For eight years, you've been sitting on knowledge that could help thousands. But you're waiting for the perfect plan. Meanwhile, the people who need what you're building can't wait. What if the real problem isn't that your plan isn't good enough—it's that perfectionism is killing your impact?

General Patton said it best: "A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week." In this episode, Shelly reveals the behind-the-scenes strategy of launching two major projects—the Wildflower Personality Assessment and Digital Shelly bot—at double time, messy on purpose.

You'll discover the one-way vs. two-way door decision framework from Amazon that lets you move fast on reversible decisions while staying careful on irreversible ones. Learn how "Build The One Thing" simplifies what looks like complex strategy into focused execution. And hear the real cost of decisions that matter—including the painful pivot of removing someone's name from a project announced publicly.

This isn't about reckless action. It's about strategic urgency. Building systems that outlast you. And understanding that the women who need your expertise can't wait for perfect—they need excellent, now.

00:00 Violent Execution Over Perfect Planning: Launching Wildflower + Digital Shelly

03:31 The Real Enemy: Perfectionism, Legacy, and Why Systems Must Outlast Us

07:43 Build One Thing: The Mission + How the Wildflower Assessment, Substack, and Digital Shelly Fit

12:10 Amazon’s One-Way vs Two-Way Doors: Fast Decisions on Pricing, Content, and the Bot’s Identity

22:50 2026’s One Thing: Building Infrastructure for Healthy Female Friendships

23:41 Digital Shelly in Practice: 24/7 Support, Therapy Boosts & Career Clarity

32:50 Four Lessons: One Thing, One-Way Doors, Systems That Outlast You, Violent Execution

37:22 Providence, The Founding Member Offer & Your 2026 Challenge (Finale)

1. Why "Build The One Thing" simplifies complex strategy into focused execution (and how to identify YOUR one thing for 2026)
2. Amazon's one-way vs. two-way door framework for making faster decisions without being reckless
3. The real infrastructure required to scale personal expertise: assessments, AI bots, and content supply chains
4. How to price systems for sustainability instead of making money off the people you serve

Next Week: Episode 36 - "The Relationship Between Excellence and Authenticity"

Can you maintain high standards while being fully yourself? Or does authentic leadership require lowering the bar?

Learn More:

Hardcore and At Ease Framework: https://www.OthersOverSelf.com | Online Community: join.othersoverself.com | Substack (Launches Tomorrow): https://shellyrood.substack.com/

Book Mentioned:

The One Thing by Gary Keller: https://amzn.to/49msBIB

Affiliate Disclaimer:

I only recommend products I genuinely use. Full disclosure:

You're in the grocery store and suddenly you want to abandon your cart and run. The networking event has you wanting to throw punches. Your family gathering sends you spiraling. And you have no idea why—you just know you can't handle one more thing.

What if your body isn't broken? What if it's doing exactly what it was trained to do—except the threat it's protecting you from doesn't actually exist anymore? This episode reveals the gap between trauma and sensory overload that keeps high-performing leaders trapped in fight-or-flight mode during normal activities. You'll discover the practical toolkit that helps you recognize when your nervous system is overreacting, and how to reclaim control without losing your edge.

Today on Hardcore and At Ease™, we're sharing a powerful stage talk from the 2023 Others Over Self® Leadership Conference featuring Air Force veteran Erin Dunn, who spent 30 years living with trauma before discovering strategies that actually work. This isn't clinical advice—it's survival intelligence earned through decades of trial and error.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Introduction and Host's Opening Remarks

01:25 Understanding Sensory Overload and Trauma

02:47 Erin Dunn's Journey and Insights

05:12 Sensory Overload in Everyday Situations

25:51 Understanding Sensory Overload

28:51 Strategies to Manage Sensory Overload

32:58 Toolkit Essentials for Sensory Management

40:45 Empowering Your Nervous System for Sustainable Excellence

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL DISCOVER:

✓ The critical difference between trauma flashbacks and sensory overload

✓ Why crowds don't always trigger you, but sausage cooking can send you into meltdown

✓ Five practical strategies to manage sensory overload in real-time

✓ How to engage your parasympathetic nervous system on demand

✓ The toolkit that lets high-performers function in overwhelming environments

FEATURED SPEAKER:

Erin Dunn is a 10-year Air Force veteran who served as a journalist and special agent with the Office of Special Investigations. She lived and worked in seven countries, earned her law degree while deployed to Iraq, and has spent 30+ years managing trauma from the 1988 Ramstein Air Show disaster. She discovered the connection between ADHD sensory overload and trauma responses, filling a critical gap in how we talk about everyday functioning with trauma.

