The Learn-It-All Podcast

• 173: The 80% Rule: How Leaders Can Overcome Fear, Stress, and Self-Doubt | Derek Sloan

  Why does stress feel so normal in the workplace? Why does our mind default to the worst case scenario? And what’s the cost of this being our normal day to day life? In this episode, Damon sits down with Derek Sloan, who’s a licensed therapist, executive coach, and founder of Abridge Leadership to explore why so many professionals silently battle negativity and self-doubt, and what leaders can do to break the cycle. Whether you're navigating organizational change, dealing with anxious thoughts, or trying to model vulnerability in a remote workplace, this episode offers practical tools backed by psychology and made for the real world. In this episode you’ll learn: What The 80% Rule is—and how it can transform how you lead The hidden cost of “normalized” workplace stress Why vulnerability is a leadership superpower (when done right) The difference between confidence and self-efficacy How to spot fear-based thinking on your team Practical ways leaders can create clarity, safety, and connection And so much more! Timestamps: 00:21 – Why our brains default to negativity (60,000 thoughts, 80% negative) 01:53 – The thought-emotion-behavior chain: how negativity spreads 03:42 – What happens when dysfunction is normalized at work 05:45 – Breaking down The 80% Rule (3 surprising stats) 09:00 – Addressing real pain vs. future-focused fear 10:25 – The traps leaders fall into under stress 12:23 – A case study: when a promotion becomes a source of burnout 16:05 – What leaders can do during times of uncertainty 18:45 – The power of focusing on controllables 19:24 – 3 controllables: showing up as your best, staying hopeful, being transparent 22:30 – Why vulnerability matters more than ever 25:15 – Healthy vs. unhealthy vulnerability: where leaders get it wrong 29:09 – Understanding fear: how our brains exaggerate the future 33:27 – Self-efficacy vs. confidence—and why both matter 36:05 – How to give better feedback (that actually develops talent) 39:14 – Recognizing negativity loops in your team 41:39 – Why listening—not fixing—is your leadership edge 44:00 – The post-COVID shift: employees expect to be cared for 45:32 – Can remote work ever match in-person connection? 48:21 – Why loneliness is a hidden workplace epidemic 50:15 – Final takeaway: Take inventory. Where are you now—and how long have you been there? About the Guest: Derek Sloan is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC), Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP), and National Certified Counselor (NCC), He has experience in providing mental health and behavioral health services to individuals, couples, and groups. He founded and continues to operate a private practice in Kentucky. Derek is also a Certified Executive Coach and has a passion for leadership development. This has been a lifelong pursuit through his graduate degree in organizational leadership, building businesses, and leadership coaching/consulting. He works with executive leaders in top-level and industry-leading organizations, helping them enhance their emotional intelligence, communication skills, and decision-making abilities. His mission is to help organizations achieve their goals by prioritizing both leadership and mental health. Resources & Mentions: Follow Derek on...

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• 172: Why A-Players Crash as Managers (The 5 Truths New Leaders Must Learn) | Damon Lembi

  The 5 Truths Every New Leader Needs to Hear Becoming a leader isn’t just a promotion—it’s a complete identity shift. You’re no longer just executing the work. You’re coaching others to do it well. And that requires a new mindset, a new skillset, and a new set of daily habits. In this solo episode, Learnit CEO Damon Lembi breaks down the 5 truths he wishes every first-time leader knew. Whether you’re fresh in the role or mentoring someone who is, this episode is your tactical, no-fluff guide to making the leap from top performer to people-first leader. In this episode, you’ll learn: - Why leadership is about coaching, not doing - The #1 mindset shift you must make in week one - How to build trust by giving others autonomy (and space to fail) - Why the best leaders are great listeners—first - How to model the habits you want your team to follow - The key conversation to have with your boss (today) - What to do when your company won’t invest in your development - Why mistakes are inevitable—and what to do when you make one - How to lead without pretending to have it all figured out Timestamps: 00:00 – The biggest professional shift: from player to coach 01:00 – Truth #1: You win through your people, not by doing it all 01:45 – Why delegation is really about building trust 02:00 – The mindset shift: you're building a team of heroes, not being the hero 02:30 – Truth #2: Don’t rush in—start by listening and learning 03:20 – Why curiosity builds credibility and connection 03:50 – Truth #3: Model the behavior you want from your team 04:30 – Leadership is a constant stage—how are you showing up? 04:45 – Truth #4: Own your success—don’t wait for others to invest in you 05:15 – How Damon recommends new leaders start growing (even on their own) 06:00 – The $14 tool that every new leader should use 06:30 – Truth #5: You will make mistakes—so learn fast and lead through it 07:10 – The hard lesson Damon learned about avoiding tough conversations 08:00 – The recap: 5 truths every new leader needs to thrive 08:30 – Final thought: Great leaders aren’t born or made—they’re always in the making Resources & Mentions: Damon’s book: https://www.learnit.com/learn-it-all-leader-book-by-damon-lembi Learnit’s Delegation Greenlights E-Book: https://www.learnit.com/resources/delegation-greenlights-guide Learnit’s Delegate to Scale Your Impact Course: https://www.learnit.com/courses/delegate-to-scale-your-impact Learnit Article on New Manager Training Skills: https://www.learnit.com/blog/new-manager-training-skills The Learn-It-All Podcast with Chris Dyer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBUHOPtR6Yk Learnit Live Event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjLFoCepWOw Connect With Us: Uplevel yourself and your team at Learnit.com Email us: [email protected] Follow Damon on LinkedIn Follow Damon on Instagram

