Maxwell Leadership Podcast
Episode: 3 Things Every Leader Needs to Thrive
Date: September 12, 2025
Host: John Maxwell
Guests: Mark Cole, John Gordon

Episode Overview

This episode brings together leadership authority John Maxwell and best-selling author and coach John Gordon, with host Mark Cole, to discuss the three essential elements every leader needs to truly thrive: Mission, Team, and Scoreboard. Drawing from personal stories, coaching experience, and years of leadership insight, they break down how each of these components fuels transformational leadership and lasting impact.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Necessity of Mission

What is Mission and Why Does It Matter?

• John Maxwell opens the discussion by emphasizing the innate human need for mission. He references Stephen Covey’s “begin with the end in mind,” explaining:
  • “You don’t begin if you’re not sure you have a good end. And so many people... the end is the mission.” (07:49)
  • Having a mission keeps leaders intentional and focused; it prevents distraction and drifting.

Staying Focused Amidst Distractions

• Maxwell shares his father’s advice:
  • “‘Put this before you.’ If we would put it before us, it would expand, get bigger... For distractions, my dad would say: ‘Put that behind you.’” (09:27)
• Leaders must be intentional in pursuing their mission, as “everything worthwhile, it’s uphill.” (07:59)

Finding Your Mission

• John Gordon discusses how people lose their sense of mission at inflection points (e.g., retirement, graduation).
  • “We don’t get burned out because of what we do. We get burned out because we forget why we do it.” (11:35)
• He encourages action, reflection, and—if you’re a person of faith—seeking divine guidance to uncover purpose:
  • “When you seek the One who created you for a purpose, then you’ll find your purpose.” (13:07)

When You Don’t Have a Dream

• Maxwell shares advice for those without a clear dream:
  • “If you don’t have a dream, find somebody that has a dream that appeals to you and join them... Usually, if you do that, God will give you your own dream.” (14:10)

2. The Power of Team

Team as Foundation for Growth

• Gordon defines “team” broadly: work, family, community (17:45) and emphasizes relationships and connection:
  • “If you don’t have a team, you will feel isolated, disconnected… and from that, you will feel weak and powerless.” (18:10)
• The pandemic highlighted the pain of isolation, proving our deep need for relational bonds.
  • “Getting together with great leaders… I left alive, energized, better.” (18:41)
• “When you have a team, you have people who support you, believe in you, encourage you, and challenge you.” (19:25)

Family as Team

• Both Gordons and Maxwells attribute their success to family, especially spouses, as core team members (19:28).

Making Teams Better: Insights from John Maxwell and John Wooden

• Maxwell, recalling advice from Coach John Wooden:
  • “Every day as a coach, I ask the question: How can I make my team better?” (20:34)
  • Maxwell adds his own daily reflection: “How can I be a better leader? Because... if I become a better leader, my team will get better.” (21:25)
• Leaders must avoid placing all improvement responsibility on the team—the leader’s self-growth is critical.

Collaboration vs. Cooperation

• Winning teams move from simple cooperation to active collaboration:
  • “When you collaborate, you want to do things together. ... It is impossible to have great thinking without collaboration.” (24:40)
  • Shared thinking always improves ideas: “I’ve never... walked out of that meeting with a worse idea than I came in. It’s always a better idea.” (25:40)

Leadership Can Be Lonely Without Team

• Gordon notes many leaders are isolated, and real growth happens when leaders come together:
  • “Leaders get better when they come together... Get together, grow together.” (27:11)
• Maxwell agrees, urging leaders to attend growth events with team members for compounding benefits:
  • “If you’re in the room, you got it. If you’re not in the room, it’s not contagious.” (29:10)

3. The Essential Role of a Scoreboard

Why a Scoreboard?

• Gordon explains why tracking progress and knowing what “winning” looks like is vital:
  • “There are two key scoreboards in life. There’s that scoreboard of success—competition... but then there’s that bigger scoreboard of impact.” (31:25)
• True significance comes from pursuing the impact scoreboard, not just short-term wins.

Scoreboard as Self-Awareness and Growth

• Maxwell articulates the necessity for awareness:
  • “You can’t fix what you don’t know... the scoreboard creates awareness and I think that is essential because you can’t fix what you don’t know.” (35:24)
  • Every arena and field has visible scoreboards for this reason.

