Become The Leader

Jody Holland & Meghan Slaughter
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Become The Leader is all about finding your pathway to the skills needed to inspire others to follow. There is a whole new generation of leaders rising up, ready to lead and inspire greatness in their teams. Join us to learn what it means to truly become the leader others want to follow.

  1. 3d ago

    39 - Habits of Success

    Habits of Success What if nearly half of what you do every day happens without you consciously thinking about it? In this episode of Become The Leader, Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, and Meghan Slaughter explore how habits shape our success, leadership, energy, and personal growth. Rather than relying on motivation or willpower, successful people intentionally build routines and systems that move them toward their goals. Jody shares his personal Key Three—learn something, teach something, and create revenue—and explains how identifying a few repeatable behaviors can make progress far more automatic. Key Takeaways 1. Your habits eventually become part of who you are.The word *habit* is rooted in the idea of how you “hold yourself.” Repeated actions eventually become second nature and help shape identity. 2. Identify your Key Three. Ask yourself: *What three things, if I consistently did them every day, would make success significantly more likely? Jody’s business Key Three:- Learn something.- Teach something.- Create revenue. 3. Forget the 21-day rule.Habit formation varies significantly by individual and behavior. Research discussed in the episode suggests an average closer to 66 days rather than the commonly repeated 21-day claim. 4. Design your environment instead of depending on discipline. Willpower is difficult to sustain. Build routines, cues, environments, and systems that naturally lead you toward the behaviors you want. 5. Turn goals into daily behaviors.A goal tells you where you want to go. A habit determines whether you actually get there. Ask: What habit would make this goal almost automatic? Five Habits of Successful Leaders Create clarity each morning.Identify your top one to three priorities before allowing email, notifications, and other people’s priorities to take control of your day. Protect your energy.Sleep, movement, nutrition, and recovery aren't separate from leadership performance—they support it. Write your goals and connect them to habits.Don't simply identify what you want. Determine what you need to consistently do to achieve it. Reflect and prepare.Take time at the end of the day to evaluate what happened, learn from it, and prepare intentionally for tomorrow. Grow deliberately.Read. Learn. Attend training. Seek coaching. Participate in conversations that stretch your thinking. Growth rarely happens accidentally. Quotable Moments “ What are the three things that, if you did those things every day, your success would become automatic?” — Jody Holland “If I learn, teach, and bill for it, my success becomes automatic.” — Jody Holland “Doing something to grow every single day will set you up for success down the road.” — Meghan Slaughter “What habit makes the goal automatic?” — Jody Holland “The engine that drives your habit is your character.” — Mike Grigsby “Character is who you are when no one is watching. Habits are what happen when no one is applauding.” — Mike Grigsby “The public applause that's missing is actually substituted by fulfilling the promise you made to yourself.” — Mike Grigsby “Don't rely on willpower. Rely on habits and systems.” — Jody Holland The Leadership Challenge Take a few minutes and identify your own Key Three. What are three behaviors that, performed consistently, would dramatically improve your leadership, health, relationships, business, or personal success? Then stop waiting to feel motivated. Build those behaviors into your environment and your routine until success becomes less dependent on how you feel—and more dependent on the systems you have intentionally created. Become the leader you would follow.

    39 - Habits of Success

  2. Sep 23

    38 - The announcement is not the change - Change Management

    Change is inevitable—but leading it well is a choice. In this episode of the Become The Leader Podcast, Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, Meghan Slaughter, and Maleah Berens explore what actually happens when people experience change and what leaders can do to reduce resistance, create clarity, and build genuine commitment. We discuss: • Why people naturally move through shock, resistance, exploration, and commitment • Why leaders often underestimate how much time employees need to process change • The importance of clearly defining what success looks like • Why communication must happen repeatedly—not just once • How giving people input into the process increases ownership • Why leaders should honor what worked in the past before introducing what comes next • The difference between announcing change and actually leading change Jody also breaks down his C.H.A.N.G.E. Model: C – Clarify the Case H – Honor the Ending A – Align a Coalition N – Navigate the Neutral Zone G – Generate Quick Wins E – Embed It Into the Culture The key takeaway: Don’t expect people to instantly arrive at a change you’ve had weeks or months to process. Give them time, clarity, conversation, and a meaningful role in moving forward. Become the leader you would follow.

