Things Leaders Do
Things Leaders Do is a leadership podcast for managers who want practical strategies that actually work, not leadership theory that sounds good in a boardroom. No fluff. No vague concepts. Just tactical frameworks you can implement Monday morning.
Whether you're a new manager figuring out how to lead your first team, a middle manager carrying the weight of the org, or a seasoned executive refining your approach, host Colby Morris breaks down people-first leadership with humor, insight, and straight talk.
Weekly episodes cover how to communicate and build trust, run one-on-ones that actually work, handle performance reviews that don't suck, balance accountability with empathy, manage conflict and tough conversations, lead through pressure and setbacks, plan for succession, develop your people, and build team cultures where people want to stay instead of just show up.
A lot of his content is for the leaders stuck in the middle.
Gen X managers running teams while reporting to executives above them and leading Millennial and Gen Z employees below. If you've ever felt like most leadership advice was written for somebody else's generation, this show was built for you.
New episodes every Wednesday. Host Colby Morris is the founder of NXT Step Advisors, providing executive coaching, team training, and keynote speaking focused on people-first leadership that drives real business results.
Connect at NXTStepAdvisors.com or linkedin.com/in/colbymorris
Episodes
142 episodes
How to Manage Your Old Coworkers (Without Losing Their Respect)
When you're promoted over your former peers, the job is to redraw three things on purpose: the relationship, the standard, and your own support system. Colby Morris calls it The Redraw, and it's the difference between a promotion that sticks an...
Your Boss Isn't Ignoring You. They're Just Not Hearing You.
Why does my boss ignore my ideas? Usually he isn't ignoring them, he just never heard them the way you meant them. In one workplace study, 81% of leaders said their people have an easy way to give feedback, while only 44% of employees said they...
Stop Going to Your Boss About Your Coworker
How do you handle a conflict with a coworker who doesn't report to you? Go to them directly, before your boss, and make it the two of you against the problem instead of you against each other. Most leaders were never taught this one. There are ...
GenX, You Figured It Out Alone. Stop Expecting Them To
Why do Gen X leaders keep clashing with younger employees? Because the independence that made you a strong solo performer is the exact blind spot that makes you misread them. A study of 25,000 leaders found that 66% of Gen X leaders got one pro...
Stop Running Your One-on-Ones
Why do well-structured one-on-ones still feel empty? Usually because the leader is supplying both the structure and everything that goes inside it. This one is for any leader who runs consistent, organized one-on-ones and still walks out knowin...
The Feedback Blackout
Why does a good team end up with broken processes and a quietly toxic culture? Usually because the leader stopped listening long before anything visibly broke. In this episode, Colby Morris introduces The Feedback Blackout, the three-stage slid...
You're Not Thinking About It. You're Avoiding It.
Why do leaders keep putting off the hardest decisions? Because "I'm thinking about it" is almost always a cover story for something else. Most of what leaders call deliberation is actually avoidance, and the fear underneath it is what's really ...
What Actually Builds Psychological Safety on Gen X-Led Teams
How do you actually build psychological safety on your team if you're a Gen X leader? Not by being softer. By being deliberate in the five seconds that matter. The traits that made you a strong leader (resilience, "figure it out," low tolerance...
Your A-Players Are Already Looking: The Signals Most Leaders Miss
How do you know if your top performers are about to quit? You watch for the five signals — and you fix the management pattern that's pushing them out. Gallup's Q4 2025 data found 51% of U.S. workers are either actively looking or watching for o...
The Gen X Guide to Managing Up to a Younger Boss
How does a Gen X leader manage up to a younger boss? Not by fighting the dynamic — by offering your experience as a gift instead of asserting it as a flag. CareerBuilder found that 53% of workers age 45 and up are reporting to a younger boss ri...
Stop Trying to Win Tough Conversations (Win the Trust Instead)
Research from Notre Dame says more than 80% of workers are holding back at least one tough conversation at work. So when leaders DO finally have those conversations, they're walking in with the wrong goal — trying to win them.In this epi...
AI for Leaders: How to Get Your Time Back and Actually Lead People
You don't have time for the people you're leading because you're spending hours on tasks that AI could handle in minutes. Leaders using AI save 40-60 minutes daily, yet only 26% of employees use AI weekly despite 91% of businesses adopting it. ...
AI Isn't Taking Your Job. Leaders Who Use AI Are
AI anxiety, particularly FOBO (Fear of Becoming Obsolete), affects 75% of employees concerned AI will make jobs obsolete. Nearly 55,000 U.S. job cuts were directly attributed to AI in 2025. The Five Irreplaceable Skills Framework (Colby Morris)...
Your Middle Managers Are Drowning (And You Know It)
Seventy-seven percent of CHROs lack confidence in their leadership bench strength. Meanwhile, 40% of middle managers are planning their exit.Your leadership pipeline isn't empty because of a talent problem—it's empty because you'r...
Leadership Burnout Isn't About You: The Four-Part Survival Framework
Leadership burnout isn't a personal failing—it's a predictable outcome of an unsustainable system. According to Colby Morris on The Things Leaders Do podcast, middle managers can survive unsustainable workloads through ruthless prior...
How to Communicate a Decision So It Actually Gets Implemented
Use a five-part framework to communicate decisions effectively: Start with why (explain the problem you're solving), explain what's changing and what's not, address obvious concerns upfront, tell people what happens next, and invite ...
Consensus vs. Buy-In (And Why You're Chasing the Wrong One)
Use a "disagree and commit" approach instead of chasing consensus. Consensus means everyone agrees (impossible). Buy-in means everyone commits even when they don't fully agree (achievable). Stop trying to make everyone happy and start getting e...
A Framework for Making Wise Decisions as a Leader
Use the GRIT framework to make wise decisions without perfect information: Gather the right information, Reflect on your values, Involve the right people, and Take action and own the outcome.You've been staring at a decision for two week...
You're Delegating Wrong
You're delegating all the time—assigning projects, distributing work, telling people what needs to get done. So why do they keep coming back to you with questions? Because you're delegating tasks, not authority. And there's a massive difference...
The 4 Questions to Stop Making Every Decision
Use this 4-question framework to determine which decisions require your authority: (1) Does this require information only I have? (2) Does this set precedent or carry significant risk? (3) Am I holding onto this for the right reasons? (4) Who i...
Why Your Onboarding Sucks (And How to Fix It)
How do you onboard new employees effectively? Don't leave it all to HR. While HR handles paperwork and compliance, leaders must own the relationship-building aspects of onboarding. Stay in contact before Day 1, ensure workspace and tools...
How to Hire Better (So You Don't Have to Fire Later)
How do you avoid making bad hires? Stop interviewing for skills and start interviewing for character using Patrick Lencioni's Humble, Hungry, and Smart framework. Ask specific behavioral questions that reveal these three virtues, watch f...
Performance Issue or Hiring Mistake? Make the Call
How do you know when someone needs more coaching versus when you've made a hiring mistake? Look for three signs: (1) They're missing one of Patrick Lencioni's core virtues (Humble, Hungry, or Smart) and it's not improving, (2) You're having the...
When to Address Underperformance (Part 2 of 2)
How do you actually have a performance conversation with an underperforming team member? Use a six-step framework: (1) Schedule it without drama, (2) Start with specific observations, (3) Listen to understand the root cause, (4) Name the impact...