Unlocking Elite Team Performance in 90 Days | Isabelle Fortin
Most Leaders Feel Like Babysitters. Here’s How to Break Free.
It’s not because you’re doing leadership wrong—it’s because you’re missing the data that actually matters.
If you’ve ever felt like your team can’t work together, you’re juggling emotional meltdowns, or your calendar is too packed to even think straight… you’re not alone. And it’s not your fault.
As Isabelle Fortin—military vet turned leadership consultant—puts it: “Most leaders aren’t trained. They’re just promoted.” And without real tools, they default to firefighting instead of leading.
But there’s a solution. And it doesn’t involve micromanaging, personality tests, or more meetings. It’s about understanding how your people are wired—deeply—and building systems that align strengths to roles.
Why High Performance Begins with Alignment
“The right people in the right chair—that’s high performance.”
Isabelle drops this truth bomb early. High performance isn’t just hustle. It’s precision. Her framework? Use psychometric data to assess cognitive preferences, communication styles, and deep motivations. When roles match brain wiring, teams become energized, not exhausted.
In her work with leaders across industries—from research labs to remote tech teams—she sees one pattern: team dysfunction almost always comes from misalignment, not bad attitudes.
“You don’t have a people problem—you have a systems clarity problem.”
This belief-breaking shift frees founders from feeling like they need to fix everyone. Instead, they start fixing fit.
From Military Command to Servant Leadership
Isabelle’s journey began in the Air Force. Ironically, for someone who doesn’t take orders well, she thrived in an environment where mission came first—but people were positioned to succeed.
“The military gets a bad rap for being command-and-control,” she says. “But they’re masters at aligning people to the mission. That’s what most businesses miss.”
When she transitioned to the corporate world, the lack of leadership training floored her. Multiple jobs in, she realized the issue wasn’t bad bosses—it was untrained ones.
The Power of the NOVA Assessment
“It’s not a personality test. It’s a wiring diagram.”
Isabelle uses the Swiss-developed NOVA psychometric system. Unlike surface-level tools, it delivers deep clarity on:
Cognitive preferences (how people solve problems)
Behavioral styles (how they show up under pressure)
Communication tendencies
Core motivations (what drives them when no one’s watching)
It also reveals the gap between natural and adapted behavior—a major cause of burnout. If someone is pretending to be a different version of themselves just to survive work, it’s unsustainable.
How to Lead Better, Without Burnout
“Leadership is not about being the boss. It’s about serving your people.”
Here are practical steps from the episode that any founder can implement:
Do weekly 15-minute 1-on-1s. Not about tasks. Ask about their life. What lights them up? Then shut up and listen. Deeply.
Use third-space connection. Don’t always meet in your office. Join them in their space—digitally or physically. It shows humility and builds trust.
Decode their motivation. Ask what goals they’re working toward outside of work. Buying a house? Paying for tuition? Align work to help them win.
Distinguish leadership from management. Managing is about timelines. Leading is about people. You need both—but don’t confuse them.
Use assessments, but interpret them. Tools are great. But without interpretation, they’re just data. Hire someone who can read the story behind the scores.
Case Study: From Toxic to Thriving in a Research Lab
Isabelle recalls a lab of six post-PhD researchers where internal conflict had spiraled. Even stapler wars were a thing.
But the assessment revealed this: five were ultra-structured and preferred limited communication. The sixth was people-oriented and craved connection.
Once the team saw the data, conflict stopped immediately.
“It wasn’t personality—it was wiring. And that changed everything.”
This transformation didn’t require firing anyone. It required understanding them.
What Every Founder Can Do This Week
Apply these 5 actions to build team clarity today:
Schedule one 15-minute personal 1-on-1 with each team member.
Ask: “What motivates you outside of work?”
Use their answers to align roles and responsibilities.
Start learning about cognitive styles and communication patterns.
Book a psychometric assessment and professional debrief (see link below).
Real Results: More Time, Less Conflict
One founder reduced weekly leadership meetings from 6 hours to 90 minutes by realigning tasks using assessment data.
Another saw a 20% boost in output within 60 days by matching team strengths to roles—without hiring anyone new.
Isabelle’s work helped an academic team eliminate infighting and restore focus on mission-driven research.
“If you understand your people, they’ll crawl through glass for you.”
Want to Lead a High-Performance Team Without Burnout?
📚 Get the free leadership training + AI resources here
👉 https://linkin.bio/nathannewberry
🎯 Learn how to shift from chaos to clarity with the AI Freedom Method and systems that actually serve your mission.
Final Thoughts: Leadership Is a Human Skill
Your team is an orchestra. You don’t need to play every instrument. But you do need to know how they sound—and how to bring harmony to the mission.
Good leadership isn’t about charisma. It’s about consistency, curiosity, and courage.
The cost of staying in reactive leadership mode is massive: lost talent, stalled growth, and burnout. The reward for making the shift? Peace, progress, and performance.
👉 Ready to lead without burning out? Book a call with Nathan here
“Nathan’s tools helped us double revenue and cut meetings in half. The clarity we gained in 30 days changed everything.” –Founder Testimonial
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About the Author
Nathan Newberry helps elite business owners implement AI in sales, marketing, systems, and models to build rapidly successful brands. He specializes in helping founders implement Sell By Chat strategy to buy back their time and double their revenue within 6 months using his Elite Sales Model.
