Podcast
Bad Boss Confessional
Hosted by Speakeasy Podcast Network · EN
Bad Boss Confessional is the podcast where entrepreneurs, founders, and leaders fess up to their most cringeworthy management moments—the times they micromanaged, blew up in meetings, or simply got it dead wrong. With names changed (to protect the innocent...and guilty), guests walk us through their “bad boss” moment in all its messy glory.
But this isn’t just a cringe-fest—it’s a redemption story.
32episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
35: When Your Team Tells You The Truth
Mar 2500:31:24Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Shea Peffly, a former CEO and integrator who now guides other leaders through EOS as a certified implementer. Shea shares the moment a Vistage exercise forced her to sit in silence while her own team told her the direct truth: that her constant questions and close involvement weren't landing as support; they were landing as distrust. The conversation explores what happens when a leader's intentions and their impact are completely out of sync, why asking how someone needs your help matters just as much as offering it, and how the gap between knowing good leadership practices and actually living them can quietly widen over time. Shea reflects on what it took to move from command-and-control instincts to a style of leadership built on genuine curiosity and relationship. Her lesson is both humbling and hopeful: the feedback that hurts the most is often the feedback that changes everything. Timestamps 00:00 Unfiltered Feedback and Podcast Intro 04:03 Shea’s Background and Business 07:39 The Vistage Feedback Experience 14:03 Processing and Acting on Feedback 22:54 Redefining Leadership and Impact 28:30 Leading with Love and Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Shea Peffly is a certified EOS implementer with over 25 years of executive leadership experience. As a former CEO and integrator, she built and scaled a veterans services organization from five employees to over a hundred, helping veterans secure the benefits they earned. She is a Small Business Monthly Top Business Advisor, Wonder Woman Award recipient, Kolbe Certified Consultant, and certified Outgrow Advisor. Today she helps leaders create meaningful impact by leading with clarity, building strong cultures, and living their best version of life and leadership. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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34: When a Star Player Stops Being a Teammate
Mar 1800:55:49Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey talks with David Kolbe, CEO of Kolbe Corp and co-developer of the Kolbe A™ Index, about the complicated decisions leaders face when values, performance, and people collide. David shares lessons from running a values-driven company and the leadership mistakes that taught him the most along the way. The conversation explores what happens when high performers fall out of alignment with company culture, why leadership communication matters just as much as the decisions themselves, and how easily trust can erode when the narrative isn’t clear. David also explains the idea of conative strengths and why understanding how people naturally take action can dramatically improve teamwork and leadership. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:46 Understanding Conative Strengths 07:09 Kolbe Impact on EOS and Personal Life 11:39 Firing a Top Performer: A Confession 18:24 Lessons Learned from Terminations 27:03 Navigating Leadership Challenges & Kolbe Scores 30:51 Understanding and Leveraging Kolbe Scores 38:19 Diversity in Teams 43:23 Kolbe in Personal Relationships 46:56 Kolbe & Gender Differences 49:56 The Genesis of Kolbe Strengths 53:18 Kolbe Tattoo & Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ David Kolbe is transforming how the world understands human performance. He comes from a lineage of psychometric pioneers and is the CEO of Kolbe Corp, the leader in helping people leverage their instinctive strengths to achieve what they care about most. David helped develop the original algorithm for the Kolbe A™ Index — the only proven tool to unlock conative strengths. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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33: The Cost of Skipping the Details
Mar 1100:43:37Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Chris Beer, founder of Wizard of Ops and a fractional Integrator. Chris shares a leadership mistake that shows up in many growing companies: assuming communication has happened when it hasn’t. After years of working in the fast-paced trading pits of Chicago, she developed a shorthand style of thinking and speaking that often skipped the context others needed. The result was confusion, missed expectations, and conversations that should have happened sooner. Chris reflects on how leaders unintentionally create chaos when they avoid difficult conversations or assume their teams can read their minds. Her lesson is simple but powerful: clarity, repetition, and humility are the real foundations of strong leadership communication. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:57 From Floor Trader to Integrator 06:12 The Bad Boss Confession: Communication 10:45 Avoiding Difficult Conversations 13:05 The Importance of Clarity in Roles 16:06 Communication in Change Management 22:22 The Role of a Fractional Integrator 26:30 Intentional Communication Strategies 33:42 Empathy and Utilizing EOS Tools 39:41 The Stoplight Tattoo and Conclusion About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Chris Beer is the founder of Wizard of Ops and a fractional Integrator who works inside EOS-run companies to close the gap between knowing the tools and actually using them under pressure. She’s known as the “Integrator’s Integrator,” helping leadership teams build real operating rhythm so EOS shows up on ordinary days, not just in the session room. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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32: Letting Go of the Vine
