The QBQ! Podcast

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. Tania Khazaal understands family estrangement from the inside out. She was once the estranged adult child in her own family, later reconciled with her mother, and now helps parents navigate the heartbreak and uncertainty of estrangement with greater understanding, compassion, and personal accountability. What I appreciated most about Tania was her ability to...

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. Episode 36: Accountability Doesn't Mean Control What happens when you've done your part—and the other person still doesn't do theirs? Whether it's an unanswered sales inquiry, a frustrating relationship, or a decision someone else needs to make, it's easy to confuse personal accountability with responsibility for the outcome. In this...

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. What happens when you sit down with John G. Miller and ask him a bunch of random questions? Apparently, you still end up talking about personal accountability. In this episode, Dad and I go a little off-script with a mix of fun, unexpected, and thought-provoking questions—and somehow keep finding our way back to the ideas behind QBQ!. It’s a relaxed conversa...

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. Resources:  https://qbq.com/relationships-7-perfect-words/ https://qbq.com/books/raising-accountable-kids/ How do I help my children stretch and grow without making them feel as though who they are isn’t enough? Inspired by my dad John G. Miller’s blog about the “7 Perfect Words,” I share a moment when the QBQ! guideline “Every QBQ! contains an I” challenged...

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. I talk a lot about asking better questions—but I loved the way my guest John Kirkman applies that idea: What can I do to help this person feel awesome? (check out https://awz.me/ for a creative way to encourage others!) John has made encouragement an intentional practice in his classroom, his family, and his community. And as we talked, I was struck by how n...

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. Two weeks ago, I talked about using QBQ! to find calm in the middle of change. This week, Cindy Moen joins me to continue that conversation. Cindy recently retired from her role as Chief People Officer and shares how she used QBQ! to process the unexpected emotions that came with even a carefully planned change. We talk about letting go, feeling needed, supp...

Text me! I'd love to hear from you. Change is inevitable, but chaos doesn't have to be. In this episode, Kristin shares why change naturally leads us to ask lousy questions, and how asking better ones can help us respond with calm instead of frustration. Through stories from recent client conversations and a very personal parenting moment, you'll discover what QBQ looks like in the m...

Connect with us at QBQ! AI is changing the way we work, learn, and do business—but what does that mean for personal accountability? In this episode, I sit down with entrepreneur, business coach, and my sister-in-law, Jen Hickle, to talk about navigating change in the age of AI. Jen works at the intersection of technology and people, helping business owners adapt, grow, and solve problems, so I kne...

Connect with us at QBQ! One of the biggest misconceptions I encounter about personal accountability is the belief that it means doing more, working harder, and saying yes to everything. In this solo episode, I share a conversation I recently had with a client leadership team that sparked an important discussion about accountability and boundaries. Someone on the call made an observation that reall...

Connect with us at QBQ! When life feels unfair, where does your thinking go first? In this episode of The QBQ! Podcast, I sat down with Brad Detchevery, a longtime QBQ! reader and listener who shared how personal accountability transformed the way he handled one of the most frustrating seasons of his life. After a car accident during a food delivery shift led to a two-year insurance battle, Brad f...

Connect with us at QBQ! I’m re-sharing one of my favorite QBQ! Podcast conversations today with Joe Hamilton, CEO and President of Vortex Optics. Plus a little surprise! Joe shares the incredible story of building Vortex from a small trade show tent into the largest sport optics company in the world—and how personal accountability, consistency, and service shaped that journey along the way. What I...

Connect with us at QBQ! We just brought home a new puppy, and within hours, I caught myself asking all the wrong questions. “Why is she doing this?” “When is she going to learn?” “Who's going to handle this mess??” Sound familiar? In this episode, I’m sharing what puppy training is teaching me about personal accountability and how quickly we can fall into blame, frustration, and waiting… inst...

Connect with us at QBQ! What does it take to move a team from finger-pointing to real results? In this episode, I talk with Debbie Slocum, a longtime QBQ user and former HR leader at Husqvarna. She shares what it was like to be the “lone wolf” introducing QBQ to her team, and how things finally started to shift when the first follower stepped in. That’s when it stopped being just one person pushin...

