Intentional Conversations. Stronger Teams. Seamless Integration.

Designed to sustain what matters most: culture, performance, and well-being. 

Let us be your guide. Four StepBack Sessions provided each month to simplify your prep time!

  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Sometimes waiting for the right decision can be helpful. Other times action is more necessary. Sara Blakely shares what happened when she decided to take action.
  • Questions: 
    • What gets in the way of making a quick decision?
    • Can waiting ever be productive?
    • What’s more valuable for our team: patience or action?
  • Tool: Intention & Action
    • If your instinct is to jump too quickly into action, STAND still and be patient
    • If your instinct is to overthink, just START and dive into action immediately


 
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: An intentional mindset can help us extract value from all circumstances. Emma Grede highlights the perspective she had early in her career and how it helped her to stay focused on her long term goal.
  • Questions: 
    • When have you labeled something as unenjoyable or unimportant before giving it a chance?
    • Do you have to have a clear pathway to see value in the things you do now?
    • How do we help each other stay motivated when the work feels unimportant or unenjoyable?
  • Tool: Intention & Action
    • Reflect and set an intention before approaching work:
      • What is there to learn from this? What aspects can I find enjoyment in?
      • How can this benefit the larger team? What can I do to support others?

  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: There are opportunities to push self-imposed boundaries and deliver in a way that elevates the quality of what you do. Will Guidara shares about a food experience that changed the trajectory of his work in the service industry.
  • Questions: 
    • When have you hesitated to act based on some self-imposed standard?
    • How do we know when to “break the rules” to create a better experience?
    • Where do we have the opportunities to create these moments but might be missing them or not acting on them?
  • Tool: Intention & Action
    • Presence: Be aware of what is being said and unsaid
    • Challenge: Am I overthinking a rule that doesn’t exist
    • Action: DO the small thing that could make a difference

  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: People who are given the feeling of choice and ownership, tend to produce a better result than people who are told what to do. Even if we know this, it’s hard to practice it. Matthew McConaughey and Rick Rubin elaborate.
  • Questions: 
    • Why might giving someone the opportunity to feel like it’s their idea lead to better results?
    • Why do you think people resist being told what to do, even if it aligns with what they want to do?
    • What are we doing to give feedback in a way that empowers ownership?
    • What strategies can we use to present ideas so they feel more collaborative?
  • Tool: Mindful Pause
    • Prompting Ownership: This week, before asking someone to do something or giving feedback, take a mindful pause. In this pause, identify one strategy that will prompt more freedom and ownership for the receiver. 

  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Principles, values, or non-negotiables serve as guides in the decisions we make. While it’s likely we have some form of these, it can be easy to forget or even compromise on them to serve an immediate need. Clay Christensen, Harvard Business Professor, shares his story.
  • Questions: 
    • Why do you think he says that it’s easier to hold to your principles 100% of the time than it is 98% of the time?
    • What’s the difference between compromising your principles vs changing your mind due to conviction?
    • How does this show up for us? Are there small compromises we justify?
    • What principle/value do we need to revisit and how can we ensure accountability?
  • Tool: Mindful Pause
    • C.O.R.E. Principles: Before making a decision or when feeling like you might compromise, practice C.O.R.E.
      • Choice: Is this a conscious or convenient decision?
      • Ownership: Am I in control or justifying?
      • Repetition: If I do this once, will it be easier next time?
      • Ethos: Is this aligned with who I am / who we are?

