Let me ask you something.

And I want you to actually sit with this for a second.

Are you trying to get different results…

while still questioning if you’re enough?

Because a lot of people don’t say that out loud.

But it’s there.

In the back of their mind.

“I don’t know if I’m ready.”
“I don’t know if I’m the right person.”
“I don’t know if I can actually do this.”

Let me stop you right there.

You are not missing something.

You’re not waiting to become enough.

You already are.

That’s the part people skip.

They think growth means becoming someone completely different.

Someone more polished.
More perfect.
More put together.

That’s not it.

Growth is about becoming more of who you already are…

without the hesitation.

Without the doubt.

Without holding yourself back.

Because the version of you that wins?

That version already exists.

It’s the version of you that:

That’s not someone else.

That’s you.

Just not fully showing up yet.

And that’s where everything changes.

Because this isn’t about becoming someone new.

It’s about removing what’s in the way.

The hesitation.
The overthinking.
The waiting.
The second-guessing.

That’s what’s slowing you down.

Not your ability.

And let’s tie this back to what we’ve been building.

You realized no one is coming.

Good.

You started focusing on winning daily.

Even better.

Now this is the next step.

Who shows up to do that every day?

Because winning daily isn’t just about actions.

It’s about identity.

It’s about becoming the person who doesn’t negotiate with themselves.

The person who doesn’t need perfect conditions.

The person who shows up anyway.

That takes courage.

Courage to trust yourself.

Courage to step into moments where you don’t feel fully ready.

Courage to stop waiting for permission.

Let me hit you with something right out of the gate.

Most people are waiting.

Waiting for a big moment.
A breakthrough.
A win that finally changes everything.

And that’s exactly why they stay stuck.

Because that moment?

It’s not coming the way you think it is.

You don’t win big.
You win daily.

Let’s be real—because that’s what we do here.

People love the idea of winning.

They love the result.
They love the recognition.
They love what comes with it.

But they don’t love what it actually takes to get there.

Because the process?

It’s not flashy.
It’s not exciting.
It’s not something people clap for.

It’s showing up…again…and again…and again…

When nobody’s watching.

Here’s the truth most people don’t want to hear:You don’t rise when the moment hits.
You fall back to how you’ve been showing up every single day. When pressure hits…When expectations rise…When it actually matters… You’re not becoming something new.

You’re revealing what you’ve been building.

That’s why daily matters.
That’s why discipline matters.
That’s why consistency matters.

Winning isn’t the highlight.

Winning is the habit.

Let’s break it down—because winning isn’t vague. It’s visible.

Winning looks like showing up with intention.
Not drifting. Not reacting. You know what matters—and you go after it.

Winning looks like having the conversation you don’t want to have.
You don’t delay it. You don’t soften it. You step into it.

That’s courage.

Winning looks like telling the truth.
To your team. To the situation. To yourself.

No excuses. No sugarcoating. No hiding.

That’s candor.

Winning looks like holding the standard.
Not to tear people down—but because you know they’re capable of more.

You don’t lower the bar.
You bring people up to it.

That’s heart.

Because this isn’t about hype.

It’s about alignment.

You don’t just say you lead with courage, candor, and heart.

You prove it. Daily.

When it’s uncomfortable.
When it’s inconvenient.
When it would be easier to stay quiet.

Winning looks like this:

You don’t let small things slide—because small things don’t stay small You address issues early You follow through—every single time

Because consistency builds trust.

And trust builds everything else.

Anybody can start strong.

Energy is easy.
Motivation is easy.

But finishing strong?

That’s different.

That’s when you’re tired.
When you’ve already dealt with enough.
When it would be easier to coast.

That’s where identity is built.

Let’s get real for a second.

You don’t have a motivation problem.
You have a consistency problem.

You don’t need more information.
You don’t need another video.
You don’t need another idea.

You already know what to do.

You’re just not doing it at the level you need to.

That’s candor.

Now comes the part that requires courage.

Doing it anyway.

Even when you don’t feel like it.
Even when it’s hard.
Even when nobody is watching.

Because heart?

Heart is what keeps you in it.

When it would be easier to check out.
When it would be easier to coast.
When it would be easier to lower the standard.

You don’t.

You stay in it.
You stay locked in.
You stay committed to something bigger than how you feel in the moment.

That’s winning.

Tomorrow is coming.

So here’s the question:

What does winning look like for you—tomorrow?

Not someday.
Not next week.

Tomorrow.

• What conversation are you avoiding?
• What standard are you letting slip?
• What habit is holding you back?

Pick it.
Own it.
Attack it.

