The Growth Project

Dr. Katie Nichols chats with Dorian Scott, a two-time Olympian and recently appointed Track & Field Head Coach for UNLV, about his experience at the Olympic games, what it takes to perform on the "big stage," and how to bounce back from setbacks.

Being in a leadership role has many benefits, but there are some difficult realities linked to leadership that often go undiscussed. Dr. Drew Brannon and the Director of Athletics for the University of Georgia, Josh Brooks, explore some of the common challenges leaders encounter, including having to make unpopular decisions, being disliked despite best efforts, and having mistakes blown out of proportion.

How do you navigate disappointment and leverage adversity to propel you toward your goals? Using the Olympics as a framework for this topic, Dr. Drew Brannon and Dr. Cory Shaffer provide suggestions to help improve your ability to manage disappointment and life's inevitable setbacks.

In this episode, Dr. Cory Shaffer and Dr. Katie Nichols consider the similarities between the concepts of "belonging" and "psychological safety," both of which are crucial in creating authentic connection and trust on a team. They conclude with tips for action on how to bring more belonging into your team.

Dr. Milt Lowder and Dave Ridley, who served in a variety of senior executive roles during his 27-year career at Southwest Airlines, discuss Dave's eclectic career, the positive impact of putting people first, and the crucial role of humility, honesty, and hard work in persevering through setbacks to find fulfillment and success - both professionally and personally.

Dr. Cory Shaffer and University of Tennessee Assistant Track & Field Coach and former Olympic athlete, Ken Harnden, discuss the evolution of Ken's coaching philosophy. Ken's coaching approach has been a lifetime in the making, which has been shaped from growing up and attending boarding school in Zimbabwe, walking on and ultimately becoming a National Champion in college, participating in the Olympics, and coaching elite athletes from all over the world. His perspective is one that all coaches and leaders can appreciate and apply to their own teams.

How do you build "buy-in" from new hires and position them to succeed in their roles? Dr. Drew Brannon and Dr. Katie Nichols discuss how to cultivate a strategic organizational "on-ramp" that increases the likelihood that newly hired team members will be more satisfied, stay longer with an organization, and ultimately be more fulfilled in their roles.

Fathers unquestionably play a pivotal role in our collective growth and development. Dr. Drew Brannon and Dr. Milt Lowder reflect on the responsibility and privilege of being a father and share three central roles of a dad: the encourager, the believer, and the teacher.

How do you stack the odds in your favor to perform at your best? Dr. Cory Shaffer and high performance strategist, Dr. Brandon Marcello, discuss the essential elements needed to optimize performance and maximize your potential. They examine how the interwoven components that make up the fabric of human performance - the physical, cognitive, social, and emotional pieces - impact one another and are equally crucial in achieving peak performance.

Although it can be elusive to measure, you can undoubtedly feel team chemistry. Dr. Drew Brannon and University of Georgia Volleyball Head Coach, Tom Black, discuss how team chemistry elevates performance, increases enjoyment, and creates a feeling of being part of something greater than yourself.