Don Yaeger

Corporate Competitor Podcast

Business EN ↓ 270 episodes

What do most Fortune 500 executives have in common? They learned important lessons on the fields and courts of their high school and collegiate sports teams. This is true for both men and women. Ernst & Young found that a whopping 94% of women holding a C-suite position, played sports. Join 13-time New York Times Best-Selling Author Don Yaeger on his journey to sit with some of the brightest executives in the world as we discuss how sports shaped their professional trajectory in life.

Author

Don Yaeger

Category

Business

Podcast website

donyaeger.libsyn.com

Latest episode

Jul 8, 2026

Where to listen?

Podcasts in the app Replaio Radio Coming soon

Podcasts are coming to the app soon. Install now and be the first to see a whole new take on podcasts

Get it on Google Play Install for free Android 5M+ downloads · 4.8 rating iOS soon

Episodes

NBA Mental Strength Coach David Nurse asks: If everything is taken away in your life, are you okay? 27.04.2022

Ep. 93: David has helped 28 NBA All-Stars reach their professional pinnacle. Since then, he has applied his mindset and leadership optimization programs to help Fortune 500 CEOs, tech moguls, Hollywood actors, and musicians develop better habits. "Since 80 percent of what we do each day is habitual ," David pointed out, "we need to be intentional about our habits."  For a free gift and today's sho...

Fatburger CEO Andy Wiederhorn asks: Do you hit singles or swing for the fences? 20.04.2022

Ep. 92: FAT Brands Inc include brands you know and love like Johnny Rockets, Fazoli's, Fatburger, and after the largest restaurant acquisition of 2021, they now have 17 brands across 40 countries with 2,300 restaurants. How could they manage such exponential growth? According to Andy, you cannot expect to hit a grand slam without first mastering the basics of getting on base, "My view of success i...

Women's Sports Foundation President Phaidra Knight says: You have to like being blindsided. 13.04.2022

Ep. 91: World Rugby Hall of Fame inductee Phaidra Knight recently starred in Halle Berry's movie Bruised and launched an activewear collection called PSK Collective. In this episode, she recalls the moment she was blindsided, the plane ride afterward, and her "resilience" lesson that we can learn. Visit https://donyaeger.com/corporate-competitor-podcast/episode-91/ for a free gift and today's show...

Chicago Cubs Manager David Ross on How to Be a Great Teammate 07.04.2022

REWIND EPISODE: I n honor of MLB Opening Day, we are highlighting episode 14 with World Series Champion David Ross for #ThrowbackThursday. We wrote a New York Times best-selling book together that teaches how to create environments that recognize and celebrate people who can become invaluable without ever being most valuable.  Download the bonus "bookmark" resource here! Special thanks to Francisc...

Mammoth President Jake Farrant asks: Do you have the courage to eliminate dysfunction from your team? 06.04.2022

Ep. 90: Jake is the founder of one of the fastest-growing sports construction companies with clients that include the NFL, SEC, Big 12, and hundreds of high schools around the country. "Above all," he shares, "If you aspire to leadership, don't just perform well yourself, bring out the best in other people." You will learn: How the New Orleans Saints' field made its way to Jake's High School in Ka...

"Turnaround CEO" Michael MacDonald who led Xerox, OfficeMax, and Medifast asks: Do you have the courage to make tough decisions? 30.03.2022

Ep. 89: Dick Vitale and Jim Valvano shaped this business icon. Michael spent 33 years climbing the ladder at Xerox before OfficeMax hired him as Executive Vice President where he led a $3.6 billion dollar division.  In 2012, he was named Chairman and CEO of the nutrition and weight loss company, Medifast. Under his leadership, Medifast's stock rose from $4 to $218 per share. I knew Michael would b...

ESPN's Jay Bilas says: Leaders should be demanding not demeaning. 23.03.2022

Ep. 88: Coach K and Duke Basketball shaped this sportscaster and lawyer. As a four-year starter on Duke's basketball team and former member of the coaching staff of two national championship teams, Jay learned the art of being demanding without being demeaning– an art at which Jay says Coach K excelled. "He was very demanding," noted Jay. "But his criticism never cut into your character as a perso...

