The Frustrated CEO - The Lyons Group Consulting

THE FRUSTRATED CEO

Here’s your executive road map.

Your role as a CEO is as difficult as it is critical. Constantly striving to make the best business decisions possible leaves you feeling frustrated or isolated, even if you love the work. How you show up to lead is just as important as what you do.

In every episode of “The Frustrated CEO,” you’ll receive proven processes and systems for success on an individual, team and organizational level. Learn from other CEOs and industry experts about how to increase your influence, ability to execute, personal sense of well-being and so much more.

Stop going it alone. Listen now.

November 20, 2024

Episode 85 - Quiet Confidence: Introverts Who Lead

Quiet Confidence: Introverts Who Lead This episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast features an insightful discussion with Sharissa Deppen, CEO of the Leadership Master...

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November 13, 2024

Episode 84 - Beliefs, Assumptions and Change That Lasts

Beliefs, Assumptions and Change That Lasts Leadership expert Christine Grimm shares her unique approach of “deep work fast” – getting to the core i...

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October 2, 2024

Episode 83 - Connecting the Dots: Seeing the Bigger Picture

Connecting the Dots: Seeing the Bigger Picture This episode features Chris Wise, a dynamic entrepreneur, visionary leader, and pioneer in law, technology, and commun...

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September 18, 2024

Episode 82 - Don’t Be Afraid of the Big Leap

Don’t Be Afraid of the Big Leap This episode features an interview with Rick Bettger, the owner of Omaha Car Care, a successful auto repair business. Rick disc...

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September 4, 2024

Episode 81 - Creators, Maintainers and Balanced Teams

Creators, Maintainers and Balanced Teams In this episode, listeners get an inside look at the family-owned business of Trade School Inc. Founders Lance and Madisen H...

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August 21, 2024

Episode 80 - Positioning Your Business for a Successful Exit

Positioning Your Business for a Successful Exit In this episode, serial entrepreneur Mac Lackey shares insights on maximizing business value and preparing for a succ...

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August 7, 2024

Episode 79 - Discover Your Leadership Superpower

Discover Your Leadership Superpower This episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast offers valuable insights for executives and professionals navigating personal and prof...

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July 24, 2024

Episode 78 - Leading Amid Crisis

Leading Amid Crisis In this episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast, we interviewed Dr. Thom Mayer, a highly respected leader in times of crisis. Listeners will gain v...

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June 19, 2024

Episode 77 - Longevity Through Change

Longevity Through Change This episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast features an interview with Charles Read, founder of Get Payroll and author of four books on payro...

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June 5, 2024

Episode 76 - Drive Growth From Within

Drive Growth From Within In this episode, we investigate the crucial topic of organizational readiness for growth. Leveraging our real-world experience, we share pra...

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May 22, 2024

Episode 75 - Strategies to Develop Resilience for Leaders

Strategies to Develop Resilience for Leaders This episode equips CEOs and senior leaders with effective strategies and tools for proactively developing and sustainin...

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May 8, 2024

Episode 74 - Leader’s Landscape of Today and Tomorrow

Leader’s Landscape of Today and Tomorrow In part two of Ben Pring’s episode, we jump into the impact of artificial intelligence on the workforce’s...

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April 24, 2024

Episode 73 - Cultivating Resilient Companies at Every Level

Cultivating Resilient Companies at Every Level This episode is aimed at leaders looking to build a more resilient organization. In this episode, we tackle this topic...

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April 10, 2024

Episode 72 - The Role of Thought Leadership In Branding

The Role of Thought Leadership In Branding In this episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast, we welcome back marketing and branding expert Mary Ann O’Brien to exp...

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March 27, 2024

Episode 71 - 2024 Business Trends You Shouldn’t Overlook

2024 Business Trends You Shouldn’t Overlook In this episode, Futurist, Ben Pring delves into the transformative effects of technology and AI on the workforce’s...

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March 13, 2024

Episode 70 - The Road to CEO

The Road to CEO In this episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast, we sit down with Mary Ann O’Brien, the visionary founder and CEO of OBI Creative Advertising Age...

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February 28, 2024

Episode 69 - Leading With Action Versus Effort

Leading With Action Versus Effort In this episode of the Frustrated CEO podcast, we’re joined by the distinguished Bill Canady, a global business executive wit...

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February 14, 2024

Episode 68 - Leadership Coaching for Company Success

In this Frustrated CEO podcast episode, our hosts, seasoned in leadership development and culture change, explore coaching for strategic alignment. They detail how c...

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February 1, 2024

Episode 67 - Build a Business of Relationships

Build a Business of Relationships This episode of the Frustrated CEO Podcast features an interview with Ryan Groth of Sales Transformation Group. Join us as Ryan dis...

