The Remarkable Leadership Podcast

What does it take to stay optimistic when life is difficult, uncertain, or simply not going according to plan? Kevin sits down with Michelle Gielan to explore the science of resilient optimism. Michelle shares that optimism is more than a feeling; it is a set of behaviors leaders can practice even when they don't feel positive. Michelle explains how resilient optimism combines a realistic view of challenges with the belief that our actions can make a difference. Michelle also shares practical strategies for triaging commitments based on impact rather than urgency, creating opportunities to truly recharge, and developing a simple "best moments" practice that trains the brain to notice progress and possibility.

0:00 Putting Resilience and Optimism Together 1:25 Meet Michelle Gielan 2:45 From Computer Engineer to CBS News Anchor 5:38 Why Michelle Wrote Resilient Optimism 8:18 What Resilient Optimism Is (and Isn't) 10:58 You Don't Have to Feel Optimistic to Act Like an Optimist 12:12 How Optimism Compounds Over Time 15:43 Becoming a Positive Deviant as a Leader 17:47 Case Study: The 10-Minute Morning Meeting 19:42 Case Study: Well-Being First in a School District 21:43 Triaging Your Commitments 26:02 Recharging With Small Cognitive Breaks 29:54 Try This Today: The Best Moments Practice 32:45 What Michelle Is Reading 33:56 Where to Find Resilient Optimism 35:15 Now What?

Michelle's Story: Michelle Gielan is the author of Broadcasting Happiness: The Science of Igniting and Sustaining Positive Change and her latest book, Resilient Optimism: The Science of Sustaining a Positive Mindset in Tough Times. She is a positive psychology researcher, keynote speaker, bestselling author, and former national news anchor. For more than 15 years, she has studied how optimism shapes resilience, well-being, and success—especially when pressure is high and the path forward is uncertain.

Previously, Michelle served as anchor of The CBS Morning News. She is an executive producer of The Happiness Advantage on PBS and a featured professor in Oprah's Happiness course. Her research has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Forbes, CNN, and Harvard Business Review. She holds a Master of Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in computer engineering from Tufts University.

https://michellegielan.com/resilient-optimism/ http://linkedin.com/in/michellegielan http://facebook.com/michellegielan http://instagram.com/michellegielan

• Broadcasting Happiness by Michelle Gielan
• Resilient Optimism by Michelle Gielan
• The Power of Beliefs by Shawn Achor
• The Holy Bible: New International Version by International Bible Society

• Leadership Resilience with Ama Marston
• Standing Out for the Positive with Lonnie Mayne

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Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

Should leaders be the morale police? Persistent negativity is a problem for teams, and leaders do need to navigate it. But I don't think policing it is the answer.

In this episode I share five reasons why, and what to do instead. It comes down to modeling the morale you want, paying attention to context, acting before negativity becomes persistent, and focusing on behaviors rather than labels.

If you found this useful, I think you'll enjoy my free newsletter, Your Remarkable Day. It comes three days a week, and there's very little negativity. Sign up at kevineikenberry.com/newsletters

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🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts

If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below.

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What do leaders need to understand about how beliefs shape people's responses to change? Kevin sits down with Owen Fitzpatrick to talk about the idea of "inner propaganda" and why changing beliefs requires more than logic, evidence, or data. Owen explains that for a new belief to take hold, it first needs to feel right, fit with a person's identity, and then make sense. They discuss five kinds of truth—objective, past, emotional, shared, and desired—and how they shape how people see the same situation differently. Owen also shares why our brains can act as "double agents," the idea of the "inner dictator." Kevin and Owen go into how leaders can challenge these internal stories by asking whether a belief is useful and helping them achieve what they want.

Owen's Story: Owen Fitzpatrick is the author of Inner Propaganda: Leading Hearts and Minds Through Turbulent Times. He is a social psychologist who has studied propaganda firsthand in North Korea, Rwanda, and Afghanistan. He studied the science of influence at Harvard and MIT. His TEDx Talk has been viewed more than 1.4 million times, and he has delivered keynotes and leadership training for organizations like Google, LinkedIn, Citibank, Morgan Stanley, and Coca-Cola across 33 countries. He is also an award-winning filmmaker and storyteller.