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• 171: The Founder Flywheel: Retention First, Revenue Second | Richard White

  The modern workplace runs on meetings. But too often, those meetings become time sinks instead of value drivers. People scramble to take notes, miss critical insights, and leave unclear on what to do next. Meanwhile, leaders drown in back-to-back calls with no bandwidth to spot patterns or coach teams effectively. And yet... what if meetings weren’t the problem, but the raw material for your company’s next big leap? In today’s episode, Damon is joined by Richard White, CEO and founder of Fathom breaks down his best lessons as a 3x founder and how he’s building the future of work. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why retention—not revenue—should be your first startup focus How Richard built a viral product without a sales team for 12+ months The underestimated power of onboarding and customer support How to create a freemium product that actually drives word of mouth Why AI will soon give every employee a “highlight reel” of what matters most The truth about building in the AI era: it’s not about features—it’s about output quality Timestamps: 00:00 – Richard’s early builder mindset and why he couldn’t be an employee 01:22 – Why articulating the “why” is a founder’s core job 02:07 – Finding his tribe in the first batch of Y Combinator 04:25 – How confidence and founder networks shaped his journey 05:44 – The trap of over-relying on advice vs. trusting your instincts 07:51 – Why Richard calls UserVoice his “founder finishing school” 08:38 – Lessons in cross-functional leadership and scrappy execution 11:05 – Advice for technical founders who undervalue sales 12:33 – The insight that sparked Fathom: meetings are broken 14:44 – How he hired a “sales team” with nothing to sell 15:05 – Why he delayed monetization and focused on retention first 17:57 – Building customer feedback loops into the product 19:32 – From 1,000 users to viral growth via the Zoom Marketplace 21:50 – The psychology behind freemium and referability 24:42 – Why onboarding was a 9-month engineering priority 26:47 – Balancing new features with polishing the UX 28:58 – The contrarian view: meetings aren’t bad—meeting waste is 29:22 – How Fathom reduces meeting bloat and improves async sharing 31:36 – Using Fathom to streamline the hiring process 33:39 – What’s next: AI that watches every meeting and summarizes insights 36:05 – Generating case studies and internal docs from conversation data 36:52 – Cross-org AI search and the power of complete data sets 37:59 – What separates great AI products: obsessive quality control 39:51 – The future belongs to teams that can turn conversations into knowledge Resources Mentioned: Fathom Connect with Richard White on LinkedIn UserVoice About the Guest: Richard White is the founder and CEO of Fathom, a free AI-powered meeting assistant that helps teams skip note-taking and unlock insights from every call. He’s a three-time founder, early YC alum, and product-obsessed builder who believes meetings are the new knowledge base—if we capture...

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• 170: The 5 Learning Styles That Build Real Leaders | Scott Allen

