From Apprentice to CEO: Julian Scadden
“LEARN WHY THE FENCE WAS PUT UP BEFORE YOU KNOCK IT DOWN.”
Episode Description
In this episode of Leadership Matters, Julian Scadden, president and CEO of Nexstar Network, joins host Kaylee Thomsen to explore what it takes to lead with confidence while staying grounded. Julian shares how starting as a plumber’s apprentice and high school dropout shaped his belief that he could build something real, why growing a business and scaling one demands entirely different skills, and how learning to run toward hard conversations, rather than avoid them, changed how his team trusts him. He also reflects on why coaching only works when presence comes before methodology. If you believe leadership is truly built through discomfort, this episode is for you.
Chapters
- 00:00 Welcome & Introducing Julian Scadden
- 02:17 From Plumber's Apprentice to Nexstar Employee
- 04:44 Deciding to Become CEO
- 07:09 Confidence, Faith, and Seeking Multiple Perspectives
- 09:33 How People Treat You Differently as a Leader
- 11:58 A Rough First Year and Learning "Rule Number One"
- 14:24 Childhood, Resilience, and Shadow Weaknesses
- 16:47 Running Toward Hard Conversations
- 19:10 Letting Go of Old Beliefs
- 21:33 Early Wins That Changed His Self-Belief
- 23:57 "I'm a Plumber": Owning His Story Publicly
- 28:38 Why Nexstar's Network Changed His Trajectory
- 31:02 Directness Over Politics and Manipulation
- 33:25 Growing vs. Scaling: The Current Challenge
- 35:51 The Roller Coaster Analogy for Leading Change
- 38:17 What Coaching Has Taught Him
- 43:06 Final Reflections
More In The Series
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