Leadership coaching meets consciousness work in this wide-ranging conversation with JJ Vega — exploring what actually guides us when the old maps stop working.

What if desire, not strategy, is the real GPS for navigating complexity? That's where this conversation ended up — and neither of us saw it coming.

JJ Vega is a leadership coach working at the intersection of the inner world and organizational impact. Together, we cover emergence as a leadership practice, somatic intelligence, edge walkers, the disintegrating success template, and whether the Hero's Journey needs a postmodern update.

In this episode:

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Introduction & how Dave and JJ connected

01:25 JJ introduces himself — coaching at the intersection of inner world and leadership

03:00 Expat life — Americans who chose another home

03:48 What emergence means — holding experience lightly

06:38 JJ on emergence — complexity theory and the relational field

09:22 Making emergence practical — bridging the esoteric

11:40 Invisible winds of the system — why teams repeat the same patterns

13:51 The body as intelligence — somatic coaching and why leaders aren't machines

16:14 From controlling to holding space — the identity transition

18:32 Intellectually getting it vs. embodying it

20:39 Supporting the destabilization — how transformation actually takes hold

21:11 Case study — the high-performing technician becoming a people leader

23:35 The two axes of transformation — vertical inner work and horizontal skills

25:31 From mechanic to gardener — a new orientation toward people

27:41 The field multiplier — how one leader raises the whole team

28:42 Navigating polycrisis — what JJ is finding in the field right now

29:20 Functional freeze — why people are maxed out and what to do

31:16 Crisis as threshold — the opportunity inside the breakdown

32:15 Check-in — modeling presence in real time

33:19 The coaching relationship as a leadership model

35:10 Behavior is contagious — how leaders infect their systems

38:33 Quantum physics never took off — why the relational field is still too spooky

41:23 Edge walkers — pay attention to people at the margins

 43:51 The prophet not welcome in his own company

45:12 Upgrades to your sensemaking dashboard

46:25 Avoiding confirmation bias and echo chambers

47:22 The edge walker on your team right now — a concrete example 49:27 Polarity navigation — both/and leadership

51:16 Tolerating the unknown — why innovation requires accepting failed bets

53:42 White water was supposed to be temporary — why that story is over

54:03 JJ's life breakdown three years ago — the story of accelerating change

59:00 The new human — new capacities for a new world

01:00:31 Inheriting a template — and what happens when it disintegrates

01:03:58 The old contract is breaking down

01:05:23 Desire as the new GPS — what if spark is your navigation instrument 

CONNECT WITH JJ VEGA

Website: artofunfolding.org

Inside Out Leadership: leadinsideout.io

Co-Creation Loft Berlin: co-creation.loft

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jj-vega/

🔗 CONNECT WITH DAVE

Website: daveschoof.com

The Pivot Newsletter: [https://tinyurl.com/4vn8832a]

Substack: [https://dschoof.substack.com]

Podcast: [https://thepivotpodcast.net/?v=zm7s]

LinkedIn:  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daveschoof/ ]

A conversation about leadership, emergence, and what guides us when the old maps stop working. What happens when the templates disintegrate?

What happens when the maps stop working?

In this conversation, I sit down with JJ Vega — leadership coach, expat, and co-steward of a self-organized community operating out of an old chocolate factory in Berlin — to explore what actually guides leaders when the inherited templates disintegrate.

We cover a lot of ground: emergence as a leadership practice, why the body often knows things the mind hasn't authorized yet, the edge walkers your organization is probably ignoring, and whether desire — not strategy — might be the real GPS for what's coming next.

We also get into the Hero's Journey and whether it needs a postmodern update, the difference between either/or and both/and leadership, and what a "new human blueprint" might actually look like for people navigating accelerating complexity.

JJ brings a rare combination: deep inner work, serious organizational experience, and a genuine appetite for the frontier. This one surprised me. I think it might surprise you too.

In this episode:

Guest: JJ Vega — leadership coach, Art of Unfolding, Inside Out Leadership, Co-Creation Loft Berlin Website:artofunfolding.org

LinkedIn: JJ Vega

JJ Vega is a leadership coach working at the intersection of inner world and organizational impact. Based in Berlin, he works with senior leaders and executives in complex, fast-moving environments — and is part of a pioneering self-organized community called the Co-Creation Loft.

In this conversation we explore emergence, somatic intelligence, edge walkers, the disintegrating success template, and whether desire might be the navigation instrument we've been dismissing as indulgent.

Connect with JJ:

Connect with Dave:

In this episode, Dave Schof explores the complex landscape of multiple simultaneous crises shaping our world — the polycrisis and the metacrisis — and offers practical tools for leaders to respond with clarity, resilience, and purpose. Discover how shifting from reactive survival to strategic navigation can transform your approach to leadership and change.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by complex interconnected crises, this episode offers a lens to see beyond the noise and act from a deeper awareness. Shift your focus from merely surviving the storm to understanding its climate — and start navigating with intention.