Because momentum doesn’t come from thinking.

It comes from action.

And once you stack a day…
you stack another…
and another…
and another…

Until what used to feel hard…

Becomes who you are.

That’s the shift.

That’s the edge.

You don’t win big.

You win daily.

If this hit you… good.

Now go prove it.

Let me hit you with something right out of the gate.

Most people are waiting…

for a big moment.

A breakthrough.
A win.
Something that finally changes everything.

And that’s exactly why they stay stuck.

Because that moment?

It’s not coming the way you think it is.

You don’t win big.

You win daily.

And I’m going to be real with you — because that’s what wedo here.

A lot of people love the idea of winning.

They love the result.
They love the recognition.
They love what comes with it.

But they don’t love what it actually takes to get there.

Because the process?

It’s not flashy.

It’s not exciting.

It’s not something people clap for.

It’s showing up…

again…

and again…

and again…

Let me give it to you straight.

There’s a moment every leader hits.

It’s not loud.

It’s not dramatic.

It’s quiet.

But it changes everything.

It’s the moment you realize…

No one is coming.

Not to fix your team.

Not to fix your culture.

Not to fix your habits.

Not to fix your results.

No one.

And when that finally clicks…

everything shifts.

Because up until that moment…

you’re waiting.

You might not say it out loud…

but you’re waiting.

Waiting for someone to step up.

Waiting for things to get easier.

Waiting for alignment.

Waiting for the right time.

Waiting for something to change…

without you having to be the one to change it.

And I’ve been there.

You look around and think:

“Why isn’t this better?”

“Why isn’t the team stepping up?”

“Why does this feel harder than it should?”

And if you’re not careful…

you drift.

You get frustrated.

You start looking outward.

Then something hits you.

Not comfortable… but powerful.

You realize:

I’m the variable.

If this moves… it moves because I move it.

If this improves… it improves because I raise it.

If this gets better… it starts with me.

Now let’s be real.

That realization?

It’s heavy.

Because it removes the excuse.

There’s no one left to point at.

No one left to wait on.

No one left to hope will fix it.

But here’s the shift.

That realization isn’t pressure.

It’s freedom.

Because the moment you stop waiting…

you start building.

And this is where most people get it twisted.

They hear “no one is coming” and think:

“I have to do everything.”

No.

That’s not leadership.

That’s control.

And control doesn’t scale.

Let me be clear.

Ownership does NOT mean you carry everything yourself.

It means you take responsibility for how everything getscarried.

Big difference.

Ownership means:

You set the tone.

You create clarity.

You define the standard.

And then…

you build people who can carry it with you.

Because strong teams aren’t built on one person doingeverything.

They’re built on people who know what matters…

and step into it without being chased.

That’s the goal.

Not dependency.

Not bottlenecks.

Not everything running through you.

That’s not leadership.

That’s a ceiling.

What you want is a team that moves.

A team that thinks.

A team that executes without waiting.

That’s decentralized command.

But it doesn’t happen by accident.

It happens when the leader goes first.

You don’t get empowered teams by stepping back too early.

There’s a moment every leader faces.

It doesn’t look dramatic.
It doesn’t feel like a breaking point.

It’s small.

Something is slightly off.
Someone cuts a corner.
An expectation isn’t met.

And you feel it.

Then comes the decision.

“Is this worth addressing right now?”

That’s the moment.

Because what you do next doesn’t just solve a situation…

It defines your standard.

The Reality Most Leaders Avoid

Teams don’t fall apart overnight.

They don’t collapse because of one big mistake.

They drift.

Little by little.

Moment by moment.

Not because leaders don’t care…

But because they hesitate.

They wait.
They rationalize.
They tell themselves it’s not the right time.

And over time, those small decisions stack up.

Until one day, the culture no longer reflects what youintended.

The Subtle Shift That Changes Everything

Here’s where it gets real.

Leaders rarely say, “I’m lowering the standard.”

Instead, it sounds like this:

It feels reasonable.

But leadership isn’t built on what feels reasonable in themoment.

It’s built on what’s required in the moment.

Because every time something goes unaddressed…

The line moves.

Culture Isn’t What You Say—It’s What You Allow

You can talk about standards all day.

You can write them down.
You can repeat them in meetings.

But none of that matters if your actions don’t match.

People don’t follow your words.

They follow your responses.

What gets corrected…
What gets ignored…
What gets reinforced…

That becomes the culture.

Not eventually.

Immediately.

This Isn’t About Being Hard—It’s About Being Clear

There’s a misconception in leadership:

That holding standards means being harsh.

