PODCAST · business
Bad Boss Confessional
by Speakeasy Podcast Network
Bad Boss Confessional is the podcast where entrepreneurs, founders, and leaders fess up to their most cringeworthy management moments—the times they micromanaged, blew up in meetings, or simply got it dead wrong. With names changed (to protect the innocent...and guilty), guests walk us through their “bad boss” moment in all its messy glory.But this isn’t just a cringe-fest—it’s a redemption story.
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57: The Storm That Made a Better Leader
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Michael Hennon, former CIA analyst, bank technology executive, and EOS implementer based in Durango, Colorado. Michael's confession comes not from the boardroom but from a sailing dock in Annapolis, where he was managing 18 instructors and hundreds of kids on the water when a storm rolled in fast. His instinct was to get loud, bark orders, and project control. It made everything worse. The conversation explores what happens when a leader performs intensity instead of actually leading, why calm is one of the most underrated skills in any organization, and how one honest after-action review changed the way Michael has shown up in every high-pressure situation since. His lesson is simple and transferable: the strongest response in the room is usually the quietest one. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 02:22 A Diverse Career Path 05:05 Coaching and Consulting Differences 07:38 The Power of Calm Leadership 12:13 Self-Correction and Professional Growth 16:18 Reflecting on Career Highlights 20:40 Distilling Complexity 27:35 Reflection and Future Plans Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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56: The Untouchable Employee Who Was Destroying the Culture
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Matt Dusa, former firefighter, paramedic, and CEO of a family-owned private fire department business that he helped grow to 140 employees before a successful exit. Matt's confession centers on a top salesperson who was generating most of the company's biggest contracts and making everyone around him miserable. The conversation explores what happens when a revenue generator becomes untouchable, why documentation matters more than most leaders realize, and what it actually costs a team to keep the wrong person in the building too long. Matt also shares what happened the day after the separation, when a line formed at his door of people finally willing to say what they had been holding back for months. His lesson is one every leader who has ever looked the other way on a top performer needs to hear: the uncomfortable conversation you keep avoiding is usually the one your team needs most. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Episode Introduction 02:28 From Firefighting to Entrepreneurship 06:47 Identifying a Toxic High-Performer 11:53 The Breaking Point and Challenges 17:02 Terminating and Managing Repercussions 23:12 Lessons in Leadership and Documentation 28:07 Better Team Dynamics and Growth 33:20 Closing Thoughts and Tattoo Reflection Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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55: Conflict Avoidance Has a Price Tag
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Patrick Van Abel, lifelong entrepreneur and EOS implementer whose family has been welcoming guests in Hollandtown, Wisconsin since 1848. Patrick's confession isn't about one dramatic moment. It's about a pattern: watching the culture he built start to drift and saying nothing. The conversation explores what conflict avoidance actually costs a business over time and why the hard conversation you keep putting off is rarely as painful as you imagined. Patrick also shares the moment he finally spoke up about something small and discovered the whole thing resolved in thirty seconds. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Show Introduction 03:07 Growing Up in a Family Business 08:46 Building a Legacy of Entertainment 12:37 The Struggle with Conflict Avoidance 18:12 Navigating Difficult Leadership Conversations 24:38 Reflecting on Leadership and Purpose Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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54: Overcorrection Is Not a Strategy
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Troy Schuette, expert EOS implementer and former business owner who spent 23 years building, growing, and eventually selling his own company. Troy's confession spans nearly a decade and swings between two extremes: the micromanager who made people afraid to fail, and the checked-out owner who handed over the keys with no training, no tools, and no real support. The conversation explores what fear does to a leader's management style, why overcorrecting is just as damaging as the original problem, and what it actually looks like to find the middle ground. His lesson is one every entrepreneur who has ever been called a micromanager needs to hear: the answer isn't to disappear. It's to learn how to lead. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome to Bad Boss Confessional 06:47 The Roots of Micromanagement 12:32 Swinging to the Other Extreme 17:03 Finding the Middle Ground 23:25 The Responsibility of Letting Go 28:44 Driving for 1% Improvement Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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53: When Friendship and Leadership Collide
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Mark Henderson Leary, expert EOS implementer and host of Practice Freedom. Mark's confession goes back to his early days running an IT services company, when a close friend and trusted colleague joined his business, and things quietly started to unravel. Mark watched him struggle, said nothing, and eventually laid him off when the business took a hit. The conversation digs into what it actually means to set clear expectations, why friendship in business demands more honesty, not less, and what happens when a leader confuses watching someone fail with managing them. Mark also shares a powerful reframe he now uses with clients stuck in the same pattern. His lesson is one every leader who has ever hired someone they care about needs to hear: the kindest thing you can do is tell the truth before it's too late. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction and Mark’s Background 06:22 The Painful Layoff Confession 12:52 Setting Clear Expectations 19:26 Maintaining Professionalism and Truth 24:36 Courageous Leadership and Truth Telling 32:02 Avoid The ‘Infinite Expansion’ Trap 41:39 Looking Ahead and Closing Thoughts Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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52: When Fear Makes the Decision
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Justin Maust, expert EOS implementer, John Maxwell certified speaker, and someone who has built, scaled, and exited companies on both sides of success. Justin's confession is one he has had to sit with for a long time: he fired someone he loved and respected, on a weekend, without warning, because he was afraid of losing someone else. The conversation explores what happens when fear overrides judgment, why the feedback we act on fastest is often the least reliable, and what it costs a team when a leader skips the hard conversation and goes straight to the irreversible one. Justin also reflects on how the decision violated every one of his own core values and what he wishes he had done instead. His lesson is one every leader needs to hear: when fear is driving, slow down and check your filters before you make a move you can't take back. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Episode Introduction 03:12 Setting the Stage: Launching a Business 07:56 A Painful Leadership Confession 12:30 Analyzing the Impact of Fear on Decisions 18:20 Lessons Learned and Better Approaches 24:00 Aligning Leadership with Core Values 30:20 Embracing Failure as a Learning Tool 34:00 Final Thoughts and Reflection Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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51: Falling in Love With Your Own Idea
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Chris Hallberg, expert EOS implementer, founder of GoXpand, and someone who learned his most expensive lesson long before he ever walked into a session room. Chris's confession is about a venture he poured everything into, including his house, his savings, and his team, built on assumptions nobody tested and a structure nobody controlled. The conversation explores what happens when a visionary gets so sold on an idea that warning signs become background noise, why minority ownership in your own vision is a trap, and what it costs a team when the person at the top stops listening. Chris also reflects on how that failure rewired the way he asks questions, invites dissent, and shows up for the people around him. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 05:08 A Visionary’s Misstep 11:00 The High Cost of Poor Structure 17:23 Lessons Learned and New Beginnings 23:36 Turning Failure into Growth 33:29 Using the VTO for Alignment 37:24 Departmental Planning and Accountability 43:06 The Crucial Role of Mid-Managers 48:45 Innovative Tools and Veteran Leadership 55:18 Closing Thoughts and Mantras Guest Links: EOS Site: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/chris-hallberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-hallberg-01516315/ Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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50: When Hustle Becomes the Enemy
