Episode 2: The P-VIAL Blueprint — Five Anchors for Powerful Leadership

(00:00:00) Intro
(00:02:00) The origin of The P-VIAL Blueprint and how it became David’s leadership filter
(00:05:15) A breakdown of each pillar and why order matters
(00:15:22) Quite Condensed Recap
(00:16:00) How to self-assess where you’re strong—and where you need to grow
(00:16:46) Next Episode Highlight
(00:17:25) Conclusion

🎙 EPISODE 2: THE P-VIAL BLUEPRINT — Five Anchors for Powerful Leadership

DISCOVER HOW PURPOSE, VISION, INFLUENCE, AUTHENTICITY & LEGACY SHAPE YOUR LEADERSHIP DNA

📌 EPISODE SUMMARY
      In this second episode of The Empowered Leader Podcast, David Jeremiah Akhigbe introduces the foundational framework of his leadership philosophy: the P-VIAL Blueprint. You’ll explore five powerful anchors that shape transformative leaders from the inside out—Purpose, Vision, Influence, Authenticity, and Legacy. If you’ve ever felt like leadership is too complex or overwhelming, this episode simplifies it all. With real-life context and clear definitions, David helps you connect the dots between who you are, what you believe, and how you lead.

YOU'LL LEARN:

• Why purpose is the backbone of resilient leadership
• How vision provides both direction and discipline
• What makes influence sustainable (hint: not charisma)
• The role of authenticity in building trust without overexposure
• How legacy is less about reputation and more about impact

Whether you're leading in business, faith, creativity, or community—this episode gives you a leadership compass that works across seasons and settings.


🧭 HIGHLIGHTS/CHAPTERS:

• [00:00] — Intro
• [02:00] — The origin of The P-VIAL Blueprint and how it became David’s leadership filter
• [05:15] — A breakdown of each pillar and why order matters
• [15:22] — Quite Condensed Recap
• [16:00] — How to self-assess where you’re strong—and where you need to grow
• [16:46] — Next Episode Highlight
• [17:25] — Conclusion

🧠 QUOTE
“Leadership that lasts is rooted in anchors that don’t move—purpose, clarity, and integrity.”
— David Jeremiah Akhigbe —


📣 NEXT EPISODE
Episode 3 — Leading on Purpose: The Fuel That Sustains You

We’ll kick off the deep-dive series on each P-VIAL pillar, starting with Purpose. 
Discover how to define your leadership purpose, live it daily, and align it with the people and problems you’re called to serve. 
If you’ve ever asked, “Why am I really doing this?”—this one’s for you.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Hey family, I'm David Jeremiah Akhigbe, leadership coach, mentor and your

(00:07):
companion in this journey of growth. On this podcast we are not just talking
leadership theory, we are getting honest about what it looks like to show up and
lead with courage, clarity and consistency like I mentioned in the last episode
right? Showing up and then taking the lead, taking responsibility but then in

(00:28):
this particular one we are getting honest, we're getting honest about what it
looks like to show up and lead with courage, clarity and consistency. This is
episode two and today we unpack a framework that I've lived and living, I've

(00:48):
taught and I've seen changed lives. I call it the P-VIAL Blueprint. If you're tired
of trying to lead without alignment, this episode is the compass you have been
missing. This is episode two and today we unpack a framework I've lived, I'm
living, I've taught and I've seen changed lives. I call it the P-VIAL Blueprint. So, if

(01:16):
you're tired of trying to lead without alignment, this episode is the compass
you have been missing. Now I want you to imagine something real quick, imagine
something real quick. You're handed a powerful vehicle, sleek, brand new engine

(01:39):
homing with potential but here's the catch, no GPS, no road map and the dashboard
blank. You get the picture right? Now that's what leadership feels like without
a framework. That's what leadership feels like without a framework. See,

(02:01):
elin my journey, I had energy, I had goals, I had big ideas but I didn't have
a blueprint. I was doing everything but nothing in alignment and honestly that
disconnection started costing me influence clarity and even confidence. That

(02:23):
disconnection alone started costing me influence clarity and even confidence.
That's why I built the P-VIAL Blueprint. Not from theory but from real-life
experiences. Hard ones, wins and losses. The kind that taught me that leadership is

(02:43):
less about having answers and more about having alignment. Less about having
answers and more about having alignment. So what is P-VIAL? First of all, do you know
what a VIAL is? Something that holds precious liquids so you know like an

(03:14):
elixir. So that thing you've watched epic movies and then there's like an
elixir in a very small container that is very, very valuable. The thing that holds
the elixir you understand is called a V.I.A.L. So a V.I.A.L. is something that holds

(03:37):
something very precious. So I call it P-VIAL because the V.I.A.L. is an acronym
actually you understand? But the V.I.A.L. is the holder for something precious and the kind of V.I.A.L. you know, just
You know, I call it the P-VIAL. So the name of the vial is a P-VIAL you get the joke,

(04:01):
but now what's that valuable thing inside of the vial is leadership.
So your leadership is contained in this vial. This blueprint I'm actually given to you is
something very, very precious, very, very invaluable, very priceless. So what is pee vial?

