Podcast
Coaching Culture
Hosted by Coaching Culture Podcast · EN
A podcast for leaders and coaches sharing practical strategies and tools to build your team's culture and help you grow as a leader. Co-hosted by J.P. Nerbun and Nate Sanderson of TOC Culture Consulting, and Betsy Butterick. Get the podcast notes and learn more about us at tocculture.com
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Coach Development, Wellbeing, and Getting Out of Your Own Way | Zach Brandon Pt. 2 | Ep. 466
3d ago00:33:53Tap to summarizeMost coaches have someone they pour into. Almost none of them have someone who pours back.In part two with Zach Brandon, JP and Zach go deeper into what it actually takes to develop coaches — not players, coaches — and why that investment may be the most overlooked lever in any program. Zach shares the story that reoriented his entire career: a coach who could not remember his own family moments and discovered he was missing from most of the photos on the wall. The conversation builds into his core coaching framework — Impact = Individual Capabilities x Environment, minus Interference — and why the internal interference is almost always the harder, more important work.This one is for any coach who suspects they might be their own biggest obstacle, or who has never stopped long enough to ask: who is developing me?Chapters(00:00) Intro(05:06) Best Coach Dev at the Diamondbacks(08:42) Daily Leadership Shares(10:32) The Catalyst Story(13:43) The Hardest Conversation(14:43) Who Pours Into the Coach?(16:05) Coach Wellbeing and Player Culture(19:21) What's Wrong in Today's Landscape(20:07) The Coaching Impact Equation(26:47) Internal vs. External Interference(28:04) Can't Read Label from Inside the Jar(30:15) Connecting with Zach BrandonTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to this episode's most actionable ideas."Expectations are oftentimes funneled one directionally. Agreements are shared — it's like, hey, we're on the same page and we're both giving the green light to what this looks like in action."— Zach Brandon"Who pours into you? You're the person that pours into everybody else as a coach or as a leader. And yet, do you have anyone for yourself?"— Zach Brandon"You can't read the label from inside the jar."— Zach Brandon2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: Think about one standard you currently enforce with your team. Did your athletes or staff help create it? If not, what would it look like to move from expectation to shared agreement this week?Q2: Who pours into you? Name one person in your life who serves as a genuine thought partner for your own growth. If you can't name one, what would it take to find one?1 Resource to Go DeeperWinning with Words — newsletter by Zach BrandonPrinciples, stories, and mindset shifts to help coaches and leaders win more while living better. Zach also offers a free initial coaching call for anyone exploring what is getting in their way.Visit zachbrandoncoaching.comKey TakeawaysShared agreements beat handed-down expectationsThe best coach development happens inside time you already haveWho pours into the coach?Coach wellbeing is a player development strategyYour impact has an equation: capabilities x environment, minus interferenceYou cannot read the label from inside the jarGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach — community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →Building Trust and Mental Performance | Zach Brandon Pt. 1 | Ep. 465
1w ago00:39:34Tap to summarizeZach Brandon spent years inside one of the most pressure-filled environments in professional sports. The biggest thing he took away was not about performance. It was about connection.In this first conversation with Zach, JP sits down with the former Head of Mental Performance and Coach Development for the Arizona Diamondbacks, on staff during their 2023 World Series run, to explore what he learned about servant leadership, building genuine relationships across a roster, and the principle most leaders quietly overlook: go see the work. Zach and JP also get honest about the cost of diluted focus and why an overused strength can quietly become your biggest limitation.This one is for any coach who has felt spread too thin, wondered whether athletes really trust them, or needed a reminder that the most powerful question you can ask is: what do you need from me today?Chapters(00:00) Intro(03:20) Fatherhood and New Direction(05:37) World Series and Arrival Fallacy(08:34) What Great Leadership Looks Like(11:28) Values: Connect, Impact, Grow(15:42) Permission to Slow Down(18:56) Building Trust Across Generations(20:55) The Pat Riley Connection Story(22:53) Mapping Relationships(24:38) Asking Veterans for Advice(28:47) Player-Led Meetings(30:42) Diluted Focus, Diluted Results(35:45) Go See the WorkTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to this episode's most actionable ideas."I got a lot better as a leader when I showed up every day from a space of like, hey, how can I serve you?"— Zach Brandon"Diluted focus produces diluted results."