The Dov Baron Show

PART 2 of 2 🎙️ "The Lies We Tell Ourselves: Susan Ibitz on Truth, Trauma, and the Patterns You Can't Hide" . Guest: Susan Ibitz, Former Political Influence Consultant, Profiler, and Civilian Hostage Negotiator 🔥 What if the most dangerous lies in your life are the ones you tell yourself about your past, your identity, and the person you insist you have already become? . This episode will push you to confront the truth you avoid, the story you hide, and the patterns that still drive you even when you swear they no longer matter. Episode Summary In part two of my conversation with Susan Ibitz, we go deeper into the psychology of human behavior, deception, survival, and the hidden emotional coding that shapes every decision, every relationship, and every leader. Susan has lived more lives than most people can imagine. From surviving a chaotic childhood in Buenos Aires to running political influence operations across the globe to being trained by Paul Ekman to profiling criminals and CEOs alike, she brings a level of experiential insight that punches through the nonsense fast. . This is a masterclass in human truth. We dismantle the myths of body language, the false confidence of pop psychology, and the ways people use oversimplified ideas to avoid confronting the deeper emotional facts of their own history. We discuss survival patterns, childhood adaptation, and how leaders unknowingly repeat unresolved trauma in the boardroom. Susan walks you through her own story, including the brutal honesty of being a dyslexic child misunderstood by her family, leaving home at seventeen with a backpack, being mentored by broken people who recognized her brilliance, running political campaigns on multiple continents, and building a career behind the scenes shaping powerful figures. She reveals how survivors read micro-signals before a mood becomes a word, the difference between real threat and imagined danger, and why most people misread others because they have never learned to read themselves. Prepare to be changed. What You Will Learn • Why most body-language advice is wrong, and how real profilers actually decode behavior • How childhood survival strategies become adult leadership blind spots • Why nuance and context matter more than any "tell" or gesture • How dangerous people actually choose their victims, and why your posture, tone, and energy decide everything • Why forgiveness has nothing to do with allowing people back into your life • How unresolved emotional history shows up in your leadership identity • The truth about political influence operations and the people behind the people • Why real strength is the courage to confront the story you keep avoiding 👤 About Susan Ibitz Susan Ibitz is a former political influence consultant, profiler, and civilian hostage negotiator. She is the author and researcher behind Irrational Humans and the founder of the Human Behavior Lab. Her specialty is decoding deception, patterns, and human behavior in high-pressure environments from sales to politics to crisis negotiation. 🔗 Connect with Susan Ibitz Website: https://susanibitz.comYouTube: Human Behavior Lab Blog: Irrational Humans LinkedIn: Susan Ibitz #SusanIbitz #TheDovBaronShow #HumanBehavior #EmotionalSourceCode #LeadershipPsychology #TraumaPatterns #BehavioralScience #SelfAwareness #EliteThinkers #PatternRecognition #IdentityWork #PsychologicalSafety #HighPerformanceLeadership #DecisionMaking #ReadingPeople #InfluenceWithoutManipulation

🎙️ "The Human Behavior Hacker: Susan Ibitz on Pattern Recognition, Hidden Agendas, and the Truth We Don't Want Seen" 🔥 What if someone could see the parts of you that you've spent years polishing, managing, or hiding… in less than 30 seconds? 📘 Description Most leaders believe they can read a room. Most believe their success sharpened their instincts. Most believe they can spot the liar, the manipulator, or the hidden agenda. . That confidence is often the most dangerous delusion in the room. . Today's guest doesn't just read people, she sees through them. . Susan Ibitz, known globally as "The Human Behavior Hacker," is a former political influence consultant, profiler, and civilian hostage negotiator. She is the author of Irrational Humans and founder of the Human Behavior Lab, where she teaches others to decode patterns most people will never notice. . But what makes her truly unsettling to leaders is this: She didn't learn to read humans from textbooks. She learned to survive. . Her dyslexia and Asperger's didn't hold her back; they rewired her into a world-class pattern recognizer who can see emotional seams and identity fractures long before her clients feel them. . In this gripping conversation, Susan and Dov tear down the myths of communication, curiosity, and "reading people." They expose why most leaders are blind to their own filters, how first impressions have nothing to do with you, and why ambivalent people are the most dangerous ones in the room. . And somewhere in the middle of this… you'll hear something you've never heard on a leadership podcast: . A master profiler explaining why she genuinely doesn't like people…(well a certain kind of people) . This episode will rewire the way you see communication, power, and the emotional logic driving every room you walk into. 