Peace Love and Bring a Bat

 

What if success comes down to one question: What value are you bringing to the people around you?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes David Hines, a U.S. Navy veteran and author of The Big MAC Effect who has lived in Kuwait for the past 16 years.

Born in Brooklyn and adopted at age seven, David joined the Navy after high school while searching for purpose. Military structure, accountability, discipline, and mentorship shaped his approach to leadership—and ultimately inspired the lessons in his book.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why adding value strengthens relationships
• How a Big Mac became a leadership philosophy
• Why accountability starts with your thoughts
• How military discipline shaped David’s mindset
• Why asking better questions accelerates growth
• How small habits build long-term discipline
• Why self-doubt keeps people stuck
• How planning reduces overwhelm
• Why leadership begins with leading yourself
• How empathy helps leaders understand others
• Why self-awareness becomes a battle plan for life

THE BIG MAC EFFECT

David explains that when he wants a Big Mac, he is willing to walk farther and pay more because he sees value in what McDonald’s offers.

That became a bigger question:

Why should someone build a relationship with you?

For David, success requires becoming valuable to others—solving problems, serving people, and contributing something meaningful.

ACCOUNTABILITY CHANGES EVERYTHING

One of David’s earliest leadership lessons was simple:

You are accountable for your life.

Your thoughts. Your attitude. Your philosophy. Your actions.

The past matters, but David believes your vision for the future matters more. Instead of staying trapped in yesterday, ask what you can do today to create a better tomorrow.

DISCIPLINE IS SELF-LOVE

David still makes his bed every morning because discipline is built through small actions repeated over time.

Exercise. Planning. Reading. Saving money. Keeping promises to yourself.

He also shares how a conversation with a financially successful friend forced him to confront his own finances. Rather than blame circumstances, David began studying investing and wealth-building.

His philosophy: when you recognize a weakness, take responsibility and start learning.

LEAD YOURSELF FIRST

Leadership is not simply giving orders.

Before anyone follows you, you must be able to lead yourself.

David challenges leaders to set expectations clearly, hold people accountable, show empathy, and sometimes ask others to view the problem from the leader’s chair.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

David shares a lesson from his parents:

“It’s not what other people say about you that determines your success. What matters is what you say about yourself.”

Your internal voice helps shape your destination.

And when life becomes the battlefield, David’s battle plan starts with:

Self-awareness.

Know yourself. Keep learning. Read. Ask better questions. Take responsibility. Keep moving forward.

CONNECT WITH DAVID HINES

Website:
https://davidhinesliving.com/

Facebook: David Hines / Author

Book: The Big MAC Effect — available on Amazon

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #DavidHines #TheBigMACEffect #Leadership #Discipline #Accountability #SelfAwareness #PersonalGrowth #VeteranLeadership #Mindset

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What if pressure is not something to avoid—but something you can learn to use?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Silvia Rizzo, Italian Grand Prix dressage rider, entrepreneur, life coach, branding professional, and founder of Hof Marabunta.

Silvia has spent years competing in high-performance environments where trust, pressure, risk, discipline, and split-second decisions are part of everyday life.

Her relationship with horses taught her something powerful: communication happens long before words.

Horses react to energy, emotion, confidence, hesitation, and intention. Silvia discovered that many of those same lessons apply directly to leading people.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why pressure does not have to become your enemy
• What horses teach us about trust and communication
• How elite sport prepares leaders for high-stakes decisions
• Why leaders must adapt to different personalities
• How emotions can turn one mistake into a second mistake
• Why accountability protects credibility
• How sport and business leadership overlap
• Why teams need a shared vision
• Why motivation alone does not create lasting performance
• How character reveals itself when plans fall apart
• Why leaders must make decisions without having every answer
• How avoiding responsibility is still a decision
• Why adaptability is more powerful than trying to control everything

PRESSURE IS PART OF THE GAME

Silvia Rizzo believes pressure exists everywhere—in sport, business, relationships, and life.

You cannot eliminate it.

You can learn how to perform within it.

For Silvia, the answer is building an internal structure based on:

Values.
Experience.
Mistakes.
Fundamentals.
Character.

When pressure rises, you do not have time to reinvent yourself.

You rely on what you have already built.

DON’T TURN ONE MISTAKE INTO TWO

Silvia believes making a mistake does not automatically destroy credibility.

What happens next matters more.

The first mistake happens.

