Shameless Leadership

I dont know anyone who loves engaging in disagreements. In fact, most of the women I know avoid disagreements, conflict, and confrontation at all costs. However, there are great costs to this avoidance, including missed opportunities for creativity and innovation, poor communication and growing resentment, slower or stalled decision making, a lack of trust and psychological safety, and higher potential for burnout and turnover. So, you can see the costs are high!

Researchers at Harvard surveyed 486 employees across a wide range of industries and found that only 39% of respondents reported being trained or coached in handling workplace conflict. Of those who were trained or coached in this area, a stunning 96% said training and coaching helped them deal with conflict more effectively. 73% said they felt more confident and comfortable engaging in disagreements. 62% felt they were able to turn potentially destructive conflicts into productive ones.

Clearly, this is a skill that is not only needed, but that also has so many benefits in terms of impacting team and organizational outcomes!

In this episode, we dig into the importance of disagreement in leadership and communication while debunking common myths surrounding conflict. I share how learning to navigate disagreements can lead to innovative solutions and stronger relationships. Inspired by my recent school work for my Master's in Organizational Leadership program, I introduce you to the HEAR method from Harvard, which provides a framework for effective communication during disagreements. The episode will help you begin to embrace disagreement as a powerful and necessary tool, as well as an opportunity for growth and collaboration.

Episode Highlights:

00:00 The Importance of Disagreement

02:46 Building Skills for Effective Disagreement

06:06 Myths Surrounding Disagreement

09:50 Strategies for Navigating Disagreements

16:03 The HEAR Method for Effective Communication

22:00 Transforming Disagreement into Opportunity

Links Mentioned:

Article: Managing a Polarized Workforce: How to Foster Debate and Promote Trust from the Harvard Business Review

Book: The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

Hire me to speak: saradean.com/speaking

Coach with me: https://saradean.com/executive-coaching-services

Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saradeanspeaks



Interested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There is no denying we are in an extraordinarily tough season.  When things feel heavy and hard for an extended period of time, it’s easy to feel a sense of constriction in our thoughts, mental health, and worldview.  It’s easy to fall into a funk.  And, it can feel impossible to pull ourselves out of it.  

During challenging seasons, it is crucial that you maintain a growth mindset. While it’s important to acknowledge what is happening in the world around us, it is also critically important to maintain habits that allow you to tap into hope and possibility regularly.  If all you feel is constriction during hard seasons, you run the risk of shutting down completely. This doesn’t serve you or anyone else.  Tapping into your growth mindset is going to be the superpower that allows you to keep going.  

In this episode, I outline six practical strategies to help you advance a growth mindset, including collecting the correct evidence, tracking small wins, staying in motion, leaning on the right support system, recognizing harmful narratives, and giving yourself permission to practice self-compassion through rest and restorative activities.  

Episode Highlights:

00:00 Introduction to Growth Mindset in Tough Times

02:23 Understanding Growth vs. Fixed Mindset

06:06 Six Ways to Improve Growth Mindset

12:12 Tracking Small Wins and Staying in Motion

15:34 The Importance of the Right Support System

18:22 Noticing and Changing Your Narratives

21:11 The Power of Rest and Self-Compassion

Links Mentioned:

Hire me to speak: saradean.com/speaking

Coach with me: https://saradean.com/executive-coaching-services

Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saradeanspeaks



Interested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 934 episodes, I’m not sure I’ve ever shared lessons learned from a TV show, much less a reality show.  However, the way a recent episode of Survivor has stuck with me is making it impossible for me not to talk about it here.  

Before I dig in, I’ll admit that my husband and I are probably two of maybe 15 people who still watch Survivor faithfully.  We have watched every season together since we met 22 years ago.  I have to say, the show just keeps getting better.  They have consistently improved casting and production to prioritize representation.  There is racial and cultural diversity, gender diversity, sexual orientation diversity, age diversity, neurodiversity, and a wide spectrum of ability diversity.  This has led to some deeply powerful and impactful moments over the years. 

This season, one contestant, Eva, is the first contestant to share an autism diagnosis with the audience.  She also shared her diagnosis with one other team member, Joe, at the beginning of the season.  Throughout the first half of the season, we see Eva navigating living in this unique community environment while managing her autism on a daily basis.  Beyond sharing her diagnosis with one trusted team member, Eva is careful to keep her diagnosis to herself out of fear that it could complicate her game if others were to find out. 

In the March 26th episode, we see Eva, a very talented athlete, get frustrated during a physical challenge.  As she repeatedly tried and failed to complete her part of the challenge for her team, she became visibly upset and eventually emotionally distraught.  With her teammates' relentless support and patience, she eventually succeeded at completing the challenge.  Her relief in finishing was then quickly overshadowed by complete emotional overwhelm, where she had a hard time re-regulating herself physically and emotionally.  

