In this bold and honest conversation, Erik sits down with Jeremy Brady, National Sales Manager at G Adventures, to explore what it really takes to lead high-performing teams in 2025. They unpack why the old sales playbook doesn’t work anymore, how to build a values-driven hiring process, and why “culture fit” isn't just a buzzword—it’s a strategic advantage. Jeremy shares hard-earned insights from leading through COVID, reinventing hiring practices, and learning how to create psychological safety during interviews. It’s a masterclass in modern leadership, hiring with intention, and building cultures that last.

👤 About the Guest

Jeremy Brady is the National Sales Manager at G Adventures
, a global adventure travel company known for its commitment to community tourism and values-driven leadership. With a background in hustle culture sales and over a decade of experience, Jeremy now helps shape a future of leadership that prioritizes authenticity, alignment, and long-term impact.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• From “boss to friend” tension: Jeremy’s journey becoming a leader among former peers
• The radical shift from hustle culture to intentionality in hiring
• How G Adventures uses a "G Factor" (now “Backstage Pass”) to detect culture alignment
• Designing interview processes that prioritize core values over credentials
• Leveraging “Working Genius” and hedgehog concepts to build balanced sales teams
• How COVID forced a rethink on team engagement, fulfillment, and purpose
• The power of letting top performers fail (and why you shouldn't rescue them too early)
• Turning travel sales into meaningful social impact work

💡 Key Takeaways

• Hire for alignment, not just performance: Core values are a better predictor of success than previous results.
• Disruption reveals truth: Swearing, surprises, or even a ball pit interview can surface real insights about a candidate.
• Let them fail forward: Growth comes from patterns of reflection, not perfection.
• Sales isn’t about closers: Balanced teams with varied strengths perform better long-term.
• Create psychological safety: The best interviews feel like conversations, not interrogations.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• How do you build trust with candidates while still vetting them honestly?
• What’s your process for uncovering a candidate’s core values?
• How can companies avoid hiring “brilliant jerks”?
• What signs reveal that someone is thriving—or just coasting on past wins?
• How do you push a top performer to grow without deflating them?

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“You're gonna f*** up—just don't do the same f*** up twice.”
—Jeremy Brady

“If we look the same five years from now, something's wrong.”
—Jeremy on constant reinvention at G Adventures

“The candidate isn’t applying to prove they’re good enough. We’re seeing if we’re a fit for them.”
—Jeremy Brady

“When you’re in charge, take charge. When you’re not, stop trying to be.”
—Erik Berglund

“Empathy is a superpower—but without the sword of accountability, it can become a crutch.”
—Erik Berglund

🔗 Links & Resources

• Follow Jeremy on LinkedIn
• Check out Jeremy's Instagram

In this timely and thought-provoking conversation, Erik and Alli explore what it means to lead in the age of AI. As team members start working with large language models, AI copilots, and digital assistants, leadership is no longer just about people—it’s about protocols. From new security risks and brain atrophy to digital clones and ChatGPT accountability, they map out the practical and ethical terrain of leading teams armed with supertools. If you lead a team (or will soon), this episode is your onboarding to the AI-powered workplace.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• The two biggest risks of AI use: brain atrophy and data exposure
• Why quality control matters more in an AI-powered team
• Why leaders must create protocols for feedback and accountability—even with AI
• The difference between an algorithm and a large language model (and why it matters)
• How to teach your team to lead digital coworkers as effectively as human ones
• Wild but real scenarios: legal risks of cloning employees, sparring with AI board members, and managing chatbots that miss deadlines

💡 Key Takeaways

• AI doesn’t replace leadership—it raises the stakes. Tools can create speed, but humans still guide context, ethics, and accountability.
• If your team is using AI, talk about it. You can’t lead what you don’t understand or even know is happening.
• Data intimacy still matters. AI can generate insights, but only you can understand the story behind the numbers.
• Feedback isn’t just for people. You need to build clear “rules of engagement” with your AI tools—just like a new hire.
• Legal and ethical questions are coming. Who owns an AI clone of your employee? You might need to decide… soon.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• What does it actually mean to manage AI tools—not just people?
• How do you avoid letting your team’s strategic thinking atrophy?
• What conversations should leaders have about how AI is being used?
• When does generative content need more editing, not less?
• Who owns your digital avatar if you leave your job?

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“Generation is no longer the hard part. It’s quality and editing that are scarce now.” —Erik

“If you’re not using part of your brain anymore, you’re going to lose it. AI can atrophy our thinking.” —Alli

“You still need rules of engagement—just like with a real human.” —Alli

“You can’t run a report for the stories you didn’t ask your AI to tell.” —Erik

“This isn’t a reason not to use AI—but it is a reason to lead differently.” —Erik

🔗 Links & Resources

• Listen to other episodes co-hosted with Alli

🧠 Erik’s Take

In this reaction episode, Erik reflects on his conversation with Chase Damiano—COO turned systems thinker, father-first decision maker, and founder of Humans at Scale. What stood out most? Chase doesn’t just talk strategy—he tests it. Erik highlights how Chase treats business like a living lab, combining intention, iteration, and humanity into every decision. This episode zooms in on what it really means to lead with intentionality, how systems thinking plays out in the real world, and why experimentation might be the most underrated leadership muscle of all.

