Keith Willis: Turn Career Setbacks Into Launchpads (+ The Long Game Strategy That Gets You More)

What if the very career setback that feels like your biggest failure is actually the launching pad for your greatest success? Keith Willis, Executive Coach and Leadership Development Expert, reveals how embracing feedback, swallowing your pride, and viewing "failures" as feedback can transform your career trajectory in ways you never imagined.

Guest Bio

Keith Willis, President of Core Management Training, is a seasoned Executive Coach, Leadership Development Expert, and former pharmaceutical industry leader who has spent decades mastering the art of resilience and helping others do the same. After working with companies such as Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, he launched his own coaching practice, helping managers and teams play "the infinite game" by focusing on long-term people development rather than short-term wins.

Keith specializes in transforming career setbacks into career breakthroughs, teaching professionals how to take feedback, embrace change, and build sustainable success. His philosophy centers on understanding that life's ups and downs are inevitable, but our response to them determines our trajectory.

Connect with Keith:

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithawillis/
• https://coremanagementtraining.com/

Content Sample: 

[00:23:00-00:26:00] Transforming Career Setbacks into Launch Pads The lesson? Sometimes your worst moments become your best credentials.

[00:26:00-00:28:00] The Rollercoaster Reality Check You've already proven your resilience; it's time to trust that pattern.

[00:28:00-00:30:00] Playing the Infinite Game vs. the Finite Game Keeping talent, investing in people's growth, and thinking long-term actually improves the bottom line and creates unstoppable teams.

[00:31:00-00:33:00] Managing for the Long View When you focus on helping people reach their life goals, not just quarterly targets, everyone wins.

[00:33:00] The Ultimate Truth: You Are the Captain Keith's closing wisdom: "I am the captain of my own destiny." You control your response to every situation, and that response shapes your future.

Memorable Quotes

"Sometimes the worst things that happen are the best things that can happen - they become launchpads." 

"Nobody wants to worry about whether they're gonna have a job or not. Companies expect loyalty, but they're playing the finite game." 

"When people know that you care about them, they're gonna give you a lot more and they're gonna be more open with you because it's not just about you, it's about them." 

Call to Action

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If you are looking to add talent to your marketing, communications, public relations, public affairs, or sales/bus dev team, contact paradigmstaffing.com.  

Host and Platform Information

Jolie Downs is the co-owner and Executive Recruiter with Paradigm Staffing, a recruiting firm specializing in public relations, marketing, and communications. For more career related insights, connect with Jolie at:  linkedin.com/in/joliedowns

Ending Note

Here's something to sit with: Every single difficulty you've ever faced, you've overcome. Every challenge that once felt impossible is now behind you. So why would this current moment be any different?

Keith reminds us that we are the captains of our own destiny, not because life stops throwing storms our way, but because we choose how to navigate them.