Personal, Success, and Significance Scoreboards

• Mark Cole summarizes by breaking it down:
  • Personal Scoreboard: How you’re fulfilling your potential
  • Success Scoreboard: Business metrics, KPIs
  • Significance Scoreboard: The difference you make in others’ lives (36:56)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• John Maxwell (On Focus & Mission) [09:27]:

  “My father’s favorite word was ‘focus.’ When he wanted us to concentrate, he’d say: ‘Put this before you’... For distractions, he’d say: ‘Put that behind you.’ Because when you don’t see it, it really fades away after a while.”

• John Gordon (On Purpose) [13:07]:

  “When you seek the One who created you for a purpose, then you’ll find your purpose ... I believe when you find a connection to God, you’ll live life so much more meaningfully and powerfully.”

• John Maxwell (On Team & Leadership) [21:25]:

  “The best way to make your team better is for me to lead them better. If I lead them better, they get better… I’m asking: ‘How can I be a better leader?’”

• John Gordon (On Teams & Leaders) [27:11]:

  “When leaders get together, they grow together... It’s not common in leadership, but the more we bring leaders together, you compete, you challenge, but you also support and encourage.”

• John Gordon (On Scoreboard) [31:25]:

  “There are two key scoreboards in life... Success is temporary. Your soul is eternal. Let’s do things that last forever. Focus on the second scoreboard and make an impact.”

• John Maxwell (On Awareness & Scoreboard) [35:24]:

  “You can’t fix what you don’t know. The scoreboard creates awareness... At halftime, if you don’t know the score, what’s your game plan?”

• John Gordon (On Consistency) [40:36]:

  “John telling me, ‘Consistency compounds.’ When you show up every day and you put these ideas into practice... that’s when you see incredible results.”

• John Maxwell (On Self-Investment) [43:05]:

  “The first person you should invest in is yourself. Not because you’re selfish, but because you’re selfless. You cannot give what you do not have.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [07:31] — Why every leader needs a mission (John Maxwell)
• [11:29] — What to do if you don’t have a mission (John Gordon)
• [14:10] — Advice for those without a dream (John Maxwell)
• [17:41] — Why a team is vital for leaders (John Gordon)
• [20:27] — The importance of making yourself and your team better (John Maxwell)
• [24:40] — Distinguishing collaboration vs. cooperation in teams (John Maxwell)
• [27:11] — The loneliness of leadership without a team (John Gordon)
• [31:19] — The importance of a scoreboard for leaders (John Gordon)
• [35:24] — Scoreboards as a tool for self-awareness and improvement (John Maxwell)
• [36:56] — Different types of scoreboards to track growth and success (Mark Cole)
• [40:36] — Consistency compounds: the key to long-term impact (John Gordon)
• [43:05] — Invest first in yourself, then in your team (John Maxwell)

Summary Table: The 3 Things Every Leader Needs to Thrive

| Element | Purpose / Benefit | Action Step | |--------------|:---------------------------------------------------------------------:|--------------------------------------------------| | Mission | Provides focus, intentionality, purpose. | Define your WHY and stay focused. | | Team | Offers support, connection, and growth; fosters collaboration. | Build and invest in authentic relationships. | | Scoreboard | Creates awareness; measures success, significance, and progress. | Track your KPIs, growth, and impact metrics. |

Episode Closing — Final Thoughts

• Consistency is the difference maker. “Consistency compounds,” Maxwell’s mantra, is repeated herein—reminding leaders that what you do daily builds your legacy.
• Invest in yourself first, then in others. Leaders are called to personal growth so they can pour into their teams and communities.
• Find your mission, build your team, keep score. These three elements—well-understood and intentionally applied—are the formula for not only thriving as a leader but for making a lasting, eternal difference.

For More

• Event mentioned: “A Day with John and John” — visit adaywithjonand.com [JON not JOHN] for details.
• Connect with the podcast and submit questions for future shows.

This episode is a powerful reminder that thriving in leadership is about clarity of mission, the strength of your relationships, and keeping your progress visible and meaningful. As John Maxwell puts it:

“You cannot give what you do not have and come with someone else and double your investment.” (43:05)