🎯 Top Insights from the Interview

• Treat your business like a laboratory — Chase runs experiments, not assumptions. Every major move, from coffee trikes to national distribution, was a test.
• Systems thinking as a leadership edge — With a background in systems engineering, Chase applied operational rigor to startups and service-based businesses alike.
• Intentionality isn’t just personal—it’s operational — Whether choosing where to live or what to launch, Chase methodically tests alignment with values.
• Values-driven decisions scale — From turning down a promising job to stay close to his son, to shaping his new company, Chase walks the talk.
• Even your best ideas are just hypotheses — From sales scripts to team culture, everything is a test—until feedback proves otherwise.

🧩 The Personal Layer

Erik shares how Chase’s lens of systems + intention got him thinking about his own decisions—especially around parenting, leadership, and product testing. There’s a quiet kind of boldness in how Chase lives: methodical, values-aligned, and open to pivoting. That balance between rigor and flexibility? Erik sees it as an antidote to stuck leadership.

🧰 From Insight to Action

• Ask yourself: “Am I treating this strategy like a test?”
• Revisit your personal or professional goals—are they aligned with your values or inherited assumptions?
• Design small feedback loops for your next big decision. What would it mean to test it before scaling it?
• Consider how empathy + systems thinking can coexist in your leadership style.
• Journal prompt: “Where am I stubborn where I should be curious?”

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“Our businesses are just experiments.”

“The more you can recognize you’re in the middle of a test, the easier it is to treat pushback as feedback.”

“You kind of have to know where you want to go in order to figure out the best path to get there.”

“Intentionality and systems thinking—what a deadly one-two punch.”
“Every interaction—product, sales, culture—it’s all a lab if you’re willing to see it that way.”

🔗 Links & Resources

• Listen to Chase Damiano's Episode

In this episode, Erik sits down with Chase Damiano, former COO of Commonwealth Joe and founder of Human at Scale, for a conversation about structured experimentation, leadership evolution, and building a life—and a business—you actually want. From nitro cold brew to nervous system regulation, this conversation traverses tactical operations, deep self-inquiry, and how we unlock team performance by letting go of control.

👤 About the Guest

Chase Damiano is a leadership strategist, executive coach, and the founder of Human at Scale, an operations consultancy helping accounting firms run better businesses—without the owner being the bottleneck. Formerly the COO of Commonwealth Joe, Chase helped scale the company into the nation's largest provider of nitro cold brew coffee in offices before stepping away to build a life aligned with his values. Today, he helps leaders build organizations that run smoothly, grow intentionally, and free them to work on what matters most.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• How Chase helped transform a small family coffee roaster into a national cold brew distributor
• The real cost of being a “down-and-in” founder and how Chase broke the cycle
• Why leadership starts with confronting your own discomfort, not fixing others
• Behind the scenes of building Human at Scale and choosing the accounting space
• The pivotal moment Chase realized his “lead by authority” style was stifling growth
• The power of structured experimentation in business—and in life

💡 Key Takeaways

• Leadership bottlenecks aren’t always obvious—but they often show up in your calendar, your team’s hesitation, and your stress levels.
• Experiments beat assumptions. Chase’s journey—from relocating his life to building multiple companies—proves that structured risk can lead to powerful clarity.
• Coaching changes everything. Chase’s transformation began with the humility to ask for help and the right coach to unlock his potential.
• Process matters, but people more so. Scaling responsibly isn’t just about SOPs—it’s about empowering people to own their roles with clarity and context.
• Doing the uncomfortable work is the signal. Whether it’s selling, letting go, or confronting your own patterns, discomfort is often the compass.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• What’s the earliest moment you embraced personal agency and responsibility?
• How do we balance vision-setting with responsiveness to reality?
• How can founders know when to delegate versus when to develop a skill?
• What makes organizational context and alignment more than just job titles?
• How do we avoid “creative avoidance” while still honoring our genius?

