The Shift

Hosted by Trisha Carter

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Aug 2026

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About the show

In a series of interviews with authors and experts from around the world, The Shift unpacks how to increase awareness of ourselves, and others and to shift our perspectives to see things differently. Join Trisha Carter, an Organisational Psychologist and explorer of Cultural Intelligence as she dives into cultural meta-cognition and learns more about how to experience those Shifts.

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August 8, 202623 min

Can Sport Build Bridges - Or Burn Them?

In this solo episode, Trisha opens a new series on sport, and how it can both build bridges and burn them.Every sporting event has three kinds of people: those playing, those watching, and those running it. Are they all having the same experience of connection — or is being near someone quietly different from being with them? Using Gordon Allport's contact hypothesis, Trisha tests a Saturday morning at the local park against a World Cup, asking who might be getting more out of it than we assume.If a sporting moment has ever shifted you, or told you that you didn't belong, Trisha wants to hear it in your voice.Make sure you join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.Resources mentioned:"The Nature of Prejudice" by Gordon AllportParkrunReferenced in this episode:Episode 70 - Ned Legaspi, on storytelling and the Bamboo FrameworkEpisode 75 - Chika Miyamori, on building bridges across differencesEpisode 76 - Dr. David Livermore, on Beyond CQEpisode 77 - Dr. David Livermore, on Prism and leadershipEpisode 82 - Mike Newton, on music and perspectiveEpisode 84 - Music Is Universal, Music Is Particular.

July 24, 202615 min

Same Circle, Different Song

In this solo episode, Trisha examines a shadow she left out of three episodes on music and connection: the same doors music opens for connection can just as easily be used to draw a line around who belongs.What happens when the belonging a crowd creates turns on you mid-song? And what do you actually do when you're standing inside a circle that starts singing something you can't join? Trisha also revisits a decision to launch a series on sport, after the World Cup made clear that sport carries the same two faces as music, working through the same mechanisms.Trisha wants your voice for the new series. Send her a voice note telling her about a sporting moment that shifted you, or a moment sport told you that you didn't belong. Either one. Both, if you've got them.Referenced in this episode:Episode 84: Music Is Universal, Music Is Particular - the Listener Voices episode that prompted this reflection.Make sure you join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

July 11, 202637 min

Music Is Universal, Music Is Particular

In this episode, Trisha hands the microphone to her listeners. After last week's confession about the skip button, voice notes arrived from around the world - Scotland, South Africa, the USA, Guatemala, Aotearoa New Zealand, and Australia - sharing the songs that shifted them, the music that carries their pride, and how they use music deliberately in their work across cultures. Is music a universal language, or thousands of particular ones? A newly published piece of research gives a name to the answer that runs through every one of these voices - and it may reshape how you think about similarity and difference across cultures. Trisha also discovers which doorway is the hardest to catch yourself walking through, and finds an unexpected homecoming in a song she almost skipped.With thanks to the voices in this episode:Shirley Moana Duff - Coaching PsychologistHanlie van Wyk - CQ Fellow and Social Scientist - (Episode 54)Greg Dearsley - CQ Fellow, Workplace Health and Safety - (Episode 14)Lucy Butters - Author of "Cultural Intelligence in Practice" - (Episode 24 and Episode 67)Lisa Liang - Intercultural Storyteller, Actor and Performer Dr Angel S. Longino - Career Design and Cultural Intelligence, Higher EducationResources mentioned include:"Universal Pluralism: Appreciating and Exploring Both Similarity and Difference Across People and Cultures" by Dr Tim LomasDr Tim Lomas' LinkedIn post"Luna de Xelaju" duet by Oscar Isaac and Gaby Moreno (YouTube)"Matariki Hunga Nui (Calling Me Home)" by Rob Ruha, Troy Kingi, and Kaylee Bell with Professor Rangi Matamua (YouTube)Listen along on Spotify - the songs our voices shared, followed by bonus picks spanning jazz, gospel, reggaeton, and more: The Great Equaliser - Music from The Shift PodcastReferenced in this episode:Moon Joy and Cultural IntelligenceCultural Blindness - When Fairness Isn't FairThe Cost of Sameness - Voices from Three ContinentsWhat My Skip Button Taught Me About BiasMake sure you join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

