According to Gallup, “Americans' membership in houses of worship continued to decline last year, dropping below 50% for the first time in Gallup's eight-decade trend. In 2020, 47% of Americans said they belonged to a church, synagogue or mosque, down from 50% in 2018 and 70% in 1999.”

Christianity Today reports that in 2019, approximately 3,000 Protestant churches were started in the US, but 4,500 Protestant churches closed, according to estimates from Nashville-based Lifeway Research.

Welcome to the Level Up Leader Podcast.  I am your host, Michael King.  I am an executive coach and founder of Teams.Coach, LLC. I work with C-level leaders to clarify and expand the vision, elevate performance, and Level Up their Leadership.

For over two decades of my life, I have served in music and executive roles in one of America’s fastest-growing churches.  I have seen firsthand the life-changing experience that can happen in a healthy church when things are going right.  I have also helped hundreds of churches over the years when things aren’t. 

On today’s podcast, I am joined by Chris Sonksen. Chris is a best-selling author, pastor, sought-after speaker, and the founder of Church Boom.  He has spent decades of his life assisting and mentoring pastors and now has a new initiative that seems to be right on time.  Please welcome Chris Sonksen to the podcast. 

Chris shared a valuable concept that every leader needs to identify the things in our lives and organizations that are “mission critical”. Are you able to identify where your pressure is coming from that is trying to influence you? External Pressures. I know that I feel this every day.  Then he described several levels of priority, with the bullseye being noted as MISSION CRITICAL.  Mission Critical can be defined in this statement…If YOU don’t do this…we are in trouble. Take the bucket exercise that Chris shared, and feel free to drop your feedback in our group forum on our Level Up Leader Facebook page.  Also, drop Chris some questions while you are there! 

A special thank you to our featured Artist, Names Without Numbers, for allowing us to use their music.  We decided we wanted to feature music that I produced on the podcast..so that’s pretty cool.  

To find out more about everything we're up to, check us out at https://teams.coach, and don't forget to join our Facebook group at teams.coach/levelupleaders/.

Source:

https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2021/may/lifeway-church-close-open-2019-planting-revitalization.html

Where to find Chris:

https://www.chrissonksen.com/

Other links:

https://www.facebook.com/ChrisSonksen

https://www.instagram.com/chrissonksen/

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If you have a brain, you have bias. We all have unconscious bias; it doesn’t make us bad people. Our brain wants to make sense of the world and the people around us. We categorize and label things and people so our brains can move fast.  It’s actually tied to your survival. 

But check this out.

Forbes Magazine states that “Unconscious bias if left unchecked, can impact employees’ productivity, sense of belonging, and retention rates. One survey found that workers who reported experiencing workplace bias were 33% more likely to feel alienated, 34% more likely to withhold ideas and solutions, and 80% would not refer people to their employer.”

Regarding unconscious bias, today’s guest is doing what he can to champion equality, diversity, and inclusion and address unconscious bias in some really creative ways. 

Welcome to the Level Up Leader Podcast.  I am your host, Michael King.  I am an executive coach and founder of Teams.Coach, LLC. I work with C-level leaders to clarify and expand the vision, elevate performance, and Level Up their Leadership.

On today’s episode, I am joined by Jay Guilford. Jay is the founder and co-partner of CoWorks Leadership Strategists. Jay has an incredibly fun and diverse history of working with big brands like Cirque du Soleil and has some really big dreams for the future.  Please welcome Jay to the podcast. 

Jay shares that his greatest leadership tip is ensuring your weekly feedback systems were relevant and effective.  Even here at Teams.Coach, we design our feedback systems to ensure that we clearly communicate our weekly goals on Monday, follow up on progress midweek, and then clearly land the plane.  Did we meet goals, or did we struggle this week? 

Jay points out that it’s in our human nature to steer away from critical feedback because we are wired to feel like it leads to conflict.  Remember, whenever we avoid giving fair and accurate feedback, the tension becomes greater because the results never change. 

A special thank you to our featured Artist, Names Without Numbers, for allowing us to use their music.  We decided we wanted to feature music that I produced on the podcast..so that’s pretty cool.  

Music Artist: Names Without Numbers

Where to find Jay:

https://www.coworkslead.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesguilford/

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Disconnection is making workers feel lonely and isolated, that their colleagues don’t care about them and that they’re replaceable, according to the Airspeed/Workplace Intelligence report that surveyed 800 C-suite leaders and 800 workers in March.

A majority see their work as solely transactional: 52% of workers reported they’re only in it for the paycheck.

CNBC reports that being disconnected and lacking proximity are the #1 factors for resigning. This was an issue before covid, but now it’s worse. 

