Bad Days Leadership

"Build Trust When Risk Is Low. Leverage It When the Stakes Are High." w/Scott Mann

Lt. Col. (Ret.) Scott Mann — former U.S. Army Green Beret, founder of Rooftop Leadership, host of the Scott Mann Podcast, and author of the New York Times bestseller Operation Pineapple Express and the new book The Generosity of Scars — joins Dr. Matt Paden on the Bad Days Leadership podcast. Scott shares the mission in Afghanistan that cost a teammate his life and the questions that have never stopped since, the moment a junior captain told him to slow down and drink the tea when he'd forgotten his own golden rule, and how losing his purpose after leaving the military led him to standing in a closet with a pistol under his chin. He breaks down why performative leadership creates a zero-defect culture that kills risk-taking, the three red flags he spots the second he walks into an executive room, and how storytelling literally saved his life then saved his friend James's life in the middle of Manhattan traffic. Plus, why the cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.

"We Knew in 18 Hours We Had Made a Terrible Decision" w/ Stephanie Henderson

Stephanie Henderson — CEO-turned-executive coach, keynote speaker, culture strategist, and founder of Impact Driven Partners — joins Dr. Matt Paden on the Bad Days Leadership podcast. Stephanie shares the software rollout that blew up within 18 hours because she and the IT director forgot to include the people it would actually affect, how waiting to give feedback until an annual review turned into an hour of tears and a permanent lesson, and why she stopped calling her company a "family" and started calling them a team — because you can't fire your brother. She breaks down why wanting to be liked is a trap, how reframing accountability as an act of love changed everything for her, and why the real red flag isn't how a leader reacts to criticism — it's that nobody feels safe enough to offer any.

"I Doubled Down When I Should Have Shut My Mouth" w/Stuart Deming

Stuart Deming — co-founder of XPLR.NASH, serial entrepreneur, and content creator with sixty jobs since age six — joins Dr. Matt Paden on the Bad Days Leadership podcast. Stewart shares the story of getting physically abused by a football coach for underperforming, only to find out he had a disease that required a back brace for two years. He talks about walking into a pitch meeting, misreading every signal, and doubling down on a proposal when he should have stopped talking — a mistake that permanently damaged the relationship. He gets raw about the loneliness of entrepreneurship, having $100K in contracts cancelled in a single month while $60K in invoices went unpaid, and the pastor who taught him "the sharpest knives are in the friendliest hands" before putting one in his back. Plus — the six-month prayer that reshaped how he thinks about fame, success, and wealth.

"A Boss Banned Talking and Replaced It With Red Solo Cups. It Got Worse." w/Amanda Box

Amanda Box — founder of Box Communications, communication evangelist, and the "Unleasher of the Awesome" — joins Dr. Matt Paden on the Bad Days Leadership podcast. Amanda shares the jaw-dropping story of a coach who opened the season by handing out "100 Ways to Have a Losing Season," a boss who banned talking in a call center and replaced it with red solo cups on filing cabinets (productivity dropped by a LOT), and the client relationship that stressed her into cold sores because she couldn't figure out why nothing she delivered was good enough. She breaks down why defensiveness is the red flag she spots fastest in leaders, how a simple pocket phrase can save you from blowing up a conversation, and why failure is just information — not identity. Plus, the retirement story about Joe that proves your leadership brand is the stories other people tell about you.

"I Spent Years Repeating The Same Mistake Because I Wouldn't Accept The Data Right In Front Of Me" w/Will Acuff

Will Acuff — social entrepreneur, author of No Elevator to Everest, and co-founder of Corner to Corner — joins Dr. Matt Paden on the Bad Days Leadership podcast. Will gets honest about moving into a low-income Nashville neighborhood with a million wrong ideas about poverty, spending years repeating the same mistake because he refused to accept the data right in front of him, and how his passion kept showing up as impatience and anger early in his career. He breaks down why overconfidence gets confused for great leadership, why unteachable people won't last on his team, and the blank sheet of paper exercise he recommends for processing failure without letting emotion drive your next decision. Plus — why tying your self-worth to your outcomes puts you on the world's worst roller coaster, and why he refuses to believe the lie that life just has to suck.