Most of us feel overwhelmed by the chaos of today’s world—climate crises, economic instability, AI disruptions, and collective anxiety. But what if the real challenge isn’t just managing these crises but understanding the deeper system that causes them? In this episode of The Pivot, Dave Schof reveals the distinction between the polycrisis—the storm of many crises occurring simultaneously—and the metacrisis, the underlying operating-system breakdown shaping it all. You’ll discover how shifting your perspective from reacting to symptoms to addressing core patterns can transform your response to chaos.

00:00 - Exploring the shifting landscape of global crises

02:13 - The collective experience of overwhelm and confusion

03:11 - Understanding polycrisis: many crises occurring simultaneously

05:35 - Introducing the meta-crisis: the operating system problem

07:32 - Responding to the polycrisis vs. the meta-crisis

08:30 - Practical questions to understand what the moment asks of us

12:57 - The shift from drowning in the storm to recognizing the pattern

13:26 - Practical steps: 

What if your strongest strategic signal feels like your weakest hunch?  

In this rich conversation, Dave Schoof sits down with Maurice Jenkins—host of The Intuitive Leader™ Podcast and an expert in psychological safety and high-performing teams—to explore the vital yet often overlooked role of intuition in leadership.

Chapters/Timestamps:

 
00:00 - Introduction


03:00 - Maurice's origin story with intuition


10:00 - The four types of intuition explained


35:00 - Neuroscience of intuition


45:00 - Psychological safety and team dynamics


55:00 - Morning ritual for intuitive mind


65:00 - Real-world applications and challenges


75:00 - Closing reflections and how to connect  

Guest Bio:



Maurice Jenkins is a two-time nominated Speaker on Trust, Psychological Safety,y and High-Performing Leaders and Teams. He hosts The Intuitive Leader™ Podcas, where top global scientists, CEO,s and entrepreneurs share their best practices on how intuitive leadership boosts high performance.

Maurice's journey from high-performing sales strategist to leadership coach gives his work both depth and credibility. Backed by years of research, 50+ deep interviews and 22+ years of real-world experience, his evidence-based approach builds self-awareness and helps leaders stay calm and strategic during uncertainty.

His programs help leaders effectively read the room, create high-trust teams, and develop strategic decision-making. Maurice runs signature programs in High-Trust & High-Performance and leads a by-invitation-only Intuitive Business Network (IBN).

Born in the Netherlands, Maurice currently lives with his family in Sweden.

Connect with Maurice:


Website: https://www.intuitiveleader.net/masterclass

 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mauricejenkens/  


Podcast: https://www.intuitiveleader.net/podcast

For More on the Pivot:  
https://www.daveschoof.com/    

Music by Phil Schoof

Episode Description:  A senior executive had all the green lights for a major reorganization—board approval, stakeholder buy-in, perfect timing. Yet something in his gut wouldn't settle. When he tuned into subtle signals—brief sidebar conversations, shifts in energy, what wasn't being said—a deeper intelligence emerged. In this episode, Dave reveals the four essential capacities for future-sensing leadership and how to recognize strategic wisdom hidden in plain sight.

Podcast Description: In a world of complexity and uncertainty, the leaders who thrive are those who develop the capacity to sense what's emerging before it shows up in reports. Join Dave Schoof, international executive coach and leadership consultant, as he explores the hidden intelligence embedded in weak signals, somatic awareness, and relational field dynamics. Discover how to navigate rapid change with presence and wisdom—and find the future that's already whispering.

What You'll Learn:

Key Takeaways:

Resources & References:

Guest: Dave Schoof is an International Coach Federation Master Certified Coach with 15+ years of experience coaching accomplished leaders and high-achievers. His background spans 19 years in government counterintelligence and national security, alongside deep experience with Fortune 500 firms across consulting, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, and financial services. He specializes in helping successful people uncover greater meaning and navigate the meta-crisis—the complex challenges reshaping our world.

Connect with Dave:

There’s an anxiety humming beneath everything—like tinnitus that never stops. You feel it in leadership meetings where reactions explode out of proportion. In hair-trigger responses to small disruptions. In that 3am wakefulness that’s become a collective companion.

In this second conversation, Rob McNamara and I go deep into the question: How do we metabolize the poly-crisis, both personally and relationally—rather than being consumed by it?

We explore why survival mode has already lost the game, how intimacy with death becomes intimacy with life, and why relational space holds untapped generative power. We also discuss a simple practice to let life move through you, rather than against you.

