Episode 23: The Real Reason People Trust You (or Don’t)

Episode 23: The Real Reason People Trust You (or Don’t)

Why do some leaders earn trust, influence, and opportunity while others struggle to make a lasting impact? In this episode of The Navigating Leaders Podcast, Gabriel Griess sits down with Gary Watson for a conversation about one of the most overlooked factors in leadership and success. If you've ever wondered why certain relationships open doors, why some people naturally attract trust, or why leadership can feel harder than it should, this episode will challenge the way you think about influence, character, and personal growth. Together, Gabriel and Gary explore the hidden factors that shape credibility, decision-making, and long-term success. Whether you're leading a business, a team, a family, or simply trying to become the person you're called to be, this conversation offers powerful insights that can transform the way you lead and live. If you're interested in leadership, emotional intelligence, personal development, influence, faith, mindset, and building a legacy that lasts, this episode is for you. ==================== RESOURCES 🌎 Website: navigatingleaders.com [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/] 👀 Vision Engine: navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine] 📖 The Results Tree—A Proven Path to the Life You Really Want [https://www.amazon.com/Results-Tree-Proven-Path-Really/dp/B0FZSXM5MF/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11494Y0W5UHVG&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.M90OGwFx3iTdHAqeUWXo5UW8MnN_PBFCeH5wBCznCH_yaOwl7rs-pnRYZO9wj-B_vYvCu0qeB6Nh1RILjw5MH8jGtYB1XbuO9MjoPMSwDoEihuLplPE3WBMmoey0IHCqq8AVf2jsTH9i7xngGc69u98pOh5DTqT6YOImf9TqtqWEA4HrXIDCkn97ElItaTA0vnSWaiVecQtQk6ozmpLannXdjZuqdT7EILiqWPQ4t5c.09uQh1R8aSwwujx1YOB9MOg1mfDJjsOeTqfmqbY1c14&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+results+tree&qid=1775071455&sprefix=the+results+tree%2Caps%2C178&sr=8-1]: TheResultsTree.com [http://theresultstree.com]  🏢 Trio Workforce Solutions: https://triowfs.com [https://triowfs.com/] ==================== ABOUT GARY WATSON Gary Watson, known to many as Sivion, is a business leader, entrepreneur, musician, and man of faith with a passion for helping people lead with integrity and purpose. For decades, he has built influence across both the marketplace and the creative arts, earning a reputation for strong character, authentic relationships, and servant leadership. Whether leading teams, building businesses, mentoring others, or creating music, Gary is committed to helping people grow personally, professionally, and spiritually. 📸 Instagram: @SivionDS5 👍 Facebook: @SivionDS5 𝕏 X/Twitter: @SivionDS5 CONNECT WITH GABRIEL 🎥 YouTube: @navigatingleaders [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-TUFNxDFFu8im7BswjxmGw]📸 Instagram: @navigatingleaders [https://www.instagram.com/navigatingleaders/] 👍 Facebook: @navigatingleaders [https://www.facebook.com/navigatingleaders/] 🎵 TikTok: @navigatingleaders [https://www.tiktok.com/@navigatingleaders] 🗣️ LinkedIn: @navigatingleaders [https://www.linkedin.com/company/navigatingleaders/] ==================== ABOUT GABRIEL Gabriel Griess is a retired US Air Force officer, the CEO of Excel Medical Staffing and MedForceX, and the founder of Navigating Leaders. A graduate of the elite Air Force Weapons School, he has spent decades leading teams in high-pressure environments and equipping others to reach their full potential. As a combat veteran and an entrepreneur, Gabriel helps individuals cultivate self-awareness, resilience, and the ability to create lasting impact. An internationally sought-after keynote speaker, he addresses audiences on personal transformation, strategic leadership, and veteran empowerment. The Results Tree is the framework he lives by, and when applied, it will unearth your destiny.

