Access Your Leadership with Hakim Lakhdar

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Jim McEleney, a franchise consultant with FranNet who helps people look at their options for business ownership in the franchise model, joins Access Your Leadership to share some of his amazing stories and lessons from his international work and how that all led him to what he’s doing now. In this episode, Jim explains what it was like and what he learned working in the U.K. and India for a combined nine years! He spent three years in London, then two in India and then another four years back in London before moving to Florida and embarking on another career adventure. Hakim and Jim discuss how Jim’s leadership of himself and others allowed him to create a reputation in his company as a leader who deeply cared for his people, could motivate and propel large teams/offices towards a common goal and could adapt his style to fit the needs of the company and those he led. How does one decide to seize an opportunity to work overseas and what are the considerations involved? What is it like to work and live in both English and non-English speaking countries? What is the value of community and why is it so necessary when acclimating to overseas work and expat life? What are some of the possible pitfalls of working internationally? How might working with a coach, especially a local culture coach, support you and set you up for success? What is the relationship between technical expertise and leadership, and how big a role does people management play? How does maintaining a growth mindset and being open to opportunities create a wealth of professional (and personal) possibilities? What skills are transferable from international finance/banks and franchise ownership and consulting? Why is being “culture conscious” so important when leading an existing or new team of employees? What might compel someone to leave a long-time, successful career to pursue business/franchise ownership and how can working with a consultant help with that decision? How does simply understanding people and meeting them where they are factor into the way we lead ourselves and others? All this and more is touched upon in this exciting and compelling episode. Enjoy!  

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Jim on LinkedIn

You can email Jim directly at [email protected] 

To learn more about FranNet visit https://frannet.com/ (and look for Jim)

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

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Phyllis Sisenwine, aka The Lawyers Coach, joins Access Your Leadership to share how she got into coaching over 25 years ago and how she has successfully led herself and her clients during that time. Phyllis is a Certified Master Coach, a speaker and author and she works with clients (mostly lawyers) to help them develop themselves and build their business. She is a frequent guest at conferences, on radio and TV talking about not only the ways she supports her coaching clients, but also how other coaches out in the world can build their own practices. In this episode, Phyllis shares a few leadership wins, incredibly helpful tips that she offers clients around time management and delegation and why she has committed herself to coaching for the last 25 years. How did selling office supplies and office furniture turn into coaching lawyers? How important is it to be open to possibilities and to seize opportunities, signs or inspiration when they hit? How can being a public speaker or trainer of groups help in generating clients and how does one lead themselves through that process? When differentiating yourself as a leader, what sorts of things can you look for or do? Why is delegation so important as a leader of self, others and/or a business? How does doing only what you love factor into the way you do or don’t delegate and create a team of talented professionals around you? What’s the impact of interruptions on your productivity and how can you structure your days/weeks in a more effective/efficient way? Why would anyone want to “eat the frog”? What are some of the ways coaching, mentoring and accountability support helpful to you as a leader? Phyllis shares her wealth of knowledge and experience with listeners, to demonstrate what it means to lead oneself, lead a business, lead a team as well as highlight the value of coaching in the professional (and personal) world today. Enjoy the episode! 

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Phyllis on LinkedIn

You can email Phyllis directly at [email protected] 

Or you can visit her websites to learn more about her work (speaking, coaching, writing),:

• https://powerfulcoaching.com/
• https://thelawyerscoach.com/ 

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Send us Fan Mail

In this solo episode, Hakim shares some food for thought pertaining to the harsh voice that sometimes shows up in all of our heads - our inner critic! In our younger years, our inner voice was much less critical and there to truly keep us safe. However, as we get older, gain experience and collect our stories, that inner voice turns into our inner critic and can really show up loudly at times, assuming that it’s still keeping us safe. Instead, that inner critic often has us playing small, avoiding any and all risk, overlooking opportunity and much more. It creates those responses in our mind because our inner critic does two things - it judges and it compares. Not only does it judge and compare ourselves in our own minds, but it also judges and compares others as well. In this short episode, Hakim gives some easy-to-use tips and strategies from his work with The Training Rock, that help to quiet that inner critic and recondition your mind to being more open and a lot less critical. If you think you’re the only one with an inner critic, you’re not alone. We all have it and we can all manage it. And when we do, we can catch ourselves in those moments when our inner critic is trying to run the show! 

Feedback (I want to hear from you):

If you’re a senior leader, or even an aspiring leader, and you are interested in the ways you can get out of your head and not only improve your effectiveness as leader, but also love it at the same time, click here to book time for us to talk.

You can also connect with Hakim at https://lakhdarcoaching.com/ 

To learn more about The Training Rock, our leadership programs and how you can work with us, click here. 

