Get Lit

On this week's mid-week episode, Adam Quiney explores the deeper layer underneath the leadership challenges so many people are navigating right now. This conversation moves beyond surface-level fixes and into what's actually driving the patterns leaders find themselves in - where teams know what to do but don't follow through, where conversations happen but the full truth isn't being said, and where it can start to feel like the answer is simply finding better people. Adam opens up a space to look at what sits beneath those experiences, especially at a time when AI is beginning to expose the gaps between performance and real development. It's an honest exploration of what happens when leaders have spent years getting better at doing, without ever fully developing how they lead. As with all of Adam's live shows, this episode isn't scripted or polished -it unfolds in real time. It's a space where ideas are explored as they arise, assumptions are questioned, and a deeper understanding of leadership begins to take shape. Join Adam for a grounded, in-the-moment conversation about what may actually be at the root of leadership challenges, and what starts to shift when that level is brought into view.

Smart leaders are often very good at change. They read the books, take the assessments, study different modalities for personal development, and become incredibly skilled at generating insight. But insight is not the same as transformation. This conversation challenges the idea that more intelligence automatically leads to deeper growth. Sometimes, the very brilliance that creates success also becomes the thing that prevents transformation because leaders become too fast at explaining away the experience before real contact can happen.

You can be surrounded by people who genuinely like you, enjoy talking to you, and would do anything for you, and still feel completely alone. Not because no one cares, but because no one can get to you. This conversation goes beyond the cliché of "it's lonely at the top." Instead, Adam looks at the deeper structure underneath the surface. Listen and enjoy!

On this week's episode, Adam Quiney is joined by special guest Andrea Carter for a live conversation exploring leadership, growth, and the deeper work that often sits just beneath the surface. Together, they step into a candid and unfolding dialogue—one that moves beyond surface-level insights and into the real dynamics that shape how we show up in our work and lives. Andrea brings her own perspective and experience into the conversation, meeting Adam in a space that's curious, honest, and open to where the discussion wants to go. As with all of Adam's live shows, this episode isn't scripted or polished—it's alive. It's a space where ideas are explored in real time, assumptions are questioned, and new ways of seeing can emerge. Join Adam and Andrea for a thoughtful, in-the-moment conversation about what leadership asks of us, and what becomes possible when we're willing to engage with it more deeply.

Psychological safety has become one of the most widely discussed concepts in leadership. Organizations invest in frameworks, norms, and training in an effort to create safe spaces. But despite all the effort, most leaders don't have psychological safety. In this episode, Adam Quiney challenges the conventional approach to psychological safety and points to what's missing. Listen and enjoy the show!

Most leaders have gone through at least one leadership program. And to be fair, it helps. You pick up frameworks, a new language, maybe even a few useful tools. But let's be honest, it isn't what we are looking for in the real transformation. What we are looking for is a shift in how you lead at your core. And that's the part most leadership development simply doesn't reach.

On this week's mid-week episode, Adam Quiney returns with a solo conversation exploring a question many high-performers quietly wrestle with: why do we hesitate at the very thresholds that could change everything? In this episode, Adam unpacks three deeply connected themes: why commitment often comes before certainty, why we tend to avoid the conversations that would clarify what we already sense, and the hidden cost of keeping our options open for too long. It's an honest look at the subtle ways we delay the very movement we say we want—and what that avoidance might be costing us. This is a conversation for leaders and thoughtful, capable people whose lives may look functional on the outside, but who can feel that something more is waiting to be stepped into. Adam invites you to consider what it would mean to move forward without full certainty—and what becomes possible when you do.

Knowing what to do is not the same as doing it. Many leaders pride themselves on clarity, strategy, and insight, believing that once the "right move" is identified, execution should follow naturally. But in reality, that moment is often where things stall.  

On this week's mid-week episode, Adam Quiney explores a shift that's already reshaping how we live and work: the abundance created by AI. In this episode, Adam looks at what happens when something that was once scarce suddenly becomes widely available—and how that kind of shift changes not just industries, but how we relate to value, creativity, and ourselves. He unpacks the deeper implications of AI-driven abundance, pointing to the ways it challenges long-held assumptions about what matters, what's worth paying attention to, and where our unique contribution actually lives. This isn't just a conversation about technology. It's an invitation to consider how you show up in a world where access is no longer the differentiator—and what it means to lead, create, and make decisions in a landscape defined less by scarcity and more by possibility.

Why do people back away right when the real work begins? In this episode, Adam Quiney tells you that these moments aren't signs of failure. These are signals that real transformation is beginning. What we often label as "not working" is actually the breakdown of old patterns that can no longer take us further. Real change requires a breakdown of what's been comfortable, reliable, and known.

Competence is often seen as the gold standard of leadership. The more you know, the more prepared you are, the more reliable you become. But over time, that same competence can quietly turn into a ceiling that keeps you operating in what's safe, instead of stepping into what's truly required for growth.  

In this episode, Adam Quiney explores how AI mirrors and reinforces our existing identity, especially the tendency to qualify, apologize, or manage how we are perceived. This conversation invites leaders to move beyond polished communication and into a more direct, trusting, and vulnerable way of showing up.  

On this week's mid-week episode of The Transformational Leader, Adam Quiney welcomes friend of the show Pete Kadushin for a live coaching conversation that pulls back the curtain on what transformational leadership work actually looks like in practice. Pete brings a client, Chris McAdoo, into the session and invites Adam to observe and offer real-time feedback as the coaching unfolds. What follows is a candid, unscripted exploration of leadership, coaching, and the subtle dynamics that emerge in live developmental work. Adam steps in throughout the conversation with interruptions, reflections, and questions—supporting Pete while also highlighting the deeper patterns at play beneath the surface of the coaching moment. The episode offers listeners a rare look into the craft of leadership coaching: how coaches listen, where they intervene, and how transformational insights can arise in the middle of a conversation. Adam's intention is to demystify the process—revealing not just the visible techniques of coaching, but the underlying "being" and awareness that make meaningful breakthroughs possible. If you've ever wondered what transformational coaching actually looks like in real time—or how leaders support one another in developing their craft—this episode offers a thoughtful and illuminating window into that work.

Answers have never been easier to find. With AI, leaders can access strategies, frameworks, and step-by-step guidance in seconds, providing unlimited clarity at their fingertips. However, just like money, an abundance of answers doesn't necessarily change the deeper patterns that drive our decisions. Listen as Adam Quiney unpacks why more answers won't change a leader's underlying identity, but human, relational, and deeply felt leadership are more valuable. 

On this week's mid-week episode, Adam Quiney is joined by special guest Hanna Bauer, CEO and founder of Heartnomics, for a live conversation exploring leadership, transformation, and the deeper work behind real breakthroughs. Hannah shares elements of her personal and professional journey, and together they dig into the inflection points that shaped her path - not just what changed, but what had to be let go of for change to occur. The conversation is reflective, grounded, and alive with inquiry, with Hannah bringing openness, radiance, and a willingness to explore the less-visible aspects of growth. Adam leans in with curiosity, interrupting when needed to uncover the subtle dynamics beneath the breakthrough moments. Adam shares why he appreciated Hannah's readiness to engage at this level and invites you into a thoughtful, unscripted dialogue on what leadership and transformation truly require.

Competence usually leads to success. The more skilled and knowledgeable we become, the more progress we expect to see. But many leaders eventually reach a point where getting even better at what they already know no longer creates real growth.  

On this week's mid-week episode, Adam Quiney takes an unscripted, solo turn after a last-minute guest cancellation and uses the space to explore what's been alive for him around spaciousness, restlessness, and the subtle ways we avoid being with ourselves. What begins as a riff opens into a deeper inquiry into boredom, meditation, and how productivity can quietly become a strategy for escape rather than effectiveness. Adam reflects on his current practice of creating more space in his life, what tends to get in the way, and what this work asks of him as a leader. He also explores how patterns and habits actually shift — not through force or willpower, but through awareness, systems, and allowing what's subconscious to come into view. Adam closes with a powerful distinction between creating results and creating the clearing in which results can show up, inviting you into a thoughtful, unscripted exploration of leadership from the inside out.

Who do you become when control slips? Who do you become when you are under pressure? Who do you become when there is something edgy in front of you? When tension rises, leaders don't default to their training; they collapse to their underlying ways of being. This is the leadership shift no one trains for: the move from optimizing what you do to transforming who you are under pressure.

Watching someone struggle can feel unbearable. Many leaders rush in to fix, rescue, or reassure, believing that's what care and empathy require. The reality in transformational leadership is that watching people struggle is not a failure of leadership, but a critical part of it. Real leadership means holding the tension of someone's growth without taking it over.

Growth can feel thrilling until you return home and everything tightens again. After a powerful experience of expansion, many leaders are frustrated when contraction shows up, wondering why the openness, clarity, or aliveness seems to slip away. This cycle isn't a failure of the work; it's part of how real transformation unfolds.  

Political conversations often feel unavoidable and quickly charged. We enter them believing we are simply sharing opinions, yet underneath sits rigidity, righteousness, and a deep attachment to being right. What starts as dialogue easily turns into defensiveness, frustration, and disconnection, leaving relationships strained and nothing truly changed.  

Relief can make life feel calmer, but it isn't the same as freedom. When the anxiety settles, the overwhelm quiets, and life becomes more manageable, it's easy to assume the work is done. But relief often comes from pulling back, managing ourselves, and staying within safer edges, reducing pain without expanding who we are.  

On this week's mid-week episode, Adam Quiney is joined by special guest Sébastien Page for a live conversation exploring leadership from the inside out. Sebastian brings a background in finance, investing, and leadership philosophy, and together they dig into topics ranging from sports psychology and mindset to what our assumptions about human beings reveal about how we lead. The conversation is curious, candid, and occasionally provocative, with Sebastian game to be challenged and willing to push back as they explore the edges of leadership thinking. Adam shares why he enjoyed this exchange so much, and invites you into a thoughtful, unscripted dialogue on what leadership really asks of us.    

Awareness alone doesn't create change. In this episode, Adam Quiney explores why insight, learning, and even powerful conversations often fail to move the needle, and how real transformation requires stepping into action, discomfort, and the energetic cost of change.  

On this week's episode of The Transformational Leader, Adam explores the signal-to-noise crisis of the modern world through the lenses of AI, fear, money, and misdirected leadership, unpacking how reacting to fear quietly creates more of it, how leadership always happens in partnership with our circumstances, and how we often use our power in the wrong direction without realizing it. He examines why money is such an effective painkiller for lives we're not fully inhabiting, how control masquerades as integrity, and what "maximizing not giving a f*ck" actually points to beneath the bravado. Rather than offering strategies or surface-level insight, Adam invites a deeper, more confronting inquiry into where we collapse signal into noise, outsource our agency, and mistake avoidance for strength — and what becomes possible when we stop reacting and start leading.

Transformation doesn't happen through insight alone; it happens through practice. In this episode, Adam Quiney explores what it means to practice transformationally, why change can't be shortcut, and how leadership is built by choosing a new way of being in the face of resistance.  

In today's episode, I'd be tackling something even the most brilliant of leaders have difficulty dealing with—acknowledging their role in the way people under them are showing up. Understandably, if something is wrong with the team, it's always easier to deal with the people and issues involved rather than examining your role as a leader in creating that clearing. If you want to feel more empowered as a leader, you need to look through different lenses to check how you are contributing to the issues and what you can do differently. All that and more in this episode!

Leaders tend to get attracted to external factors and thus get disempowered once it is gone. They were driven from outside motivation and not enrol on the possibility of getting motivated from within themselves. In this episode, the focus will be on differentiating attraction and enrolment, why attraction is a trap for leaders and coaches, and how enrolment helps you to be continuously driven. This episode will also highlight how attraction and enrolment tends to be confusing, the nature of attraction and why people tend to lean towards it, and how you can develop yourself into enrolment. Take a leap towards shifting into enrolment as this episode will also share powerful practices and guide questions for you to put into action. Discover your blind spots and embrace them as a leader. Do not miss this chance to learn how to improve as a leader through this episode.

In this episode, the focus will be on the Impact You Can't Get Present To as a leader. It is a discussion along with how your blindspots work and expanding your range as a leader. Also in this episode are these discussion points: What does the phrase the Impact You Can't Get Present To means?, What blindspots mean, what it does, and ways to get feedback, the distinction between leadership and therapy, your familiar and unfamiliar zone of leadership, managing and providing feedback as a leader and keeping your ego safe, and sitting with the impact. Also, listeners are invited to join the third and last round of creating clients' courses for the year. It has produced over 30 graduates from its two runs. This course will pull apart the broken thinking about creating clients or sales and how that works refining those places where there are assumptions, obvious truths, or any of that sort, to build a beautiful foundation to create powerful relationships with people and deepen it. Discover your blind spots and embrace them as a leader. Do not miss this chance to learn the hows to improve as a leader through this episode.