Episode 22: The Real Reason You Feel Stuck (It’s Not What You Think)

Are you spending your energy on the wrong things? Most leaders don’t lose their way because they lack talent, ambition, or opportunity. They lose their way because they get distracted.  In this episode of The Navigating Leaders Podcast, Gabriel Griess introduces a powerful framework he calls “The Puzzle or the Path.” Through a simple but unforgettable illustration, he explores why so many people find themselves consumed by problems, distractions, relationships, and pursuits that pull them away from the purpose they were created to fulfill.  If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, stuck, pulled in too many directions, or uncertain about your next step, this conversation will challenge you to examine what’s truly deserving of your time, attention, and energy. The question isn’t whether you’re moving. The question is whether you’re moving in the direction you were meant to go.  ==================== RESOURCES 🌎 Website: navigatingleaders.com [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/] 👀 Vision Engine: navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine] 📖 The Results Tree—A Proven Path to the Life You Really Want [https://www.amazon.com/Results-Tree-Proven-Path-Really/dp/B0FZSXM5MF/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11494Y0W5UHVG&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.M90OGwFx3iTdHAqeUWXo5UW8MnN_PBFCeH5wBCznCH_yaOwl7rs-pnRYZO9wj-B_vYvCu0qeB6Nh1RILjw5MH8jGtYB1XbuO9MjoPMSwDoEihuLplPE3WBMmoey0IHCqq8AVf2jsTH9i7xngGc69u98pOh5DTqT6YOImf9TqtqWEA4HrXIDCkn97ElItaTA0vnSWaiVecQtQk6ozmpLannXdjZuqdT7EILiqWPQ4t5c.09uQh1R8aSwwujx1YOB9MOg1mfDJjsOeTqfmqbY1c14&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+results+tree&qid=1775071455&sprefix=the+results+tree%2Caps%2C178&sr=8-1]: TheResultsTree.com [http://theresultstree.com]  CONNECT WITH GABRIEL 🎥 YouTube: @navigatingleaders [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-TUFNxDFFu8im7BswjxmGw]📸 Instagram: @navigatingleaders [https://www.instagram.com/navigatingleaders/] 👍 Facebook: @navigatingleaders [https://www.facebook.com/navigatingleaders/] 🎵 TikTok: @navigatingleaders [https://www.tiktok.com/@navigatingleaders] 🗣️ LinkedIn: @navigatingleaders [https://www.linkedin.com/company/navigatingleaders/] ==================== ABOUT GABRIEL Gabriel Griess is a retired US Air Force officer, the CEO of Excel Medical Staffing and MedForceX, and the founder of Navigating Leaders. A graduate of the elite Air Force Weapons School, he has spent decades leading teams in high-pressure environments and equipping others to reach their full potential. As a combat veteran and an entrepreneur, Gabriel helps individuals cultivate self-awareness, resilience, and the ability to create lasting impact. An internationally sought-after keynote speaker, he addresses audiences on personal transformation, strategic leadership, and veteran empowerment. The Results Tree is the framework he lives by, and when applied, it will unearth your destiny.