— Zach Brandon"Letting each person you come into contact with be the expert on themselves — and allowing them to share their expertise."— Zach Brandon2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: If you rated your relationship with every athlete on your roster from 1 to 5, where are the gaps — and what is one move you could make this week to close the most important one?Q2: When is the last time you asked one of your athletes for advice? How might doing that more intentionally change the dynamic in your program?1 Resource to Go DeeperWin More, Live Better — podcast by Zach BrandonOne of JP's handful of go-to podcast subscriptions. The episode featuring former Washington football coach Chris Peterson is the one that first caught JP's attention. Find it and all of Zach's work at zachbrandoncoaching.com.Visit zachbrandoncoaching.comKey TakeawaysServant leadership is a daily choice, not a personality traitYou cannot build deep connection without a systemAsking for advice builds more trust than giving itDiluted focus produces diluted resultsGo see the workAn overused strength becomes a limitationGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach — community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →Why the Best Leaders Aren't the Loudest Ones | The Culture Captain: Level 3 | Episode 464
2w ago00:47:40Tap to summarizeEvery coach says they want more leaders. But most are picturing the wrong level entirely.JP Nerbun, Betsy Butterick, and Nate Sanderson unpack Level 3 leadership, the one-to-one relational work that has to exist before Level 4 (leading the whole team) ever works, including the Joey Votto story of a star player who took up Spanish and improv classes just to become a better teammate.Whether you've got a team full of quiet glue players or you're still waiting for someone to step up, this conversation will change how you look for leadership on your roster.Chapters(00:00) Intro(02:35) Level 3 vs Level 4, defined(08:33) Leading a team vs leading people(10:42) The glue player nobody calls a leader(15:19) When leadership feels inauthentic(20:15) The soup metaphor(23:26) Skip the template, find the belief(32:18) What coaches get wrong on calling out(36:49) Walk your own talk first(39:58) The six parts of Level 3(42:29) Reframing fear before hard talks(45:54) Four beliefs that block feedbackTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."The problem with hard conversations isn't not knowing the template. The problem is the belief system that gets in the way of actually changing the behavior."- J.P. Nerbun"One group calls it 'called out.' The other group calls the exact same thing, a coach stopping practice to single out an athlete, 'called up.' It depends on the relationship."- Betsy Butterick"Rizzo said he got called out by Ross more than a few times, and every single time he walked away feeling like the guy loved him."- Nate Sanderson2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: On a scale of 1 to 10, how comfortable are you calling out a teammate when they're below the standard? What belief is keeping you from a 10?Q2: Think of one teammate you'd call out without hesitation, and one you wouldn't. What's actually different about those two relationships?1 Resource to Go DeeperThe Culture Captain by JP NerbunThe book behind this episode's framework, breaking down the four levels of leadership from knowing yourself to leading the whole team.Visit tocculture.com hereKey TakeawaysLevel three is the leadership skill coaches actually need, not level fourBeing a great teammate makes you a better performer, not a distraction from itDon't let "that's just who I am" become the end of the conversationCalling out and calling up are often the exact same behaviorMost athletes aren't missing a script, they're stuck on a beliefThe best challengers spend the other fifty-one weeks building connectionsGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach, community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →Coach the Coach: How to Regulate Before You Lead | Dr. Jody Carrington | Episode 463
3w ago00:34:14Tap to summarizeDr. Jody Carrington says the most vulnerable emotion on the planet is not fear or grief. It is joy.In part two of her conversation with JP, Dr. Jody Carrington gets specific about what it means to regulate yourself before you can lead anyone else, why joy requires every defense to be down, and why she collects information before she directs a hard conversation.This one is for any coach who has ever felt calm on paper but tight in the jaw, and who wants tools that work in the middle of practice, not just in theory.Chapters(00:00) Intro & Welcome Back(02:04) Fragmented Attention, Real Hacks(05:46) Go In, Go Out, Repeat(09:38) Ask What Happened, Not Whats Wrong(11:11) Who You Really Work For(12:26) Why Joy Is the Most Vulnerable Emotion(14:24) Waving at Everyone on Main Street(20:57) Collect Then Direct(26:14) The Kid Nobody Wanted to Coach(28:29) Investing in the Hardest ParentsTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."The most important people you work for are the ones you go home to."