EP 184 | From Roots to Fruits: The Soul of Leadership | Dr. Joey Faucette

EP 184 | From Roots to Fruits: The Soul of Leadership | Dr. Joey Faucette

The Work Positive Podcast
April 26, 2026•4 min read
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How do you create a continuous learning positive work culture when only 23% of employees worldwide are engaged in their work? What if three out of four people on your team are among the ranks of The Working Dead, costing the global economy $8.9 trillion in lost productivity annually? How do you grow a culture that starts with souls, not systems?

Discover the proven framework to grow your leader soul and cultivate a root-to-fruit culture on this special LinkedIn Live episode of the Work Positive Podcast. Dr. Joey Faucette unveils his groundbreaking Root-to-Fruit framework from his latest book "Leader Soul: Grow a Root-to-Fruit Culture," drawing from insights of six remarkable Work Positive Podcast guests who have done this internal work themselves and helped countless others do the same.

Listen as Dr. Joey explores:

☀️ Why organizations that grow today don't start with systems but with souls, doing the internal work that creates external transformation
☀️ How leader soul is like a fruit tree with roots (inside job), trunk (seeing and being seen), branches (core essentials), flowers (permissions), and fruits (care and creation)
☀️ The three permissions framework: Permission to Feel, Permission to Fail, and Permission to Fly that protect the flowering of workers
☀️ Why values only become real when translated into specific, observable behaviors, not vague words like "integrity" and "excellence"
☀️ How trust deposits are small but withdrawals are large, with ratios of 5-to-1 or even 10-to-1 requiring consistent sustained attention

Dr. Joey transforms how leaders think about culture by proving that when you grow from your roots through your trunk, branches, and flowers to fruits, you create a Work Positive culture where growing people grows profits.

🔑 Key Insight: "Picture a tree that produces beautiful oranges. We see the fruit and admire it. We might even try to study the oranges themselves. But the fruit comes from the roots. The organizations experiencing behavior problems throughout aren't dealing with a bottom issue but a top issue. The executive team is the root. The organization-wide behavior problem is the fruit. Words like 'integrity' and 'excellence' have been eroded by marketing. Everyone claims them. If a value can mean anything, it means nothing. Replace 'core values' with 'core essentials' and ask what does this look like in practice. Culture doesn't live on posters or in values statements. It lives in the hearts and minds of your people. The only way to know what's really in their hearts and minds is to be with them."

💡 Your DOT (Do One Thing): Choose one stage of the Root-to-Fruit framework based on where you have the best opportunity to grow. Then return to that chapter's Do One Thing challenge and do the one that resonates most strongly with where you are right now. Do it well. Build the habit. Then add another. Small, consistent actions create lasting change. A grand, unsustainable gesture is worth less than a small practice you maintain for years. Be patient with yourself. Be persistent with your practice. Trust the process. That's how you avoid going rogue in your leader soul and grow a root-to-fruit culture.

The Root-to-Fruit Framework:

  • ROOT: Leader Soul is an Inside Job (Ask "Am I being the leader I want to be right now?" three times daily)

  • TRUNK: The Power of Seeing and Being Seen (Write three handwritten notes to team members this week)

  • BRANCHES: Core Essentials that Reach for the Sky (Define five specific behaviors for one core essential, three violations)

  • FLOWERS: Permission to Feel, Fail and Fly (Focus on strengthening one permission, ask for feed-forward)

  • FRUITS: Cultivate a Culture of Care and Creation (Identify one team member, schedule weekly leader soul cultivation meetings)

Featured Work Positive Podcast Guests:

  • Alison Jones (Practical Inspiration Publishing, The Extraordinary Business Book Club podcast)

  • Christian Muntean (Fortune 500 transformation, automotive dealership example)

  • Chester Elton (Anxiety at Work co-author, "Am I being the leader I want to be right now?")

  • Roger Gerard (former Chief Learning Officer for Cardinal Health, "Lead with Purpose," go and see leadership)

  • Robyn White (Three Permissions: Feel, Fail, Fly)

  • Jeff Gibbard (Lovable leadership, trust deposits and withdrawals, care foundation)

Connect with Dr. Joey Faucette:

#LeaderSoul #RootToFruitCulture #ThreePermissions #CoreEssentials #CareAndCreation #LovableLeadership #CultureEatsStrategyForBreakfast #WorkPositive

🎙️ Love the Work Positive Podcast?

Please leave a review on iTunes to help others discover how to grow people and profits with a positive work culture!

🔗 Stay connected with Dr. Joey Faucette:

📧 Know someone who'd make a great guest on the show? Email [email protected] with your recommendation!

leader souldr. joey faucettework positiveleadership
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