Connect with Owen Fitzpatrick

• http://www.innerpropaganda.com/
• https://owenfitzpatrick.com/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/owenfitzp/
• https://owenfitzpatrick.com/podcast/
• https://www.facebook.com/ofi23
• https://x.com/owenfitzp
• https://www.instagram.com/owenf23/
• https://www.youtube.com/user/owenjf23

Timestamps 0:00 Intro 1:26 Meet Owen Fitzpatrick 2:44 Why Owen wrote Inner Propaganda 5:25 The big idea: a belief has to feel right first 8:30 Why this matters for AI adoption 9:53 Why "propaganda," and what belief leadership means 13:31 The five kinds of truth 18:11 Alan Mulally, Ford, and the red slide 20:40 Your brain is a double agent 23:27 Challenging your inner dictator 25:22 Who do we want to be now? 27:31 What Owen is reading 30:48 Where to find Owen and the book 32:14 Now what?

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🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts

If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below.

Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group

How can leaders build organizations that remain responsive and successful through constant disruption? Kevin sits down with Ron Robinson to explore what makes a company resilient in the face of economic uncertainty, social change, climate events, and rapidly evolving technology. Ron explains why leaders must look beyond financial results and strengthen four interconnected areas of the business: finances, operations, employees, and customers. They discuss how involving employees in budgeting, problem-solving, recruiting, and process improvement can reduce costs, increase responsiveness, and create greater ownership throughout the organization. Ron also introduces the value of internal mastermind groups, where employees closest to the work meet regularly to share knowledge, identify improvements, and respond more quickly to challenges.

Ron's Story: Ron Robinson is the author of Practices of Resilient Companies: Overcome Disruption with Compassion, Collaboration and Knowledge. He has consulted with and helped turn around enterprises ranging from Fortune 500 companies to mid-size organizations to startups. He has presented to audiences as large as 3,000 and facilitated groups as large as 300 participants.

http://www.ronspeaking.com/

http://ronspeaking.substack.com/

• Practices of Resilient Companies by Ron Robinson
• On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder

• Leadership Resilience with Ama Marston
• Resilience Beyond Crisis with Lynn Perry Wooten

Timestamps 0:00 Why organizations, not just people, need resilience 0:42 Housekeeping and the podcast action guide 1:29 Introducing Ron Robinson 2:15 Why Ron wrote the book 3:18 Organizational vs. individual resilience 3:51 The four disruptors 8:00 The four parts of every business 11:05 Strengthening finances through employees 13:12 Mastermind groups fix a low-margin company 15:22 Recruiting and retention 17:28 Customers, AI, and the human touch 19:18 Scorecards: how to measure resilience 23:04 Internal masterminds: Toyota and Honda 26:03 What Ron is reading 26:53 Where to learn more about Ron 27:27 The most important question: now what?

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🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below.

Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group

If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts

Do you have a training calendar? Great — but that doesn't mean you have a learning culture.

In this episode, I break down what a learning culture actually is: the way we do things around here, when it comes to learning. I share five things you can do to help build (or evaluate) that culture in your own organization — reframing learning, recognizing it, promoting questions, celebrating progress, and allowing mistakes.

Want direct, real-time access to world-class thought leaders? Join us at Virtual LeaderCon — pick a session or attend it all, for free. Register at https://virtualleadercon.com

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🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts

If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below.

Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group

How can you become your own coach when facing a tough leadership problem? In this episode, Kevin talks with Dr. Katie Best about how leaders can coach themselves through complex challenges by slowing down and understanding the context. She shares her SOLVE model: State the problem, Open the box, Lay out the solution, Venture forth, and Elevate your learning. They discuss why leaders often rush to action before clearly defining the real problem, how research and observation can reveal patterns, and why being "fairly sure" is often enough to move forward in an uncertain world. Katie also explains how pre-mortems can help leaders anticipate what might go wrong and how organizations can create a common language for better problem-solving, decision-making, and psychological safety.

