Notes From the Window Seat

By Marty PearsonSociety & Culture Business Philosophy Places & Travel Management

Notes From the Window Seat episodes

July 27What Are You Really Measuring?
Most business leaders have a dashboard.
Revenue.
Profit.
Labor costs.
Sales.
KPIs.
Those numbers matter—but what if they're only telling part of the story?
In this episode, I'll challenge a common leadership assumption: that measuring more numbers automatically leads to better results. Instead, you'll discover why many of the most important drivers of business success never appear on a financial report.
Learn the three areas every leader should be measuring if they want to build a stronger culture, develop better people, create loyal customers, and achieve sustainable business growth.
In this episode you'll learn:
Why financial metrics are lagging indicators
The difference between measuring outcomes and measuring behaviors
Four measurements every successful leader should be tracking
How your measurements shape your company culture
Questions to evaluate whether you're focusing on what truly matters
The Three Leadership Measurements
• People Growth
• Customer Experience
• Leadership Consistency
This Week's Leadership Challenge
Review your business dashboard and ask yourself:
"If someone looked only at what I'm measuring, what would they conclude matters most in my business?"
You may discover you've been measuring success...
instead of measuring what creates success.
Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
12 min
July 20The Stories You're Telling Yourself...
Every business owner has stories they tell themselves.
"No one wants to pay my prices." "I can't find good employees." "Marketing doesn't work." "I'm too small to compete."
But what if those aren't facts? What if they're simply stories that have been repeated so often, they've become accepted as truth?
In this episode we explore how our assumptions shape the decisions we make—and introduces the concept of confirmation bias, the psychological tendency to seek evidence that supports what we already believe while ignoring evidence that challenges it.
You'll learn how questioning your own assumptions can unlock better leadership, stronger decision-making, and new opportunities for growth.
Sometimes changing your business starts by changing your perspective.
In This Episode You'll Learn
Why many business problems begin with assumptions—not reality
How confirmation bias quietly influences leadership decisions
Four common stories that hold businesses back
Why curiosity is one of a leader's greatest competitive advantages
Practical questions to help challenge limiting beliefs
How changing your perspective can change your business
Reflection Questions:
What story have I accepted as fact without questioning it? What evidence supports that belief? What evidence might I be ignoring? If the opposite were true, what would I expect to see? What would change if I approached this challenge with curiosity instead of certainty?
The stories you believe become the decisions you make. Change the story, and you may change the future of your business.

CONNECT & LEARN MORE
LFT Consulting.com
Get my book: https://a.co/d/08uClt2L

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
16 min
July 13"I think it's time to let them go".....
Every leader knows they need to have difficult conversations. The problem isn't knowing what to say. The problem is waiting so long to say it.
In this episode, we explore why good leaders often avoid honest performance conversations, how assumptions slowly replace curiosity, and why employees are sometimes written off before they've ever been given a real opportunity to succeed.
You'll learn why clarity is one of the greatest acts of leadership and how avoiding uncomfortable conversations can damage trust, morale, and performance for everyone involved.
In This Episode:
Why good leaders avoid difficult conversations
The hidden cost of hoping performance will improve on its own
How assumptions quietly replace facts
The danger of "Negative Sentiment Override"
Why mentioning a problem isn't the same as coaching
How to recognize when you've stopped coaching and started judging
Why clarity is one of the kindest things a leader can offer
Coach while you're still curious—not after you've become frustrated. Great leaders address problems early, before resentment has a chance to grow.

Reflection Question - Who on your team have you already fired in your mind... before you've coached them well enough to succeed?