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Travis Townsend, president of North Star Refrigeration, who built his company from a used van to a 100-person operation across New England. Travis's confession comes from the early days, when lean meant running a skeleton crew at full speed and hoping nobody broke. The conversation explores what it costs a team when the owner assumes everyone shares the same drive, why the pacesetter mentality can quietly demoralize the people trying to keep up, and what it took to go from six employees grinding themselves down to a culture built to last. His lesson is one every growth-stage founder eventually has to face: you can't build a great company by burning through the people inside it. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Travis Townsend 03:02 From Landscaper to Entrepreneur 06:11 The Josh Hill Wake-Up Call 09:51 Understanding Visionaries and Integrators 12:33 Navigating Entrepreneurial Fears 15:20 Preventing Burnout and Leading by Example 19:01 Future Vision: Employee-Owned Company 21:30 Culture, Growth, and Leadership Evolution 26:13 The Importance of EOS Implementers 30:22 Burn the Boats Mentality and Conclusion Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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49: When The Expert Gets It Wrong
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with CJ Dube', expert EOS implementer, author, and someone who has spent more than 40 years in the people business. CJ's confession is one that will hit close to home for anyone who has ever hired against their better judgment. The conversation digs into what it actually means to hire slow and fire fast, why the tools only work when you use them, and what it costs a team when a leader keeps someone in the wrong seat for the sake of convenience. Her lesson is one she now coaches every client on: the red flags in a reference check are there for a reason. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to CJ DuBe' 02:12 CJ’s Journey: From Placement to EOS 06:05 The Confession: Hiring Mistakes and Lessons 10:47 The ‘Hire Slow, Fire Fast’ Philosophy 13:04 Deep Dive into Hiring Process 18:00 Addressing People Issues: Timing and Empathy 22:56 Leadership Credibility and Outgrowing Seats 25:25 Strategies for Organizational Growth and Tools 31:19 Aha Moments from ‘The People Book’ 35:45 Tattoo Confession and Closing Remarks Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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48: Two Million Reasons to Ask More Questions
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Dan Wallace, one of the first EOS implementers and a former turnaround operator with a background spanning Harvard Business School, investment banking, and strategy consulting. Dan's confession is a good one: six weeks into a new role, he green-lit a $2 million software build that the company never launched. The conversation explores what happens when a high quick start moves before they've truly understood the problem, why buying is almost always better than building, and what it costs a team when the person at the top has no one to slow them down. Dan also reflects on the two leadership lessons he stumbled into by accident, both of which still shape how he coaches teams today. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Dan Wallace 02:50 Career Shift to Turnarounds 07:39 Joining EOS and Growth 11:25 The Niche Lending Company Challenge 15:05 The $2 Million Software Mistake 24:50 Visionary-Integrator and Empathy 33:32 Lessons: Do Ask, Don’t Tell 40:09 Preparing for Departure 43:02 The Need for Operating Systems 50:47 Walmart Missionary Mix-Up 53:11 Humility and Kindness Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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47: One Workshop, Four Confessions
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey is joined by four fellow EOS implementers right off the back of a Great Boss Workshop. Mary Reilly-Magee, Jordan Regas, Phil Ouellette, and Barb Reimbold each bring their own confessions to the table, and none of them hold back. The conversation covers public callouts, unclear roles, avoided confrontations, a deleted dataset, and the slow damage of being too nice to have the hard conversation. They also dig into what they saw in the workshop that day, why so few leaders ever receive formal management training, and what it actually takes to give feedback people can hear and act on. Four leaders, four stories, one honest conversation about what it really takes to get better. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Introductions 06:47 Early Management Mistakes 09:43 Role Clarity and Buddy vs. Boss 14:14 Addressing Confrontation and Epiphanies 17:47 Leadership vs. Management & Nice Cultures 23:22 Conflict Debt and Communication 25:58 Positive to Negative Feedback Ratio 35:06 No Poop Sandwiches and Conclusion Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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46: When Confidence Becomes a Liability
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth sits down with Scott Rusnak, expert EOS implementer, Olympic team coach, and author of the Audible bestseller "Who Is the Architect of Your Life?" Scott's confession starts at a Canadian Tire warehouse in 1979 and ends with a million-dollar mistake decades later that nearly cost him everything. The conversation explores what happens when a leader stops listening, charges ahead on gut instinct alone, and finds out too late that the team saw it coming. Scott reflects on the moment he flipped the boat, what it cost him, and why the right people around you are only useful if you actually let them speak. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:29 The Root Cause of Business Issues 05:10 Early Bad Boss Experience 08:12 Ego and Colossal Failure 12:25 Surrounding Yourself with Right People 17:39 The Art of Saying No 24:55 Fourth Quarter Mindset and Legacy Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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45: Ask Me Anything: Real Questions, Real Answers
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, there's no guest... just Beth! Listeners sent in their questions and she answered them, from EOS deep dives to career what-ifs to a heartfelt moment about the baking industry she'll always call home. She also shares a confession of her own about a pastry chef, a walk-in cooler, and a moment she wishes she could take back. It's the most personal episode yet, and proof that nobody is off the hook on this podcast... not even the host. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction & Career What-Ifs 03:39 My Bad Boss Confession 06:09 Favorite Non-EOS Leadership Book 07:37 Connecting Diverse Career Paths 10:20 Ideal Kolbe Score for an Integrator 12:51 Visionary-Integrator Authority Dynamic 17:37 Common Leadership Team Mistakes 20:18 Running EOS During Major Change 23:09 Baking Industry Crisis & Adaptation 29:51 Lessons as an EOS Implementer Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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44: How a Visionary Becomes a Bottleneck
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth sits down with Mark C. Winters, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of "Rocket Fuel", and author of the new book "Visionary." Mark confesses to something a lot of visionaries won't admit: he was burning his team out by diving deep into the details and staying there. The conversation explores what happens when a visionary's hyperfocus lands in the wrong place, why learning to let go is harder than it looks, and how finding the right integrator changed everything. Mark reflects on the moment a business partner pulled him out of a CRM rabbit hole and redirected him to where he actually belonged, and what that shift taught him about the best use of a visionary's time. His lesson is one every visionary eventually has to face: the work that feels effortless is often the work only you can do. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction & Marc C. Winters’ Background 03:20 From Operator to Advisor & EOS 05:08 The Visionary-Integrator Obsession 06:29 Confessions of a Visionary Bottleneck 11:10 Trust & Control for Visionaries 14:46 Obsessive Focus: Superpower or Pitfall? 17:01 Visionary’s Highest Use & Team Dynamics 22:05 Tools for Visionary-Integrator Alignment 27:54 Building a Strong Leadership Team 32:18 Know Thyself: The Visionary’s Inner Work 35:10 The Tattoo Confession: Freedom 39:34 Upcoming Books & Closing Remarks Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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43: Fixing the Problem, Losing the Person
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Raina Fryer, head of talent strategy at Titus Talent Strategies. Raina's confession takes her back to a training room early in her career, where she was young, eager to prove herself, and co-facilitating alongside someone she was supposed to be developing. Every time her teammate made a misstep, she stepped in. Mid-sentence, in front of the room, again and again. She told herself it was about safety. Looking back, she knows it was also about ego. Two months later, her teammate quietly asked for a new manager. That was the moment that stuck. Her lesson is simple and hard-earned: the points that actually count are the ones that make people feel safe enough to trust you. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Raina Fryer 03:19 Raina’s Bad Boss Confession 09:54 The Impact of Imposter Syndrome 13:01 Training and Role-Playing for Managers 16:47 Titus Talent’s Holistic Approach 19:26 Top People Issues: Accountability Chart 23:07 Culture Integration & Manager Elevation 28:56 Continuous Learning & Personal Insights Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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42: What Got You Here Won't Get You There
