Game Changers with Molly Fletcher is our podcast designed to help you maximize your influence and unleash your potential. Each episode, we take you behind the scenes with peak performers to learn what makes them tick and discover how you can apply their lessons to your life. Join Molly each week to hear from her special guests— top athletes and coaches, transformative CEOs, brilliant thought leaders, and entrepreneurs and trailblazers from around the world. Subscribe now on iTunes or Google Play.

Recent Episodes

KIPP Co-Founder Mike Feinberg

Episode 9- Mike Feinberg on Purpose-Driven Leadership

Work hard. Be nice. Those simple words are at the core of KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program), a national network of college-prep public charter schools in underserved communities. On this episode, co-founder Mike Feinberg shares the vision behind KIPP, how to infuse purpose into leadership, and how grit can be cultivated in kids.

KIPP Co-Founder Mike Feinberg

Follow Mike: Twitter | Facebook | Website

“Academics without character is hollow. Character without academics is useless. You need both.”

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Show Notes

  • How KIPP scaled from a local idea to a national program (5:07)
  • The role purpose plays in Mike’s life and at KIPP (6:30)
  • Learning from his failures (8:00)
  • How your child can attend a KIPP school (10:30)
  • The American dream is a parent dream (11:50)
  • Behind KIPP’s slogan “Work Hard. Be Nice.” (14:28)
  • His leadership philosophy (15:13)
  • What character strengths they teach their students (16:32)
  • True grit is when you’re faced with challenges and you persist (18:46)
  • Why you need both academics and character to succeed (22:44)
  • What life lessons you can learn on the sports field (25:31)
  • How we close the character gap in today’s win-it-all mindset (27:25)
  • Most memorable career moment so far (29:20)

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Jessie Graff- American Ninja Warrior

Episode 8- Jessie Graff on Superheroes, Ninja Warriors and Facing Fear

Hollywood stuntwoman and American Ninja Warrior competitor Jessie Graff is living out her dream of being a superhero. Her day-to-day activities include: “anything on rooftops, sides of buildings or bridges, and dramatic wipeouts.” In this episode, Jessie talks about breaking down gender barriers, chasing Hollywood dreams, her training regimen, and how to stare down fear.

Jessie Graff- American Ninja Warrior

Follow Jessie: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website

“The more scared you are; the more preparation you have to do.”

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Show Notes

  • Advice for women working in male-dominated fields (4:05)
  • How she decided to become a Hollywood stunt woman (6:02)
  • Learning to appreciate the process (8:40)
  • How she overcomes fear (12:07)
  • The American Ninja Warrior experience (16:13)
  • The hardest part of American Ninja Warrior (19:17)
  • How she approaches training for competition (22:17)
  • How rehabbing from an injury led her to pursue Ninja Warrior (25:20)
  • The goal behind the Wolfpack Ninja Tour (32:40)
  • Her training regimen focuses on maximum effort (35:56)
  • Pushing through the possibility of failure (38:53)
  • Thinking she can’t do something isn’t damaging unless it stops her from trying (40:26)

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Atlanta Hawks CEO Steve Koonin

Episode 7- Steve Koonin on Creating An Innovative Culture

Visionary Steve Koonin has spearheaded marketing for iconic brands—from Coca-Cola to Turner to the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. His offbeat marketing ideas– Tinder night, anyone?–  and unique leadership approach have reinvigorated the Hawks franchise. In this episode, Steve shares what it takes to break through the status quo and create a culture of innovation that rewards great ideas and risk taking.

Atlanta Hawks CEO Steve Koonin

Follow Steve: Twitter | Website

“Ideas are like diapers– when they are full of crap, just throw them away.”

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Show Notes

  • His vision for the Atlanta Hawks franchise (2:55)
  • Risk taking in marketing (6:00)
  • How to create a workplace culture where people aren’t afraid to fail forward (7:57)
  • The biggest mistake new leaders make (9:06)
  • Trading core values for core actions (12:00)
  • How fear stifles creativity (19:20)
  • The idea behind “Swipe Right” night at the Hawks game (20:38)
  • Hiring for the right fit (23:38)
  • How to reward the right metrics (25:26)
  • The biggest influences on his leadership philosophy (28:35)
  • His favorite hobby (31:12)

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Billy Horschel

Episode 6- Billy Horschel on Mental Toughness

PGA Tour golfer Billy Horschel is one of golf’s brightest young stars. On this episode, Billy talks about recovering from adversity, developing mental toughness, how to handle pressure, and the piece of advice he received from Tiger Woods that changed his mental approach.

Follow Billy: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website

“If you aren’t feeling the heat then this doesn’t mean anything to you.”

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Show Notes

  • How his blue collar upbringing influenced his mentality (2:40)
  • On the importance of mental toughness in golf (8:26)
  • Using visualization to mentally prepare for tournaments (11:48)
  • On the visualization trick that Tiger Woods taught him (15:06)
  • How he manages his energy during life out on Tour (17:35)
  • His advice to his younger self (24:00)
  • Trusting the process (26:03)
  • His unique style via Ralph Lauren (33:50)

 

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Tom Glavine

Episode 5- Tom Glavine on Peak Performance

A Hall of Fame pitcher, Tom Glavine etched his name in history as one of baseball’s greats as he led the Atlanta Braves to five World Series appearances in the 1990s. On this episode, Tom shares what it takes to compete at the highest level, the challenges with youth sports today, and the ingredients to build a winning team culture.

Tom Glavine

Follow Tom: Twitter

“Talent only takes you so far.”

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Show Notes

  • Glavine talks about the leadership style of Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox (1:44)
  • What separates great players from everyone else (5:20)
  • The advice his Dad gave him as a kid that stuck with him (11:00)
  • Talent alone will only take you so far. (11:30)
  • How sport specialization is harming youth sports (15:07)
  • What baseball taught Glavine about failure (24:46)
  • The problem with being just results-driven (28:50)
  • The importance of having teammates who will give you honest feedback (30:20)

 

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Monique Mosley

Episode 4- Monique Mosley on Being Your Own Boss

An entrepreneur, angel investor and philanthropist, Monique Mosley has helped guide the careers of visionaries in the music and entertainment industries and has worked as a consultant on the hit TV show Empire. On this episode, Monique talks about the making of a hit TV show, what it takes to build your own brand, and why as leaders we can—and should—always pay it forward.

Monique Mosley

Follow Monique: Twitter

“Once you are able to change your life, you can help change someone else’s.”

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Show Notes

  • What inspired her entrepreneurial spirit at a young age (2:16)
  • How she bridged the gap between the music & entertainment industry and corporate clients (3:52)
  • How Empire became a hit TV show (6:05)
  • The people who influenced her career (7:30)
  • How to structure a mentor relationship (9:02)
  • Her advice to young entrepreneurs (11:20)
  • When she knows she wants to invest in an early stage startup (12:58)
  • Her greatest personal and professional accomplishments (16:09)
  • Some of the “firsts” she’s accomplished in her career (16:43)
  • The charitable organizations she’s involved with and why (18:26)
  • Behind the scenes of Empire (20:37)
  • Find out more about her foundation, Always Believing Foundation (23:42)
  • The best advice she’s ever received (26:16)

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Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman

Episode 3- Val Ackerman on Reinventing Your Career

From serving as the first President of the WNBA to heading up the Big East Conference, Val Ackerman has made her mark on the sports industry. On this episode, Val talks about the importance of women in leadership and why you shouldn’t be afraid to reinvent your career.

Follow Val:  Website

“Life isn’t always a straight line. Don’t be afraid to zig and zag.”

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Show Notes

  • How she approached coming aboard the Big East (2:01)
  • How she’s leading through the changing landscape of college sports (4:22)
  • The way she creates structure to help move things forward amid such a fast-paced business (7:00)
  • The hardest part of her job (9:25)
  • What some of the proudest moments and toughest challenges in her career have been (11:20)
  • Her crusade to better women’s leadership in sports, especially internationally (14:27)
  • The biggest gaps that need to be closed for women’s sports to be where she wants them to be (15:03)
  • How to close the revenue gap between men’s and women’s professional sport (16:24)
  • Things she learned from David Stern (17:53)
  • Her words to describe David Stern as a leader (20:05)
  • Advice for people who are afraid to make a change (21:38)
  • What it was like leaving her position as president of the WNBA (25:17)
  • How she juggled work and family (26:54)
  • Life isn’t always a straight line…don’t be afraid to zig and zag (28:04)
  • Biggest fear (30:12)
  • Her life motto (30:55)

Resources / People Mentioned

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And read:

Thanks for checking out Game Changers with Molly Fletcher. Be sure to subscribe on iTunes and leave a rating or review!

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Isaac Lidsky

Episode 2 – Isaac Lidsky on Mastering Your Reality

What can losing your sight teach you about vision? With a TED Talk that’s been viewed over 2 million times and a new book, Eyes Wide Open, Isaac Lidsky shows us why it isn’t external circumstances, but how we perceive and respond to them, that governs our reality.

Isaac Lidsky

Follow them: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Website

“We choose in every single moment who we are and how we live our lives.”

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Show Notes

  • Isaac’s eclectic bio: childhood actor; Harvard graduate; U.S. Supreme Court clerk; speaker; author; CEO (1:45)
  • How progressively losing his sight changed his perception of reality (3:55)
  • An inside look at his book, Eyes Wide Open (6:09)
  • Shifting from anger and “why me” to positivity (7:43)
  • How fear keeps us on the sideline (9:18)
  • From childhood actor to graduating Harvard at age 19 (13:51)
  • His Hollywood experience as “Weasel” on Saved By the Bell (15:08)
  • How his blindness makes him a better leader (18:00)
  • Welcoming triplets and the joy of fatherhood (21:34)
  • The progress scientists have made towards restoring sight (22:47)
  • What’s next for him (25:42)

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Episode 1 – Verne Harnish on How To Scale Your Business

Known simply as “The Growth Guy,” Verne Harnish is founder of the world-renowned Entrepreneur’s Organization (EO) and has been called one of the “Top 10 Minds in Small Business” by Fortune. On this episode, Verne talks about how to scale your business, the common barriers to growth, and why we need less management and more coaching.

Follow Verne: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Website

“It’s not whether you have good luck or bad luck—it’s what you do with it.”

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Show Notes

  • What inspired him to dedicate his career to growing businesses (2:06)
  • His purpose and how it allows him to stay focused (4:30)
  • Why to be careful with following your passion (4:41)
  • We don’t need more managers, we need more coaches (5:59)
  • No one has ever achieved peak performance without a coach (6:54)
  • How a leader behaves like a coach, not a manager (7:20)
  • Habits of valuable employees (10:14)
  • Commonalities of successful companies (11:57)
  • The key to Warren Buffett’s success (13:04)
  • Leaders are readers; leaders are learners (13:23)
  • Common barriers to success and growth (14:10)
  • Advice to people ready to take the next step in their business (16:17)
  • What to do when you go from being a lean start up to an agile scale up (17:35)
  • Daily habits of great leaders (18:19)
  • You need a village of support to help you succeed (22:30)
  • His biggest fear (27:27)

Resources / People Mentioned

Recommended For You

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And read:

Do You Like to Get What You Want…But Don’t Like Negotiating?

Our immersive Game Changer 360 Negotiation Workshops will teach you and your team how to negotiate more effectively and build stronger relationships in and out of the workplace.

Schedule a Workshop Today