Jeff Harmon is an executive leadership coach, speaker, and founder of My Impossible, where he helps leaders move beyond performance to lead with authenticity and purpose. After being diagnosed with a rare neurological condition, he went on to lead a team in a wheelchair-assisted climb of Mount Kilimanjaro—an experience that reshaped his understanding of resilience and courage. In this episode, he joins Dr. Dan to explore why true strength begins with vulnerability, and how our greatest challenges invite us to become who we're meant to be.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
Why resilience is a choice, not a personality trait
How adversity can become a catalyst for personal growth
The difference between performing leadership and embodying it
Why vulnerability builds trust and influence
The power of community when facing life's biggest challenges
How to develop true inner authority and authentic confidence
Why the lessons from your "mountain" often come after the experience ends
LEARN MORE
Get new episodes every Thursday
June 25, 2026
Jeff Harmon
What Mount Kilimanjaro Taught Me About Resilience, Leadership, and Courage
"It's more important than what you do—it's who you become."
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 — Welcome and intro
00:02:42 — Life before the diagnosis
00:06:53 — It's who you become
00:11:59 — Resilience is a choice
00:15:26 — Why Kilimanjaro?
00:19:51 — Learning to rely on others
00:27:52 — Vulnerability as real strength
00:37:51 — Building inner authority
00:43:16 — The summit turnaround decision
00:47:15 — Lessons after the mountain
SHOW NOTES
In this episode of Make It a Great One, Dr. Dan sits down with Jeff Harmon, an executive leadership coach, speaker, and founder of My Impossible, for a conversation about resilience, vulnerability, and what it truly means to lead. After being diagnosed with a rare neurological condition, Jeff faced a series of challenges that would eventually carry him to one of the world's most demanding adventures: leading a team to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in a wheelchair. But as he shares, the mountain was never really the point—it was what the climb revealed about who he was becoming.
Together, Jeff and Dr. Dan explore how entrepreneurship, disability, leadership, and faith reshaped Jeff's understanding of resilience—not as toughness or performance, but as a daily choice rooted in gratitude, authenticity, and community. They dig into what happens when pressure reveals who we really are, why vulnerability is one of a leader's greatest strengths, and why our most important breakthroughs often arrive long after the climb is over. It's a powerful reminder that our greatest challenges are often invitations to grow, connect, and become more fully ourselves.
LINKS & RESOURCES
Jeff Harmon
Website: https://myimpossible.org
Key Concepts
Resilience as a Choice. Resilience isn't a fixed personality trait but a moment-to-moment decision to stay present, choose gratitude, and keep moving forward when the outcome is uncertain.
Embodied vs. Performed Leadership. The difference between projecting strength to be seen as a leader and actually leading from authenticity, even when that means showing doubt or asking for help.
Vulnerability as Strength. Letting others see your struggle is what builds the trust and connection that real influence depends on.
Leading from Love, Not Ego. The highest leadership decisions are made in service of others' wellbeing rather than personal pride or achievement.
GUEST BIO
Jeff Harmon is an executive leadership coach, speaker, and the founder of My Impossible, an organization built to help leaders move beyond performance and lead from a place of authenticity, courage, and purpose. After being diagnosed with a rare neurological condition, Jeff began a journey that challenged everything he believed about strength and success—ultimately leading a team in a wheelchair-assisted climb of Mount Kilimanjaro. Drawing on years of experience in entrepreneurship and leadership, and on the lessons forged through adversity, faith, and community, he now teaches leaders that resilience is a daily choice and that true influence begins with vulnerability. Through his coaching, speaking, and writing, Jeff helps people turn their greatest challenges into invitations to grow and become who they're meant to be.
RELATED EPISODES
Beyond Achievement: Ian Edwards on Presence, Performance, and Living Authentically
Habits of High Performance: Purpose, Resilience, and Leadership with James Laughlin
Kindness and The Journey to Freedom with Leon Logothetis
Bad Bosses, Boundaries, and Burnout: What We Can Learn From Toxic Bosses with Mita Mallick
