The People, Process, & Progress Podcast - The Space You Control | Foundation Friday 01

Episode Date: April 3, 2026

This Foundation Friday builds on the concept of the space between reaction and response and brings it into real life.Through a simple but relatable moment at home, Kevin walks through how quickly reaction can take over and how a brief pause can completely change the outcome.He connects this to leadership, meetings, and high-pressure situations where tone, control, and clarity matter most.You’ll learn how to recognize that space, how to use it, and a simple breathing tool to help you stay composed when it counts.This is about building the reps to respond with intention, at home, at work, and everywhere in between.

Hey everybody, welcome back to the own move anchor podcast. If you've been with me for a while through the different iterations of the show, you'll remember that I've done a Foundations Friday, and guess what we're back. Today, it's Foundation Friday, the space you control. I want to bring you into a real moment from this week. I just sat down at the kitchen table to edit headphones on, ready to focus. Maybe it was a presentation. Maybe it was this podcast. Either way, I was locked in, right? Then I don't know where a boom, full galactic invasion. My youngest walks in with the entire battle the universe happening at full volume. My second jumps in now it's a full on war. Then my wife starts doing dishes about five feet away. Just like that, the perfect storm. And I'll be honest with you,

I made a face. That part was automatic. That was reaction starting to kick in. But then I caught it. I took a breath and I said clearly, calmly, hey guys, I love hearing you have fun. I really do, but I'm focused on something right now. Can you pause or take it somewhere else? And they did. my wife even said you handled that really well that right there that's the space right that's what we talked about earlier this week the space between stimulus and response a concept grounded in the work of victor frankle when pressure hits you don't rise to the plane you fall back to what you've built i'm kevin penel navy veteran program leader mussoon jitsu practitioner the show is about building that foundation how you think how you move and what keeps you steady when things don't go your way

Own your mind, move your body, anchor your spirit. Where this shows up for you, now let's bring this into your world, right? Because it's not just kids in kitchens, this shows up in meetings, right? It shows up when someone makes a bold statement that doesn't line up with what you're seeing, when something gets framed as all positive or all negative when tension starts to build. For me, that's where a reaction wants to jump in. And I've seen it in other people too. That's where the tone changes, posture shifts, people start picking sides.

Instead, this is where you're, where you, you slow it down just enough. You listen, you evaluate, you read the room, and then you respond. Something as simple is, I hear what you're saying, I've seen it play out a bit differently, maybe closer to this. What are you seeing on your side? Now you've opened a door instead of closing one. And when you see frustration, you don't ignore it, you call it out calmly. I can hear and see the frustration here. How can I help us work through it? That's leadership, that's steadiness, that's control in that space. This is reaction versus response, right?

And I've done it the other way too. I'm trying to work, go somewhere else. And then you see it immediately in your kids, in your team, and anything on the receiving end, right, shut down disappointment distance. Reaction pushes people away. Response brings them in. Response creates understanding. Response builds trust.

So what's the tool we can use to help us respond more than we react? So you need something simple, right? Because when you're in middle of something, you can't be referencing things and you're right there in the middle of it. Something you can rely on when things get loud. For me, it starts with breath. I do a lot of breath work, Wim Hof style, breathing during jih Tzu, during workouts. I sit and meditate, and I'll talk about that here in a second.

But a more specific one you can use is what's called a physiological sigh, right? A technique used by Andrew Huberman and that he mentions, has mentioned often in some of his tools as well. And it's two quick inhales through your nose, and one long exhale through your mouth. And that alone can calm you down fast, right? It lowers the noise just enough so you can choose what comes next. Then you train it, right? Use it at a time when you're not stressed out.

Just two in, one out. Additionally, owning our mind revolves around building muscle memory. And if you've listened and you've read this stability equation book in the seven pillars, mindfulness is the second one. And it has to be trained, five, ten minutes a day to give yourself time to sit there, breathe, scan your body and just listen. Nothing complicated, right? You're just building reps.

So in the moment, whether it's going to sleep or not reacting to somebody, you've already kind of built how you can focus your mind on nothing, really, on the ability to chill out a little bit. And for me, throughout my life, I have not been chill. And so this is a skill that I've built in the past. five to eight years, I don't know, roughly, probably more five through a need and through a desire to do better. So how can we carry this forward? Right. As you head into the weekend, as I do, let's carry this with us, right? Let's realize that we don't have to react, that we get a moment

and that we're going to use that moment. We're going to pause. We're going to breathe and we'll respond in a way that's more clear, more steady. It actually helps a situation. situation because we know when we fly off the handle when we just emotionally respond, it does not help. Right? And then we're going to not get it right every time. None of us do. But that's not the point. Right. The point is that we're working on it. The point is that we're aware of it and that we're building control in that space and that we are working to own our mind. Have a great weekend, everybody. Thanks for listening. Share the show. Go to omooveanchor.com for more. And Godspeed, y'all. If this helped you, take something from it and put it to work today. Don't just let it sit. You can find more at own moveanchor.com.

You can follow me in the show on X and Instagram at Own Move Anchor and on YouTube, own move anchor. If you know someone who needs this, share it with them. Own your mind, move your body, anchor your spirit. Keep showing up. Keep doing the work. Godspeed, y'all.