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January 17, 2024

Episode 66 - Clarity and More

Are you a CEO struggling to find clarity in your business? Join us for the latest episode of the Frustrated CEO Podcast where we sit down with leadership expert and...

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January 3, 2024

Episode 65 - Leading Relationally

Are you tired of feeling like you have to be in a million places at once to be a successful leader? Well, The Frustrated CEO Podcast is here to help. In this episode...

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December 13, 2023

Episode 64 - Lead Yourself First

Are you in a leadership role but feeling completely alone? Don’t worry – John Fehlen and Ryan Holloway have been there, too. In this episode of The Frust...

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November 14, 2023

Episode 63 - Adaptive Leadership

Technical challenges take resources, time, and effort to address, but they expand rather than change the accepted ways of doing business. On the other hand, adaptive...

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October 30, 2023

Episode 62 - Building Stronger Teams through Dialogue

Too many leaders mistake monologue for dialogue, doing far more talking than listening and engaging others in sharing information. Join us as we meet Dr. Tom O’Conno...

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October 17, 2023

Episode 61 - Good Luck Executing Without These 3 Things

In The Balanced Scorecard, authors Norton and Kaplan report that 90% of organizations fail to execute their strategic priorities, and nothing frustrates CEOs like th...

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September 27, 2023

Episode 60 - Cloud Computing and Digital Transformation

Offering both possibilities and risks, the cloud has become an increasingly important part of global business. In fact, a recent enterprise survey found that the ave...

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September 12, 2023

Episode 59 - Culture Is Everything

It’s not an accident when 95% of what your employees say about working for you is positive. That’s what can happen when a business is built on the foundational premi...

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August 28, 2023

Episode 58 - From Productivity to Turnover (and Everything in Between)

Solving old problems often requires looking at things through a new lens. In Episode 58, we examine employee workloads, productivity, revenue, burnout, and turnover...

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August 11, 2023

Episode 57 - Gaining (and Regaining) Strategic Alignment

Strategic Alignment is the primary input to effective strategy execution. How else can you possibly hope to execute in your business when your own leadership team is...

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July 30, 2023

Episode 56 - A Creative Approach to Strategic Communications

Great companies aspire to lead their respective markets, acting instead of reacting. But how often do you feel like your corporate communication is in a constant sta...

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July 17, 2023

Episode 55 - Cyber-Security is Fundamental(s) – Interview with Aaron Warner

We introduced you to ProCircular Founder and award-winning CEO Aaron Warner in Episode 54 to hear how to build an award-winning business of your own. Here in episode...

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July 2, 2023

Episode 54 - Building An Award Winning Business

Who better to talk to about building an award-winning business than Aaron Warner, CEO of ProCircular and winner of Iowa’s 2023 Small Business Person of the Year? Joi...

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June 6, 2023

Episode 53 - Our Most Value-able Episode Yet

According to a recent Gallup poll, only 23% of U.S. employees strongly agree they can apply their organization’s values to their everyday work. How the heck do...

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May 30, 2023

Episode 52 - Hiring for Good

You’re not winning in business without winning the war for talent. But how do you find top talent with the most sought-after skillsets when everyone else is looking...

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May 16, 2023

Episode 51 - Cultivating a Nontraditional Company Culture

When good company culture is the price of entry to attract and retain top talent, every company in existence will tell you theirs is a great culture. But what do you...

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May 2, 2023

Episode 50 - The Magic of Having a Plan – Part 2

We met Bivo Co-Founders Carina Hamel and Robby Ringer in Episode 49 to hear how strategic planning helped them close one business, start another, and relocate from o...

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April 18, 2023

Episode 49 - The Magic Of Having A Plan – Part 1

How did two smart young entrepreneurs launch one business, sunset another, start a family, and relocate 3,000 miles from one coast to the other, all during the pande...

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April 5, 2023

Episode 48 - The Critical Role of Psychological Safety

The Center for Creative Leadership defines psychological safety as “the belief that you won’t be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions,...

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March 7, 2023

Episode 47 - Scaling Requires Next-Level Leaders

Many of your frustrations at work are all rooted in the same issue: the inability of leaders below your Executive Team to cascade your Vision down into the organizat...

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February 22, 2023

Episode 46 - Leadership is Always About the People

Great CEOs understand that the primary function of leadership is to benefit the people they lead. Few would argue conceptually, but what does that look like on the j...

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February 1, 2023

Episode 45 - An Honest DEIB Discussion

Culture is clearly a concern for every good CEO and senior leader, and you simply can’t create a high-performing one without an honest and intentional focus on diver...

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January 18, 2023

Episode 44 - Viewing Diversity and Greening Your Business through the Lens of a Filmmaker

One great strategy for overcoming chronic issues is to change your perspective, and what better way to accomplish that than through the lens of acclaimed filmmaker J...

