What if the strongest leaders aren't the ones who never feel fear, but the ones who can hold fear AND vision simultaneously? In this episode, Melissa explores the leadership superpower that nobody talks about: dual emotionality. As a Visionary Leader navigating change, you don't have to choose between feeling scared and holding your vision. You can do both—and that's actually your advantage. Discover: Why emotional duality is your secret weapon for staying in creation mode when others are in sur...
Jul 15, 2025•56 min•Ep. 8
What if everything challenging in your leadership—the resistance you face, the conflicts that trigger you, the changes that feel impossible—is actually a mirror showing you exactly what needs to shift within? In this transformational episode, Melissa reveals the profound truth that visionary leaders understand: your external world is a direct reflection of your internal state. This isn't just spiritual philosophy. It's quantum physics meets practical leadership. You'll discover: The difference b...
Jul 08, 2025•51 min•Ep. 7
We've been taught to lead with logic, suppress emotion, and control the narrative. But what if that’s exactly what’s keeping us stuck? In this episode of Leading Through Change , Melissa challenges the outdated belief that emotion has no place in the boardroom. She explores how emotionality—when understood, named, and strategically integrated—becomes a powerful leadership tool. You’ll learn: Why emotion is not the enemy, it's simply energy in motion How low-frequency emotions like anger and grie...
Jul 01, 2025•53 min•Ep. 6
Why do people resist change—even when it's clearly good for them? If you've ever felt frustrated trying to lead people through transformation, only to hit wall after wall of resistance, this episode will change everything. The breakthrough insight: Resistance isn't something to overcome—it's a signal that people don't feel safe enough to transform. In this episode, discover the four levels of safety every leader must master to dissolve resistance and create the conditions where real transformati...
Jun 17, 2025•58 min•Ep. 5
There's one "truth" everyone accepts without question. It shapes how leaders respond to crisis. How organizations handle change. How teams navigate conflict. How entire societies function. And it's actively destroying everything. In this paradigm-shattering episode, Melissa Agnes exposes the lie that's been driving failed leadership responses, broken systems, and endless cycles of division and suffering. From Wells Fargo's $3 billion crisis to Peloton's 94% stock collapse, every leadership failu...
May 27, 2025•58 min•Ep. 4
In this transformative episode, Melissa challenges one of leadership's most fundamental assumptions: that we should think our way through decisions. But what if our overreliance on logic is precisely why leaders feel paralyzed during times of uncertainty and change? Through the lens of the 2020 pandemic response, she illustrates how even the most powerful leaders became frozen when lacking cognitive answers – creating a dangerous leadership vacuum that amplified fear and suffering. The solution?...
May 20, 2025•50 min•Ep. 3
In times of crisis and change, the most powerful person in the room isn't the loudest or the most authoritative—it's the calmest. But what creates this calm, and how does it transform chaos into clarity? In this episode, Melissa explains the science and practice of heart-brain coherence—a leadership superpower that few have been taught. She reveals how your emotional state directly influences your ability to lead others through change, backed by fascinating research from the HeartMath Institute ...
May 13, 2025•55 min•Ep. 2
Welcome to the very first episode of Leading Through Change — a space for leaders who know the old models of control, fear, and reactivity aren’t working… and who feel deeply called to lead differently. In this premiere episode, Melissa Agnes pulls back the curtain on one of the most misunderstood forces in leadership: fear. Not the kind you name out loud. The kind that creeps in under the surface. Hijacks decisions. Clouds clarity. And shapes cultures silently and powerfully. You’ll explore: Wh...
May 06, 2025•55 min•Ep. 1
Connection is at the heart of any good crisis communication strategy. However, we’ve all seen leaders attempt to connect with their audience with all the right words, and yet something feels… off. While a Crisis Ready Hindrance is often blocking that connection, understanding near and far emotional enemies is a powerful tool to help you overcome those Hindrances to resonate and connect in meaningful ways. Within this podcast, which is the audio version of a recent Crisis Ready blog post, Melissa...
Apr 04, 2024•14 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Make no mistake: AI absolutely will affect crisis communication — and crisis in general, for that matter. Recently, my friend and the queen of PR herself, Gini Deitrich said something that got me thinking about predictive AI even further: Could AI predict the emotional escalation of a crisis… before it begins to happen? This episode explores this concept and what it could mean for the crisis communication industry. This is the audio recording of a blog post, written and narrated by Melissa Agnes...