Connect with us at QBQ! What do outstanding organizations actually do differently? In this episode of The QBQ! Podcast, I’m joined by my dad, John, as we talk about the books beyond QBQ!—including Flipping the Switch , I Own It! , Raising Accountable Kids , and Outstanding! Each one builds on the same core idea: personal accountability is the foundation for better results—at work, at home, and in...

Connect with us at QBQ! In this episode of the QBQ! Podcast, I’m joined by Laura Train, founder of Integrity Training Solutions and a longtime QBQ practitioner and distributor. Laura first encountered QBQ! while working at the Social Security Administration, and she shares how those simple principles transformed the way she leads, teaches, and responds under pressure. From leadership lessons in go...

Connect with us at QBQ! Part 2 of a conversation with the Coast to Coast Camps leadership team , this episode turns the focus to parenting, modeling, and what it really takes to raise an accountable generation. From foster care to grandparenting, from toddlers to adult children, this conversation spans every stage of parenting—and one shared conviction: accountability isn’t taught through lectures...

Connect with us at QBQ! When Every Problem Points to You From Bottleneck to Breakthrough What do you do when every problem seems to land on you? In this episode of the QBQ! Podcast , I’m joined by the leadership team from Coast to Coast Camps for a conversation about leadership, culture, and personal accountability. Bud Harley shares how discovering QBQ! helped shift responsibility from bottleneck...

Connect with us at QBQ! “I still have to hold my people accountable.” Managers say this all the time—and it’s a fair question. In this short, one-off episode of the QBQ! Podcast , Kristin Lindeen clarifies the difference between personal accountability and holding others accountable —and why that distinction matters for leaders. Drawing from a recent leadership workshop and a powerful insight shar...

Connect with us at QBQ! Why Great Hospitality Starts with Better Questions The QBQ Approach to Restaurant Leadership and Accountability In the restaurant world, it’s easy to spend your days reacting—putting out fires, fixing mistakes, and wondering why people “just don’t get it.” Over time, that way of leading wears people down. In this episode of the QBQ! Podcast , I talk with restaurant consulta...

Connect with us at QBQ! This week, we’re sharing a conversation from the Do More By Doing Less podcast, hosted by Charles Alexander. Charles recently sat down with my dad, John G. Miller, author of QBQ! The Question Behind the Question , for a thoughtful conversation about why the questions we ask matter more than we realize. John talks about how QBQ grew out of years of listening to leaders ask t...

Connect with us at QBQ! In this episode, Kristin talks with Cindy Darnell of Element about how personal accountability shapes everything from team dynamics and customer service to parenting and career growth. Cindy shares how QBQ helped her move from blame to ownership, influenced her leadership journey, and continues to guide her mindset at work and at home. A powerful reminder that no matter the...

Connect with us at QBQ! Kristin shares seven simple “let” ideas—let go, let loose, let others, let up, let in, let be, and let me—to help create a calmer, more joyful holiday season. A quick QBQ reminder to pause and ask: What can I do to bring more joy to the people around me? Thanks for joining us today!  Find out more about QBQ! training opportunities at www. QBQ.com .  Follow us!  Instagram Fa...

Connect with us at QBQ! In Part 5 of The Story of QBQ! series, Kristin talks with David Levin — the creative partner who helped shape the QBQ! book we all know today. Together they revisit how it all came together, from cassette tapes to a timeless message of Personal Accountability. We’re back with Part 5 of The Story of QBQ! series — and this one’s a fun behind-the-scenes conversation you won’t...

Connect with us at QBQ! QBQ! goes B2B! Kristin joins John DiMare on The Awesome Impact B2B Sales Podcast to unpack how The Question Behind the Question® empowers sales leaders to stop blaming, start owning, and lead with action. Hear how accountability transforms teams, reduces excuses, and changes results — from the sales floor to the family room. 👉 Listen as Kristin and John connect the dots be...

Connect with us at QBQ! When HR leads with accountability, everyone wins. How Liberty Hospital’s HR leader turned one simple book into a movement of personal accountability. Liberty Hospital’s VP of HR, Thomas Murphy , joins Kristin Lindeen to share how QBQ! transformed leadership and culture from the inside out. Discover how personal accountability—not policy—creates stronger teams, better commun...