- Dr. Jody Carrington"The most vulnerable emotion on the planet is joy."- Dr. Jody Carrington"Collect and then direct. It's not if I'm going to give that feedback, it's when."- Dr. Jody Carrington2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: Where in your day is your jaw locked and your shoulders up before you ever set foot in front of your team, and what would it look like to drop them on purpose before you walk in?Q2: Which two players are you not building a real relationship with right now, and what is one specific thing you could learn about them this week?1 Resource to Go DeeperDr. Jody CarringtonFree videos, articles, and tools built around the same ideas she unpacked in this episode: regulation, connection, and showing up as your best self before you lead anyone else.Visit drjodycarrington.com hereKey TakeawaysRegulate Yourself Before You Coach Anyone ElseThe People You Work For Are the Ones You Go Home ToAsk What Happened, Not What's WrongJoy Is the Most Vulnerable Emotion on a TeamCollect Before You DirectRelationships With Parents Cut the Battle in HalfGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach - community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →Coach the Coach: How to Collect Before You Direct | Jody Carrington | Episode 462
Jul 500:28:03Tap to summarizeIf the big people aren't okay, the little people don't stand a chance. That is the idea psychologist Dr. Jody Carrington has built her career on, and it flips the entire athlete development conversation on its head.In part one of this two part conversation, JP sits down with Dr. Jody Carrington, a clinical psychologist and founder of Carrington and Company who has spent decades studying emotional regulation in high pressure environments, from a locked psychiatric unit to elite sports organizations. She unpacks why the coach's own nervous system sets the ceiling for the team's, and why the answer to a dysregulated athlete is never more yelling.Whether you coach with intensity or with quiet steadiness, this episode will change how you think about the person running the room, not just the players in it.Chapters(00:00) Intro - Why Coach Regulation Matters(02:11) Meet Dr. Jody Carrington(02:47) Why She Focuses on Coaches(05:09) The Coach-Centered Approach(07:54) Do Good Coaches Screw Up Kids(09:36) The Hand Model of the Brain(15:33) The Tom Izzo Question(19:19) Cortisol and Your Nervous System(23:17) Collect Before You DirectTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast track to the episode's most actionable ideas."If the big people aren't okay, the little people don't stand a chance."- Dr. Jody Carrington"You don't lose your ability to be great. You don't lose the best golf swing you've ever taken in your life. You lose access to it."- Dr. Jody Carrington"We have to collect before we direct."- Dr. Jody Carrington2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: Where in your program are you investing in athlete performance but not in your own emotional regulation as a coach?Q2: Think of the last time you corrected an athlete in the moment. Had you collected enough relationship first for that correction to land?1 Resource to Go DeeperDr. Jody Carrington's Books, Podcast, and ResourcesHer ongoing work on emotional regulation, connection, and leadership under pressure goes deeper into everything covered in this episode.Visit drjodycarrington.com hereKey TakeawaysCoach Regulation Is the Missing Variable in Athlete DevelopmentYou Cannot Learn With Your Lid FlippedCollect Before You DirectIntensity Isn't the Problem, Timing IsYour Nervous System Gets Hijacked Before You Even Get Out of BedCoaching Is Development Work, Not Just Performance WorkGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach - community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →The Hardest Part of Leading Yourself | The Culture Captain: Level Two | Episode 461
Jun 2800:47:07Tap to summarizeIs your best leader always your best teammate? JP Nerbun, Betsy Butterick, and Nate Sanderson are not so sure, and the answer says a lot about how you build culture this season.This episode continues an ongoing conversation around JP's new book, The Culture Captain, with the group digging into Level Two: leading yourself before you ever try to lead anyone else. They unpack why the chapter on effort was the hardest one JP wrote, what separates a Steph Curry from a Caitlin Clark on the leader versus teammate question, and why so many athletes hold back effort out of fear of being labeled a tryhard.Whether you are coaching the most obsessed competitor on your roster or the kid who just wants to enjoy the sport, this conversation will change how you think about effort, identity, and what it actually takes to lead yourself first.Chapters(00:00) Intro(01:02) Why Level Two Was Hardest to Write(03:26) Tom Brady & Raising Others 5-10%(09:13) Standards, Buy-In & Judgment(13:28) Caitlin Clark & Being Yourself(17:55) Great Leader vs. Great Teammate(24:37) One Behavior Every Leader Needs(28:30) Why Athletes Avoid Competing Hard(32:44) From Victim to Creator(40:55) The Hardest Part of Leading YourselfTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."Two things can be true. I can uphold the standard and it increases the value or the connection with my teammate."