The second mistake begins when ego takes over.

Blaming others, making excuses, becoming defensive, or refusing accountability can cause more damage than the original error.

Instead:

Recognize it.
Own it.
Learn from it.
Reset.
Move forward.

Strong leadership does not require perfection.

It requires stability and accountability.

LOOK WHERE YOU WANT TO GO

Silvia compares leadership to riding a horse.

You cannot constantly stare at where you are.

You have to look toward where you want to go.

The same applies in business.

A leader needs a clear goal while remaining aware of changing circumstances, new opportunities, risks, and the people around them.

The destination can remain the same even when the route must change.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Silvia Rizzo’s seed is to create your own internal structure.

Take your experiences.

Take your mistakes.

Take your values.

Take what life has taught you.

Put them together and understand who you are.

Then when pressure arrives, uncertainty increases, or plans fall apart, you have something solid to return to.

Stay focused.

Accept responsibility.

Adapt when necessary.

And keep looking forward.

CONNECT WITH SILVIA RIZZO

Hof Marabunta:
https://www.hofmarabuntablog.com/

Silvia Rizzo can also be found on LinkedIn and Instagram.

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #SilviaRizzo #Leadership #HighPerformance #Dressage #Pressure #Adaptability #Accountability #SelfAwareness #HofMarabunta #PersonalGrowth

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What if leadership begins before you ever lead a team?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Dustin Shepherd, a 30-year Army veteran, combat leader, mentor, and founder of Polaris Leadership Academy.

Dustin joined the military right out of high school after growing up in an environment where he needed structure, safety, and purpose. The Army gave him all three.

Over three decades of service—including combat deployments, infantry leadership, and senior-level responsibility—Dustin learned that leadership is not simply about authority, rank, or accomplishing the mission.

It is about understanding the human being first.

That lesson became even more important during his own transition, recovery, and personal growth. Dustin realized that before anyone can effectively lead others, they must first learn how to lead themselves.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why self-leadership is the starting point for recovery
• How military structure can create safety and trust
• Why strong teams do not require everyone to like each other
• How leaders manage different levels of commitment
• Why psychological safety creates better decisions
• How trust must continually be earned
• Why habits and patterns shape behavior
• How pausing can interrupt chaos and poor decisions
• The difference between treating a symptom and solving the real problem
• Why leaders must know when to coach, mentor, or lead
• How listening to understand differs from listening to respond
• Why human connection matters more than organizational mechanics
• How Dustin’s own recovery shaped Polaris Leadership Academy

LEAD THE HUMAN FIRST

After leaving the military, Dustin took a hard look at his leadership career.

He noticed something important.

Where he succeeded, he usually met the human need first.

Where he struggled, he often placed the organization, system, process, or mission ahead of the person.

That realization became central to his leadership philosophy.

People need to feel safe enough to communicate honestly, make decisions, and take responsibility.

A leader cannot control another person.

But a leader can help create an environment where trust, accountability, and growth become possible.

COACH. MENTOR. LEAD.

Dustin believes leaders must move between three roles:

Coach — Help people improve technique and execution in the moment.

Mentor — Help people develop judgment, awareness, and their own approach.

Lead — Step forward when pressure, uncertainty, or friction requires clear direction.

Great leadership is knowing which role the moment requires.

TAKE THE PAUSE

Dustin shares a story about losing his keys while changing a trailer tire.

The keys were nearby the entire time.

But stress pushed him into chaos mode.

A stranger saw what Dustin could not.

The lesson became what he calls the “15 extra steps.”

When everything feels like it is going wrong:

Pause.

Create space.

Look again.

Ask better questions.

Sometimes the answer is already in front of you.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Dustin’s seed is:

Work on your own growth first.

Before trying to fix everyone around you, understand your own patterns, triggers, strengths, and blind spots.

Growth starts with awareness.

Once you begin leading yourself differently, you become more capable of helping others move forward too.

Your starting point can always be reset.

CONNECT WITH DUSTIN SHEPHERD

Polaris Leadership Academy:
https://4pla.org/

Explore the academy’s work around leadership, recovery, mentorship, human connection, and its Pay It Forward campaign.

