Guest: Lin Coughlin, Executive Coach & Strategic Advisor

Host: Julie Riga

In this powerful episode, Julie sits down with Lin Coughlin, an executive coach who spent 20 years in C-suite roles leading transformative change. Lin shares her wisdom on navigating high-stakes inflection points, building constituencies for change, and why leading bold transformation requires both thick skin and deep curiosity. This conversation is a masterclass for anyone stepping into uncertainty, transitioning from corporate to entrepreneurship, or questioning what comes next. If you're ready to reframe uncertainty as your greatest leadership invitation, this episode will show you how.

Lin is an executive coach and strategic advisor with nearly 30 years of leadership experience. She spent 20 years in C-suite operating roles leading mergers and acquisitions, turnarounds, internal startups, and high-growth transformations. Lin is launching a new leadership development business focused on high-potential women leaders, offering group coaching and peer-to-peer learning.

Fun Fact: Lin's favorite food is roasted peaches!

The Core Framework for Leading Change:

• Future State First: Start with possibility and achievability, then work backward
• Human-Centered Leadership: Lead from the heart first, then the head
• The 80% Rule: 80% of change success comes from cultivating trusting relationships

Why 70% of Change Initiatives Fail:

1. Lack of stakeholder buy-in at the outset
2. Insufficient attention to execution
3. Inability to pivot and course correct in uncertain environments

"What got you here will not get you there."

"80% of leading change comes from being able to cultivate trusting and trusted relationships."

"The disruptors really are the people who are the future of the organization."

Lin's Leadership Philosophy:

• Surround yourself with people who can do circles around you
• Invest strategically in their development
• Coach and mentor them closely

The Corporate-to-Entrepreneur Transition:

• Think in multiple revenue streams from day one
• Julie quit "every Friday for two years"—the transition is genuinely difficult
• It's liberating and makes you more productive in all areas of life

The Disruptor's Dilemma: Both Lin and Julie identify as corporate disruptors. Julie was called a "trailblazer" in March and lost her job in April—the harsh reality of being ahead of the curve. Disruptors need psychologically safe spaces to raise bold ideas and be heard.

• Influence and communication mastery
• Building constituencies excited about possibility
• Self-confidence to navigate politics and complexity
• Resilience to fail forward and course correct quickly

• Website: www.greatcircleassociates.com
• Email: lin.coughlin@greatcircleassociates.com

1. Start with possibility—paint a compelling future state first
2. Lead with heart—relationships and trust drive 80% of success
3. Embrace disruptors—they're your organization's future
4. Build multiple revenue streams for career resilience
5. Communicate relentlessly—repeat your vision like building a brand

🎧 Subscribe to Stay On Course wherever you listen to podcasts

#Leadership #PurposeDriven #Transformation #CareerGrowth #Authenticity

Guest: Tracy Benson, Top 1% LinkedIn Coach & Brain-Based Leadership Expert

Host: Julie Riga

Overview

Join Julie Riga as she sits down with Tracy Benson, a top 1% LinkedIn coach and brain-based leadership expert who has spent over three decades helping senior leaders create clarity, alignment, and real performance. Tracy blends neuroscience, leadership psychology, and practical business strategy to give leaders tools they can use immediately to transform teams, organizations, and results. Discover how awareness, curiosity, and presence can revolutionize the way you lead.

1. Awareness Understanding what drives behavior beneath conscious awareness. Tracy reveals that 90% of brain function is unconscious yet rules how we show up. Learn to recognize reactive emotional states before they control you.

2. Curiosity The two magic words that shift you out of negative emotional states: "I wonder." Tracy explains why you cannot be angry and curious at the same time, making curiosity the entrance ramp to co-creation and discovery.

3. Presence & Perspective Discover foveal vs. peripheral view and how narrow focus blocks solutions. When you step back to include peripheral vision, all the ideas, solutions, and magic become available.

• The Power of "I Wonder": Two simple words that immediately shift you out of reactive states and open the palette of possibilities
• Meta Programs: Understanding the 50+ mental shortcuts that run how you show up and why time-focused and possibility-focused people clash
• Projection & Self-Discovery: How triggers reveal your unconscious programming and what you see in others exists in you

"This is the most powerful engine on the face of the planet, and we never got taught how to use it."

