Brian Baldari is an accomplished integrity-driven business leader recognized for his transformational approach to building and inspiring high-performing teams. With a career centered on strategic growth and operational excellence, he has a proven history of guiding large-scale organizations and complex, blockbuster brands to success. Brian’s leadership philosophy is rooted in service and empowerment; a principle he actively practices by mentoring more than 20 professionals across three continents. He is dedicated to fostering environments of trust and psychological safety, enabling individuals and organizations to achieve their full potential and navigate challenges with resilience and confidence.
This commitment to growth is mirrored in his personal dedication to resilience and wellness. A 14-year CrossFit athlete and former Level 1 coach, Brian embodies the consistent discipline and balance required for sustained wellness and resilience. He has competed in numerous events, earning podium finishes at the Row for Hope and Asbury Park Games. His journey as a burn survivor has further solidified his belief in the power of perseverance, a message of strength he is beginning to share to inspire others facing their own adversities.
Deeply committed to his community, Brian, alongside his wife Priscilla, is a passionate advocate for local service in Ocean County. They have helped lead fundraising initiatives for St. Peter’s School. A devoted father to their two daughters, Brian balances his professional responsibilities with a rich family life, enjoying time on the water as a family recreational boater. His life is a testament to integrity-driven leadership, unwavering resilience, and a profound commitment to family and community.
You’ve built a career as a successful business leader, but you dedicate significant time to mentoring over 20 professionals globally. What drives that commitment?
My drive comes from a philosophy of servant leadership. My own career was shaped by incredible mentors who invested in me, and I feel a profound responsibility to pay that forward. Seeing a mentee have a breakthrough, navigate a complex challenge, or step into a leadership role with confidence is incredibly fulfilling. It’s about building a legacy not of personal achievements, but of empowered, capable, and empathetic leaders who will, in turn, lift others. It’s the most rewarding investment I can make.
Your journey as a burn survivor is a key part of your story. How has that experience reshaped your definition of success?
It completely reframed it. Before, my definition of success was built around achieving external milestones. Professionally, it was about hitting career goals, project outcomes, and growth targets. Personally, it revolved around family milestones and achieving new levels of physical and mental wellness. . After my injury, success became much more internal and present-focused. It became about celebrating the small wins, like regaining the ability to lift my arm overhead. It’s about the quality of my relationships, my ability to show up for my family, and my capacity to feel gratitude for my own resilience. True success is no longer just about rising in my career; but by my capacity to heal, rebuild, and rise after I fall.
You and your wife, Priscilla, are very active in your community. How do you approach service as a family?
Priscilla and I see community involvement as a core family value. It’s something we do together, as a team. We believe that a strong community is built by people who are willing to show up and contribute, so we lead by example. Whether it’s supporting local schools or getting involved with charitable causes, we make it a priority. It’s about teaching our children that being part of a community means taking an active role in its wellbeing and supporting the people around you.
As a CrossFit athlete for 14 years, how does the discipline of the gym translate to the boardroom?
The parallels are incredibly strong, and they both start with the fundamentals. In CrossFit, you build a foundation of functional strength and proper technique before tackling complex movements. It’s the same in the boardroom; you must establish a strong foundation—whether with your team, your strategy, or your core principles—before pursuing ambitious goals. That foundation is what gives you the strength to persevere through difficulty. CrossFit teaches you to break down overwhelming challenges into manageable parts, focusing on one rep at a time. In business, that same discipline allows you to deconstruct a major challenge into methodical, achievable tasks. It also teaches humility and consistency. Some days you perform well, and other days you don’t, but you always show up. That discipline of showing up consistently, ready to work, is the foundation of any successful endeavor, in business or in life.
What does a perfect, disconnected Saturday look like for you?
A perfect Saturday is all about family, fitness, and the salty air. It would start with an early morning workout at the gym, which always sets a positive tone for the day. Afterward, our family would get out on our boat and cruise around Barnegat Bay. There’s a sense of freedom and peace on the water that completely disconnects you from the stress of the work week. The day would end with a simple dinner with family, just enjoying that time together.
For leaders trying to build a resilient team, what is the most important first step?
The most important first step is to build a foundation of psychological safety. Team members must feel safe enough to be vulnerable, to admit mistakes, and to voice dissenting opinions without fear of retribution. Resilience isn’t about never failing; it’s about bouncing back quickly. A team that is afraid to fail will never innovate or take the necessary risks to grow. As a leader, your job is to create a culture where failure is treated as a learning opportunity, not a punishable offense.
In your “Letter to Future Survivors,” you outline a detailed plan for recovery. If you could distill that into one piece of advice, what would it be?
My single piece of advice would be to take active ownership of your recovery, because the path is the same whether the injury is physical or mental. The most important part of that ownership is building and leaning on your support system. Healing is not a passive process. You have the power to influence your outcome by using every tool available, especially the people you trust. Focus on what you can control: your nutrition, your commitment to physical therapy, the wellness practices you adopt, and the support system you build around you. Be an active participant in your journey, celebrate every small milestone, and never underestimate your own capacity to heal and rebuild.
What is the most common challenge your mentees face, and how do you advise them?
The most common challenge is is twofold: navigating self-doubt, and, as a result, struggling to project a professional presence that reflects their true strengths. Often, the two are linked. Talented people frequently experience imposter syndrome. worrying they aren’t qualified for their role or that they’ll be exposed as a fraud. That internal uncertainty then makes it difficult for them to present themselves with the confidence their capabilities warrant.
My advice isto reframe that self-doubt not as a weakness, but as a sign of self-awareness and a desire for growth. I encourage them to keep a running list of their accomplishments, no matter how small, to serve as concrete evidence of their capabilities. This list doesn’t just serve as an internal reminder; it becomes the factual basis for how they learn to speak about their value and advocate for themselves.
What book has had the biggest impact on your leadership philosophy?
Simon Sinek’s Start With Why had a profound impact on me. The idea that people are not motivated by what you do, but why you do it, is the cornerstone of inspirational leadership. It shifted my focus from being a manager of tasks to a leader of people. My goal now is to clearly articulate the purpose behind our work, so that my teams and mentees are not just working for a paycheck, but are part of a mission they believe in.
Looking ahead, what is one area of your life where you are actively seeking growth?
I am focused on growing as a public advocate with a mission of empowering adaptive athletes, including the burn survivor community. My goal is to provide opportunities and support that extend beyond traditional physical recovery. I want to help people with physical disabilities pursue active lifestyles by providing resources for nutrition and a fitness model centered on constantly varied movements to build strength across broad fitness domains. Drawing from my own experience as a burn survivor, I want to create resources and build a community that helps fellow survivors move forward with confidence on their recovery journeys. It’s a new and challenging role that requires a different kind of vulnerability and communication. I’m actively learning how to best use my voice and experience to make a tangible, positive impact for people in their recovery journey.