The Modern Leadership Coaching Podcast

Marc & Teresa Hildebrand
  • 4.8 (99)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Semiweekly

The Modern Leadership Coaching Podcast is for coaches, leaders, and anyone responsible for developing people who want real skill, not motivation. Weekly, we break down how to think clearly under pressure, lead yourself, and coach in a way that creates measurable change. No scripts. No hype. Just reps, tools, and the conversations that actually move people. If you're responsible for people but you don't trust your process yet, start here: https://www.modernleadership.us/academy New episodes weekly: https://www.modernleadership.us/episodes/

  1. 22h ago

    How to Show Up as Your Best Self When the Pressure Is On

    Send us Fan Mail There’s a calm, grounded version of you that you trust and then there’s the version that shows up when pressure hits and you don’t even feel like you chose it. We’re Marc and Teresa, and we’re digging into why that happens, how your brain grabs familiar stories under stress, and how to close the gap between who you are in comfort and who you want to be when it counts. We talk about how identity labels trap us (“I’m just an angry person”), why reactions are often a perspective problem rather than a discipline problem, and how one split-second thought can hijack your tone, your leadership presence, and your relationships. Mark shares an embarrassing but honest breaking point story that became a lifelong reminder: the issue isn’t knowing better, it’s that “knowing” stops working when emotion takes the wheel. From leadership coaching to parenting to marriage, we break down why you can be composed with a client yet reactive with family, how belief systems and expectations shape your default, and why chasing tactics and scripts won’t fix an internal mindset issue. We also introduce the idea of capacity: the skill of holding competing priorities and choosing your response on purpose. You’ll walk away with a simple question to use in real time: “How can I be most effective right now?” If this helps, subscribe to Modern Leadership Coaching, share it with someone who leads under pressure, and leave a review so more people can find it. What’s the last moment you reacted and what thought was there right before it happened? Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    36 min

  2. Jun 8

    How to Break the Pattern You've Been Trying to Fix for Years

    Send us Fan Mail You can be the kind of person who runs toward the work and still feel trapped in the same loop. That tension is what we unpack here: why smart, driven leaders and coaches can read the books, hire the mentors, try the strategies, and still hit the same wall. When effort doesn’t produce change, it usually isn’t a willpower problem. It’s a “wrong level” problem. We dig into the difference between technical problems (what to do) and adaptive problems (how you think, what you believe, and who you are being while you do it). We talk about how subconscious beliefs quietly protect you by keeping you safe, how your brain collects evidence after a decision to prove you were right, and why that can lock in patterns even when you’re taking constant action. If you’ve ever found yourself spiralling into “maybe I’m not good enough” after trying everything, you’ll recognise exactly what we’re pointing to. We also share what changed for us when we realised we were trying to fix a messaging problem that wasn’t the real issue, and why conversations that get to the root can outperform automation when your best work is human. You’ll leave with a simple question that can reset your entire approach, plus a resource to help you diagnose what’s actually keeping you stuck. Subscribe, share this with a friend who’s hitting a wall, and leave a review with the biggest insight you’re taking into your week. Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    30 min

  3. Jun 1

    How to Stop the Spiral Before It Takes Over

    Send us Fan Mail You can feel it starting: a comment lands wrong, your chest tightens, your mind races, and even while you’re watching it happen you still can’t stop the explosion. Marc unpacks why that experience isn’t a character flaw and isn’t a lack of self-awareness. It’s your brain doing what it was trained to do over years: follow the strongest, most familiar pathway to keep you safe, even when it costs you connection, confidence, and leadership presence.  We walk through what the “spiral” actually feels like on the inside, why “here we go again” becomes a self-fulfilling loop, and why trying to fix the behavior is often fixing the wrong problem. The real leverage point is earlier: the story your brain assigns to a neutral situation, the emotion that story creates in your body, and the reaction that follows. When the story is “they don’t respect me” or “I can’t do this,” your nervous system responds like it’s under threat, and your old pattern runs on autopilot.  You’ll also hear what separates people who eventually break the pattern from people who stay stuck, why affirmations rarely take hold when an old belief feels like truth, and how unconscious beliefs quietly drive your reactions without you noticing. We talk about the deeper work of reprogramming: pausing, reflecting, choosing a new perspective on purpose, and getting support from someone who can spot what you can’t see.  If you want help finding your root belief, take the quiz at modoleadership.us/quiz and reach out for the free 20-minute call. If this helped, subscribe, share it with a friend who’s stuck in a loop, and leave a review so more leaders can find the tools to respond instead of react. Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    15 min