(04:28):
It stands for purpose, vision, influence, authenticity and legacy.
P for purpose, v for vision, i for influence, a for authenticity and l for legacy.

(04:51):
Now each word is a lens. Together they form the blueprint.
A leadership compass you can carry into any room, any team and any challenge. In this episode,
we're going to walk through each one, not just to define them, but to help you spot them,

(05:12):
or the luck of them in your own leadership. So let's break it down.
Let's start with purpose. Purpose is the why.
The fuel, the reason you show up when motivation disappears.
It's the why, the reason for a thing, the reason why you are venturing into something in the

(05:36):
first place. It's that reason that makes you show up, that thing that makes you show up
when motivation disappears. The truth is many leaders are burning out,
not because they are weak. No, not because they are weak, but because they are misaligned.

(05:57):
They are misaligned. They don't know why they do what they do.
They don't know why they are in that thing in the first place.
Without purpose, activity becomes noise.
You do more or feel less fulfilled. It becomes noise. And I'm sure you don't want that.

(06:22):
So you ask yourself this. Number one, what am I really building here?
What am I really building here? Number two, who benefits when I get this right?
Who really benefits when I get this right?
You see, pop-ups makes leadership personal. Pop-ups makes leadership personal.

(06:46):
And when leadership becomes personal, it becomes powerful.
Purpose makes leadership personal. And when leadership becomes personal, it becomes powerful.
Yeah.
The very next one, vision.

(07:08):
Vision is about direction. It's not just what you see.
But also, it's what you help others see.
Vision is about direction. It's not just what you see.
It's what you help others see.
Think of vision as the mental blueprint of your desired future.

(07:31):
So that future is so desired. Think of it as the mental blueprint of it.
When a leader is unclear, the team wonders the just no direction, no sense of direction.
They just do what they want to do. Vision is not communicated clearly.
They just stay on board and stay afloat, just making the most of what they can,

(07:56):
while they can, and while they're there.
When there is a need for guidance and in direction.
When a leader is unclear, the team wonders. But when vision is clear, energy aligns.
Everywhere gets back on track. Everyone knows where they're going.
And no, no, no. Vision is not just reserved for CEOs and presidents.

(08:21):
In fact, it's not reserved for them.
If you lead a two-person team,
just two persons. You need vision. If you lead your family.
as the father or the mother, if you're single parent or, you know,
the son when you come of age and then your mom now depends on you.

(08:45):
Your parents are, like, old, you know senior citizens, and then,
You know, you begin to chart the course and the direction for it.
Or as a father, the mother of the house,
you need direction, you need vision.
Or even just yourself, you need vision.
Now, don't over complicate it.
A compelling vision is one sentence that points forward.

(09:10):
A compelling vision is just one sentence that points forward.
And invites people to move on.
Take, for instance, Martin Luther King (Jr.), I have a dream.
I have a dream. That was the vision.
That was the vision statement.
Every other thing hung around it.

(09:32):
I have a dream that this, I have a dream that this would happen.
I have a dream that this would happen.
But everyone knew I have a dream.
So don't over complicate it. You understand me.
So the next one is influence.
Ooh! I like this.
Now, listen, I'm not talking about manipulation or control.
When you think of influence, don't think manipulation, don't think control.

(09:55):
Influence is simply trust that you have earned.
Earned trust.
I emphasize it in the episode and the first episode, the last episode.
Influence is earned trust.
Influence is when your presence changes the room, even if you say nothing.
When your presence changes the room, even if you say nothing.
I like to refer to influence as the

(10:20):
The leadership currency.
You know, there's something called leadership currency.
Leadership currency is your influence.
That's your influence.
Leadership currency is, you know, that thing that makes you...

(10:41):
that changes things around you when you are there.
The influence you have to make things happen.
The power you have to make things happen.
When you say this, how swiftly do people move in view of your direction?
When you give a directive or you chart a course, how quickly do people move?

(11:08):
Now, you could actually increase your currency and you could decrease it.
It's like, you know, it's your leadership bank account.
You understand?
It's your leadership bank account.
And then what influence your leadership bank account?
And then what fuels it is trust and consistency.