NCAA Champion Coach Scott Drew says: Everybody wants to feel recruited. 16.03.2022

Ep 87: Baylor Men's Basketball coach joins us to celebrate March Madness and discuss his road to the 2021 national championship that began when he turned his job interview into a successful recruiting session. Coach Drew shares a treasury of leadership learnings that reflect the rich basketball culture from which he comes. You will learn: 6:00 Habits of a consummate learner. 11:30  How "the smart...

Silicon Valley Executive Mari Baker says: Find yourself a coach as great as Bill Campbell. 09.03.2022

Ep. 86: Mari rose to Senior Vice President as Intuit grew from 30 to 3,000 employees and went from $7 million to $700 million in revenue. She has fashioned a 20+ year career in which she has held CEO, President, and SVP positions in startups and Fortune 50 companies and built some of the world's most successful consumer brands, including Quicken (Intuit, Inc.), BabyCenter (Johnson & Johnson), and...

Savannah Bananas Owner Jesse Cole says: Stop doing what your customers hate. 02.03.2022

Ep. 85: With 1M TikTok followers — tripple any Major League Baseball team — the minor league baseball team in Savannah, Georgia creates raving fans. In this episode, the team's owner Jesse Cole helps you design the ultimate customer experience through tools that identify friction points in your current processes. Visit  https://donyaeger.com/corporate-competitor-podcast/episode-85/ for a free gift...

WNBA All-Star and Nike Leader Michelle Snow says: Playing for Pat Summitt changed how I communicate. 23.02.2022

Ep. 84: Tennessee Basketball shaped the first woman to dunk in a nationally televised basketball game. At six-foot-five inches tall, the Pensacola native commands a sweeping view of the impact sports can have on business leadership. "As you progress in your life, you'll only be alone if you don't bring someone along with you," she observed. Michelle has been mentored by some of the best and she co...

Chris Nikic, the first person with Down syndrome to complete an IRONMAN, and his father Nik Nikic on getting 1% better every day. 16.02.2022

Ep. 83: When Chris became the first person with Down syndrome to complete an IRONMAN Triathlon, he etched his name in the Guinness Book of World Records and received the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance from Tim Tebow at the ESPYS. The process that got Chris over the finish line was a self-improvement model they developed called  1% Better . Today, they share this model with organizations teaching t...

Condoleezza Rice encourages you to build bridges as a leader. 09.02.2022

Ep. 82: Dr. Rice was the first woman on the College Football Playoff Committee and one of the first two women to be invited to join the previously all-male Augusta National Golf Course. You may know her as Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, and Director of Stanford's Hoover Institution, but in this episode, you will learn her background as a figure skater, tennis player, and a football...

Special Edition: John C. Maxwell takes over as host to interview Don Yaeger 02.02.2022

Ep. 81: Football and basketball shaped Don Yaeger! This episode caps off a month of podcasts featuring John C. Maxwell's League of Extraordinary Leaders: Joel Manby, Valorie Burton, Tim Elmore, and Jeff Henderson. In this episode, you will learn: How to establish rapport during an interview.  Why Michael Jordan opened up to Don about his relationship with his father. How you can be invaluable with...

Former Chick-fil-A Marketing Exec Jeff Henderson: Do you know the difference between success and excellence? 26.01.2022

Ep. 80: Basketball shaped this leader who Chick-Fil-A CEO Dan Cathy called "one of the five greatest people ever to work at Chick-Fil-A." Jeff has founded a new company called The For Company, which helps individuals and organizations achieve excellence by answering two key questions: "What are we known for? And what do we want to be known for?" The leader's job is to engage his or her team in ans...

Growing Leaders CEO Tim Elmore asks: Are you a thermometer or a thermostat? 19.01.2022

Ep. 79: Track shaped this author of 37 books. Tim Elmore has helped sports powerhouses like Ohio State and LSU, and corporate juggernauts like Home Depot and Chick-fil-A, improve team performance by visualizing excellence while learning to embrace ideas that may seem contradictory at first but can lead to great insight. You will learn: What Martin Luther King, Jr. teaches us about leading with abs...

