Leading with Fulfillment: Impact and a Thriving Life with Tony Thelen
Tony Thelen shares how true leadership means guiding people and organizations to places they wouldn’t reach alone, with courage, confidence balanced by humility, and a focus on impact that extends beyond profits to people, customers, and communities. The real measure of leadership, he says, is moving the world forward while achieving success and a sense of fulfillment as a leader.
The foundation of a team that truly works is trust—without it, everything else crumbles. Transparency, facing bad news together, and debating ideas without harming relationships all strengthen that trust. Real trust shows when leaders resist micromanaging and let people do the work they’ve been entrusted with. As Tony Thelen explains, leadership is about sensing, adapting, and responding—so teams thrive and leaders experience fulfillment in the process. It’s not about balancing work against life, but aligning priorities so both support who you want to be. The real win is designing a life where energy, relationships, and work all feed into fulfillment.
About Tony Thelen:
Tony Thelen from Iowa is the Founder and Principal Executive Coach at The River Coaching and Consulting, LLC. With a diverse 35-year career at John Deere he’s gained invaluable insights into people, change, processes, and leadership. As a certified NeuroLeadership Coach and a member of the International Coaching Federation, he’s coached over 500 individuals in various career stages, focusing on transformation, leadership development, and C-suite development and execution. Other professional interests include writing ('Am I Doing This Right', published Nov 22, Business Expert Press) Independent board membership, and advisory councils. Lifetime member of Trout Unlimited. His new book, due out 3 Nov 2025, is “Things We Desire” based on the timeless wisdom of the Desiderata poem written in 1927 by Max Ehrmann.
