The Sean Trace Show

What happens when your 10-year-old daughter decides your podcast needs a K-pop makeover? You say yes. 😂

In this episode of The Sean Trace Show, Ailani decided I needed a completely different look, and apparently that meant transforming me into a K-pop star. But underneath the ridiculous makeup, this episode became about something much bigger.

Life is short.

We spend so much time working, planning, worrying, chasing goals, and taking ourselves seriously that sometimes we forget to actually enjoy the moments happening right in front of us.

Sometimes happiness is saying yes when your daughter wants to give you a K-pop makeover.

Sometimes it’s doing something completely outside your comfort zone.

Sometimes it’s being willing to look ridiculous, laugh at yourself, and create a memory with someone you love.

I recently received some heartbreaking news about a friend who passed away, and it reminded me again that none of us know exactly how much time we have. So have some fun. Do something different. Make the memory.

And if your kid wants to turn you into a K-pop star… maybe just let them.

Subscribe for more episodes of The Sean Trace Show as I explore happiness, personal growth, family, challenges, new experiences, and what it actually means to build a life worth living.

When retired Navy SEAL officer Marty Strong sat down with me, we got into why so many of us wait for a crisis before we start improving ourselves. 

Marty has also managed high net worth portfolios, worked in counterterrorism consulting, and served as a CEO, so he brings a rare perspective on leadership under pressure. We talk about the biggest mistakes leaders make when the heat is on and why smart teams end up solving the wrong problem. 

Marty shares his Lean Six Sigma lesson on root cause analysis, a story about a leader who was secretly the arsonist, and how scenario-based training builds calm decision-making before disaster hits. 

What's one area of your life where you're still waiting for a crisis to make a change?

I sat down with ultramarathon runner and bestselling author Dean Karnazes, and he completely shifted how I think about motivation, fear, and personal growth. 

Dean has run over 300 marathons across all seven continents, and he shared the mindset that keeps him going when everything hurts. We talked about why so many people believe they're too old, too fragile, or too late to chase a big dream, and why that conditioning is often the real barrier.

Dean explained how staying present, focusing on your very next footstep, and quieting the noise in your head can carry you through almost any challenge. 

What is one thing you've been telling yourself you can't do?

I sat down with Kelly Leonard, the legendary creative executive behind Second City, the theater that launched Tina Fey, Steve Carell, and Stephen Colbert.

We dig into the real origins of "Yes And," tracing it back from a social worker teaching immigrant kids in Chicago all the way to boardrooms and FBI hostage negotiators. Kelly breaks down why our default setting as humans is to say no, and why that instinct is quietly killing our creativity, our careers, and our relationships. 

We talk about the Keith Jarrett Köln Concert story, the science of why introverts feel better acting like extroverts, and why the biggest barrier to innovation isn't failure, it's success. 

What's one "no" you regret saying?

For a long time, staying busy made me feel like I had control. Five podcasts in a day, constant projects, always working, it felt like I was moving forward.

Then I slowed down and realized something uncomfortable: being busy and making progress are not the same thing. And when the work stopped, some of the anxiety I had been outrunning came right back.

I’m still figuring this out. For now, the goal is simple: control the things I can control and learn to let go of the rest.

I’ve always believed that some of the best leadership lessons come from places you wouldn’t expect, and in this conversation, I got to explore that idea with retired deputy fire chief and author Frank Viscuso. We talked about what firefighters can teach us about fear, pressure, teamwork, and leadership and why staying calm in a crisis isn’t simply something you’re born with. Frank explains how training, preparation, urgency, and what he calls “ruthless repetitions” can help us make better decisions when everything starts falling apart.

We also dug into trust and empathy, why great leaders inspire people instead of demanding loyalty, and how spending real time with your team can build stronger relationships. We talked about conflict, workplace drama, unresolved tension, and why teams can fall apart even when talented people are involved. One lesson that really stuck with me was Frank’s advice to “stop expecting you from other people.” Different people respond differently, and great leadership starts with understanding that.

What happens when you stop avoiding the hard things and start moving toward them?

I sat down with retired Navy SEAL senior chief Kris "Herge" Hregdovic, and this conversation cracked me wide open in the best way. 

We start with a story about my daughter and a moment on a train in Bangkok that taught me what it really means to fight the good fight 

He breaks down why so many men wait until they're completely broken before asking for help. We also get into servant leadership, the lie that toughness is about looks or titles, and why knowing who you are internally matters more than anything you can lose externally. 

Herge spent twenty years in the SEAL teams and six deployments learning this the hard way, and now he's teaching men how to lead with humility instead of ego. 

What's one battlefield in your own life you've been afraid to walk back onto?

I sat down with Rich Keller, a former corporate branding executive who walked away from a thirty-year career on the spot to help people discover their identity in a single word. 

Rich breaks down why so many of us stumble when someone asks "tell me about yourself," and how conflating what we do with who we are quietly steals our confidence, our resilience, and our sense of purpose. 

We talk about Apple, Steve Jobs, and why iconic brands never waver from their core value, then bring it back to something deeply personal: grief, gratitude, and what it means to keep showing up when life reminds you that time is not guaranteed. 

What's the one word you'd use to describe yourself?

I sat down with naturopath and anti-inflammation expert Cynthia Blancaflor, and this conversation cracked something open for me. 

Cynthia grew up watching diabetes and heart disease take her family one by one, until she discovered a deep gut detox technique from a Chinese medicine master that healed her own sciatica in two weeks. 

Now she's built a program, Self-Care Blueprint, that's helped her clients heal chronic pain, autoimmune disease, and inflammation just by changing what they eat. We got into what she calls generational food trauma, and why 80% of grocery store food is ultra-processed junk dressed up as nourishment.

What's one food habit from your childhood you've had to unlearn as an adult? 

I sat down with Lisa Woodruff, founder of Organize 365 and author of The Paper Solution and Escaping Quicksand, to talk about why so many of us feel exhausted before the day even starts. 

We got into the invisible workload that runs every household, the 20 to 40 hours a week it actually takes to keep a family functioning, and why treating your home like a business with real systems changes everything. 

We also talk about parents putting themselves last, how organization is a learnable skill, and what it really means to run your household like the CEO you already are. 

What's the one area of your household that always seems to fall apart, and what would it take to finally fix it?