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Ben Stern, EOS implementer and former integrator who helped scale a transmission remanufacturing company from 300 employees and $40 million in revenue to 850 people and $190 million. Ben's confession starts long before that chapter, back on a construction crew where being the hardest worker in the room felt like a leadership strategy. The conversation explores what happens when intensity without emotional intelligence becomes the culture, why the habits that make someone a standout performer can quietly poison a team, and what it actually took to close the gap. Ben reflects on nearly two decades of deliberate work, the people who helped him see what he couldn't see himself, and why learning Spanish to connect with his team is one of the things he's most proud of. His lesson is one every high performer eventually has to face: what got you here won't get you there. Timestamps 00:00 Ben Stern’s Background 02:13 From Hammer to CEO 06:17 Reflecting on Growth and Wins 10:12 The Hard-Charging Boss 14:59 Journey to Emotional Intelligence 19:17 Work-Life Balance and Gen Z 22:01 Leadership Through Parenthood 26:27 Deprogramming and Human Connection 30:12 Scaling Leadership and GWC 35:15 Continuous Learning and Empathy Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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41: The Feedback Nobody Should Have Given
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Jeanet Wade, Expert EOS Implementer, ForbesBooks author of The Human Team, and one of the top 100 innovators and entrepreneurs in her region. Jeanet comes with two confessions, and they both involve the same person. The conversation explores what happens when dysfunction travels downhill, why secondhand feedback is its own kind of leadership failure, and what it looks like to stop the madness in real time and just tell the truth. Her lesson cuts through the noise: when the feedback doesn't feel right, it probably isn't. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction & Jeanet's Background 03:10 The Allure of Entrepreneurship 07:52 First Bad Boss Confession: Task Management 11:56 Second Bad Boss Confession: Secondhand Feedback 15:41 The Human Team: Bridging Nature to Nurture 22:06 Team Dynamics in Entrepreneurial Settings 27:30 Bossing Bosses & Overcoming Dysfunctional Teams 33:00 Growth Optimization & Vulnerability 39:19 Leadership Evolution & Personal Tattoo Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces. Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast: 🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey: 🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfahey Want to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/order Download free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events
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40: What Gets Lost When You Move Too Fast
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Larry Garcia, co-founder and president of Strety, a software platform built for EOS-run businesses. Larry shares what happened when he stepped into a VP of Sales role against his better instincts and decided his first move would be cutting what looked like an inefficient meeting. He walked into a struggling company, saw an hour of rah-rah he thought nobody needed, and deleted it. What he didn't see was how much that hour was holding the team together. The conversation digs into what happens when a new leader moves before they've earned the right to change things, why culture is the first casualty of efficiency thinking, and how fast trust can disappear with a single calendar invite. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Larry Garcia 02:22 Larry’s Career Journey 05:22 The Big Confession 11:40 Impact of New Leadership on Culture 16:30 BreakGage to Strety Transition 20:01 Family Legacy and American Dream 24:51 Culture and Software Development 29:52 The Soul of Software About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Larry is former CRO of BrightGauge and Current Strety Cofounder and President. He's based out of Arlington, Virginia and when he's not helping build the EOS software people love, he's a coffee farmer in Mountains of Colombia. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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39: You Can't Want It More Than They Do
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Mary Reilly-Magee, an entrepreneur, Expert EOS Implementer, and author who built a three-location swim school before exiting in 2018. Mary came prepared with a confession she has carried for years, and it starts with a sign on her wall: never try to teach a pig to sing. She walks through what it really means to believe in someone more than they believe in themselves, the bookkeeper she held onto long after the writing was on the wall, and the two clients she eventually had to walk away from. The conversation gets honest about why avoiding a hard conversation always makes things worse, and what it actually looks like to lead with clarity instead of hope. Her lesson is one every leader eventually learns the hard way: you cannot want it more than they do. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction & Sponsor Shoutouts 02:11 Meet Mary Reilly-Magee 05:14 The Pig-Singing Dilemma 08:42 Visionary’s Dilemma & People Development 12:14 The Importance of GWC 16:47 Addressing People Issues & Self-Forgiveness 21:02 Not Your Business: The Implementer’s Perspective 23:17 The Cost of Avoiding Difficult Conversations 27:37 The Impact of Courageous Leadership 30:03 Parenting & Personal Tattoos 35:28 Conclusion & Book Promotion About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Mary Reilly-Magee is an entrepreneur, leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and Outgrow Revenue Growth Advisor who helps individuals and growth-oriented companies turn their visions into reality. She built a thriving three-location swim school business that employed 100 people before successfully exiting in 2018. Drawing on her experience as a teacher, coach, and facilitator, Mary now guides leaders through transformational growth - both personally and professionally. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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38: Every Coach Has to Learn to Lead
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Josh Hauser, certified EOS implementer, entrepreneur, and father of eight. Josh shares what happened when a rate crisis hit his growing insurance practice and exposed a gap he hadn't seen coming: he knew how to teach and coach, but he had never learned how to lead and manage. The conversation explores what it looks like when a leader's default mode stops serving the people around them, why victim thinking spreads fast inside an organization, and what it actually takes to close the gap between knowing something and living it. His lesson is one that cuts across business and life: the easy path creates complexity. The hard work is what makes things simple. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Josh Hauser 02:15 Josh’s Background & Entrepreneurial Leap 06:40 The ‘Reach Teach Eliminate’ Confession 11:33 Recognizing and Overcoming the Problem 16:24 Positive Intelligence and Taming Ego 21:51 Practicing Leadership Beyond Business 29:04 From Running From to Running To 32:06 Purpose-Driven Work and EOS 36:57 Tattoo and Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ 3 time entrepreneur, father of 8, Josh wakes up everyday with a purpose to Reach one person/team, Teach one person/team, and help them Eliminate an obstacle or excuse that is keeping them from the joy, success, and humor life can bring. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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37: When Growth Gets Ahead of Connection
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth sits down with Jule Salem, founder and managing director of Salem Solutions and host of the podcast Dialing In. Jule shares what happened during a season of overlapping transitions: a new leader joining the team, an office move, a family health challenge, and a business acquisition all arriving at once. On paper, it was shaping up to be the best year Salem Solutions had ever seen. But underneath the numbers, something was slipping. The conversation explores what disconnection actually looks like, why leaders who care deeply about people can still lose the thread, and why it's important to remember that a company's culture does not stay connected on its own; someone has to keep tending to it. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 03:06 Jule Salem’s Business 07:09 The Bad Boss Confession: Disconnection 14:14 Fostering Connection at Scale 21:18 Navigating Boundaries: Peer to Manager 28:54 The Importance of Sustaining Connection About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Jule Salem is the Founder and Managing Director of Salem Solutions, a business specializing in building high-performing, connection-driven contact center teams for government and commercial clients. She is also the host of Dialing In, where she helps leaders turn human connection into a measurable performance strategy. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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36: The Culture You Create When You're Not Looking
