Episodes

Send us Fan Mail Episode 129: Unlock the secret to career success with confidence as your guide. Do you often find yourself trapped in self-doubt or hesitating to step beyond your comfort zone? Tune in to learn how to transform that hesitance into courage and expertise. This episode of the Finance Leader Podcast reveals practical strategies for building self-belief by achieving small victories, embracing your purpose, and reshaping your habits. You’ll discover how to turn mistakes into steppi...

Send us Fan Mail Episode #128: Kickstart your 2025 with a potent strategy that ensures your goals don't end up as forgotten resolutions! We promise to guide you through a personal accountability process that transforms dreams into achievable milestones. What if we told you the secret to success lies not just in setting goals, but in how you hold yourself accountable to them? Join me as we unpack the power of mindset, attitude, and a commitment that defies excuses. Harness the SMART goal-set...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus Episode #84: As we close out 2024, I invite you to take a journey with me where we transform the notion of annual resolutions into meaningful, actionable strategies for 2025. Have you ever felt like you're just treading water, waiting for that magical moment to launch into success? Let’s turn 2025 into a year of remarkable progress and fulfillment. Visit financeleaderacademy.com for a treasure trove of resources designed to help us embark on this transformative journey....

Send us Fan Mail Bonus Episode #83: This is a great time to do a leader reset before the new year begins, so please rest and reset, because the new year brings new challenges and new opportunities. I want you rested and ready once January 1st gets here. Enjoy your family time. Enjoy some time to chill and get ready for another year of hard work. Please connect with me on: 1. Instagram: stephen.mclain 2. Twitter: smclainiii 3. Facebook: stephenmclainconsultant 4. LinkedIn: stephenjmclainiii...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus episode #82: Unlock the secrets of leadership excellence and transform your team's performance with insights that promise to elevate your leadership journey. This special bonus episode of The Finance Leader Podcast, hosted by Stephen McLain, revisits transformative leadership principles that inspire greatness just in time for the new year. Stephen draws on personal experiences from his time in the Army, emphasizing the importance of elevating others and setting the pace...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus Episode #81 - Unlock the secrets to finishing the year with confidence and clarity as we guide you through the essential strategies for finance leaders. What if you could transform your year-end chaos into a streamlined process that sets the stage for success? Join me as I share my insights on balancing the myriad personal and professional demands of the holiday season. As finance leaders, we hold a unique power to influence our organizations and careers. This episode e...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus Episode #80: What if you could transform your leadership style by simply changing the way you see problems? On this special bonus episode of the Finance Leader Podcast, I, Stephen McLean, bring the concept of "leader's eyes" to life, an invaluable lesson I learned during my service in the United States Army. Through an engaging story from my military days, I unravel how the knack for identifying and rectifying small issues before they snowball can revolutionize the way ...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 127: Unlock the secrets to overcoming team frustrations and boost productivity like never before. Have you ever wondered why some teams thrive while others struggle with barriers like poor communication and micromanagement? This episode promises to transform your leadership approach by providing actionable strategies to create a supportive environment. We'll explore how open communication, fair treatment, and adequate resources can eliminate the frustrations that hold...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 126: Ever wondered how to transition from the demanding world of public accounting to a prestigious industry role? Join us as we sit down with Mike Manalac, Accounting Manager at Google and former PwC and Walmart accountant. Mike shares his incredible journey and the invaluable lessons he's learned along the way. From the rigorous training environments of Big Four firms to the nuances of auditing publicly traded companies, Mike offers insights that are crucial for any...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 125: What if your workplace could be a source of joy and fulfillment rather than stress and dread? Join us this week on the Finance Leader Podcast as we uncover powerful strategies to transform your work environment into a thriving ecosystem where every team member feels valued and empowered. You’ll learn how to set realistic expectations, appreciate your team effectively, and utilize company benefits to their fullest potential. In episode 125, we explore why poor le...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 124 - Join me as I explore why leadership is the cornerstone of creating positive change and achieving extraordinary results in finance and accounting. Learn how to coach your team effectively, helping them present their findings with confidence and develop innovative solutions that stand out in today’s competitive landscape. With practical advice and real-world examples, I'll guide you on the journey to becoming a great leader who can inspire a high-performing team c...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus Episode 75: Are you following our Mid-Year Goal Review Challenge: financeleaderacademy.com/Goalchallenge ? Ready to transform your goal-setting game and make 2024 your most successful year yet? Join us in this special bonus episode of the Finance Leader Podcast, as we reveal how setting SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-based—can truly set you apart. We'll revisit the key insights from Episode 115 and challenge you with a Mid-Year Goal re...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 123: Could a major competitor's sudden closure transform your business landscape? Find out how unexpected changes in your competitive space can significantly impact your customer traffic and revenue. This episode takes you through a fascinating local case where a major retailer shut its doors—not due to poor performance, but rather a landlord's decision. We dissect the ripple effects on surrounding businesses in a bustling shopping center, providing you with ess...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus episode #78: Does your organization have the ability to overcome a crisis or overcome rapidly changing business and economic conditions? Is decision making lagging due to financial systems that cannot adapt or because of legacy processes that don’t support change? Being agile means, you can quickly assess and adapt to rapidly changing conditions. Sometimes this lies in processes, but often it can be with leaders who are not able to see change indicators which also means...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus episode # 77: As the NFL Draft ignites conversations about talent acquisition, we turn the spotlight on the universal principles of selecting and nurturing the right people for your finance squad. In this bonus episode, I explore the critical importance of soft skills, such as emotional intelligence and communication, and their role in creating a harmonious and effective team environment. I'll share why these innate qualities often outweigh technical prowess, and how yo...