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #DustinShepherd #PolarisLeadershipAcademy #Leadership #SelfLeadership #VeteranLeadership #Recovery #Mentorship #Trust #PersonalGrowth #PayItForward

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CAN’T BREAK ME: KEVIN “KAYR” ROBINSON ON DISCIPLINE, TRANSFORMATIONAL WEALTH & REWRITING YOUR FUTURE

What if the place you start in life has nothing to do with where you finish?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Kevin “Kayr” Robinson, entrepreneur, real estate investor, author, and founder of Kayr Motivates.

Kevin grew up in Philadelphia as one of seven children raised by a single mother on welfare. Before turning 18, he moved about 18 times and grew up surrounded by instability, poverty, overcrowding, and uncertainty.

By eighth grade, Kevin was smoking, skipping school, and barely passing.

Then one conversation changed everything.

His stepfather told him not to repeat the mistakes he had seen around him. Kevin decided to build a different life around what he calls the Three Ds: Desire, Discipline, and Determination.

He went from the bottom of his class to graduating valedictorian, becoming class president, debate captain, and track captain, earning a scholarship, building a Wall Street career, and eventually becoming a multimillionaire real estate investor with more than 160 rental units.

In this episode, you will discover:

• How Kevin escaped a cycle of instability and poverty
• Why desire without discipline does not create results
• How determination carries you through setbacks
• Why mentors became Kevin’s “personal board of directors”
• How vulnerability helped him ask for the help he needed
• Why a closed mouth does not get fed
• How he went from survival to structure to stability
• Why success starts with mastering the basics
• How internships and relationships helped him reach Wall Street
• Why you should run your own race at your own pace
• How real estate helped Kevin create financial freedom
• The difference between generational wealth and transformational wealth
• Why confidence can be taught and practiced
• How daily routines keep people moving when motivation disappears

THE THREE Ds

Kevin’s framework begins with:

Desire — Want something better strongly enough to pursue it.

Discipline — Build routines and do what you say you are going to do.

Determination — Keep moving when setbacks make quitting easier.

Kevin also believes success requires the right people around you.

He built a personal board of directors made up of mentors, teachers, coaches, sponsors, and people who could teach him what he could not learn at home.

DO WHAT’S NECESSARY

Kevin lives by a simple progression:

Do what’s necessary.
Then do what’s possible.
Eventually, you may find yourself doing what once felt impossible.

His advice for staying focused is practical: choose only three or four things each day that truly move the needle.

Everything else is extra.

TRANSFORMATIONAL WEALTH

Kevin distinguishes generational wealth from what he calls transformational wealth.

Instead of only leaving assets behind someday, he uses success today to create opportunities for family members, friends, and others around him.

The goal is not simply leaving wealth behind.

It is helping transform lives now.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Kevin’s final seed is:

It’s not where you start. It’s where you finish.

Your past may explain you.

It does not get to define your future.

Keep reinventing yourself. Keep learning. Keep moving.

And stay unbreakable.

CONNECT WITH KEVIN “KAYR” ROBINSON

Website:
https://kayrmotivates.com/

Social Media:
@KAYRMotivates

Book:
Can’t Break Me

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #KevinKayrRobinson #KayrMotivates #CantBreakMe #Discipline #RealEstate #TransformationalWealth #PersonalGrowth #Mentorship #Resilience

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What if your brain needs training just as much as your body does?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Arnold Beekes, founder of Brain Athletes, for a conversation about leadership, change, brain health, neuroplasticity, and why most people wait too long to intentionally train how they think, feel, and respond.

Arnold grew up in a highly controlled household and later built a successful corporate career in technology, eventually managing thousands of people and a billion-dollar business.

But in his 40s, a coach asked him a question nobody had ever asked before:

“What do you want?”

That moment forced Arnold to confront how much of his life had been shaped by expectations, conditioning, and obedience rather than personal choice.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why change feels threatening even when it is necessary
• How childhood and workplace conditioning shape behavior
• Why many people only change when pain forces them to
• How neuroplasticity allows the brain to keep creating new connections
• Why brain health should be trained like physical fitness
• How caregiving for his mother and supporting his sister changed Arnold’s mission
• What “digital dementia” means and how constant scrolling affects attention and memory
• Why instant gratification can weaken concentration
• How learning, creating, and caring can strengthen the brain
• Why prevention matters long before cognitive decline appears
• How belief systems can become invisible “straitjackets”
• Why being kind to yourself is part of becoming mentally stronger

THE 6R BRAIN FITNESS METHOD

Arnold Beekes organizes his work around six Rs:

Reveal — Identify the beliefs, conditioning, and “straitjackets” limiting you.

Recover — Recover from suppression, unhealthy coping patterns, and addictive behaviors.

Reactivate — Reconnect with emotional, physical, spiritual, social, and environmental dimensions of yourself.

Reset — Change the lens through which you see yourself and the world.

Relearn — Build new knowledge, skills, habits, and mindsets.

Recreate — Use what you have learned to redesign your life, relationships, community, and future.

Arnold believes your brain can continue changing throughout life.

The key is consistent practice.

Just as an athlete does not become world-class after one workout, brain fitness requires repetition, discipline, and time.

DIGITAL DEMENTIA

Arnold uses the term “digital dementia” to describe declining memory, concentration, and attention connected to overreliance on devices and constant short-form stimulation.

His message is simple:

If you do not use a capability, you risk losing it.

Read longer material.

Learn something new.

Break familiar patterns.

Give your brain something to work on.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Arnold leaves listeners with three actions:

Learn.

Create.

Care.

Learn something new every day—even if it is one word, one fact, or the name of a bird you noticed outside.

Create something from what you learn.

And care for yourself first so you have the capacity to care for others.

His final reminder:

Be kind to yourself.

You can rebuild, retrain, and continue growing.

CONNECT WITH ARNOLD BEEKES

Brain Athletes:
https://brainathletes.club/

Explore Arnold Beekes’ Brain Athletes training, resources, and programs focused on brain fitness, neuroplasticity, personal growth, and lifelong learning.

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #ArnoldBeekes #BrainAthletes #BrainFitness #Neuroplasticity #Leadership #PersonalGrowth #MentalFitness #DigitalWellness #LifelongLearning

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STOP CONFUSING STRATEGY WITH CULTURE: ROBERT WHITE ON LEADERSHIP, TRUST & A HIGHER STATE OF NOTICING

What if extraordinary leadership has less to do with having all the answers—and more to do with creating a culture where people can tell the truth?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Robert White, entrepreneur, leadership teacher, author, and pioneer in experiential learning whose work has reached more than a million people.

Robert’s story began in poverty and abuse. As a young man, his driving purpose became simple:

“I’ll never be poor again.”

That motivation helped him create extraordinary success, but eventually forced him to ask a deeper question:

What is my life actually for?

From radio to Mind Dynamics, LifeSpring, international leadership work, and more than two decades living abroad, Robert’s career became an ongoing study of human behavior, culture, purpose, trust, and transformation.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why culture is foundational to extraordinary performance
• How a negative purpose can still produce impressive results
• Why purpose, vision, values, and strategic intent must align
• Why people often make decisions emotionally and justify them logically
• How trust grows when people work toward meaningful goals
• Why leaders must sometimes hear uncomfortable truths
• How hidden resentment damages organizations
• Why authenticity increases honesty inside teams
• How being committed to “I’m right” destroys connection
• Why your personal story can prevent you from seeing reality
• How relationships become the foundation of leadership
• Why noticing is one of the most important leadership skills

CULTURE BEFORE STRATEGY

Robert believes culture is not a slogan, poster, retreat, or corporate catchphrase.

Culture is how people actually experience an organization.

He shares lessons from working with major companies, including Chase, where senior leaders were brought together to deeply examine purpose, vision, values, trust, and relationships.

A strategy may look brilliant on paper.

But if the people executing it do not trust one another, communicate honestly, or understand what they are building together, that strategy will suffer.

Robert’s framework centers on three things:

Focus.

Alignment.

Commitment.

When people become clear about what matters and why, extraordinary performance becomes possible.

HONESTY BUILDS TRUST

Robert says people often know what is wrong inside an organization long before leadership admits it.

They talk privately.

They feel it in meetings.

They communicate it through silence, frustration, body language, and the occasional eye roll.

Leadership requires being willing to see reality instead of remaining trapped inside your own story.

Strong relationships require trust.

And trust grows when people can tell the truth while continuing to work toward meaningful goals.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Robert White’s seed is simple:

Wake up.

Develop a higher state of noticing.

Notice what repeatedly triggers you.

Notice your anger, sadness, fear, and joy.

Notice the people around you more deeply.

And notice your environment.

Spend time alone with yourself—walking, swimming, praying, meditating, or simply being outside.

Do not immediately run from what you feel.

There may be a lesson inside it.