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January 4, 2023

Episode 43 - Conflict Resolution Starts with You

The New Year brings with it all kinds of resolutions, and perhaps no resolution is more important in the workplace than conflict resolution. While most CEOs wish the...

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December 14, 2022

Episode 42 - The Future of Work – Interview with Ben Pring

When last we spoke with decorated futurist and global business expert Ben Pring in episode 10, the pandemic still raged and the Great Resignation was in full swing....

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November 23, 2022

Episode 41 - Purpose Filled Leadership – Interview with Scott Landis

Purposeful work isn’t just for Millennials and Gen Z. Not only are CEOs allowed to align life, work, and purpose together; one could easily argue you HAVE to align t...

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November 9, 2022

Episode 40 - Building Your Personal Board of Directors – Interview with Jimmy Z

It’s often said the two loneliest jobs in the universe are Pastor and CEO, and a survey by the Harvard Business Review said 6 out of 10 CEOs believe loneliness hinde...

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October 26, 2022

Episode 39 - Staying Ahead of the Digital Curve: The Point of PR is not PR

You, too, can be intentional and strategic to become a force in the digital landscape. Join our interview with Amy Rosenberg, Founder and President of Veracity, to l...

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October 11, 2022

Episode 38 - Shaping Stories That Drive Action with Jamie Dixon

Making people do things is far less effective than making them WANT to do things, and great leaders understand this. Leadership is far more about influence than auth...

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September 27, 2022

Episode 37 - The Quiet Quitting Episode

A recent Gallup poll survey of 10 million employees in 150 countries suggested at least half of all employees have quietly quit, the insidious act of lowering the ba...

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September 14, 2022

Episode 36 - Why You Should Care About the Triple Bottom Line – Interview with Abe Tannenbaum

What exactly does it mean to be a missional business? Is it the same as a non-profit? How can you attend to the needs of your local communities and better steward th...

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August 31, 2022

Episode 35 - Leveraging Content and Maximizing Mindset: Interview with Fernando Camacho

Building a strong business with long-term success requires many different things all working together. And being an effective leader requires the right mindset and s...

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August 17, 2022

Episode 34 - Building a Winning Organization – Interview with Randy Mueller

Who better to talk about building winning organizations than life-long NFL Executive Randy Mueller, winner of the 2000 NFL Executive of the Year award with the New O...

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August 3, 2022

Episode 33 - Building an Incredibly Fun and Supportive Company Culture: Interview with Drew Harden

Laughter is scientifically proven to activate the release of the mood-boosting hormones dopamine and serotonin while simultaneously reducing the anxiety and stress h...

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July 20, 2022

Episode 32 - Checking-In to High Performance

What if we told you there’s a way to conduct every business meeting to bring greater engagement, more creativity, more productivity, tighter teamwork, higher energy,...

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July 6, 2022

Episode 31 - The Value of Putting Your People First

One of the most important tasks of every CEO is prioritization. With so many balls in the air at one time, so many competing priorities, every call you make affects...

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June 15, 2022

Episode 30 - What if Your Employees Were Volunteers?

Employee average tenure declined again according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest figures, continuing an almost decade-long trend. And as you might imagine,...

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June 1, 2022

Episode 29 - Data as a Strategic Asset – Interview with Desh Urs

According to a recent poll, 83% of CEOs want their organizations to use more data in the decision-making process. But where do you gather it from and how do you sepa...

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May 11, 2022

Episode 28 - I Went to 7-11 to Get a Shirt: The Power of Storytelling in Business

Stories. We’re drawn to them. Entertained by them. Educated through them. Challenged by them. History is passed down through them. And the only thing more valuable t...

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April 26, 2022

Episode 27 - Don’t Let the Door Hit You on the Way Out

When’s the last time you seriously thought about your exit from your business? Not in fantasy, but in a real, intentional, and planful way that sets your target, plo...

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April 12, 2022

Episode 26 - The Impact of Strategic Alignment on Organizational Trust and Culture

Strategic Alignment is foundational to executing a business strategy, but what impact, if any, does strategic alignment have on organization-wide trust? Or company c...

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March 29, 2022

Episode 25 - Building a Strategic Framework that Inspires a Culture of Innovation

Innovation. You want it. You need it. How do you get it? It starts by accepting that innovation is an output, the result of creating the right environment within whi...

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March 15, 2022

Episode 24 - Are You Listening? Leadership.

Being CEO has rarely been more challenging. With unstable markets, hybrid work, employee resignations, and global instability, all eyes are squarely on you for answe...

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March 1, 2022

Episode 23 - Tips for Better Strategic Execution

As many as 90% of companies with a strategic plan admit to falling short of fully executing it, and upward of 40% admit to never even starting. We’ve even heard CEOs...

