Carey Nieuwhof Leadership: Recent Episodes
ThriveCast
Should you use AI to write your sermon? Maybe not. Three years after ChatGPT, we don’t just sound the same. We’re starting to think the same, or not think at all. Enter brain rot. Carey walks through seven tells that give away AI writing, shows you how to find the voice only you have, and...
Most young leaders try to sound like someone else long before they sound like themselves. Tyler Staton, lead pastor at Bridgetown Church, talks about finding your voice as a preacher and writer, what a season of sickness taught him about pace, why addiction thrives when you’re moving too fast, and the gift of imagination you’re...
In Part 3 of this summer’s Required Listening, Eugene Peterson’s son, Eric Peterson, and biographer Winn Collier talk about Eugene Peterson’s battle to avoid losing his soul, his struggle to overcome his workaholic tendencies, Bono and celebrity, and the tension he had to overcome to create a contemplative life. 🔗 Show Notes 🤖 AI and...
In Part 2 of this summer’s Required Listening, Carey interviews Eugene Peterson weeks before he retired from public life. Carey talks to Eugene about the origin of the Message and the life rhythms he and his wife Jan adopted that helped produce the legacy millions have appreciated. Plus, they discuss what it was like to...
In this inaugural episode of Required Listening, Carey talks to Gordon MacDonald. For his 80th birthday, Gordon MacDonald wrote down the 15 leadership and life lessons he’s learned so far. He unpacks all of them here: how to stop cheating the people closest to you, how to survive doubt and obscurity, why you reinvent your...
Father Ron Rolheiser has thought longer and harder about grief, aging, leadership, bitterness, and surrender than almost anyone alive. John Mark Comer joins me to co-interview him on what ministry actually costs, why so many leaders end up bitter, and what it looks like to give your life away before it’s taken from you. 🔗...
John Ortberg has spent decades leading churches, writing books, and teaching leaders. But every leader has parts of the job they’re not naturally good at. In this conversation, John opens up about pain in leadership, what it’s like to be an introvert in ministry, and how to handle the work you’d rather avoid. 🔗 Show...
Matt Chandler doesn’t pull punches. The lead pastor of The Village Church joins Carey to talk about why wearing a cape doesn’t help anyone, the death of secularism, and why the church is all wood and no fire. Matt also opens up about the moment he almost quit, what Spurgeon taught him about suffering, and...
Networking feels fake because most people do it wrong. Michael Bungay Stanier has a better way. In this conversation, MBS breaks down how to connect without the cringe, the seven questions you need to ask to run 1:1s that actually matter, and build a career path nobody handed you. Plus: a deep dive into self-publishing...
Six months into 2026, four church trends deserve a closer look. Algorithms are discipling your congregation 49 hours a week. AI’s biggest threat isn’t prompts—it’s disruption on a scale the church isn’t ready for. Women are still leaving, and now we know why. And a new kind of megachurch pastor is quietly emerging. Here’s what’s...
Most leaders don’t think of themselves as creative. Al Gordon says that’s the lie keeping you stuck. Al, founder of Renaissance, lead pastor of SAINT in East London, talks about why creativity is the church’s lost superpower, how stress and algorithms are quietly killing your imagination, and what it actually takes to unlock creativity in...
New York Times bestselling author David Epstein talks about why Malcolm Gladwell’s 10000-hour rule isn’t accurate, how he and Malcolm became friends, how creativity actually works (what you can learn from Dr. Seuss), and why constraints and limits set you free. 🔗 Show Notes 🤖 AI and the Future Church – NEW BOOK! 🗣️ Preaching...
Former pastor, minimalist, and New York Times bestselling author Joshua Becker returns to the podcast. He discusses why he left ministry to pursue a fresh calling, how minimalism can usher in an end to anxiety, when enough is enough, and how decluttering can be good for your soul. 🔗 Show Notes 🤖 AI and the...
New York Times bestselling author Eric Ries applies his startup philosophy to churches. Carey and Eric cover how to know when to take a risk, how to get past broke thinking in your church, and why the harder path is often easier. 🔗 Show Notes 🤖 AI and the Future Church – NEW BOOK! 🗣️...
Dr. Caroline Leaf explains her philosophy on the distinction between the mind and the brain, and how to utilize your mind to combat stress, anxiety, and burnout. She also weighs in on AI and its potential to harm the mind and brain. 🔗 Show Notes 📩 On The Rise Newsletter 🗣️ Preaching Cheat Sheet 🧠...