Send us Fan Mail Please download the Goal Setting Workbook that follows this episode: here Bonus episode #76: Imagine seizing opportunities as they arise, armed with a growth mindset that turns challenges into stepping stones for success. That's what we're unpacking today—how to nurture the mindset and habits that will steer us toward our most ambitious goals for the year. We'll revisit the SMART method, aligning our career and personal aspirations, even as life’s curveballs come our way. By...

Send us Fan Mail Bonus episode # 75: In this episode, we're examining the transformative power of intense accountability in the realm of finance and accounting careers. We'll delve into how owning your mindset, setting clear goals, and establishing a chain of accountability can catapult you out of your comfort zone and propel you towards success. We'll explore the fine line between making excuses and owning up to failures, and how the right mindset can encourage us to take more risks, essent...

Send us Fan Mail Embark on a journey through the treacherous terrain of strategic messaging as we dissect the recent communication blunders of Kellogg's and Wendy's. It's a perilous world out there for finance and accounting leaders tasked with navigating their company's external narratives – one wrong word could spell disaster for your brand's reputation. In this episode, we delve into why empathy and understanding the economic pulse of your audience is not just important, but critical for t...

Send us Fan Mail Episode # 121: Ready to transform a group of individuals into a powerhouse team? Joins us as we share invaluable strategies that will elevate your team's performance to unprecedented heights. By harnessing the synergy of trust, communication, and fair play, we illustrate how leaders can foster an environment ripe for growth, innovation, and collective achievement. This episode is a treasure trove of actionable advice, revealing the secrets to creating a cohesive and dynamic ...

Send us Fan Mail Episode #120: Ever wondered how leadership transcends mere management to truly inspire greatness? Join me as I reveal the transformative principles that can elevate not just your team's performance, but your very approach to leadership. Drawing from my own experiences in the Army, this episode promises to arm you with a mindset that not only lights a fire in others but also sparks the development of future leaders within your team. Last week, we gleaned incredible wisdom fro...

Send us Fan Mail Episode # 119: In the episode, Wassia talks about her work with H.O.P.E - Helping Other People be Empowered: you can find the link here. This is an amazing organization doing work that matters and changing lives for the better. Embark on a transformative journey through the dynamic world of finance with Wassia Kamon, Vice President of Finance and Corporate Controller from the Low Income Investment Fund, as she unpacks the essence of value beyond the numbers. Was...

Send us Fan Mail Please download the free business strategy guide here. Episode 118: Unlock the secrets to savvy strategic decision-making as we navigate the complex relationship between business strategy and the accounting and finance systems that support it. Perfect for small business owners looking to tighten their operations, this episode promises a deep understanding of how to leverage monthly financial statements and daily financial insights. We unravel the subtleties of resource allo...

Send us Fan Mail Episode # 117: Discover the leadership secrets that can transform your team from functioning to phenomenal as I'm joined by retired Lieutenant Colonel Mark McMillian. With a storied 22-year military career and a passion for coaching as the founder of McMillion Leadership Associates, Mark offers a wealth of knowledge on the importance of clear communication and defined expectations. Our conversation is a treasure trove for anyone looking to inspire and guide teams to gre...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 116: We are discussing staying focused, so we accomplish our goals, we complete our task with excellence, and we lead our teams with purpose. What we let distract us will own our energy and our time. Our habits and routines must be strong to overcome any distraction that can lure us away from accomplishment and top results. I want you to create a vision of success for yourself to stay focused on what you want to achieve. We will overcome any distraction and obstacle t...