Live the life you were born to live.

CONNECT WITH ROBERT WHITE

Website:
https://extraordinarypeople.com/

Book:
Building an Extraordinary Life

Robert also offers a free resource on eight principles for extraordinary living and his weekly ezine, An Extraordinary Minute.

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #RobertWhite #ExtraordinaryLeadership #Leadership #CompanyCulture #Trust #Authenticity #PersonalGrowth #SelfAwareness #Relationships

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CURIOSITY OVER JUDGMENT: ERIC ROBINSON ON LEADERSHIP, THE FBI & HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

What happens when a Baptist pastor trades the pulpit for 24 years in the FBI?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes retired FBI Special Agent Eric Robinson, whose career included drug cartels, gangs, public corruption, organized crime, crimes against children, financial crimes, counterterrorism, national security, SWAT, firearms instruction, and tactical operations.

Before the FBI, Eric served as a pastor. That background became one of his greatest strengths in law enforcement.

He learned how to listen.

Eric discovered that whether he was talking with a victim, informant, gang member, financial criminal, or sex offender, curiosity often produced better results than judgment.

In this episode, you will discover:

• What 24 years in the FBI taught Eric about human behavior
• How pastoral listening skills transferred into criminal investigations
• Why first responders often use dark humor to process difficult experiences
• How constant on-call responsibility affects stress and presence
• Why training creates confidence under pressure
• How trust between SWAT teammates reduces fear
• How Eric helped investigate former Chicago police commander Jon Burge
• Why law enforcement must confront misconduct inside its own ranks
• How Eric approached offenders without excusing their actions
• Why connection can lead to stronger confessions and cases
• How diverse backgrounds strengthen investigative teams
• Why asking experts for help is a leadership strength
• How curiosity keeps leaders from assuming they know the answer

TRAIN UNTIL FEAR GETS QUIET

Eric says one of the most important lessons from SWAT was the power of competence.

Through constant training, firearms practice, tactical exercises, and real-world operations, he learned to trust his own abilities and the people beside him.

That trust allowed him to stay present.

Instead of thinking about everything that could go wrong, he could focus on one question:

What is my job right now?

Preparation did not eliminate danger.

It eliminated unnecessary hesitation.

CURIOSITY OVER JUDGMENT

Eric worked cases involving people who had committed horrific crimes.

His job was not to deliver the punishment.

His job was to uncover the truth and build the strongest possible case.

Rather than beginning with condemnation, Eric learned to listen, ask questions, and let people talk.

That same skill had served him as a pastor.

People reveal more when they believe someone is genuinely listening.

The lesson is powerful:

Do not enter every conversation believing you already know everything.

IRREVEREND

Eric’s upcoming book is:

Irreverend: From Saving Souls to Chasing Sinners in the FBI

The book follows his journey from the ministry into the FBI and the remarkable cases, people, dangers, and lessons he encountered along the way.

It is scheduled for release in October.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Eric’s seed is simple:

Lead with curiosity.

Before judging, ask.

Before assuming, listen.

Before deciding you understand someone, learn more.

You may discover information that changes the entire situation.

The smartest person in the room is not always the one with the answers.

Sometimes it is the person willing to ask the next question.

CONNECT WITH ERIC ROBINSON

Website:
https://preachertobreacher.com/

Instagram:
@_eric_robinson

Book:
Irreverend: From Saving Souls to Chasing Sinners in the FBI

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #EricRobinson #FBI #Leadership #LawEnforcement #HumanIntelligence #Curiosity #Teamwork #Irreverend

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STOP TREATING DOUBT LIKE A WEAKNESS: MARTIN J. WATTS ON DESIGNING YOUR WAY FORWARD

What if doubt is not a sign that something is wrong with you—but a signal that something in your situation needs attention?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes entrepreneur, inventor, author, and founder Martin J. Watts, whose four decades in business span advertising, manufacturing, product invention, and leadership.

Martin’s path was anything but conventional. A C-average student who did not attend college, he was fired from his first job and started his own business. After 9/11 devastated his advertising business, Martin lost nearly everything and filed for bankruptcy.

He kept building.

