Many leaders cut costs to protect the present but forget that these same cuts can quietly weaken the future.

Cost discipline is smart and responsible. However, when it becomes a fundamental part of the culture and every decision is based on “what’s cheapest” instead of “what creates value,” the organization doesn’t become leaner; it becomes smaller.

Innovation slows down. Risk tolerance collapses. Builders leave. Suddenly, the company is no longer prioritizing the mission; it’s focused on protecting the margins.

In this week’s episode of Insights, we explore how well-intentioned cost-cutting can lead to cultural drift, why great talent often senses it first, and how strong leaders can stabilize today without sacrificing tomorrow.

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Silence isn’t awkward; it’s powerful.

In negotiations, we often rush to speak, defend, or fill space. But research from MIT Sloan shows that even a three-second pause can transform outcomes. It creates space to think, listen, and discover value that neither side saw before.

In this Insights episode, I explore how deliberate silence can change the tone, tempo, and results of your most important conversations.

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In business and in teams, conflict is inevitable. The question is: will it divide you or drive you?

In the film Air, Nike’s basketball division was falling apart. Opinions clashed, egos collided, and no one agreed on a path forward. Then one person reframed the fight, turning tension into focus and skepticism into belief. That clarity led to one of the greatest partnerships in business history: Michael Jordan and Nike.

In this Insights episode, I explore how leaders can do the same, reducing unhealthy conflict before it starts.

Question: How do you turn tension into teamwork on your team?

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In 2008, the world was in a state of panic. Warren Buffett wasn’t.

While banks scrambled for survival, Buffett sat calmly on the other side of the table with something rarer than cash, credibility. Goldman Sachs needed both.

He didn’t chase the deal. He waited. And when they came calling, he offered $5 billion in preferred shares paying 10 percent plus warrants to buy more stock later. Goldman got stability. Buffett got extraordinary returns. That’s leverage, earned over years, used in a single, decisive moment.

In this episode of Insights, I break down how Buffett’s approach reveals the Five Pillars of Leverage and how you can apply them to your own negotiations.

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Ever notice how in golf the tiniest adjustment can change everything? One stroke is often the difference between making the cut or going home.

Leadership is no different. The small choices we make every day, easy to do, easy not to do, are what compound into long-term success.

In this episode of Insights, I share how the Slight Edge theory and golf teach us to lead with consistency, patience, and daily discipline.

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Disruptions aren’t the exception anymore; they’re part of the landscape.

Shutdowns, supply shortages, labor disputes, reorganizations, and even political or social unrest can send shockwaves through even the most prepared teams. We live in a period of VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous).

So what’s a leader to do? Ignore it and hope for calm? Push harder and risk burnout? Or use the disruption itself as a way to build resilience and clarity?

In the latest episode of Insights, I share practical ways leaders can respond when disruption hits. You’ll hear why acknowledging uncertainty openly, creating clarity where you can, reconnecting to purpose, adapting workflows thoughtfully, and caring for people’s resilience matter more than ever.

I revisit Delta Air Lines’ journey, which began with a rocky loyalty program rollout but ultimately became one of its strongest assets through learning from the disruption.

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My wife went to Penn State. Her dad and his twin brother were part of Penn State’s first wrestling national championship team. Her family is full of Nittany Lion alumni. One of my boys, Dylan, in a memorable moment for him, high-fived Coach James Franklin before a game last year.

So when Franklin was fired after more than a decade at Penn State, it wasn’t just another sports headline; it hit close to home. It’s also a leadership story worth exploring.

He rebuilt a broken program, restored belief, and won over 100 games. But in leadership, the real challenge isn’t building success, it’s maintaining it. Over time, expectations change, trust shifts, and what was once sufficient… no longer is.

In this episode of Insights, I examine what we can all learn from Franklin’s tenure about clarity, culture, reinvention, and knowing when to adapt before others step in.

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Ever feel like your team has more potential than it shows? This episode breaks down seven behaviors you can personally apply to spark new ideas, influence your team’s direction, and unlock major breakthroughs.

Visit Emil at New Amsterdam⁠