    38 - The announcement is not the change - Change Management

  3. Sep 16

    37 - How Personality Impacts Workplace Behavior

    How Personality Impacts Workplace Behavior Why do some people at work instantly click while others clash? In this episode of Become The Leader, Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, and Meghan Slaughter explore how personality, temperament, and behavior shape workplace relationships, communication, leadership, and team performance. They discuss tools like DISC, PXT Select, Myers-Briggs, and the Enneagram, while emphasizing that assessments should create better questions and greater self-awareness, not labels or excuses. A central idea of the conversation is that we often do not dislike someone’s personality. We dislike the behaviors they express. The team also explores why great leaders learn to adapt their communication, recognize when people are stretching outside their natural strengths, and avoid using personality as an excuse for poor behavior. Key takeaways include: Personality and behavior are not the same thing. Self-awareness helps you become more adaptable. Assessments should create conversations, not labels. Different people require different communication approaches. Personality should never excuse destructive behavior. Curiosity is more productive than judgment. Leadership begins with learning to lead yourself. Mike summarizes the mindset with two powerful words: compassionate curiosity. The better you understand yourself, the better equipped you become to understand, communicate with, and lead others. Become the leader you would follow.

    37 - How Personality Impacts Workplace Behavior

  4. Sep 9

    36 - Finding Your Genius

    In this episode of Become the Leader, Jody Holland and Meghan Slaughter explore Patrick Lencioni’s Six Types of Working Genius and how understanding the way you naturally work can improve performance, teamwork, and job satisfaction. They break down the six geniuses—Wonder, Invention, Discernment, Galvanizing, Enablement, and Tenacity—and explain the difference between your areas of genius, competency, and frustration. Jody and Meghan also share their own Working Genius profiles and discuss how different strengths can either create conflict or become a powerful advantage when teams understand how each person contributes. Key Takeaways Your Working Genius represents the kinds of work that naturally give you energy. Competencies are things you can do well, but they may drain you over time. Frustrations are areas that can become exhausting when you are required to operate in them continuously. Strong teams do not need everyone to think alike—they need the right mix of strengths. Understanding Working Genius can help leaders diagnose conflict, burnout, communication issues, and team gaps. The six geniuses align with three stages of work: Ideation, Activation, and Implementation. Leaders can use Working Genius to structure meetings, assign responsibilities, coach employees, and build stronger teams. The goal is not to eliminate your frustrations. It is to spend more time working where you naturally create the greatest value. The episode also explores an important leadership question: Are people burning out because they are working too much or because they are spending too much time doing work that drains them? Understanding how you and your team naturally approach work can create a shared language for collaboration, reduce unnecessary friction, and help people spend more time doing the work they were built to do. Become the leader you would follow.