🔥 In This Episode Why leaders massively overestimate their ability to read people The number one mistake everyone makes about human behavior Why communication fails even when you think you're being clear The danger of ambivalent people and hidden agendas How dyslexia and Asperger's became a superpower in Susan's work Why first impressions aren't personal and never were How curiosity, not technique, reveals the emotional truth What trauma teaches you about morphing and mirroring Why most "experts" don't know what they're talking about How to ask questions that evoke genuine emotion instead of rehearsed answers 👤 About Susan Ibitz Susan Ibitz is a former political influence consultant, profiler, and civilian hostage negotiator. She is the author and researcher behind Irrational Humans and founder of the Human Behavior Lab. Her specialty is decoding deception, patterns, and human behavior in high-pressure environments from sales to politics to crisis negotiation. 💥 Listen If You've Ever… Felt like you're missing the hidden dynamics in the rooms you lead Wanted to improve your communication but didn't know where to start Suspected people weren't telling you the truth, including yourself Wanted a deeper understanding of how irrational humans really are Been told you're "too intense," "too perceptive," or "too much" Wondered why certain people trigger you instantly Wanted the real tools—not the myths—to read people accurately 🔗 Connect with Susan Ibitz Website: https://susanibitz.comYouTube: Human Behavior Lab Blog: Irrational Humans LinkedIn: Susan Ibitz 💭 Before You Hit Play Ask yourself: What part of my identity am I protecting so fiercely that I can't see the truth right in front of me? #SusanIbitz #TheDovBaronShow #HumanBehavior #EmotionalSourceCode #LeadershipPsychology #TraumaPatterns #BehavioralScience #SelfAwareness #EliteThinkers #PatternRecognition #IdentityWork #PsychologicalSafety #HighPerformanceLeadership #DecisionMaking #ReadingPeople #InfluenceWithoutManipulation

🎙️Part 2 of 2: Jeff Burningham The Future of Human Wisdom . What part of you must die for humanity to survive the age of artificial intelligence? Description: In this gripping second half of the conversation, Jeff Burningham and Dov Baron go deeper into the crisis and opportunity of our time. AI is reshaping economics, politics, leadership, and identity, but Jeff argues the real transformation begins inside each of us. . Drawing on his experience as an entrepreneur, investor, bishop, political candidate, and now author of The Last Book Written by a Human, Jeff lays out what he believes are the four stages of human and technological evolution: disruption, reflection, transformation, and evolution. . He warns that AI will accelerate everything we have not resolved within ourselves. Division, greed, and power games are already cresting. If we do not evolve, we collapse. But Jeff is not a pessimist. He sees a doorway into a new kind of leader, a new kind of human, and a possible renaissance in human consciousness. . This is not a discussion about machines. It is a discussion about the soul, responsibility, ego death, and the courage to change the story before the story changes us. 🔥 In This Episode • Why Jeff titled his book The Last Book Written by a Human • How AI mirrors the heroic journey of disruption, reflection, transformation, and evolution • The spiritual trap of turning technology into a new god • The three escalating risks: disinformation, unemployment, and manipulated violence • Why men aged 18 to 40 are the demographic most vulnerable to unrest • Jeff's fear: that society will double down on division, greed, and power • Jeff's hope: a renaissance in human consciousness • Why systems must evolve from the inside out • What leaders must sacrifice for their people • Why a leader's courage determines whether AI becomes a tool for unity or destruction • How to stay human in a digital world through nature, silence, presence, and relationship • The practical steps Jeff uses to stay grounded in his own life 👊 About Jeff Burningham Entrepreneur, investor, and author of The Last Book Written by a Human, Jeff Burningham blends business success with deep spiritual inquiry. He has founded companies, run for governor, served as a bishop, and now writes about what technology cannot replace: wisdom, faith, responsibility, and human connection. Every insight shared here is grounded directly in his words from the conversation. 