763: Leading with Poise When the Stakes are High, with Eileen Collins
Coaching for Leaders15 Dec 2025

763: Leading with Poise When the Stakes are High, with Eileen Collins

Eileen Collins: Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars

Colonel Eileen M. Collins, USAF (retired), earned a place in history as the first American woman to pilot, and later to command, a space mission. She flew on the space shuttle four times, twice as commander – including the 2005 “return to flight” mission after the tragic Columbia accident. She is the subject of the documentary movie Spacewoman and author of the book Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission (Amazon, Bookshop)*.

We all have times in our careers where all eyes are on us. In this conversation, Eileen and I explore the critical moments of her career and how she stayed grounded while soaring among the stars.

Key Points
  • Until we are tested, we don’t know what we are capable of.
  • Nerves creep in at times for all of us. When they do, it’s helpful to think about representing your role instead of representing yourself.
  • When decisions become difficult, always come back to, “What’s the mission?”
  • Train for the skill, not for the task.
  • During high-stakes times, remember your family and personal life. They will help you stay grounded.
Resources Mentioned
  • Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission by Eileen Collins (Amazon, Bookshop)*
  • Spacewoman documentary, featuring Eileen Collins
Interview Notes

Download my interview notes in PDF format (free membership required).

Related Episodes Discover More

Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic. To accelerate your learning, uncover more inside Coaching for Leaders Plus.

Avsnitt(782)

671: How to Recognize Remarkable People, with Guy Kawasaki

671: How to Recognize Remarkable People, with Guy Kawasaki

Guy Kawasaki: Think Remarkable Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist of Canva and the creator of Guy Kawasaki’s Remarkable People podcast. He is an executive fellow of the Haas School of Business (UC B...

11 Mars 202433min

670: How to Connect with People Better, with Charles Duhigg

670: How to Connect with People Better, with Charles Duhigg

Charles Duhigg: Supercommunicators Charles Duhigg is a Pulitzer Prize–winning investigative journalist and the author of The Power of Habit and Smarter Faster Better. A graduate of Harvard Business Sc...

4 Mars 202440min

669: Three Practices for Thriving in Negotiations, with William Ury

669: Three Practices for Thriving in Negotiations, with William Ury

William Ury: Possible William Ury is one of the world’s best-known experts on negotiation, and the co-author of Getting to Yes, the all-time bestselling book on negotiation with more than 15 million c...

26 Feb 202439min

668: How to Begin with an Executive Coach, with Scott Osman and Jacquelyn Lane

668: How to Begin with an Executive Coach, with Scott Osman and Jacquelyn Lane

Scott Osman and Jacquelyn Lane: Becoming Coachable Scott Osman is the founder and CEO of the 100 Coaches Agency and co-designer with Jacquelyn Lane of their proprietary curation process and the compan...

19 Feb 202439min

667: The Way to Handle Oblivious Leadership, with Robert Sutton

667: The Way to Handle Oblivious Leadership, with Robert Sutton

Robert Sutton: The Friction Project Robert Sutton is an organizational psychologist and professor of Management Science and Engineering in the Stanford Engineering School. He has given keynote speeche...

12 Feb 202434min

666: Get People Reading What You’re Sending, with Todd Rogers

666: Get People Reading What You’re Sending, with Todd Rogers

Todd Rogers: Writing for Busy Readers Todd Rogers is a professor of public policy at Harvard University, where he has won teaching awards for the past seven consecutive years. He is a behavioral scien...

5 Feb 202439min

665: How to Represent Your Team on LinkedIn, with Randelle Lenoir

665: How to Represent Your Team on LinkedIn, with Randelle Lenoir

Randelle Lenoir Randelle Lenior is a vice president at Fidelity Investments and a graduate of the Coaching for Leaders Academy. In this conversation, Randelle and I discuss how to utilize LinkedIn in ...

3 Feb 202433min

664: The Reason People Make Buying Decisions, with Marcus Collins

664: The Reason People Make Buying Decisions, with Marcus Collins

Marcus Collins: For the Culture Marcus Collins is an award-winning marketer and cultural translator. He is a recipient of Advertising Age’s 40 Under 40 award and Crain’s Business 40 Under 40 award and...

29 Jan 202438min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

framgangspodden
badfluence
varvet
rss-jossan-nina
svd-tech-brief
rss-svart-marknad
rss-borsens-finest
uppgang-och-fall
avanzapodden
bathina-en-podcast
lastbilspodden
rss-dagen-med-di
fill-or-kill
24fragor
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
rss-kort-lang-analyspodden-fran-di
borsmorgon
tabberaset
rikatillsammans-om-privatekonomi-rikedom-i-livet
montrosepodden