Lancefield on the Line

The same workplaces that have held back women aren't working especially well for men either. That insight reframes the whole conversation about gender at work.
My guest is Jennifer McCollum, CEO and President of Catalyst, one of the world's leading organisations dedicated to advancing women and building workplaces where everyone can thrive. She is also the author of Men at Work: The Roadmap to Gender Partnership, a practical and timely book on men, women, power, fear and change.
We explore the man box, the narrow set of expectations around strength, competition and control that creates real anxiety for 84% of men, and why fear is the biggest thing stopping men from advocating for others and for themselves. Jennifer explains what gender partnership looks like in practice and which organisational systems leaders need to examine if they want real change.
If you lead a team or run an organisation, this conversation will change how you think about performance, culture and who gets to thrive.
Where in your world are old expectations still limiting people?
"Men feel pressure to live in the man box." - Jennifer McCollum
You’ll hear about
•      Why workplaces aren’t working well for men
•      The man box and its 84% pressure statistic
•      Fear as the biggest barrier to speaking up
•      What gender partnership really means in practice
•      How advocating for others benefits men too
•      Pitching gender partnership to a new CEO
•      Key talent systems every leader should examine
•      Why trust must come before truth
•      The Walk the Line exercise and its surprising results
About Jennifer:
Jennifer McCollum is a recognized CEO, speaker, and leadership expert on a mission to build more inclusive workplaces by advancing women and engaging men as partners in equity.
She is the author of the book Men at Work: The Roadmap to Gender Partnership, a powerful call for men to move beyond passive support toward shared leadership. She also wrote In Her Own Voice: A Woman’s Rise to CEO, which explores the challenges women face on the path to leadership through data and personal storytelling.
She is President &CEO of Catalyst, a global nonprofit dedicated to accelerating progress for women at work. Previously, she was the first female CEO of Linkage, a leadership development firm focused on changing the face of leadership, where she successfully led its acquisition by SHRM.
Her insights have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Forbes, and Psychology Today, and she’s spoken on hundreds of stages worldwide. 
She lives in the Washington, D.C., area with her husband and three children, and is a passionate tennis player and skier.
Catalyst: https://www.catalyst.org/
Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferscherermccollum/
Book: https://www.catalyst.org/en-gb/insights/men-at-work-book
 
My resources:
Try my High-stakes meetings toolkit (https://bit.ly/43cnhnQ).
Take my Becoming a Strategic Leader course (https://bit.ly/3KJYDTj).
Sign up to my Every Day is a Strategy Day newsletter (http://bit.ly/36WRpri) for modern mindsets and practices to help you get ahead.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel (http://bit.ly/3cFGk1k) where you can watch the conversation.
For more details about me:
●      Services (https://rb.gy/ahlcuy) to CEOs, entrepreneurs and professionals.
●      About me (https://rb.gy/dvmg9n) - my background, experience and philosophy.
●      Examples of my writing https://rb.gy/jlbdds).
●      Follow me and engage with me on LinkedIn (https://bit.ly/2Z2PexP).
●      Follow me and engage with me on Twitter (https://bit.ly/36XavNI).

Most high-performing men in midlife aren't burned out because they're doing too much. They're burned out because they've never learned to recover.
My guest is Dr Kenneth Ro, a double board-certified physician and founder of the Reclaim Method. After more than 35 years in the emergency room, Ken has seen the patterns that play out when men ignore the signals their bodies and minds send them in midlife.
We explore why medicine is too reactive, why the real problem isn't stress but chronic under-recovery, and why the identity that got you here may now be holding you back. Ken also draws on his ER experience to share how to navigate personal crisis without being hijacked by your first instinct.
If you are in midlife, approaching it, or living and working with men who are, this conversation will help you see what's holding you back and what to do about it.
“Ageing is inevitable, but decline is optional.” - Dr Ken Ro
You’ll hear about
·      Why midlife is medicine's biggest blind spot 
·      Energy signals you've been normalising 
·      Why you're under recovered, not overstressed 
·      Starting small to reclaim yourself 
·      Why action creates feeling, not the reverse 
·      How male identity gets locked in midlife 
·      Vulnerability, curiosity and men's circles 
·      ER lessons for navigating personal crisis 
·      Why your first crisis instinct is wrong 
·      People watching as a prompt for change 
·      Pattern recognition under extreme pressure
 
