Scarlett Lewis, founder of the Choose Love Movement, shares how her work emerged after the loss of her son in the Sandy Hook tragedy, transforming personal grief into a global, preventative approach to emotional intelligence and culture-building. Her nonprofit has reached millions across schools, organizations, and communities worldwide, teaching essential life skills like courage, gratitude, forgiveness, and compassion.

This episode explores how culture begins with individual mindset and emotional awareness, emphasizing that choosing love over fear is a daily, intentional practice. Lewis breaks down how unprocessed pain leads to harmful behaviors, and how equipping people with simple, teachable tools can prevent violence, improve well-being, and create environments where individuals feel safe, seen, and valued. 

Key Takeaways:

● Choosing Love Over Fear: A simple but powerful framework that shifts mindset, behavior, and overall culture.

● Pain as a Growth Opportunity: Unprocessed pain leads to harm, but managed pain becomes a pathway to growth and purpose.

● Four Core Skills Drive Culture: Courage, gratitude, forgiveness, and compassion are teachable tools that shape healthier individuals and environments.

● Emotional Intelligence is Preventative: Teaching these skills early can reduce violence, anxiety, and destructive behaviors.

● Culture Starts Individually: Personal mindset and daily choices directly influence team, school, and organizational culture.

Connect with Scarlett:

Website:  https://chooselovemovement.org/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/scarlett.lewis.336

X:  https://twitter.com/ScarlettMLewis

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/scarlett-lewis-7428a5b7/

Connect with Robert:

Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/  

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColors

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/

Scaling a company is hard. Scaling a company without losing its culture is even harder.

Hanna Smith is the Chief People Officer at Tillo, a fast-growing global fintech company, where she leads people strategy, talent development, culture, and organizational growth. With more than two decades of experience in HR and people leadership, Hanna has helped startups and scale-ups build high-performing teams while maintaining strong employee engagement and connection.

In this episode, Hanna shares her journey into people leadership, lessons learned from building cultures in high-growth organizations, and why simplicity, communication, and manager development are essential for sustainable success. She also discusses employee engagement, performance management, psychological safety, and the challenges of preserving culture during rapid growth and private equity investment.

Key Takeaways:

● Building high-performance cultures starts with clarity: Employees perform best when expectations, success metrics, and company values are clearly defined.

● Great managers are culture multipliers: Investing in leadership and management development has a direct impact on employee engagement and business performance.

● Simplicity drives organizational effectiveness: Reducing unnecessary complexity helps teams move faster, make better decisions, and stay aligned.

● Psychological safety enables better performance: Teams thrive when people feel comfortable speaking up, challenging ideas, and providing honest feedback.

● Culture must evolve without losing authenticity: As companies scale, leaders must intentionally protect the values and behaviors that make the organization unique.

Connect with Hanna:

Website:  https://www.tillo.com/

Connect with Robert:

Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/ 

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColors

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/

Helping struggling readers starts with helping them understand themselves.

Nancy Hannagan, Founder of Dyslexia Connects, Certified Academic Language Therapist, and Licensed Dyslexia Therapist, joins Robert to discuss how culture, connection, and self-awareness can transform learning outcomes for students. Drawing from more than 20 years in education, and her own experience discovering she had dyslexia at age 43, Nancy shares how educators can create environments where students thrive academically and personally.

In this episode, Nancy explores the realities of dyslexia, the importance of early identification, how personality awareness strengthens teacher-student relationships, and why building culture must come before building skills. She also shares practical insights for educators, administrators, and parents looking to better support diverse learners.

Key Takeaways:

● Early identification matters: Recognizing dyslexia in the early grades can dramatically improve student outcomes and confidence.

● Culture drives learning: Students learn best when they feel valued, connected, and safe within their classroom environment.

● Self-awareness builds resilience: Helping students understand how they learn empowers them to advocate for themselves and succeed.

● Teachers need support too: Investing in educators through training, connection, and encouragement creates stronger learning communities.

● Dyslexia is manageable, not limiting: With the right strategies, accommodations, and mindset, students with dyslexia can thrive academically and professionally.

Connect with Nancy:

Website:  https://dyslexiaconnects.com/

Connect with Robert:

Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/  

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColors

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/

Welcome to TRUE Culture: Building Success from Within - the podcast that explores what it takes to build a workplace that inspires excellence, earns admiration, and brings out the best in people. 

Hosted by Robert Cook, a former global finance executive and now CEO of True Colors International - a 50-year-old training and consulting company known for helping organizations design world-class cultures. This show dives into the real-world strategies behind building effective, people-first cultures that stick. With over 30 years of experience in leadership, consulting, and organizational transformation, Robert brings a no-fluff, results-driven lens to improving how teams communicate, collaborate, and thrive. 

Each episode features conversations with HR leaders, C-suite executives, educators, and culture champions who share how they’ve used proven methodologies, training programs, and consulting strategies to build stronger teams, resolve conflict, and create lasting change. If you're ready to move beyond surface-level fixes and build a culture your people are proud to be part of — TRUE Culture is your go-to playbook.