What happens when the spotlight fades and the crown comes off?

In this episode of Ask For An Answer, host Jim Fielding sits down with former Miss USA Olivia Jordan to discuss the raw reality of life after the title. Known for her grace during one of the most infamous moments in Miss Universe history, Olivia opens up about the "evolution behind the headlines".

From the high-pressure world of pageantry in Los Angeles to finding peace and rebuilding her life in Tulsa, Olivia shares how to navigate identity shifts, personal growth, and the journey of reinvention.

• 01:17 – The "Buffet Bond": Jim and Olivia reflect on their nine-year friendship and the "rewrites" they've witnessed in each other's lives.

• 12:04 – Stepping Into New Roles: Olivia discusses the "surprise fulfillment" of her life: transitioning from being in front of the camera to becoming an acting coach.

• 13:01 – Reimagining the Dream: Why the pandemic and motherhood prompted a move from Los Angeles back to Tulsa to build a "different kind of dream".

• 18:24 – Building the Confidence Muscle: How pageantry served as a strategic tool to overcome personal struggles with confidence and prepare for the pressures of "adult" life.

• 19:52 – The Pageant Hangover: A candid look at the "baptism by fire" of being Miss USA and the difficult transition of reclaiming control over your own schedule.

• 23:50 – The Power of the Pivot: Reconnecting with her hometown and the healing required to return to Tulsa after early life trauma.

This is not just a story about pageants or Hollywood. It is about growth, vulnerability, service, and stepping into your most realized self. If you are in a season of reinvention or asking what comes next, this episode is your invitation.

✨Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer:
💼Instagram: jimfielding
🌐Podcast: Ask For An Answer

Try Leslie's Emotional Regulation Coach GPT and get help regulating your emotions toda

What if the biggest barrier to innovation isn't a lack of ideas, but the way leadership signals who's allowed to have them?

In this episode of What If?, Leslie Grandy explores what creative leadership actually looks like inside organizations and why so many companies mistake optics for impact when it comes to innovation.

When leaders ask "what if?", they do more than spark ideas. They create psychological permission the signal that curiosity, challenge, and early thinking are not only allowed, but expected. Without that signal, teams default to safe bets, incremental improvements, and inherited assumptions that quietly slow innovation to a crawl.

Drawing from her experience at Amazon, T-Mobile, and Best Buy, Leslie breaks down:

• Why innovation labs often create the illusion of progress while isolating creativity from execution
• How segregating "innovators" teaches the rest of the organization that innovation isn't their job
• What happens when brilliant ideas can't cross the boundary from invention to operations
• How cultural values like "data-driven", "continuous improvement", and "team unity" can unintentionally suppress breakthrough thinking
• Why creative velocity depends on leaders modeling intellectual bravery—not protecting the status quo

You'll hear a behind-the-scenes story of T-Mobile's Cameo product, an idea that failed not because it lacked insight, but because the organization wasn't designed to support what it imagined. Leslie contrasts that with Amazon's dual operating model: data-driven optimization paired with judgment-based invention, and why Jeff Bezos warned against the "tyranny of data."

This episode is for leaders who want more than performative innovation.
For teams tired of being reactive.
And for organizations ready to stop outsourcing creativity to labs, decks, or consultants and start embedding it everywhere.

Because creative leadership isn't about protecting existing systems.
It's about consistently inviting better ones to emerge.

Reflection question:
What if the signal your culture is sending isn't "be creative," but "don't rock the boat"?

What if the most powerful tool for innovation isn't an answer—but a better question?

In the inaugural episode of What If?, host Leslie Grandy introduces the core idea behind the show: "What if" isn't just a question—it's a repeatable practice for unlocking creativity, foresight, and breakthrough thinking.

Drawing from her career spanning Hollywood film sets and executive leadership roles at companies like Apple, Amazon, T-Mobile, RealNetworks, and Best Buy, Leslie shares how two simple words reshaped the way she solves problems, challenges assumptions, and builds resilient strategies in the face of uncertainty.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why creativity isn't an artistic talent—but a universal problem-solving skill
• How asking "what if" helps leaders move from incremental thinking to exponential outcomes
• The five deliberate ways to apply "what if" to reframe problems, break rules, flip assumptions, and anticipate unintended consequences
• Real-world examples of how "what if" thinking led to industry-shaping innovations—from subscription video models to curbside pickup
• How to stop reacting to change and start designing the future you actually want

This episode sets the foundation for the What If? method—a structured approach that helps executives, functional leaders, and teams think bigger, see around corners, and use AI as a creative collaborator, not a crutch.

Whether you lead a Fortune 500 team, manage a critical function like finance or operations, or simply feel stuck playing it safe, this podcast is for you.

Because innovation doesn't start with better answers.
It starts with better questions.

Challenge for this week:
Ask yourself—What if the thing holding me back isn't the problem, but the way I'm seeing it?