You’ve probably felt it before: you did the course, earned the certification, sat through the workshop, took the notes and then the first real moment arrived and you still felt unprepared. That disconnect is not a character flaw, and it’s not proof you’re “bad at leadership.” It’s usually a training problem: you were taught tactics and steps, but not how to think when the situation is unclear, emotional, and moving fast.
Marc shares a blunt lesson from his LAPD days. After nearly 1,000 hours in the police academy, he walked into the streets feeling clueless, not because the training was bad, but because it focused on what to do without building the skill underneath it: real-time judgment. We talk about why field training officers function like coaches, how they shape decision-making, and why “common sense” disappears when you’re in uncommon scenarios. Then we bridge it to business coaching, entrepreneurship, fitness, and personal growth, where the internet can hand you infinite tactics but almost no one teaches you how high performers think.
We also dig into “thinking on purpose.” Instead of running old stories from your past on autopilot, we break down how to spot them, reframe them, and practice new perspectives until they become your default. Teresa shares how this showed up in hospital sustainability leadership, where influence and buy-in matter as much as practical skills, especially when you face pushback from busy teams.
If you’re ready to stop tactic-hopping and start building true self-leadership, listen now. Then subscribe, share this with a friend who’s leveling up, and leave a review with the biggest thinking shift you’re taking from the conversation.
If you’ve been listening to us talk about self-leadership and you’re ready to take the next step, enrollment is now open for the Self-Leadership Lab!
We begin November 2, and we’re limiting this group to just 15 participants.
You can learn more about the program and secure your spot at modernleadership.us/lab. (https://modernleadership.us/lab)
And if you’re newer to the podcast, or you’re curious about the Lab but aren’t quite sure whether it’s right for you, we also have a replay of our free self-leadership workshop available.
It’s an opportunity to experience how we teach and work through real-life challenges before making a decision.
Just reach out to us and ask for the workshop replay. We’ll be happy to share it!
Either way, we’d love to help you take that next step toward becoming a more effective leader.