- Betsy Butterick"My performance does not determine my worth or value in this world."- Nate Sanderson"It's not any single leadership behavior that unlocks leading yourself. It's putting in the work on ourselves, knowing that this is a lifelong journey."- JP Nerbun2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: When you rate your own effort this season, are you rating it the way your teammates and coaches would, or the way you wish they would?Q2: Is there a part of this season where you are telling yourself a victim story? What is one choice you actually have right now?1 Resource to Go DeeperThe Culture Captain by JP NerbunJP's newly launched book breaks leadership into three levels: knowing yourself, leading yourself, and leading others. This episode digs into Level Two, covering responsibility, effort, authenticity, compete, mental fitness, and selflessness.Visit tocculture.com hereKey TakeawaysLeading yourself is not a formula. It is a personal journey.A great leader is not always a great teammate.Curiosity beats correction when a leader cannot reserve judgment.The fear of being a tryhard is quietly shutting down effort.Moving an athlete from victim to creator starts with naming a choice.The hardest part of leading yourself is the moment you let yourself down.Get the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach - community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →The Mental Habits of Elite Coaches | Rustin Dodd & Elise Devlin, The Athletic | Episode 460
Jun 2100:34:10Tap to summarizeMaking athletes work harder is one thing. Making athletes better is something else entirely — and Rustin Dodd draws that line clearly in this episode.In part two of JP Nerbun's conversation with Rustin Dodd and Elise Devlin of The Athletic's Peak section, the discussion moves from habits and rituals into the heart of transformational coaching. Elise covers Dan Quinn's player PowerPoint presentations, Lisa Bluder's deep-dive into understanding Caitlin Clark, and what Tara Vanderveer's lasting player relationships reveal about the longevity of great coaching. Rustin breaks down the energy cost of being a coach and why the coaches who last build support systems around themselves. The episode closes with John Harbaugh's accountability frame and why "shoot the ball" might be the most important thing a coach can say.For coaches who want to understand what separates the ones athletes call ten years later from the ones they just remember.Chapters(00:00) Intro: Studying Great Coaches(01:30) The Best Part of the Job(03:09) The Common Trait of Great Leaders(06:54) Getting to Know Your Players(10:10) Tough Conversations and Real Relationships(12:00) Who Would You Want to Be Coached By(13:57) Tom Izzo and the Power of Intensity(15:07) Who Would You Want as a Teammate(18:40) Jared McCain and the Inner Game of Tennis(19:47) The Origin of Executive Coaching(21:15) Sports and Business Culture Feed Each Other(22:25) What Coaches Do to Be at Their Best(24:09) Ownership as a Leadership Skill(24:56) Who Would You Invite to Dinner(29:36) Final Advice: Curiosity and Optimism(31:23) Shoot the Ball: Trust as a Coaching MetaphorTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."Being a coach that can get your players to work harder is easier than being a coach that can make them better. At the most basic level, it's giving people confidence."— Rustin Dodd"When you are losing a lot of energy and you have not a lot left, take what you do have left and give it to other people and it'll come back to you multiplied."— Elise Devlin"There's no better feeling than when your coach yells shoot it. I think about that as a metaphor — it's some level of trust, putting confidence in the person."— Rustin Dodd2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: Think about a player you know well enough to coach hard — and one you don't. What would it take to close that gap this week?Q2: When did you last own a bad day in front of your team? What did that cost you — and what did it build?1 Resource to Go DeeperThe Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy GallweyThe origin text for the entire executive coaching industry — referenced in this episode as foundational reading for understanding the inner life of an athlete. Jared McCain reads it. Steve Kerr coaches from it.Available on AmazonKey TakeawaysMaking Athletes Better Is Different from Making Them Work HarderThe Deeper You Know Your Athletes, the Better You Can Lead ThemTough Conversations Only Land When the Relationship Is RealCoaches Need a Support System TooOwnership Is a Leadership SkillCuriosity Is a Long-Term Coaching PracticeGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach — community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →The Mental Habits of Elite Athletes | Rustin Dodd & Elise Devlin, The Athletic | Episode 459