On this week's episode of The Transformational Leader, Adam kicks off a multi-part origin series tracing his path up to choosing coaching - an honest, unvarnished look at how a bright, passionate, open-hearted kid learned to dial down his own light. He explores the meanings he made from early structure and playground bruises, how "trauma" often lives in the stories we create about events, and the survival strategies that followed: hypervigilance, perfectionism, chameleon-like charm, overtalking to avoid intimacy, and numbing to feel creative or safe. Rather than the familiar arc of "it was hard, then I overcame," Adam names the contraptions we build to manage shame and seek acceptance, and invites you to examine the rules you quietly made about yourself and the world. This is part one - what shaped the man before coaching; next week, he dives into the messy, human journey of becoming a coach and a leader.

We all say we want to lead better, but the moment real growth asks something of us, resistance kicks in. In this episode, Adam Quiney breaks down how resistance hides in our need for comfort, authenticity, and staying in control. Leadership only develops when we lean into the very things we avoid. Listen and enjoy!

There are three levels of leadership through the lens of your projects. Every leader has projects, but not all projects create transformation. Some are driven by fear and urgency, others by comfort and control. Real growth begins when you choose projects that demand transformation, not just effort. 

Leadership wisdom spreads fast, but not all of it goes deep. Scroll through LinkedIn and you'll find endless "leadership memes" that sound inspiring at first glance, yet often oversimplify what it really means to lead. They make leadership look easy, but few of them invite us to look deeper, at who we are being underneath all the doing.

On this week's midweek episode of The Transformational Leader, Adam is joined by longtime friend and fellow law-school graduate, Sakeb Nazim, for a rich exploration at the intersection of law, leadership, and spiritual growth. Together they dive into the deeper philosophies behind our legal system - including the moral tension of "innocent until proven guilty," the emotional impact of practicing within a structure built on judgment and protection, and how the profession shapes the heart over time - before widening the conversation into plant medicine, spirituality, and the internal awakenings that shift how we relate to purpose and service. This is a grounded, curious, and expansive dialogue that looks beyond rules and roles to examine what it truly means to lead, evolve, and stay connected to your humanity inside systems that rarely make space for it.

Leadership is more than insight and inspiration; it's about embracing the messy, uncomfortable, deeply human parts we often want to hide. Every leader has their own "gnarly stuff"—the judgments, insecurities, and reactions that don't fit neatly into a lesson or success story.

On this week's live episode, join Adam Quiney for a grounded yet expansive conversation on leadership, completion, and taking aligned action. Adam explores the energetic nuances of transforming your life and work — including how youth intersects with transformation, the pitfalls of premature independence, and what it really looks like to complete powerfully with your coach. Adam also dives into real-time leadership - working with the energy in the room rather than forcing outcomes, and the practical (and often uncomfortable) steps required to truly move a project forward instead of spinning in planning and potential. Along the way, he touches on new ways of pitching and connecting on LinkedIn, why curiosity often trumps certainty, and the subtle leadership gaps that show up when we think we're "done." Tune in for a conversation that blends humor, rigor, and insight into what it means to create results, expand capacity, and stay in the work even when you're tempted to graduate yourself out of it.  

True transformation starts when you're willing to be seen. Many people try to do the work through books, podcasts, or private reflection. These are safe spaces where vulnerability is optional.  Real growth doesn't happen in isolation. It begins when you step into a relationship, risk being witnessed, and allow yourself to be known exactly as you are.

Learning isn't about getting faster; it's about getting deeper. In our rush to master new skills or achieve transformation, we often turn learning into another race against time. But true growth doesn't come from speed; it comes from surrender, patience, and staying present through the discomfort of not knowing.  