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Rocco Cozza, a business attorney, TEDx speaker, and founder of Cozza Law Group, a multi-seven-figure firm he built from the ground up in Pittsburgh. Rocco shares what happened when rapid growth pulled his focus inward and someone close to him began quietly reshaping the culture he had worked hard to build. The conversation explores what it costs a leader to keep their head down, why intuition matters even when the numbers look great, and how a single honest conversation from a trusted team member can crack everything open. Rocco reflects on the moment he looked up and barely recognized what his firm had become, and what it took to earn back not just trust, but confidence in his own judgment. His lesson is one every growing leader needs to hear: execution without presence is not leadership. The culture does not take care of itself. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Rocco Cozza 02:26 The Sabotage and Culture Crisis 06:16 Confronting the Problem 08:37 Ignoring Intuition and Blind Spots 11:48 Learning and Decision-Making 15:19 The Four Frames of Growth 17:10 The Power of Kindness TED Talk 21:07 Kindness as a Brand and Vulnerability 24:07 Relationship-Based Business and Adversarial Industries 27:42 Lessons Learned and Amor Fati About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Rocco Cozza is a business leader, advisor and community advocate committed to helping people and organizations grow with clarity, discipline and purpose. With years of experience building and leading businesses, he brings a practical, no-nonsense approach to leadership, problem-solving and execution. Rocco is deeply invested in his community and focused on creating lasting impact through service, accountability and principled leadership, both in business and public life. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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35: When Your Team Tells You The Truth
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Shea Peffly, a former CEO and integrator who now guides other leaders through EOS as a certified implementer. Shea shares the moment a Vistage exercise forced her to sit in silence while her own team told her the direct truth: that her constant questions and close involvement weren't landing as support; they were landing as distrust. The conversation explores what happens when a leader's intentions and their impact are completely out of sync, why asking how someone needs your help matters just as much as offering it, and how the gap between knowing good leadership practices and actually living them can quietly widen over time. Shea reflects on what it took to move from command-and-control instincts to a style of leadership built on genuine curiosity and relationship. Her lesson is both humbling and hopeful: the feedback that hurts the most is often the feedback that changes everything. Timestamps 00:00 Unfiltered Feedback and Podcast Intro 04:03 Shea’s Background and Business 07:39 The Vistage Feedback Experience 14:03 Processing and Acting on Feedback 22:54 Redefining Leadership and Impact 28:30 Leading with Love and Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Shea Peffly is a certified EOS implementer with over 25 years of executive leadership experience. As a former CEO and integrator, she built and scaled a veterans services organization from five employees to over a hundred, helping veterans secure the benefits they earned. She is a Small Business Monthly Top Business Advisor, Wonder Woman Award recipient, Kolbe Certified Consultant, and certified Outgrow Advisor. Today she helps leaders create meaningful impact by leading with clarity, building strong cultures, and living their best version of life and leadership. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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34: When a Star Player Stops Being a Teammate
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey talks with David Kolbe, CEO of Kolbe Corp and co-developer of the Kolbe A™ Index, about the complicated decisions leaders face when values, performance, and people collide. David shares lessons from running a values-driven company and the leadership mistakes that taught him the most along the way. The conversation explores what happens when high performers fall out of alignment with company culture, why leadership communication matters just as much as the decisions themselves, and how easily trust can erode when the narrative isn’t clear. David also explains the idea of conative strengths and why understanding how people naturally take action can dramatically improve teamwork and leadership. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:46 Understanding Conative Strengths 07:09 Kolbe Impact on EOS and Personal Life 11:39 Firing a Top Performer: A Confession 18:24 Lessons Learned from Terminations 27:03 Navigating Leadership Challenges & Kolbe Scores 30:51 Understanding and Leveraging Kolbe Scores 38:19 Diversity in Teams 43:23 Kolbe in Personal Relationships 46:56 Kolbe & Gender Differences 49:56 The Genesis of Kolbe Strengths 53:18 Kolbe Tattoo & Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ David Kolbe is transforming how the world understands human performance. He comes from a lineage of psychometric pioneers and is the CEO of Kolbe Corp, the leader in helping people leverage their instinctive strengths to achieve what they care about most. David helped develop the original algorithm for the Kolbe A™ Index — the only proven tool to unlock conative strengths. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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33: The Cost of Skipping the Details
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Chris Beer, founder of Wizard of Ops and a fractional Integrator. Chris shares a leadership mistake that shows up in many growing companies: assuming communication has happened when it hasn’t. After years of working in the fast-paced trading pits of Chicago, she developed a shorthand style of thinking and speaking that often skipped the context others needed. The result was confusion, missed expectations, and conversations that should have happened sooner. Chris reflects on how leaders unintentionally create chaos when they avoid difficult conversations or assume their teams can read their minds. Her lesson is simple but powerful: clarity, repetition, and humility are the real foundations of strong leadership communication. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:57 From Floor Trader to Integrator 06:12 The Bad Boss Confession: Communication 10:45 Avoiding Difficult Conversations 13:05 The Importance of Clarity in Roles 16:06 Communication in Change Management 22:22 The Role of a Fractional Integrator 26:30 Intentional Communication Strategies 33:42 Empathy and Utilizing EOS Tools 39:41 The Stoplight Tattoo and Conclusion About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Chris Beer is the founder of Wizard of Ops and a fractional Integrator who works inside EOS-run companies to close the gap between knowing the tools and actually using them under pressure. She’s known as the “Integrator’s Integrator,” helping leadership teams build real operating rhythm so EOS shows up on ordinary days, not just in the session room. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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32: Letting Go of the Vine
In this special group episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with fellow EOS Implementers Erik Dodier, Megan Piper, and Patrick Metzger fresh off a Great Boss workshop. Together, they unpack the leadership missteps that still linger in memory, from surprise firings and unclear feedback to micromanaging and holding too tightly to the vine. The conversation explores the weight of responsibility that comes with leading others and the humility required to admit when the problem is not the team, but the leader. Through stories of sleepless nights, hard lessons, and eventual breakthroughs, the group highlights what great bosses eventually learn: clarity is kindness, delegation requires intention, and growth demands courage. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction & Sponsors 02:24 Meet Patrick Metzger 04:04 Meet Megan Piper 05:53 Meet Erik Dodier 07:59 Reflecting on Leadership Mistakes 12:12 The Impact of Unclear Communication 15:46 Personal Firing Stories 21:13 Delegation and Hiring ‘Whos’ 25:10 The ‘Genius with 1000 Helpers’ Archetype 27:58 Delegation Challenges & Training 35:45 Final Reflections & Tattoos About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Erik Dodier, Megan Piper, and Patrick Metzger are professional EOS Implementers who bring decades of entrepreneurial and leadership experience to the session room. Erik founded and scaled a technology company over 30 years before successfully exiting and now helps entrepreneurs build scalable, sale-ready businesses. Megan transitioned from education into entrepreneurship, spending 17 years helping grow a globally distributed IT company from $3 million to $52 million before dedicating her work to teaching EOS and guiding leadership teams. Patrick began his career in education and coaching before moving into business advisory work, where he now helps owners build long-term value, scalability, and intentional exit plans. Together, they combine operational rigor, real-world scars, and a passion for developing leaders who want to get better. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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31: Building a Business Without Burning Out
