RISEUP: Voices From the Frontlines

TIL 40/40 Trauma Informed Leadership in the Real World: Episode 2

🎙️ New Episode Announcement We’re back with Part 2 of our live Q&A—going even deeper into the realities leaders face. Topics include: “This is how we’ve always done it.” How to transform rigid systems without losing your values. What to do when a leader’s discretion causes harm: repair, accountability, and outcome responsibility. How to prevent burnout while leading change. How to move teams from grievance to growth without minimizing pain. These aren’t hypotheticals; they’re the daily fires leaders stand in. You’ll hear trauma-informed strategies that protect dignity, deliver justice, and keep your North Star steady—even when the waves are high. It’s a masterclass in leading people and systems with courage and care. 🎧 Listen now on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790 [https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790] 📅 Book a call with Krista to see how this program can transform your leadership or schedule your organization’s custom training series: https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass [https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass]

TIL 39/40 Trauma Informed Leadership in the Real World: Question and Answer Episode 1

🎙️ New Episode Announcement Live from the frontlines of leadership, this conference-style Q&A tackles the questions you’re asking right now. How do I rebuild trust after a breach? How do I hold people accountable without shaming them? What do I do when my board, staff, or parents are polarized and combative? We field questions from school administrators, nonprofit directors, city leaders, business executives, and first responders. Every answer draws on the book and this series: nervous-system regulation, transparent communication, fair consequences, and systems that heal instead of harm. You’ll leave with scripts, practices, and frameworks you can use in your next meeting. If you’ve been craving practical, compassionate answers to high-stakes leadership dilemmas, this episode is for you. 🎧 Listen now on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790 [https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790] 📅 Book a call with Krista to see how this program can transform your leadership or schedule your organization’s custom training series: https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass [https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass]

TIL 38/40 The Peaceful Warrior

🎙️ New Episode Announcement When words no longer work, what then? Part 2 moves from philosophy to practice. We define the peaceful warrior: a leader who pursues peace relentlessly, prepares for conflict soberly, and refuses to dehumanize, even under pressure. You’ll learn how to set nonnegotiable boundaries, protect people and mission without collapsing into rage, and keep dignity intact when stakes are high. We also dig into de-escalation and the psychology of conflict, how to downshift nervous systems, interrupt the “us vs. them” spiral, and make principled decisions under fire. And yes, we talk about training: RISEUP offers a full de-escalation and conflict toolbox for leaders and teams who want real-world skills, not just ideals. This episode is your field guide for leading through confrontation without losing your soul. 🎧 Listen now on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790 [https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790] 📅 Book a call with Krista to see how this program can transform your leadership or schedule your organization’s custom training series: https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass [https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass]

TIL 37/40 Is Peace Possible in a Violent World

🎙️ New Episode Announcement Can we remain nonviolent in a violent world? In this episode, we wrestle with one of leadership’s oldest, hardest questions. We trace the arc from Gandhi’s "ahimsa" and King’s “soul force” to Churchill’s refusal to appease fascism and Mandela’s road from resistance to reconciliation. This isn’t just a theory for a classroom; it’s the daily paradox leaders face when they must hold dignity as the compass while confronting real harm. We’ll explore what nonviolence can accomplish, where it meets its limits, and how trauma-informed leaders avoid naïveté without surrendering their humanity. You’ll also hear the two questions every leader must answer before the crisis hits: What cause am I willing to die for? And what cause am I willing to take life for? If you don’t know, someone else may decide for you. If you lead in government, education, nonprofits, faith communities, business—or at home—this conversation will equip you to pursue peace while preparing to protect what matters. 🎧 Listen now on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790 [https://open.spotify.com/show/6IpBgf3j2RC4pKVMKxMkx6?si=3a827a5dc06c4790] 📅 Book a call with Krista to see how this program can transform your leadership or schedule your organization’s custom training series: https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass [https://calendly.com/riseupphoenix/compass]

The Bloodstained Microphone

The Bloodstained Microphone Leadership in an Age of Outrage, Influence, and Uncertainty In today's world, influence has never been easier to obtain. With a smartphone, a social media account, and an audience willing to listen, anyone can shape opinions, mobilize movements, and influence public discourse. Yet while influence has become increasingly accessible, responsibility, accountability, and leadership have not necessarily kept pace. In this thought-provoking episode, Dr. Krista Fee examines the growing gap between influence and leadership through the lens of trauma psychology, neuroscience, crisis response, and real-world leadership experience. Using current events, including the Karmelo Anthony case, public unrest, social media culture, and escalating international tensions as examples, this episode explores why outrage often feels like certainty, how emotional contagion influences communities, and why the loudest voices are not always the wisest. Listeners will discover: • Why certainty and truth are not the same thing • The neuroscience of outrage, tribalism, and emotional contagion • The difference between justice and vengeance • Why influence without accountability is dangerous • How social media has transformed modern leadership • The "Facts First, Feelings Second, Options Third, Action Last" decision-making framework • Why responsible leaders learn to tolerate uncertainty • The hidden consequences of public influence • How to pursue truth without sacrificing compassion • Why the people caught in the middle of every conflict matter most At its heart, this episode is not about politics, ideology, or taking sides. It is about leadership. It is about responsibility. It is about what happens when ordinary people are given extraordinary influence and the choices they make with it. Because the microphone is never neutral. Every word lands somewhere. Every message influences someone. Every movement impacts real lives. The question is not whether we have influence. The question is whether we understand the responsibility that comes with it. Hosted by Dr. Krista Fee Executive Director, RISEUP Phoenix Trauma and Crisis Institute Where neuroscience meets leadership for high-stakes environments.