Episode recap: Marcel and Kelly discussed the importance of love and compassion in leadership and the workplace, emphasizing how caring environments enhance performance and reduce turnover. Kelly shared her personal journey and experiences leading self-directed organizations, highlighting the benefits of treating employees as adults and activating their free will. They explored the shift from traditional leadership models to a more collaborative, coaching-based approach, where leaders f...

Episode recap: This episode featured Garry Ridge, former CEO and Chairman of WD-40, who shared his personal journey and philosophy on creating safe, valued, and connected workplaces. As a true Servant Leader, Garry discussed the people-focused strategies that propelled WD-40 to have one of the highest employee retention rates in the world. Marcel and Garry covered topics such as leadership development, psychological safety, and the importance of building and maintaining a strong organizatio...

Episode recap: Uncertainty is where true leadership is tested. In this episode, host Marcel Schwantes reveals why courage—not clarity—is the skill leaders need most today. You’ll learn five practical ways to build courage: reframe fear, grow confidence, take bold steps forward, lean on allies, and stay calm under pressure. With real stories from coaching sessions and powerful leadership examples, Marcel shows how you can stop waiting for certainty and start creating it—so you can inspire tr...

Episode recap: Marcel featured Danielle McGeough, Ph.D, an award-winning professor and transformation strategist, who shared her personal journey and expertise in helping individuals achieve balance through her Rise Ritual method. The discussion explored causes and solutions for workplace burnout, the importance of personal rituals and mindfulness, and strategies for maintaining presence and intentionality in leadership, concluding with recommendations for listeners to create their own pers...

Episode recap: Marcel explored the servant leadership principles and practices of shared leadership and decision. He presented a case study about former U.S. Navy Captain David Marquet's successful transformation of a submarine crew by shifting to a leader-leader model that empowered team members to make decisions. Marcel emphasized the importance of competence and clarity when sharing leadership, while challenging the audience to consider how they can empower others to lead and offered...

Episode recap: Whether you’re a programmer, mother, executive, teacher, or an entrepreneur, this episode is for you if ... 1. You feel like you need five more hours in your day. 2. You are being pulled in a million directions with no end in sight. 3. Your life is BUSY instead of BIG. Erik Qualman, author of "The Focus Project," discussed strategies for improving focus and productivity in a digitally connected world. He shared insights from his personal focus expe...

Episode recap: Peter Bregman joined Marcel on the podcast to discuss the themes of emotional courage and leadership in today’s society, exploring how these concepts apply to current challenges around empathy and fear. Peter and Marcel discussed the importance of acknowledging and understanding one’s own shadow side to prevent insidious behavior and damage. Peter shared his thoughts on the dangers of categorizing people with negative labels, which can lead to a loss of curiosity and closed-min...

Episode recap: This week’s guest is psychologist and author Dr. Caroline Fleck. Our conversation focused on the concept of validation as a leadership tool, exploring its importance in building connections, resolving conflicts, and fostering emotional well-being in both personal and professional settings. Dr. Fleck shared her experiences and insights on validation skills, emphasizing their transformative potential across various domains and their role in creating a culture of acceptance and ...

Episode recap: Today’s show focused on workforce transformation and employee engagement, featuring lively discussions with Kristian Gaetano from Achievers and Janelle Jordan from GoDaddy. They explored the importance of recognition in driving employee engagement, the impact of AI-powered recognition tools on organizational culture, and strategies for creating inclusive work environments. The conversation covered personal leadership practices, successful recognition initiatives, and the ...

Episode recap: Marcel highlights a growing trend of executives seeking coaching to align inner beliefs with outer success. He outlines steps to achieve congruence and invites listeners to explore congruence coaching—focused on inner alignment and purposeful leadership. A free discovery call is available for those wanting to lead from their core values and integrate purpose into work and life. Book your free, 15-minute discovery call here: https://calendly.com/marcelschw...

