Linch With A Leader

There are many leaders and visionaries in our world, but what sets them apart? Mike Linch sits down with Dave Ferguson to talk about the characteristics leaders possess that attract and inspire others, not the least of which are being accessible and expressing a genuine interest in other people.Dave is an award-winning author, founding and lead pastor of Chicago’s Community Christian Church, a missional multi-site community considered one of the most influential churches in America. Dave is also the visionary for the international church-planting movement NewThing and president of the Exponential Conference.

In this episode, Mike sits down with former Major League Baseball player and manager Ned Yost to discuss his career, and how he influenced so many other players and coaches over the course of 40 years in the big leagues. He also shares some fascinating insights and stories from some of the game’s all-time best players and managers, including Bobby Cox and Ted Simmons.Yost played six seasons in MLB for three different teams – Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Rangers, and Montreal Expos. After a brief stint as a Minor League manager, Yost served as an Assistant Coach for the Atlanta Braves, serving as bullpen coach from 1991-98, and third base coach from 1999-2002. Following the 2002 season, Yost was named Manager of the Milwaukee Brewers, a position he held through 2008.In May 2010, Yost was named Manager of the Kansas City Royals, where he remained until he retired following the 2019 season. In 2013, he led the Royals to their first winning season in 10 years. Just two years later, Yost led the Royals to the best record in the American League, and ultimately to their first World Series title in 30 years.

It is every college baseball coach's dream to capture the College World Series title and hoist that National Championship trophy. Well, Chris Lemonis was fortunate to experience that in 2021, as his Mississippi State Bulldogs took home the crown to Starkville. In this episode, Mike Linch talks to Coach Lemonis about the culture of his program, how to overcome challenges when players are struggling, and how he wants to be remembered by the players he coaches.About Chris Lemonis:Since arriving in Starkville, Chris Lemonis has guided the Bulldogs to unparalleled success, including capturing Mississippi State’s first national championship in 2021. He is the first Division I head coach to reach the College World Series in his first two full seasons as head coach of a program in the Super Regional era (since 1999).In three seasons at MSU, Lemonis has compiled a 114-37 record (.755 winning percentage) and taken his program to every College World Series that has been played during that span. In each of his two complete seasons at the helm of the Bulldogs, Lemonis has won 50-plus games, posting a 52-15 record in 2019 and a 50-18 mark in 2021. Lemonis notched his 100th win at MSU, doing so in his first 130 games. He is the fastest head coach in program history to reach the 100-win mark.Owning a head coaching record of 255-128-2, Lemonis was also a part of nearly 800 wins as an assistant coach and three trips to the College World Series. During his time at Indiana, Lemonis' teams averaged 35.3 wins per season, including a 40-win campaign during his final season in Bloomington. He averaged 39.2 victories per year during his career in an assistant role (784 wins), bolstered by a 44.9 wins-per-season average at Louisville. The Cardinals were college baseball's winningest program during that eight-year span and made the program’s first three trips to Omaha.Lemonis not only understands what it takes to get to Omaha as a coach but also as a player. A 1992 graduate of The Citadel, Lemonis added a 1990 appearance in the College World Series as a student-athlete. The appearance make the Bulldogs one of just three schools in Southern Conference history (Duke, Wake Forest) and only current member of the conference to advance to Omaha.

In this episode, Mike sits down with author and speaker Christy Wright to walk through principles from her latest book, Take Back Your Time: The Guilt-Free Guide to Life Balance. Christy is the #1 national best-selling author of Business Boutique, a Certified Business Coach and served as a Ramsey Personality as the host of The Christy Wright Show with Ramsey Solutions for 12 years. Christy has a passion for equipping women with the knowledge and steps they need to successfully run and grow a business. Since 2009, she has spoken to thousands across the country at women's conferences, national business conferences, Fortune 500 companies and her own sold-out live events.

Happy Valentine's Day and welcome to Episode 130 of the podcast!  In honor of Valentine's day today, Mike shares lessons that he has learned in 30 years of marriage & leadership!  Life is not made up of just the wedding day when you say I do, but rather in the "messy middle" years where you are just pushing through!  With both of his children getting married in this season, Mike shares thoughts of how to survive the messy middle years that he would want both of his kids to know!  Hope you enjoy this special day!