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth sits down with EOS Implementer Robert Hartline to explore the difference between being the firefighter and becoming the fire chief. After years of scaling businesses and chasing growth, Robert shares the moment he realized he was addicted to chaos and operating from scarcity rather than structure. From exponential growth to sobriety to launching Scaling Sober, Robert reflects on how awareness, breathwork, and EOS helped him move from reaction to intention. The conversation dives into why sober leadership matters and how entrepreneurs can build businesses that are driven by purpose rather than pressure. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:50 Robert’s Entrepreneurial Journey 07:38 The Firefighter Realization 12:51 From Firefighting to Purpose 17:10 Discovering the ‘Why’ 21:29 Learning from a ‘Bad Boss’ Moment 26:54 Scaling Sober: Entrepreneurial Wellness 33:11 Redefining Sobriety and Leadership 39:07 The QR Code Tattoo 43:04 The Importance of EOS Rollouts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Robert Hartline is an EOS Implementer, serial entrepreneur, and founder of Scaling Sober, a wellness community for growth-minded entrepreneurs. After scaling Absolute Wireless to over $100 million in sales, he shifted his focus to helping leaders build businesses that operate without chaos, burnout, or dependence on the owner. Today, he blends structure, purpose, and personal growth to help entrepreneurs lead with clarity and design lives that feel as good as they perform. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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30: The High Price of Saying Yes
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth talks with serial entrepreneur and coach Jill Salzman about the early mistakes that shape stronger leaders. From quick-start decisions to client-pleasing habits, Jill reflects on how saying yes too fast and avoiding boundaries can quietly erode confidence and clarity. The conversation expands into coaching, asking better questions, and resisting the urge to solve everything for others. The real lesson is not about one bad decision. It is about learning to trust experience over ego, service over approval, and patience over speed. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:16 Meet Jill Salzman 05:05 Music and Personal Outlets 06:51 The Black Crows Concert Fiasco 12:15 Lessons from the Cancellation Fee 17:29 Influences and Coaching Philosophy 21:09 The Quick Start Challenge in Coaching 24:45 Human Connection vs. AI in Coaching 28:30 Detox from Social Media 32:57 The Big But Book 35:35 Tattoos and Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Jill Salzman isn’t your ordinary business coach. She’s a serial entrepreneur, a thinking partner, and a musician who rarely misses a beat. Jill brings humor, heart, and strategic clarity to every conversation. She thrives on collaboration, sparks creativity, and makes the hard parts of entrepreneurship feel a little lighter. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillll Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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29: Rollout: A Book Born From Bad Boss Moments
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey is joined by EOS Implementer and Rollout co-author Marisa Smith for a different kind of confession. Together, they unpack the leadership mistakes that inspired the book in the first place. Both Beth and Marisa share what it was like to implement EOS in their own companies and realize that simply using the tools was not the same as rolling them out effectively. Marisa reflects on moving too fast, skipping context, and assuming her team would automatically understand what she understood. Transparency without education created confusion, not clarity. EOS worked best only after slowing down, following the process, and aligning the leadership team before expecting the rest of the organization to follow. The lesson is clear. Great leadership is not about speed or certainty. It is about humility, repetition, and teaching others how to think, not just what to do. Rollout is not an event. It is a discipline that turns vision into shared ownership across the organization. Learn more about "Rollout" here!: https://www.rolloutbook.com/ Timestamps 00:00 – Intro and book preview 00:29 – Why this podcast exists 02:05 – Writing the book together 03:09 – Marisa’s early business days 04:48 – Breaking EOS on rollout 06:35 – Learning to slow down 08:52 – The rollout roadmap 10:08 – Client success lessons 14:07 – Mid managers matter 16:18 – From student to teacher About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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28: Getting Out of Your Own Way
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with EOS Implementer Amanda Matthews to unpack a painfully relatable leadership moment driven by ego, insecurity, and a lack of self-awareness. After years of corporate leadership training, Amanda found herself out of her depth while managing in a high-volume restaurant environment. What she thought was confident leadership quickly turned into public shaming. Even experienced leaders can lose their way when ego and self-doubt take over. Great leadership requires pausing, reading the room, and remembering that praise belongs in public while criticism belongs in private. Growth begins when leaders learn to get out of their own way. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Amanda Matthews 01:45 Amanda’s Love for Swing Dancing 04:36 Corporate to Restaurant World Shift 09:02 The Tobacco Chewer Incident 16:11 Lessons from the Incident 22:55 Recommended Management Books 26:08 The Simplicity of Direct Feedback 31:57 A Tattoo for Ego Check About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Amanda Matthews coaches entrepreneurs on how to be wildly successful while also having time for what matters most in their lives using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). She describes herself as a dance enthusiast, book nerd and interpersonal knot detangler. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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27: Paying Attention to the Red Flags | Bad Boss Confessional
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with EOS Implementer Ken DeWitt, also known as “Hurricane,” to unpack a leadership lesson that quite literally required warning flags. Early in his career, Ken’s intensity and drive created an environment where employees tracked his moods to protect themselves. What he didn't realize was that his passion was being met with fear and anxiety. Leaders are always on stage, whether they realize it or not. Self-awareness, emotional control, and humility matter as much as vision and results. Successful managers will never stop growing, even if it means facing some painful gut checks. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Ken ‘Hurricane’ DeWitt 02:27 From Accountant to EOS Implementer 05:08 The Psychologist’s Revelation 07:22 The ‘Hurricane’ Nickname 10:55 Dealing with the ‘Hurricane’ 14:58 Learning Calmness and Self-Awareness 19:04 The Impact of Personal Change 23:55 Understanding Different Communication Styles 28:59 Trust, Care, and Excellence in Leadership 32:56 Legacy and Learning: The Hurricane Tattoo About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Over the past 40 plus years, Ken DeWitt has built, grown, and successfully exited companies across multiple industries, including accounting, agriculture, consumer finance, real estate, and consulting. He has worked with more than 100 owners and leadership teams to install EOS across seven states, helping them gain control, strengthen leadership, and build businesses that work for them rather than because of them. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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26. When Good Intentions Go Wrong
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with EOS Implementer Carolyn Mitchell for an honest conversation about leadership, ego, and the hidden cost of trying to help too much. Carolyn shares a moment many leaders will recognize. As the unofficial “company therapist,” she believed stepping in and sharing sensitive information was for the greater good. Instead, it backfired. The employee she tried to protect walked it back, leaving Carolyn exposed, frustrated, and humbled. What felt like service was actually ego at work. The need to fix, to be needed, and to save the day created more dysfunction, not less. The lesson is simple and hard-earned. Great leaders coach people to speak for themselves instead of carrying their burdens. Growth happens when leaders pause, listen, and ask whether the problem is truly theirs to solve. Sometimes the best leadership move is letting go and letting it be easy. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Carolyn Mitchell 02:08 Career Journey: Engineer to EOS Implementer 08:39 The Unofficial Company Therapist 12:09 Ego and the Hero Complex 19:02 Learning to Pause and Listen 23:33 Coaching vs. Fixing, and Tattoos About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links: Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/carolyn-mitchell/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolyn-mitchell-coach Carolyn Mitchell is an EOS® Implementer, business coach, and speaker with a background in sales and marketing leadership. She’s been in the founder and leadership seats, implemented EOS, and now helps teams build clarity, accountability, and trust. She’s also a personal development junkie, a certified yoga teacher and believer in leadership that grows people, not just results. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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25. The Hidden Cost of Doing the Right Thing