Jun 1400:38:42Tap to summarizeMost coaches spend their careers shaping athletes. Rustin Dodd and Elise Devlin spend theirs learning from them — and what they've found might change how you coach.Rustin and Elise write NY Times feature, The Peak for The Athletic, a section devoted to the mental side of elite sports. In this episode with JP Nerbun, they unpack what a year of "I Tried" journalism has taught them: Kobe's silence practice, Michael Phelps' freestyle journaling, Buzz Williams writing four to five letters a day, an Olympian who approaches every failure with childlike curiosity, and a reminder from David Ortiz about what it actually means to bounce back. The thread running through all of it: curiosity.For coaches who want to understand what's going on inside their athletes — and maybe inside themselves — before it becomes a problem.Chapters(00:00) Intro: JP on The Athletic's Peak(02:39) Ted Lasso's Real-Life Inspiration(07:41) Elise: D1 Swimmer to Peak Journalist(11:48) The Performance Info Gap(13:01) How The Peak Section Was Born(16:18) What The Peak Is Not(19:20) I Tried: Living Athletes' Habits(21:31) Silence, Emotions, and Journaling(23:13) How Athletes Find Their Rituals(25:41) Curiosity: The #1 Athlete Trait(26:41) Buzz Williams Letter-Writing(28:38) Gratitude and Failure With Curiosity(30:53) The Power of Saying Yes(35:59) The Pat Riley Conditioning Test(36:31) 17s Story: Hardship as ConfidenceTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."That feeling of somebody saying yes to me is so powerful. And I oftentimes try to think about: how do I do a version of that? How do I say yes to people?"— Rustin Dodd"I thought about it and I was like — I guess I don't have silence."— Elise Devlin"I view all my failures with childlike curiosity."— Olympian Olivia Smoliga, cited by Elise Devlin2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: When something goes wrong in practice or a game, is your first instinct to fix it, blame it, or get curious about it? Which of those responses is actually coachable?Q2: What is one mental tool or daily habit your athletes don't know about — and when did you last share it with them?1 Resource to Go DeeperThe Peak by Rustin Dodd and Elise Devlin | The AthleticThe Athletic's section devoted to the mental side of elite sports. The "I Tried" series is essential reading for any coach curious about what elite performance looks like from the inside.Visit The Athletic hereKey TakeawaysThe Best Athletes Are Obsessively CuriousReflection Teaches More Than Experience AloneSilence Is a Performance ToolTreat Failure Like a ScientistGratitude Does Real WorkSay Yes More Than You Think You ShouldGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach — community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →The Culture Captain: Building Leaders From the Inside Out | John O'Sullivan | Episode 458
Jun 901:19:16Tap to summarizeJP Nerbun's 10-year-old daughter said something on the walk to the bus that stopped him cold: "She's climbing the mountain of achievement without any purpose." That one line is the heart of this entire conversation.This special episode drops on the launch day of JP's new book The Culture Captain — a field guide for athletes learning to lead from the inside out. JP sits down with longtime friend John O'Sullivan, founder of the Changing the Game Project and co-author of Captain: The Athlete's Guide to Being an Exceptional Team Leader (with Jerry Lynch). Two books. Same subject. Written simultaneously, on opposite sides of the Atlantic. They go deep on self-awareness as the foundation of leadership, why modeling behaviors beats locker room speeches, how to have a difficult conversation before you feel ready, and what it means to lead from the bench when things aren't going your way.Whether you coach athletes, lead a team, or are still figuring out who you are as a leader — this one is for you.Chapters(00:00) Intro — JP's Daughter & Book Launch(02:30) Why John Wrote Captain(05:52) Why JP Wrote The Culture Captain(15:54) The Fable Format — Why JP Chose Lily(19:00) The Four Levels of Leadership(25:13) Surprises from Writing(31:15) The Hardest Lesson to Put Into Words(34:05) Hard Conversations as Life Skills(39:15) From Sports to the Workplace(43:48) What Had to Be Left Out(47:08) Approaching a Difficult Teammate(53:05) Coaching the Reluctant Leader(59:43) Tom Brady on Playing Where You Love People(1:01:26) Success vs. Fulfillment(1:04:00) Lead From the Bench(1:09:02) How Will You Know the Book Succeeded?(1:12:43) Why This Book Mattered MostTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."She's climbing the mountain of achievement without any purpose."— JP Nerbun's daughter, age 10"Success is the goal, but it's not the purpose. Fulfillment should be the purpose. This is what coaches need to provide."— John O'Sullivan"You pick up the cones and balls, you serve others. You do that and people go, man, if that's the captain doing it, I better do it too."