    36 - Finding Your Genius

  5. Sep 2

    35 - Leading Vision in Your Organization

    Episode 35 — Leading Vision in Your Organization Become The Leader Podcast Hosts: Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, Meghan Slaughter, and Maleah Berens Episode Summary A vision should do more than hang on the wall. It should give people a future worth pursuing. In Episode 35 of the Become The Leader Podcast, Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, Meghan Slaughter, and Maleah Berens explore what organizational vision really means, how it differs from mission, goals, and objectives, and why the strongest visions become something people genuinely want to be part of. Mike introduces a simple way to distinguish the major elements of organizational direction: Vision is the horizon. Mission is the vehicle and route. Goals are the waypoints. Objectives and KPIs are the instruments that tell you whether you are moving. The team then explores where powerful visions come from, why many are born out of problems leaders personally experienced, and why a vision ultimately has to become bigger than the founder. The conversation moves beyond simply having a vision and asks the more important leadership question: How do you lead a vision so effectively that other people begin to own it? Key Learning Points 1. Vision Is Not the Same as Mission, Goals, or Objectives Organizations often use these terms interchangeably, but they serve very different purposes. A vision describes the future you continually move toward. A mission describes how you intend to pursue that future. Goals establish meaningful milestones. Objectives and KPIs measure whether you are actually making progress. When these are confused, organizations can end up with tremendous activity but very little direction—or high levels of inspiration with very little accountability. 2. A Great Vision Must Be Inspiring Being “number one in the market” might be a legitimate business goal, but it rarely gives employees or customers something emotionally meaningful to rally around. A true vision answers larger questions: Why does this matter? What becomes possible if we succeed? People usually do not wake up inspired by KPIs, efficiency ratios, or quarterly targets. Those measures matter because they help the organization reach somewhere worth going. 3. Vision Often Begins With Something That Needs to Be Fixed Jody shares how his own leadership journey was shaped by repeatedly experiencing both exceptional and poor leadership. Eventually, the frustration created a conviction: Somebody needs to fix leadership. Many meaningful businesses, nonprofits, and movements begin in a similar way. Someone experiences a problem and decides: Nobody else should have to experience this. That pain creates a picture of a better future—and that picture can become the beginning of a compelling vision. 4. The Vision Has to Become Bigger Than the Founder A founder may originate a vision, but the organization cannot remain dependent on that individual forever. When the vision exists only inside one person's head, it requires that person to continually push it forward. A sustainable vision becomes something other people understand, influence, believe in, and ultimately take ownership of. The leader's responsibility is not merely to own the vision. It is to lead the vision. 5. Vision and Culture Are Two Sides of the Same Coin Vision describes where the organization is going. Culture determines how people behave while they are getting there. Culture shows up in: how decisions are made, how resources are allocated, what behaviors are rewarded, how people treat one another, and how the organization responds when things become difficult. A compelling destination without a healthy culture can make the journey miserable. Strong leaders build both. 6. Celebrate Progress Along the Way A powerful vision may never be completely “finished.” That creates an important leadership challenge: How do you keep people motivated while pursuing something that continually remains on the horizon? One answer is to intentionally celebrate progress. Recognizing small and large wins reminds people that movement is happening. The organization may not have arrived yet, but people should regularly be able to look backward and recognize how far they have come. 7. Use Storytelling to Help People See the Vision Stories help transform an abstract vision into something people can experience emotionally. Jody describes an effective way of thinking about organizational storytelling: There is the world as it is and the world as it should be. The vision describes the world as it should be. The problems, obstacles, and injustices keeping people from that future become the enemies worth fighting. The customer or person being served becomes the hero. The organization becomes the guide helping them reach that better future. 8. A Strong Vision Helps Organizations Adapt Organizations can become trapped when they define themselves according to what they currently do instead of the problem they ultimately solve. A railroad company that believes it is only in the railroad business can miss the evolution of transportation. A company that understands the deeper purpose behind its existence can adapt technologies, strategies, and methods while continuing to pursue the same vision. Vision creates direction without creating unnecessary rigidity. Jody's Framework for Creating a Powerful Vision Near the end of the episode, Jody introduces a simple framework leaders can use to articulate organizational vision. 1. What Better Future Will Exist Because We Succeeded? Paint a picture of the world as it should be. What becomes possible because your organization exists? 2. What Meaningful Cause Are We Pursuing? The vision must reach beyond revenue, growth, or organizational success. What is worth fighting for? Why does the work matter? 3. Who Do We Serve? Clearly identify the people whose lives, organizations, communities, or futures you intend to improve. 4. How Will They Be Transformed? What becomes different because they interacted with your organization? What pain disappears? What capability increases? What possibility becomes available? 5. Who Will We Become? Transformation happens on both sides. As your customers, employees, members, or community change, what kind of organization must you become in the process? The Vision Formula A simple starting point for articulating organizational vision is: We exist to create ____________________ so that ____________________ can experience ____________________, and together we become ____________________. This turns vision from a collection of corporate words into a meaningful statement about: the future you are creating,the people you serve,the transformation you create,and the organization you are becoming. Key Takeaways Vision should describe a future people genuinely want to pursue. Mission explains how you pursue the vision. Goals create milestones along the journey. Objectives and KPIs measure progress. Vision must eventually become bigger than its founder. Employees need the opportunity to understand, influence, and own the vision. Culture determines what the journey toward the vision feels like. Celebrating wins maintains momentum during a long pursuit. Storytelling helps people understand why the future matters. Great visions focus on transformation rather than organizational ego. The strongest organizations are simultaneously transforming the people they serve and becoming something greater themselves. Quotable Moments “Vision is the horizon.” — Mike Grigsby “If your vision does not inspire your people and inspire your customers to want to be part of it, it's probably not a vision. It's a goal or an objective.” — Jody Holland “Everybody deserves to work for a great boss and have a great workplace.” — Meghan Slaughter “Make the vision bigger than yourself.” — Mike Grigsby “We're talking about leading a vision, not owning the vision.” — Mike Grigsby “Vision and culture are two sides of the same coin.” — Mike Grigsby “The world as it should be is what we're chasing.” — Jody Holland “You can be good and still go to great.” — Meghan Slaughter “Be honest about who you are, be inspired by where you want to go, and build the kind of culture people don't want to get off the ride from.” — Jody Holland Reflection Questions for Leaders Is our current vision truly inspirational, or is it actually a financial goal disguised as a vision? Can our employees clearly explain where our organization is going? What problem or frustration originally inspired our organization to exist? What better future are we trying to create? Who ultimately benefits if we succeed? How should those people be different because we served them? Does our culture reinforce the future we say we are pursuing? Are we celebrating progress often enough for people to recognize momentum? Would our vision survive if the founder or CEO disappeared tomorrow? Who must we become as an organization in order to fulfill the vision? Closing Thought Great leadership is not simply getting people to accomplish today's work. It is helping people see a future they believe is worth building—and creating an environment where they can become something greater while building it. When vision becomes shared, culture becomes aligned, and people understand how their work contributes to something meaningful, an organization can become more than a workplace. It can become a movement.

