Podcast Summary: The Top 5% Method® with Katheline Jean-Pierre

Episode: Level 1 energy: You're the VICTIM. Level 7: You're UNSTOPPABLE! Here's where you actually are.
Date: October 1, 2025
Guest: Jason (Learning and Leadership Coach, LinkedIn, Apple, Upwork, Refined Talent)
Host: Katheline Jean-Pierre

Episode Overview

This episode explores the concept of energy leadership—the idea that your internal energy, mindset, and emotional regulation profoundly influence personal fulfillment, professional success, and leadership impact. Katheline and her guest, Jason, a coach and leader with stints at LinkedIn, Apple, and Upwork, break down the seven levels of energy, how to identify where you are, and what steps leaders (and anyone) can take to move from victimhood or reactivity to an unstoppable, conscious, and high-impact state. The discussion is raw, practical, and filled with real career advice, personal stories, and methods for navigating stress, change, and growth in today’s disrupted world.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Jason’s Background & Path to Energy Leadership

[01:12-06:13]

• Jason shares his journey: starting in retail, moving to Apple, then LinkedIn during its hyper-growth, and ultimately focusing on leadership development and coaching.
• He describes the importance of community, learning from his blended family (four children), and leveraging coaching approaches both as a parent and a leader.
• Quote: “You just don’t do it alone... my community, my family, those that have reminded me when you’re questioning yourself—that you’re actually okay.” (Jason, 05:18)

2. Understanding Energy Leadership

[06:13-09:54]

• Katheline prompts Jason to define “energy leadership,” which he attributes to Bruce Schneider’s IPEC framework.
• The model assesses energy on a spectrum from Level 1 (catabolic, victim energy) to Level 7 (anabolic, unstoppable energy).
• Lower levels are more reactive/unconscious (fight/flight), while higher levels are intentional and driven by conscious choice.
• Quote: “If we lead through energy, we can really start to identify what can work for us versus... what can work against us.” (Jason, 06:57)

3. Catabolic vs. Anabolic Energy: How Stress Shapes Us

[09:54-12:49]

• The conversation delves into how most people default to lower energy (victim/anger) when stressed and how this is biologically rooted but not always helpful in modern life.
• Prolonged stress leads to chronic fight/flight, causing high cortisol, burnout, and feeling stuck or disconnected.
• The key: build awareness first, then practice self-regulation and acceptance.
• Quote: “It’s not about avoiding...level one energy... Sometimes it can actually protect us... But...we stay there longer than we need to.” (Jason, 11:39)

4. Moving Up the Energy Levels: From Victim to Unstoppable

[14:10-17:51]

• Level 1 (“Victim”): Feeling you have no control, life happens to you.
• Level 2 (“Conflict”): Anger and blame—can get results but damages relationships.
• Level 3 and up (“Anabolic”): Conscious shift, open to others’ perspectives, productive, collaborative, and creative; mediation and opportunity for breakthrough.
• Stress is universal—change comes from awareness, coaching, and conscious choices.
• Quote: “It’s hard to understand where you want to be without understanding where you currently are... and accepting that that’s the reality.” (Jason, 14:12)

5. Coaching and Managing Others Stuck in Lower Energy

[18:01-24:33]

• Jason introduces the “drama triangle”: victim, persecutor, rescuer roles that leaders and employees fall into under stress.
• Leaders should coach, not rescue or enable; focus on curiosity, observation, and open-ended questions to help others self-identify shifts.
• Quote: “If I really am seeking to understand what’s going on with this individual, I’m asking questions... allows me to help them explore and start to move.” (Jason, 21:44)

6. Radical Career Advice for the Modern World

[25:56–33:11] Jason shares three unconventional but powerful tips:

1. Stop Giving Advice: Focus on curiosity and relationship-building over always having the answer. Vulnerability is a superpower.
   • “Stop giving advice... realizing that if I step away from that and I’m showing up more curious, it actually lends to building stronger relationships.” (Jason, 25:59)
2. Coach Upwards (Reverse Coaching): Ask your leader open questions, help them clarify their own goals and challenges; creates connection, unlocks new opportunities.
   • Reverse coaching can reboot company culture and empower both leaders and teams.
3. Reveal What You’d Normally Hide: Don’t compartmentalize your struggles, vulnerabilities, or “real life” outside work. Authenticity and openness are far more powerful than pretending.
   • “Revealing the things that you would normally hide....sometimes just sitting in the discomfort...can be pretty powerful.” (Jason, 31:58)

7. Inclusion & Vulnerability at Work

[33:11-38:25]

• Discussion on whether vulnerability applies across all identities, particularly for Black women and others historically at risk in the workplace.
• Sharing stories—on LinkedIn, in leadership, in personal growth—can be a choice of power when safe, but context and timing matter.
• “Beautifully deconstructed”: Jason’s reframing of being “broken” into a positive, ongoing personal growth journey, especially in sobriety.

8. Concrete Career Acceleration Tips

[39:09-41:26]

• Choose organizations aligned with your passion and values.
• Learn the full ecosystem—understand how your role fits into the business's wider purpose and mission.
• Tie your work to the company’s mission for motivation and clarity.
• Be willing to lean into discomfort and ask for help; most careers are held back by fear of “not knowing.”

9. Lessons Learned & Final Takeaways

[47:25–49:42] Jason’s five things he wishes he’d known 20 years ago:

1. Relationships are the most valuable currency in life and work.
2. Recognize the value you add—don’t let imposter syndrome or “gremlins” hold you back.
3. Emotional regulation is crucial for strong work performance.
4. Your family’s love and respect is the only validation you need.
5. You always have a choice, even if you might not love the consequences.

• Quote: “We always have a choice. We might not love the consequences...but we always have a choice.” (Jason, 49:18)

Notable Quotes

• “If I was just always showing up with the answer and not being vulnerable and talking about the fact that I don’t know everything...that can be actually pretty powerful.” (Jason, 00:34 & 25:59)
• “It’s just agency—giving ourselves back control over the shift we make out of it.” (Jason, 10:56)
• “Revealing the things you would normally hide...can be pretty powerful.” (Jason, 31:58)
• “Beautifully deconstructed is the language I prefer...in the end it’s just all these wonderful things people just don’t know about me yet.” (Jason, 35:24)

Book & Resource Recommendations

[50:06-50:24]

• Coaching Habit (on the “drama triangle”)
• Conscious Leadership
• Energy Leadership by Bruce Schneider

Timestamps by Segment

| Topic | Time | |----------------------------------------|---------------| | Introduction & Jason’s Background | 01:12–06:13 | | Explaining Energy Leadership | 06:13–09:54 | | Catabolic vs Anabolic Energy | 09:54–12:49 | | Moving Up the Energy Levels | 14:10–17:51 | | Managing Others in Fight/Flight | 18:01–24:33 | | Radical Career Advice | 25:56–33:11 | | Vulnerability & Inclusion | 33:11–38:25 | | Concrete Career Tips | 39:09-41:26 | | Final Takeaways | 47:25-49:42 | | Book Recommendations | 50:06-50:24 |

Tone & Style

This episode is open, supportive, and pragmatic, blending candid personal stories with actionable coaching wisdom. Both Jason and Katheline use humor, warmth, and authenticity as they discuss professional and personal growth, providing a space where vulnerability and ambition are seen as mutually reinforcing.

For Listeners: Takeaways

• Evaluate: Where do you currently operate on the 1–7 energy scale?
• Practice self-awareness and acceptance—honor where you are, then take steps to shift consciously.
• Leverage curiosity over advice—both as a leader and an individual contributor.
• Build authentic, trusting relationships through vulnerability.
• Remember: You always have a choice, and growth comes through discomfort.

Books, frameworks, and further resources are mentioned throughout the episode; see above for details and page references.