Blog

Season 3, Episode 6

SUMMARY: 

As an independent journalist and two-time Emmy nominee, Georgia Fort is committed to providing visual stories about race and culture that build equity.  She's had plenty of material to work with right here in Minnesota.  She was one of two reporters in the courtroom for the sentencing of Derek Chauvin, the former officer who murdered George Floyd.  She's also covered the Kim Potter trial, and most recently Amir Locke, who was killed by police in a SWAT raid (happened on the day we recorded this podcast).   The murder of George Floyd once again raised the issue of responsible reporting and the need for change. It also shaped Georgia's purpose to help change the narrative in media to include different perspective from the perpetual white lens. Still truth. Different perspective. Perspective mainstream media has often failed to include in its storytelling.  Her reporting has been published on CNN, ABC, NBC, Fox and CBS affiliates. Georgia also started ...

When I was in college, I was a sports reporter. The big goal was to do play by play in the NFL and eventually own the New York Giants. I gained experience as the sports editor of the college newspaper, working on the sports desk for the city paper and covering sports for the local CBS station on the weekends. It was a football town and I was the only woman around at the press conferences, in the press boxes, on staff.

My presence interrupted the way things had always been. I was supported by some, tolerated at best by others, harassed by a few. Most days I didn’t let it get to me, but I did enter all situations with my game face on ready to battle, stand my ground, demand to be heard. It required showing up every single day without a roadmap and doing what seemed like the next best step. Action, fumble, adapt, repeat.

I didn’t wait for people to tell me I could do something or ask for permission. I showed up, wrote what I saw and focused on amplifying voices and talent that weren’t b...

Season 3, Episode 6

Summary:

Today's episode tells the story of two powerhouses in the world of writing who joined forces to elevate the words, stories, and writing of women. Chris Olsen is dedicated to amplifying women's voices through her social enterprise My Founder Story. Julie Burton is an author, co-host of Her Next Chapter podcast, and founder of Modernwell, the first female-centered co-working collaborative space in Minneapolis. The two share about their ventures and their new collaboration, Publish Her, a female-founded hybrid publishing company.

Links:

Buy the Book: Her Path Forward: 21 Stories of Transformation and Inspiration

Modernwell | My Founder Story | Her Next Chapter

Chris and Julie recommend: Still Writing | On Writing | Bird by Bird

Transcript:

Michael Kithcart: 0:01 

Hello, I'm Michael Kithcart, high-performance leadership coach and the creator of Winning Your Way. Welcome to the Champions of RISK podcast. A podcast that highlights ways to tread t...

I was working with a leader who was self-admittedly out of control. He was upset because the executive team was not making decisions he thought they should be making and in absence of doing so, he kept bringing up what he thought the solutions should be to them.

He so desperately wanted to control the outcome based on what he thought others should be doing or providing. It was stressing him out and it was starting to damage his reputation.

Once I redirected him to what was within his own control, he could identify direction he and his team could take. By releasing his desire to control executive decisions, he could focus on other ways to achieve his priorities.

Wanting to control outcomes is futile and stressful. It is fear-based and in an effort to reduce the anxiety, you attempt to take over. How’s that working for you?

Chances are you’re trying to control something in your life right now, an outcome, a person. As a result, it’s also likely weighing heavily on your mind, taking u...

Season 3, Episode 4

Summary:

People are the biggest asset of any company, but companies don't always provide their people with the greatest experiences or opportunities. In this episode, Susan Rylance shares her wisdom about next-level leadership and teams. She's the VP of Growth, the Search Practice Lead, and a Partner at Fahren, a digital leadership company. Susan talks about her experiences helping businesses achieve their goals while building next-generation teams, and also about her work with the Minority Business Growth Alliance.

Links:

Work with Fahren

Support the Minority Business Growth Alliance

Transcript:

Michael Kithcart: 0:01 

Hello, I'm Michael Kithcart high-performance sales coach and the creator of Wynning Your Way framework. Welcome to the Champions of RISK podcast, where we examine the many aspects of risks so that we can all face uncertainty with more courage and confidence together, and we champion those who are leading this charge. People are the b...