Episode 21: How Faith Changed Sam Trevino’s Life, Marriage, and Leadership

What if your carpet cleaner carried a calling that had nothing to do with carpets? In this episode of The Navigating Leaders Podcast, host Gabriel Griess sits down with Sam Trevino, a father of six, man of faith, and founder of Made Clean Janitorial Services. Sam leads with purpose, and his company motto comes straight from Hebrews 9:14. It shows in everything he does. But before his business, beautiful marriage, and bold faith, there was a lost young man in a steel town in Indiana, drinking away his pain and searching for the father he never had. Sam shares the moment a TV preacher stopped him cold, the beer went down, and everything changed. He talks about hearing God’s voice at a quinceañera, proposing to a woman he barely knew, and why, 30 years later, that same obedience still guides him, including raising a three-year-old at age 62. This conversation goes deep on what it means to lead as a man, a father, and a servant, and why none of it works without God in the equation. It ends with a prayer you won’t want to skip. ==================== RESOURCES 🌎 Website: navigatingleaders.com [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/] 👀 Vision Engine: navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine] 📖 The Results Tree—A Proven Path to the Life You Really Want [https://www.amazon.com/Results-Tree-Proven-Path-Really/dp/B0FZSXM5MF/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11494Y0W5UHVG&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.M90OGwFx3iTdHAqeUWXo5UW8MnN_PBFCeH5wBCznCH_yaOwl7rs-pnRYZO9wj-B_vYvCu0qeB6Nh1RILjw5MH8jGtYB1XbuO9MjoPMSwDoEihuLplPE3WBMmoey0IHCqq8AVf2jsTH9i7xngGc69u98pOh5DTqT6YOImf9TqtqWEA4HrXIDCkn97ElItaTA0vnSWaiVecQtQk6ozmpLannXdjZuqdT7EILiqWPQ4t5c.09uQh1R8aSwwujx1YOB9MOg1mfDJjsOeTqfmqbY1c14&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+results+tree&qid=1775071455&sprefix=the+results+tree%2Caps%2C178&sr=8-1]: TheResultsTree.com [http://theresultstree.com/] ⏩ Made Clean Janitorial Services: www.madeclean.solutions [https://www.madeclean.solutions/] ⏩ Made Clean Janitorial Services on Facebook: facebook.com/MadeCleanJanitorialServices [https://facebook.com/MadeCleanJanitorialServices]  CONNECT WITH GABRIEL 🎥 YouTube: @navigatingleaders [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-TUFNxDFFu8im7BswjxmGw]📸 Instagram: @navigatingleaders [https://www.instagram.com/navigatingleaders/] 👍 Facebook: @navigatingleaders [https://www.facebook.com/navigatingleaders/] 🎵 TikTok: @navigatingleaders [https://www.tiktok.com/@navigatingleaders] 🗣️ LinkedIn: @navigatingleaders [https://www.linkedin.com/company/navigatingleaders/] ==================== ABOUT GABRIEL Gabriel Griess is a retired US Air Force officer, the CEO of Excel Medical Staffing and MedForceX, and the founder of Navigating Leaders. A graduate of the elite Air Force Weapons School, he has spent decades leading teams in high-pressure environments and equipping others to reach their full potential. As a combat veteran and an entrepreneur, Gabriel helps individuals cultivate self-awareness, resilience, and the ability to create lasting impact. An internationally sought-after keynote speaker, he addresses audiences on personal transformation, strategic leadership, and veteran empowerment. The Results Tree is the framework he lives by, and when applied, it will unearth your destiny.

Episode 20: Why High Achievers Need a Sabbatical

When was the last time you truly chose to rest? Not because you were forced to slow down, but because you intentionally made space to renew, reflect, and reset. In this episode of The Navigating Leaders Podcast, host Gabriel Griess makes the case for something most high achievers resist: taking a sabbatical. Not just a vacation, but intentional time to unplug, reflect, and refuel. Drawing from the “4 Rs”: renewal, reflection, rhythm, and rest. Gabriel unpacks why rest is not weakness; it’s wisdom. He also gets practical about what a sabbatical can actually look like: putting it on the calendar, choosing the right environment, unplugging completely, and giving your body and mind permission to slow down. If you’ve been running on empty, feeling burned out, or carrying more than you were designed to hold, this episode will challenge you to stop surviving and start investing in the one person everyone around you is counting on: you. ==================== RESOURCES 🌎 Website: navigatingleaders.com [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/] 👀 Vision Engine: navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine] 📖 The Results Tree—A Proven Path to the Life You Really Want [https://www.amazon.com/Results-Tree-Proven-Path-Really/dp/B0FZSXM5MF/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11494Y0W5UHVG&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.M90OGwFx3iTdHAqeUWXo5UW8MnN_PBFCeH5wBCznCH_yaOwl7rs-pnRYZO9wj-B_vYvCu0qeB6Nh1RILjw5MH8jGtYB1XbuO9MjoPMSwDoEihuLplPE3WBMmoey0IHCqq8AVf2jsTH9i7xngGc69u98pOh5DTqT6YOImf9TqtqWEA4HrXIDCkn97ElItaTA0vnSWaiVecQtQk6ozmpLannXdjZuqdT7EILiqWPQ4t5c.09uQh1R8aSwwujx1YOB9MOg1mfDJjsOeTqfmqbY1c14&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+results+tree&qid=1775071455&sprefix=the+results+tree%2Caps%2C178&sr=8-1]: TheResultsTree.com [http://theresultstree.com/]  CONNECT WITH GABRIEL 🎥 YouTube: @navigatingleaders [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-TUFNxDFFu8im7BswjxmGw]📸 Instagram: @navigatingleaders [https://www.instagram.com/navigatingleaders/] 👍 Facebook: @navigatingleaders [https://www.facebook.com/navigatingleaders/] 🎵 TikTok: @navigatingleaders [https://www.tiktok.com/@navigatingleaders] 🗣️ LinkedIn: @navigatingleaders [https://www.linkedin.com/company/navigatingleaders/] ==================== ABOUT GABRIEL Gabriel Griess is a retired US Air Force officer, the CEO of Excel Medical Staffing and MedForceX, and the founder of Navigating Leaders. A graduate of the elite Air Force Weapons School, he has spent decades leading teams in high-pressure environments and equipping others to reach their full potential. As a combat veteran and an entrepreneur, Gabriel helps individuals cultivate self-awareness, resilience, and the ability to create lasting impact. An internationally sought-after keynote speaker, he addresses audiences on personal transformation, strategic leadership, and veteran empowerment. The Results Tree is the framework he lives by, and when applied, it will unearth your destiny.

