Magic in the Room #115: Work as a Community with Guest Greg Robinson

August 15, 2022
People often talk about the idea of community, but the word can have a different meaning for everyone. In this episode of Magic in the Room, Hannah and Luke talk with guest Greg Robinson about what community means and the challenges of creating organizations where people have a sense of belonging. 

 Dr. Greg Robinson is currently the Associate Professor of Outdoor Leadership Ministries at John Brown University. Previously, he was the Program Director for HoneyRock, the Outdoor Center for Leadership Development of Wheaton College, as well as President of Challenge Quest, LLC in Pryor, Oklahoma, the Managing Member of Adventure Quest Recreation, LLC.   

Dr. Robinson has a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from The Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, Ohio. He also has a M.S. in Counseling from John Brown University.  

Dr. Robinson's professional career has concentrated in the areas of experiential learning, team development, leadership development, facilitation and consulting with organizational change efforts. He is the author of A Leadership Paradox: Influencing Others by Defining Yourself; Teams for a New Generation: A Facilitator’s Field Guide; Adventure and the Way of Jesus, Lessons of the Way: Using experiential activities to explore the way of Jesus; and Leading from Where You Are: How Every Person Can Help or Hinder a Collaborative Culture. 

His family includes his wife of 28 years Jeannie, his daughter Keely and her fiancée Nick LaTurner, his sons Kobe and Kyle, as well as two grandsons Lucas and Max. 

Magic in the Room #201: Leading from Within

By Emma Holland • June 9, 2026
In this episode of Magic in the Room, Chris Province, Hannah Bratterud, and Luke Freeman reflect on six years of conversations and explore a foundational leadership question: why leadership is ultimately an inside game. Drawing on personal growth, facilitation experiences, and organizational leadership lessons, they argue that effective leadership cannot be reduced to frameworks, checklists, or techniques alone, but instead depends on the ongoing work of self-awareness, discernment, courage, and wisdom. They explore the relationship between courage and conviction, the importance of responding rather than reacting, and the role of personal development in creating positive impact for teams, organizations, and communities. The episode presents leadership as a lifelong practice of leading oneself first, emphasizing that meaningful change begins not with external systems, but with the internal work of becoming more intentional, hopeful, and aligned with one’s values.

Magic in the Room #200: How to Lead through Polarities

By Sarah Whitfield • May 5, 2026
In this episode of Magic in the Room, Luke and Hannah explore the concept of polarities. Tensions like purpose and performance, stability and change, or accountability and grace that are often mistaken for problems to solve rather than dynamics to manage. Drawing on insights from Barry Johnson’s work, they explain how these opposing forces are interdependent and must be balanced over time to achieve sustained success. Through practical examples and personal reflections, they show how over-relying on one side of a polarity leads to predictable “shadow sides” such as stagnation, chaos, inefficiency, or burnout, while effective leadership requires recognizing where you are on the cycle and intentionally recalibrating. The episode emphasizes that many recurring organizational frustrations are not failures, but signals of imbalance, and offers a more nuanced approach to leadership. One that replaces rigid either/or thinking with flexible both/and awareness to improve decision-making, team dynamics, and long-term performance.
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