Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome everyone to
the Revolutionary man podcast.
It's a show where we challengemen to lead with integrity, to
redefine success and to buildlegacies that matter.
And I'm your host, alan DeMonso.
And today we're going to diveinto something that every man
should truly master, and that'sleadership, beginning at home.
So let me ask you, when was thelast time that you felt like a
(00:20):
leader at work but powerless athome?
You felt like a leader at workbut powerless at home, and how
has ignoring your own householdaffected your relationships,
your respect and maybe even yourself-worth?
You know, leadership isn'tlimited to the boardroom or the
gym.
It's forged in the silence ofour living room, in the
consistency of our morningroutine and in the emotional
(00:42):
safety that we can create in ourfamilies.
And so today we're going tounpack why failing at home can
lead to costing you influence inevery aspect of your life, and
so we're going to dismantle afew common held myths about
power and control, and I'm goingto share some practical
strategies to own your role,both as a provider and with
(01:03):
present.
And so if you're ready to buildleadership that echoes beyond
the office, then I want you tosmash that like button,
subscribe to the channel andthen leave a comment answering
this question when do you feelmost silent in your home.
Remember that when men like youengage, this message begins to
grow and it strengthens abrotherhood we're trying to
(01:25):
create here.
So go ahead, do that right now,and with that, let's get on
with today's episode.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
The average man today
is sleepwalking through life,
many never reaching their truepotential, let alone ever
crossing the finish line toliving a purposeful life.
Yet the hunger still exists,albeit buried amidst his
cluttered mind, misguidedbeliefs and values that no
longer serve him.
It's time to align yourself forgreatness.
(01:54):
It's time to become arevolutionary man.
Stay strong, my brother.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Okay, gentlemen, so
we've set the stage.
Leadership starts at home, andit starts with asking questions.
Now it's time to break down thetruth, the path forward and
actions that we can build asteadfast influence, not just on
the job, but especially in ourliving rooms.
And so the first thing I'd likeus to talk about today is that
(02:23):
one of these most common trapsthat we find ourselves in is
believing that being at homejust means that we need to be
physically present.
And the fact is that when wefinish work and we walk through
the door and drop our keys, ifwe assume that our presence
counts, then I think we're goingto show up much differently,
aren't we?
But with our wife and our kids,they're not just tracking about
(02:47):
where our body is, they'retuned into what our mind is like
as we walk in that door, whereour focus is and where's our
heart as we enter our rooms.
And so if you're sitting on thecouch, maybe doom scrolling on
your phone, or you're justrelaxing watching tv while
tuning everybody else out, thenare you truly being present?
That suggests that you're justrelaxing watching TV while
tuning everybody else out.
Then are you truly beingpresent?
That suggests that you'reprobably not.
(03:08):
And so leadership at home meansbeing engaged, and that starts
with being emotionally availablefor our families, and so commit
, when you walk in the door, toput that device down for that
first hour of the evening.
This isn't going to be aboutbeing perfect, it's just about
paying attention.
And so maybe just sit down,look your partner in the eye,
(03:35):
ask some real questions, listento what they have to say, maybe
respond with tell me a littlebit more, keep the conversation
going and see that's thepresence that's going to do a
lot more to rebuild connectionand trust with us, long before
the weekend comes as we plan ourgetaways from the everyday
grind of life.
So the other thing I wanted foryou to consider is that too many
of us, we also cling to thisoutdated belief that our only
(03:58):
job is to provide financiallyfor our families, and maybe you
don't necessarily see thatconsciously, but subconsciously
might be showing up that way.
And so while many of us haveheld this belief and we've seen
it played out from pastgeneration, today the world
demands a lot more from us ashusbands and fathers, doesn't it
?
And so leadership today alsoincludes emotional leadership,
(04:21):
spiritual leadership and trulymodeling how we manage pressure,
how we communicate especially,the more clear we can be, and
this allows us then to trulylive with integrity.
So we got to be more than justa paycheck, gentlemen, because
without that, if we're more thanjust a paycheck, then we create
, then we're just going tocreate resentment.