That journey became the foundation for his book When Doubt Becomes Design.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why doubt is a signal—not a weakness
• How unstable situations create uncertainty
• Why entrepreneurs must learn to build through failure
• How intentional culture can outperform strategy
• Why core values must reflect who you truly are
• How poor culture fit can damage teams
• Why leaders should hire people who align with values, not identical personalities
• The four factors of instability behind doubt
• Why confirmation can be more useful than affirmation
• How action breaks paralysis
• Why smart leaders ask questions
• Why good coaches create clarity instead of dependence
• How structure helped Martin survive childhood trauma
• Why counting wins protects leaders from constant firefighting

WHEN DOUBT BECOMES DESIGN

Martin identifies four common sources of instability:

Pending Decisions — Something needs to be decided, but no decision has been made.

Unresolved Tension — Everyone can feel that something is wrong, but nobody addresses it.

Perceived Instability — Fear, comparison, assumptions, or imposter feelings appear before the facts are known.

Uncertain Outcomes — You take action, but you cannot control how things will turn out.

Martin’s message is that doubt itself is not the real problem.

Instability is the source. Doubt is the signal.

Instead of sitting in doubt, identify what is uncertain, gather information, create a plan, and execute.

CULTURE EATS STRATEGY

Martin believes every organization already has a culture.

The question is whether it happened accidentally or was built intentionally.

Team outings do not create culture by themselves. Culture comes from repeated behaviors, values, expectations, communication, accountability, and how people treat one another.

One of Martin’s core values was simple:

Own it.

If you make a mistake, own it.

If you succeed, own that too.

ACTION OVER DOUBT

Martin says many leaders spend too much time talking and too little time executing.

Ask questions.

Write things down.

Talk with trusted people.

Build a plan.

Then move.

He points to the principle that inaction breeds doubt while action creates confidence and courage.

You do not need certainty about the outcome before taking the next intelligent step.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Martin leaves listeners with a favorite idea:

“On the day of victory, no one is tired.”

His challenge is to count your wins.

Martin once held “Humble Brag Friday” with his team. Everyone had to name something they did well that week.

Why?

Because leaders spend so much time solving problems that they can forget how much they accomplished.

Count your wins.

Acknowledge progress.

And keep building.

CONNECT WITH MARTIN J. WATTS

Website:
https://martinjwatts.com/

Book:
When Doubt Becomes Design

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #MartinJWatts #WhenDoubtBecomesDesign #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #CompanyCulture #Mindset #PersonalGrowth #BusinessLeadership #SelfAwareness

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STOP LIVING BY AN OLD STORY: JIM BURGOON ON TRANSITION, SERVANT LEADERSHIP & TELLING A BETTER STORY

What if the story holding you back is one you have repeated for so long that it started feeling like truth?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes his friend Jim Burgoon, leadership coach, veteran, author, and creator of Lead With Jim.

Jim helps people understand who they are, confront limiting beliefs, strengthen relationships, and move toward what they believe they are called to create. His work includes leadership development, mindset, DISC personality, communication, faith, and personal growth.

The conversation begins with transition—what happens when you realize you no longer belong in the place where you once fit.

Jim believes every season needs an exit strategy. How you leave matters. Leaders should close relationships well, finish responsibilities, train others, avoid burning bridges, and leave things better than they found them.

But transition is not only organizational.

It is emotional.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why DISC profiles can shift and should never become identity prisons
• How to leave a job, role, or season with integrity
• Why transition requires grieving what is ending
• How “radical acceptance” helps people move through change
• Why relationships must be redefined rather than simply discarded
• How old stories become limiting beliefs
• Why you cannot change what you refuse to confront
• How confirmation bias can reinforce a false identity
• Why self-awareness is essential for leadership
• How trust, communication, and compassion grow together
• Why wisdom comes from evaluating experience—not simply surviving it
• How servant leaders combine service with direction
• Why natural gifts, learned skills, and spiritual gifts are different
• Why your inner circle matters when identifying your strengths
• How celebrating progress makes the road ahead less overwhelming

TELL A BETTER STORY

Jim shares a deeply personal example from his own life.

As a young trumpet player, he dreamed of studying music and performing. Despite real accomplishments, important people told him he had no talent.

He believed them.

That sentence became a story Jim carried for decades. Later failures appeared to confirm it, creating a cycle of self-sabotage.

His message is simple:

You will never change what you do not confront.

First, identify the story.

Then ask why you believed it.

Finally, replace the lie with something true.

That process became part of Jim’s first book, Tell a Better Story.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP

Jim believes servant leadership is one of the strongest models of leadership.