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“We are the conscious creators of everything going on in our lives—whether we like it or not.” — Chase

“Most decisions are reversible. That truth frees you to act.” — Chase

“I was unconsciously holding down the potential of the entire organization.” — Chase

“Contextualized alignment—when people really see how they fit—is what unlocks action.” — Erik

“Leadership isn't about talent. It's about helping other people rise in theirs.” — Chase

🔗 Links & Resources

• Human at Scale Website
• Chase's Personal Website
• Chase's LinkedIn

In this episode, Erik and Alli take on a vulnerable leadership dilemma: what do you do when you are the one who needs to change—but your team already knows the old version of you? From elephants in the room to scones and sandboxes, they unpack the real tension of evolving your leadership style when everyone’s already formed their expectations. This one’s filled with practical scripts, funny stories, and coaching-rich insight for anyone navigating growth in real-time.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• Why change feels awkward—for you and your team
• What to say when you’re evolving your leadership approach
• The power of naming the elephant in the room (and apologizing when necessary)
• How to ask your team to hold you accountable when you slip
• Using backchannels (like Slack) to support your team without undermining them
• Why change doesn’t need to be perfect—it just needs two seconds of courage

💡 Key Takeaways

• Transparency builds trust. If you’re shifting your leadership style, don’t make your team guess—tell them why and what’s changing.
• Apologizing isn’t weakness—it’s leadership. Owning your past patterns models the growth mindset you want from your team.
• Pre-agree on signals. Don’t just say “I’m stepping back.” Clarify how your team can let you know if you slip back into old habits.
• You don’t have to be perfect—just human. Let the discomfort of change be part of your leadership narrative, not a hidden shame.
• Support can be silent. Use subtle tools like private Slack messages to coach without hijacking the spotlight.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• How do you earn your team’s trust after you’ve done it the old way for years?
• What role does vulnerability play in resetting leadership patterns?
• When should you name the elephant in the room—and how?
• How do you avoid over-correcting when stepping back?
• What’s a healthy way to invite feedback when you’re trying to change?

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“If you're asking your team to change with you, admit where you went wrong. It builds trust and momentum.” —Alli

“Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is say: I messed up. And here's how I want to do it differently.” —Erik

“Change doesn’t need to be perfect—it just needs two seconds of courage.” —Erik

“Tell me to get out of your sandbox. I’ll go vacate the premises.” —Alli

“Leadership is about evolving out loud. Let your people see that process—it gives them permission to grow too.” —Erik

🔗 Links & Resources

• Listen to other episodes co-hosted with Alli

🧠 Erik’s Take

In this reflection episode, Erik revisits his powerful conversation with therapist, designer, and leadership coach Monique Lecomte, spotlighting three resonant themes: adaptive leadership, the art of zigging when others zag, and the radical courage to own your origin story.

Monique’s journey—from rural Alabama to the boardrooms of design and organizational leadership—offers more than inspiration. It models a way of seeing leadership not as performance, but as personal evolution. Her ability to turn hardship into artistry, and pattern into purpose, leaves Erik asking himself—and all of us—what buried story we might need to feature instead of hide.

🎯 Top Insights from the Interview

• Adaptive leadership starts with unlearning. Monique’s work centers on resisting the “one-size-fits-all” playbook and staying present with the humanity in the room.
• Zig when others zag. Whether in design, career choices, or facilitation, Monique consistently chooses the less obvious path—and creates leverage by doing so.
• Origin stories hold power. The parts we want to skip are often the parts others most need to hear.
• Her book is a metaphor. The Expert General Generalist doesn’t just tell a story—it is the story: nonlinear, beautiful, layered, and unconventional.
• Leadership is design. And Monique sees space, systems, and power dynamics like a designer—revealing what's usually hidden in plain sight.

🧩 The Personal Layer

Monique’s honesty around her upbringing made Erik reflect on how much of our work, curiosity, and style comes from early experiences we may not even realize are driving us. He doesn’t have a book about his story—but this episode helped him consider what it might include. It’s an invitation to all listeners: if you traced your leadership back to its roots, what would you find? And more importantly—what would you do with it?

🧰 From Insight to Action

• Identify where you're applying a "one-size-fits-all" approach—and pause. Could you be more curious?
• Revisit your own career “zags.” What made you different—and how has that paid off?
• Spend 10 minutes journaling about a formative experience from childhood. What skill or sensitivity did it give you?
• Flip through The Expert General Generalist (if you have it)—not for answers, but for structure. How could you tell your story in a nonlinear way?
• Consider how you’re designing your leadership—not just practicing it. What patterns are you reinforcing without realizing it?

🗣️ Notable Quotes from Erik

“She doesn’t just tell her story—she features it. And that’s leadership.”

“Monique’s book is her strategy: beautiful, nonlinear, and completely outside the box.”

“The willingness to turn a hard story into a usable asset? That’s courage in action.”

“Adaptive leadership isn’t a theory. It’s a decision made over and over, in real time.”

“Her whole life has been a masterclass in zigging when others zag.”