(04:43):
And so part of the challenge Iknow I faced in my first
marriage was just being thatpaycheck.
And so, while I know that mywife admired that I had to work
at that kind of, I was going outand doing everything I had to.
I wasn't leading at home, andso it didn't take long for that
admiration to turn intoemotional distance.
And so, with the kids, I stillstruggle to this day to continue
(05:04):
to build and fortify therelationship with distance.
And so, with the kids, I stillstruggle to this day to continue
to build and fortify therelationship with them.
And so let's remember that ourabsence is more important than
just our income.
And so start today, maybe startwith building a ritual at home.
So, whether that's leading up,maybe a five minute prayer at
the dinner hour, maybe it'sreading short passages and
(05:25):
discussing it with your family,whatever you want to do, set
some form of a ritual, and it'san opportunity for you to check
in to see how everyone's week'sgoing.
If you continue to do this on aconsistent basis, day after day
, I think you're going to findthat the man who initiates this
type of connection, he's notjust the man who's paying for
dinner, but he's actually payingattention to everything that's
(05:48):
going on in the family.
So the other thing I'd like usto also consider is that in
today's day and age, it's notdifficult for us to be in this
delegation mode, just like we doin business, and so maybe we're
putting too much trust onothers to make some really
important decisions.
And so leadership at home istruly our job, gentlemen,
because no one else or no oneshould take that away from us.
(06:11):
And so if we start to rely onour wife, for example, to be the
only one who makes the plans,organizes things, disciplines or
just manages the emotionallandscape of the family, then
what kind of leadership role arewe taking into place?
And so true masculineleadership isn't going to be
about dominance.
It's going to be aboutdirection.
(06:32):
It's about anchoring our familyand values and structure and
love that's firm and yetcompassionate.
And so if your house feels liketotal chaos, disconnected,
maybe even slightly fragile,then don't blame your job.
Instead, I'm going to challengeyou to ask where have you
abdicated your leadership?
(06:53):
And so create a family missionstatement.
One of the things that we dohere with our work, here with
the Revolutionary man, iscreating mission statements for
our lives, and so I'm going toask you to do that in your
personal life, for your family.
So sit down with your wife andyour kids and answer a few
questions what do we stand for?
(07:13):
What kind of legacy are webuilding together?
And then write it out, maybeeven post it everywhere so it's
visible, and maybe it has thatpart of your weekly routine
where you revisit what thatleadership has looked like.
But it's going to start, haveto start with you, and so I
challenge you to start doingthat work.
I love the work from DwightEisenhower, and he says a man
(07:36):
does not lead by hitting peopleover the head.
That's assault and it's notleadership, and so we need to
pay attention to how we'reshowing up as husbands and
fathers, and so the other thingI'd like to talk about what does
authority look like withoutauthority?
And so how do we build thistrust within our families?
And so masculine authority, asI just said, is not going to be
(07:58):
about dominance.
It's going to be how we connectwith our families, and so many
of us confuse that.
Control is what leadership isall about.
But we can come to understandand believe that if we raise our
voice and start making all thedecisions so either we're not
making any or we go in the otheropposite direction and then we
start making all the decisionsthen we're being the sole
(08:19):
disciplinarian, aren't we?
And does that earn a lot ofrespect in our household?
I would suggest that it doesn't.
So domination doesn't build anyloyalty.
Obviously, if you think about inyour life when you felt being
dominated, whether that be atwork or maybe in some other
avenue what does it create?
It's going to create fear, it'sgoing to create distance and
(08:40):
ultimately it's going to createrebellion, especially in these
really close relationshipsfather-son relationships,
obviously, with our partners.
And so true authority the kindthat's magnetic, becomes
respected really comes from usbuilding and developing a deeper
connection with our family,especially our children, and so
(09:01):
it's about being that calm inthe storm.
So, whenever things hit in thefan, how are you showing up?
Are you that rock that peoplecan lean on?
See, that's the kind ofleadership that only truly
emerges when our authority isanchored in emotional integrity
and not in our ego, and so I'dlike you to try this the next
(09:22):
time that you find that you'rein a conflict with your partner,
or maybe even with yourchildren.
