When Charlie stepped into the role of CEO at Prudential, the company was in need of change. By his estimation, 150-year-old companies don’t remain relevant because of their long tenure, but because of their ability to adapt. The good news was that pivoting in short order was a skill he’d learned decades earlier—as a rower in the U.S. Junior Olympics. That formative experience would serve as a life lesson for finding the grit of an underdog when competitive advantage is lost. Charlie explains the connection between sport and business, what it means to have cold blood and a warm heart, and how to spot the finish line.

Gil West was met with chaos on his first day at Northwest Airlines. The executive who hired him? Fired. The facility? In uproar. His first assignment? Remove the person whose job he was taking. Many would have walked away but Gil chose to lean in. Gil and his handpicked team—some of whom he still works with today—transformed an operation on the verge of shutdown into a success story that would eventually land him a key role in Northwest’s merger with Delta Air Lines.

Hear the story of his pivotal first day at Northwest, how the experience hooked him on the challenge of turnarounds, and why after all these years, he still chooses the hard jobs over the straightforward ones.

Mark’s long journey in the health care industry has been both professional and personal—highlighted by his son’s intense battle with cancer in the early 2000s. In a story spanning a fateful day on a snowy mountain, a desperate plea in an empty chapel, and an investor meeting gone wrong, it’s the kind of tale that feels straight out of a Martin Scorsese film. Mark’s journey of personal and professional redemption is a reflection of the tragedies, tradeoffs, and triumphs that have shaped him. But as he explains it, life-or-death moments provide a reminder that life isn’t easily separated into work and home—and the leaders who stand to benefit the most are the ones who embrace the mystery of it all.