🔗 Connect with Jeff Burningham Website: https://jeffburningham.com Social: @JeffBurningham Book: The Last Book Written by a Human 💭 Reflection Challenge What part of your identity is resisting the transformation you know you need to make? #TheDovBaronShow #JeffBurningham #TheLastBookWrittenByAHuman #ArtificialIntelligence #Humanity #Identity #Faith #Awakening #PurposeDrivenLeadership #EmotionalIntelligence #SpiritualLeadership #FutureOfHumanity #SelfAwareness #ConsciousnessRenaissance #AIandEthics

🎙️What AI Can't Give You: Jeff Burningham on Faith, Identity, and the Human Problem . What if the real crisis of artificial intelligence is not technological at all, but spiritual? Description: Artificial intelligence is accelerating faster than any technology in human history. But according to Jeff Burningham, the real threat is not that machines will outperform us. The real threat is that we will forget what it means to be human. . In this intimate and often surprising conversation, Jeff recounts the collapse of the life he built. The pressure of building companies, chasing success, running for Governor, and tying his identity to constant doing finally broke him apart. What followed was not a business pivot but a spiritual reckoning that reshaped how he sees himself, his faith, and his place in a world racing toward automation. . Together, Jeff Burningham and Dov Baron explore why the future belongs to people who cultivate wisdom, humility, and soul. AI will not destroy humanity. It will reveal the parts of ourselves we have avoided: our longing, our fear, our beliefs, and our inability to sit quietly in our own presence. . This episode is for anyone who has ever wondered who they would be without their achievements, their title, or their constant motion. 🔥 In This Episode • Why Jeff believes AI is a mirror rather than a replacement • How losing his sense of identity forced a complete spiritual reset • The hidden burnout of high performers who never stop doing • Why the soul, not the mind, is the key to the next era of leadership • How faith, doubt, and awakening shaped Jeff's view of the future • Why success can become an emotional hiding place • What it means to raise AI responsibly • The danger of confusing constant achievement with meaning 👊 About Jeff Burningham Entrepreneur, investor, gubernatorial candidate, and author of The Last Book Written by a Human, Jeff Burningham spent decades building companies and chasing momentum until the weight of it forced him to examine the deeper questions he had been outrunning. His work now focuses on what technology cannot replace: soul, wisdom, responsibility, and the courage to be fully human. 💥 Listen If You Have Ever • Wondered who you are without your achievements • Felt something inside you break under the pressure to perform • Questioned the role of faith or spirituality in modern leadership • Feared being replaced or forgotten in a rapidly changing world • Wanted to stop running and start listening to your life 💭 Reflection Challenge If AI only reflects what is already inside you, what is it showing you right now? 🔗 Connect with Jeff Burningham Website: https://jeffburningham.com Social: @JeffBurningham Book: The Last Book Written by a Human 🧠 Apple Podcast Keywords and Discovery Tags #TheDovBaronShow #JeffBurningham #TheLastBookWrittenByAHuman #ArtificialIntelligence #Humanity #Identity #Faith #Awakening #PurposeDrivenLeadership #SpiritualLeadership #SelfAwareness #EmotionalIntelligence #TechnologyAndSoul #FutureOfHumanity

🎙️When Metrics Meet the Heart: The Science of Relationship Fitness | William "Wagz" Wagner What happens when the same mind that builds billion-dollar systems turns that precision inward, to measure love, trust, and truth? Description: . Most leaders think of measurement as data, numbers, and KPIs. But what if the real key performance indicators of your life are emotional: trust, respect, and alignment? . In Part 2 of this raw, revealing conversation, William "Wagz" Wagner and Dov Baron dive deeper into how an engineer-turned-coach built a framework to quantify the unquantifiable: the health of your relationships. . Wagz shows how the same systems that transform corporations can heal marriages, friendships, and teams. Together, they unpack the uncomfortable truth that most people don't actually want better relationships, they want the other person to get better. . As Dov says, "I've watched countless leaders hide behind their spreadsheets—until their marriages collapse." . This episode cuts through the illusion of control, revealing how self-awareness, emotional honesty, and measurable accountability can rebuild the very connections that success too often erodes. 