E8: "You're Unemployable": Chris Quinn's Midlife Pivot That Changed Everything

April 21
1h 7m

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Episode Description

Welcome to Confessions of a Vistage Chair, a podcast by Talent Harbor, where we have real, behind-the-scenes conversations with Vistage Chairs. They share honest stories and practical insights on leadership growth, peer advisory groups, and what actually happens in Vistage meetings.

Let's pull back the curtain!

Chris Quinn’s path to Vistage Chair is anything but conventional. He went from shaving his surfer hair at Officer Candidate School to commanding infantry platoons in the Middle East, serving as aide-de-camp to a two-star general, and eventually becoming president of a public biotech company, all before his wife sat him down and told him he was flat-out unemployable.

In this episode, Chris gets real about what the Marine Corps actually teaches you about leadership that no MBA ever could, why empathy and sympathy are not the same thing, and what it means to run a Vistage group the way a great coach runs a team. 

Tune in! You won't want to miss it.

 

Timestamps

00:00 Military Beginnings

03:52 Military Deployments and Aid Role

12:30 Simplicity and Agility in Leadership

16:32 Key Leadership Behaviors and Self-Control

20:50 Challenges and Reflections on Military Life

26:21 Embracing Entrepreneurship and Values

32:08 Personal Growth and Career Redirection

36:09 The Power of Vistage and Peer Advisory

41:59 Transition to Consulting & E-Learning

45:34 Marketing Readiness Diagnostic

 

Guest Links Vistage Website:

https://app.vistage.com/sites/s/chairs/0038000002BRNSKAA5/chris-quinn

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-quinn-ceoadvisor/

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