Dr. James Sells and Shaunti Feldhahn rethink mental health and loneliness. They offer practical steps on how the church can lead healing without burning out its leaders, especially pastors. 🔗 Show Notes 📩 On The Rise Newsletter 🗣️ Preaching Cheat Sheet 🧠 The Art of Leadership Academy 🎥 Watch on YouTube Follow @careynieuwhof Follow @theartofleadershipnetwork...
In this episode, you’ll learn a fresh perspective on exactly where your time goes, how to cut the investments where you’re least effective, and multiply your time investments in the activities that generate the most results. 🔗 Show Notes 📩 On The Rise Newsletter 🗣️ Preaching Cheat Sheet 🧠 The Art of Leadership Academy 🎥...
Comedian Andrew Stanley talks about his journey as a preacher’s son who studied finance and accounting to become a rising comic who has performed with Colin Jost, Leanne Morgan, John Crist and others. Andrew covers the art of writing jokes, what happens when you bomb, how to recover, working with different audiences and more. 🔗...
Thom Rainer explains the difference he’s discovered between what growing churches do and what declining churches do. It’s simpler than you think. Plus, how can you help the Anxious Generation feel comfortable coming to church? Thom explains what the research reveals. 🔗 Show Notes 📩 On The Rise Newsletter 🗣️ Preaching Cheat Sheet 🧠 The...
YouVersion CEO Bobby Gruenewald discusses what’s right and wrong with AI, sharing some shocking examples of why Christians should be cautious about trusting AI for biblical accuracy. Bobby also explains how it took 13 years to reach 500 million installs, but only four years to reach a billion, and the changes YouVersion made to accelerate...
In a wide-ranging interview, Tim Timberlake reflects on a challenging pastoral succession and how he rebuilt momentum. Plus, he discusses getting divorced in his twenties, what he learned about leading while bleeding, and a lot more. 🔗 ...
In this episode, Carey explores why the attractional church model no longer works, what's replacing it, the three shifts that made it ineffective, and what you and your church can do now to reach more people. 🔗 📩 🗣️ 🧠 ...
Tim Stevens returns to the podcast to discuss the hardest assignment in ministry: his three years at Willow Creek. He also talks about how to spot talent, firing well, how to recapture momentum, and his biggest lesson in four decades of ministry....
Judah Smith and Dr. Les Parrot, Judah's therapist of 15 years, talk about the unique pressures pastors face. Les and Judah explain why your brain is lying to you 80% of the time, offer insights into how pastors self-sabotage, and provide guidance on...
Preaching is hard, no matter how you approach it. But throw planting a church during lockdown, a life-long struggle with mental health and anxiety, and planting in a tough to reach area in the mix, and you have a recipe for challenge. Faith Eury Cho...
Nearly twenty years after releasing his groundbreaking book Simple Church, Eric Geiger reflects on why complexity still doesn’t scale, how complexity subtly creeps in as you grow, and what he’s learned since he started leading Mariners Church. He...
Megan Fate Marshman is an incredibly compelling preacher who speaks in many of the largest churches in America. She shares how her preaching has evolved since she started, what she does right before preaching to create better sermons and connections,...
83% of Americans say preaching impacts their decision on a church home. Having just filmed a new 45 video course called the Art of Preaching, Carey Nieuwhof and Mark Clark share 90 minutes of their best preaching tips from the course and their...
Twenty-nine stressful events in 14 months. One major health crisis. Zero sugar-coating. In this flip-the-mic episode, Sean Morgan interviews Carey to dissect the hardest year Carey's faced in two decades: how external turmoil, internal drive, and an...
Rick Warren returns to the podcast to explain what 99% of churches don't do. He discusses the extraordinary rise of the global church and how it's outpacing population growth, and he outlines the call from Jesus every American church needs to hear....
Julian Lowe never expected to be a pastor, which ironically freed him up to become one. He talks about what he learned at the Groundlings, in Music, and in ministry, sharing why he feels white men are afraid to preach the Bible, and how to speak the...
Many church leaders think of their staff as family. But if they're family, can you fire them? Jon Gordon has coached hundreds of professional sports teams and companies and explains what it takes to make the tough calls, including firing people you...
Dan Heath, author of Made to Stick, The Power of Moments, and other seminal leadership books, talks about the six surprising traits of sticky sermons, how to design church experiences people never forget, why focusing on the problem is the wrong...
Matt Smethurst has listened to and studied more hours of Tim Keller's preaching and teaching than almost anyone alive. In this conversation, Matt gets us inside Tim Keller's mind, breaking down what made Keller's preaching so effective, his DNA, and...
Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, Jason Feifer, talks about how to find a future in a declining industry, how to tell if your entrepreneurial idea is a winner early on, the latest on hybrid work versus the return to the office, and advice to church leaders about the future of online versus in-person services. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode540.
