Episode 1: Introduction and Foundational Leadership

This is the foundation of the podcast of Lock In and Execute.  Just like leadership development has a foundation then so does podcasts.  In this episode then we introduce you to the Lock In and Execute Podcast and what it and the host Jason Kephart are all about.  This episode we start to dive into the foundation of leadership and start this path of self-development.  Join us on this exciting path of Lock In and Execute Podcast!

Chapters

• 0:00 Unlocking Leadership Through Self-Development
• 12:08 Journaling for Leadership Growth

Transcript

Jason Kephart: 0:00

Thank you for watching.

Jason Kephart: 0:49

Hey there, everyone, and welcome to the very first episode of Lock In and Execute. This episode we're going to be talking about unlocking leadership, the power of self-development and execution. I'm your host, jason, and I'm beyond excited to have you here today. If you're someone who's passionate about leadership, mentorship, continuous growth, trending topics or just wanting to better yourself both personally and professionally, then you're in the right place. In this first episode, I want to take a moment to introduce myself, share the vision behind this podcast and let you know what you can expect from us in the future.

Jason Kephart: 1:28

First things first. You might be wondering what is Lock-In and Execute all about? Well, the name says it all. It's all about locking in, committing to your goals, your vision, your path, and then executing with relentless consistency. Executing with relentless consistency. Leadership isn't just about a title or a position. It's about taking action, staying disciplined and making the right choices every single day to move yourself and your team forward.

Jason Kephart: 1:55

Let me give you a bit of background on why I created this podcast. For as long as I can remember, I've been passionate about leadership and mentorship. I've learned that leadership starts from within. It's about knowing yourself, committing to self-improvement and then taking those lessons and applying them to help others grow. Whether you're in a management role or just striving to be a better version of yourself, the principles of leadership apply to everyone. In upcoming episodes, we're going to talk about a variety of topics that I'm deeply passionate about, everything from team building, self-development, effective goal setting, current leadership trends and trends that are going on around us in the world, and the latest discussions in the world of mentorship. I'll also be bringing in expert guests who will share their wisdom on how to lead, grow and execute to the highest levels.

Jason Kephart: 2:51

Now let's dive into today's topic unlocking leadership through self-development and execution. To me, leadership is about leading yourself first. You want to be an effective leader of others. You need to be an effective leader of yourself. That starts with understanding key leadership traits like self-awareness, accountability and vision. So, in reality, it does start by taking a good look in the mirror.

Jason Kephart: 3:17

Let's talk about self-awareness for a minute. This is such a crucial part of being a great leader. You need to know your strengths and weaknesses, your emotional triggers and what drives you. Without self-awareness, it's easy to fall into the trap of thinking you've got everything figured out, but, as any great leader will tell you, the best leaders are the ones who are always learning and growing. For example, early on in my career, I made the mistake of thinking leadership was about telling people what to do. It wasn't until I became more self-aware and realized that leadership is really about guiding others through listening, empowering them and being a role model that I truly started to grow as a leader. And even then it took several more years before I really had some more failure and more examples of leadership to really start to develop to where I am now.

Jason Kephart: 4:12

And that brings me to my next big part of leadership accountability. Being accountable is one of the most important traits of a great leader. You need to be able to hold yourself to a high standard and also create an environment where your team holds themselves accountable as well. Leadership isn't just about telling people what to do. It's about leading by example, following through on your commitments and being accountable to your vision. The leadership isn't just about managing yourself. It's also about empowering and supporting others. And that brings us to mentorship.

Jason Kephart: 4:50

Mentorship has played such a pivotal role in my own journey. I believe it's one of the most important things any leader can embrace. Whether you're looking for a mentor or striving to become a mentor yourself. Mentorship accelerates growth, both personally and professionally. I want to highlight two things here. First, find a mentor who challenges you, pushes you outside your comfort zone and offers honest, constructive feedback. Constructive feedback this is going to be crucial because it will give you someone looking from the outside in to help better you overall. And second, be a mentor to others. Share your experiences, give guidance and help others grow as well. The best leaders don't just focus on their own growth. They invest in the growth and those around them. One of my biggest joys over the past few years is being able to be a mentor to students that are going through college to obtain their certifications and even their degrees in Homeland Security, public Safety, fire Science, Criminal Justice, so that way they can start their career, and it has just been extremely rewarding to see how my mentorship to them has helped develop them into professionals that are able to go out and serve their communities.