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey talks with EOS Implementer Michael Deutsch about a leadership failure that tested his ethics, his systems, and his gut. After landing the biggest client in his electronics recycling business, Michael discovered that valuable materials were being stolen somewhere in the supply chain. The mistake was not driven by bad intent, but by gaps in people and process that he ultimately owned as the leader. Michael shares the uncomfortable moment of choosing to proactively tell a Fortune 500 client the truth, knowing it could cost the relationship. Looking back, Michael points to right person, wrong seat decisions, weak project oversight, and the danger of trusting without the right structure in place. The lesson is clear: Core values are not words on a wall. They are tools that guide decisions when things go wrong. Doing the right thing does not always protect the outcome, but it protects who you are as a leader. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 01:28 Michael Deutsch’s Diverse Career Path 05:51 The Electronics Recycling Business 07:46 The Biggest Client Scandal 12:54 Owning the Mistake and Lessons 16:32 People, Process, and System Building 21:31 Applying Core Values and EOS 27:53 Personal Core Values and Self-Reflection 33:09 The ‘Let Them’ Tattoo and Farewell About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links: Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/michael-deutsch/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldeutsch/ Michael has been part of senior management for over 25 years - first as a leader for several high-growth organizations and then as a business owner. Now, as an EOS Implementer, he helps other business owners avoid the mistakes he made and get what they want from their business that they're not getting right now. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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24. The Shift from Peer to Boss with Jessenia Flores-Gayle
On this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with marketing executive and general manager Jessenia Flores-Gayle to explore what happens when you suddenly become the boss of people who used to be your peers. Jessenia describes the emotional and practical challenges of stepping into an integrator role inside a close-knit, all-female leadership team. She talks about the pressure to be liked, the discomfort of holding friends accountable, and the self-doubt that surfaces when you feel caught between belonging and leading. Jessenia shares how her background in dance shaped her natural ability to bring people together and build strong relationships that support collective goals. She and Beth discuss boundaries, decision making, and the importance of vulnerability when the demands of leadership feel heavy. Jessenia stays grounded with a personal mantra that guides her work: forgive, learn, and move forward with intention. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 01:56 Jessenia’s Career Journey and Integrator Role 06:36 Challenges of Leading Friends 12:12 The Skill of Relationship Building 15:35 Vulnerability and Saying No 20:18 Influences and Decision-Making 24:08 Tattoos and Leadership Lessons About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Jessenia Flores-Gayle is a marketing executive and General Manager with over 13 years of experience in the haircare industry, recognized for building impactful brands and leading philanthropic campaigns, including a Shorty Award for her work with nonprofit partners. Throughout her career, she has championed culture, language, and representation, creating inclusive experiences that resonate with diverse audiences. She is also the co-creator of Mighty Big Love, a bilingual children’s brand designed to celebrate identity and heritage from an early age. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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23. Owning It: A Year of Leadership Confessions
This year-end episode of Bad Boss Confessional is a look back, a deep breath, and a heartfelt thank you. After launching the show in July, Beth reflects on what it has meant to create a space where leaders tell the truth about the moments they got it wrong. Across the year, listeners heard confessions about emotional outbursts, fear-driven decisions, people pleasing, missed conversations, and leadership mistakes that still linger. They also heard redemption stories, hard-earned self-awareness, and the quiet shifts that turn bad bosses into better ones. This episode weaves together clips from the past six months while Beth shares what she has learned from hosting these conversations. Every leader messes up. What matters is what you do next. Most of all, this episode is about gratitude for the guests who were brave enough to confess and for the listeners who showed up, shared the show, and reminded each other that growth starts with honesty. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome to Bad Boss Confessional 01:54 Mary Pat Knight’s Explosive Reaction 03:59 Dominic Sergi’s Empathy Challenge 06:58 Matt Haney’s Difficult Termination 09:16 Lisa Gonzalez’s Binder Blunder 11:15 Mike Shannon’s Scaling Challenges 15:11 Kathy Bresler’s COVID Launch 17:57 John McMahon’s Power of Silence 19:04 Rhonda Myers’ ‘I Am Not Enough’ About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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22. The Role of Honest Dialogue in Healthy Leadership Teams
This week on Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey welcomes Dennis Purcell, Chief Human Resources Officer at Skidmore Sales & Distributing Co., Inc., for a conversation about what happens when leaders develop talent without asking the questions that matter most. Dennis shares the painful lesson he learned after mentoring a high potential team member for years, only to discover in a heated leadership meeting that others had been struggling with that relationship all along. What began as a well intentioned effort to coach performance became a wake up call about trust, communication, and the difference between being nice and being kind. Dennis explains how his team rebuilt leadership health by normalizing people issues in their weekly meetings, creating language that makes hard conversations safer, and using one simple prompt, “What else?” to invite the truth before it is too late. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional 02:33 Dennis Purcell’s Career Journey 06:28 A Painful Leadership Lesson 11:18 Building a Healthier Leadership Team 15:17 Navigating ‘Nice’ vs. ‘Kind’ Teams 20:10 Biggest Misconceptions of Leadership 26:35 The ‘What Else’ Tattoo and Retirement About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links For the past 13 years, Dennis has served as the HR leader at Skidmore Sales and Distributing, a food ingredient distributor. Prior to Skidmore, Dennis spent 23 years at The Hennegan Company, a commercial printer, handling HR functions, including labor negotiation, as well as managing administrative and operational departments. Dennis is a graduate of Williams College and obtained an MBA in finance from Xavier University. Website: https://skidmoresales.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dennispurcellssdc Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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21: Be Their Boss, Not Their Buddy
On this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with lifelong entrepreneur and EOS Implementer Dan Heuretz to share a story about betrayal, accountability, and healing. Dan explains how he handed full control of a multimillion dollar real estate project to his trusted right hand, only to discover that the person he supported and believed in had been stealing from him. The fallout was immediate. The financial records were wiped. Investors were furious. Dan felt alone and overwhelmed. He describes the moment he stopped hiding and chose to face everyone in person, even when it meant anger, blame, and hard conversations. Dan reflects on the mentors who helped him find courage, the light he discovered in the darkest moments, and the forgiveness journey that freed him. Today, he still leads with trust and anchors his life in one purpose: do more good things with good people. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to Dan Heuretz 04:48 Personal vs. Professional Betrayal 08:04 The Betrayal and Its Immediate Aftermath 13:58 Facing the Music and Rebuilding Trust 17:14 The Impact on Core Values and Trust 20:58 Finding Light in the Darkness 25:42 The Hard-Earned and Easily Lost Trust 29:26 The Journey of Forgiveness and Freedom 36:29 Reaffirming Trust and Moving Forward 38:48 Do More Good Things with Good People About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Dan Heuretz is a lifelong entrepreneur with nearly a decade of experience as an EOS Implementer. He has built and led companies across hospitality, real estate development, and consumer brands, earning a reputation for candor, resilience, and people focused leadership. Dan is also the co founder of the Skinny Book Company, where he helps entrepreneurs learn faster through concise, actionable content. His work centers on truth, learning, and doing good things with good people. Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/dan-heuertz/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dheuertz Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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20: From Positional Power to Humanized Leadership
