"When the pressure hits, most people freeze, run, or panic. Great leaders stay calm, assess the situation, and lead."

In this episode of Growth Under Pressure, Eric Josovitz, CEO of AdaptCFO, sits down with Brent Willis, former executive at Coca-Cola and Kraft Foods, West Point graduate, and current CEO of ProHawk AI, to discuss what separates great leaders from everyone else when everything is on the line.

Brent shares leadership lessons from the military, corporate boardrooms, startup environments, and global business operations. From overcoming major failures to leading teams through uncertainty, this conversation is packed with practical advice for founders, CEOs, entrepreneurs, and executives navigating growth under pressure.

💡 In this episode, you'll learn: • Why a no-excuses mindset creates stronger leaders • The 3 ways people fail under pressure • How military leadership principles apply to business • Why successful CEOs focus on process instead of blame • The importance of accountability, discipline, and courage • How to build trust and high-performing teams • Why perseverance is the strongest predictor of success • Lessons from failure, leadership, and business transformation

Whether you're scaling a company, leading a team, raising capital, or navigating uncertainty, this episode delivers timeless leadership lessons from someone who has spent decades performing under pressure.

#Leadership #CEO #Founder #Entrepreneur #BusinessGrowth #ExecutiveLeadership #LeadershipDevelopment #GrowthUnderPressure #BusinessStrategy #Management #Resilience #Accountability #WestPoint #Entrepreneurship #StartupLeadership #ScalingCompanies #AdaptCFO 00:00 Introduction 01:02 Meet Brent Willis: From West Point to CEO 07:19 How Great Leaders Learn from Failure 10:43 Stop Blaming People. Fix the Process. 14:23 The Leadership Rule That Wins Under Pressure 19:36 Building ProHawk AI 25:48 Work-Life Balance as a CEO 31:56 The LIVE HEALTHY Framework 37:34 The Four Values Every Leader Needs 43:46 Using Business to Change Lives 48:05 The Medal That Means the Most 52:23 The #1 Predictor of Success 56:23 Losing $10 Million on Toblerone 58:01 The Coca-Cola Lesson That Changed Everything 1:02:18 Rapid Fire Questions 1:04:20 Closing Thoughts

🙌 Want more from AdaptCFO? Free CFO consultation → adaptcfo.com Financial fitness scorecard → adaptcfofinancialfitness.scoreapp.com Other episodes → adaptcfo.com/blog AdaptCFO case studies → adaptcfo.com/results

If you're scaling and want to avoid the financial and operational pitfalls discussed in this episode, AdaptCFO's bookkeeping → controller → fractional CFO model is built for this stage.

Connect with Eric Josovitz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josovitz/ Watch more podcast episodes: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL01dHCWwlIvyHyJVG_G0E7yBBRA_DSn4A&si=xX4EDVtxUjUpnxVd