The Found Podcast with Molly Knuth4 Maalis

242: Hot Takes vs. High Character: A Women's History Month Reflection

It's officially Women's History Month, and this year, instead of starting with statistics, I'm starting with a question:

In 2026, are we elevating hot takes…or high character?

When I was in seventh grade, I wrote a research paper on Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. I was fascinated by the way she carried herself through public scrutiny, personal grief, and cultural change.

Today, we live in a very different media landscape.

Algorithms reward outrage.
Virality rewards speed.
Money rewards attention.

Integrity? Not so much.

In this episode, I explore:

What changed between the era of shared cultural narratives and today's fragmented feeds
Why we may be living in a "trust recession"
How money, clicks, and status shape modern leadership
The danger of urgency-driven decision making
Why reluctant, values-aligned leaders may be the ones we need most
And how moral leadership starts inside each of us

As we kick off Women's History Month 2026, this conversation sets the foundation for the stories ahead: women who embody high character in big and small ways.

This isn't about nostalgia...I mean kind of. I love waxing nostalgic.

But this conversation is about personal leadership and responsibility.

It starts with us.

🔗 Links Referenced in This Episode

Malcolm Gladwell – Revisionist History Podcast "When Will Met Grace:" https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/revisionist-history/when-will-met-grace
Wellness Wheel (Life Balance Assessment Tool)
https://www.the-restorationproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Wellness-Wheel.pdf
Values Exercise
https://www.the-restorationproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Refining-Your-Values-1.pdf
The Restoration Project – Weekly Leadership Momentum Emails
https://the-restorationproject.myflodesk.com/newsletter

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266: Better Every Day: Dr. Dan Butler on Building a School District Rooted in People

I have a confession. I've been bragging about our school district to basically anyone who will listen lately (sorry to my friends and acquaintances, you did not ask for this)...and today's guest is ex...

20 Elo 38min

265: Wear the Name Badge: What Ed Raber Knows About Showing Up

This month on The Found Podcast, we're doing something a little different. We're bringing the boys in for a few episodes (don't worry, we'll be back to our women founders soon), and first up is somebo...

12 Elo 46min

264: The Messy Middle: What Rebuilding My Business Has Actually Looked Like

Back in May, I was on a Zoom with my friend Jill Carr, mapping out where this podcast is headed in 2026 and 2027, when something clicked. Not a big dramatic moment. Just that quiet click where somebod...

5 Elo 40min

263: The Midyear Check-In Founders Never Put on Their Calendar

We're over halfway through the year, which means I'm having two feelings at once: "how did we get here already?!?!" and "okay, let's actually get moving on the goals I set back in January." If you're ...

29 Heinä 19min

262: Six Reasons 2026 Is Your Year to Finally Start That Business

If you've been sitting on an idea for your small town, a business, a side hustle, a project you keep circling back to, and something keeps stopping you every time you get close to pulling the trigger....

22 Heinä 48min

261: 7 Truths About Rural America They Don't Want You to Hear

I'm angry this week. Not flip-a-table angry. The kind of angry that makes you sit up and say: this is wrong, and I want to be part of the solution. Rural America has been talked about, talked at, and ...

15 Heinä 57min

260: What Table Were You Actually Built For? A Self-Leadership Framework for Small Town Business Owners

This one is personal. Episode 260 is a solo cast, and it's the episode I've been sitting with for a while. I'm sharing what's been happening in real time in my career this year, not as a pivot story o...

8 Heinä 34min

259: 28% Is Not Enough: Sarah Jakle on DemocraShe, Civic Engagement, and Why High School Girls Are the Future of Government

I get pitches in my inbox every day. Most of them I can't fit into the schedule, no matter how great they are. This one stopped me cold. Sarah Jakle is the founder and executive director of DemocraShe...

1 Heinä 50min