Episode Recap: Tony Martignetti, a popular leadership coach, author and podcaster extraordinaire, joined Marcel to talk about his leadership journey. Tony talked about his book "Campfire Lessons for Leaders," exploring leadership topics such as curiosity, creativity, finding your purpose and embracing emotional courage. Both guest and host shared their personal journeys transitioning from traditional careers to leadership development roles, emphasizing the importance of authenticity and vulne...

Episode Recap: In this episode, we dive into Sabina Nawaz's new book You’re the Boss: Becoming the Manager You Want to Be (and Others Need), which offers fresh insights for managers looking to thrive in today’s high-pressure world. Nawaz, a global C-suite coach, shares her 20+ years of experience coaching top executives at companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and the United Nations. With proven strategies backed by thousands of 360° reviews, Nawaz reveals how pressure and power can derail even t...

Episode recap: Elina Teboul joined Marcel to discuss her groundbreaking work, as featured in her new book, Feminine Intelligence. Teboul reveals how feminine intelligence is the key to running some of the world's most successful companies ― with greater joy, authenticity, purpose and profit. Drawing on exclusive interviews with billionaire philanthropists, unicorn founders, and happiness pioneers, Feminine Intelligence uncovers the most powerful, often-overlooked traits that are driving the...

Episode recap: Known as The Drop In CEO™, Deborah Coviello, a respected leadership consultant, joined Marcel to discuss her journey of self-discovery that led her to write her seminal book, The CEO’s Compass. She emphasized the importance of peace of mind, humility, and investing in mentoring and coaching programs to develop essential skills. Guest Bio: Known as The Drop In CEO™, Deb’s superpower is lowering the temperature and elevating conversations with empathy and patience. As a speake...

Episode recap: Marcel discusses the concept of kindness in leadership, focusing on empathetic interactions as one of two types of kindness that work well in the leadership trenches, backed by science. He explains that kindness can spread throughout an organization, creating a more civil work atmosphere. Marcel presents five practical ways to practice empathic leadership: active listening, showing genuine interest in team members, encouraging perspective-taking, maintaining open communication,...

Episode recap: This week Marcel sits down with Dr. Jeff Wetzler, author of Ask: Tap Into the Hidden Wisdom of People Around You for Unexpected Breakthroughs In Leadership and Life. In this enlightening conversation, Marcel and Jeff discussed the importance of asking the right questions and being curious in leadership and life. Jeff introduces a powerful scientific method called The Ask Approach™, a practical framework for learning from others. They explored the challenges that prevent people ...

Episode recap: Marcel discussed his new book, Humane Leadership and the spiritual/religious background of his principles of love and action, which he developed after experiencing poor management at a hospital. He emphasized the importance of leaders caring for their employees and shared research on how principles and practices from ancient religious traditions principles can be applied in leadership contexts. Marcel encouraged leaders to implement his five radical principles of love in actio...

Episode recap: Today’s guest is Siri Chilazi, a leading gender expert, Harvard researcher, and co-author of Make Work Fair: Data-Driven Design for Real Results. Marcel and Siri discussed gender equity in the workplace, highlighting progress made and challenges that remain in achieving fairness for all employees. They explored strategies for implementing gender equity, including the use of data-driven approaches, revising hiring practices, and adapting leadership criteria to reflect changing w...

Episode recap: Marcel discussed his new book, Humane Leadership, which emphasizes the importance of expressing actionable love in the workplace and the need for leaders to care for their employees. He also emphasized the importance of continuous learning and growth in leadership, as well as the necessity of developing people skills to achieve business success. Marcel also mentioned that he is offering bonus content, including chapters 3 and 4, on his Substack platform. Go to Marcelschwantes.s...

Pre-order Marcel’s new book: Humane Leadership: Lead with Radical Love, Be a Kick-Ass Boss Episode recap: Humane Leadership: 5 Key Principles Marcel discussed his new book, Humane Leadership, which explores the connection between agape and effective leadership. He shared excerpts from the book, focusing on the 5 principles of humane leadership: patience, kindness, humility, advocacy, and trustworthiness. Marcel emphasized that these principles, rooted in science and best practices...