Instead of defending anddictating, instead ask what do I
need to do?
What do I need most from hereat this point?
Another way to put it is whatdo you need most from me right
now?
See, this question then flipsthat dynamic, doesn't it?
(09:45):
It tells them that you caremore about the relationship than
, though, being right.
And when that authority isrooted in service versus
domination, I think you're goingto find the response you'll get
will be much different.
And so vulnerability doesbecome a strength, and that's
what vulnerability actuallylooks like.
And so vulnerability doesbecome a strength, and that's
(10:07):
what vulnerability actuallylooks like Willingness to ask
how it is, that you can show upfor somebody else.
And so we've truly been fed thislie that being vulnerable is a
sign of weakness, and we'vetalked about that in many other
episodes.
But when you can show a littlebit of doubt, maybe admit a
mistake and really open upemotionally, it's going to make
others feel that you're real,there's more to you and guess
what?
You're not going to be less ofa man.
(10:28):
That's truly outdated, and thisarmor that some of us put on
isn't really protecting us.
It's actually isolating us fromthose that we care about the
most, and so our family doesn'tneed this stoic statutes.
That's what we think about.
We think about someone beingvery stoic.
What that's what we think about.
Think about someone being verystoic.
What they want, what they needfrom us, is somebody that's a
(10:50):
real man, with the courage forus to be human, and
vulnerability believe it or not,gentlemen truly is what builds
intimacy.
It's going to tell our wifethat you can trust me with your
heart because I trust you withmine.
That might take a little whilefor us to get there, but it's
worth the effort and it's worththe practice, and so what it
(11:11):
does is it shows our kids thatemotions are not enemies, but
they're just signals.
It's just signals that you knowthat I'm man, and I'm just
going to show you and help modelhow you handle all the
different types of emotions thatshow up in our life.
Think about this If you take anopportunity to schedule, like,
maybe, 15 minute check-in withyour partner once a week, my
(11:32):
wife and I do that on abi-weekly basis, with date night
.
It's an opportunity for us tocheck in, and then, once a week
Sunday evenings, generallyspeaking is when we have our
check-in we ask each otherwhat's one thing that you
appreciated about last week?
Another thing you can do isjust looking at if you're really
struggling with something isasking on a scale of 1 to 10,
(11:52):
where does our marriage sit, andif it's anything less than a 7,
then ask what could we dodifferent, what could I do
differently, and both of youhave an opportunity to share and
talk about the things thatneeded to change for the week.
It's an opportunity that reallybuilds some emotional fluency
in the relationship, and itgives opportunity to get past
the superficial stuff and thestuff of the day-to-day lives
(12:15):
raising kids, just keeping thehousehold moving you get the
opportunity to talk aboutsomething at a much deeper level
, and so I'd also like us toconsider that trust is going to
be earned through consistencyversus trying to control things,
and so we can't demand trust.
You can try.
I think you're going to findout that you're not going to
have it.
(12:35):
We need to earn that trust, andso the way that we earn it at
home is going to be beingconsistent and so being
emotionally honest.
So leadership is in all aspectsof life.
When we can be emotionallyhonest, then we can start to
build a foundation for trust.
And so that means we need toshow up the same way day in and
(12:55):
day out, and being predictablein our love and really steady in
who we are, in our discipline,and then very transparent as we
speak, especially about thethings that are going on in our
minds.
And so if our families and thishappens at work too, but
focusing on families today ifour families never know which
version of us is going to showup, then it's going to be very
(13:18):
difficult for them.
So that calm provider are wegoing to be the stressed out
boss?
And so that's when trust startsto erode, because they don't
know which version of you isshowing up.
And so real leadership is goingto be built in the small daily
acts of being consistent, and Iknow we know this through our
business life and ourprofessional life.
(13:39):
But how well are we practicingthis at home and so being able
just to follow through andkeeping our word, not over
committing and then repairingthings when we've made a mess,
and so really, if you want tobuild a consistency anchor, then
I ask you to just pick onebehavior every day that
communicates love and stability,and so maybe it's making coffee
(14:02):
for your wife in the morningYou're the one that gets up
first, maybe making the coffee,or putting the kids to bed at
night with the personal message,just something that shows some
form of small ritual that allowsyou to build this emotional
safety, and that's when thistrust can truly start to grow
and deepen for us.