🔗 Links & Resources

• Listen to Monique Lecomte's Episode

In this episode, Erik sits down with sales and leadership strategist Monique Lecomte for a raw, generous conversation on the dynamics of leadership, healing, and relational growth. Through the lens of her experience—from working with incarcerated teams to coaching senior executives—Monique reveals how personal wounds, cultural systems, and relational patterns show up in our work, and what it really means to lead with presence rather than performance.

👤 About the Guest

Monique Lecomte is a keynote speaker, leadership expert, and facilitator with a career spanning 20+ years in global business for iconic brands– Herman Miller, Knoll, and Hightower. Growing up in rural Alabama, she learned resilience and adaptability—skills that shaped her journey from small-town life to the boardroom. A recognized Expert Generalist, she has built high-performing teams, driven cultural change, and helped organizations thrive by balancing innovation with a human connection.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• The subtle (and not-so-subtle) trauma responses that shape how leaders show up
• Why the “fixer” instinct often creates disconnection and resentment
• What leaders can learn from others—and what they absolutely shouldn’t copy
• How systemic inequality shapes interpersonal dynamics at work
• The difference between “holding space” and avoiding discomfort
• A practical exercise for exploring relational patterns using you <--> me language
• Why every team has a collective nervous system—and how to listen to it
• The real role of somatics, not as a trend, but as a signal of what’s unspoken

💡 Key Takeaways

• Fixing is often a disguised need to reduce your discomfort—not meet their need.
• Every interaction is shaped by what’s in the system—past stories, power dynamics, and unspoken rules.
• Language matters: even small shifts (“you <--> me” structures) can expose entrenched roles and change a conversation.
• Unprocessed trauma or identity harm doesn’t stay personal—it shows up in leadership.
• Your body often knows the truth before your mind will admit it.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• “What are you protecting when you keep trying to fix things?”
• “What happens in the space between two people when one always performs and the other always disappears?”
• “What’s the cost of leadership that avoids conflict in the name of harmony?”
• “How do we lead when our nervous system is still recovering from old wounds?”
• “What shifts when we treat power as relational, not positional?”

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“Fixing makes the other person disappear. It assumes they’re broken and you know better.”

“A lot of what we call leadership is just a well-trained trauma response.”

“The room is always full of ghosts—of systems, of stories, of history. The work is learning how to see them.”

“There’s a difference between being regulated and being controlled. One leads to connection. The other leads to shutdown.”

“I’m not here to optimize you. I’m here to help you tell the truth in the room.”

🔗 Links & Resources

• Check out Monique's Website: moniquelecomte.com
• Monique's LinkedIn
• Monique's Instagram
• Read or Listen to 'The Expert Generalist', Monique's Book

In this candid, co-hosted conversation, Erik Berglund and Alli Murphy dive into the trending workplace phenomenon of ghost growth—where employees are handed more responsibilities without more compensation. They unpack where this trend is coming from, how it shows up in real teams, and what both leaders and employees can do to navigate it without burning out or blowing up. With plenty of real-life examples, frameworks, and tactical scripts, this episode is a masterclass in setting boundaries, negotiating expectations, and turning tension into growth.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• The rise of ghost growth: what it is, how it differs from scope creep, and why it’s hitting workers hard right now
• How leaders can frame tough asks without sounding manipulative
• Smart, non-monetary ways to reward extra effort—and why money isn’t always the most effective motivator
• Why “yes or no” isn’t the only response to being handed more work
• How to build capacity through systems, not just effort
• Scripts for pushing back without burning bridges
• The power of “start, stop, continue” when reevaluating your workload
• Why most job descriptions are broken—and what that says about expectations

💡 Key Takeaways

• Ghost growth is real—but it can be leveraged for meaningful development if handled with care.
• Leaders must co-own the problem, not just hand it off. It’s not just “here’s more work”—it’s “how do we solve for this together?”
• Scope creep without strategy leads to burnout, not growth. Honest, upfront conversations are essential.
• Employees have more agency than they think. The key is negotiating from curiosity and alignment—not reactivity.
• Incentives don’t always mean raises. Promotions, ownership, and time off often hold more value.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• Where does ghost growth actually come from—and how should leaders address it?
• What options exist beyond “say no” or “accept and drown”?
• How can middle managers protect their team’s well-being while navigating top-down pressure?
• What frameworks help employees reframe overwhelming asks as growth opportunities?
• Why do leaders default to “adding” instead of “subtracting”—and what’s the cost?

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“Growth happens under tension. But if you're not careful, you're just creating stress—not development.” —Erik

“There’s this false binary: say no and be punished, or say yes and drown. There are at least 17 other options.” —Alli

“Most people are more motivated by personal brand growth than a few extra dollars.” —Erik

“You don’t have to respond right away. You’re allowed to pause, reflect, and come back with a plan.” —Alli

“We’re wired to add, not subtract. But real leadership sometimes means removing more than it means adding.” —Alli

🔗 Links & Resources

• Listen to other episodes co-hosted with Alli