Mar 400:41:03Tap to summarizeIn this special group episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with fellow EOS Implementers Erik Dodier, Megan Piper, and Patrick Metzger fresh off a Great Boss workshop. Together, they unpack the leadership missteps that still linger in memory, from surprise firings and unclear feedback to micromanaging and holding too tightly to the vine. The conversation explores the weight of responsibility that comes with leading others and the humility required to admit when the problem is not the team, but the leader. Through stories of sleepless nights, hard lessons, and eventual breakthroughs, the group highlights what great bosses eventually learn: clarity is kindness, delegation requires intention, and growth demands courage. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction & Sponsors 02:24 Meet Patrick Metzger 04:04 Meet Megan Piper 05:53 Meet Erik Dodier 07:59 Reflecting on Leadership Mistakes 12:12 The Impact of Unclear Communication 15:46 Personal Firing Stories 21:13 Delegation and Hiring ‘Whos’ 25:10 The ‘Genius with 1000 Helpers’ Archetype 27:58 Delegation Challenges & Training 35:45 Final Reflections & Tattoos About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Erik Dodier, Megan Piper, and Patrick Metzger are professional EOS Implementers who bring decades of entrepreneurial and leadership experience to the session room. Erik founded and scaled a technology company over 30 years before successfully exiting and now helps entrepreneurs build scalable, sale-ready businesses. Megan transitioned from education into entrepreneurship, spending 17 years helping grow a globally distributed IT company from $3 million to $52 million before dedicating her work to teaching EOS and guiding leadership teams. Patrick began his career in education and coaching before moving into business advisory work, where he now helps owners build long-term value, scalability, and intentional exit plans. Together, they combine operational rigor, real-world scars, and a passion for developing leaders who want to get better. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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31: Building a Business Without Burning Out
Feb 2500:45:51Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth sits down with EOS Implementer Robert Hartline to explore the difference between being the firefighter and becoming the fire chief. After years of scaling businesses and chasing growth, Robert shares the moment he realized he was addicted to chaos and operating from scarcity rather than structure. From exponential growth to sobriety to launching Scaling Sober, Robert reflects on how awareness, breathwork, and EOS helped him move from reaction to intention. The conversation dives into why sober leadership matters and how entrepreneurs can build businesses that are driven by purpose rather than pressure. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:50 Robert’s Entrepreneurial Journey 07:38 The Firefighter Realization 12:51 From Firefighting to Purpose 17:10 Discovering the ‘Why’ 21:29 Learning from a ‘Bad Boss’ Moment 26:54 Scaling Sober: Entrepreneurial Wellness 33:11 Redefining Sobriety and Leadership 39:07 The QR Code Tattoo 43:04 The Importance of EOS Rollouts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Robert Hartline is an EOS Implementer, serial entrepreneur, and founder of Scaling Sober, a wellness community for growth-minded entrepreneurs. After scaling Absolute Wireless to over $100 million in sales, he shifted his focus to helping leaders build businesses that operate without chaos, burnout, or dependence on the owner. Today, he blends structure, purpose, and personal growth to help entrepreneurs lead with clarity and design lives that feel as good as they perform. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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30: The High Price of Saying Yes
Feb 1800:39:15Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth talks with serial entrepreneur and coach Jill Salzman about the early mistakes that shape stronger leaders. From quick-start decisions to client-pleasing habits, Jill reflects on how saying yes too fast and avoiding boundaries can quietly erode confidence and clarity. The conversation expands into coaching, asking better questions, and resisting the urge to solve everything for others. The real lesson is not about one bad decision. It is about learning to trust experience over ego, service over approval, and patience over speed. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:16 Meet Jill Salzman 05:05 Music and Personal Outlets 06:51 The Black Crows Concert Fiasco 12:15 Lessons from the Cancellation Fee 17:29 Influences and Coaching Philosophy 21:09 The Quick Start Challenge in Coaching 24:45 Human Connection vs. AI in Coaching 28:30 Detox from Social Media 32:57 The Big But Book 35:35 Tattoos and Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Jill Salzman isn’t your ordinary business coach. She’s a serial entrepreneur, a thinking partner, and a musician who rarely misses a beat. Jill brings humor, heart, and strategic clarity to every conversation. She thrives on collaboration, sparks creativity, and makes the hard parts of entrepreneurship feel a little lighter. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillll Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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29: Rollout: A Book Born From Bad Boss Moments