About Ken:
Dr. Ken Ro is a double board-certified emergency physician, speaker, and founder of the RECLAIM™ Method — a physician-led framework designed to help high-performing men reclaim energy, clarity, resilience, and purpose in midlife. He is the founder of Back in the Game Men™, a concierge precision medicine and performance practice, and the author of PRIME: How to Win the Second Half of Life.
Dr. Ro’s work has been featured in media outlets including CEOWORLD Magazine, KevinMD, KHOU Houston, ABC Sacramento, and multiple health and leadership podcasts. His broader mission through the Nova Oath™ movement is to help restore trust, humanity, and courageous care in medicine.
Profile and services: https://KennethRoMD.com and https://BackintheGameMen.com and https://Nova-Oath.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drkenro/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkennethro/
Book: PRIME: How to Win the Second Half of Life. https://www.amazon.com/PRIME-Physicians-Reclaiming-Redefining-Strength/dp/B0G1L2JBZ5
 
My resources:
Try my High-stakes meetings toolkit (https://bit.ly/43cnhnQ).
Take my Becoming a Strategic Leader course (https://bit.ly/3KJYDTj). 
Sign up to my Every Day is a Strategy Day newsletter (http://bit.ly/36WRpri) for modern mindsets and practices to help you get ahead.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel (http://bit.ly/3cFGk1k) where you can watch the conversation.
 
For more details about me:
 
●      Services (https://rb.gy/ahlcuy) to CEOs, entrepreneurs and professionals.
●      About me (https://rb.gy/dvmg9n) - my background, experience and philosophy.
●      Examples of my writing https://rb.gy/jlbdds).
●      Follow me and engage with me on LinkedIn (https://bit.ly/2Z2PexP).
●      Follow me and engage with me on Twitter (https://bit.ly/36XavNI).

What if the best things in your life all began in a moment of fear?
My guest Scott Simon, author of Scare Your Soul, believes exactly that.
After a panic attack on a plane, he committed to one scary act every single day for a year. Those small daily acts transformed his life, and one of them, singing in front of a restaurant, sparked a global movement. He now coaches individuals, leaders and organisations to build their own courage practice.
We get into why high performers get stuck coasting on past success, and what it takes to break free. You'll also hear how building a personal courage practice shapes the culture and trust of the teams around you. Scott also shares why asking for help and practising forgiveness are strategic acts, and how small consistent actions create the conditions for bolder decisions and better leadership.
If you think your life is fine and you do not need to push yourself, this one is especially for you.
“When we start doing brave things in life, it affects everyone around us” – Scott Simon
You’ll hear about
A panic attack that sparked a daily courage practice.
Focusing on action, not outcome.
Courage as internal work, not just external action.
Why forgiveness is the ultimate act of courage.
Being successfully stuck and how to break free.
The CEO who took on Big Tobacco despite success.
The lie you tell yourself to stay safe.
Why courage is an act of service.
Why 85% of our fears never materialise.
About Scott:
Scott is the founder of the global Scare Your Soul courage movement and bestselling author of Scare Your Soul: 7 Powerful Principles to Harness Fear and Lead Your Most Courageous Life (Hachette). As a keynote speaker and courage consultant, he has worked with the Cleveland Cavaliers, United Nations, Nestlé, Logitech, Lululemon, and SXSW to inspire braver teams and bolder cultures. His methodology is a unique blend of neuroscience, positive psychology, and behaviour design. Scott is dangerously obsessed with the NYT online word puzzles and is on a perpetual quest to discover the world's best hole-in-the-wall restaurants.
He teaches that courage is not a personality trait — it's a practice.
Scott's work: www.scottsimon.us 
Weekly courage challenges: https://scareyoursoul.substack.com 
Books: www.scottsimon.us/book

My resources:
Try my High-stakes meetings toolkit (https://bit.ly/43cnhnQ).
Take my Becoming a Strategic Leader course (https://bit.ly/3KJYDTj).
Sign up to my Every Day is a Strategy Day newsletter (http://bit.ly/36WRpri) for modern mindsets and practices to help you get ahead.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel (http://bit.ly/3cFGk1k) where you can watch the conversation.
For more details about me:
Services (https://rb.gy/ahlcuy) to CEOs, entrepreneurs and professionals.
About me (https://rb.gy/dvmg9n) - my background, experience and philosophy.
Examples of my writing https://rb.gy/jlbdds).
Follow me and engage with me on LinkedIn (https://bit.ly/2Z2PexP).
Follow me and engage with me on Twitter (https://bit.ly/36XavNI).