  Leadership isn’t just about vision. Instead it’s about showing up in the everyday moments if you want to shape great teams, cultures, and results. There’s myth that some people are “born leaders” but in today’s episode, leadership expert Dr. Scott Allen shares why leadership is learned, practiced, and most importantly, deeply personal. In this episode you will learn: Why the idea of “natural-born leaders” is outdated The science behind charisma (and how to develop it) What leadership styles have in common with golf clubs The difference between authority and influence—and why influence wins Why “thinking partners” are essential for every leader How to combine knowledge, skill, mentorship, and experience for true growth Timestamps: 00:14 – Are leaders born or made? 01:49 – What science says about charisma and learnable leadership 03:48 – How problem-solving, negotiation, and communication can be developed 06:00 – Leadership styles and the “golf club” metaphor 08:42 – Making leadership training stick: from hacks to habits 09:43 – Why self-awareness is foundational to great leadership 12:08 – Character, curiosity, and the power of learning 13:02 – Can self-awareness be taught? 15:36 – Curiosity as a leadership superpower 17:02 – Coaches who deflect blame vs. leaders who take ownership 18:12 – Empathy, ego, and the limits of expertise in leadership 20:26 – Why catchers make great managers 21:43 – Influence: the real heart of leadership 24:07 – Trust as the currency of leadership 25:48 – Influence tactics: from logic to coalitions 28:18 – Timing and persuasion in leadership conversations 30:01 – Why knowledge alone isn’t enough—real-world learning is essential 33:22 – The five domains of leadership learning 35:27 – Creating learning organizations with psychological safety 37:54 – The role of thinking partners in leadership development 41:04 – How to find (and build) your bench of thinking partners 46:57 – Why one partner won’t solve everything—and that’s the point 49:01 – “Who you are is how you lead” – Scott’s favorite leadership quote 50:39 – Final thoughts on responsibility, reflection, and showing up for others About the Guest: Dr. Scott J. Allen is an award-winning educator, keynote speaker, and leadership expert. With over 17 years as a professor and more than 60 peer-reviewed publications, Scott brings academic rigor, humor, and real-world insight to every engagement. He's co-authored several books on leadership and hosts Practical Wisdom for Leaders—a podcast ranked in the top 2.5% globally. He also publishes a weekly newsletter for busy practitioners, highlighting four leadership articles. Scott energizes audiences at marquee organizations such as Toyota Motor North America, Cleveland Clinic, NASA-Glenn, Nestlé, Progressive, Whiting Turner, Sam's Club, the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, and Progressive through his dynamic keynotes, workshops, and retreats. Whether on stage or in the boardroom, Scott’s expertise in leader development, the future of work, and executive communication empowers leaders to drive meaningful, lasting change. Resources & Mentions: Connect with Scott on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-j-allen/ Visit Scott's Website:

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• 169: The Podcast Move That 10X’ed My Network and Confidence | Damon Lembi

  Damon Lembi never set out to become a podcaster. But 2 years, 160+ episodes, and thousands of conversations later, he can say this with confidence: podcasting has been the single most transformative tool in his professional growth. In this solo episode, Damon breaks down the 8 ways podcasting has made him a better leader, communicator, and human being and why every professional should seriously consider stepping behind the mic. In this episode, you’ll learn: - Why podcasting is the ultimate communication gym - How storytelling on-air can make you more persuasive off-air - What podcasting does for your confidence and clarity - The hidden networking power that comes with each episode - Why podcasting forces you to become a better listener and improviser - How hosting a show accelerates your learning and thought leadership - The simple way to turn one podcast guest spot into 10 pieces of content - Why your personal brand matters (even if you don’t think it does) Timestamps: 00:00 – Damon’s confession: The one unexpected thing that changed his career 00:35 – #1: How podcasting sharpened his communication 01:10 – #2: Why repetition made him a better storyteller 01:50 – #3: Overcoming fear and building confidence through reps 02:30 – #4: 10x network growth—and the power of asking 03:00 – #5: How the mic made him a better listener at work and at home 03:45 – #6: Learning to improvise and build trust fast 04:20 – #7: The accelerated learning effect (and why it feels like free coaching) 05:15 – #8: How podcasting helped him build a real, visible personal brand 06:10 – Guesting vs. hosting: Where to start and what tools to use 06:50 – Why you don’t need followers—just courage 07:10 – A final reflection: Podcasting made me better. It can do the same for you. Resources & Mentions: Episode with Marques Ogden: https://youtu.be/dqsRJhGIeFI?si=98MKdtArx30guTBEEpisode with Stephen M.R. Covey: https://youtu.be/iP6cnAqNwIc?si=pl6lCTHKgM9v-sn5Episode with Doug Conant: https://youtu.be/418p49ClihY?si=YuLozGLm4VsFXM1BEpisode with Dr. Jessica Kriegel: https://youtu.be/TUJ-8zUolI4?si=UNYpf_LwQ5pzi2NiEpisode with Matt Dixon: https://youtu.be/0LpEfvxsOYs?si=mAEJwxIREFnmeg3gPodMatch: Tool to book guest spots: https://www.podmatch.com/Opus Clip to make podcast clips: https://www.opus.pro/Pat Flynn’s Guide: How to Start a Podcast in 2025: https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/Connect With Us: Level up your sales team at Learnit.comEmail us: [email protected] Follow Damon on LinkedIn Follow Damon on Instagram

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