In this episode of The Coaching Edge Podcast, hosts Erwin de Grave and Dr. Steve Jeffs sit down with Kay Adams, a psychotherapist, journal therapist, and founder of the Center for Journal Therapy. From her early days as a lifelong journaler and journalism major to discovering, almost by accident, that journaling could become her life’s work, Kay shares the story of a 40-year career at the intersection of writing, psychology, and healing.

Kay explains how a simple request from friends to “teach a journaling workshop” led her to codify 21 different journaling techniques, and later to develop the Journal Ladder—a structured hierarchy of writing methods designed to support safety, pacing, and containment, especially for people with trauma. She describes working in psychiatric hospitals with women diagnosed with what is now called dissociative identity disorder, and how she realized that unstructured free writing could unintentionally retraumatize them. Her answer was to design more guided approaches using tools like sentence stems (“Right now I feel…”, “Today the most important thing is…”) to help clients self-regulate on the page.

The conversation also explores who tends to be drawn to journaling, and how gender patterns show up differently. While many women privately process their emotions in journals and hesitate to share their writing, Kay noticed that men often prefer to talk first—and, once they do write, they’re surprisingly eager to read their work aloud. Underneath these differences, she emphasizes, we’re all dealing with the same human struggles; journaling just gives each person a way to externalize and clarify what’s going on inside.

One of the most practical ideas in this episode is the power of the five-minute sprint: writing fast for just five minutes about a realization, conflict, or problem. For busy coaches, leaders, and entrepreneurs, Kay frames this as a simple act of self-permission—five minutes of presence with yourself. Paired with a short reflection write (“As I read this, I notice…”), it becomes a powerful tool for insight, action planning, and tracking growth over time.

Kay also touches on AI as an ally rather than a threat to journaling. She suggests using AI to generate writing prompts—“Give me 10 (or 30) journal prompts about the conflict I’m having with my team leader”—as a way to expand perspective and deepen self-exploration. For professionals who support others—coaches, therapists, and facilitators—she points to the Therapeutic Writing Institute, a three-year training program she designed for those who want to build a practice around expressive and therapeutic writing.

If you’ve ever thought, “I don’t have time to journal” or “I don’t know what to write,” this episode offers both reassurance and a toolkit. Journaling doesn’t have to be elaborate or perfect; it can simply be five minutes, a few prompts, and the willingness to meet yourself on the page.

Watch the full episode here: https://thecoachingedgepodcast.com/five-minute-journaling-how-kay-adams-turns-writing-into-everyday-therapy/

In this episode of The Coaching Edge Podcast, co-hosts Dr. Steve Jeffs and Erwin de Grave sit down with Rusty Tugman, leadership trainer, coach, and creator of the first internal coaching program in the history of Oklahoma state government. After 30 years in full-time ministry, Rusty transitioned into the role of leadership trainer and coach at the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS), a 6,000+ employee government agency serving some of the state’s most vulnerable citizens. What started as coaching a single employee organically grew—through word of mouth—into a robust internal coaching program offering executive, leadership, conflict, group, and team coaching.

Rusty explains the unique challenges and opportunities of internal coaching versus external coaching. As an internal coach, he is “one of us” inside the system, dealing with real power dynamics, conflicts of interest, and the reality that some clients technically have the authority to fire him. Yet that same embedded position gives him something external coaches rarely have: day-to-day visibility of behavior change, team dynamics, and cultural shifts in real time. He also shares how critical it is to position internal coaching away from discipline and “fixing” people, and instead as a positive, future-focused resource designed to unlock potential and support growth.

A major part of the conversation centers on how Rusty built and scaled an internal coaching program. He walks through four key pillars he used to design it:

1. Clear purpose – What problem does coaching solve, what value does it bring, and how does it support organizational goals?
2. Standards and structures – Using ICF competencies and ethics as quality anchors while allowing individual coaching style.
3. Measurement and impact – Demonstrating value, especially ROI and outcomes such as performance, engagement, and culture.
4. Delivery and consistency – Actually delivering results so coaching becomes a budget-worthy, permanent part of the business.

Unexpectedly, one of the strongest outcomes of the program has been employee well-being. Rusty shares that the most common feedback from coachees is not only about better performance, but about feeling supported, having a safe place to talk, and being able to process the emotional load of the work. For leaders—especially senior leaders—coaching becomes a rare space to think out loud, explore ideas without everything being taken as a directive, and confront their own self-doubt.

Rusty and the hosts also explore how internal coaches can coexist and partner with external coaches, aiming for alignment and consistency rather than competition. Ultimately, Rusty’s vision is a true coaching culture at OKDHS, where coach-like leadership, thought partnership, and human-centered support are embedded throughout the organization—not just reserved for the top of the org chart.

Watch the full episode here: https://thecoachingedgepodcast.com/inside-the-rise-of-internal-coaching-how-rusty-tugman-built-a-coaching-culture-from-the-inside-out/

In this episode of The Coaching Edge Podcast, co-hosts Erwin de Grave and Dr. Steve Jeffs sit down with Caroline Leroux-Boulay from The Emotional Intelligence Training Company to explore what it really means to lead and coach with humanity, science, and heart.

Caroline shares her story of growing up in a large, poor farming family where faith, music, hard work, and community shaped her core values—as well as some powerful limiting beliefs about gender and education. From “farm girl” resilience to being the first in her family to pursue higher education, she describes how her love of learning, theology, and community work naturally led her toward coaching.

What began as a search for a “third way” of parenting—neither authoritarian nor laissez-faire—became her doorway into professional coaching. Caroline explains how family meetings with her four children evolved into a deep curiosity about collaboration, partnership, and what she calls “door C”: a way of relating that isn’t either/or but both/and.

The conversation dives into emotional intelligence as people skills—how we relate to ourselves, to others, make decisions, and manage stress. Caroline emphasizes that leaders don’t need “woo-woo”; they need science and structure to feel confident in showing up more authentically. Emotional intelligence provides the framework; neuroscience provides the “how”—how the brain and body work so we can create sustainable, transformational change more efficiently.

Caroline and the hosts explore powerful metaphors like the “glass is half full” reframed as “the glass is completely full—half water, half air”, challenging limiting beliefs and dualistic thinking. Instead of choosing task or relationship, she advocates for an and mindset where resonant relationships are not a luxury but a performance advantage.

They also highlight the underestimated impact of simple human behaviors: asking “How are you coming in today?”, expressing genuine emotion, and using basic manners. These small acts, backed by science, create positive emotional attractors and safer, happier environments where people can flourish.

Throughout, Caroline returns to themes of authenticity, resonance, compassion, and common humanity. Emotional intelligence and neuroscience, she argues, simply give us the language, structure, and permission to reconnect with ways of being that are already innate in us—and to do so with more intention, confidence, and courage.

Watch the full episode here: https://thecoachingedgepodcast.com/choosing-door-c-emotional-intelligence-neuroscience-and-real-leadership-with-caroline-leroux-boulay/