"We cannot be angry and curious at the same time."

"The palette of possibilities - in the moment you have all of these options, but we need to be in remembrance that those are available to us."

"We can't see the label on the jar from inside the jar."

• Wear a bead bracelet and snap it when you feel reactive
• Say "I wonder" to shift your brain state instantly
• Practice viewing challenges from multiple distances
• Visit art museums to train your brain to shift perspective

1. Your brain is powerful, but we were never taught how to use it
2. Curiosity shifts everything - you cannot be angry and curious simultaneously
3. Perspective creates possibilities - step back from problems to see solutions
4. Behaviors that trigger you reveal your own unconscious patterns
5. Small leadership adjustments create massive organizational impact

Connect with Tracy Benson: LinkedIn: Tracy Benson Free Tool: DM Tracy on LinkedIn with "expand" to receive a complimentary foveal vs. peripheral view tool

Perfect for leaders who want to understand how their brain works and use neuroscience to transform their leadership presence, decision-making, and relationships.

🎧 Subscribe to Stay On Course wherever you listen to podcasts

#Leadership #Mindset #Transformation #Purpose #Growth

This isn't your typical year-in-review episode. Julie Riga gets brutally honest about what 2025 really looked like as a small business owner: the hustle that led nowhere, the rejection that stung, the corporate friends who disappeared, and the Friday nights spent wondering if she should just get a "real job" again. But here's the twist: she's not quitting. In this raw, unfiltered conversation, Julie shares the unspoken truth about entrepreneurship, the non-negotiable realities of building a business, and why finding your purpose is worth every frustrating moment. If you're a business owner, leader, or anyone chasing a dream while wondering if you should give up, this episode is your permission to keep going.

Julie pulls back the curtain on her 2025: months of hustling with no results, feeling stuck, battling frustration and depression, and watching corporate connections fade away. This is the messy middle nobody talks about. But it's also a powerful reminder that transformation doesn't come from comfort zones, and legacy isn't built by quitting when things get hard.

The Three Non-Negotiables of Small Business Success:

1. Community Over Isolation - Why doing it alone guarantees you'll quit
2. Sales as Your Lifeline - 80% of your first two years is selling (no sugarcoating)
3. The Pivot-Fast Mindset - Learn what doesn't work and change it immediately

The Reality Check:

• Why 2025 felt harder than previous years
• Getting real about depression, frustration, and wanting to quit every Friday
• The corporate friends who disappeared and the strangers who stepped up
• What keeps Julie going despite the brutal journey

"2025 kicked my butt. If it didn't kick your butt, let me know in the chat."

"If you're not willing to say that 80% of my time in the very beginning is gonna be devoted to selling, just go get a job."

"Complete strangers will help me first than some of the people I worked very closely with."

"I am a catalyst for you to reach your next level of success."

1. Don't do it alone - Community is essential
2. Embrace sales reality or get a job
3. Pivot fast, learn faster
4. Never get comfortable with your pipeline
5. Take care of yourself through the brutal journey
6. Remember why you started

Julie specializes in helping leaders and business owners dig deep to understand their true purpose, facilitate that purpose in their lives, and break through to their next level of success with clarity and confidence.

Services: One-on-One Coaching | Leadership Programs | Training Programs | Brand Building

Ready for transformation? Schedule a call with Julie and start facilitating your purpose.

🎧 Subscribe to Stay On Course wherever you listen to podcasts

💡 Share with entrepreneurs who need to hear: "Don't give up"

#StayOnCoursePodcast #PurposeDrivenLeadership #SmallBusinessReality #EntrepreneurMindset #LeadershipGrowth

Guest: Gary Roberts - 20-Year Firefighter & Founder of Neurovus

Host: Julie Riga

Julie sits down with Gary Roberts, a 20-year Fort Lauderdale firefighter who transformed personal tragedy into mission. After losing his daughter to an opioid overdose on her 27th birthday, Gary created Neurovus, an AI-powered mental health platform combining biometrics, voice-driven AI, and evidence-based therapies to provide support before crisis hits.

Gary shares three essential ingredients for building unbreakable resilience: consistency, continuous learning, and mental toughness. Whether you're an entrepreneur, leader, or anyone overcoming obstacles, this episode offers actionable insights on moving forward when life knocks you down.

Gary is a 20-year veteran firefighter and founder of Neurovus. His journey includes breaking nearly every bone in his body, being stranded in Florida with nothing, building multiple fitness studios, and facing devastating loss. As a hazmat special operations team member, Gary combines fitness discipline, firefighting mental toughness, and compassionate understanding from profound personal loss.

Fun Fact: Despite being a fitness professional, Gary's favorite food is strawberry cheesecake!

1. Consistency: Moving the Needle Forward

• Do one thing daily to create momentum
• Take one step at a time (staircase principle)
• Track progress visually
• Focus on the end result, not difficulty

2. Continuous Learning: Every Experience is Education

• Treat failures as curves to overcome, not mistakes
• Listen more than you speak
• Build partnerships through genuine curiosity
• Learn from every experience

3. Mental Toughness: Work Through What You Don't Want to Do

• Physical and mental fitness work together
• Focus on post-completion feelings
• The 100 pull-ups principle: if you can do one, you can do 100
• Practice breathing techniques for decompression
• Teach loved ones to ask for "help" not present "problems"

Gary reveals harsh truths: no formal mental health training, "suck it up" culture, 24/7 alertness, constant worst-case thinking, high divorce rates, and PTSD indicators. First responders live in perpetual readiness, impacting home life.

"It's not how hard you get punched down, it's how many times you get back up."

"Think of the end result first, not what you're doing to get there."

"Resilience becomes part of you, not an obstacle to overcome."

Innovative platform using biometric integration, voice-driven AI, and evidence-based therapies for proactive mental health support—designed for first responders and high performers.

Website: www.neurovus.com

Instagram: @GRoberts_PIR

Email: garyroberts@neurovus.com

1. Consistency beats intensity
2. Learn from failures
3. Mental and physical health connect
4. Visualize end results
5. Resilience is built through persistence
6. Your story determines outcomes
7. Seek help before crisis
8. Take one step at a time

Legacy: Honoring Gary's daughter and Julie's father, whose teaching "seven times down, eight times up" captures resilience.

🎧 Subscribe to Stay On Course

#StayOnCourse #Resilience #MentalToughness #FirstResponders #Leadership

This episode marks an exciting milestone for the podcast. After launching in 2022, the show has officially begun charting on Apple Podcasts, and the momentum is just getting started. The focus for this year is clear and ambitious becoming a Top Ten podcast in the Entrepreneurship category.

Listeners are invited into the Before I Lead community on Skool, a free space designed for small business owners who want greater visibility, stronger leadership skills, and real connection. The community offers weekly networking and conversations centered on growing and leading a business with intention.

The heart of the podcast is learning directly from small business owners and experts who share their real world ingredients for success. Topics include marketing, sales, lead generation, podcasting, social media visibility, and using speaking as a powerful accelerator for business growth.

This episode also highlights the importance of visibility through podcasting and stages both local and virtual, along with a behind the scenes look at attending Podfest in Orlando to deepen conversations around podcast monetization and audience growth.

Rooted in legacy, the podcast continues to honor the influence of Julie’s father, Ennio Riga, whose mentorship and impact shaped generations. His legacy inspires the mission to help others share meaningful messages that create transformation.

The episode closes with insight into the Before I Speak program, which supports emerging speakers in building confidence, presence, and a powerful internal story before stepping onto any stage.

This podcast exists to educate, inspire, and equip listeners to grow intentionally, lead boldly, and stay on course as they build businesses and legacies that matter.

To learn more about Julie Riga and her mission to help you stay on course and lead with confidence and clarity, visit:

🌐 www.julieriga.com

🌟 Explore transformative coaching sessions at www.beforeilead.com

🔗 Connect with me on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/julieriga

I'm Julie Riga—a leadership coach, speaker, certified trainer, author, voice actor, and proud host of the Stay On Course podcast. With over 20 years of experience in the pharma, biotech, and life sciences industries, I specialize in empowering high-achieving professionals to lead with clarity, purpose, and resilience.

