Physics & the Cosmos
This 17th-century scientist’s “apple incident” became the most famous gravity branding campaign in history.
Who is Isaac Newton?
Coaching Debrief:
Where in your work are you ignoring “falling apples” (obvious patterns) that could spark meaningful change?
This Austrian monk’s pea experiments basically invented genetics, long before “23 and Me” was a thing.
Who is Gregor Mendel?
Coaching Debrief:
What patterns in your own behavior or team dynamics might be quietly trying to tell you something?
The only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different scientific fields, this pioneer worked extensively with radioactivity—giving “occupational exposure” a whole new meaning.
Who is Marie Curie?
Coaching Debrief:
Where might you be underestimating your capacity to cross disciplines or reinvent yourself?
This ancient Greek mathematician supposedly shouted “Eureka!” and ran naked through the streets after discovering how to measure volume using water displacement in a bath.
Who is Archimedes?
Coaching Debrief:
Where might a quiet, ordinary moment (like a “mental bath”) help you see a solution you can’t find by forcing it?
This 19th-century naturalist wrote On the Origin of Species and made finches unexpectedly famous.
Who is Charles Darwin?
Coaching Debrief:
What tiny “adaptations” in your habits or routines could add up to big change over time?
In his 1905 “miracle year,” this physicist dropped papers on special relativity, Brownian motion, and the photoelectric effect—like a tenure package on espresso.
Who is Albert Einstein?
Coaching Debrief:
If you focused your time and energy, what would your own “miracle year” look like?
This Scottish bacteriologist discovered penicillin after noticing mold on a Petri dish—proving that sometimes laziness in cleaning is scientifically fruitful.
Who is Alexander Fleming?
Coaching Debrief:
How can you treat “mistakes” or messes as data and curiosity opportunities instead of just problems?
Her X-ray diffraction image “Photo 51” was key to uncovering DNA’s double helix, though she didn’t get equal credit in her lifetime.
Who is Rosalind Franklin?
Coaching Debrief:
Who in your system is doing essential but under-recognized work—and how can you intentionally acknowledge them?
This Italian scientist dropped objects (at least in legend) from the Leaning Tower of Pisa to study gravity, challenging Aristotle and proving that “we’ve always done it this way” isn’t a great scientific method.
Who is Galileo Galilei?
Coaching Debrief:
What “we’ve always done it this way” assumption in your team or system might be ready for a gravity check?
A Serbian-American inventor and engineer, he championed alternating current and built the Tesla coil, long before his name was put on an electric car.
Who is Nikola Tesla?
Coaching Debrief:
Where do you need less lone-genius energy and more collaboration and boundaries in your leadership?
This bongo-playing physicist helped develop quantum electrodynamics and became famous for turning terrifying equations into entertaining stories.
Who is Richard Feynman?
Coaching Debrief:
How can you use humor and simple language to make difficult topics (like burnout or change) easier to discuss?
Often mentioned with Charles Best, this Canadian scientist co-discovered insulin, transforming diabetes care from rapid decline to chronic management.
Who is Frederick Banting?
Coaching Debrief:
What small innovation or mindset shift could transform a “chronic pain point” in your system into something more manageable?
This American marine biologist’s book Silent Spring sounded the alarm on pesticides like DDT, essentially kickstarting the modern environmental movement.
Who is Rachel Carson?
Coaching Debrief:
How might you combine story and data to influence how people see issues like wellbeing or systems change?
This Russian physiologist won a Nobel Prize for work on digestion but is more famous for ringing bells and making dogs drool, giving psychology one of its most overused metaphors.
Who is Ivan Pavlov?
Coaching Debrief:
What are the “bells” in your environment—cues that trigger automatic reactions—and which ones might you want to retrain?
This British mathematician and logician helped break the Enigma code and is widely considered a father of computer science—without ever sending a single Slack message.
Who is Alan Turing?
Coaching Debrief:
Where are you stuck in abstraction, and how could you translate your mental models into one concrete experiment this month?
This American astronomer demonstrated that the universe is expanding and later received a space telescope named after him—basically the ultimate “lifetime achievement” award.
Who is Edwin Hubble?
Coaching Debrief:
Where might your own “universe”—your options, roles, or identity—be bigger than the story you’re currently telling yourself?
This English physician became a public health legend by tracing a cholera outbreak to a water pump and then literally removing the handle.
Who is John Snow?
Coaching Debrief:
What “pump handle” could you remove in your clinic or organization to prevent recurring problems upstream?
A rear admiral and computer scientist, she helped pioneer early programming languages and popularized the term “debugging” after an actual moth was found in a computer.
Who is Grace Hopper?
Coaching Debrief:
What “bugs” keep recurring in your leadership or team behavior—and what would it really mean to debug them?
This chemist arranged the known elements into a table based on atomic weight and properties, leaving blank spaces for elements yet to be discovered—basically the ultimate “trust the process” moment.
Who is Dmitri Mendeleev?
Coaching Debrief Prompt:
Where in your career or life are there “blank spaces” that feel scary—but might actually be room for something new to emerge?
This theoretical physicist popularized the term “black hole,” gifting us a cosmic object that now doubles as a metaphor for email inboxes.
Who is John Archibald Wheeler?
Coaching Debrief:
What are the “black holes” in your work (time, energy, morale), and how might naming them help you and your team address them?
This astronomer and science communicator hosted Cosmos and spoke of “billions and billions,” making everyone feel tiny and inspired simultaneously.
Who is Carl Sagan?
Coaching Debrief:
How can you invite more wonder and curiosity into conversations about hard topics with colleagues or coachees?
This French scientist promoted germ theory, vaccines, and pasteurization, helping the world realize that invisible microbes—not “bad air”—might be the problem.
Who is Louis Pasteur?
Coaching Debrief:
When you’re frustrated by behavior, what invisible forces (culture, incentives, beliefs) might be driving it?
This British primatologist’s decades-long work with chimpanzees in Tanzania proved they use tools—messing with humanity’s claim to that particular bragging right.
Who is Jane Goodall?
Coaching Debrief:
How can you slow down and observe more deeply before jumping to conclusions about a colleague or coachee?
This American psychologist studied “learned helplessness” in dogs, later influencing positive psychology and resilience research—reminding us that feeling trapped is sometimes a story, not a fact.
Who is Martin Seligman?
Coaching Debrief:
Where might you (or your coachees) be acting as if the cage door is locked—when it’s actually open?
This duo proposed the double-helix structure of DNA, helping launch molecular biology and dominate textbook covers for decades.
Who are James Watson and Francis Crick?
Coaching Debrief:
How do you acknowledge the shoulders you stand on—and help your coachees do the same?