On this week's live episode, join Adam Quiney for an exploration of leadership in action - and in avoidance. Adam dives into the distinctions between stage one, two, and three leadership, the intersection of compassion and condonation, and how spirituality can so easily turn into dogma. Along the way, he and guests unpack topics as wide-ranging as Ozempic, Charlie Kirk, and the discomfort of leading up when your leaders are the ones in your way. Tune in for a conversation that weaves humor, inquiry, and depth into questions of what it truly means to lead, and what happens when we optimize for the wrong things.

Dogma gives us comfort, but it also limits our growth. In leadership, it often hides behind best practices, catchy quotes, or rules about how a leader should show up. While these frameworks make decisions easier, they can quietly disconnect us from trust, intuition, and real impact.  

In this episode, Adam Quiney breaks down a popular leadership post and exposes what most advice misses: the cost of real growth. He explains why true leadership isn't about rushing from control to impact but learning to face what keeps us stuck, slow down, and be present with the discomfort we avoid.  

On this week's mid-week episode, join Adam Quiney along with special guest Monica Borrell for a discussion on leadership and the fine line between supporting your staff and unintentionally creating a high-maintenance culture. Together they explore what it means to “catch” an experience for your team, how coddling can sometimes hinder growth, and the challenges leaders face in balancing empathy with accountability. Adam also shares updates from his own life and his work with the Intensive before diving into this insightful conversation with Monica.  

True transformation doesn't come from avoiding discomfort, it comes from facing it. In this episode, Adam Quiney unpacks the Zen idea that “you cannot leave a place until you've been there” and explores how both ontological coaching and Ayahuasca reveal the same truth: real healing happens when we stop resisting and finally touch the very thing we fear.  

On this week's mid-week episode, join Adam Quiney for a discussion on Myers-briggs and other personality assessment tools, and why they limit us, how personal growth is often about avoidance of our own transformation and healing, letting go of the hypocrisy of others, and more!  

Every leader has a shadow side: the parts of ourselves we'd rather hide or deny. For many, that looks like judgment, frustration, or even the thought: “People are dumb and I hate them.” When we push these parts away, they don't disappear. They slip into our blind spots and leak out sideways, often in the form of sarcasm, criticism, or subtle disconnection. The harder we try to shut them down, the more power they gain.

Arrogance can be one of the biggest blind spots for leaders. It shows up subtly in judgment, in righteousness, or in the need to be right, and it can quietly damage trust and impact. In this episode, Adam Quiney shares a personal story about being called out for his arrogance and the lessons that came with it. He explores why arrogance is often a survival mechanism, how to spot it in yourself, and what it takes to hold feedback with grace instead of defensiveness.

On this week's mid-week episode, join Adam Quiney for a discussion on How We Train the World Around Us.  In this episode, Adam discuss ideas such as How we train people around us to behave the way we complain about, How our training of the world at large makes our own transformation challenging, How we can train our clients and customers for a more empowering experience; and How to shift all of this. .  

Leadership and transformation aren't about adding more tools to your belt; they are about seeing how you get in your own way. And that starts with learning to accept what is true about how you show up, even when it's uncomfortable. In this episode, Adam Quiney breaks down the three stages of acceptance that every leader moves through. From resisting feedback to intellectual acknowledgment, and finally fully letting the impact of your actions take hold, Adam explores how each stage unfolds and why most people get stuck before achieving real transformation.

On this week's mid-week episode, join Adam Quiney as he explores topics such as how relational patterns show up everywhere, what to do when your leader isn't leading well, and how to practice “leading up.” Adam also unpacks the concept of being at choice, and why it's central to the work of both coaches and leaders.

Intellectual loneliness isn't just about craving “deep talks.” It is the realization of how few people can truly tolerate complexity. It is noticeable how quickly others rush to have an answer, not to understand, but to be right. It is the silence that follows when what you say doesn't fit neatly into someone's script. In this episode, Adam Quiney dives into the experience of intellectual loneliness, why it often leaves us feeling isolated, and how the very mindset that makes us feel smarter can also deepen our disconnection. Listen and enjoy!

We often believe we are already doing the transformational work by reading books, watching videos, attending seminars, or having deep conversations with friends. These can look like transformation, but more often they skim the surface without truly shifting who we are. In this episode, Adam Quiney unpacks why our ego convinces us that we are “doing the work” when in reality, we are just reinforcing old patterns with new language. He shares how blind spots keep us stuck, why insights alone rarely lead to change, and why genuine transformation requires stepping into relationship and vulnerability.