The magic in this moment was how Eva’s teammates, Survivor production, and host Jeff Probst held space for Eva to regain a sense of safety and control in this moment.  

In this episode, I talk through 5 lessons learned from this incredible moment of reality TV that ultimately became a masterclass in inclusion. From there, I also invite you to ask yourself 4 crucial questions about how you prioritize inclusion as a leader:

How does your behavior as a leader consistently demonstrate your values?

How can you show your commitment to inclusion no matter what words are “illegal” or how society is getting stuck on ridiculous semantics as a means of undermining human dignity?

How do you consistently consider other people’s visible and invisible layers of identity before passing judgment?

How do you hold space for those you lead in a way that builds trust and safety so that when someone needs something, they feel safe asking for it and feel confident they will receive the support they need?

Episode Highlights: 00:00 Introduction to Survivor and Leadership Lessons 02:49 Mitch's Story: The Importance of Consent, Patience, and Space 06:00 Eva's Journey: Building Trust and Support 08:48 Joe's Role: Observing and Offering Support 11:59 Jeff Probst's Vulnerability: Modeling Vulnerability and Compassion 14:47 Creating Safety in High-Pressure Situations 18:08 Demonstrating Values Through Actions 21:02 Key Takeaways and Questions for Leaders

Links Mentioned:

Hire me to speak: saradean.com/speaking

Coach with me: https://saradean.com/executive-coaching-services

Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saradeanspeaks/

Connect with Ligia Koijen Ramos on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ligiakoijenramos



Interested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Could you benefit from improving your emotional intelligence? If so, do you know how you can go about this? It seems there are constant references to the benefits of higher emotional intelligence, but actually attaining that is more elusive. In fact, it might even feel daunting if building a stronger connection to your emotions feels vulnerable to you.  

As I’ve been speaking recently, I’ve been sharing some simple ways leaders can advance their emotional intelligence while also helping those they lead do the same. This work is important and doesn’t have to be difficult.  

Developing your emotional intelligence is the way you can build better bridges to meet other people where they are. If you excel at this, you can supercharge your leadership.  

In this conversation, I dive into the significance of emotional intelligence in leadership. I share the importance of self-awareness, emotional regulation, and empathy as key components of emotional intelligence and provide practical strategies for you to enhance your emotional intelligence while fostering a supportive environment for your teams. 

At the end of the day, emotional intelligence isn't soft – it's strategic. It's not a weakness; it can absolutely be your greatest strength and secret weapon as a leader.

Episode Highlights:

00:00 Introduction to Emotional Intelligence

02:51 The Importance of Self-Awareness

07:01 Emotional Regulation Strategies

12:38 Cultivating Empathy and Social Awareness

18:07 Building Authentic Connections

Links Mentioned:

Hire me to speak: saradean.com/speaking

Coach with me: https://saradean.com/executive-coaching-services

Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saradeanspeaks/



Interested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at [email protected].

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I'm here to share something that might give you great relief.    Your leadership doesn’t have to be loud to be LOUD. When I’m working with leaders and people who are developing leadership skills, there is a common misconception that you have to get louder in volume to be heard.  By volume, I mean auditory volume and quantity.  People assume they have to speak in a louder voice and/or say more things all the time.   To become a better leader, you might not need to do either of these things.   Instead, you need to determine what style of leadership is authentic for you in this season of life.   When I owned my gym, I became a better leader by quieting my voice to make space for my trainers to showcase theirs.  I sat back and let them shine by teaching more classes than me and by letting each of them find their own voice and leadership style in their classes.   As a result, I was able to work behind the scenes to focus on expanding our membership community, create more programming and offers, and build out a strong and stable backend to the business so that my trainers had job security and our members felt supported by all the leaders on my team instead of feeling reliant solely on me for their success.   In this season, I was also a new mom.  My quieter, BTS leadership allowed me to be home and present with my son.  This was an incredible season of growth for my business, my trainers, and our community.  And, I didn’t have to get louder.  I just had to get more clear on my role in leading my trainers so they could help me build a phenomenal community.  Which they did!   Instead of thinking about how you need to become some loudest-in-the-room, always-speaking-up, and being-seen-doing-all-the-things kind of leader, perhaps you could think about:

What is the impact you want to have?

What do you want to build?

Who do you want to empower to build with you?

What values do you most want to uphold in this season?

What is your leadership secret sauce (that thing about the way you lead that calls people in and keeps them motivated to work alongside you)?

As you consider how you want to grow as a leader, think about the skill sets and mindsets you need to develop.  Maybe this is getting louder.  But, maybe it’s about getting more quiet?  Maybe it’s about getting more clear about where you want to go and how you want to get there.

Episode Highlights:

00:00 Redefining Loud Leadership

02:55 Authenticity in Leadership Styles

06:09 Empowering Others in Leadership

08:59 The Importance of Collaboration

11:47 Finding Your Unique Leadership Voice

15:10 Building a Leadership Legacy

Interested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices