"Mental Fitness is the spiritual, emotional, and neurological conditioning that allows a man to stay clear-minded: when everything is noisy, he's steady; when things feel urgent, he's focused; when distractions seem to be relentless, he is anchored." —Don Wood

Leadership pressure does not show up all at once. It builds quietly in the mind through constant decisions, unspoken stress, and the weight of responsibility. When clarity fades and peace feels out of reach, the problem is rarely effort. It is often the condition of the mind carrying the load.

This episode draws from Don's personal season of chronic stress and recovery, where physical challenges revealed a deeper battle in the mind. That experience reshaped how he now teaches leaders to care for their mental, emotional, and spiritual health as part of faithful leadership.

Press play for a grounded conversation that reframes mental fitness as essential leadership stewardship and offers practical rhythms leaders can use right away.

• Mental fitness vs mental toughness in leadership

• How chronic stress rewires the brain and decision-making

• Why leaders burn out from small, unprocessed stressors

• Biblical foundations for renewing the mind

• Daily habits that build calm, clarity, and focus

• The two-minute reset and nervous system regulation

• Decision fatigue, isolation, and emotional containment

• Building mental margin and ending the day well

• Why mental fitness multiplies leadership impact

Episode Highlights:

02:49 The Importance of Mental Fitness for Leaders
05:10 Enemies of Mental Fitness and Practical Solutions
09:27 Daily Habits for Mental Fitness
11:43 The Role of Sleep and Mental Fitness as a Leadership Multiplier

Meet Your Host:

Don Wood is the founder of Men's Leadership, God's Way, where he coaches executives and leaders to achieve clarity, confidence, and peace without sacrificing their health, faith, or family. Drawing from his own journey through adversity—including overcoming addiction, serious health challenges, and personal loss—Don inspires others to lead with conviction and purpose. His faith-based approach emphasizes transformation, resilience, and the power of vulnerability, helping men discover their unique gifts and live out their calling. Don is dedicated to equipping leaders to experience true success by trusting in God's wisdom and strength.

Website

Facebook

LinkedIn

X

YouTube

"Spirit-led leadership isn't this mystical, hyper-religious exercise. It happens when a guy becomes grounded, guided, and empowered by God, rather than being driven by fear." —Don Wood

Carrying responsibility while staying tense inside eventually takes a toll. Many men stay productive, dependable, and outwardly steady while living with constant pressure, guarded emotions, and a quiet fear of failure. That tension is not weakness; it is survival mode doing its job far past its season.

This episode draws from Don's own healing journey and years of walking with men who learned early how to stay alert, perform, and self-protect. Those patterns shaped leadership, faith, and relationships until healing created space for a different way to lead.

Press play to explore how leadership shifts when fear no longer runs the system and the Holy Spirit is allowed to guide from a place of rest.

• How survival mode forms in childhood and follows men into leadership

• Physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual signs of living in survival mode

• Why productivity can hide fear-driven leadership

• The difference between survival-driven effort and Spirit-Led Leadership

• How healing, not discipline, creates real change

• Biblical examples of God meeting men in weakness

• Simple practices that open the door to healing and spiritual clarity

• What it looks like to lead from rest instead of pressure

Episode Highlights:

03:16 Impact of Survival Mode on Leadership and Relationships
05:17 Formation and Consequences of Survival Mode
08:06 Practical Steps for Healing and Spirit-Led Leadership
13:53 Take the Next Steps in Your Leadership Journey

Meet Your Host:

Don Wood is the founder of Men's Leadership, God's Way, where he coaches executives and leaders to achieve clarity, confidence, and peace without sacrificing their health, faith, or family. Drawing from his own journey through adversity—including overcoming addiction, serious health challenges, and personal loss—Don inspires others to lead with conviction and purpose. His faith-based approach emphasizes transformation, resilience, and the power of vulnerability, helping men discover their unique gifts and live out their calling. Don is dedicated to equipping leaders to experience true success by trusting in God's wisdom and strength.

Website

Facebook

LinkedIn

X

YouTube

"Healed men will lead differently, they love differently, they father compassionately, they serve sacrificially, and they live powerfully." —Don Wood

Some moments from childhood stay buried for years, but they keep shaping the way we lead, connect, and protect ourselves. Many of us learned early to hide pain and power through it alone, yet something inside keeps asking for rest and truth. This episode sits in that tension where old wounds and new hope collide.

Don shares a childhood story that marked his identity and leadership for decades, then unpacks how a moment of healing later in life reframed everything he believed about protection, belonging, and God's presence.

Press play for a story that meets the hidden places many men carry and reminds us that redemption reaches deeper than memory.

Topics covered:

• How early trauma shapes leadership and identity
• The hidden beliefs formed in chaotic homes
• The spiritual impact of childhood shame
• EMDR and the process of reprocessing pain
• A transformative encounter with Jesus by a mountain stream
• How healing changes the way men lead, love, and serve

Episode Highlights:

02:47 Childhood Trauma and Its Impact
06:37 The Wounds That Follow Into Adulthood
08:01 Discovering EMDR and Therapeutic Healing
10:33 The Transformative Experience by the Stream
14:03 The Call to Help Other Men

Meet Your Host:

Don Wood is the founder of Men's Leadership, God's Way, where he coaches executives and leaders to achieve clarity, confidence, and peace without sacrificing their health, faith, or family. Drawing from his own journey through adversity—including overcoming addiction, serious health challenges, and personal loss—Don inspires others to lead with conviction and purpose. His faith-based approach emphasizes transformation, resilience, and the power of vulnerability, helping men discover their unique gifts and live out their calling. Don is dedicated to equipping leaders to experience true success by trusting in God's wisdom and strength.

Website

Facebook

LinkedIn

X

YouTube