The Plant of Leadership October 2025

Stop Burnout & Lead Calmly with the LEAD Framework

In this live episode, Dr. Teranda Knight, The Behavioral Health Queen, helps higher ed leaders recognize and stop burnout triggers while learning to lead calmly under pressure. Discover how to spot stressors like email overload, endless meetings, and unclear priorities—and apply simple strategies like micro-breaks, prioritization, and delegation. Then, explore the LEAD framework (Listen, Empathize, Align, Decide) to make confident, stress-reducing decisions. Practical tools for peace, power, and sustainable leadership.

4 Tips to Happiness as a Leader

In this episode, Dr. TK shares four evidence-based strategies for leaders to reclaim happiness while managing the demands of higher education and behavioral health. Learn how to redesign your ecosystem, set boundaries, practice micro-wellbeing habits, and cultivate purposeful connections. Research-backed tips plus a free downloadable worksheet included! If the download link does not work. Go to www.virtuallyrenownedconsultingaccessllc.org and complete the form near the bottom of the page, and comment "WORKSHEET."
Disclaimer: Dr. TK is not a licensed professional. However, she has years of experience and education in these topic areas. Attempt the use of any resource at your own risk. The outcomes are not a result of the information shared, but of the approach used by the individual. Viewing and participating in any Podcast does not suggest a professional relationship. Schedule a session today for tailored support.  
📥 Leader Happiness Worksheet (PDF) 
References: 
Ghahramani, S., et al. (2021). Frontiers in Psychiatry. 
CUPA-HR (2023). Higher Education Employee Retention Survey. 
Waddell, A., et al. (2023). Health & Social Care in the Community. 
Ong, N. Y., et al. (2024). General Psychiatry. 
Søvold, L. E., et al. (2021). Frontiers in Public Health. 
 

Leading Systems Change in Population Health

In this episode. Dr. Teranda Knight explores how systems leadership can transform population health outcomes in behavioral health and higher education. Learn how to move beyond individual interventions and redesign the systems that shape well-being. Discover real-world strategies using the LEAD, GROW, IMPACT, and SCALE framework to drive sustainable change. It’s time to stop managing symptoms, and start leading transformation.

Identifying the Beast in Higher Ed Leadership

In this episode of Behavioral Health Talks with Dr. TK, The Behavioral Health Queen, we uncover how higher education leaders can recognize “the beast” — the toxic cycles of overwork, perfectionism, and pressure built into academic systems. Through Dr. M’s real story, Dr. TK shares three behavioral health–based strategies to restore peace, purpose, and productivity using frameworks like PDSA and SCALE.
🎯 Perfect for deans, directors, and campus leaders ready to lead with strategy, science, and soul.
#BehavioralHealthQueen #PeaceOverPressure #HigherEdLeadership #NeverFeedTheBeast #LeadershipWellness #AcademicLeaders #MentalHealthInHigherEd #BehavioralHealth #DrTK #LeadershipStrategy #SCALEFramework #PDSAMethod #WorkHardStayPeaceful

The Biology of Leadership Stress: Fight, Flight, or Lead

Your leadership style might be triggering your body’s emergency system daily. In this first official episode under our new logo and theme, Dr. Teranda Knight, DBH, IBHL, LSSGB, explores how chronic stress in leadership activates the HPA axis, and what it means for your health, performance, and purpose.
🎧 Learn how to lead from regulation, not reactivity.🌱 Grow beyond burnout.🔥 Transform how you show up in systems that demand more than they give.
✨ Because burnout isn’t just a buzzword, It’s a biological breakdown.
🔗 Subscribe, share, and grow with us.
#ThePlantOfLeadership #LeadershipStress #BurnoutRecovery #GrowBeyondTheBeast #LeadershipWellness #BehavioralHealthLeadership #HigherEdLeadership #TraumaInformedLeadership #LeadGrowImpactScale #LeadershipPodcast #DrTerandaKnight #LeadershipBiology #HPAaxis #LeadershipHealing #NeverFeedTheBeast

Seed of Awareness: Cultivating Leadership That Won't Feed the Beast

Dr. Teranda Knight introduces “The Plant of Leadership”, using a plant metaphor to reveal how systemic toxicity, the "beast" erodes leaders and organizations. She presents two guiding principles (#NeverFeedTheBeast and #NeverFedTheBeast) and argues that personal sustainability and ethical courage are essential defenses.
The episode outlines how burnout and moral injury arise in education and behavioral health, then previews practical chapters on pruning toxic influences, cultivating resilience, and implementing systemic reforms to build lasting, ethical leadership.

What’s Beaneath Your Leadership Roots?

In this episode of Never Feed The Beast, Dr. Knight explores the foundational concept of the ethical leadership through the metaphor of soil. The concept of soil is from her first chapter of her book, The Plant of Leadership: Cultivating Growth in Leadership. She reflects on toxic systems and questions to ask yourself to see whether you need to get started with a journey of change. Discover how adversity can grow authenticity.

Cyberattacks, FERPA & the First 24 Hours

AI‑driven cyberattacks are hitting campuses hard, and when education records are exposed, FERPA becomes a frontline crisis. Dr. Teranda Knight breaks down why breaches erode student trust, how they impact access to care, and what leaders must do in the first 24 hours to protect privacy, continuity, and confidence.
 

Breaking: Students Trust Counseling: Why Only 18% Go?

Students say they trust campus counseling, yet only 18% use the services available to them. What’s standing in the way? In this live discussion, Dr. Teranda Knight unpacks the hidden barriers, such as stigma, access, policy, and systemic design that quietly discourage students from seeking help. Grounded in behavioral health and higher education practice, this session challenges institutions to rethink engagement, ethics, and accountability in student mental health.
 

Double-Digit Campus Mental Health Gains: Are We Progressing?

Colleges report double-digit increases in mental health staffing, funding, and service utilization. Yet student distress, burnout, and care gaps persist. Are these gains translating into measurable outcomes or simply more activity within strained systems? This piece examines what’s improving, what’s stalled, and whether current approaches are truly moving the needle.