Serving does not mean refusing to lead.

A leader still needs to climb above the trees, see the direction, communicate the vision, then come back down and help everyone move toward it together.

Leadership starts with relationship.

And healthy relationships begin with learning how to relate to yourself.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Jim’s seed is about patience.

Take your time and process properly.

There is no race.

Hustle culture can convince people that everything must happen immediately, but emotional, mental, physical, relational, and spiritual health deserve time.

Have compassion for yourself.

Take one step.

If you fall back, get up and take another.

Every step forward matters.

The only true failure is deciding to quit completely.

CONNECT WITH JIM BURGOON

Website:
https://leadwithjim.com/

Social Media:
@leadwithjim

Book:
Tell a Better Story

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #JimBurgoon #LeadWithJim #TellABetterStory #ServantLeadership #LeadershipDevelopment #SelfAwareness #PersonalGrowth #Faith #Mindset #Transition

To support us:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547

STOP PRETENDING YOU HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS: IVANNA ROSENDAL ON LEADERSHIP, HUMOR & TRANSFORMATION

What if the fastest way to transform an organization is to stop acting like everyone has to be serious all the time?

On this episode of Peace, Love, and Bring a Bat, Uncle Dave welcomes Ivanna Rosendal, a Copenhagen-based life sciences leader who combines behavioral science, organizational transformation, and comedy.

Ivanna leads a technology organization within Ascendis Pharma and studies why organizations behave the way they do. Her mission became personal after watching a former partner struggle with chronic illness and limited treatment options. She became determined to help make pharma work better for patients.

She also uses improvisational and stand-up comedy to expose the absurdities inside serious corporate environments.

Ivanna believes many professionals wear a “mask of competence,” pretending they understand everything because they are afraid to admit uncertainty. Humor can break through that mask, lower defenses, and help teams see dysfunctional systems differently.

In this episode, you will discover:

• Why serious workplaces need more humor
• How the “mask of competence” creates dysfunction
• Why pharma employees care deeply about patients
• How failure in drug development can still represent progress
• Why transformation requires experience—not simply telling
• How leaders can paint a vision without pretending they have every answer
• Why different assumptions create conflict inside teams
• How metaphors and humor can uncover those differences
• How Ivanna manages ADHD-style distraction with physical reminders
• Why everyone should remain a beginner at something
• How learning new skills builds empathy
• Why communities make skill-building easier
• How office design affects stress, connection, and belonging
• Why corporate “games” like year-end budget spending should be questioned
• How business travel can build community

TRANSFORMATION THROUGH EXPERIENCE

Ivanna believes telling people what to do has limited power.

Real transformation happens when people experience something for themselves.

When a leader simply tells people the answer, it can create a power dynamic: “I understand this, and you need to catch up.”

But leaders do not have all the answers.

Instead, Ivanna helps teams identify what already works, uncover where assumptions differ, and imagine what those pieces could become together.

Maybe the answer is not the “Lego giraffe” the leader pictured.

Maybe it becomes a gorilla.

The goal is not proving the leader right. It is building something better.

FOCUSING THE “SQUIRREL BRAIN”

Ivanna describes herself as having a brain that can easily chase the next idea.

Her solution is simple.

She places a Post-it on her computer stating exactly what she is doing:

“Right now you are answering emails.”

When another thought appears, she writes it in a notebook instead of abandoning the task.

The notebook holds the distractions.

The Post-it holds the focus.

She also credits the Pomodoro Method, physical activity, and task-management systems with helping her concentrate.

SEED FOR THE MAGIC GARDEN

Ivanna leaves listeners with one question:

“What about the situation I’m in is funny?”

When something goes wrong—a delayed flight, difficult meeting, or frustrating process—look for the absurdity.

Humor does not erase the difficulty.

It changes your relationship with it.

Seeing what is funny can create enough space to see another possibility.

CONNECT WITH IVANNA ROSENDAL

LinkedIn:
Ivanna Rosendal

Lab Twives:
https://labtwives.com/

Maneuvering Monday:
https://maneuveringmonday.com/

#PeaceLoveAndBringABat #IvannaRosendal #Leadership #Transformation #OrganizationalChange #BehavioralScience #WorkplaceCulture #Comedy #ADHD #PharmaLeadership

To support us:

https://davidchametzky.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@davidchametzkyNOW

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/peace-love-and-bring-a-bat/id1552738547