And so I want to also talkabout this power on idea of
(14:25):
modeling, because we can be thatbehavior and we already are the
behavior that we'reblueprinting to our children and
our family.
And so children and partnersthey just don't hear us.
They're going to mirror exactlywhat we do, and leadership at
home is not going to be abouthaving the big, grand speeches.
This is not every given Sunday.
(14:46):
We're not standing in a lockerroom here to give some powerful
speech.
It's about truly how we'reshowing up every day and what is
our behavior saying, and so ouractions are always going to
speak louder than our words.
And so lectures giving to ourkids and any type of promise
that we make to our spouses, ifwe don't follow through, then
they really lack any weight orsignificance for either of them.
(15:09):
And so if we want to beconsistent and figure things out
, then we need to understandthat constantly being stressed
about work or being dismissiveof our wife's concerns, or just
exploding over some minorfrustrations, cause a lot of
dissent within the family, andthen our kids are going to start
to model that and how theyinteract with their siblings and
(15:31):
with others.
And so we need to be thatemotional, grounded individual,
somebody that shows upconsistently, because that's how
we can start to change what thenew normal looks like in our
homes.
And so do a weekly mirror checkNow.
Reflect on how you've handledthe pressure on love and
communication integrity over thelast week, and then ask
(15:52):
yourself if my son or daughtercopied me today, would I be
proud of that?
That single question can reallychange how you're going to show
up the next week.
We consider about how theyalready are going to be modeling
our behaviors.
And so consistency ultimately,what's that going to do?
It's going to build someculture, won't it?
(16:14):
And so our culture at our homeis happening, whether we define
it or not, and so we can allowit to happen willy-nilly and on
a free-for-all, or we can builda culture that is shaped from
how we show up, consistent, andso how we're responding to
stress, how we celebrate ourwins and how we resolve
conflicts.
But most of us think thatleadership at home is a moment,
(16:36):
and in reality it's builtthrough rhythm, through all
these different aspects of lifethat happen for us, and so
consistency is going to breedtrust and expectation, and so
when our family knows who we areand how we're going to show up,
then they can start to relax,and so that's what true safety
looks like, and that's reallythe soil where our home can
(16:59):
truly build emotional intimacy,and that's where personal growth
can thrive and so create maybeeven a family ethos.
We use an ethos in our men'sgroup.
It's an opportunity to pickmaybe two or three guiding
principles that you want tomodel and reinforce.
It could be honesty ordiscipline, or maybe kindness,
(17:20):
but when you write them down youtalk to everybody about them at
dinner.
It gives an opportunity for youto drive home the behaviors
that you're looking for, andthen you can be that leader.
Everybody knows where we'recoming from.
It's an opportunity to reallyraise the level and the standard
that the family is showing up,and so this is going to bring in
(17:40):
some structure, and it doesn'thave any really any control
attached to it.
It makes us that intentionalleader versus just having things
happen.
And so when we're at home, it'sgoing to define who we are in
the real world.
So many of us are going to putour best energy into the
boardroom.
(18:01):
Let's face that right.
We're out there, we're stillingrained in this idea of
providing, and so we put a tonof energy in how we show up into
the boardroom, how we'reshowing up in the gym, in any
aspects of our business, butthen we leave the family with
just the scraps of the remainingpieces of who we are.
But if our home is truly ourlegacy, isn't that where we
(18:23):
should have the most meaningfulimpact?
And I think if we want to be arespected leader out in the real
world, then we first must leadwith honor in the place that
matters most, and that's in ourhouses.
And so if our wife sees thereal us and our kids hear not
just what we say, but they actin the way we're acting, then I
(18:44):
think we have an opportunity toreally build a potentially
strong and grounded family.
And so it's going to revealwhat true integrity looks like
for you.
It's going to expose some blindspots that you might have.