  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Great teams find a way to embrace the discomfort of truth-telling, doing so with compassion, because they recognize the impact of tolerance. Jeff Bezos explains.
  • Questions:
    • When have you held back the truth because it felt easier not to share?
    • What pushes you to tell the uncomfortable truth?
    • What is the tendency for truth telling in our culture?
  • Tool: Intention & Action
    • What is one truth I need to share with who?
    • Why is it important to tell this truth? (outcomes if I do or don’t)
    • When will be the right time?
    • How will I be sure to be compassionate when I do so?
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up:
    • Opportunities, new challenges, and failures almost always produce feelings of discomfort. To avoid these feelings of discomfort, we often minimize or make excuses. Mike Tomlin shares more.
  • Questions:
    • Why do we naturally look for comfort when things get hard? 
    • What are common excuses we use when faced with discomfort?
    • What would it look like to embrace discomfort rather than the comfort of making excuses?
  • Tool: Cold Shower
    • Take a cold shower and reflect on a moment where you used an excuse to deflect failure/challenge. In the cold shower, be honest with yourself about the reality of the failure/challenge. Get comfortable in the uncomfortable.
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: In a TED Talk, Ethan Hawke shares an interesting view on creativity and a tool for its use.
  • Questions:
    • What are kids better at than adults?
    • Why do we stop “playing the fool” as we get older?
    • What would it look like for us to work or lead with greater curiosity and openness?
  • Tool: Accountability 
    • This week, highlight an action that a teammate took that demonstrates “playing the fool.” Acknowledge the impact of their curiosity and openness on the team.
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: It’s easy for teams to get caught up in the tyranny of the urgent. There is always something that feels pressing, and we don’t often stop and show gratitude for where we are and where we came from. Questlove shares an example of how the Red Hot Chili Peppers put this into action.
  • Questions:
    • How often do we confuse what’s urgent for what’s important?
    • What do we lose when we forget to express gratitude for each other or the moment we are in?
    • Thinking over the last few months, what do you most appreciate about your role, others, or about where we are now as a team?
  • Tool: Accountability 
    • Partner up and check in with each other once per week. Each time, share one thing you are grateful for: about your work, your team, or the journey.
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: When thinking about high performing teams, there is a very real tension between personal connection and professional commitment. Some thrive on personal connection, others on clarity of purpose and shared goals.
  • Questions:
    • What does it mean to “like” someone on your team?
    • What do we risk when we prioritize relationships over roles?
    • What do we risk when we prioritize roles over relationships?
    • How do we show up for each other when the relationship isn’t currently there, but the mission still matters?
  • Tool: Journal Prompt
    • When you have let your relationship with someone affect how treated them in their role? When have you let someone’s role (or performance) affect how you treat them as a person?
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Decisions often feel difficult when there are multiple choices or when we feel the pressure to make the “right” decision. Dr. Ellen Langer shares why most decisions are actually rather easy. 
  • Questions:
    • Why do you think she labels “regret” as mindless?
    • How does labeling a decision “good” or “bad” shape the way you experience it?
    • What can help you stay present and committed after an uncertain decision?
  • Tool: Journal Prompt 
    • Write down one decision you have made recently. Write down one “what if” thought that keeps showing up. Write down one “what is” thought and circle it. Repeat it when a what-if thought arises.
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: The voice in our head shapes how we lead. When it’s confident and reassuring, we may avoid taking ownership. When it’s doubtful, we might hesitate or hold back from holding others accountable.
  • Questions:
    • Do you have to learn to coach yourself before you can coach others?
    • Should we take ownership or is it appropriate to hold others accountable?
    • When in the past week as a team have we experienced ownership/accountability?
  • Tool: Journal Prompt 
    • When could it/has it benefited you to take ownership? When could it/has it benefited you to hold others accountable? What specific instance might I need to switch my perspective?
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: In high-performing environments, it’s easy to focus on our own roles and goals. But true success often comes from contributing to something bigger. In this clip, Jim Harbaugh—head coach of the LA Chargers—shares why he prioritizes relationships with his players and staff, and how that mindset fuels lasting success.
  • Questions:
    • What get’s in the way of living out “what is good for the hive is good for the bee”?
    • What is the cost of not living this out as a team?
    • Where do we most need to remember this idea right now?
  • Tool: Intention + Action 
    • Even if no one sees it, do one thing this week that helps a teammate be a better version of themselves and elevates the hive.
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Moneyball is about how the Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane challenged tradition thinking by using data and analytics rather than intuition and tradition. In this scene from Moneyball, Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) faces backlash from his scouts on his new approach.
  • Questions:
    • What makes it hard to trust new ideas when the old ones have worked before
    • What would it look like to respect the strengths of both sides even when they challenge our own?
    • What was shared that is valuable for the whole team to hear?
  • Tool: Accountability 
    • Find someone who lives on the opposite side of the change spectrum. Join them through one task this week to better understand how they work and the strengths of their approach.
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Content Set Up:In 2012, Google launched Project Aristotle; a multiyear research study designed to understand what made teams successful. One of the most significant findings is the quote above.
  • Questions:
    • What are we doing to bring out the best in each other and where do we fall short?
    • Is psychological safety the same as comfort? Why or why not?
    • What is something that feels uncomfortable, but is encouraged by this team?
  • Tool: Affirmation
    • When you notice someone on your team struggle to be honest or critical, affirm them and remind them it’s necessary to help the group to be at their best. 
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Podcast, Coach K (legendary Duke Basketball Coach) is asked about how quickly he builds relationships. In his response, he shares that it’s not just a one time effort, but a year after year process.
  • Questions:
    • What feels new or different about who you are today compared to a year ago?
    • Do you ever feel like others interact with an outdated version of you? What does that feel like?
    • What can you do to reset expectations and continually stay curious about others?
  • Tool: Intention & Action
    • Think about one person on your team you haven’t connected with recently. This week, find one intentional moment to have with them and ask them: “where do you think you’ve changed the most over the past 6 months?”
  • Once you click the link, hit “S” on your keyboard to pop-up presenter notes.
  • Clip Set Up: Jensen Huang may have wanted to be successful, but it wasn’t what he focused on. Now as the billionaire CEO of Nvidia, he shares about the importance of loving every job he ever worked in.
  • Questions:
    • Have you ever ended up loving something you didn’t initially enjoy?
    • How does taking full ownership of something change how much you value or enjoy it?
    • Where in your day could you choose more ownership of the unenjoyable tasks?
  • Tool: Mindful Pause  
    • When having a negative attitude towards your current work, challenge yourself to find one thing about it that you love. Don’t search for work you love, but instead love what you are doing. 

New Sessions Coming Soon!

We’re working on making these sessions available to you shortly. In the meantime, feel free to explore additional sessions in our Library.

Visit the Library

New Sessions Coming Soon!

We’re working on making these sessions available to you shortly. In the meantime, feel free to explore additional sessions in our Library.

Visit the Library

New Sessions Coming Soon!

We’re working on making these sessions available to you shortly. In the meantime, feel free to explore additional sessions in our Library.

Visit the Library

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Practical tools to foster personal and team growth.

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