    35 - Leading Vision in Your Organization

  6. Aug 26

    34 - Become the Leader You Would Follow

    BECOME THE LEADER PODCASTEpisode 34: Become the Leader You Would Follow Hosts: Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, Meghan Slaughter, Maleah Berens QUICK SUMMARY Every episode of this show ends the same way: become the kind of leader that you would actually follow. In Episode 34, the team finally turns that closing line into the whole conversation. They start where it is easiest to be honest, with the deal breakers. The boss who competes against her own people. The one who holds you accountable for standards he will not hold himself to. The micromanager who hired you for a job and then will not let you do it. From there the conversation flips: what actually earns followership? The answer keeps circling back to credibility. Jody points to three decades of Kouzes and Posner's research, which keeps expecting generational change and keeps finding the same thing. People want a leader they can trust who also knows what they are doing. Around that core, the team builds out the rest: compassionate curiosity, high IQ paired with high EQ, radical self awareness, and the discipline to think with your imagination instead of your memory. The back half gets practical. Meghan makes the case that you cannot lead until you have been led, including by someone bad, because pain is a clarifying teacher. Maleah pushes on why you want to lead in the first place, and warns that "I just do not like working under people" is the seed of a selfish boss. Mike draws a hard line between positional authority and actual leadership. And Jody closes with the story of Scott Center, a real estate owner making coffee at 7:30 on a Saturday morning, who explained it simply: what I do, they do. If you are waiting on a title to start leading, this episode is the nudge to stop waiting. KEY TAKEAWAYS 1. Credibility is the floor, not the ceiling.Trust plus competence. "I know you have my best interest at heart, and I know you're not an idiot." Three decades of research keeps landing in the same place, across every generation studied. Everything else you build as a leader sits on top of this. 2. Your deal breakers are your blueprint.The behaviors that made you say "I could never work for that person," the competitor, the hypocrite, the micromanager, are your clearest instruction manual. Name them honestly, then audit yourself against the list. 3. Think with your imagination, not your memory.A line from mentor Jim Surbaski. Leaders stuck in a legacy loop keep replaying what used to work, whether or not it still works. The better question is always "what if it did exist?" and then "what would have to happen first?" 4. Radical self awareness comes before everything else.Mike's non negotiable: whether or not you are at fault, as the leader you contributed something to the outcome. Not blame, understanding. You cannot lead a dynamic you cannot see. 5. Be, then do. Do not do in order to become.Bad leaders can be organized, keep great calendars, and take excellent notes. Skills are not the differentiator. The leader who shows up needing to be seen as the authority is performing. The leader who shows up settled in who they are gives the room something to orient around. 6. Learning to be led is prerequisite to leading.Working for a bad boss teaches you what you will never recreate. Working for a good one shows you what is possible. You need both data points, and most people only appreciate the first one in hindsight. 7. Know your why, and check it for selfishness."I had to work for myself or become a CEO because I don't like working under people" is not a leadership motive. It is a warning sign. The durable why sounds like this: I believe I can grow this company, grow these people, and leave this community better than I found it. 8. Great leaders do not sell followership. They build belief.Credibility and character create belief in the leader, which creates belief in self, which creates belief in the team, which creates belief in what is possible. That chain is how culture actually forms. 9. Positional authority is not leadership.Leading is carving a path and charting a course for the people behind you. If it's all about what you want, you may hold the position, but you are not leading. Jody's friendly amendment: do not promise people easier. Promise them better. 10. You set the tone, whether you mean to or not.The leader who is chronically late gets a chronically late team. The owner who shows up first on Saturday gets a team that shows up on Saturday. And you are never too senior to make the coffee, pick up the locker room, or clean up your own spill. 11. Develop them well enough to leave. Lead them well enough to stay.Nobody who works for you is an indentured servant. They can walk out today. That is not a threat. It is the entire case for leading by inspiration instead of mandate. 12. Influence starts now. The title comes later.You can lead well at any level. If you want to be a great leader, start where you are. The position may follow, but the influence does not have to wait for it. QUOTABLE MOMENTS "Anybody who holds others accountable for what they will not hold themselves accountable for."Mike Grigsby, on the fastest way to lose him "You hired me for my expertise. Let me go be an expert for you."Mike Grigsby "Think with your imagination and not your memory."Jim Surbaski, quoted by Mike Grigsby "There's never a point where you know enough. And the moment you believe you know everything you need to know, that's when you have already started going backward."Jody Holland "How great is it that you can work for a bad boss, so that you can know what you don't want to be one day?"Meghan Slaughter's dad, on a rough first job "Develop your people so well that they could leave, but lead so well that they choose to stay."Meghan Slaughter "You should try to do as a result of already being, not do for the purpose of becoming."Mike Grigsby "You must be seen as the leader, you must be seen as the know-it-all, you must be seen as the one with all the ideas. That is a very toxic orientation and posture for any leader to have."Mike Grigsby "The greatest leaders don't convince people to follow them. They create a belief system."Jody Holland "You may be in positional authority, but you're not leading."Mike Grigsby "You're never too high up to make coffee."Maleah Berens "I'm here because what I do, they do. If I don't show up on a Saturday, a bunch of them won't show up on a Saturday. I set the tone."Scott Center, as told by Jody Holland "It was my mess."President Ronald Reagan, found on his hands and knees cleaning up spilled water the day after being shot "Your life is not easier when you're in charge. It is lonelier, but it's a tremendously positive and rewarding burden, because you get to bring the best out in people."Jody Holland "The position might come later, but the influence starts now."Meghan Slaughter "Drown out the noise and figure out how to leave your community a little bit better than you found it."Maleah Berens "Success leaves clues."Meghan Slaughter "Imagine as a leader, if you leave people so much better than you found them, how much people want to follow you."Jody Holland REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE Kouzes and Posner, The Leadership Challenge. Three decades of research on credibility as the foundation of followership. Carl Rogers. The evaluated self versus the aspirational self. Jim Surbaski. Mentor to both Jody and Mike. "Think with your imagination, not your memory." Scott Center, Center Realtors, Abilene, Texas. The Saturday morning coffee lesson. Colt McCoy and Connor Williams, University of Texas. Taking pride in the locker room. Japanese fans at FIFA matches. Cleaning the stands after the game ends. YOUR TURN Three questions to sit with this week: 1. What did a bad leader do to you that you have promised yourself you would never do to someone else, and have you actually kept that promise? 2. If your team mirrored your habits exactly for the next 30 days, what would they be doing? Is that the team you want? 3. What is your real why for wanting to lead? Say it out loud. Does it hold up? SHARE THIS ONE If this episode made you think about the kind of leader you are becoming, pass it along to someone who is stepping into leadership for the first time, or someone who has been at it long enough to need the reminder. Share it with a colleague, a new supervisor, or your whole team.Like and subscribe so you don't miss the next episode.Leave a comment and tell us: what is the one thing that would make you say "I could never work for that person"?Send us your show suggestions. We would love to have them. And never forget to become the kind of leader that you would actually follow.