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February 15, 2022

Episode 22 - Leadership & Life Lessons from B-ball to Crypto to NFTs

Great leadership creates sports dynasties and business empires, while poor leadership undermines talented athletes and business professionals, alike. Because leaders...

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February 1, 2022

Episode 21 - The Link Between Culture and High Performance

Just when you thought you knew how to build a high-performance culture, everything changed. Between, the pandemic, The Great Resignation, Gen Z demanding work-with-p...

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January 18, 2022

Episode 20 - Mindfulness and Self Care

Self-care and mindfulness are critical leadership skills – yes, leadership skills – for every CEO because, as the saying goes, you can’t pour from an empty cup. Tune...

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January 4, 2022

Episode 19 - The Power of Communicating Strategically

Some believe any PR is good PR, but most CEOs dread seeing themselves or their company in the crosshairs of an angry public, government, or media mob. Join us for th...

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December 7, 2021

Episode 18 - Aligning Your People Strategy and Business Strategy

People matter. So does your business. Align your HR compliance, policies and people strategy with your business strategy at each stage of your business’s growth to e...

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November 9, 2021

Episode 17 - Leadership and Networking

Engaging and energetic CEO Stepfone Montgomery joins The Frustrated CEO podcast to share wisdom and insights gleaned first from his decades-long career in transporta...

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October 26, 2021

Episode 16 - Fixing Bad Company Culture (Part 3)

In our recent LinkedIn survey, 60% of CEO respondents said the most pressing issue keeping them awake at night is fixing dysfunctional culture. Episode 16 is the fin...

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October 12, 2021

Episode 15 - Fixing Bad Company Culture (Part 2)

In our recent LinkedIn survey, 60% of CEO respondents said the most pressing issue keeping them awake at night is fixing dysfunctional culture. Check out part 2 of o...

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September 28, 2021

Episode 14 - Fixing Bad Company Culture (Part 1)

In our recent LinkedIn survey, 60% of CEO respondents said the most pressing issue keeping them awake at night is fixing dysfunctional culture. Since our goal is to...

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September 14, 2021

Episode 13 - Embracing the CEO Role

What happens when 4 individual contributors are given the all-or-none-of-you option of purchasing an accounting firm with decades of history in a primarily male-domi...

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August 31, 2021

Episode 12 - Courageous Leadership

What CEO of a successful and growing company would risk upsetting the apple cart by merging with another firm, slowing sales and firing clients in the middle of a pa...

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August 17, 2021

Episode 11 - Tunnel Vision

As CEO of New York City Transit, the busiest people-moving system in the world, Carmen Bianco led 50,000 employees with an annual budget above $10 billion dollars. A...

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August 3, 2021

Episode 10 - The Future of Work

Grab a pad and pen and be ready to take notes on this one! Award-winning author and global business thought-leader Ben Pring joins the show to address the hottest is...

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July 20, 2021

Episode 09 - Leadership Presence

Katherine Johnson, Founder of The Leadership Presence Lab + True Self Presence Consulting, comes on the show to discuss your presence as a leader. As a CEO, your pre...

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July 6, 2021

Episode 08 - Lead, Don’t Manage

Mark Williams, CEO of Brokers International and author of Lead, Don’t Manage: 12 Lessons in Creating a Leadership Culture Based on Core Values, joins Patrick, Patsy...

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June 22, 2021

Episode 07 - Challenges of Simplified Strategic Planning in a Digital World

In this episode we examine the frustrating challenges of leading your organization with on – point strategic planning in a world of constant change and executi...

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June 8, 2021

Episode 06 - Was It Really A Bad Hire?

Too often, new employees hired with high expectations struggle, fail and “flame out” within the first two years, almost always leading someone to suggest “that was a...

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May 25, 2021

Episode 05 - The Cost of Poor or Uneven Strategy Execution….Can You Afford It?

The return on your strategic planning effort is how successful and ongoing your strategy execution process is. If your process is poor or uneven, it’s costing...

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May 11, 2021

Episode 04 - H.O.T. Communication

H.O.T. communication first showed up in the National Football League. In this episode of the Frustrated CEO, we will explore the benefits and challenges of implement...

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March 30, 2021

Episode 03 - Lead Yourself First

Leading yourself first is important work that supports you to effectively and successfully lead others as you direct the organization. It costs you and your organiza...

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March 30, 2021

Episode 02 - Thriving in Chaos

Is it better in times of extreme chaos for your business to hunker down and focus on survival or might there be a better way? Check out this episode of the Frustrate...

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March 23, 2021

Episode 01 - Teabag Leadership

Tea bag philosophy asserts that, as a leader, you will never know how strong a tea bag is until you put it in hot water. The heat of the water tests the strength of...

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