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The Leadership Sovereignty Podcast, hosted by Ralph E. Owens II and co-hosted by Terry Baylor, is a career acceleration platform
Leadership isn’t just a skill — it’s a career strategy for professionals seeking growth, influence, and promotion.
Hosted by Ralph Owens, Chief Information Officer, and Terry Baylor, CEO of a healthcare technology startup, the podcast delivers practical, real-world leadership strategies you can apply immediately. Each episode focuses on increasing visibility, navigating corporate dynamics, preparing for promotion, and leading beyond your title.
Expect short, high-impact conversations designed to help you think, act, and position yourself like a senior leader before you’re given the title.
You’re not just an employee. You’re the CEO of your career.
New episodes are released bi-weekly.
Ralph Owens (00:00)
for this episode, we decided to come together and just talk about the most impactful conversations, you know, we had in 2025
Terry Baylor (00:06)
have to continue to put ourselves in situations where we do have the support, where we can lean on those.
There are not a lot of us in those roles, but when we are, we need to really gravitate to each other and to lean on each other
Ralph Owens (00:17)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
All right, welcome back to the final edition of Leadership Sovereignty for 2025. Man, Terry, it's been, do you realize this time last year we were recording with Andrico, yeah, December 24th. So we got a whole year under the books now.
Terry Baylor (00:46)
Wow.
2025.
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Yes. And I just want to give a quick shout out to Andrico, man. I appreciate, I know we, I don't know if we have him in the notes, man, but he talked about that networking thing, man. And, you know, just not knowing, you know, what's so close to you that you could be using, right? Who's in your Rolodex? We'll just, I'll just leave it right there, man. Cause I went to my Rolodex in 25, man.
Ralph Owens (01:20)
Right, exactly. Yeah.
Terry Baylor (01:26)
You know, it was 25 has been an interesting year, man. There's a lot of, a lot of change, right?
Ralph Owens (01:32)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely, absolutely. And just for the audience, know, for this episode, we decided to come together and just talk about the most impactful conversations, you know, we had in 2025 and, you know, what he revealed to us about leadership, right? You you have some conversations that kind of go in one ear and go out another, but then you also have conversations that just kind of stick with you, you know, things that you just can resonate on and take with you. So hopefully you find this beneficial, you know, recap, you know, of the year.
Terry Baylor (01:44)
Yeah.
Yep.
Ralph Owens (02:01)
We expected these episodes will go clear into January as we start to record with our new guests. So we got an awesome lineup for you in 2025 to man, to just take you to the next level in your leadership and your career and promotion and stuff. So we excited about it. We're not going to give too much away, but.
Terry Baylor (02:18)
Yeah, yeah,
26 is going to be, man, I'm, hey, if we are, I'll just say this, Ralph, I just want to thank you, man, for the, man, you did a lot of heavy lifting in 25, bro. And ⁓ the infrastructure for where we're going and ⁓ I believe the impact that God is going to allow us to happen, allow, allow to happen through us.
Ralph Owens (02:31)
You
Terry Baylor (02:46)
is going to be a lot of because of some of the really just the heavy lifting that you've done to put things in place. man, let's just talk about this, right? The newsletter. And I hope you guys are enjoying that, right? Man, the website, right? That was a 25 thing, right? That's some of the change we were talking about. that website is just amazing. So shameless plug, there's a little cup of coffee, right? Just go find that. It'll make sense to you when you find it.
Ralph Owens (02:56)
Yeah, yeah
Yeah.
That's right.
Yeah, Yeah, that's right.
Terry Baylor (03:15)
find a cup of coffee on the website, we need you. But man,
there's some of the amazing things, man. The newsletter, like I said, the website, just retooling a lot of the platforms that we're on to get the information out in a quicker fashion. The guru ⁓ prompter, man, you didn't turn it to a guru prompter, man, that allows us.
Ralph Owens (03:38)
Mm-hmm.
Terry Baylor (03:42)
you know, to just deliver in such a great way. So I want to just give a shout out to you for all the hard work that you put into 25 Man to build a platform. So thank you.
Ralph Owens (03:50)
Nah, man, I appreciate that, man. It's a team effort, right? I do a lot of the tasks, but we talk a lot, right? And then you give me lot of great feedback on the direction. And again, Leadership Society wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for you. So I thank you. You was like, hey man, let's start a podcast. Here we are.
Terry Baylor (04:04)
a God,
that was a God thing, man, even from down to the name. And we'll talk a little bit about that when we kind of revisit some of the guests, but that name means more than I thought it did. And just understanding, man, the authority that ⁓ God placed us as humanity on the earth to govern.
Ralph Owens (04:20)
Mmm.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Terry Baylor (04:32)
right, and
to be in relationship. So that is, man, that is, you're going to hear a lot from me on that in 26 and just my understanding of it has just broadened. So I just, I thank God for it.
Ralph Owens (04:46)
Awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome. So let's jump into it today. And again, just want to set an expectation. These episodes will run into January, 2026 ⁓ as we start our recording of our new guest. So don't want you to think you missed anything, but this is our end of the year 2025 recap.