America's Life Coach Valorie Burton asks: Are others better having crossed paths with you? 12.01.2022

Ep. 78: Valorie has been featured on the Today Show, Dr. Oz, and now she is joining four other distinguished writers and motivational speakers as part of John C. Maxwell's League of Extraordinary Leaders. She grew up participating in track and gymnastics until she reached high school, at which point she discovered two life-changing activities: cheerleading and leadership! An only child and daughte...

Former SeaWorld CEO Joel Manby says: In difficult moments seek dialogue, not monologue. 05.01.2022

Ep. 77: Albion College baseball shaped this business icon. When Joel Manby took over as CEO of SeaWorld, the company was smack in the middle of national controversy following the 2013 release of the documentary Blackfish . Learn how he led with love and came to an agreement with the Humane Society through dialogue, not monologue, in this episode. You will learn: How guarding future Hall of Famer M...

2021 Behind the Scenes with host Don Yaeger and producer Savannah Gallagher 29.12.2021

Ep. 76: In the spirit of year-end reflection, Don Yaeger uses the last episode of 2021 as a chance to invite podcast producer Savannah Gallagher on the show for a fun behind-the-scenes look recording the first 75 episodes of Corporate Competitor Podcast. Visit http://podcast-subscribe.donyaeger.com/  for a free gift when you subscribe! Their energetic conversation includes: The emotional connectio...

Personal Development Guru Becky Bursell says: Sign your name at the end of everyday. 22.12.2021

Ep. 75: John Maxwell Company's Executive Vice President offers her success secrets for executives looking for ways to unleash their team's motivations and make the best use of their time. "People don't lack a hope and a dream, they lack a leader and a plan." You will learn: How to motivate your team by listening to their dreams and hopes. Motivating yourself (and your team) by replacing perfection...

Kingdom Business Leaders' Steve Dulin says: Make practice hard so the games feel easy. 15.12.2021

Ep. 74: Texas High School Football shaped Steve Dulin. In his 20 years running Milestone Construction, the company never missed a deadline and never came in over budget… for 20 years. Learn how in this episode! You will learn: (6:30) Why every company needs to find "down-field" blockers. (9:15) How to remain calm under pressure. (13:00) How to lose graciously. (22:00) The importance of "calling" i...

Marketing expert Ryan Alford says: The questions an interviewee asks you reveal more than any answer. 08.12.2021

Ep. 73: Basketball with Kevin Garnett shaped this marketing maven. As a boy growing up tall in South Carolina, Ryan Alford developed plenty of drive going toe-to-toe with another intense basketball player, young Kevin Garnett, and even played briefly on the same AAU team as the now NBA Hall of Famer. After graduating from Eastside High School, Ryan went to college at Clemson, not to pursue basketb...

Best-selling author John Bacon says: Be patient with results, not behavior. 01.12.2021

Ep. 72: Former hockey coach John Bacon offers lessons he learned turning the nation's worst high school hockey team into one of its most celebrated.  Subscribe here  https://donyaeger.com/corporate-competitor-podcast/episode-72/ for a free gift and today's show notes! You will learn: 5:00 Why a star system demotivates the entire team. 11:00 The best way to make your team "special." 12:00 How to be...

Movement Mortgage CEO and Super Bowl Champion Casey Crawford says: Make yourself needed 24.11.2021

Ep. 71: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers shaped Casey Crawford. Movement Mortgage's growing team of 4,000 have serviced about one out of every 45 home purchases in the U.S. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. Casey used profits from its banking business to fund the opening of two tuition-free Title 1 schools serving the underserved and marginalized communities in which Movement operates.  You will lea...

Alteryx CEO Mark Anderson asks: Do you know how your teammates define success? 17.11.2021

Ep. 70: Hockey shaped this Toronto-raised CEO! Mark's career has taken him from Cisco Systems to Palo Alto Networks and numerous other places before he took the reins at Alteryx, where he has come to view his leadership as something like a curator in chief, one who is responsible for the development journey of each member of his team. This journey begins with understanding their goals, which in tu...

Listen to the Corporate Competitor Podcast podcast in Replaio

Radio and podcasts in one app - free, with no sign-up. Install today and do not miss the launch

Get it on Google Play

Replaio is not a podcast publisher; show names, artwork and audio belong to their authors and are distributed through public RSS feeds.