In this episode of The Sean Trace Show, I sit down with executive coach and leadership expert Chris March to talk about what real leadership looks like in 2025, far beyond the fake it till you make it mindset.

We start with our shared love of basketball and Kobe Bryant, breaking down the mamba mentality, how Kobe reset the culture of the Redeem Team, and what it means to set a standard that pulls everyone else higher. From there we dive into the difference between performative confidence and real confidence, why the best leaders often do not have to be the loudest in the room, and how one person can change the culture of a team, a company, or even a kids Muay Thai class just by how they show up. Chris shares how high performers burn out when they try to be machines, and we unpack the seven types of rest, from physical and mental rest to social, sensory, creative, and spiritual rest, and why they matter if you want sustainable high performance. We also talk about finding your why, how his 17 year travel career collapsing during the pandemic pushed him into coaching, what feedback really is for ambitious mid career professionals, and why you will never earn more than you secretly believe you are worth.

If you are a founder, a manager, or just someone who wants to lead your life with more purpose, this conversation blends Kobe Bryant mamba mentality, executive coaching, burnout recovery, leadership mindset, and real talk about resilience into one powerful playbook for becoming the kind of leader people actually want to follow.