Think Media founder, Sean Cannell, returns to the podcast and discusses how to do video and church online well when your church is on a small or tight budget, how to optimize sermons for YouTube, the power of short vertical video in 2023 and beyond, and his recipe for a perfect video that gains traction online. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode539.
New York Times bestselling author and TED speaker, Rory Vaden, talks about the best branding advice he ever received, being mentored by Zig Ziglar, the shortcut to finding your unique contribution to the world, how influence works, and what he's learned working with some of the top personal brands in the world. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode538.
Tyler Staton talks about the transition between John Mark Comer and him as lead pastor of Bridgetown Church, 3 kinds of biblical discernment that can help you figure out a call, and why prayer is more important than message prep. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode537.
Copyblogger founder, Brian Clark, talks about how to attract and keep an audience, why email still outperforms social media 40:1, the power of curation and how anyone can do it, how to write better headlines, and war stories from the early days of Copyblogger and CareyNieuwhof.com. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode536.
Kayla Stoecklein returns to the podcast four years after her husband, Andrew, died by suicide to talk about the unsustainable pressures of ministry on church leaders, how she's grieved her losses, making sure your loss doesn't define you, and how to overcome your victim mentality. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode535.
Table Group founder and bestselling author, Patrick Lencioni, returns to the podcast for a deeply personal conversation about his conversion to Christianity, becoming a more devoted follower of Jesus, how he views succession and his changing motivation, genius gaps many teams experience, and drunks and monks. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode534.
Proverbs 31 founder and New York Times bestselling author, Lysa TerKeurst, talks about the death of her marriage, leading through personal crisis, how she stopped doing numerous things in leadership that she didn't like doing, and when to determine that good boundaries aren't enough and it's time to say goodbye. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode533.
unSeminary founder, Rich Birch, returns to the podcast to discuss the mini-apocalypse that's happened around church growth in the last few years, what growing churches are doing, why volunteers are a key to seeing your church grow, and the numbers that matter most when planting a church. Plus, Rich talks about the personal cost of leading through the last few years, including the self-soothing behaviors that can trap a leader. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode532.
Nancy Duarte returns to the podcast to discuss four trends in communication preachers and public speakers need to pay attention to, the power of curation (and why the monologue might be limiting), and what she learned from coaching top communicators. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode531.
New York Times bestselling author, Jon Acuff, returns to the podcast with his 16-year-old daughter, McRae, to talk about who teens really listen to, why adults fail to connect with kids, and how to do it well, and what it takes to create a better soundtrack for Generation Z. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode530.
Brian Koppelman, showrunner for Billions and Super Pumped, and co-writer of films like Oceans 13 and Rounders, talks about how he got into making movies and TV shows, overcoming ADHD when it felt like failure, how his first movie almost didn't get made, working with A-list Hollywood actors, and why he decided to make Billions and Super Pumped. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode529.
Predictable Success founder, Les McKeown, discusses the difference between feeling like you're a failure and real failure, the two keys to leaders who make it over the long haul, imposter syndrome and the problem with people-pleasing leaders—particularly in a church or non-profit setting. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode528.
Forethought founder, Deon Nicholas, talks about all things AI—the ethics of artificial intelligence, AGI, ANI and ASI, Singularity, the timeline for when AI reaches general intelligence, and whether the robots will ultimately kill us all. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode521.
Stephen M. R. Covey talks about his father, Stephen Covey's legacy, tips for leaders whose kids are growing up in the public eye, how to scale an organization beyond the founder, why command and control leadership is dead, and how to build a high trust organization. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode520.
Meta's Nona Jones returns to the podcast to talk about why pastors are more insecure than business leaders, how to kill comparison and overcome insecurity, how she overcame childhood trauma, Brazilian butt lifts, and why success is ever enough to satisfy you. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode519.
Marketing legend, Tony Chapman, talks about the secret to marketing, how to re-market weekend church services and rethink your message so it connects, and overcoming childhood trauma. In this wide-ranging conversation, Tony then flips the mic and interviews Carey about Christianity, law school and critical thinking, and how Christianity can be a unifying force in culture. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode518.
Author and FOR Company founder, Jeff Henderson, returns to the podcast to talk about career indecision, how to know when it's time to leave, finishing well, and why security and identity hold a lot of people back from making a great career move. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode517.
Maple Leaf Foods CEO, Michael McCain, joins the podcast to talk about the problem with short-term thinking in leadership, how to recruit top talent, and creating a fantastic culture in a $4 billion dollar company. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode516.