  4. May 28 ·  Bonus

    Bonus Episode - The Missing Piece — How to Coach Yourself Through the Moments That Keep Stopping You

    Send us Fan Mail You can be disciplined, self-aware, and deeply committed to growth and still feel like you are living the same week on repeat. That is exactly why we recorded this bonus conversation: to go inside our Growth Model and hand you a practical piece of the “how” you can use today, not just the theory. We break down why getting stuck is usually not a motivation problem or a knowledge problem. It is an unconscious perspective running in the background, often built from old pre-programming, that quietly drives your emotions, your energy, your actions and your results. We explain how the brain is designed to keep you safe and automate patterns, why it focuses on what is broken, wrong or missing, and how that creates an unconscious loop that keeps reinforcing itself. Then we teach the five-part Growth Model in plain language: reality, perspective, emotion, response and results. We walk through the four levels of self-coaching, from blaming the outside world, to taking ownership and shaming yourself, to interrupting the pattern in a micro moment, and finally to reprogramming so the new response becomes automatic. We also do a step-by-step example using a common trigger: the alarm goes off, you want to work out, and your mind says “I’m exhausted.” You will hear exactly how to shift the perspective so the emotion changes, the response changes, and the result starts moving. If you have ever tried accountability, new routines, or another program and still felt stuck, this will give you a clearer diagnosis and a cleaner next step. Subscribe to Modern Leadership Coaching, share this with a friend who is doing the work, and leave us a review. What micro moment are you going to coach yourself through this week? Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    47 min

  5. May 25

    The Coaching Skill Nobody Knew to Teach Me

    Send us Fan Mail Someone comes to you stuck and you can feel the pressure to say the perfect thing. You reach for advice, a pep talk, or a quick solution, and somehow it still doesn’t help. We name what’s really happening: you’re not failing because you don’t care enough or because you “aren’t confident.” You’re missing a repeatable coaching skill for hard conversations, and most of us were never trained to build it. Marc unpacks what “winging it” looks like from the inside and why, under stress, we fall back to muscle memory. We talk about the common trap of becoming a consultant or cheerleader, how that can accidentally create limiting beliefs, and why strong leadership coaching relies on questions that reveal what’s driving behavior. We also draw a bright line between guiding and controlling: you can be asking questions and still steer the person toward your preferred answer with leading prompts that plant the wrong story. You’ll hear how this skill translates across roles, whether you’re a manager, a parent, or a coach, and why having a simple process (like a growth model approach) changes your presence. When you know what you’re doing, people feel it, trust it, and take action. We close with a challenge scenario you can think through before next week. If this helps, subscribe, share it with someone who leads people, and leave a quick review. What’s your default when someone gets emotional in the room? Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    19 min

  6. May 18

    From Stuck to Wealthy and Well Known

    Send us Fan Mail You can be disciplined, coachable, and genuinely hungry to grow and still feel like nothing is changing. That’s the kind of stuck we’re tackling here: the version that hides under effort, learning, and nonstop action, then quietly turns every new idea into the same old wall. We walk through why most high performers assume the issue is strategy, then keep cycling through tactics, tools, and advice. But when you’re doing “all the right things” and the outcome stays the same, the real constraint is often underneath the surface. We talk about how we spot that as coaches by listening beyond the words and treating stuck as an adaptive challenge, not a technical problem. We also share a powerful concept from Wealthy and Well Known: you’re best equipped to help the person you used to be, and getting clear on that can sharpen your message and your impact. From there we get practical about what’s really running the show: subconscious belief patterns that act like outdated software. We unpack examples like “I’m not enough” and “Everything depends on me,” how they can drive overcommitting, weak boundaries, reactive leadership, and confidence issues, and why even great advice can miss the point if the root isn’t identified. You’ll also hear a simple reflection prompt to uncover where you’ve tried the most but moved the least, plus what it actually takes to reprogram the pattern through reps and consistent support. If this hits home, listen through, share it with a friend who’s stuck in the hustle loop, and subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next. After you listen, what belief do you suspect has been quietly driving your decisions? The book discussed in this episode is: "Wealthy and Well-Known: Build Your Personal Brand and Turn Your Reputation into Revenue", by Rory and AJ Vaden. Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    23 min

  7. May 11

    What If You Aren't Burned Out...You're Just Carrying Too Much Alone?