🔥 In This Episode How to apply continuous-improvement principles to emotional connection Why clarity without self-knowledge breeds resentment The Relationship Fitness App—how data meets empathy The fatal trap of control and validation in leadership and love How resentment forms when your commitments violate your values What business partners can learn from marriage therapy The hidden pain that drove Wagz to build this model—and how it changed his family forever 👊 About William "Wagz" Wagner Engineer, business architect, and author of Relationship Fitness, Wagz merges decades of corporate transformation experience with deep emotional intelligence. His measurable approach to relational growth has helped leaders, couples, and teams rebuild trust through clarity, alignment, and accountability. 💥 Listen If You've Ever Tried to fix relationships by controlling outcomes Led teams that couldn't align, no matter how many meetings you held Wanted to bridge the gap between emotional awareness and measurable growth Realized your ambition outpaced your self-awareness Known that every spreadsheet hides a story of unmet expectations 💭 Reflection Challenge Where in your leadership—or your love—are you still trying to control what should be measured, and measuring what should be felt? 🔗 Connect with William "Wagz" Wagner Book: https://www.relationshipfitnesscoach.com/ Website: peopleworkingbettertogether.com Email: wags@peopleworkingbettertogether.com 🧭 Keywords / Hashtags for Apple Discovery #TheDovBaronShow #WilliamWagzWagner #RelationshipFitness #Leadership #EmotionalSourceCode #Trust #Alignment #SelfAwareness #EmotionalIntelligence #BusinessRelationships #RelationshipApp #PurposeDrivenLeadership #EmotionalAccountability #EliteThinkers #CulturesOfBelonging

🎙️ "Relationship Fitness: The Hidden Discipline Behind Business, Love, and Leadership." What if the universal currency of business isn't money … but relationships? Description: He's an engineer turned business architect turned relational revolutionary. . For decades, William "Wagz" Wagner helped organizations and leaders engineer change. But it wasn't until he began confronting the patterns in his own history, forty years of marriage, ten grandchildren, and a lifetime of corporate transformation, that he realized: the same principles that build great companies are the ones that build great relationships. . In this first part of their delicious conversation, Dov Baron and Wagz unpack how emotional logic, unmet expectations, and assumed agreements quietly erode trust in families, teams, and organizations. . They dismantle the myth that relationships "work out," and replace it with a measurable, trainable model for what Wagz calls "Relationship Fitness." . I've watched countless leaders hide behind their spreadsheets until their marriages collapse. Because the truth is, every business problem is a relationship problem in disguise. . Whether you're leading a company or trying to save a marriage, this episode will redefine how you see communication, alignment, and commitment, and why they're the true currencies of leadership. 🔥 In This Episode Why most leaders fail at relationships (business and personal) for the same reasons How to align expectations so you stop breeding resentment The power of clarity and commitment in every relationship you lead How AI and technology are eroding emotional literacy—and what you can do about it Why "assumptions kill connection" and the three disciplines that build relational fitness What leaders can learn from marriage about communication and trust 👊 About William "Wagz" Wagner Engineer, business architect, and author of Relationship Fitness, Wagz has spent over 30 years helping organizations and leaders move from surviving change to mastering connection. He teaches that relationships aren't built on luck but on discipline, clarity, and courage—the same principles that scale empires and heal families. 💥 Listen If You've Ever Felt like your success outgrew your relationship skills Wondered why you can manage a company but struggle to connect at home Wanted to lead without losing your humanity Seen patterns you swore you wouldn't repeat Known that you're strong but crave real connection 🔗 Connect with "Wagz" Book Website: https://www.relationshipfitnesscoach.com Email: wags@peopleworkingbettertogether.com Coaching Site: peopleworkingbettertogether.com 💭 Reflection Challenge Which expectation in your relationships have you never actually spoken out loud? 🧭 Keywords / Hashtags for Apple Discovery #TheDovBaronShow #WilliamWagzWagner #RelationshipFitness #Leadership #EmotionalSourceCode #BusinessRelationships #EmotionalIntelligence #Communication #Trust #Alignment #RelationalDiscipline #SelfAwareness #EliteThinkers #PurposeDrivenLeadership #CulturesOfBelonging

