When did you first realize you were an entrepreneur?
For Dr. Joey Fawcett, the answer goes back to a nine-year-old kid with a terrible business idea: mowing lawns in eastern North Carolina. The problem? He discovered pretty quickly he was deathly allergic to grass. That first venture landed him in Duke University Hospital for a week under a mist tent, convinced he was going to die.
But it was in that hospital room where something powerful happened. His mom reached under that tent, grabbed his hand, and said, "Joey, I'm positive you're gonna make it through the night and so much more." That's when the word "positive" became embedded in his DNA—and it's been driving his work ever since.
From Broadcasting Breakdown to Building Culture
Fast forward a few years. Joey's working his second radio job, and he makes a rookie mistake. He accidentally blows a capacitor on a Sunday morning, taking the station off the air. Then he compounds the problem by running commercials back-to-back trying to catch up—violating FCC regulations he didn't even know existed.
The station owner walks in, gets in his face, and unleashes. Joey got called everything but his mother's son that day.
"That was an amazing introduction to a toxic work culture," Joey told me. And right there, at 18 or 19 years old, he made himself a promise: If I ever own a station or get in a position of leadership, I'm going to help people find a way of dealing with conflict other than cussing somebody out and blaming them for things that weren't their fault.
That formative experience set Joey on a mission that's defined his career: helping entrepreneurs and leaders cement positive into their brains and create work cultures where people become the best version of themselves.
I Need You to Fix My Team
Here's something Joey said that really hit home for me: we often repeat the patterns we experienced, even when we hated them.
After that toxic radio station experience, Joey moved into a program director role at another station. And guess what? He found himself making the same mistakes. The toxic behavior had become familiar, and our brains follow familiar paths—even when they're miserable.
"Whether the consequences are intended or unintended, we're still responsible for them in as much as our behavior prompts them," Joey explained.
Too many leaders tell themselves their team isn't engaged, that people just don't want to work anymore. But Joey learned the hard way that the real question is: What are you doing to drive engagement?
This is where most entrepreneurs get stuck. We blame the team when retention is low, when projects miss deadlines, when culture feels off. But culture doesn't come from your employees—it comes from you.
Active Listening: The Skill That Changed Everything
When I asked Joey what helped him shift from that command-and-control mindset to becoming an effective leader, his answer was simple but profound: active listening.
"Active listening put me in a position of receiving more than giving," he said. "I was trying to give before I listened. And what would happen would be I would totally miss the target because I was giving what I thought that team or that individual needed."
Here's the thing—in your early twenties (like Joey and I both were), you think you know everything. You don't have to ask because you'll just tell people what needs to happen.
But when you learn to truly listen first, everything changes. You stop operating from your own cognitive bias. You start understanding what people actually need instead of what you assume they need.
Joey put it perfectly: "When I'm talking about it now, I'm really transparent about it. That's what helped me the most."
It All Starts With You
If there's one thing that became crystal clear in my conversation with Joey, it's this: you are the source of your company's culture.
When things aren't working, the first place to look is in the mirror. Not to beat yourself up, but to take ownership. Because if it's your fault, you can fix it. If it's someone else's fault, you're powerless.
Joey's journey from that toxic radio station to becoming a culture consultant and author shows what's possible when you commit to doing the internal work. He didn't just read about leadership—he lived it, failed at it, got back up, and kept growing.
The company you're building right now is a direct reflection of how you show up every single day. Your planning habits, your communication style, your emotional regulation, your willingness to give and receive feedback—all of it cascades through your organization.
Key Takeaways
Toxic patterns are familiar patterns. Just because you hated how you were treated doesn't mean you won't repeat it. Breaking the cycle requires conscious effort and self-awareness.
Active listening beats giving advice. Stop trying to solve problems before you fully understand them. Listen first, then respond with what people actually need.
Unstated expectations always lead to resentment. Be explicitly clear about what you need and expect from your team, customers, and loved ones.
Sometimes the best action is patience. Not every problem requires immediate intervention. Learn to recognize when muddy water just needs time to settle.
Your culture is your responsibility. Everything in your business rises and falls on leadership. If you don't like what you see, start by changing yourself.
Positive isn't toxic. Joey's approach isn't about fake positivity—it's about cementing positive into your brain as a foundation for how you lead and live.
The identity question matters. Great leaders understand who they are, play to their strengths, and build teams around their opportunities for growth.
Connect with Dr. Joey Fawcett
Want to learn more about creating a positive work culture? Check out Dr. Joey's work:
- Work Positive Website: workpositive.today
- Books: Work Positive in a Negative World and Leader's Soul
- Find him on social media and at his speaking events
About Today's Business Leaders
Today's Business Leaders is a podcast that features real conversations with entrepreneurs and leaders who are building businesses that matter. We talk about the challenges, the wins, the failures, and the lessons that come from walking the entrepreneurial path. Hosted by Gabe Arnold, founder of Business Marketing Engine.
Final Thoughts
If this conversation resonated with you, I want you to do me a favor: share it with another entrepreneur who's stuck blaming their team instead of looking in the mirror. We've all been there. The question is whether we're willing to do the work to change.
Joey's story reminded me that the journey from toxic leadership to positive influence isn't overnight. It takes practice, humility, and a willingness to keep growing even when it's uncomfortable.
But here's the good news: if a nine-year-old kid who almost died in a hospital can turn that moment into a lifelong mission of spreading positive leadership, then we can all make the choice to show up better tomorrow than we did today.
Keep going. Keep learning. Keep leading with intention.
I believe in you.
Gabe