• The Ten Toughest Leadership Problems by Katie Best
• Flexible Leadership by Kevin Eikenberry
• Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu
• Micro-Habits by Jake Humphrey and Damian Hughes

• Reframing Problems with Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg
• The Coaching Effect with Bill Eckstrom

0:00 Introduction 0:41 How to Join the Live Podcast 1:27 Free Action Guide + Meet Dr. Katie Best 2:20 Why Katie Wrote The Ten Toughest Leadership Problems 4:16 What Makes This Book Different: Context Over One-Size-Fits-All 6:41 Self-Coaching vs. Hiring a Real Coach 8:06 Introducing the SOLVE Model 8:28 S – State the Problem 9:00 O – Open the Box 10:23 L – Lay Out Your Solution 11:55 V – Venture Forth 13:37 Overthinking vs. Rushing to a Solution 14:40 How Do You Know When You Have Enough Data? 16:45 E – Elevate Your Learning 17:53 The Power of a Pre-Mortem 20:11 Coaching Is Problem Solving in Disguise 21:06 Where AI Fits Into Leadership Problems 23:10 Using SOLVE at the Organizational Level 26:31 What Katie Best Is Reading 28:18 How to Connect With Katie Best 29:24 The Activation Question

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🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

"We don't have time for training." I hear it constantly — and honestly, that's okay. Training isn't the only tool in your learning toolkit.

In this episode, I share four ways to build development into the work itself, without blocking extra time: creating reflection time, building learning channels, encouraging people to share what they're learning, and applying today's tools. None of these replace training — but they don't require it either.

Speaking of learning without blocking off extra time: you can get 45 minutes to an hour with a world-class thought leader for free at Virtual LeaderCon. Find a session for you and your team, and register at no cost: https://virtualleadercon.com/

🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts

If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below.

Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group

How can you transform leadership development from a one-time event into an organization-wide learning process? In this special episode, Kevin shares how organizations and leaders can use Virtual LeaderCon to improve leadership at the individual and enterprise levels. He highlights leadership insights from past events, including the importance of being willing to say, "I don't know"; stepping aside to allow others to succeed; focusing on leadership techniques rather than personality; setting priorities; and recognizing that organizations often have more of a listening problem than a knowledge problem. Kevin also discusses how organizations can put learning into practice by dividing sessions among leaders, organizing lunch-and-learns, establishing learning pairs, and connecting sessions to development goals.

Join us for Virtual LeaderCon: https://virtualleadercon.com/

• Nurturing a Team That Flourishes with Dan Pontefract
• Why How We Work Matters with André Martin
• How Change Really Works with Kristy Ellmer

If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below.

Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group

If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts

When you're training leaders, here's a question worth asking yourself: are your people watching you do the things you're asking them to do?

In this episode, I talk about why it's not whether someone attended a training that matters. It's whether they're taking action on it. And if you want your people to actually change their behavior, there are two questions you have to answer honestly: do they know what's expected, and are you modeling it yourself?

Words and knowledge matter. But behavior matters more.

Want a free way to help the leaders in your organization put this into practice? Check out Virtual LeaderCon. Learn more and sign up for free at https://VirtualLeaderCon.com

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Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.

How can leaders use data to make better decisions and drive real change? In this episode, Kevin talks with Sebastian Wernicke about why so many organizations invest heavily in data and AI yet still struggle to achieve breakthrough results. Sebastian explains the difference between being data-driven, data-frustrated, and data-inspired. He believes that data should not only confirm and optimize what organizations already do but also challenge assumptions, reveal unexpected possibilities, and inspire new directions. They explore common myths about data, including the belief that it is always objective, that deeper analysis will automatically reveal the right answer, and that complex decisions can be reduced to a simple yes or no. Sebastian also shares why leaders must balance depth with decisiveness and become more comfortable with uncertainty and probability. They also discuss the opportunities and risks of AI, particularly its tendency to fill in gaps and generate appealing answers based on hidden assumptions.

