FranklinCovey On Leadership

When leaders roll out change, they often push harder on the message instead of pausing to understand why people are resisting. In this episode, Chris Voss—former FBI hostage negotiator and author of Never Split the Difference—returns to On Leadership to explore how empathy and understanding fuel real collaboration in times of uncertainty. Chris explains why the human needs for safety, agency, and feeling understood are just as critical in the conference room as they are in a negotiation. He shows how leaders can “go slow to go fast” by articulating what their people are thinking, using tools like the accusations audit, and shifting from “being heard” to helping others feel heard. Along the way, he offers practical language and mindsets leaders can use to lower resistance, build trust, and move teams forward—even when they can’t offer certainty about the future.

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Chris Voss is a former FBI lead kidnapping negotiator, betselling author of Never Split The Difference, and founder and CEO of The Black Swan Group; a negotiation, training, coaching, and consulting organization that teaches people how to achieve better outcomes in high-stakes conversations.

Recognized globally as a leading authority on negotiation, Chris developed his approach through decades of experience in crisis negotiation. Today, he and The Black Swan Group apply those principles to business, sales, leadership, difficult conversations, and high-stakes communication through The Black Swan Method® and Tactical Empathy®.

Never Split The Difference has introduced millions of readers around the world to Chris's negotiation methodology. Through The Black Swan Group, Chris and his team help people go beyond understanding the concepts in the book and develop negotiation as a practical, repeatable performance skill through training, coaching, practice, and live experiences.

The Black Swan Group offers in-person negotiation training, live and self-paced online negotiation training, coaching, keynote speaking, and advanced negotiation experiences for business owners, leaders, sales professionals, and other professionals who want to become more effective dealmakers.

Learn from Chris Voss and The Black Swan Group:

Negotiation training and resources: https://www.blackswanltd.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=franklincoveyonleadership
In-person and live training: https://www.blackswanltd.com/live-events?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=franklincoveyonleadership 
Online negotiation training: https://www.blackswanltd.com/online-negotiation-classes?utm_source=youtube&utm=social&utm_campaign=franklincoveyonleadership

As a global leadership and organizational performance partner, we give strategy the human edge™. For 40 years, FranklinCovey has helped tens of thousands of leaders, teams, and organizations around the world achieve breakthrough results and transform how they execute strategy at scale.To learn more, email us at info@franklincovey.com, visit franklincovey.com, or call us at: 1-888-868-1776

When every leader is being told to “have an AI strategy,” where do you actually start? Neil Hoyne—Google’s Chief Strategist and author of Converted—joins Jennifer Colosimo to reframe the conversation around what really drives growth. Drawing on two decades in rooms with CEOs, boards, and frontline teams, Neil explains why the first question isn’t which AI model to buy, but what business problem you’re trying to solve and how you’ll deploy limited resources to capture real opportunities. He talks about the psychology of data—why even the most sophisticated leaders override it, how metrics get weaponized into sales pitches, and what it takes to build disciplined experimentation instead. Neil also shares how to reconnect spreadsheets to the human stories behind them, design standards for “how much data is enough,” and use AI as a tool in service of clear strategy rather than a shiny object that drives it.

AI Transformation and the Human Imperative: https://resources.franklincovey.com/c/tlg-ai-transformation-human-imperative?x=j4G37p&lb-mode=overlay

As a global leadership and organizational performance partner, we give strategy the human edge™. For 40 years, FranklinCovey has helped tens of thousands of leaders, teams, and organizations around the world achieve breakthrough results and transform how they execute strategy at scale.To learn more, email us at info@franklincovey.com, visit franklincovey.com, or call us at: 1-888-868-1776

How do you lead through constant disruption without losing sight of people, purpose, or performance? In this episode, Kat Cole—CEO of AG1, former president of Cinnabon, and longtime operator and investor—joins Jennifer Colosimo to share the pivotal moments that shaped her philosophy of leadership. Kat reflects on rising from restaurant hostess to executive, turning Cinnabon around after the Great Recession, and steering franchise and hospitality businesses through COVID when revenue evaporated overnight. She explains why “being clear-eyed” about what’s broken, focusing on what truly matters, and being willing to take unpopular actions are essential in volatile times. Kat also talks about the beliefs great leaders hold about people, how they balance optimism with realism, and the everyday habits—listening, taking action, seeking feedback, and growing on purpose—that allow them to build trust, unlock potential, and create opportunity in any environment.

From Shock to Strategic Advantage: How Leaders Convert Disruption Into Opportunity: https://resources.franklincovey.com/c/tlg-convert-disruption?x=j4G37p&lb-mode=overlay

As a global leadership and organizational performance partner, we give strategy the human edge™. For 40 years, FranklinCovey has helped tens of thousands of leaders, teams, and organizations around the world achieve breakthrough results and transform how they execute strategy at scale.To learn more, email us at info@franklincovey.com, visit franklincovey.com, or call us at: 1-888-868-1776

What does effective leadership look like when every decision can affect a patient’s life? In this episode, Erica DeBoer, Chief Nursing Officer at Sanford Health, joins Jennifer Colosimo to share how she leads 11,000 nurses and 55,000 team members across one of the nation’s largest rural health systems. Erica describes her philosophy of stewardship, why leadership is less about having all the answers and more about creating the conditions for great decisions, and how she keeps “brilliance at the bedside” at the center of every choice. She explains why clarity matters more than certainty, how Sanford’s high-reliability journey and SAFE (Sanford Accountability for Excellence) framework guide communication, and practical ways she equips frontline teams to speak up, solve problems, and focus on what matters most. Along the way, she highlights simple practices—like huddles, repeated messaging, and visible presence—that build trust, strengthen engagement, and improve both the employee and patient experience.

Rethinking the High-Turnover Hospital: https://resources.franklincovey.com/c/tlg-rethinking-the-high-turnover-hospital?x=j4G37p&lb-mode=overlay

As a global leadership and organizational performance partner, we give strategy the human edge™. For 40 years, FranklinCovey has helped tens of thousands of leaders, teams, and organizations around the world achieve breakthrough results and transform how they execute strategy at scale.To learn more, email us at info@franklincovey.com, visit franklincovey.com, or call us at: 1-888-868-1776

In many organizations, the ideal employee is still the one who’s always on, answers instantly, and never seems to slow down. Elizabeth Svoboda—award-winning science journalist and author of The Art of Pacing—joins Jennifer Colosimo to challenge that myth with evidence from neuroscience, psychology, and elite performance. Elizabeth explains why “grind” culture quietly erodes physical and mental health, drives talented people out, and ultimately undermines productivity. She shares what happens in our brains and bodies when we ignore limits, how leaders’ own narratives about overwork shape their teams, and why learning to pull back before you hit the wall is an act of courage, not weakness. Drawing on real research and practical tools, Elizabeth shows how leaders can model healthier pacing, spot early warning signs of overload, and create environments where people can sustain high performance over the long term.
 
From Burnout to Breakthrough: Turn Inconsistent Leadership Into Sustainable Performance: https://resources.franklincovey.com/c/tlg-from-burnout-to-breakthrough?x=j4G37p&lb-mode=overlay
 
As a global leadership and organizational performance partner, we give strategy the human edge™. For 40 years, FranklinCovey has helped tens of thousands of leaders, teams, and organizations around the world achieve breakthrough results and transform how they execute strategy at scale.To learn more, email us at info@franklincovey.com, visit franklincovey.com, or call us at: 1-888-868-1776