Five with Fry
Five with Fry is your go-to podcast for understanding conflict—where it comes from, why it shows up, and how to handle it with clarity and intention. On each episode, Dr. Jen Fry breaks down the moments we avoid, the reactions we default to, and the skills it takes to move through conflict without blowing things up or shutting down.
Episodes
64 episodes
S2 Ep9: Conflict Isn't the Villain
This season kept coming back to the same place: leadership starts with self. Not with strategy. Not with authority. With your patterns.Conflict does not come out of nowhere. Your responses were shaped long before this role, this team, or...
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Season 2
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Episode 9
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6:08
S2 Ep8: "I’m Sorry You Felt That Way" is a Trash Apology
Repair is where leadership gets exposed.Not when things are smooth. Not when the meeting goes well. After you interrupt someone. After you dismiss a concern. After you get it wrong.Most leaders don’t struggle with saying “I’m sorr...
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Season 2
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Episode 8
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5:09
S2 Ep7: How Fast Will They Tell You You’re Wrong?
Leaders love to say their door is always open. That sounds generous. It also keeps you comfortable.Power doesn’t disappear because you’re approachable. It shows up in who has to walk toward you. It shows up in who speaks first in meeting...
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Season 2
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Episode 7
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5:16
S2 Ep6: Stop Calling It “Defensive” When It’s Just Questions
There’s a moment that happens in feedback conversations all the time. Someone asks a question or tries to explain their perspective, and the response is, “You’re being defensive.” The label lands, and the door closes. What could have been dialo...
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Season 2
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Episode 6
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5:18
S2 Ep5: Congratulations on Winning That Imaginary Argument
Do you do this, too? Something feels off, and before you say a word, your brain writes a full script about what the other person meant, why they did it, and how it’s probably not great. I call this the “shower lawyer” habit, where y...
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Season 2
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Episode 5
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4:55
S2 Ep4: Emotional Regulation Isn't Optional
Conflict doesn’t break relationships. What breaks them is unmanaged emotion. The moments where we shut down, get sharp, avoid the conversation, or expect other people to absorb what we haven’t dealt with ourselves. This episode is about that ga...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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4:55
S2 Ep3: "Calm Down?" That Phrase Might Be Your Kryptonite.
Some words hit harder than they should. A comment like “calm down” can flip a switch in your body before your brain has a chance to weigh in. In this episode, I’m talking about what happens when you get triggered and what that reaction is actua...
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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5:00
S2 Ep2: When Meetings Get Spicy, Don’t Rake The Zen Garden
Most leadership problems show up in moments of tension. Not the dramatic blowups, but the everyday heat in meetings, feedback conversations, or decisions that carry weight. This episode is about what you do with yourself in those moments. The h...
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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5:09
S2 Ep1: Your Family’s Conflict Style Is Running Your Meetings
Leadership gets clearer when you stop avoiding the hard parts and start asking where your habits came from. In this episode, we dig into conflict roots. Those early lessons taught you whether to speak up, shut down, smooth things over, or push ...
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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5:15
Season 2: New Year, New Focus
Fresh starts are overrated. What actually changes us are the layers we’re willing to look at honestly.This season, Five with Fry is narrowing its focus to one thing: conflict. Not the dramatic kind—the everyday moments where thi...
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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4:46
51: We Don’t Need A New Me To Have A Breakthrough Year
We’re not doing “new year, new me.”We’re doing new year, same person—just less exhausted and more honest.2025 was a lot. And pretending it wasn’t doesn’t set you up for a breakthrough—it sets you up to quit by February. So ...
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5:38
50: Cookie Decorating Broke Me, And That’s Okay
Some holidays don’t feel festive. They feel quiet in a way that echoes.If this is your first holiday alone, your kids are somewhere else, you’ve moved, divorced, or lost someone, the pressure to “make it special” can feel like way too mu...
