In the Media
InitiativeOne is regularly featured in national media for its leadership work with NFL teams and Fortune 100 organizations. Through these conversations, Dr. Fred Johnson shares practical insights on trust, culture, and performance that help leaders navigate pressure, drive alignment, and lead people well.
InitiativeOne Founder Dr. Fred Johnson joined Fox News to share how trust drives culture and performance in elite environments. Drawing from work with multiple NFL teams and Fortune 100 organizations, he outlines practical behaviors leaders can model to earn credibility, reduce drama, and strengthen team execution. The message is simple: leadership is built through consistent actions that people can feel.
December 19, 2024
Dr. Fred Johnson joined The Paul Finebaum Show to connect leadership lessons from sports and business. He highlights how identity and self belief shape decision making under pressure, and why the words “I am enough” can anchor confidence without complacency. The conversation reinforces InitiativeOne’s focus on trust, accountability, and disciplined behaviors that elevate teams in high stakes moments every day.
November 14, 2018
At TEDx, Dr. Fred Johnson shared InitiativeOne’s core belief that culture changes when leaders change first. He speaks to authenticity, courage, and vulnerability as strengths that build trust and accelerate performance. The talk invites leaders to move beyond title driven authority and into human leadership that creates clarity, connection, and ownership. Transformation begins with one leader choosing a new standard.
July 22, 2025
Dr. Fred Johnson returned to The Paul Finebaum Show on NewsNation to bring NFL and leadership into one conversation. He breaks down decision making, trust, and resilience in environments where every mistake is visible. The segment reflects InitiativeOne’s approach: simplify what great leaders do, practice it consistently, and build a culture that performs when pressure is highest across the organization
January 23, 2025
On After Hours with Amy Lawrence, Dr. Fred Johnson takes listeners inside the reality of building culture in NFL locker rooms. He explains why trust is not a slogan, it is a behavior, and how teams win when leaders model ownership, transparency, and accountability. The conversation mirrors InitiativeOne’s work with leaders who want alignment, momentum, and performance that lasts long.
April 28, 2025
Featured on the SEC ESPN Network, Dr. Fred Johnson shares leadership lessons from sports and business that translate directly to organizational performance. He emphasizes trust, resilience, and clear decision making as repeatable skills, not personality traits. The message aligns with InitiativeOne’s methodology: build behavioral muscle memory, raise standards with care, and create teams that execute under pressure and stay connected.
April 28, 2025
Dr. Fred Johnson appeared on ESPN Radio to discuss leadership decision making and building trust in demanding environments. Using stories from NFL organizations and corporate teams, he offers actionable strategies for navigating pressure, strengthening resilience, and keeping people aligned. The segment reinforces InitiativeOne’s belief that culture is shaped in everyday moments, and that consistent leadership behaviors drive measurable performance results.
2025
Bloomberg highlighted Dr. Fred Johnson’s journey from a chance meeting with Packers executive John Schneider to becoming known as the “GM Whisperer.” The feature explores how Dr. Fred helps leaders overcome impostor syndrome, clarify purpose, and make bold career moves using NFL tested leadership strategies. It reflects InitiativeOne’s work with executives who want confidence, alignment, and culture change that sticks.
January 23, 2025
On CBS Sports, Dr. Fred Johnson is featured as a trusted voice on leadership inside NFL culture. He shares what winning locker rooms do differently, and why trust, accountability, and clarity separate average teams from elite ones. InitiativeOne brings these principles into organizations to strengthen leadership behaviors, reduce friction, and help teams execute together when the stakes are high today.
June 26, 2025
Dr. Fred Johnson and Alec Ingold joined SiriusXM Mad Dog Sports Radio for a conversation on leadership, culture, and performance. The discussion connects mindset, standards, and team behaviors that hold up under pressure, drawing from NFL experience and real world organizational work. It highlights InitiativeOne’s commitment to practical leadership tools that help leaders build trust and elevate results consistently together.
April 28, 2025
The Wall Street Journal featured Dr. Fred Johnson’s perspective on how workplace expectations are changing. He explains why managers must stop equating commitment with constant availability, and why boundaries can support healthier productivity. The article underscores InitiativeOne’s emphasis on trust and accountability: lead with clarity, adapt to generational realities, and create cultures where people stay engaged and perform sustainably now.
September 16, 2025
On the Matthews Mentality Podcast, Dr. Fred Johnson shares how leaders create lasting culture change through behavioral repetition. He discusses muscle memory in leadership, trust built through transparency and authenticity, and lessons spanning NFL locker rooms to corporate boardrooms. The episode reinforces InitiativeOne’s standard: move from knowing to doing, and build teams that lead with courage, ownership, and consistency daily.