Episode 19: Happy Wife, Happy Life … But Not How You Think

You’ve probably heard the phrase “happy wife, happy life” a thousand times. But what if we’ve been missing the point? In this episode of The Navigating Leaders Podcast, host Gabriel Griess shares a simple moment with his wife, Kristie, and son, Preston, that completely reframed what it means to truly love, serve, and honor the people closest to us. At a time when the world feels filled with conflict, uncertainty, stress, and even headlines of war, it’s easy to overlook the quiet battles happening inside our homes, relationships, and hearts. In a culture searching for stronger marriages, deeper connection, emotional health, and less overwhelm, we often assume love looks like expensive vacations, jewelry, or grand gestures. While those things can be meaningful, Gabriel shares a different perspective: sometimes love looks much simpler and much more powerful. Through one ordinary Saturday afternoon spent scanning receipts, Gabriel uncovers an unexpected lesson about marriage, service, emotional support, and what people truly need most when life feels heavy. Sometimes the greatest gift you can give someone isn’t more; it’s relief. Whether you’re married, single, dating, or somewhere in between, this episode will challenge you to see the people in your life differently and ask: what burden can I help someone lay down today? ==================== RESOURCES 🌎 Website: navigatingleaders.com [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/] 👀 Vision Engine: navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine [http://www.navigatingleaders.com/vision-engine] 📖 The Results Tree—A Proven Path to the Life You Really Want [https://www.amazon.com/Results-Tree-Proven-Path-Really/dp/B0FZSXM5MF/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11494Y0W5UHVG&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.M90OGwFx3iTdHAqeUWXo5UW8MnN_PBFCeH5wBCznCH_yaOwl7rs-pnRYZO9wj-B_vYvCu0qeB6Nh1RILjw5MH8jGtYB1XbuO9MjoPMSwDoEihuLplPE3WBMmoey0IHCqq8AVf2jsTH9i7xngGc69u98pOh5DTqT6YOImf9TqtqWEA4HrXIDCkn97ElItaTA0vnSWaiVecQtQk6ozmpLannXdjZuqdT7EILiqWPQ4t5c.09uQh1R8aSwwujx1YOB9MOg1mfDJjsOeTqfmqbY1c14&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+results+tree&qid=1775071455&sprefix=the+results+tree%2Caps%2C178&sr=8-1]: TheResultsTree.com [http://theresultstree.com/]  ==================== CONNECT WITH GABRIEL 🎥 YouTube: @navigatingleaders [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-TUFNxDFFu8im7BswjxmGw]📸 Instagram: @navigatingleaders [https://www.instagram.com/navigatingleaders/] 👍 Facebook: @navigatingleaders [https://www.facebook.com/navigatingleaders/] 🎵 TikTok: @navigatingleaders [https://www.tiktok.com/@navigatingleaders] 🗣️ LinkedIn: @navigatingleaders [https://www.linkedin.com/company/navigatingleaders/] ==================== ABOUT GABRIEL Gabriel Griess is a retired US Air Force officer, the CEO of Excel Medical Staffing and MedForceX, and the founder of Navigating Leaders. A graduate of the elite Air Force Weapons School, he has spent decades leading teams in high-pressure environments and equipping others to reach their full potential. As a combat veteran and an entrepreneur, Gabriel helps individuals cultivate self-awareness, resilience, and the ability to create lasting impact. An internationally sought-after keynote speaker, he addresses audiences on personal transformation, strategic leadership, and veteran empowerment. The Results Tree is the framework he lives by, and when applied, it will unearth your destiny.