July 4, 202620 min

What My Skip Button Taught Me About Bias

In this solo episode, Trisha turns the CQ lens on herself, examining a habit she caught in her own listening since her conversation with Mike Newton in Episode 82.What is your thumb actually doing when a song comes on? Trisha unpacks four different doors music uses to move us — the beat, being moved, surprise, and story — and realises she's only ever really been opening one of them. What does it mean when the same song that feels like home to one person tells another they don't belong? And what might be waiting in the very songs your thumb reaches to skip?Trisha closes with an invitation: choose one song from a genre you usually skip, and use the PAUSE process to stay with it all the way through.Resources mentioned in this episode:🎵 Listen to the episode playlist on Spotify: The Beat Beneath The Bridge - Music for The Shift Podcast Episode 82The PAUSE Process — first introduced in Episode 53, "Responding to Moments of Shift with PAUSE"Listen to Episode 82 — Mike Newton, on music, culture, and perspectiveTrisha would love to hear from you — share a piece of music from another culture that shifted something in you, or tell her how you've used music deliberately in your own CQ practice, on LinkedIn.Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

June 19, 202647 min

Mike Newton - When Music Shifts Your Perspective

In this episode, Trisha interviews Mike Newton, CQ Fellow, certified CQ Facilitator, and Director of Organisational Health and Belonging at Young Life.Music reaches us in ways that argument and logic simply can't — but what happens when that same power is used intentionally to shift how we see each other? Could a song be the beat beneath the bridge that connects people across cultural differences? Mike has spent over 25 years building culturally intelligent communities, and when he's not doing that, he's behind the decks. This conversation explores how music works across all four dimensions of Cultural Intelligence (CQ) — from sparking motivation and curiosity, to deepening knowledge of cultures not our own, to shifting perspective in ways that stay with us for decades.Connect with Mike Newton on LinkedIn or on Instagram at mrnewton210🎵 Listen to the episode playlist on Spotify: The Beat Beneath The Bridge - Music for The Shift Podcast Episode 82Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

May 30, 20264 min

The Shift Recommends

This week, Trisha steps back from a full episode to point you towards two conversations worth your time. She recently appeared as a guest on Victoria Rennoldson's Culture Cuppa podcast — and being on the other side of the microphone had her reflecting in ways she didn't quite expect. The episode, Leading Across Difference, is a candid conversation between two Cultural Intelligence (CQ) practitioners about the future of CQ and where hope lives within it.Trisha also invites you to revisit Episode 28 with Sharon Gray — a Kamilaroi and Scottish woman whose wisdom is woven into the episode's very title. With National Reconciliation Week unfolding in Australia, there's no better moment to listen, or listen again.Both links are in the show notes below.Culture Cuppa — Leading Across Difference with Trisha Carter: https://culturecuppa.com/podcasts/leading-across-difference-with-trisha-carter/Episode 28 — Winanga Guru: Listen Deeply, Go Slowly and Respect Everything with Sharon Gray: https://the-shift-with-trisha-carter.captivate.fm/episode/sharon-gray-winangar-guru-listen-deeply-go-slowly-and-respect-everything/Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

May 23, 202623 min

The Cost of Sameness - Voices from Three Continents

In this special episode, Trisha steps back and hands the mic to three voices from three continents — each responding to the same question: what does it feel like when someone says, "We're all the same"?What emerges is something that Cultural Intelligence (CQ) frameworks can name but can't fully capture on their own — the lived experience of cultural blindness. From South Africa, the United States, and Northern Ireland, these three perspectives share a quiet, consistent thread: the weight of being asked to make yourself smaller in the name of fairness.This episode is both a companion to Episode 79 and a milestone — Episode 80 — and it marks the occasion the only way that feels right: by listening.Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.Voices in this episode: Samkelo Blom (Episode 37) You can learn more about Samkelo and the work of his organisation here and connect with him on Linked In here.Dr. Kristal Walker (Episode 58) Connect with Dr Kristal Walker on LinkedIn.Sarah Black (Episode 9 and Episode 48) Check out Sarah Black on LinkedIn and sign up for her Newsletter.