    34 - Become the Leader You Would Follow

  7. Aug 19

    33 - Live The Mission

    Episode 33 — Live the Mission Become The Leader Podcast Hosts: Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, and Meghan Slaughter Episode Summary Most organizations have a mission statement. Far fewer actually live it. In this episode of Become The Leader, Jody Holland, Mike Grigsby, and Meghan Slaughter explore what separates a meaningful mission from a collection of inspirational words hanging on the wall. A powerful mission should do more than sound good. It should help leaders decide what to pursue, what to reject, how to treat people, what behaviors to reward, and what kind of organization they are trying to build. The conversation moves beyond corporate mission statements into personal purpose as well. The team discusses how leaders can identify what matters most by examining what puts them into a state of flow, what problems make them disproportionately frustrated, how they want to be remembered, and the values they are unwilling to compromise. Ultimately, the challenge is simple: Don't just write the mission. Live the mission. When values consistently produce the right actions, those actions create results—and those results become what people know you for. Key Takeaways 1. A mission statement should be a decision-making filter. A mission statement has little value if it simply hangs on a wall. The real test is whether leaders use it when making decisions. Before pursuing an opportunity, initiative, customer, hire, or strategy, ask: Does this move us closer to our mission—or simply keep us busy? Mission creates focus. It helps organizations determine not only what they should do, but also what they should refuse to do. 2. Mission without action becomes organizational hypocrisy. Employees notice the gap between what leaders say and what leaders actually do. When an organization claims to value people, service, integrity, or community—and then abandons those values when financial pressure arrives—the damage goes beyond the immediate decision. People begin to believe that leadership's words cannot be trusted. Your mission therefore has to survive difficult decisions, not just easy ones. 3. Mission and profitability are not enemies. A meaningful mission does not require a business to ignore profitability. Business is an exchange of value. When an organization solves meaningful problems for customers and creates significant value, it deserves to receive value in return. A strong mission can actually strengthen profitability because it keeps the organization focused on creating outcomes customers genuinely value. No mission, no margin. And without margin, you won't be able to pursue the mission for very long. 4. A good mission answers three questions. One practical framework discussed in the episode is: We are here to __________so that __________because __________. This helps leaders identify: What do we do? What outcome are we trying to create? Why does that outcome matter? That final question—why does it matter?—connects the work to purpose. 5. Your personal mission can become a filter for your life. Mission isn't limited to organizations. A personal mission can help you evaluate opportunities, relationships, priorities, and the way you invest your time. Meghan described her personal mission as leaving people better than she found them by helping them grow, lead intentionally, and recognize their potential. Jody described his mission as investing in the leadership and growth of others so that he leaves them better than he found them. A mission becomes powerful when it begins influencing everyday interactions. 6. Look for clues to your purpose in what creates flow. One way to discover your personal mission is to ask: What do I lose track of time doing? What work absorbs you so completely that hours pass unnoticed? Those moments of deep engagement may reveal the kinds of problems you naturally want to solve and the contribution you are uniquely energized to make. 7. Pay attention to what makes you disproportionately frustrated. Purpose isn't revealed only by what you love. It can also show up in what bothers you. Ask: What problem makes me think, “Somebody needs to do something about this”? Jody described his frustration with ineffective leadership and leaders who fail to bring out the best in their people. Sometimes frustration reveals the problem you feel called to solve. 8. Use the eulogy test. Imagine reaching the end of your life. What do you hope the people who knew you will say? Jody shared that he wants people to remember that he left them better than he found them, made a positive impact on the world, and was a good husband, father, and grandfather. Mike emphasized wanting people to feel seen, acknowledged, treated justly, and confident that he had their best interests at heart. Meghan spoke about being remembered as kind, compassionate, caring, and someone who helped others grow. Thinking backward from the legacy you want can clarify how you should live forward. 