🎙️"When the Self-Protection Becomes the Cage: Ed Latimore on Breaking Identity Addiction and Finding Forgiveness." . What if the identity you're defending isn't protecting you anymore and it's imprisoning you? Description: In this raw and unflinching second part of Dov Baron's conversation with Ed Latimore, we step beyond the boxing ring and deep into the fight that every high performer eventually faces—the battle with their own identity. . Ed reveals how the survival identity we build as children becomes our greatest addiction as adults. Together, Dov and Ed dismantle the illusion of control, the myth of "doing it for yourself," and the emotional logic that keeps us loyal to pain long after it stops serving us. . This episode confronts the real sobriety: identity sobriety. It's about facing the parts of yourself that are terrified to open their eyes when life throws the punch you've been avoiding. . If you've ever looked successful on the outside but secretly felt like you're holding your life together with emotional duct tape, this one will hit you square in the gut—and leave you standing stronger. 🔥 In This Episode Why most leaders are addicted to identity, not alcohol How "victimhood" hides inside high achievement Why you can't change until the pain of staying the same exceeds your comfort. The truth about love, tolerance, and breaking points in relationships How to rebuild yourself one habit at a time without losing your edge The fierce meaning of forgiveness, and why it's not permission How forgiveness dissolves hypervigilance and restores peace 👊 About Ed Latimore Former heavyweight boxer, TEDx speaker, and author of Hard Lessons from the Hurt Business, Ed Latimore, went from family abuse, public housing, and failing school to a degree in physics. From isolated boxing champion to husband and father, and finally to inner peace. Bestselling author of: Hard Lessons from the Hurt Business: Boxing and the Art of Life. His story is a blueprint for anyone ready to face themselves, rebuild, and lead with authenticity. 💥 Listen If You've Ever Felt trapped by an identity that once made you successful Loved someone who's lost in their own addiction or denial Wondered why self-awareness hasn't brought peace Needed to forgive someone, or yourself, but didn't know how Wanted to turn pain into wisdom instead of performance 🔗 Connect with Ed Latimore Website: https://edlatimore.com Newsletter: https://edlatimore.com/newsletter Instagram & X: @EdLatimoreYouTube: @EdLatimore1LinkedIn: Ed Latimore 💭 Reflection Challenge Ask yourself: Who would I be if I stopped protecting the version of me that was built to survive pain? . #TheDovBaronShow #EdLatimore #IdentityAddiction #EmotionalSourceCode #Leadership #Forgiveness #SelfMastery #Resilience #TraumaRecovery #PurposeDrivenLeadership #EmotionalIntelligence #StoicStreetSmarts #EliteThinkers #CulturesOfBelonging

"From the Hurt Business to Healing the Self: Ed Latimore on Addiction, Identity and Rebuilding Your Truth" . What if the person you became to survive is now the reason you can't evolve? Description: He was a heavyweight boxer with a physics degree who could take a punch from anyone—except himself. . In this electrifying first part of Dov Baron's conversation with Ed Latimore, discover how a man who built his identity on toughness, intelligence, and control had to dismantle it all to find peace. . From public housing to the boxing ring to sobriety, Ed reveals the brutal paradox every high performer faces: the traits that made you unstoppable are often the same ones that keep you imprisoned. . Together, Dov and Ed expose how emotional logic, the invisible code that drives addiction, ambition, and self-sabotage, can quietly run your life until you learn to rewrite it. . This episode will change how you see the story you tell yourself to survive, and what it's costing you to keep believing it. 🔥 In This Episode The hidden link between trauma, drive, and success Why "emotional logic" always wins over rational thought How identity becomes an addiction more powerful than alcohol The upside and downside of hypervigilance (and why it destroys trust) The single skill every fighter and leader must master: keeping your eyes open when the punch is coming 👊 About Ed Latimore Former heavyweight boxer, TEDx speaker, and author of Hard Lessons from the Hurt Business, Ed Latimore, turned pain into process and process into power. His writing and teaching on sobriety, discipline, and self-mastery have inspired hundreds of thousands to confront the truth they keep dodging. Bestselling author of: Hard Lessons from