NEXT WEEK:

Episode 35: "Love What You Lead: Passion vs. Burnout in Leadership" - We all started our missions with passion. So why do so many leaders end up resenting the very thing they once loved? Discover how to restore that love without lowering your standards.

RESOURCES:

Hardcore and At Ease Framework: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13lPUVrMxMesRHgbSh98aFThku20aZMWf/view?usp=drive_link

Book Strategy Session: info@missionambition.org

Affiliate Disclaimer: I only recommend products I genuinely use. Full disclosure: https://othersoverself.com/affiliate-disclaimer/

Get the Gear:

📊 My Business Report: https://hardcore-and-at-ease.captivate.fm/biz-report

🎯 StoryBrand.ai: https://hardcore-and-at-ease.captivate.fm/storybrand-ai

📚 Business Made Simple:

Episode 33 - Vicki Selva: "When Competitors Multiply Impact: Building Regional Excellence Through Strategic Collaboration"

What if your biggest competitors could become your greatest force multipliers? When you're exhausted from operating in isolation, trying to coordinate partners who won't coordinate, or watching potential collaborations die from friction—there's a different way.

In this episode, Vicki Selva shares how three historically competing counties now collaborate on $6 billion in defense work through the Detroit Regional Defense Coalition. You'll discover how to lower collaboration friction, why strategic partnerships align success rather than compromise it, and the leadership power of admitting "I don't know." This is Generate Momentum—the dark blue ring in the Hardcore and At Ease Framework—in action: where individual excellence transforms into collaborative force multiplication.

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) Introduction: Does Your Leadership Generate Momentum or Dependency?

(00:51) Meet Vicki Selva: Building a $6 Billion Regional Ecosystem

(01:29) The Power of Strategic Partnerships Over Competition

(04:04) Inside the Detroit Regional Defense Coalition

(05:46) Making Defense Work Accessible to Small Businesses

(11:46) Advocacy, Membership, and Multiplying Regional Voice

(20:13) Leadership Wisdom: The Confidence to Say "I Don't Know"

(38:35) Three Principles for Generating Collaborative Momentum

IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL DISCOVER:

✓ How to turn competitors into collaborators by designing systems where everyone's success is interconnected

✓ The three-step framework for lowering collaboration friction in your organization

✓ Why admitting "I don't know, but I'll find out" creates more sustainable excellence than performative expertise

✓ How to identify who you're treating as competitors when they could be force multipliers

FEATURED GUEST:

Vicki Selva - Director, Detroit Regional Defense Coalition

Vicki serves as executive director where Macomb, Oakland, and Wayne counties collaborate on regional defense ecosystem development. With experience from Senator Levin's office and NDIA board service, she's building systems where regional success and individual success become identical.

RESOURCES:

Learn More:

1. Hardcore and At Ease Framework: https://www.OthersOverSelf.com
2. Strategy Session: info@missionambition.org

Affiliate Disclaimer: I only recommend products I genuinely use. Full disclosure: https://othersoverself.com/affiliate-disclaimer/

Get the Gear:

📊 My Business Report: https://hardcore-and-at-ease.captivate.fm/biz-report

🎯 StoryBrand.ai: https://hardcore-and-at-ease.captivate.fm/storybrand-ai

📚 Business Made Simple: https://hardcore-and-at-ease.captivate.fm/bms

🚀 Flight School: https://hardcore-and-at-ease.captivate.fm/flight-school

📈 My Marketing Report: