In this episode, I sit down with Mark Miller — bestselling author, former Vice President of High-Performance Leadership at Chick-fil-A, and one of the most respected voices in leadership development today. Mark began his writing career by teaming up with Ken Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager, to write The Secret: What Great Leaders Know and Do  — a book that has since become a cornerstone resource for leaders around the world. Over 25 years, Mark and his team invested tens of millions of dollars searching for and validating leadership principles that actually work in the real world. 

We cover a lot of ground in this conversation. Mark pulls back the curtain on his own leadership journey — from starting as an hourly team member to spending the last two decades of his career focused entirely on serving leaders and helping them grow themselves, their teams, and their organizations.  We dig into why so many organizations fail to prioritize leadership development even when they know they should, and what it costs them when they don’t.

Then we get into the heart of The Secret itself — the SERVE framework — and what it actually looks like to execute each element at a high level inside a real organization.

If you lead people, this conversation will challenge the way you think about your role.

Get Mark’s new book The Secret 4th Edition:

 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FHJYP531?ref=cm_sw_r_ffobk_ud_dp_QDXTKB9SWF8C9X5J01Z6&ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_ud_dp_QDXTKB9SWF8C9X5J01Z6&social_share=cm_sw_r_ffobk_ud_dp_QDXTKB9SWF8C9X5J01Z6&bestFormat=true&language=en-US

Get more info on Mark and his company Lead Everyday: https://leadeveryday.com/

Reach Mark on his cell: 678-612-8441 or email him mark@leadeveryday.com

We start with defining the kind of culture you actually want—beyond buzzwords—and how that vision should guide your decisions. From there, we tackle one of the hardest realities in leadership: getting the right people on your team and making tough calls when someone isn’t the right fit.

You’ll learn how to place people in roles where they can thrive, establish clear standards and values that aren’t just words on a wall, and communicate those expectations in a way that sticks. We also explore the leader’s role in coaching, modeling behavior, and consistently reinforcing what matters.

Finally, we dive into accountability—how to uphold your standards without creating fear, and how to ensure your culture stays strong as your business grows.

If you want a team that’s aligned, motivated, and built to win, this episode will give you the practical framework to make culture your competitive advantage.

Whether you’re an emerging leader or a seasoned executive, this conversation will challenge you to rethink how you approach growth—and inspire you to lead with greater clarity, purpose, and impact.

In this final episode of our influence series, we break down the 4 C’s—and how they shape the kind of leadership people choose to follow.

If you want to stop relying on authority and start building real influence, this episode gives you the blueprint.

Influence grows when leaders shift their focus from being served to serving the people they lead.

In this episode, we talk about why the best leaders intentionally invest in their teams, understand the individual goals of the people they lead, and actively help them grow. When leaders take the time build relationships and to support their people’s ambitions, something powerful happens—trust increases, commitment grows, and the team becomes aligned around a shared purpose.

If we expect people to help us achieve our goals, we have to be willing to help them achieve theirs.

In this episode we discuss:

• Why genuine care is the foundation of leadership influence
• What it really means to serve your team as a leader
• How investing in individuals strengthens team performance
• Why helping others reach their goals builds lasting commitment

Leadership influence isn’t built through position or authority—it’s built through service.

In Part 1 of this three-part series, we break down why self-mastery is the foundation of effective leadership. From managing ego and emotions to developing a genuine care for the people you lead, the ability to lead yourself determines your ability to lead others.

We also discuss how great leaders create a mission and vision that inspires more than performance—it inspires belief. When people understand the purpose behind the work and feel connected to it, influence naturally grows.

If you want to lead people who are committed, engaged, and willing to go the extra mile, it starts with becoming the kind of leader worth following.

In this episode, we break down the hidden addiction many business owners have — the dopamine hit of new ideas. The excitement of starting something new. The rush of vision casting. The energy of brainstorming.

But here’s the truth: ideas don’t build businesses. Execution does.

Success isn’t found in 100 half-finished concepts. It’s built through mastering the boring basics — consistency, systems, follow-through, and disciplined implementation.

If you’re constantly starting but rarely finishing…

If you’re chasing the next big thing instead of scaling what already works…

If your team is exhausted from pivot after pivot…

This episode will challenge you.

Because real leadership isn’t about creativity alone — it’s about turning vision into results.

Execution is the competitive advantage. And the leaders who win are the ones who finish.

Your team is always watching how you show up. Are you steady under pressure? Clear in your expectations? Aligned in your words and actions? The most effective leaders aren’t unpredictable — they’re intentional. When people know what to expect from you, they feel safer, more focused, and more confident in their work.

We unpack what it really means to cultivate a leadership “brand” rooted in values, behavior, and emotional consistency — and why predictability isn’t boring, it’s powerful. If you want to lead with greater influence and build deeper trust with your team, this episode will challenge you to think about how you show up every single day.

But leaders GO first. 

Which means when something difficult must be done the leader has to go first.

When a new standard is set, the leader must model it first.

When the difficult things need to be said or a tough conversation needs to be had, the leader must initiate those things first.

Leaders don't wait around for the team or someone else to go first. That's pure abdication of leadership.

Going first is a responsibility every leader must embrace if they want credibility and buy-in from the team and the people around them.

In this follow-up episode we discuss how to build influence so you no longer have to "lead" with authority and have the people you lead give you their hearts, minds, and effort because they WANT to and not because they HAVE to.

This style of leadership will lead to much more success and fulfillment for you and the team/organization you lead.

Do they follow because they want to or because they have to?

These are important questions for every leader to answer because real leadership is built on service and influence...not power.

In this episode, Jason and Isaiah break down the impact that "leading" with authority has on your team and how taking a different approach leads to better, more innovative and cohesive teams and more overall success.

Humans default to ego so humility is something that has to be developed.

In this episode we break down why leading with ego is dangerous and how to develop the humility necessary to be an effective leader...

In this episode, we break down the importance of communication and give actionable tips, tactics, and strategies you can implement to improve your communication skills and thereby become a more effective leader.

In this episode we break down why it's so important and what you can do today to begin improving in that area of your leadership.

Living in Realty and telling yourself the truth.

Sounds simple.  Sounds like common sense.  But we are shocked by how many people fail to do this...and don't even realize it.

In the episode we discuss this phenomenon and exactly what to do about it.

In the episode we reference Jordan Peterson's Self-Authoring program.  Below is the link if you want to check it out.

https://www.selfauthoring.com/

The problem, however, is that discomfort is the only place humans can grow.

As a result, we have to go against our biological wiring and put ourselves in difficult situations if we hope to grow and become better versions of ourselves.

In this episode, Isaiah and Jason discuss the idea of purposely seeking discomfort and how imperative it is to becoming the person you want to be.

This is part 1.  Part 2 will release next week.

In today's episode we discuss out mission to build and create more leaders as well a a brief introduction of the hosts!