On this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, host Beth Fahey sits down with Mary Pat Knight, author of The Humanized Leader, to unpack a career-defining moment of shame. Mary Pat tells how, at 19 and newly promoted in a troupe of performers, she lost control, hurled objects, and verbally exploded at a colleague. She reflects on how that moment taught her the limits of positional power and the lifelong work of emotional regulation. Conversation moves from the sting of shame to practical repair: naming triggers, practicing box breathing, learning the drama triangle, and choosing empathy and accountability. You’ll leave with a clear leadership takeaway: own your mistakes, learn your triggers, and wear the world like a loose garment so shame cannot stop your growth. 00:00 Introduction to Mary Pat Knight 03:04 Mary Pat’s Bad Boss Moment 07:39 Triggers, Shame, and Loose Garments 11:26 The Humanized Leader System 15:20 Empathy in a Wound-Up World 18:35 Common Leadership Issues and Willingness 22:21 Understanding the Drama Triangle 29:00 The Power of Frameworks 31:22 Future Books and Meditation 35:10 Tattoos and Final Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Mary Pat Knight, author of the international best seller, The Humanized Leader, is on a mission to develop more humanized leaders inside workplaces all over the world. She is the CEO and Founder of Leaders Inspired, a global training and development firm dedicated to personal and leadership transformation, and a speaker, author, coach, and consultant who is an expert in leadership and emotional intelligence. Leaders Inspired exists with a simple goal in mind – When inspired leaders inspire others, they have the capacity to change the world. Website: https://leadersinspired.com/about/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mpknight Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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19: Empathetic Leadership Without Compromising Accountability
This week on Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey welcomes Dominic Sergi, CEO of Clear Height Properties, for a conversation about how unchecked empathy almost held his company back. Dominic shares the hard lesson he learned from keeping the wrong people in the wrong seats for too long, all because he cared too much. What began as a culture built on patience and compassion evolved into one grounded in clarity, accountability, and authentic care. Dominic reveals how a mindset shift from fear to candor transformed his leadership, accelerated growth, and created a workplace where radical honesty builds trust, not resentment. It's a story about letting go, leaning in, and learning to say “yes, and…” instead of “yes, but.” Chapters 00:00 Empathy: Superpower or Kryptonite? 05:09 Learning from a Mentor 09:00 Empathy’s Double-Edged Sword 12:35 Right People, Right Seats 17:29 Mastering the EOS Journey 20:49 Building an Authentic Culture 26:52 The ‘Yes And’ Mindset About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Dominic Sergi is an entrepreneur and investor with a passion for building enduring companies. As CEO of Clear Height Properties, he’s led over $1 billion in industrial real estate transactions, co-founded Cresco Labs, one of the nation’s leading cannabis companies, and launched Westshore Capital Group, his family office built on the belief that patient capital can outperform the market while leaving a lasting legacy. Clear Height Properties: https://www.clearheight.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominic-sergi-8b5ba24 Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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18: Startup Fails, Shark Tank Tales, and Bad Boss Moments
This week on Bad Boss Confessional, host and EOS Implementor Beth Fahey sits down with Mike Shannon, CEO of Impruve and author of Sweaty Equity. From surviving Shark Tank to opening his first businesses, Mike opens up about his cringiest leadership missteps, the chaos of scaling to 120 employees, and how embracing systems thinking (and a few bad boss moments) helped him grow as a leader. Expect startup war stories, EOS insights, and a fresh look at how AI is transforming financial advising. 00:00 From Ball Boy to Shark Tank 04:11 Early Entrepreneurial Challenges 10:47 Optimizing Executive Team Meetings 17:48 Impact of Structured Meetings 24:25 Improve: AI for Financial Advisors 36:04 Fear, Failure, Pain, and Systems About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links CEO at Impruve | Author of ‘Sweaty Equity: A Ball Boy, A Billionaire, and the Bonkers Startup Tale You’ve Never Heard’ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeshannon101/ Email: [email protected] Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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17: Perfectionism, Pivoting, and Perseverance
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey welcomes Kathy Bresler, founder of Altar Community, a Chicago-based hub for connection, wellness, and growth. Kathy shares her journey from corporate strategist to reluctant boss and accidental entrepreneur. After years of envisioning a gathering space, she opened Altar in early 2020, just as the pandemic shut everything down. Forced to pivot, she and her community shifted online, building resilience through shared purpose. Kathy reflects on her struggles with leadership, from toggling between being too directive and too accommodating, to learning how to balance vision with execution. She candidly explores perfectionism, self-doubt, and the weight of wanting to be liked while leading. Through it all, Kathy found strength in purpose, community, and a commitment to growth, offering lessons in perseverance and authenticity for every leader who has wrestled with their own bad boss moments. Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Accidental Entrepreneurship 01:36 The Vision of Altar Community 03:28 Launching Altar Amidst COVID 06:17 Pivoting to Online Community 11:13 Kathy’s Corporate Background 14:42 Turning Point: Breast Cancer Diagnosis 17:23 Reluctant Boss: Challenges of Leadership 23:05 The Conundrum of Coaching vs. Leading 25:29 Influential Books and Self-Discovery 30:59 Embracing the Entrepreneurial Journey 34:01 Purpose Over Profitability About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Kathy Bresler is the founder of ALTAR Community, a hidden gem in Chicago that’s both a vibrant community and an inspiring event space. ALTAR hosts everything from curated corporate offsites for teams and leaders to speaker series and wellness programs — all designed to help people connect, recharge, and grow. A visionary entrepreneur, Kathy speaks candidly about the messy, humbling, and ultimately transformational journey of turning vision into leadership. Altar Community: https://www.altarcommunity.com/kathy-bresler Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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16: Leadership Lessons from a Firing Gone Wrong
This week on Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Matt Haney, a seasoned fractional integrator who helps visionary-led teams cut through chaos and get traction. Matt shares the story of a firing he regrets to this day: an ungraceful exit of a 20-year employee during a pandemic downturn. Despite having let go of 15 others with care, this one moment turned combative, cold, and ultimately changed the way he leads forever. Matt unpacks the emotional aftermath, the gut-punch feedback he received, and how it led to a complete shift in his leadership mindset. From learning the power of intentional feedback to never letting someone be “surprised” by a termination, this is a raw, real story about what it means to mess up… and grow. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome & Introducing Matt Haney 01:52 Journey to Fractional Integrator 05:46 A Bungled Termination Story 10:14 Reflecting on a Bad Decision 13:46 Improving Termination Practices 17:46 The Power of Intentional Feedback 21:44 Integrators & Visionary Challenges 27:42 Visionary Transition and Guilt 30:36 Strength as a Weakness: Multitasking 33:15 Be Present, Stay in the Question 39:53 Closing Thoughts About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Matt is a hands-on business operator, serving as a Fractional Integrator, with over 15 years of experience working with visionary founded businesses who have reached a ceiling. What does this mean? Matt helps teams get out of the shit show ! LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattlhaney/ Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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15: I Am Enough: Embracing Authentic Leadership
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer®, sits down with Rhonda Meyers for a raw and inspiring conversation about the realities of leadership. From navigating adversity and stepping into entrepreneurship, to the courage it takes to stand in your truth, Rhonda shares her journey of growth and resilience. Together, they unpack the challenges of wearing “six seats” in business, the hidden curse of being highly capable, and the bravery required to lead with both strength and vulnerability. Rhonda opens up about love as both a superpower and kryptonite, the power of authenticity, and the responsibility leaders have to empower others. She leaves listeners with a powerful reminder: “I am enough.” This episode is a must-listen for leaders seeking honesty, inspiration, and permission to lead with heart. 02:00 From Adversity to Entrepreneurship 05:24 Standing in Your Truth 08:16 Leadership Journey and Growth 11:22 The Burden of Six Seats 16:21 The Curse of Highly Capable People 22:07 Bravery in Leadership and Vulnerability 27:49 Love as a Superpower and Kryptonite 35:32 Authenticity and Empowering Leaders 39:01 I Am Enough: A Leader’s Reflection About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Rhonda Meyers, is a visionary early childhood education leader. Rhonda has an extraordinary capacity for building collaborative relationships that span from toddlers to school administrators, and her expertise includes program development, strategic business growth, and creating educational environments where every child can thrive. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rhondajmeyers/ Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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14: Bad Boss Moves, Better Boss Lessons
