Fearless Clarity: Breaking Down Complex Leadership Into Simple, Executable Steps | Mike Simmons S5:E3

Written by Mike J Midgley | Aug 18, 2025 9:44:01 AM

Welcome to the Force & Friction Podcast, where we break down what really moves the needle in RevOps, AI, partnerships, and SaaS growth.

In this episode, we sit down with Mike Simmons, a leadership coach, execution strategist, and the experience behind Find My Catalyst.

From UPS to Intel to MIT, Mike has been behind the curtain of some of the world's most complex organizations and now runs Find My Catalyst, helping leaders simplify execution and stop second-guessing their path forward.

Mike guides us through his philosophy of "fearless clarity" - the art of breaking down overwhelming leadership challenges into manageable, executable pieces. This is the blueprint for moving from chaos to predictable results without losing momentum or team motivation.

We explore why leaders get in their own way, the critical difference between tools and skills, and the practical frameworks that transform scattered to-do lists into aligned strategy execution that actually drives results.

Mike Simmons

Mike Simmons helps business leaders and founders FIND clarity, STOP second-guessing, and take the next logical step through fearless decision-making.

His work is grounded in 22+ years of leadership experience across sales, ops, and RevOps.

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Here are the core areas we discuss in today's episode:

1: The Root Problem: Why Leaders Get Stuck in Their Own Way

Mike opens by addressing the fundamental challenge that plagues most leaders: ego and loyalty. These aren't character strengths in decision-making—they're blind spots that create massive obstacles to growth.

"My 2 biggest blind spots, biggest risk character flaws are ego and loyalty. I have high ego, because if there was a better way to do it, I'd already figured it out... and then the other side is loyalty. I've got a high amount of loyalty and commitment to the people that are around me."

He explains that when either ego or loyalty influences a decision, leaders can't make that decision alone. They need external perspective from boards, advisors, or coaches who can help them see past these blind spots and ask the questions that shift perspective.

2: The Skills vs. Tools Trap: Why New Frameworks Don't Fix Fundamental Gaps

A core theme is the dangerous tendency to chase "shiny new tools" instead of building foundational skills. Mike uses a powerful analogy to illustrate why this approach fails.

"Imagine if I was trying to screw in a Phillips head screw, and I had. The only thing I had was a hammer. Could I do it? Sure? Could I create a little bit of damage? It's gonna be yeah, it's going to be rough. So we apply the wrong tool to the job."

The real issue isn't having the right framework—it's building the core leadership skills: problem solving, decision making, goal setting, execution design, and communication. Without these foundational skills, any tool becomes ineffective.

3. The Three Jobs of Every Meeting: Eliminating Wasted Time and Confusion

Mike breaks down one of the biggest productivity killers in organizations: poorly designed meetings. He introduces a "jobs to be done" framework that transforms how teams collaborate.

"I believe there's 1 of 3 jobs to be done of every meeting, and too often people try to do more than one job in a meeting."

The three jobs are: convey information and get feedback, make a decision, or collaborate to solve a problem/align on strategy/design a process. The key insight is that mixing these jobs creates chaos and wastes everyone's time.

4. Leadership Self-Care: Using Data to Manage Your Operating System

Mike addresses a critical but often overlooked aspect of leadership: self-awareness through measurable data. Just as leaders track business metrics, they need to track personal performance indicators.

"You talk about knowing your numbers inside your business. What about knowing your numbers for self? And how are those changing over time? It's not how my numbers compare to your numbers, Mike. It's how my numbers compare to my numbers yesterday or the day before the month before."

He shares practical tools like heart rate variability, resting heart rate, and sleep metrics, emphasizing that leaders need to monitor their own "operating system" to maintain peak performance.

5. The Simplification Framework: From Chaos to Predictable Operations

The conversation culminates in Mike's approach to transforming chaotic execution into predictable output. The solution isn't more process—it's radical simplification.

"Simplify what you do as a business, whatever those things are like. Why do people actually work with you? What do you deliver inside the organization... break things down into really really small, simple parts, and these can be like Meathead words that you use. It doesn't have to be overly complex."

He shares an example of a client who simplified their entire business to five core activities: "We sell things, we design things, we install things, we service things, and we move things. 5 things. That's all we do." This clarity enables teams to make better decisions about what to pursue and what to eliminate.

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Final Thoughts:

Mike leaves us with a powerful challenge about where real leadership begins. Instead of looking outward for better leadership from others, the transformation starts with honest self-reflection.

"If you are looking for leadership, look 1st in the mirror, take a look at you... get in there and look in the mirror and work yourself through that piece like what is my mindset around leadership. How have I built the skills associated with it? What tools am I applying and mindset skill set tool set in that order?"

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A little about me, the host the show. Please connect with me on LinkedIn I'd love to have you as part of our professional network

Mike Midgley runs a portfolio career, a dynamic hands on digital entrepreneur, founder of the Scrubbing Squad, NXD, strategist, public speaker, Winning by Design certified Revenue Architect and Host at The Force & Friction Podcast.

Mike has achieved multiple exits over a 30+ year career, raised Venture Capital and franchised his businesses 68 times.

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