I work with:

• CEOs, Founders, and Executives who want to lead with authenticity and impact
• C-suite leaders and senior managers looking to improve executive presence and public speaking
• Entrepreneurs and business owners navigating growth, leadership challenges, and career fulfillment
• HR and operations leaders seeking strategic development tools and confidence coaching

Many of my clients come to me when they feel stuck, overwhelmed, or out of alignment. They’re looking to:

• Boost leadership clarity and overcome self-doubt
• Develop executive presence and master public speaking
• Reignite their purpose and unlock their full potential
• Balance career ambition with personal fulfillment
• Stay resilient in high-pressure environments

Whether you're a tech founder, a service-based business owner, or a corporate executive ready to elevate your leadership game, my programs—including Before I Lead, Before I Speak, Before I Sell, and Before I Calendar—are designed to help you take action, grow sustainably, and leave a lasting legacy.

Discover your purpose. Stay on Course. Leave a Legacy.

Embark on an unbelievable journey with Blaine Bartlett, a leadership expert and bestselling author, as he unveils the secrets to entrepreneurial success and the soul of business on the latest episode of the Stay on Course Podcast. Discover the transformative power of mindset, overcoming fear, and the terror barrier as essential steps in personal and professional growth. Dive deep into the realms of imagination and learn how it shapes reality, driving innovation in the business world. Blaine Bartlett, with his #1 international bestseller "Compassionate Capitalism," guides you on a thought-provoking exploration of leadership development, compassionate capitalism, and the journey of the soul, offering valuable tips and insights that will motivate you to lead with purpose and abundance in both your professional and personal life. Tune in to Stay on Course Podcast for an enriching conversation that challenges your inner dialogue, paving the way for scrumptious success and an extraordinary journey toward a more fulfilling and purpose-driven life. 🚀💡 #LeadershipDevelopment #CompassionateCapitalism #JourneyOfTheSoul #StayOnCoursePodcast #Success #Mindset #Imagination #Entrepreneurship #PersonalDevelopment #ProfessionalGrowth #ThoughtLeadership #BusinessInsights #BlaineBartlett #Motivation

The Unbelievable Journey to the Soul for Leadership with Blaine Barlett

Join me on the latest episode of the Stay on Course Podcast, featuring the remarkable Blaine Bartlett! 🚀 We're diving deep into the profound wisdom of leadership development, compassion in capitalism, and the journey of the soul. ✨

In this episode "Journey of the Soul," Blaine Bartlett takes us on a transformative exploration into the heart and soul of leadership, revealing the essential elements that connect us all in the world of business and beyond. 🌍

Here are some key takeaways from our enlightening conversation:

1️. Mindset: Uncover how our mindset is everything and learn how overcoming fear and terror barrier is crucial for personal and professional growth.

2️. Imagination: Explore the power of imagination in shaping our reality and driving innovation in the business world.

3️. Conversation: Discover how our experiences of the soul are intricately tied to the conversations we have within ourselves. These inner dialogues can either hold us back or propel us toward success, shaping the very essence of our personal and professional lives. 🗣️✨

Blaine Bartlett, the author of the #1 international bestseller "Compassionate Capitalism: A Journey to the Soul of Business," has personally impacted the lives of over one million people worldwide. 📚✨

Tune in to this thought-provoking episode on Stay on Course Podcast and let's embark on a journey to the soul together with Blaine Bartlett! 🎧💫

#LeadershipDevelopment #CompassionateCapitalism #JourneyOfTheSoul #StayOnCoursePodcast #Leadership #Mindset #Imagination #InnerConversations #PersonalDevelopment #ProfessionalGrowth #ThoughtLeadership #BusinessInsights #julieriga #pharma #pharmacoach

To learn more about Julie Riga and her mission to help you Stay On Course, visit her website: www.stayoncourse.io

Julie Riga is a certified coach, trainer, speaker and author with over 20 years of experience in the Pharma Industry. Julie’s education is vast with studies that include business, communications, training and executive coaching.

Julie started on this journey because she had a strong desire to pass on the knowledge and skills passed on to her by her father, Ennio Riga, and inspirational man who taught her how to keep going irrespective of the challenges that life may present you with.

Based in New Jersey, Julie have travelled the world supporting corporations, business leaders and individuals on their journey of empowerment and growth.

Discover your purpose, Stay on Course, Leave a Legacy

#pharma #lifescienceleadership #biotech #leadership #stayoncourse #julieriga