists across the UK and Singapore in the pursuit of delivering a leading news service covering business, politics, and lifestyle. Prior to joining Insider, Spriha was the deputy digital news editor for CNBC International in London. She’s won a number of awards for her work, including the Iconic Women Creating a Better Tomorrow award from the Women Economic Forum and runner-up for Newcomer of the Year in the Santander Media Awards.
CORE TOPICS + DETAILS:
[7:50] - Melding Cultural Backgrounds
What Spriha’s Indian upbringing has taught her
In India, there are 28 states and over 100 spoken languages as well as practitioners of every major faith. There, diversity and inclusion aren’t just ideals to strive toward— they’re realities of everyday existence. Spriha brought that close connection to diversity with her to the UK, and it has helped inform her entire career. In that respect, she was ahead of the curve in terms of making those principles central to how companies hire, engage with employees, and more.
[14:34] - Employers and Personal Financial Health
A vital role to play
In her interactions with the Financial Times magazine Money Management, Spriha saw firsthand how little many people understand about personal finance. Today, she feels that employers should take a more active interest in the financial wellbeing of their people. After all, people who are financially secure are better equipped to manage their careers, and have more mental space to think creatively about solutions to business problems. It’s a win-win for employers and employees alike.
[20:07] - Lightning-Fast Leadership
Leading in the rapid paced world of journalism
In her first few journalism leadership roles, Spriha learned that you have to encourage your team members to step up and inspire confidence. Advocate for your team and lean into the best of them to help them step up to the next level. You also must advocate for yourself. In fast-paced fields like the world of news and journalism, there’s no time for imposter syndrome. You have to step up and lead.
[29:10] - Coach the Person, Not the Problem
Leading humans with no human interaction
When the pandemic hit, Spriha was reminded of the essential nature of listening to human beings and their needs— not just seeing them as business resources to be applied to problems. She became acutely aware of issues like no childcare, mental health struggles, and isolation. She learned that people can’t be their best when they are in an environment that doesn’t acknowledge and support their unique needs.
[37:07] - Out for a Swim
An important lesson on leading by example
A recent CEO interview revealed a powerful insight to Spriha. A CEO concerned with burnout and long hours from his employee led him to look in the mirror, where he discovered he was setting the tone for long days with his actions— even if he wasn’t encouraging it with his words. He decided to be an example by attending fewer meetings in person and publicly stating when he was out of the office for personal reasons. His example had a powerful positive impact on his people.
[56:05] - Empathy: The Underrated Core of Leadership
On bringing our full selves to work each day
Even if it doesn’t feel directly relevant to our work, we all bring our personalities, the things we love, the things we hate, our fears, our aspirations, and our habits into the office (or Zoom call) every day. On days when those things can feel like a heavy burden, the value of having empathetic people around you at work— both in supervisors and peers— is incalculable. We should all strive to find those people, and be that person for those around us.
RESOURCES:
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