This week, we speak with John Miles, author, podcaster, keynote speaker and entrepreneur. John is the author of “Passion Struck: Twelve Powerful Principles to Unlock Your Purpose and Ignite Your Most Intentional Life.” Prior to the book, John had a successful career in the U.S. Navy and Corporate America, with Dell and Lowe’s, among others.

Together, we speak about what drove John to leave his high-paying C-suite role to become an author and keynote speaker working with people on what it means to live a life fueled by passion and purpose. We also discuss the early morning encounter — it involved a gunman who broke into his house — that led to his life epiphany.

3 Takeaways:

1. (01:50) “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation”
2. (14:00) Successful individuals have a consistent pursuit of reinvention
3. (19:45) Great leaders speak with their feet

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing John Miles and Passion Struck

(03:50) Climbing the corporate ladder to Fortune 500 C-Suite Executive

(06:45) Major life events that lead to Passion Struck

(13:10) Leadership advice from Passion Struck interviews

(18:20) Work-life balance

(19:18) What makes a good leader?

(23:55) Ski or be skied

(25:55) Passion Struck in 2024

(28:00) Rapid fire questions

Join us every week as we interview business leaders to learn what makes them great, what they look for in growing leaders, and much more.

Visit businessobserverfl.com for more.

This week, we speak with Kristen Lessig-Schenerlein, founder of Koi Coaching and Consulting and Hannah McGowan, founder of Hannah McGowan Coaching.

Kristen and Hannah, each with independent coaching consulting firms, are teaming up to create a leadership coaching course and curriculum for nonprofit and for-profit professionals in the region.

Together, we talk about their diverging career paths that led them to their current passions and their big plans to help even more professionals. We also discuss the power of positive psychology and curiosity to become a better leader.

Instagram: @coreleadershipcoaching

Email: connect@coreleadershipcoaching.com

3 Takeaways:

1. (08:15) Leadership starts with self awareness
2. (10:30) The reason you have a team is because your mission is larger than one person
3. (15:20) Don’t get so defensive

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing Kristen Lessig Schenerlein & Hannah McGowan

(01:10) Koi Coaching & Consulting

(03:00) Hannah McGowan Coaching

(06:00) New initiative - CORE Leadership

(07:30) Solving for the leadership gap

(09:45) “I have no special talents, I am only passionately curious”

(11:30) How does applied positive psychology get incorporated into Core leadership?

(12:50) Memorable leadership advice

(17:45) We bring our full selves to work

(18:40) Memorable leadership learning experiences

(23:55) Learning from mentors

(27:15) Tell us more about CORE leadership

(29:00) Rapid fire questions

Join us every week as we interview business leaders to learn what makes them great, what they look for in growing leaders, and much more.

Visit businessobserverfl.com for more.

This week, we speak with Michael Westafer, founder and CEO of Roger West Creative & Code. Michael founded the company, a full-service marketing agency, in 2007. The company recently merged with Digital Brew, an Orlando video production company, and will be run under a holding company called Roger & James, with a combined 45 employees.

Together, we talk about how Michael founded and grew the business and some early challenges he overcame to scale and work with bigger clients. We also discuss Michael’s leadership style and how builds a culture of open communication at the company.

3 Takeaways:

1. (03:25) It all starts with connections
2. (11:40) You can learn as much from bad leaders as you can from good ones
3. (12:35) It is hard to say “no” to projects

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing Michael Westafer

(02:00) What led to the founding and growth of the firm?

(04:35) What were some key tipping points along the way?

(05:55) What do you look for when hiring employees and leaders?

(09:20) Tell us about EOS for your company

(11:00) Learning from other leaders

(12:30) What have you learned from running the company?

(14:15) Company-wide goal setting

(15:00) New announcement

(16:00) What can we look forward to in 2024?

(16:45) Rapid fire question

Join us every week as we interview business leaders to learn what makes them great, what they look for in growing leaders, and much more.

Visit businessobserverfl.com for more.