It's also going to challengeyou to truly become the man that
you're claiming to be, and whata better place than to do that
(19:05):
through home.
And so you can start by reallytreating your family like your
most important team.
Maybe it is scheduling teammeetings where you get to ask
for feedback about how am Idoing as a dad or as a partner
Again, an awesome opportunity tohave different kinds of
conversations in the household.
And this isn't not only justmodeling humility, but it also
(19:28):
gives an opportunity for growth.
Again, you're modeling anopportunity to see and show how
you can change and develop as anindividual.
Albert Schweitzer said, yourexample is not the main thing in
influencing others, it's theonly thing.
I think that's a lot of wisewords for us.
So I have a little story I liketo talk to you about, and his
(19:49):
name is James and he was ahigh-level sales executive and
he's in his early 40s.
Give or take, and to theoutside world he was truly the
image of major success.
He had the sharp suit, theluxury car, he was climbing that
corporate ladder, but behindthe closed doors of his home.
It was a very different story,see, his wife had grown
(20:10):
completely distant and his kidsbarely looked up when he walked
into the room and he justifiedit all by saying I'm doing all
of this for them.
But deep down he knew that hewas.
That wasn't the entire story,and it took one evening for,
after missing yet another familydinner, he overheard his son
telling his son, telling his momI don't think dad likes being
(20:32):
at home and I got to tell youfor James, that sentence just
killed him.
That's the moment that trulystuck with James and it haunted
him.
He couldn't shake this ache inhis chest, this idea and this
look in his life, or I shouldsay the look in his wife's face
of how disappointed,disconnected, tired of carrying
(20:54):
it all that she had.
And at work he was the real, hewas the leader that everyone
would count on, but at home hehad become a ghost, and always
physically present, butemotionally James was just
absent man, and he realized thathe was outsourcing his identity
to his job, abdicating his rolewhere it counted the most.
(21:16):
And the more he succeeded outthere then, the more he failed
within his own four walls.
And so James decided it wastime that he needed to truly
look in the mirror and lead withintegrity.
He needed to start doing itright here at home, and so he
committed to unpluggingeverything at dinner.
He started listening withoutfixing.
(21:36):
He started having weeklyconnection check-ins with his
wife.
He even picked one night a weekto take each child out for a
one-on-one time.
Slowly, the distance reallystarted to close.
Hannah's son started opening upagain.
His wife, she smiled a littlebit more.
He no longer came home in acold and silence, but to a place
(21:58):
that felt a lot more alive,with more energy.
And so James then ultimatelydiscovered what Discovered that
true leadership isn't aboutcommanding authority.
It's about earning trust,showing up and being consistent
where it matters most.
And so I can tell you thattoday, james still crushes his
at work, but he has a reallyrenewed perspective about life.
(22:21):
He no longer sacrifices hisfamily at the altar of ambition.
His home is no longer a sourceof guilt but his opportunity for
a wall of strength.
He says he has fewer yes, hehas fewer meetings and much more
moments, and he leads hisfamily with clarity, calm and
presence, and it shows ineverything, from the way his
(22:44):
daughter hugs him on the waythat his team would follow him,
and James just didn't reclaimhis role.
He truly redefined it.
And so I want to give you a fewpractical tips about why true
leadership begins at home.
And the first tip I'm going togive you is I've been talking
about it so far throughout thisepisode is that we really need
(23:06):
to schedule your presence.
Why am I asking you to do that?
Why schedule it?
Because, just like in abusiness meeting, quality time
at home really deservesintentional space in our
calendar, doesn't it?
Stephen Covey talked about thatyears ago in the habits six
habits of highly or seven habitsof highly successful people.
We need to be intentional aboutscheduling our presence, but
(23:30):
most of the time, what we end upby doing is just leaving it to
chance and assuming that justbeing around is all we need to
do.
And so start right now.
Block 30 minutes each eveningas a non-negotiable for family
time.
That means turning off thephone, it means making eye
contact with the people you'reinvolved with and asking
questions deeper than just howwas your day Following up with.
(23:53):
Tell me more about that.
Tip number two I want you tolead by listening.
