Ever been stuck in a "meh" moment, unsure if it's a yes or a no? 😬

Nikki and Jason dive into a fun, fired-up convo about making bold, aligned decisions, personally and professionally. From saying no without guilt to spotting red flags in client partnerships and making hiring choices that truly light up your team, they cover it all.

Nikki also shares powerful takeaways from Mel Robbins' "Let Them" philosophy and the Why.OS framework that keeps the PFN team living and leading with radical intentionality.

Tune in if you're ready to lead, live, and love like every decision is a full-body "Hell Yes!"

Additional Resources:

Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn

Connect with Jason on LinkedIn

Subscribe to the PFN YouTube Channel for daily leadership insights!

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Know your why to guide clear decisions.
• Energy alignment outweighs obligation every time.
• Misaligned clients drain culture and results.
• Right person, right seat is essential.
• Intentionality drives meaningful culture and impact.

In this episode, Geoffrey Smith and Cory Jenks discuss the importance of human connection in healthcare, the need for innovation, and the challenges faced by healthcare professionals. Cory shares his unique background as a pharmacist and improv comedian, emphasizing the significance of creating meaningful experiences for patients and caregivers alike. They explore the barriers to change within the healthcare system and the potential for individual engagement to drive transformation. The conversation highlights the importance of authentic presence, breaking down self-imposed limits, and the lessons learned from both positive and negative experiences in healthcare.

Additional Resources:

Follow Cory on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cory-jenks-3ba17314/

Take a look Cory's book, Permission to Care: Building a Healthcare Culture that Thrives in Chaos: https://rb.gy/4a8yoo

www.mo-mentsofexperience.com

Subscribe to Mo-Ments of Experience on YouTube! https://youtube.com/@mo-mentsofexperience?si=IZAB036xX1mmrn2C

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/peopleforward-network

Learn more about PeopleForward Network: https://peopleforwardnetwork.com

Key Takeaways:

• Cory emphasizes the importance of getting patients off medication.
• Healthcare professionals can create joy in their work environments.
• Authentic presence is crucial in patient care.
• Building trust with patients is essential for effective healthcare.
• Self-imposed limits can hinder innovation in healthcare.

What if the secret to better leadership isn't about doing more, but being more human?

In this episode of Work Doesn't Work (Anymore), Dr. Ryan Darby sits down with leadership expert and founder of Brain Squared Leadership Solutions, Laurie Cozart. With over 10,000 individuals and 500 teams coached, Laurie brings deep insights on how leaders can thrive in today's complex and rapidly changing workplace.

Together, they unpack why hero leadership is outdated, why clarity is the most underrated leadership skill, and how vulnerability and relationship-building are actually strategic advantages. Laurie shares stories from her own journey and introduces practical, neuroscience-backed tools for fostering resilient leadership, trust-filled teams, and simplified work cultures that don't burn people out.

If you're tired of the noise and looking to build magic teams that feel good and perform better, this conversation is your playbook.

Additional Resources:

Connect with Laurie on LinkedIn

Followed Brain Squared Leadership Solutions on LinkedIn

Learn more about Brain Squared Leadership Solutions

Connect with Dr. Ryan Darby for continued leadership insights

Subscribe to the PFN YouTube Channel for daily leadership insights!

Follow Gut + Science wherever you get your podcasts for more from Work Doesn't Work (Anymore)

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Hero leadership quietly exhausts everyone
• Clarity is kindness and performance fuel
• Relationships make hard tasks feel easy
• Vulnerability builds trust, not weakness
• Emotional safety drives resilience and engagement

What if your company values weren't just words on a wall, but a lived, breathing part of your culture that drives every hire, fire, and daily decision?

Live from CultureCon 2025 in Madison, Wisconsin, Nikki sits down with Eliza Jackson of ButcherBox for a conversation that flips traditional HR playbooks on their head.

With a colorful background that spans finance, kindergarten classrooms, and hypergrowth startups, Eliza brings a refreshingly real perspective on what it takes to build values-driven organizations that actually walk the talk.

From rejecting high-performing candidates who don't align with company values to ensuring every employee has access to a personal coach, Eliza breaks down ButcherBox's radical approach to "baking in" culture at every level. You'll hear how they future-proof their workforce through mindset over skillset, maintain startup agility at scale, and foster a culture of relentless improvement, all while staying human at the core.

Additional Resources:

Connect with Eliza on LinkedIn

Learn more about ButcherBox

Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn

Connect with Zach on LinkedIn

Connect with Nick on LinkedIn

Learn more about CultureCon

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Values must be embedded across all touchpoints.
• Coaching unlocks personal and organizational growth.
• Hire for mindset, not just experience.
• Startup culture can scale if you're intentional.
• Inner work fuels external culture strength.

