The Honest Mic

Most people think leadership is about titles. About being in charge. About having the corner office and the team that reports to you. But Dr. Kevin Wayne Johnson has spent more than three decades learning that leadership isn't about any of that.It's about service.Kevin spent 34 years in the federal government and private industry as a frontline, mid-level, and senior-level leader. He led workforce development, organizational change, acquisition, customer service, security, budget and finance, records management, facilities, IT, and HR. He was a key leader on the National Performance Review under the first Clinton and Gore Administration. He served as Command Secretariat during the standup of the U.S. Cyber Command. And in 2024, he received the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award.Since 2001, he's written 24 books as a principal or contributing author. His current series, Leadership with a Servant's Heart, has earned 18 literary awards and has been a two-time new release bestseller on Amazon. In 2025, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Humanitarianism.In this episode of The Honest Mic, Kevin talks about why leadership matters, the difference between leadership and management, and the missing ingredient most leaders don't know.If you're early in your leadership journey and wondering what really matters, this conversation is for you.Connect with Kevin:Website: https://www.thejohnsonleadershipgroup.com/LinkedIn: Kevin Wayne JohnsonFirm: The Johnson Leadership GroupBooks: Leadership with a Servant's Heart series

You can be smart, capable, and completely overwhelmed. Not because you lack skill or drive. Because your brain is running patterns that made sense once and now work against you.That's the pattern Dr. Marcia Ruben has spent more than three decades helping leaders untangle.She's an executive coach, organizational consultant, and graduate leadership professor emerita with a doctorate and a deep background as a student of social cognitive neuroscience. She's won two teaching awards. And her new book, The Neuroscience of Leadership: Rewire. Untangle. Lead., just hit number one new release on Amazon in both Business & Management and Social Science Research within days.She's known as the Untangle Doctor. And what she brings isn't a pep talk or a productivity hack. It's a grounded, research-informed framework that explains why capable leaders get stuck — and exactly what they can do about it.In this episode of The Honest Mic, Marcia talks about the difference between tangled and untangled leadership, what Thought Knots actually are, and what neuroscience tells us about why smart people keep reacting badly under pressure.If you've ever felt like your brain is working against you, this conversation is for you.Connect with Marcia:Book: The Neuroscience of Leadership: Rewire. Untangle. Lead. (Amazon link in show notes)Website: Leadershiptangles.com

You can be the most knowledgeable person in your field. You can have years of expertise. You can be the one everyone comes to for answers. And still feel like the spotlight was meant for someone else.That's the internal hurdle Kelly Schuknecht has spent over twenty years helping professionals overcome.She's a marketing strategist and thought leadership expert who helps professionals move from being the industry's best-kept secret to a recognized authority. She's the author of Unlocking Your Authority X-Factor, where she shares her proven 3-Pillar Framework for building a brand through Visibility, Credibility, and Consistency.She's the founder of Two Mile High Marketing. She hosts two podcasts — Beyond the Bestseller and The Authority X-Factor.In this episode of The Honest Mic, Kelly talks about why capable people stay invisible, how the three pillars work together, and why personal branding is actually an act of service.If you've been the best-kept secret in your industry for too long, this conversation is for you.Connect with Kelly:Website: KellySchuknecht.comBook: Unlocking Your Authority X-FactorPodcasts: Beyond the Bestseller | The Authority X-Factor

In 2000, Mick Wienholt was climbing alone on a 14,000-foot peak in Colorado. He caused an avalanche. It would have killed him. His skull was fractured in three places. His scalp was split open to the bone. He was losing significant blood. And he was alone.He hiked three miles back to his truck. By the time he got there, he was so weak he couldn't get his jacket off or get into his truck. And thirty seconds before he reached that parking lot, a stranger named Steve arrived.That's one story. There are two more.In 2012, his firstborn son, Luke, was a full-term stillbirth at 39 weeks. And in 2025, Mick walked away from the highest-paying job of his career — after the offer was rescinded days before he was supposed to start — and followed what he believes was God's direction into podcasting.Mick is a high-energy Christian communicator, multiple President's Club sales award winner, and the host of Coincidence or God? — a podcast where ordinary people share extraordinary experiences and listeners decide for themselves.In this episode of The Honest Mic, Mick talks about the avalanche, the loss of his son, and the moment he walked away from a lucrative career to follow God's direction.If you've ever faced something you couldn't explain or control, this conversation is for you.Connect with Mick:Website: https://www.coincidenceorgod.com/

Most self-help tells you to flip a switch. Find the right system, the right mindset, the right morning routine, and everything changes. But if healing actually worked like a light switch, none of us would still be struggling with the same things we've been struggling with for years.Kerisma Vere knows that the light switch myth is one of the most damaging stories we tell ourselves about change.She's a holistic wellness coach and author who helps people move away from all-or-nothing self-help and toward healing, self-trust, and quality of life. Her work is grounded in lived experience — navigating trauma, anxiety, depression, PTSD, addiction, and significant life adversity.She's the author of The Light Switch Myth: Contemporary Approaches to Creating Lasting Change, the companion journal Ways I Showed Up for Myself, and the creator of the seven-module course From Pressure to Path: A Compassionate Framework for Change.In this episode of The Honest Mic, Kerisma talks about what her own recovery taught her about what doesn't help, how trauma affects motivation and self-trust, and why nervous system regulation matters more than willpower.If you've tried every system and still feel stuck, this conversation is for you.Connect with Kerisma:Website: TowardsWellness.caBooks: The Light Switch Myth | Ways I Showed Up for MyselfCourse: From Pressure to Path