About Sebastian Wernicke Sebastian Wernicke, Ph.D., is the author of Data Inspired: Building an Organizational Culture of Inquiry for Lasting Transformation. He is a partner at Oxera Consulting, one of Europe's oldest economics and finance consultancies, where he leads the data science and AI practice. Sebastian is a leading expert in data and AI strategy and a former Chief Data Scientist. For two decades, he has guided organizations around the world to achieve breakthrough transformation through the power of data. His ability to make complex topics around data accessible, engaging, and actionable has made Sebastian a sought-after speaker and workshop facilitator. His three acclaimed TED Talks have reached over 5 million viewers. For more information, follow Sebastian Wernicke on LinkedIn or visit www.datainspired.org.

Resources Mentioned

• Data Inspired: Building an Organizational Culture of Inquiry for Lasting Transformation by Sebastian Wernicke
• Flexible Leadership: Navigate Uncertainty and Lead with Confidence by Kevin Eikenberry
• The Infinity Machine: Demis Hassabis, DeepMind, and the Quest for Superintelligence by Sebastian Mallaby

Timestamps 0:00 Introduction — why "data driven" isn't the whole story 1:55 Meet Sebastian Wernicke & his book, Data Inspired 3:13 Why Sebastian wrote the book 6:02 Data driven vs. data frustrated vs. data inspired 10:33 The 3 myths about data — setting the stage 11:48 Myth #1: Data isn't objective truth 13:18 Myth #2: The three TV shows example 17:15 Myth #3: Data won't give you a clean yes-or-no 18:37 Embracing complexity (and getting comfortable with discomfort) 20:04 Why this is really a culture problem, not a tech problem 23:08 Balancing depth and decisiveness in decision-making 26:09 Machine learning vs. today's AI — what's actually different 30:29 Resisting the "AI will make it easy" temptation 32:09 Purpose first, data second 34:14 What Sebastian's reading & where to find him 36:19 Closing: what are you going to do about it?

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🎧 Subscribe and Listen to the Remarkable Leadership Podcast Apple Podcasts: https://remarkablepodcast.com/applepodcasts Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4G4KyDG8rvNcvVVbgwKGIl Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1ad13b5c-68f3-4a03-9a4a-e5f1485c5cb2/the-remarkable-leadership-podcast iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/256-the-remarkable-leadership-30949517/ RSS: http://remarkablepodcast.libsyn.com/rss

Learn more about our offerings: ➡️ FREE NEWSLETTERS: Sign up for any of our newsletters: https://kevineikenberry.com/newsletters ➡️ BOOK: Check out my latest book, Flexible Leadership: https://flexibleleadershipbook.com/ ➡️ LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS: Sign up for any of our online workshops to help you become a better leader: https://kevineikenberry.com/store/?product_type=Workshops ➡️ SPEAKING: Learn more about our Speaking opportunities for your next event: https://kevineikenberry.com/how-we-can-help-speaking/

My name is Kevin Eikenberry and I'm here to help you reach your goal as a leader and a human being with Remarkable TV and the Remarkable Leadership Podcast.

I am also the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group. We provide speaking, training, consulting, and coaching services to organizations who believe in investing in their most valuable assets – their people. Whether we are leading a training workshop, speaking to a group, facilitating a planning meeting, consulting with a leadership team, helping with team building, writing or developing products, our vision will be clear in everything we do – We want to be Your Leadership Help Button.

Connect with Kevin Eikenberry on Social Media: https://kevineikenberry.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevineikenberry https://instagram.com/kevineikenberry https://www.facebook.com/KevinEikenberryFanPage/

About Kevin Eikenberry: Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group, a world expert on leadership development, best-selling author, sought-after speaker, popular blogger, husband and dad, a fan of Purdue athletics and antique tractors (especially John Deere's).

About The Remarkable Leadership Podcast: The Remarkable Leadership Podcast with Kevin Eikenberry is dedicated to all things leadership. Twice a week Kevin shares his thoughts about leadership development and ideas to help you lead more confidently and make a bigger difference for those you lead. He also has weekly conversations with leadership experts discussing a wide range of topics including teamwork, organizational culture, facilitating change, personal and organizational development, human potential and more.