The Story of Lessons in Leadership
Storytelling. For thousands of years, storytelling is how we have learned, how we have been warned of the challenges of the past, and inspired to pursue the opportunities of the future. Folks have gathered around a fire and shared lessons from battle, described times of enduring great hardship, told stories of grit, perseverance, and determination, tales of adventure and of taking on new challenges, and the lessons that helped build the resilience to handle whatever life threw their way. From these stories the young were inspired, leaders were born, and families and friends were encouraged to pursue their own new adventures.
When I launched Lessons in Leadership, I did not realize it would become one of those modern-day places of sharing stories, leadership lessons, and the inspiration to go do new things. Each week we have conversations with leaders who have started businesses, founded charities, gone away to war, endured unimaginable hardship, and taken on breathtaking challenges, and through it all developed grit, perseverance, determination, and resilience. They share their lessons they learned along the way, and the mindset that allowed them to continue on despite whatever obstacles life threw their way.
There are 5 minutes highlight videos here to capture some of the key lessons, and there are full length videos approximately an hour that allow you to learn even more about these inspiring journeys.
In order of appearance, starting with most recent, here are our guests:
Joel Douglas, retired Air Force officer and leader
Chukky Okobi, Super Bowl Champion, Neurolinguistics Expert and Founder of Basic Instructions
Jenna Dillon, CEO of Executive Performance Institute For Coaching
Melissa McClung, author of Mind Your Career: Job Search Like An Entrepreneur
Jy Maze, CEO of Maze Freight Solutions
Tyson Wright, Operation Underground Railroad
Courtney Thomas, CEO of Newhouse
Reinhard Mabry, CEO of Alphapointe
Ebrima “Abraham” Sisay, founder of The Freedom Project
Jen Kelly, multi-business entrepreneur on her entrepreneurship journey
Isaac Lee Collins, owner of Yogurtini KC and founder of Purposeful Profit Academy
Komalpreet and Jasneet Kaur, founders of The Eye Of An Immigrant
Matt Dimmick, former Director of Russia and Eastern Europe for National Security Council
Essa Firoozbakht, founder of Delta-Tee manufacturing company on his immigrant journey
Alana Muller, host of Coffee Lunch Coffee, on how to network and build relationships
Dr. Greg Mosier, President of KCK Community College, on the role of the school in transforming lives
Mary Ricketts, founder of Turning Point Training and Development, on coaching and leadership
John Musgrave, wounded Vietnam Veteran who dedicated himself to addressing PTS in veterans
Zik Nwanganga, host of FiredUp KC podcast on his journey from Nigeria
Dr. Michelle Robin, author, wellness and kindness expert
Caroline Hammond, founder of Safe In Harm’s Way on helping address domestic abuse
Tom & Jen Satterly, overcoming trauma, SOF veteran, authors of All Secure & Arsenal of Hope
Paul Bramson – sales and leadership expert
Brandon Calloway, encouraging entrepreneurship
Clifton Taulbert, leadership and entrepreneurship, co-author of Who Owns The Ice House?
Andrew Benett – speaker on culture and leadership
Isaac Wambua – leadership coach
Ben Pronk & Tim Curtis – Australian SAS, authors of Resilience Shield
Cody Isabel, Hero Mindset – CEO and Founder of CBA Neurotech
Kevin Estela – Survivor Mindset, author of 101 Things To Know To Survive in the Woods
Terry Buckler – Son Tay Raider, author of Who Will Go, and Lee Ellis Vietnam POW, Leading With Honor
Gordon Tredgold – Global leadership, author of FAST
Nick White – Lessons from a triathlon
Mitch Case – Lessons from an entrepreneurial journey
Jamie Cochran – Leadership principles, finding your purpose working with Echelon Front
Stephen Nasser – Holocaust Survivor, author of My Brother’s Voice
Andre’ Davis – building relationships that last
Vincent J Speranza – WWII veteran, author of NUTS!
Lidia Young – leadership coach
Mike Bayly – making effective presentations
Ken Chlouber & Merilee Maupin – resilience & grit from Leadville
Klassie Alcine – Impacting your community and creating opportunity
Andrew Morgans – resilience & grit to overcome challenges & launch a business
Cindy Tatum – honoring our veterans
Lisa Pena – lessons from an entrepreneurial journey
Mark Brandmeyer – reviving a baseball team and honoring a legacy
Tracy Lockton & Barnett Helzberg – value of mentorship
Col. Lee Ellis – Lessons from Vietnam, author of Leading with Honor
Steve Klein – Lesson from the Big Cats at Cedar Cove Feline Conservatory
Jeff Miner – Lessons in resilience and grit from athletics
Dave Delaney – Nice method for Culture and Leadership, author of New Business Networking
Sha Sparks – finding your purpose
Ramon Corrales – authentic leadership
Grant Gooding – entrepreneurship and leadership
Janis Dickey – financial decision making, author of Financial Prep 101
Faith Morris – Lessons from National Civil Rights Museum
Tony DeSare – a musical journey
Karen Worcester – honoring our veterans
Harry Campbell – author of Get Real Leadership, Get Real Culture, Get Real Mindset
Jimmy Blackmon – leadership lessons from Afghanistan, author of Pale Horse & Cowboys Over Iraq
Rodney Flowers – overcoming adversity, author of Get Up! I Can, I Will, I Did, Here’s How
Edgar Harrell – WWII Veteran and survivor of sinking of the Indianapolis, author of Out of the Depths
Tony Hofmann – grit and perseverance, author of Embracing Grit
Roger Hill – holding firm to principles, author of Dog Company
Julie Hansen – effective presentation in a virtual world, author of Act Like A Sales Pro
Bob Nauman – 100 years of banking
Cybersecurity Team – lessons in protecting yourself & your business from Cyber Risk
Allen Little – Little Voice in your head
Bob Burg & Scott Havens – Go Giver relationships, author of The Go Giver
Andi Burgis – leadership lessons from horses
Mike Kenny – building resilience & grit to overcome trauma
Colleen Stanley – sales skills, author of Emotional Intelligence for Sales Success
Dr. Richard Himmer – emotional intelligence, author of Listen and Lead
Aron & Henryka Bielski – holocaust survivors
Mike Meyer – weaving purpose into your business, founder of Band of Angels
Shantell Ogden and Ron Gellis – overcoming trauma for veterans, songwriters project
Father Justin Mathews – impacting & serving your community
Nomi Smith – an entrepreneurial journey
Tabitha Scott – rediscovering your priorities in life
Dennis Strait – understanding and overcoming the obstacles to opportunity
Chris Ford – authentic leadership
Chase Coffman – perseverance and grit in your career
Kay Pfeiffer – diabetes, healthy choices and the impact on work
Deliece Hofen, Kim Stanley, Jen Simpson, Sara Hart Weir – making a difference
Wesley Hamilton – overcoming adversity
Michael Brandvold – Lessons from KISS, transforming a dream into a career
Drew Meyerowich – transitioning military experience into business leadership
Joel Goldberg – building a winning culture, author of Small Ball, Big Results
David Komar – Military lessons in building culture
Aaron Fulk – social media marketing during a work from home pandemic