On this week’s episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey chats with EOS implementer John McMahon, who opens up about his toughest management, including the dreaded task of firing an employee. From learning that silence can speak louder than words to discovering the power of open-ended questions, John shares how missteps turned into lessons in empathy, communication, and leadership growth. 01:37 Trial by Fire Leadership 05:22 First Lesson: What Took You So Long? 08:21 The Fear of Firing 11:06 Empathy and Curiosity Muscle 14:32 Reframing Questions and Vulnerability 17:33 Curiosity and Active Listening 20:39 The Power of Silence 25:44 Checking Assumptions and Deepening Relationships 28:50 Empathy Breakthroughs with Clients About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links EOS Implementer John McMahon Website: https://www.trellis-works.com/ Email: [email protected] If you'd like to learn more about Dr. Dino Signore that was mentioned in the podcast follow this link. https://drsignore.com/ Dr. Dino Signore, founder of The Signore Group, is a business psychologist and “second stage sensei” who helps entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, and advisors navigate growth challenges. With a focus on both the economic system of a business and the social system of its people, he facilitates leadership development, team dynamics, and organizational performance. Known for asking the right questions rather than prescribing quick fixes, Dr. Signore empowers leaders and their teams to think differently, adapt, and elevate their organizations to the next level. Sponsor Links Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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13: How Process Turns Chaos into Clarity
Do you think of “process” as boring, rigid, or suffocating? In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, host Beth Fahey sits down with Lisa Gonzalez, EOS Implementer, lawyer-turned-entrepreneur, and co-author of Process: How Discipline and Consistency Will Set You and Your Business Free. Lisa shares her most cringeworthy leadership moment of secretly creating a six-inch binder of hyper-detailed processes that her team ignored, a project fueled by fear and perfectionism. She reveals the painful lessons behind costly missteps, why buy-in matters more than binders, and how compassion and progress over perfection can transform leadership. Chapters 00:00 Introducing Lisa Gonzalez 04:09 The Cost of Lacking Process 09:46 Compassion, Perfection, and Process 14:32 Getting Processes Followed by All 22:58 Personal Process Challenges & Wisdom About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links: Website: Website: https://www.lisagonzalez.com. Email: [email protected] ([email protected] for coordination please) If you want to dive deeper into turning from Doer to Leader, check out Lisa's OPS leadership peer group at lisagonzalez.com/process-success-cohort Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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12: Lessons from a Meeting Gone Wrong
We’ve all been there: fired up in a meeting, convinced our point is the only one that matters… until we realize the room has gone silent. In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, host Beth Fahey sits down with Reid Hutchison, COO and integrator of HOH Technology, to unpack a moment he’s not proud of. Reid shares the time he let his emotions hijack a leadership meeting, turning collaboration into tension. The real lesson? How he owned the mistake, apologized in the moment, and rebuilt trust with his team. Reid’s story reminds us that passion can be a strength, but only when it is balanced with self-awareness and respect for others. Chapters 00:00 Welcome and Guest Introduction 01:37 HOH Technology’s Legacy 04:39 A Bad Meeting Moment 08:47 The Importance of Apology 13:17 Building Self-Awareness and Health 16:17 Rebuilding Trust and Consistency 20:19 Team Accountability and Growth 24:37 Facilitation Challenges and Ads 28:47 The ‘WAIT’ Acronym and Conclusion About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links HOH Technology: https://hohwatertechnology.com/ Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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11: Why Straying from Your Core Focus Can Cost You Everything
This week, Beth Fahey sits down with Kelly Knight of EOS Worldwide to talk about the messy (and meaningful) side of leadership. From a vacation epiphany that reshaped her company’s mission to the tough call of laying off 38 employees, Kelly opens up about mistakes, lessons, and the power of vulnerability in business. Tune in for real talk on staying true to your core focus, building trust, and leading with courage. 00:00 The Core Focus Dilemma 04:08 The Pitfalls of Software Expansion 08:49 Overcoming Embarrassment with Vulnerability 12:57 Lessons from Leadership Mistakes 18:41 Preventing Future Missteps 23:22 Restructuring for Alignment 28:24 Advice on Organizational Structure About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellypknight/ Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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10: When Loyalty Hurts: Hiring, Firing, and Hard Lessons
In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, host and EOS Implementer Beth Fahey sits down with Brian Dosal, CEO and co-founder of Strety, to talk about the messy side of leadership, ignoring red flags, hiring missteps, and the tough calls that come with rapid growth. Brian shares his entrepreneurial lessons on humility, adaptability, and why holding onto under performers can cost you your best people. 03:11 The Difficult Decision to Let Go 07:34 Ignoring Red Flags and Outgrowing Roles 11:04 The Impact of Loyalty on Tough Decisions 15:02 Hiring Heavy Hitters and First-Time Managers 19:34 Strety: The EOS Software Platform 24:02 Honesty, Not Kindness in Leadership About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bdosal/ Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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09: From Bulldozer to Breakthrough
On this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, host and EOS Implementer Beth Fahey sits down with Lynda Martin to unpack the lessons learned from bulldozing through leadership missteps. From failed ventures and perfectionism to the power of slowing down, Lynda shares how embracing the physical, emotional, and spiritual sides of leadership transformed her career. Expect honest stories, big breakthroughs, and plenty of laughs as they explore what it really takes to grow as a leader. 03:01 Integrating Life and Business 07:07 The Bulldozer Visionary Blunder 12:56 Learning from Failure & Perfectionism 16:56 Slowing Down and Personal Growth 22:04 EOS, Humanity, and Influential Resources 26:02 Business as Service to Humanity 31:21 Future Vision & Lotus Blossom Tattoo About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynda-martin-eos/ Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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08: Clarity is Key
What happens when a fast-moving entrepreneur skips clarity and hires quickly? This week on Bad Boss Confessional, EOS Implementer Beth Fahey welcomes Drew Spurgers to unpack a hilariously painful hiring misstep, the chaos it created, and how clear communication (or lack thereof) can make or break your team. From titles that confuse to sales goals that actually work, Drew shares hard-won lessons about leadership, trust, and the power of saying exactly what you mean. This is your crash course in what not to do (and how to turn it around), with a reminder that clarity isn’t optional! 00:00 The Importance of Clarity in Communication 02:51 Meet Drew Spurgers 04:04 Drew’s Entrepreneurial Journey 06:19 Lessons from Past Mistakes 08:14 A Tough Hiring Experience 10:00 The Emotional Roller Coaster of Leadership 11:24 Clarity is Key 15:01 The Power of Clear Communication 20:01 Setting Measurable Goals 22:03 Navigating Team Dynamics 26:46 Learning from Mistakes 30:41 Assuming Positive Intent About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show Links For more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below. Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOS Instagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeos LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/ Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Guest Links Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dspurgers Thanks to our Sponsors A big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Bad Boss Confessional is the podcast where entrepreneurs, founders, and leaders fess up to their most cringeworthy management moments—the times they micromanaged, blew up in meetings, or simply got it dead wrong. With names changed (to protect the innocent...and guilty), guests walk us through their “bad boss” moment in all its messy glory.But this isn’t just a cringe-fest—it’s a redemption story.
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Speakeasy Podcast Network
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