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What if the only difference between freezing in chaos and staying calm is how much practice you’ve done before the storm hits?

In this episode, I trace the moments that shaped why I coach. From digging strangers out of an avalanche in Switzerland to carrying the weight of a teammate down Mont Blanc on one ski, survival and leadership kept pointing to the same truth: preparation creates calm. I talk about teaching kung fu to kids and bankers, seeing culture hold Palantir together at breakneck speed, and stumbling through my own startup without a coach. Later, I describe rebuilding both technology and trust at Realforce when fear was running high. All of it comes back to this: even the strongest leaders need someone in their corner, and that’s why I built The CTO Playbook.

You’ll Learn:

The reason practice beats panic when pressure hits
The link between small wins and the breakthrough confidence they create
The damage of trying to figure everything out alone without guidance
What it feels like to rebuild trust and safety in a fearful team
Why culture becomes the glue when growth outpaces structure
The moment persistence matters more than raw talent in leadership and coaching
How scaling without culture can tip a company into chaos

Timestamps:

[00:00] Introduction

[06:00] Avalanche rescue and the calm that comes from practice

[08:59] Skiing Mont Blanc and carrying the load so the team could get home

[10:48] Kung fu teaching and the breakthrough power of persistence

[13:00] Coaching adults and the hidden gaps even senior leaders face

[13:52] Lessons from Palantir and why culture holds during chaos

[14:55] Startup founder struggles and the cost of going it alone

[15:46] Rebuilding trust and technology at Realforce

[18:00] Why I coach and how Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle frames it

[21:00] The five CTO archetypes every tech leader falls into

[26:00] Basecamp, Elevate, and Ascent explained as the CTO Playbook journey

Resources Mentioned:

Start with Why by Simon Sinek | Book

Find more from Adam on LinkedIn and YouTube, and check out Adam's CTO coaching company here.

"Es ist wichtig, ab und zu eine Leere zu haben." | Stephan Balkenhol, Bildhauer