Perfection promises safety, but it quietly drains momentum, frustrates teams, and lets faster competitors win. We pull back the curtain on the perfection trap and show how courageous action, not flawless planning, drives real results. From stress drivers that kick in under pressure to the subtle fears that keep smart leaders stuck, we map the patterns that stall execution and offer a practical path forward. Lois unpacks the critical difference between excellence and perfection. Excellen...

Strategy doesn’t fail because the ideas are weak; it fails because our nervous systems spin up at the worst moment and pull us into reflex over reason. We pull back the curtain on the leadership advantage most people overlook: the ability to regulate your internal state so your best thinking is available when stakes are high. We start with a candid client story: a brilliant director who alternated between force and frantic pivots under pressure. His board lost confidence, his team felt whipla...

When the calendar is full and the title looks impressive, why can the work still feel empty? Lois digs into that uneasy gap between outward success and inner drive, sharing a candid story of a senior leader who looked unstoppable on paper but felt depleted in practice. The conversation moves from recognition to action, showing how small, practical shifts can restore meaning without blowing up your career. We start by getting honest about what changed. Early joy often came from learning, solvi...

What if the smartest move a leader can make is to stop solving first? We share a candid story from a senior executive who could out-think any business problem, yet couldn’t keep great people. His blind spot wasn’t strategy—it was impact. By noticing the reflex to jump in with answers and learning to pause, ask questions, and make space for his team’s thinking, everything changed. Attrition slowed. Engagement soared. Most importantly, the team felt trusted enough to bring real challenges...

Speed feels productive—until it doesn’t. We open up a counterintuitive path to better leadership by making space for short, structured reflection that turns noise into insight and motion into meaningful progress. With a candid story about Fiona, a newly minted director drowning in 70-hour weeks, we trace how a 15-minute weekly ritual and three simple questions exposed learned helplessness on her team and sparked a shift from doing to leading. Across the conversation, we break down why r...

Perfection is a convincing mask—and a costly one. We explore how the fear of getting it wrong quietly caps performance, stalls innovation, and isolates leaders from the very insight they need most. Starting with a raw early‑career misstep during a high‑stakes change program, we trace the moment a blunt admission—“I got it wrong”—transformed a tense, silent room into a creative surge that rebuilt the plan and delivered a stronger outcome. From there, we break down why psychological safet...

Fear lurks in the shadows of every leadership journey, yet it's rarely discussed in corner offices or leadership programs. What if the very fears holding you back actually contain the intelligence needed for your next breakthrough? Drawing from 25 years of executive coaching experience, this episode tackles the universal yet often unacknowledged challenge that even the most accomplished leaders face: transforming fear from a paralyzing force into a catalyst for exceptional leadership. We expl...

Finding the sweet spot between challenge and burnout is perhaps the most critical skill for today's leaders. In this deeply insightful exploration of what I call the "stress-pressure performance dynamic," I unpack a transformative leadership concept that emerged from my 25 years coaching executives through their most challenging periods. Pressure and stress are fundamentally different—a distinction that can revolutionize your leadership approach. Like a perfectly tuned violin string, the righ...

Ever wondered why some leaders thrive through crisis while others burn out? The secret might surprise you. Leadership resilience doesn't come from gritting your teeth and pushing through hardship—it flourishes when you embrace joy, play, and curiosity as strategic leadership tools. I've spent 25 years coaching executives through their toughest challenges, and I've consistently found that the most resilient leaders have cracked a code that many others miss entirely: they've learned to harness ...

What carries us through our most challenging moments? It's not our strategies or systems, but our people and the quality of our relationships with them. Welcome to the fifth episode in our resilience series where we dive deep into how strong working relationships form the foundation of resilience for both individuals and organizations. Through my work with hundreds of leadership teams, I've identified five critical elements that distinguish resilient teams from those that crumble under pressu...

What does it take to lead effectively in a world of constant uncertainty and rapid change? Lynn Scott, executive coach and international bestselling author of "Leader Unlocked," joins Lois Burton to tackle this pressing question through a deeply human lens. Leadership today requires navigating a perfect storm of challenges—from AI advancement and geopolitical instability to workforce fatigue and change resistance. The most profound question emerging from these complexities is deceptively simp...

Navigating uncertainty demands more than resilience—it requires cognitive flexibility that transforms challenges into opportunities. After six months of podcasting, I'm diving deep into the fourth pillar of resilience: flexible thinking, the leadership capability that separates those who merely survive change from those who harness it to create something better. The neuroscience is fascinating. When stress hits, our brains default to rigid "system one" thinking exactly when we most need creat...

What propels exceptional leaders forward when everything around them says "stop"? After two decades coaching senior executives across sectors, I've discovered that thriving leadership doesn't stem from intelligence or experience alone—it comes from resilience, particularly the critical third pillar: inner drive. This episode unpacks the transformative power of inner drive through the story of Sadia, a senior executive whose major digital transformation project hit devastating setbacks. ...

Have you ever noticed how some leaders maintain clarity and direction even during the most chaotic circumstances? What separates those who get consumed by daily firefighting from those who transform challenges into stepping stones toward a compelling future? Welcome to an exploration of Future Focus – the second pillar of resilience that empowers leaders to see beyond immediate difficulties while remaining firmly grounded in present realities. Drawing from over two decades of experience coach...

Ever feel like you're running on empty while everyone expects you to be the energizer? You're not alone. After 24 years and 30,000+ hours coaching senior executives, I've discovered that even the most brilliant strategists and natural inspirers burn out because they've never learned to manage their most precious resource: energy. Energy management forms the foundation of resilient leadership – it's not just about personal well-being, but about effectiveness. When you walk into a room, your en...

Feeling like you're leading through fog so thick you can't see your hand in front of your face? You're far from alone. The most pressing leadership challenge today isn't the absence of clarity—it's learning how to navigate effectively when the path forward isn't obvious. Drawing from years of executive coaching experience, I share why ambiguity isn't the enemy of leadership but rather where exceptional leaders are forged. The truth that many miss? Your team's confidence during uncertain times...

Are you leading with yesterday's playbook in today's rapidly changing world? This question sits at the heart of our exploration into why continuous leadership learning isn't just advantageous—it's absolutely critical for survival and success. Drawing from 25 years of coaching experience, I've witnessed a concerning pattern among senior executives: as they climb higher, many delegate learning rather than continuing their own development. They approve training for teams but postpone their own g...

Fear isn't just an inevitable part of organizational change—it's a powerful indicator of what matters most to your team. Drawing from over two decades of executive coaching experience, I take you through the psychology of workplace anxiety and reveal why our brains interpret changing processes as potential threats. The heart of this episode introduces my CALM framework—a practical, human-centered approach that transformational leaders use to guide teams through uncertainty. You'll disco...

Ever noticed how the higher leaders climb, the more they feel they should have all the answers? This dangerous paradox creates isolation exactly when leaders need support most. Drawing from 24 years and over 30,000 hours coaching senior executives, I explore why asking for help isn't weakness—it's the cornerstone of exceptional leadership. Remember the CEO who lost a major contract because he was too afraid to ask questions? His painful realization became a powerful lesson: "I thought asking ...

Trust forms the bedrock of exceptional leadership, but building deep, enduring trust requires more than basic reliability. In this revealing exploration of advanced trust-building practices, we dive into the sophisticated behaviors that truly separate transformational leaders from merely effective ones. At the heart of this advanced curriculum lies "courageous advocacy" - the willingness to stand up for your people even when personally costly. This powerful practice works both ways, requiring...