In this episode of Unlock Your Leadership, Dr Gary Crotaz talks with Dr Charles Camarda — former NASA astronaut, engineer, and founder of the Epic Education Foundation. From launching aboard Space Shuttle Discovery to investigating the Columbia accident and leading innovation initiatives inside NASA, Charlie has lived leadership in some of the most complex and high-stakes environments imaginable. He shares what spaceflight — and crisis — taught him about courage, learning, and teamwork, and why curiosity and humility are the most powerful forces driving innovation and trust. Together, Gary and Charlie explore how great leaders create cultures of psychological safety where experimentation thrives and failure becomes fuel for discovery. It’s an extraordinary conversation about what it means to lead when the stakes couldn’t be higher — and how the mindset of an astronaut can help us all lead with more clarity, creativity, and resilience here on Earth. Originally recorded for The Unlock Moment podcast.
In this episode of Unlock Your Leadership, Dr Gary Crotaz talks with Dr Charles Camarda — former NASA astronaut, engineer, and founder of the Epic Education Foundation.
From launching aboard Space Shuttle Discovery to investigating the Columbia accident and leading innovation initiatives inside NASA, Charlie has lived leadership in some of the most complex and high-stakes environments imaginable.
He shares what spaceflight — and crisis — taught him about courage, learning, and teamwork, and why curiosity and humility are the most powerful forces driving innovation and trust. Together, Gary and Charlie explore how great leaders create cultures of psychological safety where experimentation thrives and failure becomes fuel for discovery.
It’s an extraordinary conversation about what it means to lead when the stakes couldn’t be higher — and how the mindset of an astronaut can help us all lead with more clarity, creativity, and resilience here on Earth.
Originally recorded for The Unlock Moment podcast.