SERVICES
Lead Yourself First. Transform Your Team.
Your culture won’t change until you do. We help leaders grow from the inside out — so their teams and organizations finally thrive.
The Real Problem Most Leaders Miss
You’ve done the training, read the books, and tried the new strategies
— but lasting change still doesn’t happen.
The problem isn’t a lack of knowledge or effort. It’s that most leadership programs skip the first step: learning to lead yourself.
Without emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and personal alignment, team challenges multiply. Morale drops. Trust fades. Burnout spreads. And the cost isn’t just financial — it deeply affects your team.
At 1st Lead U, we help leaders transform from the inside out.
Our approach is simple yet revolutionary: You can’t effectively lead others until you first learn to lead yourself.
We come alongside you and combine deep personal development (it’s easier than you realize…really!) with team dynamics to create authentic, emotionally intelligent leaders capable of building cohesive, high-performing teams.
Our driving passion is to work with individual leaders seeking advancement, leadership teams needing to collaborate more effectively, and entire organizations committed to cultural transformation.
We know it works because we have lived it, and we have seen it transform hundreds of leaders and the teams they lead.
Working With Us is Simple. Here’s Your Path Forward…
Discovery – We Want to Hear Your Story
This isn’t a sales call, but instead an honest dialogue to help us understand where you are, where you want to go, and what holds you back.
Assessment – We Bring Clarity
Using evidence-based personal assessments, we help you understand your leadership style, emotional intelligence, strengths, and blind spots.
Development – We guide your groWth
Through personalized coaching and team development, we guide you toward renewed trust, stronger collaboration, and lasting success.
Transformation – You Experience Success
As you and your organization learn to trust 1st Lead U, you will watch respect return, enthusiasm build, creative problem-solving emerge, and profitability improve.
OUR SERVICES
Choose Your Starting Point
Personal Leadership Coaching:
For the Individual Ready to Change
You want to lead with greater authenticity and effectiveness. One-on-one coaching with John Ballinger, Douglas Ford, and our team of certified coaches provide the personal guidance you need.
Through deep assessments and ongoing coaching, you’ll discover your true leadership abilities to chart a clear path forward. Our 90-day development program provides the intensive support needed for real life transformation.
Ideal for: Emerging leaders, business owners, and professionals ready to take their personal and professional growth to the next level.
Team Leadership Development:
For the Team Ready to Succeed Together
Your leadership team has potential, but communication and trust need improvement. Through our comprehensive team program—starting with a transformative one-day intensive—your team will learn to lead themselves individually while functioning as a cohesive, high-performing unit.
Using personal assessments and Working Genius facilitation, team members discover how to leverage each other’s unique strengths.
Ideal for: Leadership teams (up to six members or more) ready to improve collaboration, build respect, and enhance performance across the organization
Base Camp Cohorts:
For those seeking growth in community.
You hold far greater potential than you currently experience — and we’ll help you unlock it.
Our small group coaching experience, Rise Above: Expanding Capacity to Realize Your Fullest Potential, blends teaching, guided reflection, and meaningful conversation in an engaging, supportive environment.
This experience helps you understand your strengths and limitations, expand your personal capacity, and lead with greater influence every day. Whether you participate with your team or alongside others from different walks of life, you’ll gain the tools and insight to live and lead with clarity, balance, and confidence.
Ideal for: Individuals or teams ready to grow together through practical, hands-on leadership development.
What Sets Us Apart
You-First Approach:
We focus on developing you as a person and leader BEFORE focusing on building teams. Self-awareness and emotional intelligence are the foundation.
PERSONALIZED Assessments:
Your challenges are unique so your solution should be too! We don’t use one-size-fits-all programs.
Emotional Intelligence (EQ) Focus:
We teach why EQ matters more than IQ in effective leadership and team performance.
Real Results:
Our approach creates measurable improvements in team performance, profitability, retention, and workplace satisfaction.
Custom Solutions:
Your challenges are unique so your solution should be too! We don’t use one-size-fits-all programs.
The Success You Seek
When you partner with 1st Lead U, here’s what happens:
Your Next Step…
Reach out today. We’ll listen to your story and help you design a custom path forward.
Listen to our podcast to hear our passion, purpose, and process, and discover more about authentic leadership development and personal growth. The leadership transformation you’re envisioning is possible. BUT it starts with a conversation. Let’s talk about your leadership vision, your team challenges, and what you want to build.
