What makes a story worth telling — and a life worth living?

Andy Janning has spent decades helping organizations and leaders tell better stories. But his own story has increasingly pushed him toward work that is anything but safe.

In this episode of Uncommon Impact, Andy joins Nathan Whitaker to talk about Overdrawn, his new investigative documentary podcast exploring what happens when trust breaks inside an institution and a community; Life Over Debt, an initiative helping cancer patients facing financial hardship; and StoryScore, his work helping mission-driven organizations tell stories that actually connect.

Andy explains why the best stories require risk and surprise, why organizations shouldn't always make themselves the superhero, and why vulnerability and struggle are often what make a story memorable.

He also shares the personal experiences that have shaped his work — including his wife's battle with cancer, the recent loss of his mother, and the growing conviction that life is too short to leave meaningful work unexplored.

As Andy puts it: “Great stories aren’t safe.”

Learn more:

Overdrawn: https://www.overdrawnpodcast.com/

Life Over Debt: https://www.lifeoverdebt.com/

Make Great Stories / StoryScore: https://www.makegreatstories.com/

About Nathan Whitaker

Nathan Whitaker is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, former NFL executive, Super Bowl champion, leadership speaker, and executive coach.

Learn more:

https://www.nathanwhitaker.com

Subscribe for new episodes of Uncommon Impact every Thursday.

Uncommon Impact explores the people, experiences, and principles that shape extraordinary leaders and teams.

More episodes of Uncommon Impact:
https://nathanwhitaker.com/podcast/

Former MLB All-Star Chris Archer spent 17 years in professional baseball, including 10 seasons in the major leagues. Today, as a Special Assistant with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he's using those experiences to help develop the next generation of players.

In this episode of Uncommon Impact, Chris talks with Nathan Whitaker about the people who invested in him, the mentor who changed the trajectory of his life, and why player development has to be about more than baseball.

Chris shares what leading the league in walks—and later losses—taught him about trusting the process, how identifying and naming our fears can loosen their hold on us, and why young athletes need interests and purpose outside their sport.

He also explains the Dodgers' philosophy of hiring good people and trusting them to do their jobs, what he's learned from Dave Roberts' consistency, and why having an uncommon impact starts with the standards we set for ourselves.

In this episode:

• Why Chris sees player development as personal development
• The power of unconditional investment in others
• Process over results
• Learning to identify and confront fear
• The mentor who saw something in Chris before he saw it himself
• Giving young people agency while still holding them accountable
• Why interests outside your work can actually improve performance
• What Chris has learned about leadership from the Dodgers and Dave Roberts

About Nathan Whitaker

Nathan Whitaker is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, former NFL executive, Super Bowl champion, leadership speaker, and executive coach.

Learn more:

https://www.nathanwhitaker.com

Subscribe for new episodes of Uncommon Impact every Thursday.

Uncommon Impact explores the people, experiences, and principles that shape extraordinary leaders and teams.

More episodes of Uncommon Impact:
https://nathanwhitaker.com/podcast/

What does it really mean to make an uncommon impact?

Years ago, Tony Dungy’s college football coach Cal Stoll told him, “Success is uncommon.” That idea eventually helped inspire our book Uncommon—and, years later, the name of this podcast.

But being uncommon isn’t simply about achieving uncommon success.

In this solo episode, I share a lesson I had to learn myself after Quiet Strength became a #1 New York Times bestseller. A friend congratulated me on a talk I’d given about success and significance—and then told me I had gotten my own premise wrong.

He was right.

Awards, sales, championships and professional accomplishments can all be worth pursuing. But they’re not the same thing as significance.

Ultimately, uncommon impact isn’t about the size of what we accomplish. It’s about the people we build into and whether something—or someone—is better because we were there.

About Nathan Whitaker

Nathan Whitaker is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, former NFL executive, Super Bowl champion, leadership speaker, and executive coach.

Learn more:

https://www.nathanwhitaker.com

Subscribe for new episodes of Uncommon Impact every Thursday.

Uncommon Impact explores the people, experiences, and principles that shape extraordinary leaders and teams.

More episodes of Uncommon Impact:
https://nathanwhitaker.com/podcast/