Listening builds the most trust, it builds connection and it's
in built influence and it's acore leadership skill, and I
know you know this because youdo it well at work, but often we
tend to neglect that at home.
And so the next time that ourpartner, our child, shares
(24:15):
something, just pause, just takea moment before responding and
then ask do you want support ordo you just want me to listen?
It's an opportunity to moveaway from assumptions and dive a
little deeper into ourconversation.
Next tip I'd like to offer youis apply the mission mindset to
(24:37):
your family.
As high performers, we excelwhen we have a clear mission,
don't we?
So why not apply the samemindset to your role as a
husband and as a father?
And when we do that, if we canwrite out a personal mission
statement for our home, forexample, I lead my family with
strength and calm, andconsistency sends a clear
message to everybody in the homeexactly about who you are, what
(25:01):
you stand for, what yournon-negotiables are, and I want
you to practice emotionaltransparency.
See, being vulnerable is goingto create connection.
I know that sometimes that's asticky word being vulnerable but
it's a strength word.
It doesn't make us weak.
It's going to make us reliableand trustworthy, because that's
(25:21):
what our family's looking for.
And so share one struggle withyour family from your day or
maybe it's at the dinner tableor what one struggle you've had
for the week, and just watch howthat opens the door for deeper
conversations.
It's an opportunity to buildand to show that you can change
(25:42):
and grow and learn, no matterwhat age we're at.
And then the last tip I offeryou is build a ritual of
connection.
Rituals are truly theconsistency that builds
anticipation, doesn't it?
It strengthens family bonds,especially as we become much
more consistent over time, andso maybe it's a weekly tradition
(26:03):
, maybe it's something that youdo on Sunday, maybe it's a
breakfast before or after church, or maybe it's a Friday night
movie night, but stick with it.
It's consistency is whatultimately is going to build a
legacy for you and the family.
There's a few tips that I haveoffered for you, but there's
other resources and stuff workthat resources that we've used
(26:26):
here and in our work in ourmen's group, in our training
programs, and one of my mostfavorite resources and go-to is
King Warrior, magician Lover byMoore and Gillette, and it's a
foundational book that reallyunpacks the four archetypes in
mature masculinity and it givesus an opportunity to really
understand what drives us froman inner perspective and how
(26:49):
imbalance one area can trulysabotage our leadership at home
and work alike, and so I lovethat book.
It's a great opportunity foryou to dive into it.
I just mentioned Stephen Coveyearlier the Seven Habits of
Highly Effective Families.
He's got many versions.
This one's about families.
It's an opportunity for you toadapt what he does in the
business world and apply that athome as well.
(27:14):
And the family leadershipblueprint is something that I'm
going to give to you free withthis episode.
It'll be in the show notes.
It's an opportunity for you todefine your family leadership
mission, to set weekly outcomes,connection goals, to build new
habits around presence andengagement, and again, it's a
free resource we're going tooffer you to give you an
(27:35):
opportunity to learn and grow asa husband and as a father.
And so, at the end of the day,leadership isn't going to be
about title or position, is it?
It's who we choose to be whenno one's watching and I know
that's very cliche, but it is sotrue.
So that's going to start athome.
Gentlemen, if you can lead yourfamily with love and strength
(27:57):
and presence, you're going to beable to lead the world with
true integrity, and so here'syour challenge for today.
I want you to pick oneprinciple from this episode and
apply it before the sun sets,whether it's leading by example,
or speaking life into yourpartner and kids, or owning your
responsibilities.
Don't wait.
(28:18):
Your family doesn't need aperfect man.
They just need one that'spresent, and so if you're truly
serious about becoming the manthat your family needs, then I
want you to take action now.
Go to our membership site,memberstheawakenedmannet, and I
have a free integrity challenge.
It's your roadmap to becomingthe leader you were born to be,
(28:39):
at home and beyond, and so thestrongest men don't wait,
gentlemen.
They decide.
Lead with integrity, and let'sget started now.
And thank you so much, and I'llsee you next time on the
Revolutionary man Podcast.
Speaker 2 (29:00):
Thank you for
listening to the Revolutionary
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