CONNECT & LEARN MORE
LFT Consulting.com
Get my book: https://a.co/d/08uClt2L

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
13 min
July 06The Vacation Test!
Most business owners and executives think taking time off is the challenge.
It's not.
The real question is whether you've built a business that allows you to step away without everything grinding to a halt.
In this episode, we explore why vacation is one of the greatest leadership tests you'll ever take.
If the thought of being unavailable for a week fills you with anxiety, this conversation isn't really about vacation—it's about trust, delegation, leadership, and the systems you've built.
You'll also discover why disconnecting from work isn't enough. To truly recharge, you have to slow down enough to experience the moments you've worked so hard to create.
In this episode we talk about:
Why vacation reveals hidden weaknesses in your business
The leadership habits that make disconnecting so difficult
How your example shapes your company's culture around time off
Why leaders often feel guilty resting
A simple framework for being fully present on your next vacation
The one question every leader should ask after returning to work from time off

Did you build your business to create a better life…or have you built a business that keeps you from living it?
If that question makes you a little uncomfortable, then it's one episode you really need to listen too.

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
12 min
June 29When You're the One Everyone Leans On
Leadership is often discussed in terms of strategy, accountability, communication, and performance. But there is another side of leadership that rarely gets discussed. The emotional labor.
Every day, leaders carry concerns that extend far beyond their own responsibilities. They absorb stress, navigate conflict, support struggling employees, make difficult decisions, and remain steady during uncertainty. While employees often know where to turn when they need support, many leaders quietly carry the weight alone.
In this episode, we explore the hidden emotional burden of leadership, why leadership can become isolating, and how healthy leaders create support systems that allow them to lead sustainably over the long term.
In This Episode
Why leadership is more emotional than most people realize
The hidden cost of carrying other people's problems
Why leadership often becomes lonely
The myth that strong leaders should never need support
Signs you may be carrying too much
Why reflection and recovery are leadership responsibilities
How coaching, mentoring, and peer groups help leaders thrive
The role boundaries play in sustainable leadership

The strongest leaders are not the ones who carry everything alone. They are the ones who recognize when they need support and create systems that allow them to continue leading effectively.
Question: If everyone in your organization knows who they can turn to when they need support, who do you turn to when you need it?

If you’re feeling stuck in decisions—or carrying the weight of trying to get everything “right”—you don’t have to do it alone. I work with business owners and executives to build clarity, confidence, and momentum in their leadership. Reach out to learn more about executive coaching. https://www.lftconsult.com/

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
13 min
June 22The Human Side of Leadership
Most leadership books teach us how to manage performance. Few teach us how to lead people through life's difficult seasons. Illness. Family emergencies. Caregiving responsibilities. Burnout. Loss. Major life transitions. Yet those moments often define a leader far more than any strategy meeting, quarterly review, or company initiative ever will.
In this episode, we explore why employees rarely remember policies but never forget how leaders treated them during challenging times. You'll learn why flexibility and accountability can coexist, how leaders unintentionally create cultures where people feel guilty for being human, and what great leaders do differently when work and life inevitably collide.
In This Episode
Why "leave your personal life at the door" is unrealistic
The leadership blind spot that affects many executives and business owners
PTO, flexibility, and family emergencies through a leadership lens
Why compassion does not mean lowering standards
How great leaders support employees through difficult seasons
The moments that define culture and build lasting trust
The strongest cultures are not built when everything is going well. They are built during the moments that matter most.
Question:
When one of your employees faces the hardest season of their life, will they see your organization as a source of support—or another problem they have to manage?

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
15 min
June 15The Greatest Threat to Your Business Isn't What You Think
Most business owners spend their time worrying about external threats:
Competition - Economic uncertainty - Labor shortages - Regulations - Technology changes
While those challenges are real, they are rarely what ultimately determines whether a business thrives or struggles.
In this episode, we explore the internal threats that quietly undermine organizations from the inside out:
Lack of clarity
Poor communication
Leadership inconsistency
Avoided conversations
Failure to develop people
These issues often go unnoticed because they don't make headlines. Yet they shape culture, performance, accountability, and ultimately the future of the business.
As the Build a Better Business Podcast celebrates its 52nd episode and one full year of weekly conversations, this episode serves as a leadership manifesto and a reminder that great organizations are built intentionally—one conversation at a time.

"The future of your business won't be determined by what happens around you. It will be determined by what's happening inside your company."
Reflective Question
If the conversations happening inside your company determine its future, are you creating the conversations that move your business forward—or tolerating the silence that holds it back?