May 8, 202622 min

Cultural Blindness- When Fairness isn’t Fair

In this solo episode, Trisha unpacks a concept that often masquerades as unity but can quietly erase the experiences of those it claims to include. What happens when "treating everyone the same" actually means treating everyone as if they share your starting point? How do well-intentioned statements like "I just see you as a person" land on someone whose difference has shaped their entire life?Drawing on insights from her conversation with Chika Miyamori about the Intercultural Development Continuum, Trisha explores the minimization stage, where we focus on what we share while downplaying the significance of difference. She contrasts this with the overview effect experienced by the Artemis II crew, showing how one mindset expands our capacity to see while the other diminishes it. For cultural trainers, coaches, and facilitators, she offers a practical three-question reflection sequence to move groups from minimization toward genuine co-creation.Resources mentioned include Episode 78 (Moon Joy and the Overview Effect) and Episode 75 with Chika Miyamori (Intercultural Development Continuum and the IDI).Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

April 26, 202615 min

Moon Joy and Cultural Intelligence

In this solo episode, Trisha explores what happens when astronauts return from space transformed by what they've seen — and whether Cultural Intelligence (CQ) might help us experience something similar without leaving Earth.What can the Artemis II crew's awe and perspective shifts teach us about seeing ourselves as one crew on a fragile lifeboat? How does the overview effect connect to figure-ground shifts in cultural intelligence work? And if we're wired to see each other as "us" and "them," can CQ help us cultivate a different way of seeing — one where our shared humanity becomes the figure against the vast ground of space?Trisha reflects on concepts introduced by CQ researchers Kok-Yee Ng and Thomas Rockstuhl, connecting astronaut insights to practical CQ applications. She leaves listeners with a question to sit with until next week's continuation of this thread.Resources mentioned:Ng, K. Y., Ang, S., & Rockstuhl, T. (2022). Cultural intelligence: From intelligence in context and across cultures to intercultural contexts. In R. J. Sternberg & D. D. Preiss (Eds.), Intelligence in context: The cultural and historical foundations of human intelligence (pp. 177–200). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-92798-1_8White, F. (2014). The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution. AIAA.NASA photo library: https://images.nasa.gov/Referenced in this episode: Episodes 76 and 77: Dr. David Livermore on the Prism framework Episode 8: Dr. Mark Williams - Shifts and the BrainJoin Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

April 4, 202626 min

Dr. David Livermore - Beyond CQ - Part Two; Expanding Your Leadership Archetype

In this episode, Trisha interviews Dr. David Livermore, researcher, author, and one of the world's leading voices on Cultural Intelligence (CQ), in Part 2 of their conversation on the Prism framework for global leadership.What does it actually take for a leader to see their own archetype clearly — and what gets in the way? This conversation explores how Prism and CQ work together, challenges the assumption that great leadership means doubling down on your strengths, and asks what becomes possible when leaders are willing to try on something unfamiliar — even just 10%.Learn more about David Livermore's work at davidlivermore.com and globalteamlead.com. Connect with David on LinkedInJoin Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.Resources mentioneddavidlivermore.comglobalteamlead.comLeading with Cultural Intelligence by Dr. David LivermoreGlobal Team Lead Master Certification Virtual certification programme for coaches and trainers to become accredited to use the Prism tool and deliver the Global Team Lead curriculum. Next intake: 15–16 April 2026. Details and registration at globalteamlead.com.

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