What if the biggest thing holding your leadership back isn’t your circumstances… but the story you still believe about yourself?
In this episode of Linch with a Leader, Mike Linch sits down with Dawn Cazedessus, Regional Director for Keller Williams’ Southeast Region overseeing 17,000+ agents, entrepreneur, ultramarathon runner, and author of Trailer Park CEO, to unpack a leadership journey built on grit, discipline, and unshakable faith.
From growing up in poverty in rural Louisiana:
to battling imposter syndrome at the highest levels of leadership…
to learning the difference between grinding and “gritting on purpose,”
Dawn’s story is a masterclass in resilience, self-awareness, and leading on assignment.
Together, Mike and Dawn explore what it really means to build success without losing your soul, how faith reshapes ambition, how discipline fuels longevity, and why failure is often the foundation of future influence.
They talk about overcoming scarcity thinking, leading with empathy in high-performance environments, building kingdom impact in the workplace, and why your leadership ceiling is often tied to your internal healing.
Whether you’re running a business, leading a team, or wrestling with whether you’re “ready” for your next assignment — this episode will challenge how you define success and encourage you to lead with purpose.
Mike’s Leadership Lessons from Dawn:
• Stop grinding. Start gritting on purpose.
• You can leave your past physically, but growth requires leaving it mentally.
• Self-awareness removes ego and strengthens influence.
• Failure isn’t the opposite of success, it’s the foundation of it.
• Discipline isn’t intensity. It’s consistency.
• Movement is not achievement. Alignment is.
• You are not in control — and that’s where freedom begins.
Welcome to the Linch with a Leader Podcast, where you’re invited to join the spiritual principles behind big success, with host Mike Linch.
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