LIVE with The Famous Dr AL and Nicholas Volinchak

Episode Overview

In this inspiring conversation, Paul Lawrence Vann, known as The Leadership Catalyst and founder of Wealth Building Academy, reveals how true leadership begins with self-leadership.

From growing up as one of ten children in North Carolina to serving 22 years in the U.S. Air Force and advising Pentagon generals, Paul shares the leadership lessons that shaped his life — and how self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and resilience can transform yours.

🔑 Key Takeaways

• Lead yourself first. You can’t guide others until you master self-awareness and discipline.
• Influence > Title. True leaders inspire trust and collaboration, not compliance.
• Adversity reveals greatness. Every challenge is an opportunity to build resilience.
• Empathy wins. Great leaders listen, care, and serve their people first.
• Develop leaders, not followers. Empower others, and your organization thrives.

🎧 Listener Q&A

Q: What exactly is self-leadership?

A: It’s your ability to influence yourself — your mindset, habits, and emotions — before you influence others.

Q: How can leaders turn adversity into strength?

A: Through the “Leadership Trinity”: resilience, self-awareness, and emotional intelligence. These qualities forge true character under pressure.

Q: How can I balance leadership and personal life?

A: Lead with humanity. Foster team connection outside the office and prioritize relationships that matter.

Q: What’s the first step to becoming a better leader?

A: Start small — read, learn, take initiative. Leadership begins when you decide to grow.

📘 What You’ll Learn

• How to lead yourself before leading others
• How to develop resilience and emotional intelligence
• Why empathy outperforms authority
• The habits of leaders who inspire influence and trust
• How to align personal values with professional excellence

👤 Guest Links

• 🌐 PaulVanSpeaks.com
• 📗 Leadership Is Influence by Paul Lawrence Vann – Amazon

💎 FREE DOWNLOAD: The Self-Leadership Mastery Guide

Transform the way you lead — from the inside out.

This exclusive downloadable guide walks you through the five pillars of self-leadership: self-awareness, resilience, emotional intelligence, influence, and action.

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Guest: Kevin D. St.Clergy

What happens when the real problem isn’t what you think it is?

In this revealing episode, Dr. Allen Lycka sits down with Kevin D. St.Clergy—transformational business leader, podcast host, and author of Beyond Blind Blaming—to uncover how “blind blaming” keeps people and organizations stuck solving the wrong problems over and over again.

From his early career as an audiologist and founder of multiple successful businesses to his personal journey of rediscovering purpose after a major exit, Kevin shares how he developed the RCD Method—Reflect, Connect, Decide—to help leaders and entrepreneurs uncover the unseen obstacles holding them back.

Through relatable stories, scientific insights, and practical tools, Kevin explains how to identify hidden root causes, make faster, smarter decisions, and create transformation that lasts. His breakthrough framework, the ODNA (Obstacle Deep Nexus Analysis), helps you isolate the one constraint that, when addressed, creates ripple effects across your entire life and business.

If you’ve ever felt stuck chasing the same goals without progress or wondered why “solutions” never seem to stick, this conversation will open your eyes to what’s really going on beneath the surface.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How “blind blaming” forms—and the three hidden biases that sustain it

• Why most people succeed at fixing the wrong problems perfectly

• The 3-step RCD Method to stop overanalyzing and start deciding

• How to use ODNA to uncover one leverage point that transforms everything

• Why faster decisions—with quick pivots—create compounding gains

Connect with Kevin D. St.Clergy:

• Website: blindblaming.com

• LinkedIn: Kevin D. St.Clergy

• Book: Beyond Blind Blaming — Get Your Copy

Click here to claim your free gift:

👉 Download the Free Toolkit The Blind Blaming Breakthrough Toolkit (RCD + ODNA)

Transform how you think, decide, and solve problems with Kevin’s proven framework.

This free workbook helps you uncover hidden patterns, stop blind blaming, and start creating lasting breakthroughs in your business and life.