It doesn’t.

It means being clear.

Clarity is one of the most powerful forms of respect.

Because when expectations are unclear, people guess.

And when people guess, they get it wrong.

But when expectations are clear?

People improve.
People grow.
People rise.

Avoiding clarity to protect someone’s comfort doesn’t helpthem.

It limits them.

If You Truly Care, You Don’t Lower the Bar

Let’s flip the script.

Holding a standard isn’t the opposite of caring.

It’s evidence of it.

When you believe in someone, you don’t make things easierfor them.

You make things clearer.

You challenge them.
You call out gaps.
You push them to meet the level you know they’re capable of.

Not to tear them down—

But because you refuse to let them settle.

That’s leadership with heart.

The Cost You Don’t See

Here’s where this really matters.

Your top performers are always watching.

They don’t usually say anything.

They just notice.

They notice what gets tolerated.
They notice where the line actually is.

And eventually, they start asking themselves:

“If this is acceptable… why am I pushing so hard?”

That question is dangerous.

Because once high performers lose belief in the standard…

You don’t just lose performance.

You lose momentum.

And eventually—you lose them.

The Line Every Leader Faces

Leadership isn’t about avoiding tension.

It’s about stepping into it when it matters.

There will always be moments where you feel it:

That hesitation?

That’s the line.

And your job is to cross it.

Not emotionally.
Not aggressively.

But clearly.

Because alignment requires friction.

And without it, everything gets blurry.

The Shift That Changes Your Leadership

Joe out. 🎙️

I want to start this one a little different.

Because this isn’t just another episode for me.

This is something I felt like I needed to say.

Because I’ve been there.

I’ve had moments where things didn’t go the way I planned…
where momentum slipped…
where I started questioning if what I was pushing for was actually going to happen.

And if I’m being honest…

there were moments where it would’ve been easier to just back off.

To lower the expectation.
To play it safe.
To stop pushing as hard.

(pause)

And I know I’m not the only one.

Before we get into today’s conversation…

I want to slow this down for a second.

Because this one’s different.

You know, a lot of times on this show, I bring people on because of what they’ve done…

what they’ve built…

the results they’ve created.

But today…

this isn’t about that.

This is about a person.

This is about someone who has had a real, lasting impact on my life… long before there was ever a podcast, a microphone, or anything called The Leadership Edge.

Marsha Babcock is joining me today…

and the truth is — she’s not just a guest.

She’s family.

She’s been like a second mom to me for years…

and I don’t think I’ve ever fully said out loud how much that’s meant.

Not through big speeches…

not through moments where she needed recognition…

But through consistency.

Through presence.

Through the way she shows up for people — over and over again — without ever making it about herself.

And if I’m being honest…

a lot of what I believe about leadership… didn’t come from a book.

It came from watching her.

Watching how she moved through different seasons of life…

teaching…

law…

executive leadership…

And never losing who she was in the process.

I’ve seen the way she impacts people quietly.

I’ve seen the way women — including my wife, Sara — look at her and see what’s possible.

And I’ve seen how her influence…

it doesn’t just stay in one place.

It ripples.

Into families.

Into careers.

Into the way people carry themselves every day.

And I don’t know if she fully realizes that.

I don’t know if people like her ever really do.

So today… this isn’t just a conversation.

This is a moment of gratitude.

A moment to reflect.

A moment to sit down with someone who helped shape who I am… in ways I’m still discovering.

So wherever you’re at right now — driving, working, just taking a minute…

I want you to lean into this one.

Because this is what Conversations on the Edge is really about.

Real people.

Real impact.

And the kind of leadership that doesn’t need a spotlight to change lives.

Let’s get into it.

Let’s talk about something that almost nobody talks about openly in leadership.

Trust.

Not the easy kind.

Not the kind people talk about in books.

I’m talking about the real version.

The version that gets tested.

The version that gets shaken when you’ve been through situations where honesty wasn’t there… where people said the right things to your face but moved differently behind the scenes.

Manipulative insincerity.

A lot of leaders have experienced that at some point.

And when you’ve seen it before, it sticks with you.

It sneaks into your thinking.

You start asking questions like…

“Is everyone actually aligned?”
“Can I trust the people around me?”
“Is this situation real or am I about to get blindsided again?”

And if you’re not careful, that stuff starts changing how you lead.

You start holding things closer.

You start relying only on yourself.

You start thinking maybe the safest way to lead is to just carry the whole load on your own.

But here’s the truth I’ve been working through recently.

That’s not leadership.

That’s isolation.

And isolation is not where great teams get built.