So let's start with episode 166, why great leaders ask better questions. ⁓ Shachella James, man, you know, I was shocked.
Terry Baylor (05:03)
Yes, sir.
Ralph Owens (05:14)
I was shocked. ⁓ I was the one who knew Sashela before the show and our interactions had been, you know, brief, right? We would be at events and we would talk very briefly, right? But hadn't really talked outside of that. And when she approached me about the conversation about curiosity, I was like, you know what? I think that's an interesting concept. You know, so we should do that. But we learned so much. ⁓ We learned so much. mean, are your thoughts, Terry?
Terry Baylor (05:39)
I'm going tell you right now, the number one takeaway for me and I'm working on it, ⁓ you know, I use it every day. I use, when I say I use it every day, ask questions that elevate. Bro, I use that every day. So, ⁓ you know, when I'm talking with my teenage, when I'm talking to my young adult, especially when I'm talking to Mrs. Baylor.
Ralph Owens (05:56)
Yes, yes. Same here. Same here.
Mm-hmm.
Elevate. Yes, yes, yes.
Terry Baylor (06:09)
I mean, ask questions that elevate. And so,
man, I'll be honest, that changed my life, bro, because I realized I had been asking questions in a way that quite honestly didn't elevate. It was getting to the root of it, but at the end of the day, that the person, you you could feel great after the question and you could not feel great after the question. So I've really been focused on asking questions that elevate.
Ralph Owens (06:25)
Mm-hmm.
Right. Right.
Terry Baylor (06:38)
So man, you know what I mean.
Thank you. Thank you. Sensei, thank you.
Ralph Owens (06:43)
Yes, yes, yes, yes. Yeah,
I think that what that revealed to me is you could still get to the destination, but how you do it matters. Right? You know, you can, to your point, you can interrogate and get to the answer, or you can ask thoughtful questions that elevate and still get to the answer, but you preserve and build the relationship at the same time, right? Which pays its own dividends later. ⁓
Terry Baylor (06:53)
Yes.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
Ralph Owens (07:09)
you know, a few notes that we took curiosity as a differentiator and not a soft scale, right? It's actually important for you to incorporate this into your tool belt. ⁓ The learn it all versus the know it all leadership, right? You know, that was a big one. Curiosity as a signal of readiness. Yeah, yeah.
Terry Baylor (07:14)
Yes.
Yes.
That was, yeah, that
was a big one. You don't have to be a know-it-all, but to learn it all, right? That means you're gonna continually put yourself in a position to grow. And I'll just share this, right? I learned something this week, right? So you guys know Noah. And I think, Raph, I'm really glad that you started off with this show, right? Or to recap this show. Because what I've learned this week,
Ralph Owens (07:30)
No. Mm-mm. Yes.
Mm-mm.
Terry Baylor (07:55)
as Noah's a golfer, right? And no, and Ralph, you've seen Noah swing. He has a great swing, but here's what I've learned. Here's what I've, and to all golf coaches out here, I wish you guys would stop teaching the swing, but teach position. What I've learned is you, there are certain positions that you start in and throughout the swing you get there. There is a physical, there is a, ⁓
Ralph Owens (07:59)
Mm-hmm.
Terry Baylor (08:23)
there is a geometry or the anatomy of how the body wants to work. That same thing is in leadership. Again, right? You're asking the question, but positioning the question the right way makes all the difference. Like for instance, no one I learned this week in your setup, if you, and I'm gonna get too technical, but if you have your trail arm,
Ralph Owens (08:30)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Mmm.
Terry Baylor (08:52)
in a certain position, it makes the backswing simple. All these years I've been playing golf, Ralph, I did not, and I'm thinking all the people who've given me tips, no one has said this. We've been to a hundred golf lessons, no one said this. So what I learned is doing, you may be doing the, going about it the right way, but you're not in the right position.
Ralph Owens (08:57)
Mmm. Mmm.
Mmm.
Yeah.
wow, that's Yeah, yeah.
Terry Baylor (09:24)
You see what I'm saying? So ⁓
curiosity, I believe, puts you in the right position. Right? Right. I'm going to approach it from a standpoint of, I don't know it all. For example, had two meetings this week, two influential meetings this week. And you know the position I went into in these meetings. Now I'm coming in, they're expecting answers out of me. Right? Because they have questions. But you know what? I went in the room empty.
Ralph Owens (09:30)
Mm, I love that. Yeah, I love that.
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
Hmm ⁓
Mm. Mm. That's good. That's good.
Terry Baylor (09:53)
I don't know anything. I'm just gonna go, let me listen. Let me
hear. I'm not gonna go in talking first.
Ralph Owens (10:00)
Yeah, yeah, that's good. That's good. That's really good. Yeah. Yeah.
Terry Baylor (10:04)
So I believe curiosity is that it puts
you in the right position no matter what room you walk in.