Feb 19, 2024•13 min•Season 2Ep. 1
How you make your customers feel … is the powerful differentiator from your competitors, lends to the emotional connection you build with your stakeholders, and can ultimately make or break your brand’s invincibility. Author and Customer Retention Expert, Joey Coleman, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss strategic ways to foster a culture whereby increased customer retention leads to brand advocacy, business resiliency, and ultimately, brand invincibility. About this episode Studies sh...
Dec 11, 2018•45 min•Season 2Ep. 15
In a world where distractions are thrown at us at every corner, Attention Expert, Neen James, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to share techniques for being mindful and intentional about where you dedicate your attention, in a way that prioritizes the things that matter most to your business, your team, your stakeholders, and your career. You can also listen to this episode on iTunes , Spotify , Stitcher , and YouTube . About this episode We live and work amongst an overload of distractions an...
Dec 04, 2018•45 min•Season 2Ep. 14
Each month Melissa answers questions from real people doing real work in–or learning about–crisis readiness. This month’s question comes from Natalia who asked some core questions that pertain to crisis management and crisis readiness, such as: “What is crisis management and what does it mean to be a crisis management professional?” “What are some of the most common mistakes organizations make in the midst of crises and issues?” “What are some of the qualities and characteristics that lend to be...
Nov 27, 2018•27 min•Season 2Ep. 13
Utility companies are no stranger to the multitude of challenges that present themselves in times of crisis. As a result, they have a ton of real-time crisis management experience that others can learn from. Alectra is one such organization. With a 1,250 m2 (or 2,000 km2) service territory delivering power to approximately one million customers in Ontario, Canada, Alectra deals with issues and crises on a regular basis. In this episode, Blair Peberdy, Vice-President of Government and Corporate R...
Nov 20, 2018•42 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Humor Engineer, Drew Tarvin, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss how humor can be used to effectively help solve so many common workplace issues, such as a lack of employee engagement, stress management, communication issues, and much more. About this episode Drew’s outlook on life and the way he helps organizations use humor to solve internal issues, build a stronger culture, and increase productivity is unique and effective. It also aligns with the crisis ready philosophy and mindset...
Nov 13, 2018•49 min•Season 2Ep. 11
Dr. Nick Morgan, author of Can You Hear Me? (amongst other great books) and founder of Public Words, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss the impacts that the virtual world have on internal teams and the conscious efforts and actions that leaders can take to mitigate the risks that these impacts present on company morale, team-building, and ultimately the organization’s culture and reputation. About this episode Virtual communication deprives us of the emotional knowledge that helps us ...
Nov 06, 2018•53 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Each month, Melissa answers your crisis ready questions. This month’s question comes from Bridget… and, in fact, Bridget had a handful of really great questions that Melissa got to provide responses to. Here’s a sampling of what these questions were: “Is crisis management different from industry to industry?” “What is the best way to manage controversial issues that spark heated emotion within a subset group of stakeholders?” “Who should be a part of the issue management team, when an incident d...
Oct 30, 2018•40 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Shashank Nigam, author of Soar and CEO of Simpliflying, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to share some powerful strategies on how today’s leading airlines have managed to build sustainable trust – and how that serves them when undesirable incidents risk occurring. About this episode The airline industry is tough. The risks are exponential; profit margins are difficult to maintain; the general public is critical, emotional, and has the ability to instil a world of impact on brand equity and rep...
Oct 23, 2018•39 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Charlie Maclean-Bristol, one of the Founders and Directors of PlanB Consulting, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss how organizations can get around the lack of certification in the profession of crisis management, to make sure they’re partnering with the right professionals for their company’s crisis ready needs. About this episode If you follow my work, then it’s quite possible that you know of a grievance that has been frustrating me more and more lately. The grievance is that, as a...
Oct 16, 2018•37 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Jackie Ford, partner at the law firm Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease , joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss proactive legal strategies in your crisis readiness and the practice of compassionate compliance. About this episode In my experience, one of the biggest challenges organizations face is forming a crisis ready alliance with their legal department where everyone is on the same page, understands each other’s different realities and challenges, and proactively supports and compliment...
