I decisively and significantly improve executive and organizational performance in high-stakes environments.
Joined January 2026
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What the Dr. Cheyenne Bryant situation really reveals is that we value how someone makes us feel more than we value where—or whether—they earned a degree. There are relatively few professions (medicine, clinical psychology, law) where a specific degree and licensure are legally required to practice, and that’s because the inherent risks and potential harm are high. In those domains, credentials aren’t snobbery; they’re a minimal safeguard.
There is also an undeniable element of envy here. Some critics clearly resent the reach and perceived impact Bryant has achieved outside traditional institutional pathways. They see someone with a large platform, emotional influence, and a loyal audience, and they feel threatened. Instead of asking, “How can I increase my own perceived value to potential clients?” they clutch their proverbial pearls.
That said, allowing your branding to strongly suggest that you are a licensed clinician, when you are not, is irresponsible and completely unnecessary. If you are doing work that looks and sounds like therapy—talking about trauma, depression, relationships, “healing”—the burden is on you to be explicit about your scope of practice and your qualifications. You don’t need a license to be a valuable coach, mentor, or educator. You do need to avoid trading on the implied authority of licensure you don’t hold.
The real lesson is simple: if you add genuine value to people’s lives, they will come and your business will thrive—degree or no degree. But if your business model depends on letting people assume you are something you’re not, eventually you should expect scrutiny.
If you need people to assume you’re licensed in order to look credible, your problem isn’t the system—it’s your substance.
Challenge:
Before you take mental health or “healing” advice from anyone online, ask two questions:
What are their actual, verifiable qualifications?
What concrete value have I seen from their work, beyond how they make me feel in the moment?
If you can’t answer both, treat their content as entertainment—not as guidance.
Large employers, structured well, are anchors that let small businesses grow: more disposable income, better infrastructure, a healthier tax base. Without anchors, all the little boats drift into the rocks together.
From March ’23–’24, small businesses created 1.2M net new jobs—88.9% of all new jobs. If you’re “pro–small business” but anti–large employer, your math—and your strategy—don’t add up.
In one small Texas city, a single data center’s tax revenue could pay for 4 of 8 fire stations. That’s not “selling out.” That’s underwriting safety, streets, and services for the entire community.
Small business is the growth engine: 46% of the workforce, 55% of net new jobs, 43.5% of GDP. But engines need anchors. Turn away serious investment and you starve the very firms you claim to protect.
You don’t fix a “toxic workplace” with hashtags. You fix it by leading better—or leaving. Decide if you want to be known for your grievances or for your impact.
There are toxic leaders. There are also toxic employees: chronically negative, excuse-driven, allergic to accountability. “Culture” is what they blame when standards are finally enforced.
We’re drowning in “toxic workplace” posts. Some are real. Many are alibis. If every boss you’ve ever had is toxic and every company is “unfair,” there’s a common denominator—and it’s not them.
A ship in harbor is safe, but that’s not what ships are built for. In volatile markets, hiding feels prudent and is actually lethal. Give yourself room to maneuver—or don’t be surprised when you sink at anchor.
My best clients don’t freeze in turmoil. They list their “crises” in one column and at least one opportunity in the next—and then call a client to act on it. If your only strategy is to wait out the storm, you don’t have a strategy.
Crises aren’t endpoints; they’re stress tests. Covid didn’t “kill” business, it exposed who could adapt. Telehealth, online education, delivery didn’t survive, they exploded. Stop asking “How do we get through this?” and start asking “What just became possible?”
The real threat to small business isn’t big business. It’s the delusion that saying “no” to serious investment somehow “protects” the local economy. You’re not protecting it. You’re shrinking it.
We are becoming over wrought with toxic employees in the workplace. The accretion of poor esteem and efficacy creates a counterproductive culture and perpetuates a victim mentality. It’s everyones fault but mine.
The accretion of anomic crises leaves us overwrought, with impaired judgment and diminished esteem. Esteem is an action, and it requires daily deposits.
Bernie Madoff wasn't the last of the Ponzi schemers. The Journal reported that Paul Regan conned older Americans out of $50M. This won't ever stop because human beings commit despicable acts every day. The question we should be asking ourselves is why, (despite abundant social proof, we continue to fall victim to con artists.
Every organization exists to make a profit even a NOT FOR PROFIT. We need to implement an across the board flat tax on NOT FOR PROFITS (including religious organizations) to support social welfare programs.