NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

Northbound Podcast — Action Study: Leadership When Plans Break (Start Here!) What do you do when the plan breaks, the conditions aren’t perfect, and your team lands “off course”? In this Northbound Podcast Action Study, Chris builds on the previous audio episode (Start Here) with a practical leadership lesson drawn from D-Day, June 6, 1944 — specifically the landing at Utah Beach and the decisive leadership of General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. When troops landed at the wrong location, Roosevelt’s response became a leadership moment that still teaches today: “We’ll start the war...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

Northbound Podcast — Action Study: Leadership When Plans Break (Start Here!) What do you do when the plan breaks, the conditions aren’t perfect, and your team lands “off course”? In this Northbound Podcast Action Study, Chris builds on the previous audio episode (Start Here) with a practical leadership lesson drawn from D-Day, June 6, 1944 — specifically the landing at Utah Beach and the decisive leadership of General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. When troops landed at the wrong location, Roosevelt’s response became a leadership moment that still teaches today: “We’ll start the war...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

  On D-Day, General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. landed nearly a mile off course at Utah Beach. The plan had already broken down. They weren’t where they were supposed to be. In that moment, he made a decision that defined leadership: “We’ll start the war from right here.” In this episode, we unpack what it takes to make bold, timely decisions when life, leadership, or ministry doesn’t land where you planned. You’ll learn the 10 traits required for decisive leadership — including competence, courage, servanthood, character, discernment, and initiative — and why none of them can...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

This is another Northbound Action Study that builds upon a previous podcast episode titled     Leadership isn’t a checklist — it’s terrain. And some parts of that terrain are just hard.   If there’s a conversation or decision you’ve been avoiding, you’re not alone. Most leaders do it at some point. It can feel like you’re protecting your energy by delaying it, but in reality, avoidance usually makes things heavier. The pressure doesn’t go away — it just sits there in the background.   Real leadership momentum is psychological before it’s operational....

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

  This Northbound Action Study builds on the Don’t Sit It Out podcast episode and is designed to help you move from insight to action. You’ve probably heard the advice to “focus only on what you can control,” but this study challenges you to examine when that mindset becomes wisdom—and when it turns into avoidance.   You’ll explore the difference between control and agency, why staying on the sidelines can be just as damaging as trying to control everything, and how leadership shows up through your responses, communication, and boundaries—not just your position. Along...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

This is another Northbound Action Study that builds upon a previous podcast episode titled     Leadership isn’t a checklist — it’s terrain. And some parts of that terrain are just hard.   If there’s a conversation or decision you’ve been avoiding, you’re not alone. Most leaders do it at some point. It can feel like you’re protecting your energy by delaying it, but in reality, avoidance usually makes things heavier. The pressure doesn’t go away — it just sits there in the background.   Real leadership momentum is psychological before it’s operational....

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

This Northbound Action Study builds on the Don’t Sit It Out podcast episode and is designed to help you move from insight to action. You’ve probably heard the advice to “focus only on what you can control,” but this study challenges you to examine when that mindset becomes wisdom—and when it turns into avoidance.   You’ll explore the difference between control and agency, why staying on the sidelines can be just as damaging as trying to control everything, and how leadership shows up through your responses, communication, and boundaries—not just your position. Along the way,...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

  “You can’t control everything—just focus on what you can control.” We’ve all heard that advice. But what if it’s not always wisdom? What if sometimes it’s a cop-out? In this episode of the Northbound Podcast, host Chris challenges one of the most common pieces of leadership advice and digs into when “focus on what you can control” becomes a way to avoid conflict, responsibility, or hard conversations. Chris explores the difference between control and agency, why staying on the sidelines can be just as damaging as trying to control everything, and how leaders (at any...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

  Have you ever had a boss who was… kind of a buffoon? Not evil, not stupid—just unaware of how they land. In this episode of the Northbound Podcast, Chris breaks down why leadership usually fails: not because of bad intentions, but because self-awareness is missing. You’ll learn how blind spots hide behind confidence, how power quietly shuts down honesty, and how “that’s just how they are” becomes a culture that protects the wrong things. Chris introduces the idea of “buffoon busting”—practical leadership work focused on identifying blind spots, auditing your language,...

NORTHBOUND: Executive Leadership Coaching

  The idea of a “work wife” or “work husband” gets tossed around casually—but is it actually harmless? In this episode of the Northbound Podcast, Chris tackles why this language isn’t just unprofessional, but actively harmful to individuals, marriages, teams, and organizations. What sounds like a joke often masks blurred emotional boundaries, misplaced intimacy, and real legal and ethical risk at work. Chris breaks down why emotional intimacy is still intimacy—even without romance—and why borrowing marriage language in the workplace erodes trust, psychological safety, and...