What does it take to live above your perceived potential—and help others do the same?

In this episode of One Sharp Sword, Dr. Wayne Pernell sits down with Damon Dixon, a lifelong leader whose journey spans Division I athletics, a 33-year Naval career, biotech leadership, and now senior operations at BYU Athletics. Rather than a straight résumé walk-through, this conversation dives into the inner architecture of leadership: identity, vision, faith, perseverance, and service.

Damon shares the story behind his personal “why”—to inspire all he comes in contact with so they maximize their potential—and how that purpose guided him through setbacks, career pivots, and moments where the plan fell apart… only to lead somewhere better.

🔑 Key Themes & Takeaways

• Living Above Potential: How Damon reframed limitations and outperformed expectations as a 5’8” Division I wide receiver
• Identity Before Outcome: Why becoming the person matters more than achieving the title
• The Navy as a Leadership Laboratory: Lessons in people-first leadership learned over three decades of service
• Setbacks as Redirection: When the “dream job” disappears—and why that may be essential
• The Power of Mentorship: How seeking (and becoming) mentors accelerates growth
• Multipliers, Not Diminishers: Building teams that scale talent, trust, and impact
• Faith + Effort: “Work as if everything depends on you; pray as if everything depends on God.”

👤 About Damon Dixon
Damon Dixon is the Chief of Staff for BYU Athletics, a former Naval officer, Division I football player, biotech executive, and mentor. Across every chapter of his career, Damon has focused on one core mission: helping people perform beyond what they thought possible.

🔗 Connect with Damon LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/damon-b-dixon-mba/

🎥 Watch the full episode now on my YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/6TmCXPsso2g

In this wide-ranging and deeply pragmatic conversation, Dr. Wayne Pernell sits down with Mark Stouse—founder and CEO of Proof Causal AI—to explore what actually drives outcomes in business and life. Together, they unpack the critical difference between correlation and causation, why most patterns we notice don’t matter, and how leaders can reclaim agency in a world where 70–80% of factors are outside their control.

Blending philosophy, math, leadership insight, and real-world examples, this episode challenges conventional thinking about truth, belief, intuition, and effectiveness—while offering leaders a radically practical way forward.

Key Topics & Insights
• Causality vs. Correlation: Why understanding why things happen matters more than spotting patterns
• The 70–80% Reality: Most outcomes are shaped by factors outside your control—what matters is how you respond
• Three Universal Leadership Questions:
∘ How do I get more of what matters?
∘ How do I make it better?
∘ How do I do it faster?
• Reality Over “Truth”: Why belief can shut down progress—and why reality is the true decision-maker
• Unlearning: Letting go of outdated knowledge as a leadership superpower
• Time Lag Effects: Why good decisions take time to show results—and bad ones don’t
• Efficiency vs. Effectiveness: Why cutting costs without direction misses the point
• Agency Without Illusion: Doing your best, acting with integrity, and releasing control of outcomes
• Intuition, Instinct, and GIGO: How flawed data sets lead to consistently bad decisions
• Radical Pragmatism: Making better decisions without over-philosophizing the process

Mark Stouse is the founder and CEO of Proof Causal AI, and one of today’s most thoughtful voices on causality, fiduciary risk, and executive accountability. Known for blending rigorous mathematics with radical pragmatism, Mark helps leaders make better, defensible decisions in complex, rapidly changing environments. He is also the author of an upcoming book on Unlearning.

🔗 Connect with Mark on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markstouse/

🎥 Watch now on my YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/gHnqzgQzEdk

In this episode of One Sharp Sword, Dr. Wayne Pernell sits down with Aman Mahapatra, Chief Strategy Officer at Tribeca Softech, to explore the rapidly evolving intersection of AI, strategy, and large-scale organizational transformation.

Aman brings a rare operator-investor perspective, sharing how Tribeca Softech partners with Fortune-level organizations—especially in financial services—to modernize legacy systems, break down silos, and responsibly deploy AI at scale. Together, they unpack the real evolution of artificial intelligence—from early machine learning and recommendation engines to large language models, Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), and autonomous AI agents.

The conversation goes beyond technology into governance, cybersecurity, decentralized identity, and financial inclusion—highlighting how AI, when designed with guardrails and intention, can democratize access rather than deepen inequality. Aman also shares glimpses of his nonlinear personal journey and teases an upcoming AI spin-off emerging from Tribeca Softech.

This episode is a grounded, human-centered look at AI—not as hype, but as a strategic lever shaping leadership, culture, and the future of institutions.

Key Topics Covered
• What a Chief Strategy Officer actually does at a modern AI-driven firm
• Why banks have “a museum of systems”—and how AI can untangle them
• Machine learning vs. large language models (explained simply)
• The rise of RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) and AI agents
• Why governance, permissioning, and security must lead AI adoption
• Financial inclusion: banking the unbanked through non-traditional data
• Decentralized digital identity (DID) and encrypted consumer protection
• Why AI reshapes jobs rather than eliminates them
• Aman’s nonlinear journey across continents, startups, and venture work
• A teaser on Tribeca Softech’s upcoming AI spin-off (launching 2025)

Aman Mahapatra is Chief Strategy Officer at Tribeca Softech, where he operates at the intersection of strategy, operations, and go-to-market execution. His work focuses on AI-driven transformation across finance, healthcare, and technology, with a strong emphasis on governance, modernization, and financial inclusion. Aman’s journey spans early entrepreneurship, venture consulting, and global leadership roles—bringing a deeply practical lens to emerging technology.

Connect with Aman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akm76/
🎥 Watch the conversation on my YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/t8f2ET8DCQQ