9. Values must translate into observable behavior. Organizations often spend significant time selecting values such as integrity, excellence, service, teamwork, or respect. But a value only becomes meaningful when people know: What does this value look like in action? Jody described the V-A-R-Y framework: Values + Actions + Results = You Your values determine the behaviors you choose. Those behaviors create results. And those repeated results become what people know you for. 10. Fewer core values create greater clarity. If everything is a core value, nothing is truly core. Jody recommends reducing organizational values to roughly three core values that genuinely distinguish what the organization stands for. Then identify two or three behaviors that demonstrate each value. The goal is for employees and customers to recognize your values from your behavior without ever needing to read them on a wall. 11. Mission should be simple enough to remember. A mission statement shouldn't require employees to memorize a paragraph. The best missions are clear, relevant, and repeatable. Mike shared an example from Southwest Airlines where employees could connect their individual roles to the simple idea: “I fly planes.” Whether someone worked in maintenance, ticketing, operations, or another function, their work ultimately contributed to the same mission. A strong mission helps every employee answer: How does my work contribute to what we're trying to accomplish? 12. Mission should eventually become ethos. There may be a progression in how people internalize a mission: Create it.Recite it.Believe it.Live it. Eventually, the mission should become so deeply embedded that you no longer need to consciously repeat it. It becomes your ethos—the way you naturally operate. The question then becomes: Are my decisions still consistent with what I say I believe? 13. Purpose matters to the modern workforce. People increasingly want their work to matter. They want to know that their effort contributes to something meaningful rather than simply completing tasks and collecting a paycheck. Organizations that clearly communicate why their work matters create a stronger foundation for engagement, alignment, and belonging. 14. Mission and strategy are different. Being the largest company, beating competitors, increasing market share, or achieving a financial target may be strategic objectives. They are not necessarily a mission. Mission answers: Why should this organization exist? Strategy answers: How will we succeed? A clear mission should guide the development of strategy—not be replaced by it. 15. Live an infinite game. Great organizations aren't simply trying to win the next quarter. They're trying to create something sustainable enough to continue making an impact for generations. That longer horizon changes how leaders think about people, culture, decisions, investment, and success. A Mission Statement Framework Use this formula to begin developing either a personal or organizational mission: We/I __________so that __________because __________. For example: We build great leadersso teams can thrivebecause everyone deserves an amazing place to work. Then test the statement by asking: Is it simple enough to remember? Can people use it to make decisions? Does it describe something we genuinely care about? Can every employee connect their role to it? Are our behaviors consistent with it? Would we protect this mission even when doing so is difficult? Questions for Reflection Ask yourself: What do I lose track of time doing? What problem makes me disproportionately frustrated? What makes me think, “Somebody needs to do something about this”? At the end of my life, what do I want people to say about me? What three values am I unwilling to compromise? What actions would prove those values are real? What results would naturally come from consistently taking those actions? Does my personal mission align with the mission of the organization where I work? Can people tell what I stand for without hearing me explain it? Quotable Moments “Your mission statement should be the filter for the decisions that you make.” — Jody Holland “When the mission is done right, the money chases you down. When the mission is violated, the money runs away.” — Jody Holland “If you have no mission, you will have no margin.” — Jody Holland “Sometimes it just takes somebody else seeing it in you first for you to believe in yourself.” — Meghan Slaughter “Am I doing this with intention, or am I just doing this to be busy?” — Meghan Slaughter “You can't help people grow if you don't challenge them in some way or another.” — Jody Holland “Your mission statement should be a lens that you're focusing your life and your activities through.” — Mike Grigsby “What do you look at and get disproportionately annoyed or angry about