    Send us Fan Mail Everyone calls it burnout, but we’ve learned a hard truth the long way: sometimes the thing draining you isn’t the work. It’s the isolation. When you’re the person everyone leans on, it can feel “normal” to carry the pressure alone, keep your doubts private, and silently grind harder. That’s not strength. It’s a setup for overwhelm, poor decisions, and a leadership role that starts to feel unsustainable. We talk through the difference between real burnout and the exhaustion that comes from trying to shoulder everything yourself. We dig into why leaders convince themselves they must have all the answers, never show weakness, and solve problems in a silo and how that mindset becomes a single point of failure for the whole team. Then we share what we see work in real organisations: bringing problems to the group, inviting different perspectives (including the naysayers), and building true buy-in through collaboration instead of control. We also get practical about decision-making. Isolation makes you narrow-minded over time, and even AI can accidentally reinforce that if you use it like a best friend that agrees with you. We explain how to use AI as a thought partner that challenges your assumptions, while still relying on the human element you only get from real conversations. Finally, we call out how pride can hide inside everyday language like “I’m busy” or “I’m exhausted” and how those labels can trap you into a lifestyle you didn’t choose. If any of this hits home, share this with a leader who needs it, subscribe for more Modern Leadership Coaching, and leave a review. What’s one area where you’re ready to stop carrying it alone? Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    24 min

  8. May 4

    Why People Ignore Great Advice And How Leaders Create Action

    Send us Fan Mail You can give someone a genuinely great answer and still watch nothing change. That gap between “I understand” and “I did it” is where leadership and coaching either level up or break down. I’m Mark, and I’m digging into why advice so often fails, what’s really happening in people’s minds, and how to lead in a way that creates action without making everyone dependent on you.  We start with a familiar high-stakes leadership moment: one person is underperforming, the whole team knows it, and nobody wants to say the hard thing. Avoiding it creates a culture. Coming in aggressive creates fear. I walk through a calmer third approach built on curiosity, standards, and better questions, plus why these challenging conversations create the biggest results in work and in life.  Then we get to the core framework: technical solutions versus adaptive challenges. Most people hunt for tactics, steps, and strategy, but the real blocker is often belief, shame, and self-protection. That’s why “just follow the plan” falls flat, even for high performers. I share how leaders accidentally train dependence by always providing answers, and how to flip the script by becoming the person people come to for questions, using prompts that clarify the best of the past, the present, and the potential future.  We also bring it home with parenting and relationship examples, including the simple habit of asking whether someone wants advice, listening, or coaching. If you want to lead high-stakes conversations with more trust and less guessing, hit play, then subscribe, share this with a leader who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find the show. Want to show up as the best version of you in the moments that matter most? Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz! Are trying everything, but you keep coming up against the same wall and nothing seems to be working? Are you putting in the action and energy, but nothing is improving? If so, that's what we built our "How to get Unstuck" quiz for. Start by taking our 2-minute quiz at modernleadership.us/quiz.  It's not about putting in more energy or action, it's about finding out what's actually keeping you stuck.

    19 min
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4.8
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99 Ratings

About

The Modern Leadership Coaching Podcast is for coaches, leaders, and anyone responsible for developing people who want real skill, not motivation. Weekly, we break down how to think clearly under pressure, lead yourself, and coach in a way that creates measurable change. No scripts. No hype. Just reps, tools, and the conversations that actually move people. If you're responsible for people but you don't trust your process yet, start here: https://www.modernleadership.us/academy New episodes weekly: https://www.modernleadership.us/episodes/

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