Leadership With Heart

In this episode, I’m joined by Marc Koehler, a former U.S. Navy submarine officer. His unique perspective, gained from leading in a nuclear submarine where every action has consequences and complacency can be catastrophic, offers some of the clearest thinking on leadership I've heard in a long time. Marc shares how his experiences taught him lessons about accountability, emotional influence, and self-leadership that every leader on land needs to hear. What struck me most is Marc’s belief that leadership isn’t something we wait to be given. We must choose to step into it, regardless of our title or time on the team. He shares practical stories from his time aboard the USS Pogi, from navigating dangerous missions with a crew whose average age was 23, to learning how to lead through presence, not authority. Marc explains how submarine culture requires everyone to be seen as a leader and to see themselves as one. When you’re hundreds of feet below the surface, the person closest to the problem must take charge, w