In this week’s episode of Linch with a Leader, Mike sits down with Dr. Tim Elmore, founder and CEO of Growing Leaders (www.growingleaders.com), an Atlanta‐based non‐profit organization created to develop emerging leaders. Mike talks to Tim extensively about his latest book, The Eight Paradoxes of Great Leadership: Embracing the Conflicting Demands of Today’s Workplace. In his book – and in this intriguing conversation – Elmore unpacks the fresh strategies and new mindset required today from a next generation leader. Since founding Growing Leaders in 2003, Elmore has spoken to over 500,000 leaders in businesses, universities, athletic teams and non-profit organizations, including The Home Depot, Coca-Cola Bottling Company Consolidated, American Eagle and Chick-Fil-A as well as the San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Ohio State University, Stanford University and the University of Alabama athletics.His work grew out of 20 years serving alongside Dr. John C. Maxwell, where he focused on leadership for the emerging generations. Elmore has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, USA Today, Psychology Today and he’s been featured on CNN’s Headline News and Fox and Friends to talk about leading multiple generations in the marketplace. Tim was listed in the top 100 leadership speakers in America by Inc. magazine. He has written more than 35 books, including the best-selling Habitudes: Images That Form Leadership Habits and Attitudes. Tim and his wife, Pam, have two adult children, Bethany and Jonathan. He and Pam live outside of Atlanta. You can also find his work at: TimElmore.com

Mike sits down with Ken Coleman of Ramsey Solutions to discuss Ken’s new book, “From Paycheck to Purpose: The Clear Path to Doing Work You Love.” Ken is America’s Career Coach, is a national bestselling author, and host of The Ken Coleman Show. Ken helps people discover what they were born to do and provides practical steps to make their dream job a reality. The Ken Coleman Show is a nationally syndicated, caller-driven show that helps listeners who are searching for something more out of their career.In From Paycheck to Purpose, Ken draws on what he learned from his own ten-year journey, as well as from coaching thousands of others, to walk you through the seven stages to discovering and doing work that gives you both a great income AND big impact.

Episode 127 finds Mike sitting down with a great friend and leader of leaders, Dan Reiland. Dan Reiland is the Executive Pastor at 12Stone Church in Lawrenceville, Georgia. He first partnered with the legendary John Maxwell for 20 years, as the Executive Pastor at Skyline Wesleyan Church located in San Diego. He then moved on to become the Vice President of Leadership and Church Development at Injoy. Dan also writes a blog to help encourage and pass on leadership insights that he has learned and acquired from his time in ministry. He has a passion for seeing leaders grow and become empowered in what God has called them too. In this episode, Mike Linch and Dan Reiland discuss what it means to be a confident leader and how this plays in to your spiritual journey! Some of God's greatest leaders struggled until they found this "confidence" that God desires them to have!

In Episode 126, Mike is blessed to sit down with Mark Miller, the Vice President of High Performance leadership with Chick-Fil-A. Mark has been with Chick-Fil-A for over 40 years and has helped architect the leadership pipeline in one of America's premier organizations! Mark also has written eight books and sold over a million copies in 25 different languages. Here is a link to discover Mark's previous works and order them! Today, Mike & Mark unpack his newest book "Smart Leadership"! Smart Leadership explores the four choices that every great leader, no matter their field, will have to make! The information contained in this podcast is transformational and one you will want to listen to with a pen & pencil in hand!

Mike kicks of 2022 talking about a "leaders character" with Dr. Richard Blackaby.  This is his second appearance on the podcast (Episode 100) and this conversation delves into the depths of what makes character so critical in the life of a leader!Dr.  Blackaby serves as the President of Blackaby Ministries International and has served in that role since 2006.  He has authored or co-authored over 36 books such as:  Spiritual Leadership, Experiencing God,  The Seasons of GodDr. Blackaby not only travels the country speaking but is a coach to many Christian CEO's and business leaders.  He also has a popular leadership podcast entitled "The Richard Blackaby Leadership Podcast".  In 2022, Dr. Blackaby is beginning a new "Experiencing God - Day by Day" PodcastHe and his wife, Lisa, have three adult children and six grandchildren. They live in Atlanta, GA.