If a stranger were to look at your weekly calendar, what would they say you’re
committed to? Would the actions and to-dos represent what you think is most important to you? If not, what’s getting in the way?

If you’re like most people, commitment gets associated with others - clients, family, work peers, community, friends. For some, there’s a good balance between professional and personal commitments, while others feel more pulled to one side. What often gets missed is the dedication to self and what you need to be productive, energized, joyful. Some people go all-in on being a certain way (being right, a victim, positive) while others refuse to commit (which is a commitment in and of itself). Of all these versions, resistance actually takes more energy and time than doing an action consistently.

Now is a great time to take a step back and take inventory in a non-judgmental way of what’s working for you and what’s in need of some tweaking. Consider making a list of what you’re commit...

Season 3, Episode 3

Summary:

Named in the FORBES 30 Most Powerful Women in Sports, our guest Angelina Lawton founded Sportsdigita over ten years ago. In this episode Angelina shares about building their flagship product the Digideck, the risks and rewards of running a successful SaaS company, making it in the world of sports, and the chapters of her life that made her who she is today. 

Links:

Check out Sportdigita.com

Transcript:

Michael Kithcart: 0:04 

Hello, I'm Michael Kithcart, a high-performance leadership coach and the creator of Wynning Your Way. Welcome to the Champions of RISK podcast where we examine the many aspects of risks so that we can all navigate uncertainty, with more courage and confidence together. Okay, I'm gonna date myself a little bit on this one. But do you remember Wide World of Sports? You know, the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat? I think this really kick-started my love of both storytelling and sports. And so I'm so excited t...

People start to twitch when the topic of purpose pops up. Some twitch in excitement because they’ve been on the journey of purpose discovery, and they’ve attained clarity. Most others stress twitch. The pressure of figuring out their purpose in life morphs into sweaty palms and darting eyes. Relax. Knowing your purpose is not about a mission statement that brands you for life. It doesn’t have to be all-encompassing to include what you’ve done and what you want to do. In fact, purpose is a lot less about doing and a whole lot more about being.

A client refused to talk about their purpose. It was a trigger word for them. I reframed it to aspired identity - who do they want to be in life and how did they want to show up for the world - and we were off and running. If you don’t like the word, change it to what works for you, don’t avoid it. And change it up when it no longer fits you. You continue to evolve and grow. Who you are today isn’t going to be the same as who you will be a year f...

Season 3, Episode 1

Summary:

What does it mean to be a Ladyboss? Laura Caroon reflects that most women she knows are already leaders in some way, they just might not recognize it. She shares about co-founding Ladyboss Midwest, which empowers and connects women leaders, and their upcoming FLOW retreat is this March. Additionally, Laura talks about her experience being elected to Moorhead city council and working with She Should Run, a nonprofit that helps give women the tools to run a successful political campaign.

Links:

Register for Ladyboss Midwest's FLOW retreat

Transcript:

Michael Kithcart: 0:05 

Hello, I'm Michael Kithcart, a high-performance sales coach and the creator of the Wynning Your Way framework. Welcome to the Champions of RISK podcast where we examine the many aspects of risk so that we can all face uncertainty with more courage and confidence together. Ladies, we know who really runs the world or should but there are days when we need to be reminded th...

Every year a group of us share what our word of the year is going to be and why it’s our word. The intention is to select one word that encapsulates what we most want out of the year. The idea it becomes our mantra, our reminder of what we want to create, experience, attract.

At the end of each year, we talk about how our word showed up throughout the year, ways it didn’t emulate what we wanted, ways it helped us along the way…and then we choose the next word for the new year (WOY).

I like to start thinking about my word in early December. Some years I’ve made a long list and slowly narrow it down. Other times it’s clear what I want more of in my life and that becomes the word. Freedom. Ease.

It’s interesting how the definition and interpretation of the word morphs with my experiences. My 2021 year was ease and in a lot of ways it has felt like one of my harder years. I also recognized that I often ignored my WOY and opted to double down or keep going. It was only when I relented, c...