Feb 1100:44:11Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey is joined by EOS Implementer and Rollout co-author Marisa Smith for a different kind of confession. Together, they unpack the leadership mistakes that inspired the book in the first place. Both Beth and Marisa share what it was like to implement EOS in their own companies and realize that simply using the tools was not the same as rolling them out effectively. Marisa reflects on moving too fast, skipping context, and assuming her team would automatically understand what she understood. Transparency without education created confusion, not clarity. EOS worked best only after slowing down, following the process, and aligning the leadership team before expecting the rest of the organization to follow. The lesson is clear. Great leadership is not about speed or certainty. It is about humility, repetition, and teaching others how to think, not just what to do. Rollout is not an event. It is a discipline that turns vision into shared ownership across the organization. Learn more about "Rollout" here!: https://www.rolloutbook.com/ Timestamps 00:00 – Intro and book preview 00:29 – Why this podcast exists 02:05 – Writing the book together 03:09 – Marisa’s early business days 04:48 – Breaking EOS on rollout 06:35 – Learning to slow down 08:52 – The rollout roadmap 10:08 – Client success lessons 14:07 – Mid managers matter 16:18 – From student to teacher About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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28: Getting Out of Your Own Way
Feb 400:37:02Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with EOS Implementer Amanda Matthews to unpack a painfully relatable leadership moment driven by ego, insecurity, and a lack of self-awareness. After years of corporate leadership training, Amanda found herself out of her depth while managing in a high-volume restaurant environment. What she thought was confident leadership quickly turned into public shaming. Even experienced leaders can lose their way when ego and self-doubt take over. Great leadership requires pausing, reading the room, and remembering that praise belongs in public while criticism belongs in private. Growth begins when leaders learn to get out of their own way. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Amanda Matthews 01:45 Amanda’s Love for Swing Dancing 04:36 Corporate to Restaurant World Shift 09:02 The Tobacco Chewer Incident 16:11 Lessons from the Incident 22:55 Recommended Management Books 26:08 The Simplicity of Direct Feedback 31:57 A Tattoo for Ego Check About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Amanda Matthews coaches entrepreneurs on how to be wildly successful while also having time for what matters most in their lives using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). She describes herself as a dance enthusiast, book nerd and interpersonal knot detangler. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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27: Paying Attention to the Red Flags | Bad Boss Confessional
Jan 2800:38:35Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with EOS Implementer Ken DeWitt, also known as “Hurricane,” to unpack a leadership lesson that quite literally required warning flags. Early in his career, Ken’s intensity and drive created an environment where employees tracked his moods to protect themselves. What he didn't realize was that his passion was being met with fear and anxiety. Leaders are always on stage, whether they realize it or not. Self-awareness, emotional control, and humility matter as much as vision and results. Successful managers will never stop growing, even if it means facing some painful gut checks. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Ken ‘Hurricane’ DeWitt 02:27 From Accountant to EOS Implementer 05:08 The Psychologist’s Revelation 07:22 The ‘Hurricane’ Nickname 10:55 Dealing with the ‘Hurricane’ 14:58 Learning Calmness and Self-Awareness 19:04 The Impact of Personal Change 23:55 Understanding Different Communication Styles 28:59 Trust, Care, and Excellence in Leadership 32:56 Legacy and Learning: The Hurricane Tattoo About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Over the past 40 plus years, Ken DeWitt has built, grown, and successfully exited companies across multiple industries, including accounting, agriculture, consumer finance, real estate, and consulting. He has worked with more than 100 owners and leadership teams to install EOS across seven states, helping them gain control, strengthen leadership, and build businesses that work for them rather than because of them. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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26. When Good Intentions Go Wrong
Jan 2100:30:50Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with EOS Implementer Carolyn Mitchell for an honest conversation about leadership, ego, and the hidden cost of trying to help too much. Carolyn shares a moment many leaders will recognize. As the unofficial “company therapist,” she believed stepping in and sharing sensitive information was for the greater good. Instead, it backfired. The employee she tried to protect walked it back, leaving Carolyn exposed, frustrated, and humbled. What felt like service was actually ego at work. The need to fix, to be needed, and to save the day created more dysfunction, not less. The lesson is simple and hard-earned. Great leaders coach people to speak for themselves instead of carrying their burdens. Growth happens when leaders pause, listen, and ask whether the problem is truly theirs to solve. Sometimes the best leadership move is letting go and letting it be easy. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Carolyn Mitchell 02:08 Career Journey: Engineer to EOS Implementer 08:39 The Unofficial Company Therapist 12:09 Ego and the Hero Complex 19:02 Learning to Pause and Listen 23:33 Coaching vs. Fixing, and Tattoos About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links: Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/carolyn-mitchell/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolyn-mitchell-coach Carolyn Mitchell is an EOS® Implementer, business coach, and speaker with a background in sales and marketing leadership. She’s been in the founder and leadership seats, implemented EOS, and now helps teams build clarity, accountability, and trust. She’s also a personal development junkie, a certified yoga teacher and believer in leadership that grows people, not just results. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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