Podcast Summary: "The Power to Change with Craig Groeschel"

It's a Good Life with Brian Buffini – S2E294, May 13, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Brian Buffini welcomes Craig Groeschel—founder and senior pastor of Life Church, bestselling author, and leadership podcast host. The conversation centers on Groeschel’s latest book, The Power to Change: Mastering the Habits that Matter Most, and explores personal change, leadership, identity, discipline, and actionable strategies for lasting transformation. The dialogue weaves together faith-based wisdom, real-life examples, and practical advice for entrepreneurs and anyone seeking personal and professional growth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Craig Groeschel’s Journey & Motivation for Writing The Power to Change

• Craig’s Background: Grew up in southern Texas and Oklahoma, experienced culture shock moving from Houston to Ardmore. Was an athlete, earned a business degree, and started in real estate before feeling called to ministry.
  • “My story is not as dramatic as that by any means, but I recognized kind of early on that I had a lot of desires to do good things, and desire alone didn't get me very far.” [02:33, Craig]
• Inspiration for the Book: Saw that desire isn’t enough for real change—lasting transformation requires the right habits and systems.
  • “I wrote the book The Power of Change, really to help the people that have a real desire for something different and better but don't know how to get there.” [03:31, Craig]

2. Building Life Church—Leadership, Scope, and Foundations

• Unique Growth Story: Life Church began in a garage in 1996 with 40 people. Early leaders were business-minded with spiritual foundations—some of whom have stayed for 28+ years.
  • “It’s grown today to be in 45 different locations… in 12 different states. We have a staff of over 1,000 people…” [08:21, Craig]
• YouVersion Bible App: Life Church started this global app, which will soon surpass a billion downloads—a vital part of their mission to spread the Bible.
• Emphasis on Team & Humility: Craig credits the church’s impact to empowering the right people and creating culture, downplaying his own “piece” of the story.

3. The Foundation of Change: Identity Before Behavior

• Who You Are Comes Before What You Do:
  • “You do what you do because of what you think of you... If you don’t like what you do, you need to change what you think of you.” [12:33, Craig]
• Focus on Identity: Change lasts when anchored in self-perception and a sense of divine purpose rather than superficial self-improvement or performance.

4. The Trap of Comparison and the Journey to Authenticity

• Imitating Others: Craig describes trying to lead “like them” early in his career, struggling with inauthenticity and rejection.
  • “God gives you what you need to do what he calls you to do… It was giving myself permission to be a different type of pastor.” [15:13, Craig]
• Embracing Uniqueness: The traits that seem “extreme” or “odd” can become your superpower.
  • “Wherever your kid is driving you crazy, that is the place of potential greatness… Success is born in the extremes.” [15:55, Craig]

5. Willpower vs. Systems: The Myth of Self-Control

• Willpower Isn’t Enough:
  • “Anytime I try to willpower my way to anything, I always fail… You’re not going to will your way to success.” [17:50, Craig]
  • Offers humorous personal example: After walking by a cookie nine times, he gives in—a metaphor for willpower’s limits.
• Trying vs. Training:
  • “When you really want to make a difference, you stop trying and you start training. An entirely different mindset.” [18:10, Craig]
  • Training = daily intentional practice, not relying on fleeting motivation.

6. Keystone Habits: Small Disciplines, Big Impact

• Flossing as a Keystone Habit:
  • “If I'm a disciplined person, I'm going to eat right, I better go to bed on time, I'm going to get up early... I'm going to win at work... My wife's going to love me... because I floss.” [22:03, Craig]
  • Jokes aside, Craig emphasizes the power of a single small discipline (like flossing) to trigger a cascade of positive behaviors.
• Systems Over Goals:
  • “You don't fall to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems.” [23:52, Craig, paraphrasing James Clear]

7. Focusing on Process—Small Wins Every Day

• Celebrate Habits, Not Just Outcomes:
  • “You don't have to hit the goal to be moving toward the goal. I don't want to win once every nine years when I hit the goal. I want to have wins every single day.” [25:05, Craig]
  • Doing the right thing consistently is the real victory.
• Invisible Work Behind Success:
  • “It's the things that no one sees that bring the results that everyone wants.” [27:41, Craig; highlighted again at 29:23]

8. The Power of Morning Routines—With a Personal Blueprint

• Early Rising & Strategic Mornings:
  • “There's a direct correlation from when someone gets up and what they do when they get up to how successful they are in the areas that matter most.” [29:43, Craig]
• Build the Routine Around Your Energy and Priorities: He plans each morning the night before, eats the same breakfast, starts with water, and organizes everything for maximum creativity and focus.
  • “You want to match your energy toward your tasks and point everything toward it and then don't negotiate.” [32:00, Craig]
• Personalization Is Key: No one-size-fits-all; your highest-value work should guide your routine.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Identity:

  • “It's not the do that makes the who. It's the who that makes the do.” [13:33, Craig]

• On Grit and Endurance:

  • “Great leadership is often boring. It's doing the right things consistently over time. And not only is that not only okay, it's actually good.” [28:34, Craig]

• Keystone Advice for Life:

  • “You will overestimate what you can do in the short run. You'll vastly underestimate what you can do through a lifetime of faithfulness.” [33:36, Craig]

• The Good Life Defined:

  • “The fact that my six children are serving Jesus today in their marriages, that is the good life… We live in an unbelievable time, Brian… Today is a good day to be alive to serve God with great people.” [35:45, Craig]

Quickfire Round - Insights into Craig

• Best Advice Received: “You will overestimate what you can do in the short run. You’ll vastly underestimate what you can do through a lifetime of faithfulness.” [33:36]
• Talent He Wishes He Had: Singing. [34:22]
• Most Instrumental Book: The Bible—“It brought me to faith in Christ.” [34:36]
• Favorite Movie to Rewatch: Gladiator; also fond of Shawshank Redemption and the final scene in Karate Kid. [35:18]
• The Good Life Means: Family, faith, health, opportunities, gratitude—truly recognizing how blessed we are to live in this time. [35:45]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:33] – Craig’s early life, business background, and call to ministry.
• [07:16] – Founding and growth of Life Church; staff and scale.
• [11:10] – The “As a Man Thinketh” principle and identity-driven change.
• [14:15] – Craig’s journey to authenticity; embracing unique gifts.
• [17:27] – Willpower vs. systems; “trying” vs. “training.”
• [21:31] – Keystone habits; the “flossing” metaphor.
• [24:25] – Focusing on faithful habits over distant goals.
• [27:48] – The invisible work behind visible results.
• [29:43] – Morning routines and their impact on success.
• [33:36] – Quickfire segment: best advice, desired talent, influential book, favorite movie, and Craig’s definition of the good life.

Takeaways & Actionable Advice

• Lasting change is built on habits rooted in identity, not just willpower or fleeting desire.
• Small, enduring disciplines (keystone habits) can have an outsized impact on all areas of life.
• Focus on being faithful daily; the compound effect of invisible, consistent actions leads to visible success.
• Morning routines are powerful—but must be tailored to personal energy and highest priorities.
• Celebrate the progress you make each day, not just distant milestones.

This episode is a wellspring of faith-infused, practical wisdom for anyone seeking sustained growth and real transformation, both personally and professionally.