EPISODE · Jun 15, 2026 · 26 MIN
#28 Managing Executive Stress & The Physiology of Pressure with Ed Howard
from Built by People Leaders · host Daria Rudnik
In this episode of Built by People Leaders, host Daria Rudnik sits down with Ed Howard, founder of One Breath Leadership and author of the One Breath Leadership book and app. Ed spent 20 years as a global compliance executive in investment banking before combining that high-stakes corporate experience with three decades of Zen training to create practical micro-recovery tools for corporate skeptics. Together, they break down how sustained stress physically alters our cognitive state, and how people leaders can help executives maintain decision quality, emotional regulation, and sanity without needing hours out of their packed calendars. Challenges Addressed The Stress Hijack: How the physiological threat response silently alters a leader's perception, causing intelligent, values-driven people to narrow their honesty and miss critical signals. The Failure of Standard Wellness: Why traditional corporate mindfulness programs fail when they are simply bolted onto a high-speed culture that actively rewards hustle, speed, and reaction over reflection. Email Apnea: The physical habit of holding your breath when opening stressful inbox messages, and how this oxygen-starved state reduces an executive's day-to-day effectiveness by 30-40%. Actionable Micro-Habits for Leaders The One-Breath Rule: Demystifying meditation by stripping it down to the bare bones—breath, mind, and attention—to switch the brain out of "cognitive wheel-spinning." Trigger-Based Habit Stacking: How to spread micro-recovery throughout a 12-hour day by anchoring a single deep breath to existing operational triggers like opening a laptop, sitting at a desk, or getting into an elevator. The Professional Athlete Model: Shifting the executive culture from performative, fear-based busyness to a high-performance framework where recovery is valued just as much as performance. Links & Resources Mentioned: Connect with Ed Howard on LinkedIn Learn more about the book and app at One Breath Leadership
What this episode covers
In this episode of Built by People Leaders, host Daria Rudnik sits down with Ed Howard, founder of One Breath Leadership and author of the One Breath Leadership book and app. Ed spent 20 years as a global compliance executive in investment banking before combining that high-stakes corporate experience with three decades of Zen training to create practical micro-recovery tools for corporate skeptics. Together, they break down how sustained stress physically alters our cognitive state, and how people leaders can help executives maintain decision quality, emotional regulation, and sanity without needing hours out of their packed calendars. Challenges Addressed The Stress Hijack: How the physiological threat response silently alters a leader's perception, causing intelligent, values-driven people to narrow their honesty and miss critical signals. The Failure of Standard Wellness: Why traditional corporate mindfulness programs fail when they are simply bolted onto a high-speed culture that actively rewards hustle, speed, and reaction over reflection. Email Apnea: The physical habit of holding your breath when opening stressful inbox messages, and how this oxygen-starved state reduces an executive's day-to-day effectiveness by 30-40%. Actionable Micro-Habits for Leaders The One-Breath Rule: Demystifying meditation by stripping it down to the bare bones—breath, mind, and attention—to switch the brain out of "cognitive wheel-spinning." Trigger-Based Habit Stacking: How to spread micro-recovery throughout a 12-hour day by anchoring a single deep breath to existing operational triggers like opening a laptop, sitting at a desk, or getting into an elevator. The Professional Athlete Model: Shifting the executive culture from performative, fear-based busyness to a high-performance framework where recovery is valued just as much as performance. Links & Resources Mentioned: Connect with Ed Howard on LinkedIn Learn more about the book and app at One Breath Leadership
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#28 Managing Executive Stress & The Physiology of Pressure with Ed Howard
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