the Hurt Business: Boxing and the Art of Life 💥 Listen If You've Ever Outgrown your success but feared losing who you are Confused performance with connection Felt like you're winning on paper but losing yourself Wanted to rebuild without starting over 🔗 Connect with Ed Latimore Website: https://edlatimore.com Newsletter: https://edlatimore.com/newsletter Instagram & X: @EdLatimoreYouTube: @EdLatimore1LinkedIn: Ed Latimore 💭 Before Part 2 Drops Ask yourself: Which part of your identity are you still defending because you're afraid of who you'd be without it? #EmotionalSourceCode #EdLatimore #TheDovBaronShow #Identity #Addiction #Leadership #SelfMastery #TraumaRecovery #Resilience #PurposeDrivenLeadership #Resilience #EliteThinkers #CulturesOfBelonging

🎙️ Part 2: "When Gratitude Isn't Enough: How to Find Meaning at Work with Curiosity, Exposure, and Values."| Mef Shebi . 🔥 What if gratitude isn't enough, and the real question is whether your work still fits who you've become? Follow The Dov Baron Show to catch upcoming conversations that redefine leadership and purpose. Episode Summary 💡 In Part 2 of our conversation, Meftehe (Mef) Shebi reveals the moment when gratitude and exhaustion collided. . He had everything he was supposed to want—an American education, a consulting job, stability for his family. Yet, something felt off. Gratitude couldn't silence the quiet ache that his work no longer fit the person he was becoming. Then one night, his body forced the truth: stress landed him in the ER, and the cost of misalignment was no longer theoretical. . That moment became a turning point. Mef began asking more profound questions: What am I truly curious about? What experiences expand me? Which values anchor my choices? Out of those questions came his practical framework for meaning, Curiosity, Exposure, and Values—the same framework he now uses to guide leaders out of survival mode and into significance. . This isn't about quitting your job; it's about redesigning your relationship with work before your body, your purpose, or your sanity do it for you. What You'll Learn Why gratitude and emptiness can coexist—and what that paradox reveals. The story behind Mef's "welcome to America" moment and how it redefined his view of work. How engineering at UVA and graduate studies at Harvard shaped his global outlook. The difference between external success and internal alignment. Why stress and health breakdowns often point to emotional misalignment, not weakness. How the Curiosity, Exposure, Values triad can transform your career and leadership. Simple reflection tools: the Short List Test and Photo Roll Prompt for clarity. How to recognize when your values have shifted—and your work hasn't. Why 90,000 hours of working life means meaning is not optional. About Meftehe (Mef) Shebi Meftehe (Mef) Shebi is a first-generation Ethiopian immigrant, an engineer, a Harvard graduate, and a career strategist. A former consultant and policy advisor, he now serves as Director of MBA Career Coaching at UCLA Anderson, where he helps high performers rediscover purpose through clarity and alignment. . His book, How's Work, distills decades of lived experience and coaching insight into a guide for turning work into a place of growth, not burnout. Connect with Mef 🌐 mc2careercoaching.com 📘 How's Work — available wherever books are sold 📱 LinkedIn: Meftehe Shebi📸 Instagram: @mef.shebi The Big Questions We Tackle When does gratitude become a cover for misalignment? Why can success still feel like loss? How do you realign your work with the person you've grown into? What happens when the body becomes the messenger for a misaligned life? Can curiosity, exposure, and values turn exhaustion into evolution? Why It Matters for Leaders You can't lead from a place of depletion. Mef's framework strips away illusion and replaces hustle with honest reflection. Leaders who integrate Curiosity, Exposure, and Values don't just create better teams, they create healthier lives. . Meaning isn't a luxury; it's an operating system. Call to Action If this episode made you rethink your relationship with work: Follow The Dov Baron Show to catch upcoming conversations that redefine leadership and purpose. Rate & Review with one insight you'll act on this week—it helps other conscious leaders find the show. Share this episode with someone who's doing well on paper but quietly running on empty. . Apple rewards engagement, saves, and completions. If you listen through, you'll see why alignment isn't indulgence, it's integrity. #Leadership #Purpose #MeaningfulWork #Fulfillment #CareerTransformation #EmotionalIntelligence #WorkCulture #SelfAwareness #AuthenticLeadership #PersonalGrowth #ImmigrantStory #Ethiopia #Resilience #WorkIdentity #SuccessMindset #HumanPotential #PurposeDriven #BelongingAtWork #TransformationalLeadership #LifePurpose Branded / Episode-Specific Hashtags #TheDovBaronShow #MefShebi #HowIsWork #ScarcityToSignificance #SoulOfWork #LeadershipWithMeaning #DovBaron #PodcastLeadership #FulfillmentAtWork