Flatirons Church Lead Pastor, Jim Burgen, and Executive Pastor, Jesse DeYoung, talk candidly and openly about how a toxic leadership culture developed at Flatirons, how Jim ended up fusing church size and growth with his personal identity, how the weight of leading a large church became crushing, the impact of a forced sabbatical, and how Jim came back to a different, healthier and more humble kind of leadership. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode515.
Comedian and motivational speaker, Tripp Crosby, joins the podcast and talks about how to become more creative, the genesis of brilliant ideas, building up your confidence, what to do when you bomb on stage, and the letter he wrote to his mom. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode514.
Bestselling author, Thom Rainer, returns to the podcast to discuss the three biggest shifts he's seeing in the church right now: the death of denominations, the stunning decline in peoples' commitment to evangelism and the promising hope for small churches through digital evangelism. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode513.
Author and pastor, Brian Zahnd, gives an in-depth explanation of the deconstruction that's happening in Christianity today, a brief history of existentialism, Friedrich Nietzsche and the alternative to Christianity, and the oddity of post-Christian America. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode512.
Author and New Life Church Pastor, Rich Villodas, returns to the podcast to talk about the three waves of people leaving the church, why pastors keep failing, what Gen Z and Boomers want from a church and why they don't match, the next generation of pastors, and how stress impacts the body, heart and spirit. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode511.
1 NYT bestselling author, podcaster and finance expert, Ramit Sethi, explains why so many couples fight about money (and how to end the argument), the power invisible scripts have over our thinking and lives, and why his counter-intuitive approach to marketing works. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode510.
New York Times bestselling author and Revisionist History host, Malcolm Gladwell, talks about his personal faith journey, his career theory, Jerry Falwell and Chuck Colson and the intersection of church and politics, and how he fuels his curiosity. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode509.
Story Church founder, Sam Collier, opens up about planting a church during a pandemic, why he started with Hillsong and decided to leave, replanting his church, leading while bleeding and why big church is the new small church. For more on this episode, go to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode508.
Duke University Professor, Chris Bail, discusses what his research revealed about the truth about algorithms, how 6% of social media users generate 73% of extreme content, the miserable social life of internet trolls, why echo chambers aren't the problem, and the (hopeful?) future of social media. For more on this episode, go to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode507.
Crossroads Church founding pastor, Brian Tome, talks about what's wrong with church online, what 74 million Americans are looking for in an online church experience, the two things pastors who disqualify themselves from ministry all have in common, and how he's finding the energy to rebuild his church for the future. For more on this episode, go to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode506.
Actor Terry Crews talks about his journey from a tough childhood growing up in Flint, Michigan, to breaking through in Hollywood and finding himself living a double life. He discusses what growing up in a cult did to him, finding real faith as a Christian, and the impact coming clean about his secret addictions has had on his life, family and career. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode505.
NYT bestselling author, John Eldredge, returns to the podcast to talk about the collective trauma we've been through. He outlines the surprising signs of trauma, including memory loss, why you still feel depleted, the future of the church, the craziness of mindfulness and the challenges of deconstruction. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode504.
Andy Crouch discusses the breakdown of trust across society and within the church, the problem with personalized technology and its impact on the soul, and outlines the disruptions we'll be dealing with for the rest of our lives as leaders. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode503.
Bestselling author Vanessa Van Edwards has studied thousands of hours of TED talks and shares what TED talk speakers whose talks go viral do versus what other non-viral TED talk speakers do. She also explains the key ingredients to being charismatic, and the top body language cues to avoid if you want to be effective. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode502.
In this episode of The Art of Leadership Daily, Carey and Andy Stanley discuss how great leaders surround themselves with smarter people than they are and how they ensure the right decisions get made. Check out more by going to http://theartofleadershipdaily.com/.
Seth Godin returns to the podcast and discusses his take on The Beatles, why he has no staff, why he never listens to the news but continues to get great ideas from other sources, and the future of the planet. Get more on this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode501.
Wall Street Journal bestselling author, TED talk speaker and DK Leadership CEO and co-founder, Dr. Karyn Gordon, explains how anxiety and control are related, why insecure and arrogant leaders have the same root issues, and the ingredients that make for great leadership. For more on this episode, go to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode500.
Multiple New York Times bestselling author, Daniel Pink, returns to the podcast and shares his writing habits, his time in politics including speechwriting for Al Gore, why people are floundering with what to do with negative emotions, and how a religious framework can help. Get more from this episode by going to https://careynieuwhof.com/episode499.
Albert Tate talks about how to avoid being triggered in conversations about race, being called the N word for the first time in 7th grade, white supremacy and white privilege, and steps you can take to steward the privilege you have. Get more on this episode by visiting https://careynieuwhof.com/episode498.