Oct 09, 2018•50 min•Season 2Ep. 6
A culture of compassion requires consciousness. How compassionately conscious is your brand? Nearly ten years after Dave Carroll’s United Breaks Guitars video series went viral and helped change the landscape of issue and crisis management for brands, Dave joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss the impact of compassion on brands and on an organization’s issue management, crisis management, customer service, and ultimately, its invincibility. This episode explores: How the world of custome...
Oct 02, 2018•49 min•Season 2Ep. 5
This month’s question: “I have been a digital journalist, reporter and TV producer for the last 10 years. I am interested in merging my skills in breaking news coverage into a career in crisis communications. I’d love to speak with you to hear your thoughts around how I can merge my journalism career into a future in crisis communication work.” The answer explores: Your resumé: strategic ways to make yourself stand out. How the way you frame your expertise can help you overcome mindset barriers ...
Sep 25, 2018•22 min•Season 2Ep. 4
William Espey, the man responsible for the voice of the brand that is Chipotle, joins the Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss the challenges Chipotle faced when managing the E. coli crisis in 2015, and the mindset and strategies they implemented to manage the many dynamics of this incident and the reputational impact it threatened to leave on the brand. About this episode Chipotle is a brand that has worked hard and done a phenomenal job at building solid and trusting relationships with its cust...
Sep 18, 2018•55 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Mike Ganino, company culture expert and author of Company Culture For Dummies , joins The Invincible Brand Podcast to discuss how you can assess and implement a strong culture that will lend to your brand’s invincibility. Whether your organization is a start-up or has been around for decades, no matter its size, type, or industry, Mike provides insights, strategies, and clear tactics that will help you strengthen your organization’s culture in powerful ways. About this episode Building brand inv...
Sep 11, 2018•41 min•Season 2Ep. 2
In April 2018, shortly after the shooting that took place at YouTube’s headquarters by 38-year-old Nasim Najafi Aghdam in San Bruno, California, the media learned from Aghdam’s father that she had been confronted by Mountain View Police Department officers prior to the shooting taking place. Before MVPD had time to make this connection themselves and gather the necessary information, news of this fact quickly went viral with the media, local communities, and the general public demanding answers ...
Sep 04, 2018•45 min•Season 2Ep. 1
The Horse River Wildfire that took place in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada, in May 2016, was unprecedented in Canadian history. Eighty-eight thousand people needed to be evacuated in the span of only a few hours, for a month-long evacuation. This wildfire was so catastrophic that its economic impact actually impacted Canada’s GDP. I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Jordan Redshaw, one of the communications managers with the recovery task force at the Regional Municipality of Wood Bu...
Mar 15, 2018•47 min
Earlier this week, I published a #crisisready video that discusses the emotional factors that can quickly escalate an incident to crisis-level. Remaining on the topic of emotional impact and the human factors of crisis management and preparedness, I’m excited to be sharing the latest Crisis Intelligence Podcast with you! I recently had the opportunity to have a conversation with Sam Miller, a psychotherapist with a particular expertise in trauma counselling, and a keen understanding of the psych...
Feb 01, 2017•50 min
When it comes to crisis management, law enforcement has one of the most challenging tasks. Not only does their crisis management involve real dangers and the important mission of keeping their communities and themselves safe and out of harms way, but it also includes a need for effective and nearly instantaneous communications. And while the former challenge has always been a part of their job description, the latter is relatively new with ever evolving real-time challenges. Challenges that can ...
Aug 02, 2016•49 min
The wildfires in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada have been blazing since the start of May and have so far destroyed over 2400 buildings , including homes and businesses, and have resulted in an evacuation of approximately 90,000 citizens. Having yet to be completely tamed by fire fighters, the truly exceptional part is that, of the approximate 90,000 evacuees, not one person has died on account of the fires (there have been accidents that have unfortunately resulted in fatalities, but the fire it...
May 17, 2016•31 min
I recently had the honor of sitting down with Daniel Linksey, former Superintendent in Chief of the Boston Police Department, to record an episode of the Crisis Intelligence Podcast. Dan was the incident commander during the Boston Marathon Bombing. Within this podcast, Dan shares his first-hand experience of what it was like to manage the Boston Marathon Bombing crisis. He goes into great detail about everything from how he mustered up the courage to lead his team through the management of this...
Apr 19, 2016•55 min