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Season 1
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Episode 50
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5:17
49: How Politeness Standards Can Stall Innovation At Work
If your meetings are polite and nothing is changing, that’s not a culture win. It’s a warning sign.In this episode of Five with Fry, we talk about how “being nice” often becomes a way to avoid telling the truth—especially when p...
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Season 1
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Episode 49
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4:42
48: Why The First Boundary Is Easy And The Fifth Is Brutal
The first “no” is brave. The fifth “no”? That’s the one that tells people you’re serious.In this episode, we dig into a very real holiday scenario: you set a simple boundary—if grandpa uses slurs, I’m leaving—and suddenly the fa...
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5:17
47: Stop Sugarcoating. You’re Not A Bakery.
What actually happens when you stop tiptoeing around someone’s feelings and start telling the truth with care? In this episode, we dig into the real work of hard conversations: be clear, be kind, and stop pretending emotions don’t exist. No sug...
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Season 1
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Episode 47
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5:02
46: Therapy Was Going Great… Then Auntie Showed Up
The holiday glow can flip into a pressure cooker the second you step through a familiar door. In this episode, we dig into why even steady healing can wobble at home, how old family dynamics reactivate like muscle memory, and why one simple com...
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Season 1
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Episode 46
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5:04
45: Before You Jump Into The Transfer Portal, Read Your Stats And Talk To Your Coach
Thinking about entering the transfer portal but not sure if it’s a launchpad… or a trapdoor? In this episode, we take a clear, no-nonsense look at what really happens when athletes chase a new home after the season ends—separating hype...
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9:10
44: The Difference Between Hard and Complicated
If you’ve been around Five with Fry for a while, you know we talk a lot about the difference between what’s hard and what’s complicated—and if you haven’t, go back and catch up, because those episodes are gold.In this one, Dr. J...
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Season 1
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5:00
43: Cancel The Order, Keep The Check: The Nvidia Story
What if the difference between obscurity and breakout success is just one more shot on goal? We pull back the curtain on how companies actually find product-market fit, using NVIDIA’s lesser-known journey—from early misfires to a gutsy Sega con...
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7:03
42: Defending Without Being Defensive
Ever been told you’re “being defensive” the moment you try to explain yourself? In this episode, we break down the fine line between defending your choices with context and showing up as defensive through tone, body language, or shut-down phras...
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Season 1
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Episode 42
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5:35
41: If You’re Old Enough For A Mortgage, You’re Too Old For The “Just Joking” Defense
The group chat got leaked, and the spin started fast. Racist, antisemitic, and homophobic “jokes” from 24 to 35-year-old political operatives were quickly brushed off as “just edgy humor.” Commentators framed them as “kids who made a mistake,” ...
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Season 1
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Episode 41
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6:30
40: Repeatable vs. Repetitive: The Secret to Continuous Growth
Have you ever skipped revisiting a course or concept because you thought, “I’ve already done that”? In this episode of Five with Fry, I unpack why that mindset might be holding you back.During a drive back from Martha’s Vineyard...
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Season 1
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Episode 40
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6:21
39: Why Failure Delivers Your Greatest Breakthroughs
Ever notice how your best ideas show up right after something goes completely wrong? Same.As someone who’s wildly competitive, losing has never sat well with me. Take this recent tech pitch competition. I was sure I’d win. When I didn’t,...
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Season 1
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Episode 39
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4:58
38: Five Things You Need to Know When Navigating Leadership’s Hardest Moments
When you’re in the chair—whether as an Athletic Director, head coach, or top leader—everything starts and stops with you. Most books don’t prepare you for that reality. Leading means holding steady when the boat feels like it’s tipping and peop...
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Season 1
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Episode 38
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50:16
37: Stop Saying "Sorry If I Offended You"
Have you ever noticed how often people say, “I’m sorry if I offended you” when they’re called out for something they said? In this episode of Five with Fry, I talk about why that phrase sounds like an apology but actually avoi...
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Season 1
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Episode 37
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5:22