What does strategy really mean when the word is everywhere, yet real strategic practice remains so rare?
In this solo episode, David Lancefield takes on one of the most overused and misunderstood ideas in business. Drawing on nearly 30 years advising CEOs, C-suite leaders, founders, and leadership teams, he makes the case for a broader, more practical, and more human view of strategy.
David explores why strategy so often gets trapped in decks, town halls, and top-level statements, while people across organisations are left unclear on the choices they can make and the contribution they can bring. He argues for a different approach: one that connects strategy with foresight, participation, ecosystems, self-management, and the wise use of AI — and brings it into the everyday moments that shape how we live and lead.
If you want to think more clearly, act more intentionally, and raise your strategic game in your organisation, your team, and your own life, this episode will give you a fresh lens and a practical way forward.
“Strategy is a practice for everyone, professional or personal.” – David Lancefield
You’ll hear about:
Why strategy is treated as distant and elite
Strategy defined: choices that move you to better
Why strategy and execution must stay together
Strategies that get announced but never translated down
Why more people need confidence to be strategic
The growing importance of foresight within strategy
What open strategy looks like in practice
Why ecosystems should shape strategy design and delivery
How self-managed teams raise the bar for strategy
Where AI helps in strategy and where it doesn't
The seven daily moments that make or break a day
Why strategy is a practice for everyone
More about David:
David Lancefield is a strategy and leadership advisor, coach, writer, and speaker who works with CEOs, C-suite executives, and founders at some of the world’s top organisations. Over nearly 30 years, he has worked with more than 60 CEOs and hundreds of senior leaders on strategy, leadership, culture, decision-making, and growth.
He writes for Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan Review, strategy+business, Fast Company, and Forbes, and has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, The Times, and The Guardian. David is a former senior partner at Strategy&/PwC, a guest lecturer at London Business School, and the author of the newsletter Every Day is a Strategy Day.
My resources:
Try my High-stakes meetings toolkit (https://bit.ly/43cnhnQ).
Take my Becoming a Strategic Leader course (https://bit.ly/3KJYDTj).
Sign up to my Every Day is a Strategy Day newsletter (http://bit.ly/36WRpri) for modern mindsets and practices to help you get ahead.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel (http://bit.ly/3cFGk1k) where you can watch the conversation.
For more details about me:
●      Services (https://rb.gy/ahlcuy) to CEOs, entrepreneurs and professionals.
●      About me (https://rb.gy/dvmg9n) - my background, experience and philosophy.
●      Examples of my writing https://rb.gy/jlbdds).
●      Follow me and engage with me on LinkedIn (https://bit.ly/2Z2PexP).
●      Follow me and engage with me on Twitter (https://bit.ly/36XavNI).

What if failure hits differently depending on your gender?
In this episode I speak with Deborah Grayson Riegel, an executive coach and author whose research across 1,100 women in 60 countries reveals why women experience setbacks more intensely than men, and what to do about it.
We dig into why women tend to ruminate longer, and see failure as identity rather than event, and where those patterns come from.
We explore the practical tools that can shift all of that: how to reframe failure, ask for better feedback, tackle invisible work, and build the kind of support network that helps you aim higher and recover faster.
If you are a woman navigating setbacks, this episode will change how you think about failure and what becomes possible on the other side. And if you lead or work alongside women, it will make you a better teammate and leader.
"Women see failure as their identity, not an event." — Deborah Grayson Riegel
You’ll hear about
What failure really means and why it's broader. 
Why women personalise and ruminate more after setbacks. 
The five types of failure and which hit hardest. 
How failure patterns start from age five. 
The confidence gap versus the consequence gap. 
Shifting from "what if" to "even if I fail." 
How to ask for better, more specific feedback. 
Navigating non-promotable and invisible work. 
The Ground, Gather and Go framework. 
About Deborah:
Deborah Grayson Riegel is a keynote speaker and consultant who teaches leadership communication for Wharton Business School, Duke Business School, and Columbia Business School. She is a regular contributor for Harvard Business Review, Inc., Psychology Today, Forbes, and Fast Company. Deb consults and speaks for clients including Amazon, BlackRock, Bloomberg, Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo, and The United States Army. Her work has been featured in worldwide media, including Bloomberg Businessweek, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. She is the co-author of the new book, “Aim High and Bounce Back: A Successful Woman’s Guide to Rethinking and Rising Up from Failure”.
Website: https://deborahgraysonriegel.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Deborah-Grayson-Riegel
Book Link: https://shorturl.at/nuPna and https://shorturl.at/OsWtU 
My resources:
Try my High-stakes meetings toolkit (https://bit.ly/43cnhnQ).
Take my Becoming a Strategic Leader course (https://bit.ly/3KJYDTj).
Sign up to my Every Day is a Strategy Day newsletter (http://bit.ly/36WRpri) for modern mindsets and practices to help you get ahead.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel (http://bit.ly/3cFGk1k) where you can watch the conversation.
For more details about me:
Services (https://rb.gy/ahlcuy) to CEOs, entrepreneurs and professionals.
About me (https://rb.gy/dvmg9n) - my background, experience and philosophy.
Examples of my writing https://rb.gy/jlbdds).
Follow me and engage with me on LinkedIn (https://bit.ly/2Z2PexP).
Follow me and engage with me on Twitter (https://bit.ly/36XavNI).