Our Conviction
The 8th Day Leader Manifesto
We believe leadership is a weight and responsibility.
We are seeking proven and promising leaders with agency and influence.
We believe dangerous leaders are not just the narcissistic ones, but the ones who unwittingly erode connection with what matters most. They drift into the danger zone.
At 8th Day Leader, we are not theorists.
We are real-world practitioners with stories. Guides with scars.
Leaders who hit the wall and intentionally joined a courageous community of transformed leaders.
We've walked through ambition and disillusionment.
Through achievement and pain.
Through the moment when competence was no longer enough.
We believe leadership must be formed not just taught.
That influence without inner alignment is borrowed time.
That burnout is not a badge of honor and survival is not the goal.
We believe transformation is possible.
Not through hacks or hype, But through honest work, courage, trust and a clear map forward.
The 8th Day is not about starting over.
It's about becoming whole.
It's the day after creation.
The space where leaders stop living out of a persona and start leading from true purpose.
For those who know the deep cost of leadership–and still choose to do their work.
For leaders who refuse to trade their soul for success.
“We exist for proven leaders entering their most important season.”
The Transformed Leader
Why leaders need
the 8th day
God rested on the 7th day. But the modern Christian leader often never does.
The "8th Day" represents the space where leaders finally pause long enough to be re-integrated, re-aligned, and re-sent.
Reset. Transform. Live.
Reset
Clear the noise. Strip away what doesn't matter. Return to your deepest calling.
Transform
Align who you are with how you lead. Let authentic purpose reshape every decision and relationship.
Live
Lead from wholeness, not depletion. Step into a rhythm of leadership that sustains both your soul and your influence.
Our Mission
Develop & Multiply
To develop and multiply healthy Christian leaders through the transformative integration of heart, soul, mind, and strength.
Our Vision
Kingdom-focused Leaders
To become a transformational force of Christian leaders, progressing from...
Our Foundation
Jesus' Model
of Leadership
Jesus didn't transform the world through crowds. He transformed it by forming disciple-makers within a circle of trust.
He developed leaders through relationships, identity work, and deep integration.
Healthy leaders produce healthy churches, organizations, and movements.
This is the pattern we follow.
Our Leadership
Core Team
People who walk alongside you
President & Mentor
Jack Nicholson
Jack has helped many churches and ministries navigate the human side of organizational leadership by developing and equipping executive leaders to guide constructive change, transform conflict, build relationships of trust, and catalyze transformative movements. Jack has three master's degrees in Organizational Systems, Counseling and Theology, and is currently completing a Ph.D. in Social Research and Constructive Change. He is the author of The Human Operating System: Recovering the Heart and Soul of your Leadership.
Our Guides
People who walk alongside you
Guide
Robert Murray
Rob came to this work from Cape Town, arriving in the U.S. in 2002 and spending the next two decades at the intersection of leadership, business, faith, and social justice. He holds a master's in social and civic entrepreneurship and a doctorate in transformational leadership, focusing his research at the intersection of emotional intelligence and leadership development. As co-founder and CEO of Transformed Leader, he developed the Heart-Engaged EQ System and authored The Human Operating System and Fighting for Heart.
Guide
Josh Patterson
Josh spent two decades in the leadership of The Village Church and helped carry it from a few hundred people to a multi-campus body of thousands through rapid growth, a shared lead-pastor model, a succession process, and releasing Village campuses as autonomous churches. He holds a Master's from Dallas Theological Seminary and a Doctorate in Executive Leadership from Southern Seminary. Through Aspen Leadership, which he founded, he now works to discover, develop, and deploy high-potential leaders for their kingdom purpose.
Guide
Brad Bell
Brad came to leadership through sports performance. He was an all star defensive lineman at CSU Fresno, living that life of acclaim until he gave his life to Christ in 1993. His theological training followed his conversion: a Master's in Biblical Studies from Dallas Theological Seminary, a Doctorate in Spiritual Theology from Talbot Seminary, but the pastoral leader formation came in 2002, when he left a stable job to plant The Well Community Church in his hometown of Fresno with no funding, no staff, and no building. The Well now has a regular attendance of over 8,000 people.
The Invitation
What comes next
Understanding the weight leaders carry is the first step toward finding freedom and renewal.