Jason Kephart: 6:18

Now you may be wondering how do I go about finding a mentor, or even becoming one, so I may give you a few tips here. Number one look for someone whose values align with yours and who has a track record of success in areas you want to grow in. Number two is be open to feedback, even the tough stuff. A good mentor will help you see areas you might be blind to. And number three don't be afraid to give back and become a mentor yourself. Share your experiences, but also actively listen to the people you're mentoring. The relationship is a two-way street, because you might even pull some valuable lessons that will help develop you further in your own path.

Jason Kephart: 7:12

Now we've gone from the mentorship, let's kind of change up some gears, as we've discussed, and get into self-development as we've discussed and get into self-development. And self-development is the foundation to leadership. But it's not just about personal growth. It's about building habits and a mindset that lead to consistent execution. I am a big believer in continuous learning and adapting a growth mindset. Growth mindset is the belief that your abilities can be developed through hard work, dedication and the willingness to learn. Let me tell you, this mindset is essential for any leader who wants to stay ahead of the curve.

Jason Kephart: 8:00

Every great leader educates himself in many different topics in many different ways. They're very well read, they're constantly reading, they're constantly looking for further development and so forth. Think about it if you're not constantly learning, adapting or evolving, then you're getting left behind. The leadership landscape is always changing and to keep up, you need to embrace that continuous evolution. So here's a simple practice for you Every day, I want you to take 10 minutes to reflect. This can be either by using a journal or just sitting there in meditation and reflecting over the days. Ask yourself questions like what went well today? What could I have done better? What did I learn? This small habit will help you stay aligned with your personal growth and leadership journey.

Jason Kephart: 9:04

Another good tip is to read. Take time out, read a little bit every day. Reading will help you develop further knowledge and understanding. Read many different topics. Some of the books I've been reading recently are a mix between leadership as well as other people's journeys on their own career paths and on their own leadership paths, just to kind of see what others have gone through and how I can compare that to my own life.

Jason Kephart: 9:47

And lastly, I want to touch on one more important aspect of leadership team development. The truth is, leadership isn't just about leading yourself. It's about leading others too, and part of that is creating high-performing teams. As a leader, your job is to build trust, encourage collaboration and a faster culture of accountability within your own team. When your team feels empowered and supported, they're most likely to contribute at a high level and succeed. I've seen this several times with a few of my most recent teams where, by empowering them, they have been able to do things that they hadn't done before, and that's starting to show to those people looking from the outside in.

Jason Kephart: 10:29

One key to creating this high performance culture is diversity. Diverse teams bring unique perspectives, which leads to innovative problem solving and better decision making. When you prioritize diversity and inclusion, you create an environment where every team member feels valued and motivated to do their best work. Now, this isn't more to get on the political side of things. It is look at everyone's traits. There are people that have different backgrounds, different experiences, that can add value to your team. When we look at the military, it's a giant melting pot of a whole bunch of diversity and it brings so much value to those teams because you have people that come from so many different backgrounds that can help you in locking in and executing those missions.

Jason Kephart: 11:22

All right, so before we wrap up, I just want to leave you with a few actionable takeaways for today. One start practicing self-awareness. Reflect on your strengths, weaknesses and emotional triggers. Make note of them and think about how you can leverage them to become a better leader. Two, find a mentor. If you don't have one, seek one out and remember mentorship is a two-way street, so be open to giving as much as you receive. And three, implementing a daily reflection practice and spending 10 minutes every day asking yourself what did I do well, what could I improve on and what you learned, is going to help you greatly.

Jason Kephart: 12:08

Another key thing to help you with these is get a journal. Just do a daily entry every day, write down your thoughts, write down your reflection, things like that, and you will be so amazed at what you learn. And then, as you go further down your path of leadership, you're going to be able to review back on your thoughts from years and see that development and that improvement over the years. So that's it for today's episode of Lock In and Execute. I hope you found some valuable insights to help you unlock your potential as a leader. If you've enjoyed today's episode, be sure to subscribe, leave a review and share it with anyone who could benefit from this message. And don't forget we've got more episodes coming soon covering everything from mentorship to team dynamics and leadership trends. I'm Jason and I'll catch you in the next episode. Until then, keep locking in, keep executing and keep growing. See you next time.