🎙️ Part 1: "The Soul of Meaningful Work: From Scarcity to Significance | Mef Shebi . 🔥 "What if the greatest poverty isn't material, but the emptiness of a life without meaning?" Follow The Dov Baron Show to catch upcoming conversations that redefine leadership and purpose. Episode Summary 💡 This is far more than a story about escaping poverty, it's a powerful and very human story of transcending it. . In Part 1 of my two-part conversation with Meftehe (Mef) Shebi; career strategist, executive coach, and author of How's Work, we journey from his early life in Ethiopia, where survival was the goal, to his rise as a respected voice on purpose-driven leadership. . Mef's childhood "normal" meant scarcity, long hours, and the unspoken belief that work was something you endured, not enjoyed. But when animated TV, and movies in a foreign language gave him a view beyond the landfill and brothel he lived next door to, education and opportunity brought him to the United States, he realized the real poverty wasn't in what he lacked, it was in how disconnected modern professionals had become from meaning. . Together, we unpack what it truly means to find fulfillment in a world obsessed with achievement. Mef reveals how his hardships became the foundation of his life's work: helping people rediscover purpose, contribution, and alignment inside their careers. . This conversation bridges the personal and the universal; it's a story of migration, mindset, and the soul of work itself. What You'll Learn How growing up in Ethiopia shaped Mef's understanding of work, purpose, and survival. Why true poverty has less to do with money and more to do with meaning. The mindset shift that turns struggle into service. How ambition, when untethered from purpose, leads to burnout. The surprising ways culture and upbringing shape our relationship with success. How to recognize when your work is feeding your ego instead of your soul. Why fulfillment requires alignment, not balance. What leaders can do to create workplaces that nourish identity and belonging. About Meftehe (Mef) Shebi Meftehe (Mef) Shebi is a career strategist, executive coach, and author of How's Work: A Practical Guide to Finding Fulfillment and Purpose in Your Career. After graduating from university as an engineer, he became a management consultant and later a policy advisor. From there, he became the Director of MBA Career Coaching at UCLA Anderson School of Management. . Mef founded MC² Career Coaching to help individuals and organizations redefine success through the lens of meaning, growth, and contribution. His work invites professionals to stop chasing status, and start building significance. Connect with Mef Shebi 🌐 Website: mc2careercoaching.com📘 Book: "How's Work" Available Now! 📱 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mefshebi 📸 Instagram: @mef.shebi The Big Questions We Tackle What happens when achievement replaces meaning? How do you transform work from survival to significance? What's the hidden cost of chasing external success? How can leaders build cultures that reconnect people to purpose? What does "wealth" look like when fulfillment is the new currency? 🎯 Why It Matters for Leaders In a world addicted to metrics and performance, this story cuts through the noise. Mef's journey is a masterclass in rediscovering humanity at the heart of work. His life proves that leadership isn't about titles or accolades, it's about contribution, courage, and connection. . For anyone who's ever achieved everything they thought they wanted and still felt something missing, this episode is your mirror. Call to Action If this story moved you, here's how to deepen the conversation: Follow the show so you don't miss Part 2, where Mef and I reveal the framework for finding fulfillment and purpose in your work. Rate & Review with one insight that challenged your view of success—it helps other conscious leaders find the show. Share this episode with someone who's chasing success but starving for meaning. Apple's algorithm rewards completions, saves, and shares. If you listen all the way through, you'll understand why fulfillment isn't found—it's remembered. #TheDovBaronShow #MefShebi #MeaningfulWork #Leadership #Purpose #Fulfillment #CareerTransformation #EmotionalIntelligence #WorkLifeAlignment #Curiosity #Values #ExecutiveCoaching #LeadershipPodcast #PurposeAtWork #HowIsWork #WhenGratitudeIsntEnough #DovBaron #AuthenticLeadership #TransformationalLeadership #MindfulLeadership #PodcastForLeaders