Episode 300: The Best of 2025 (Milestone Episode!)
The Fierce Factor with Kaeli Lindholm
Release Date: 01/05/2026
The Fierce Factor with Kaeli Lindholm
This week’s episode of The Fierce Factor Podcast is a special one. We’re bringing you a replay from Day 1 of SPARK, our leadership intensive designed for aesthetic practice owners and practice managers, and the official introduction of the KLC Practice Manager Academy. Built over two years of real-world application, this program was created to address one of the most critical gaps in the aesthetics industry: operational leadership. Because what gets a practice to its first level of success is rarely what sustains it as it grows. In this episode, we unpack the leadership challenges that...
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In this bonus replay episode, I shared something really personal, and honestly, deeply relevant to anyone navigating growth as a business owner. While traveling during my son’s lacrosse season last summer, I found myself experiencing that familiar entrepreneurial anxiety…the kind that shows up when you’re away from your business and wondering if things are still running smoothly without you. That season pushed me to take a closer look at how I was leading, how I was protecting my energy, and what I was actually saying yes to in my day-to-day. It became about more than just time...
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In this replay episode, we’re revisiting one of the most important leadership decisions every growing practice owner faces: should you promote someone from within, or bring in outside leadership talent? As founders, many of us build our businesses around the skills we know best—whether that’s clinical excellence or coaching expertise. But the transition from hands-on provider to visionary CEO requires a completely different leadership skill set. In this conversation, we unpack common mistakes that can slow growth, like overpaying for experienced hires before your business is ready, or...
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We’re taking you back into the room at our 2025 ALT Experience for a special replay from the stage. In this conversation, I sit down with founders and CEOs Meg Fox, Sara Trammell, and Allie Edwards to talk about what it really means to create a white glove patient experience inside a growing practice. Not the kind that feels forced or fancy for the sake of appearance, but the kind rooted in intention, standards, and leadership. We unpack how each of them defines white glove service in a way that fits their brand, and how they ensure it’s felt consistently, from the first click online to...
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This week on The Fierce Factor Podcast, we’re bringing you another powerful replay from the ALT Experience 2025 stage, and this one is all about what leadership really looks like inside a scaling practice. I sit down with three high-level operators and practice leaders, Amanda Siem, Melanie Crowley, and Liz Grad Murphy, for an honest, behind-the-scenes conversation about managing teams, building trust, and navigating the often complicated dynamic between founders and managers. We unpack what it actually takes to turn vision into action, how to coach instead of constantly fixing, and why...
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In this week’s episode, we’re bringing you a powerful panel replay straight from our ALT 2025 stage: Retain to Grow: Designing Development Runways for High-Growth Employees. On this panel, Kaeli is joined by Shelby Miller, DNP, Heidi Hermel, NP, and Rachel King, FNP-C. Each of these founders leads a thriving practice with strong team culture. And notably, each operates under a different compensation structure. Three different models. Three successful, growing organizations. This panel conversation dives deep into what it really takes to attract, develop, and retain top talent in today’s...
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This episode is Part 3 of our special Develop Your Voice of Impact series, and it’s all about what happens when the stakes are high and the spotlight is on. In this conversation, Krista Donargo, SGA, dives into the difference between recorded content and live communication, and why so many brilliant leaders lose their power when they step on stage, lead a training, or answer questions in real time. From keynotes and panels to team trainings and high-pressure conversations, this episode breaks down what it really takes to speak with confidence, presence, and authority when things don’t...
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Before Sara Blakely became the founder of Spanx, her life looked nothing like a success story. She failed the LSAT twice, was told she was “too short” at a Disney audition, and spent seven years selling fax machines door to door—hearing no over and over again. What changed everything wasn’t luck. It was how she treated rejection. Instead of seeing discomfort as failure, she treated it like training. In Part 2 of our Develop Your Voice Impact series, Krista Donargo, SGA unpacks how Blakely learned to fail forward, show up before things felt polished, and turn a scrappy idea into a...
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In part one of our Develop Your Voice of Impact podcast takeover, KLC’s Strategic Growth Advisor, Krista Donargo kicks off a powerful three-part series designed to help high-performing founders become more confident, compelling, and magnetic communicators, online, in person, and on stage. This episode explores why so many accomplished leaders lose their authority the moment a camera turns on or they’re asked to speak publicly, and why it has nothing to do with skill. Krista unpacks the real culprit behind shaky confidence: self-conscious, performance-based communication. Through personal...
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In this episode, I’m unpacking one of the most dangerous myths women are taught about success: that “playing it safe” is the responsible choice. This conversation was sparked by a reflection on 2016, the year I started KLC and the year my brother passed away, and a question that stopped me in my tracks: Is my life truly better because I chose growth over safety? What I’ve learned over the past decade is this: safety is often conditional, and comfort can be far more limiting than risk. I take you back to my corporate career at Bayer Healthcare, a role that looked secure by every...
info_outlineEpisode 300 is a milestone, and I wanted to mark it the way we actually grow: by looking back at what worked, what landed, and what leaders kept coming back to when things got loud.
This is a recap episode of our most revisited conversations, the ones that sparked the most “I needed this” replies, the ones that turned into team meetings, boundary resets, revenue decisions, and CEO-level pivots.
In this episode, I’m recapping:
- The leadership moves that keep you steady when the outside world feels unstable
- The culture standards that make great teams possible (and keep turnover from eating you alive)
- The strategic decisions that protect your margins, your energy, and your long-term valuation
- The life-first lens that makes success feel like success (not like a prettier version of burnout)
Want the full list in one clean place so you can binge in order, share with your team, or save it for your next CEO reset?
Download the Top 10 Fierce Factor Episodes List with direct links to every episode mentioned in today’s recap.
Resources
→ Download your copy of our Top 10 Fierce Factor Episodes Resource
→ Learn more & secure your spot for Confidence to Scale Live
→ Join the Fierce Factor Society
→ Follow Kaeli on Instagram: @kaeli.lindholm
Additional Ways to Connect:
- Book a Discovery Call: Ready to scale with intention? Let’s map out your next strategic move.