This week, we sat down with Steve Rassel, Assistant Director of High Performance with the Toronto Blue Jays. We recently got a tour of their world-class training facility in Tampa Bay, FL, and were blown away by their team values, culture, approach to leadership development, and the mindset they use to train professional athletes at an elite level. So even if you’re not in the outfield, but you’re in the boardroom, classroom, or any other environment — the topics we cover today translate in surprising and inspiring ways. And you know PQ is a baseball fanatic!

"Win the morning, win the day!" Maybe you've heard all the motivational quotes, and certainly there's a deep well of productivity tools, day planners, apps, and millionaire morning routines out there that all promise to make us more effective. But how do you find something that works (really works) for you? It's not as complicated as you might think! Let's get to it.

Picture this. You’re in the middle of a productive team meeting, when all of a sudden, someone at the table quits. No, not after the fact. No, not a resignation letter. No, not a private conversation. Just, “I’m OUT!...” in the middle of the meeting. Yikes! What would you do? What would you say? Though you may not have faced this abrupt of a situation, any leader that’s been in the game for a while has been blindsided by someone resigning, stepping away, or quitting. A listener writes in this week about this surprising challenge, and we walk through the best way to handle it!

The most challenging leadership conversations are usually not in the workplace, but sitting across from your teenager. Sound scary? It can be, but trust us – on the other side of a tough conversation is a rich, meaningful relationship. As parents, how do we set boundaries, define values, create atmospheres for growth, & clarify what our house will stand for? It’s time to stop avoiding the conversation we know we need to have, and JUST LEAD.

50 million people in the US will change jobs this year, nearly a 30% turnover rate in the total workforce. HR pros agree that the first 90 days (maybe even less!) is major when it comes to starting a new job. But what's the best way to approach it? How can we score critical early wins, build influence fast, and take important first steps as you establish yourself in a new role? In Episode #1 of the JUST LEAD Podcast, Mark Q answers a listener question on how to crush it right away.