Regarding proximity, today’s guest is doing what he can to make sure this isn't an issue within his company.

On today’s podcast, I am joined by David Dickinson. David is the founder and president of Bankers Compliance Consulting. Bankers Compliance Consulting has been making an impact for over 30 years.  Dave is an active educator and a highly respected and sought-after leadership guru throughout the industry.  

I enjoy talking to Dave because he is a no-nonsense leader.  He is passionate about what he believes, and he does what he can to make sure that no one on his team is left guessing what he is thinking. He makes connection a priority.  He also pauses long enough to recognize that human capital is his greatest asset and to ensure his team is cared for. A leader that recognizes this will never lose. 

Please stop by the Level Up Leader Group on Facebook and interact with Dave.  

A special thank you to our featured Artist, Names Without Numbers, for allowing us to use their music.  We decided we wanted to feature music that I produced on the podcast..so that’s pretty cool.  

Source:

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/13/workers-say-this-is-the-no-1-reason-theyll-quit.html

Where to find David:

https://www.bankerscompliance.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-dickinson-1905342/

Twitter.com/bccdavid

Other Link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlW6Esg_ftM

To learn more about the podcast, please visit:

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Everyone would agree that the organization that embraces change the best is the organization that wins. How you implement change matters. 

“Good leaders listen before they act. And the best leaders prioritize listening to their best people.” 

On today’s podcast, I am joined by Michele Isaly. Michele is the Regional Vice President for Word and Brown. Michele has decades of experience leading and her story of how she addresses change is something we can all relate to.  Please welcome Michele to the podcast. 

Source:

https://www.gallup.com/workplace/247361/change-culture-listen-best-people.aspx

Where to find Michele:

https://www.wordandbrown.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michele-isaly-3a2008a/

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According to the Harvard Business Review, “If you want to understand why some companies have a toxic culture, underperform relative to their potential, and eventually collapse — look no further than the quality of their leadership teams. Whereas competent leaders cause high levels of trust, engagement, and productivity, incompetent ones result in anxious, alienated workers who practice counterproductive work behaviors and spread toxicity throughout the firm.”

On today’s podcast, I am joined by John Michael Morgan. John Michael is a best-selling author and celebrated coach. I have worked with John Michael for the better half of a year.  John Michael is sincere, honest, and brilliant.  Please welcome John Michael to the podcast. 

Source: https://hbr.org/2020/03/how-to-spot-an-incompetent-leader

https://www.gallup.com/workplace/247361/change-culture-listen-best-people.aspx

Where to find John Michael:

https://johnmichaelmorgan.com

Linkedin.com/in/JohnMichaelMorgan/

Instagram

Facebook

Twitter

Tiktok

To learn more about the podcast, please visit:

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To be a good leader, you have to be interesting.  You have to keep things interesting.  Leaders often start losing traction because they have become boring and need to engage their team.

According to Forbes, being boring happens to most good leaders. And we often confuse being INTERESTING with CHARISMA…and that’s simply not the case.  Curiosity seems to be the secret sauce to keeping leadership interesting.  

On today’s podcast, I am joined by Bill Cook. Bill is an Executive Vice President of Development for BIO PLUS. Bill has decades of experience keeping things interesting for his teams.  Please welcome Bill to the podcast. 

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/elizabethfreedman/2021/07/10/are-you-a-boring-leader-what-others-might-be-saying/?sh=511b42931821

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It’s an important fact that trust increases the power of your organization substantially. In fact, the Harvard Business Review states that organizations with high levels of trust have 106% more energy and 50% more productivity. A straightforward way to increase trust is by increasing your level of listening. 

And that’s precisely what today’s guest is doing. 

On today’s podcast, I am joined by Jeremy Miller.  Jeremy is Polly’s Vice President of Enterprise Development and an all-around great leader.  Please welcome Jeremy to the podcast. 

Source: https://hbr.org/2017/01/the-neuroscience-of-trust

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Turnover rates are at a staggering high.  “Quiet quitting” has become a term that is globally accepted. I was told that people don’t leave bad jobs; they leave bad bosses. Is there anything we can do about this?

We decided we would.  

Welcome to the Level Up Leader Podcast.  I am your host, Michael King.  I am an executive coach and founder of Teams.Coach, LLC. I work with C-level leaders to clarify and expand the vision, elevate performance, and Level Up their Leadership. 

On today’s podcast, I am joined by one of our key stakeholders, Jen Gruber.  Jen has been a valued team member and comes with tons of success in marketing. She is the head of Marketing for Sales with the Lincoln Journal Star. Please welcome Jen to the podcast.

To learn more about the podcast, please visit:

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