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
15 min
June 08What People Have Stopped Telling You
Most leaders can easily identify defensiveness in employees. Far fewer recognize it in themselves.
As leaders rise within an organization, something dangerous begins to happen: they receive less honest feedback. Team members become hesitant to challenge ideas, question decisions, or bring forward concerns. Over time, the leader unknowingly becomes insulated from the truth.
In this episode, we explore how defensiveness quietly impacts leadership effectiveness, organizational culture, decision-making, and employee retention. We talk about why defensiveness is often rooted in fear rather than arrogance, how it affects the people around you, and practical ways to become a more coachable and effective leader.
Because the greatest threat to your leadership isn't what people are saying about you—it's what they've stopped saying to you.
In This Episode
Why successful leaders are more vulnerable to defensiveness
The subtle signs that you may be harder to coach than you think
How defensiveness slows communication and weakens accountability
Why high performers leave leaders who won't listen
Five practical ways to become more coachable
The simple three-word phrase that can transform your leadership conversations
Reflection Questions
When was the last time someone challenged one of your ideas?
How do you typically respond when you receive difficult feedback?
Do people bring you bad news quickly or only when they have to?
What might your team know that you don't?
Have you created a workplace where people feel safe telling you the truth?

If you're looking to strengthen your leadership skills, improve communication, and build a stronger business, connect with me to learn more about my services.
https://www.lftconsult.com/

If you're looking for a great leadership book for your team:
https://www.lftconsult.com/leadership-book

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
16 min
June 01Three Questions That Quietly Shape Your Life and Leadership
Most leaders spend their lives asking questions about growth, strategy, revenue, and performance. But the people who build meaningful businesses—and meaningful lives—eventually begin asking different questions.
In this episode we explore three deceptively simple questions that can profoundly influence your leadership, well-being, and future success. These aren't productivity hacks or leadership frameworks. They're reflection questions designed to help you become more intentional about how you're spending your time, managing your energy, and shaping your future.
In This Episode:
Why your daily priorities matter
The overlooked leadership skill of recovery and decompression
How what you consume influences your mindset, confidence, and decision-making
Why burnout often begins long before you notice it
The compounding effect of small choices made consistently over time
Reflection Questions
What do I actually want to prioritize daily?
What is my wind-down ritual?
What am I feeding myself?
The future version of you isn't built by one big decision. It's built by the small choices you make every day. What you prioritize. What you consume. How you recover. Those choices quietly become who you are.
if you’re looking to become a more intentional, grounded, and effective leader, let's connect. My Mindful Leader Experience might be just what you're looking for:
https://www.lftconsult.com/themindfulleader

Looking for a great, practical leadership book? https://www.lftconsult.com/leadership-book

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
15 min
May 25The Leadership Skill Nobody Teaches: Organized Communication
Most workplace communication problems are not people problems. They’re structure problems.
In this episode I break down why smart leaders still confuse their teams — and how great communication is really about creating clarity, structure, and alignment.
If your meetings feel chaotic, your project updates ramble, or your team constantly needs clarification, this episode will help you rethink how information flows inside your organization.
In this episode:
Why leaders often communicate “too deep”
How to structure meetings that actually create alignment
A simple framework for better project updates
How to navigate difficult conversations with clarity
Why calm, organized communication builds trust

Clarity is a leadership skill - Structure lowers organizational anxiety
“Most communication problems aren’t people problems. They’re communication structure problems.”
If you’re looking to improve communication, accountability, and operational clarity inside your business, connect with me to learn more about my services.
https://www.lftconsult.com/

If you're looking for a great leadership book for your team:
https://www.lftconsult.com/leadership-book

Learn more about the window seat here: TRAVEL | Visual Escape
Follow us on Instagram @windowseat2a
16 min

About Notes From the Window Seat

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Life is full of extraordinary moments hiding inside ordinary days—if we're willing to slow down and notice them.

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Notes From the Window Seat

Notes From the Window Seat episodes

About Notes From the Window Seat