Episode 505 — The 3 Questions You Need to Ask to Break Barriers in Business with Kat Cole
How long has your team known what you should do before you finally did it?
As part of the “Road to the Summit,” a special series ramping up to the 2026 Game Changers Summit this November 11-12, we’re revisiting some of the most powerful conversations ever featured at our events. In this encore episode of The Game Changing Attorney Podcast, we’re throwing it back to the 2024 Game Changers Summit, where Kat Cole, CEO of AG1 and former president of Cinnabon, took the stage to share what she has learned about driving innovation.
Starting as a Hooters hostess at 17 and going on to run some of the best-known brands in the world, Kat’s story is a lesson in acting on what is already in front of you. Her advice is simple: ask your team what to change, then act on what they say.
Here’s what you’ll learn:
- Why your success can hide the changes that matter most
- How to ask your team three questions that show what to stop, start, and change
- What it takes to move a hesitant team from fear to action
Someone on your team has probably already spotted the fix you haven’t gotten to yet.
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Show Notes:
Honest answers come from people who have watched you act on them. “The point is, ask questions, get answers. Create a reputation where people are honest with you, and then act on the answers.”
Moving faster pays off right up until quality starts paying for it. “Speed is the ultimate business advantage when you can accelerate it, but stop at the point that it would otherwise compromise quality.”
Being contractually right still leaves you without buy-in. “By the letter of the contract, you’re in a bad place if that’s how you’re managing your business relationships. It’s about commitment, not compliance. I did not have their commitment to innovate.”
Your team usually knows what to do long before you decide to do it. “The lesson in that is that the people who are closest to the action know what the right thing to do is, long before we as leaders make a move, whether that’s serious stuff at home or little things in the business.”
Where you started matters, and it still shouldn’t cap where you finish. “Don’t forget where you came from as a business, as a brand, as a person, but don’t let that define you. Be better and different tomorrow. Our truth is in our roots, just like it was Cinnabon and the giant cinnamon roll. But our past should not be our anchor.”
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