What if your AI tools were more like teammates than tech? AI isn't coming for your job, it's coming to take the busywork off your plate.

Jason and Nikki crack open how the PeopleForward Network team is weaving AI into their daily workflows without ditching what makes them... them.

From using ChatGPT for parenting convos to building sales proposals, onboarding guides, and culture content, they're showing how AI can augment your team, not replace it.

Expect lightbulb moments and a roadmap for using AI to go further faster while keeping your values and people at the center 💡

Additional Resources:

Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn

Connect with Jason on LinkedIn

Subscribe to the PFN YouTube Channel for daily leadership insights!

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• AI is a co-pilot. Use it to enhance, not replace, human work.
• Start small. Experiment with everyday tasks before scaling.
• Input matters. Better prompts lead to better, more authentic outputs.
• Culture comes first. Align AI use with your company's values.
• Free up time. Let AI handle the mundane so people can focus on meaningful work.

What if your biggest leadership blind spots were hiding in plain sight?

To celebrate 50 episodes of The Unleashing **Leaders Podcast, we're bringing this powerful conversation to Fringe. Host Lee Scott sits down with long-time friend and leadership powerhouse Cyrus Aram, TED speaker, UC Davis professor, and CEO of Unleashing Leaders. Together, they peel back the layers on the hidden blind spots that derail even the most experienced leaders.

From culture clashes and conflict to misaligned customer experiences, Cyrus shares hard-earned insights and real-life stories that drive home the importance of empathy, frameworks, and thinking outside-in. With his signature candor and heart, Cyrus offers practical tools for navigating ambiguity, leading across industries, and helping people truly feel seen.

This episode is part strategy, part soul, and all about unleashing what's already within you.

Additional Resources:

Listen to The Unleashing Leaders Podcast!

Attend Unleashing Leaders University: https://unleashingleadersuniversity.com/purchase

Learn more about Unleashing Leaders: https://unleashingleaders.com/

Follow Unleashing Leaders on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/unleashingleaders

Connect with Lee on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leeallenscott/

Follow Unleashing Leaders on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UnleashingLeaders/

Follow Unleashing Leaders on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unleashingleaders/

Subscribe to the PFN YouTube Channel for daily leadership insights!

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Culture trumps everything in leadership success or failure
• Frameworks help leaders navigate complex, recurring challenges
• Conflict reveals deeper issues, not just surface disagreements
• Strategic thinking starts with listening to language patterns
• Outside-in perspective transforms customer experience design

What if the real reason workplace engagement hasn't budged in 30 years is because we've made leadership too complicated?

In this kickoff to a powerful new content partnership, Nikki introduces Dr. Ryan Darby, organizational psychologist, leadership simplifier, and founder of WorkStrong. Ryan's not here for hype. He's here for habits. Drawing from his deep experience with 34Strong and years of leading large-scale engagement work, Ryan shares why most leadership development fails, and how a simpler, more actionable approach can finally move the needle.

You'll hear the backstory of Work Strong's creation, rooted in real gaps spotted inside thriving companies. You'll also get a sneak peek into the upcoming "Work Doesn't Work (Anymore)" series and why Ryan believes the future of leadership lies in emotional regulation, discipline, and better listening, not more content.

This one's a rally cry for people-first leaders ready to stop admiring the problem and start doing what actually works.

Additional Resources:

Connect with Dr. Ryan Darby on LinkedIn

Watch Gut + Science (and more) on YouTube!

Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Leadership is a skill, not a knowledge dump.
• Engagement won't shift without habit-driven systems.
• Listening is thinking. Learn how your brain hears.
• Simplify leadership: action over theory.
• Good leadership demands emotional regulation and resilience.

What if your team could get more done in less time? ⏳ In this Community Conversation, Nikki and Jason flip the traditional "hours worked" mindset on its head, championing the power of results over clock-watching.

They share why it's time to ditch the outdated 9–5 mentality, how to unlearn habits that hold us back, and why role clarity + goals + KPIs are the secret trio for driving real impact. 🚀

From experimenting with a four-day work week to harnessing AI for smarter workflows, this episode is packed with practical strategies, fresh perspectives, and a few personal stories that'll make you rethink your relationship with time.

Whether you're a leader or a team member, you'll walk away ready to work sharper, not harder, and maybe even earn yourself that extra day off.

Additional Resources:

Subscribe to the PFN YouTube Channel for daily leadership insights!

Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn

Connect with Jason on LinkedIn

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Measure success by results, not hours worked.
• Use role clarity, goals, and KPIs to guide focus.
• Unlearn outdated time-based work habits.
• Leverage AI to boost efficiency and flexibility.
• Cut low-value tasks to create space for impact.