— John O'Sullivan2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: Think of an athlete who is putting in the work but seems to have lost their joy. What would it look like to help them reconnect with purpose rather than achievement?Q2: What is it currently costing your team — in trust, momentum, or culture — to avoid a hard conversation that needs to happen?1 Resource to Go DeeperThe Culture Captain by JP NerbunA field guide for athletes learning to lead with purpose, values, and selflessness — told through a fable and backed by real stories from Tim Duncan, Tom Brady, Abby Wambach, and more.Get The Culture Captain at culturecaptain.netCaptain: The Athlete's Guide to Being an Exceptional Team Leader by John O'Sullivan & Jerry LynchQualities, responsibilities, and challenges for every team captain — grounded in research and real stories from high school to the pros.Visit changingthegameproject.comKey TakeawaysKnow Yourself Before You Lead AnyoneSelflessness Is the Hallmark of Great CaptainsModeling Behaviors Beats Locker Room SpeechesReluctant Leaders Are Still LeadersFulfillment, Not Success, Is the Real PurposeThe Difficult Conversation IS the LeadershipGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach — community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →Identity, Influence, and the Leadership Nobody Told You Was Already Yours | Culture Captain: Level One | Episode 457
Jun 700:49:12Tap to summarizeWhat does it mean to truly know yourself — not perform yourself, not brand yourself for public approval, but honestly know who you are at your core?JP Nerbun, Betsy Butterick, and Nate Sanderson explore that question in this roundtable, the first in a four-part series on JP's new book, The Culture Captain. Betsy shares the story of an athlete and what she filled in her personal definition led to an eye-opening statement about being "enough". This quiet act of self-definition opens a deeper conversation about identity, enoughness, and what it costs to resist the pressure to brand yourself for the world's approval. Nate brings a hard-won insight from a facilitation with student-athletes that challenges a core assumption most coaches hold about leadership readiness. JP is honest about the gap between success and fulfillment — and about the dark side of purpose itself, how even meaningful work can become obligation when fulfillment is measured in external terms. Betsy's Championship Soup exercise from a workshop at Stanford with Tara Vanderbeer gives every coach a practical way in. This is the beginning of a longer conversation — one level at a time.If the question "who are you?" has ever felt harder to answer than it should, this one is for you.Chapters(00:00) Intro(01:35) The Culture Captain Series Format(03:12) When Were You Invited to Know Yourself?(09:09) The "Child of God" Athlete and Enoughness(11:26) Do Athletes Know What Leadership Is?(12:27) Nate's Facilitation: What Athletes Revealed(16:06) Defining Leadership — No Clean Answer(20:01) Leadership as Wielded Influence(22:08) The Magnetic Personality Story(28:53) Leadership Is a Boat Anyone Can Board(30:58) Core Values — How Did You Find Yours?(35:23) The Soup Supper Exercise(37:15) Championship Soup at Stanford(40:43) Success Without Fulfillment(41:51) Division I Basketball vs. 200km Ultra(45:30) Identity Prison vs. Identity House(46:18) JP's Vulnerable Moment on FulfillmentTOC 3-2-13 Quotes | 2 Questions | 1 ResourceYour fast-track to the episode's most actionable ideas."Fulfillment has to be defined by you, and the meaning has to be made intentionally rather than just by what we see and what we hear."— Nate Sanderson"When I'm at my best, when I feel most at peace, when I feel most content, when I feel most truly myself — look back at those moments. And then ask: how do I bring that forward and offer it as a gift to my team, to the world?"— JP Nerbun"I believe leadership is a boat that anyone can board — if you have the desire to develop that awareness, to know yourself, to use your influence on purpose."— Betsy Butterick2 Questions for Your TeamQ1: When was the first time someone truly invited you to define who you are — not describe yourself to others, but honestly articulate who you are at your core? How has that shaped the way you invite athletes into self-discovery?Q2: Think of a recent coaching achievement. On a scale of 1–10, how fulfilled did it make you feel? What does that number tell you about whether you are living in your values?1 Resource to Go DeeperThe Culture Captain by JP NerbunThis episode explores Level 1 of JP's new book — Know Yourself. It's the foundation on which every leadership conversation is built. Get the book and episode tools at tocculture.com.Visit tocculture.comKey TakeawaysYou Can't Lead Others If You Don't Know YourselfLeadership Is Wielded Influence — Use It on PurposeYoung Athletes Often Need a "Level Zero" Before Level OneSelf-Definition Is an Act of ResistanceValues Are Unearthed, Not InventedSuccess Without Fulfillment Is the Warning Sign — and Success Is Often Defined for UsGet the notes and tools:tocculture.comJoin TOC Coach — community, courses, and live coaching:tocculture.comBetter Coaches. Better Leaders. Better Culture.
Transcribe →