(11:30):
Trust and consistency.
Like I've been emphasizing.
So you see, influence is the core currency.
That's why it's the core currency.
Titles don't create influence.
You see, that thing that makes your presence change the room.
Even when you see nothing is influence.

(11:53):
That's why it's your core currency.
The core currency of leadership.
Titles don't create influence.
No.
Consistency does. Integrity does.
Consistency does. Integrity does.
The way you listen, the way you show up in tension,
the way you make other people feel seen.

(12:15):
Those are deposits into the influence account.
Leaders who chase influence usually lose it.
But leaders who build trust naturally grow it.
So if you're focused on chasing influence, you will lose it.
Or if you're focused on building trust,
you will naturally grow it.

(12:37):
Now to the next one authenticity.
Authenticity is not about oversharing or performing realness.
It's about congruence.
It's when you know your inner values align with your external behavior.
When your story, your scars, your style,

(13:01):
they are not hidden or dressed up. They are integrated.
Your stories, your scars, your style, they are not trying to dress them up.
They are not hiding them. They are integrated into who you are and then what you are about.
You don't need to fake leadership.
People are drawn to truth, not polish.
People are drawn to truth, not polish.

(13:24):
And authenticity creates room for others to be real too.
So your humanity is your leadership superpower.
Your humanity is your leadership superpower.
If you'll stop hiding it,
your humanity, who you are is your leadership superpower.
If you stop hiding it.

(13:46):
Finally, legacy.
Legacy.
Legacy.
It's not about, this is not about building money men or chasing fame.
It's about the impact that outlives you.

(14:07):
Every email you write, every decision you make, every person you empower is all building something.
You need to know.
Every single action you take, the email you write, the decision you make, everybody you empower,
it's all building something.
Legacy is what happens when you live with the end in mind.

(14:28):
And lead like every interaction matters.
Two things.
Legacy is what happens and is what you are building.
When you live with the end in mind,
and you lead like every interaction matters.

Two things (14:42):
End in mind.
Interaction matters.
Every interaction matters.
Leaders plant seeds, they may never see group, but they plant anyway.
You have to have that feedback of your mind.
Leaders plant seeds that they may never see group, but they plant anyway.
So it means that you could be in a particular place,

(15:05):
but ensure that you plant a seed.
You create an impact.
You might not see it group, you might not actually see the effect of it,
but plant it.
Plant it.
Plant it.
So here's the recap.
P—VIAL, P.V.I.A.L. P for purpose.

(15:27):
Purpose fuels your why.
Vision aligns your way.
Influence defines your how.
Authenticity shapes your who.
Legacy secures your what for.
I go again.
Purpose fuels your why.
Vision aligns your way.
Influence defines your how.

(15:49):
Authenticity shapes your who.
Legacy secures your what for.
Good.
This week I want to challenge you.
Pick one of the five.
and zoom in.
Maybe it's purpose, maybe it's influence, you know, or whichever one.

(16:10):
Whatever it is, ask yourself, where am I aligned.
Where am I drifting.
Number one, where am I aligned.
Number two, where am I drifting.
Number three, what one adjustments could realign?
What one adjustment could realign me this week?
You see, leadership is never about perfection.
Now, it's about direction.

(16:31):
And the P-VIAL blueprint is here to keep you grounded, focused, and growing.
Yeah.
The P-VIAL Blueprint is here to keep you grounded, focused, and growing.
So next episode, we are zeroing in on the core.
On the core, which is purpose.
The next episode will unpack what it really means to lead with a WHY.

(16:53):
That burns deeper than applause.
Will unpack what it really means.
Will unpack what it really means to lead with a WHY.
That burns deeper than applause.
Pressure or quick wins.
Because without purpose, leadership becomes performance.
And I want you leading from conviction.

(17:14):
Not convenience.
I want you leading from conviction, not convenience.
If this landed, and if this episode spoke to something inside you,
go ahead, hit that subscribe button, hit that follow button, share this with a leader,

(17:37):
share this with someone you know needs it, share this with a leader who needs this reminder,
and come back ready.
Share this with someone on their leadership journey, and come back ready.
You see, the P-VIAL blueprint isn't just a framework.
Nah.
It's a way of leading that outlives the spotlight.

(17:58):
You were built for, more than noise, definitely.
So let's lead with that intention.
It's not a trend, it's your edge.
This blueprint is not a trend, it's your edge.
And when you lead from that alignment, you don't just grow you multiply.
You multiply.
Understand?
So yeah, catch you in the next one.

(18:20):
Cheers.
(music fades)
(music fades)