Ralph Owens (10:10)
That's good. I love that. I love that walking in, no matter how much of the expert you may be walking in with, I don't know anything, right? know, help me understand what, you where are my gaps? I'm curious. Yeah. Yeah. I love it. And then she talked about how curiosity builds trust. That was really unique to me. You know, that the fact that if if people know that you're going to be curious enough to get down to
Terry Baylor (10:21)
Yes, I'm curious about it.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
Ralph Owens (10:38)
the root of a problem, they start to develop a trust in the fact that not just that you know the answer, but they know that you're go find the answer because you're a curious person. right, huge nugget, huge nugget. So some of the key takeaways there, visibility is created through asking questions, not through volume, right? She talked about the talking head in the room, remember? You know, the person who just wanna talk all the time.
Terry Baylor (10:47)
Yes. Yes.
A name just came to my head and I'm sure you know who, we're probably thinking about the same person. ⁓ We love you though, we love you.
Ralph Owens (11:08)
I better know exactly.
Yeah,
that's right. Strategic curiosity pulls leaders into bigger conversations. I cannot stress enough how much this really helped me because there have been times where I've been in meetings or sitting at a table where ⁓ the topic was something that I wasn't an expert in and I would choose to not say anything because I don't want to sound stupid. But now,
Terry Baylor (11:36)
Mm-hmm.
Right, right,
Ralph Owens (11:43)
Now I have a tool I can use called curiosity, where when I hear something I can ask, hey, well, can you explain that a little bit more? How does that impact this? And that type of thing. And it pulls you into the conversation. now, you know, Terry, you talked about that one experience where you had ⁓ with BJC and you were sitting at the table and you were like, hey, man, I'm the only one that's not, you know, contributing to this conversation, right? When you, you could start asking questions and that will cause you to be pulled into the conversation. And now you are part of the solution and not just a bystander.
Terry Baylor (11:46)
Yeah.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
Yes, that's right. That's right.
Yes, yes, so true. So true, so true. And again, ⁓ Confidence, man, is built by engaging others, right? So to your point, Ralph, if I can say something, let me ask a meaningful question in a curious way, right? And so, and it builds your confidence, right? And it'll build the persons or the individual that you're engaging with.
Ralph Owens (12:13)
Right, that was huge.
Yes. Yes.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Yes, it does.
Terry Baylor (12:43)
their confidence in you because again, you know what you're doing? You're showing that I care, right? You're showing that I'm interested in you. I wanna hear you. So no, that's great, man.
Ralph Owens (12:46)
⁓ Yes.
Yes. Yeah.
And I just want to shout out to you, man. You made a powerful statement in that show. You said this is an excellent place for you to use ⁓ your approved genitor AI tool for your job to ask questions. Give me some questions, some unique questions to ask in this meeting. Right. That is a game changer because it'll give you ideas that you never even thought about. Right. That you can at least go in, you know, and then search yourself if you do a little bit of preparation. So
Terry Baylor (13:15)
Yeah, yeah, most definitely.
Ralph Owens (13:20)
That was really good. I think some of the reflections that she gave, she said, getting results is important, but you do not, you don't have to know all the answers. If you can ask some powerful questions, that's how you demonstrate forward thinking. And another thing she said was, ⁓ one of the most defining points of leadership is how you bring others along with you and using questions to be able to do that is an excellent tool. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Terry Baylor (13:20)
Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
Yes. Yes. Yes, for sure. For sure.
Ralph Owens (13:47)
Yeah. All right. ⁓ So, you know, just kind of closing out the thoughts on that show. Curiosity didn't just show up as a thinking skill this year. It actually showed up as a career accelerator, especially when leaders stop trying to do it all alone. So I think it was very empowering, very empowering, very empowering. Yes. Stay curious. It's your, it's your currency. ⁓ So, so let's move on to the next one. ⁓
Terry Baylor (13:58)
Yes.
Hmm. Hmm. Yes. Stay curious. My friend.
Ralph Owens (14:16)
the power of people who speak up for you with Okapara Young. That was a great conversation. We actually started the year off with that one ⁓ in January in 2025. ⁓ What comes to mind for you in that conversation, Terry?
Terry Baylor (14:32)
What I loved about the conversation with Apar was really the reflective nature of it, right? And ⁓ the kinship too, right? I think that was one of the first ⁓ conversations where I felt like, you know what? I believe, you know, this exchange is, ⁓ it felt brotherly.
Ralph Owens (14:43)
Mm-hmm.
Terry Baylor (14:58)
it felt extremely brotherly, right? And what we were sharing and, cause I probably had been at ⁓ leadership at such a long time, right? And being such a young guy, ⁓ you know? And so what I took out of that too is we have to continue to put ourselves in situations where we do have the support, where we can lean on those.
Ralph Owens (14:58)
Mm. Mm-hmm.
Bye. Yeah.
Terry Baylor (15:23)
You know, just be real transparent, right? There are not a lot of us in those roles, but when we are, we need to really gravitate to each other and to lean on each other because I felt, I got a lot out of that. You know, personally, I was at a major decision point in my career and what am I going to do? I had a timeline, right? And, you know, and just hearing him talk about, ⁓ you know, just ⁓ being in that seat.
Ralph Owens (15:29)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Terry Baylor (15:52)
helped me further make my decision, right? So it was, know, I love the brotherhood aspect of that conversation.
Ralph Owens (15:54)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.