    33 - Live The Mission

  8. Aug 12

    32 - The Relationship Advantage: Why Rapport Makes You More Resilient

    Episode Overview What if one of the most overlooked ways to become more resilient isn't simply developing a tougher mindset—but developing better relationships? In this episode of Become the Leader, Jody Holland sits down with Meghan Slaughter and Maleah Berens to explore the connection between rapport, relationships, rejection, feedback, and resilience. The conversation begins with something deceptively simple: how we connect with people. Remembering someone's name, noticing what matters to them, asking good questions, listening instead of pitching, and paying attention to the people around us can dramatically change the quality of our relationships. But rapport isn't simply a networking skill. When relationships are built on trust, people become better equipped to navigate rejection, receive feedback, adapt to difficult circumstances, and recover when things don't go according to plan. The group explores the idea that rejection doesn't necessarily mean failure—it can simply be redirection toward a better fit. The conversation ultimately challenges leaders to treat every interaction as an investment. You never know what someone else is carrying, where their journey will take them, or when today's relationship will matter tomorrow. Key Learning Points Rapport begins with attention. Remember names, listen for small details, notice what people value, and demonstrate that you genuinely see the person in front of you. Don't network by pitching yourself. Ask questions, become curious, and focus on understanding the other person. People often remember how a conversation made them feel more than what you told them about yourself. Remembering a few personal details differentiates you. Jody discusses Harvey Mackay's approach of learning details about customers and suggests that remembering even four meaningful things can dramatically improve connection. Rejection can be reframed as redirection. Someone who isn't the right customer today isn't necessarily rejecting you personally—and may eventually become a referral source or future connection. Curiosity creates resilience. Instead of emotionally reacting when something doesn't work, become curious about what happened, what you can learn, and what you might change next time. Solve before you sell. Removing the pressure to close a deal allows you to concentrate on understanding problems, providing value, and helping people—even when you're not the solution. Rapport changes how feedback is received. When employees trust their leaders, coaching feels less like criticism and more like support. Asking permission before offering feedback can further protect that relationship. Relationships are never finished. Years of rapport can be damaged by one careless interaction, which means leaders must continually protect and invest in relationships. How you treat people today matters tomorrow. Respect shouldn't depend on someone's title, status, influence, or what they can currently do for you. Resilience is built by carrying the weight. Using Sisyphus as a metaphor, Jody reframes life's "boulders" not simply as burdens but as the resistance that can make us stronger. Quotable Moments “Rejection is just redirection.” — Meghan Slaughter “Sometimes you will be changed by your circumstances, but you never have to be reduced to your circumstances.” — Meghan Slaughter “You're never done building the relationship. You're always building the relationship.” — Jody Holland “Treat everybody as if they are rolling a big boulder up a hill and they need your kindness today.” — Jody Holland “We don't always get to choose who we work with, but we get to choose the relationship that we have with them.” — Meghan Slaughter “Walk into every room believing that you have something to teach and something to learn from every person that's in the room with you.” — Maleah Berens The Big Idea Rapport isn't just about getting people to like you. It's about creating relational strength that allows people to navigate difficult moments together. When trust already exists, feedback doesn't automatically feel like an attack. Rejection doesn't have to feel personal. Differences don't automatically become conflict. And difficult circumstances don't have to destroy the relationship. That makes rapport more than a communication skill. Rapport becomes a resilience strategy. Listener Challenge In your next conversation, resist the urge to impress someone. Instead, notice them. Remember their name. Ask a question. Listen for something that matters to them. Look for an opportunity to help without expecting anything in return. And when someone disappoints you, rejects an idea, or gives you difficult feedback, replace the immediate emotional story with curiosity: “What can I learn from this?” Because strong leaders don't simply build stronger people. They build stronger relationships—and those relationships help people become more resilient.

    32 - The Relationship Advantage: Why Rapport Makes You More Resilient
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Become The Leader is all about finding your pathway to the skills needed to inspire others to follow. There is a whole new generation of leaders rising up, ready to lead and inspire greatness in their teams. Join us to learn what it means to truly become the leader others want to follow.

Information

  • Creator
    Jody Holland & Meghan Slaughter
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    77
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Jody Holland, Inc.
  • Show Website
    Become The Leader

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