This episode is especially for leaders, founders, and coaches ready to navigate complexity beyond survival—those seeking to develop the sensitivity to dance with uncertainty and access the intelligence that emerges between us.

About Rob McNamara:

Key quote: “Enlightenment isn't intimacy with all things—it’s intimacy AS all things.”

Topics include:

The grip and the open hand: how contraction blocks clarity

What it means to be radically available to life

Reclaiming presence and potency in relational space

Why doing less can create more impact in complexity

Episode Highlights:

00:02:05 – Why complexity feels so personal

00:07:43 – The grip and the open hand: contraction vs clarity

00:17:15 – Intimacy with death and the generativity of mortality

00:27:40 – The intelligence arising in relational space

00:36:12 – A somatic practice for metabolizing overwhelm

00:49:00 – Redefining leadership in complex times

00:57:30 – Becoming radically available to life

If this episode resonated, please subscribe—or forward it to someone navigating these times.

Production and Music composition:  Phil Schoof

Episode Description

In this compelling conversation, Dave speaks with Florian Irminger about his journey from high-visibility political leadership to behind-the-scenes human rights advocacy, and what he calls the "Global Realignment" we're all navigating. This episode explores how leaders can pivot from old ways of working to meet unprecedented challenges, why admitting "I don't know" is becoming essential leadership, and how human rights work is at the leading edge of what we all need to learn to thrive in this new world.

Florian Irminger is the founder of Progress & Change Action Lab, an advisory group dedicated to supporting organizations and institutions navigating complex social and political transformations. Following his tenure as Secretary-General of the Swiss Green Party, Florian made the conscious decision to step back from high-visibility political leadership to work behind the scenes, supporting others in creating meaningful change.

Inspired by Robert F. Kennedy's words that "Progress is the nice word we like to use. But change is its motivator. And change has its enemies," Florian has dedicated his work to addressing what he calls the "Global Realignment"—fundamental shifts in our political, social, and human rights landscape.

Recently, Florian launched two significant initiatives: the Human Rights Compass, which brings together organizations beyond traditional branding to collaborate on key recommendations for addressing global challenges, and the Human Rights Index, launched in response to political and social media shifts.

Dave first met Florian when he was working at Human Rights House headquarters in Oslo, and later worked with him as he opened offices in Geneva and Brussels. They've maintained their connection as Florian's career and life have evolved.

00:00 - 03:00: Opening & Origins

03:00 - 07:40: The Personal Pivot

07:40 - 12:54: From Public to Behind-the-Scenes Leadership

12:54 - 21:10: The Global Realignment

21:10 - 26:48: Working with "Angels" - The NGO Challenge

26:48 - 34:02: The Compass Has Lost North

34:02 - 38:04: From Classical Music to Jazz

38:04 - 43:10: Recognizing Readiness for Change

43:10 - 46:39: The 3AM Disquiet

46:39 - 52:00: Working Between Organizations

52:00 - 1:00:14: Navigating Crisis Fatigue

1:00:14 - 1:06:32: The Lost Decade

1:06:32 - 1:11:54: Personal Navigation Strategies

1:11:54 - 1:16:31: Whispers from the Future

1:16:31 - 1:21:08: Closing Reflections

"I want to work with people that I like. So that is my new life journey - to value the family first, and value the people that I want to work with."

"Progress is the nice word we like to use. But change is its motivator. And change has its enemies." - RFK

"We need to stop thinking that we have answers and learn better how to ask questions... We need to start playing jazz, because then we're improvising and listening to each other."

"I think admitting the uncertainty is, to me, an indicator of readiness to change."

"We are really equipped to deal with all of this and to come together. I just don't know who will be the 'we' and where it will happen and when."

This was a profound conversation about leadership, change, and hope in uncertain times. Perfect for anyone navigating their own pivot in work, leadership, or life.

My website:  www.daveschoof.com

Original music:  Phil Schoof

Production:  Phil Schoof

Episode 1: Pivoting into Possibility with Amah

What if the pivot you’re seeking isn’t a sharp turn — but a deep surrender into something bigger?

Welcome to the very first episode of The Pivot! I’m your host, Dave Schoof, and today we’re not doing a classic interview. Instead, I’m sitting down with the brilliant Amah for an open exploration of what it means to navigate uncertainty, embrace emergence, and trust the wisdom unfolding through us.

If you’re feeling the tremble of change and wondering how to find your way forward — you’re in exactly the right place.

In this very first episode of The Pivot, Dave invites Amah — an intuitive guide, deep listener, and explorer of human transformation — for a conversation that’s more of an unfolding than an interview.

Together, they dive into:

Timestamps:

Connect with Amah:

Follow The Pivot:

Writings from The Pivot: form the map to the territory