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders and teams in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected]. 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

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Dan Truex is a military veteran, a Lexington, KY law enforcement officer and the CEO of GuardLogic, a security company that provides top-notch security by pairing great people with real analytics to build out a custom program that focuses on constantly improving. He is also a devoted and loving husband and father. In this episode, Dan shares how, while touring college campuses at the young age of nineteen, he made a big life decision that set him on a path of learning and leadership. Dan shares the ways in which his commitment to self-awareness has served him throughout his life, both professionally and personally. He discusses with Hakim how doing a self-audit and consistently revisiting his values created greater clarity and confidence in making tough decisions and/or staying the course along his journey. So, can perfectionism be a good thing? How does a person meet or lead themselves when they’re feeling feelings of emptiness or lack of fulfillment? Why is self-reflection and self-awareness so important in both determining and creating what you want in your life? What happens if we aren’t able to clearly define success for ourselves? How does a person’s relationship to failure impact how they’re able to enroll others in their vision? What is the value of participating in a 360 Review and getting honest feedback from everyone around you? How important is it to have a loving and supportive spouse by your side? Why is it so necessary to create relationships with people who will provide you with honest, regular feedback? As a leader, how do you stay open to different perspectives and why is it so necessary to not always need to be right? There are so many valuable twists and turns that this powerful conversation with Dan ends up taking. Dan shares so many amazing leadership lessons and tips. So listen well and enjoy the conversation! 

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Dan on LinkedIn or Facebook 

To connect with Dan directly you can email him at [email protected]   

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Check out these links!

Click here to learn more about GuardLogic and the amazing work Dan and his team are doing in the security space 

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Jeff Bast, a well-respected bankruptcy lawyer and cofounder of Bast Amron, joins Access Your Leadership to share his story and the leadership insights that allow him, his partner and their employees to thrive! Since launching the firm in 2008, Jeff and his partner, Brett Amron, have grown the firm to 25 employees and have a total of 6 partners at the firm. Last year, Hakim joined Jeff and Brett on their podcast, The Practice, and over time Hakim has had the privilege of seeing Jeff’s leadership in action. In this episode, Jeff kindly shares some details about what led him to co-founding his own firm with Brett and the mindset that was required to launch, lead and grow that firm. He talks about some of his approaches to leadership that allow not only him and his partner to be successful but also allow the lawyers and staff at their firm to feel seen, valued and heard as professionals and how developing his people has been one of the many reasons why Bast Amron has been able to attract/retain such great talent over the years. How does building a firm as a family contribute to employee well-being, success and loyalty? What are some of the most important factors to consider when deciding to partner with someone on a business venture? How do perseverance and confidence play into having the right mindset to start and run your own business? Why is your ability to ask for help and bring on talented staff so important early on (and at any time) in your entrepreneurial journey? Where does authenticity fit into launching and sustaining your own business with you at the helm? How does feedback support a leader’s vision and why is it so important to do more often than just one time a year during the annual review period? What’s the value of spending time doing regular 1:1 meetings with staff and team members as your firm/business grows? These are just a few of the questions discussed and answered in this amazing episode with Jeff Bast, who demonstrates what leading without ego really looks like. Jeff is also a dedicated husband and father and lover of the water and environment. He does open water swims regularly and is a staunch supporter of any and all efforts to protect and improve our environment. Enjoy this conversation with Jeff! 

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Jeff on LinkedIn

To connect with Jeff and learn more about BastAmron visit https://www.bastamron.com/our-team/jeffrey-p-bast/

To listen to Jeff and Brett’s podcast, The Practice, and the episode we recorded together click here

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Check out these links!

1. Miami Waterkeeper - https://www.miamiwaterkeeper.org/ 

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Al Kenny, an internationally known coach, joins Access Your Leadership to share his story and insights that he incorporates into his work with clients to help people achieve their goals and dreams without stress and pressure. Last year, Hakim had the opportunity to spend time with Al at a coaching intensive in Santa Monica, California, and that is where Al shared some of his experiences as a leader in the corporate world. In this episode, Al talks about his early professional years that ultimately led him to his corporate career and what he found when he learned about himself when he got there. He shares stories about various moments in his own life where he was faced with the choice about how to lead himself, his family and his team(s). In this conversation, Al offers up so many valuable lessons learned from his transformation from strong individual contributor, to “type A-driving” leader to emphatic and effective leader. How does vision play into how we lead ourselves and build our careers? What’s the mindset to strive for in order to achieve more freedom, ease and enjoyment than you could ever imagine in your career/life? What does it mean for a leader to "let go" and is okay not to always have the answers? How does our inner critic show up and what stories might it tell us leading up to having a conversation? Why might a leader purely focused on getting his team from A to B not be entirely effective? What about being a more aware leader contributes to better work-life harmony? How and why is humanity such a big part of you, and everyone around you, enjoying your leadership journey? What role does personal responsibility and self-leadership have in terms of becoming the leader you’re meant to be? These and so many other questions are addressed in this Part One episode with Al Kenny. Enjoy and stay tuned for Part Two coming soon! 

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Al Kenny on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn

To connect with Al Kenny directly you can email him at [email protected]  

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Send us Fan Mail

In this short solo episode, Hakim reflects on his own start to 2024, the upcoming Valentine’s Day holiday and how both of those relate to self-love or self-compassion. In this episode, he talks broadly about how the challenging start to the year made him feel about and care for himself. Hakim shares why Compassion is not only one of his 3 Cs in terms of coaching leaders (the other two being Clarity and Confidence), but also talks about how Compassion is one of his top 3 core values (the other two are Awareness and Joy). He explains the difference between empathy and compassion and why it’s so important to reflect on how we love ourselves, how we speak to ourselves and where that inner voice might come from. As a leader of big and small teams, international and domestic, Hakim has incorporated compassion into how he relates to his teams, direct reports, peers and organizational leaders colleagues. However, as can often be for many of us, showing ourselves that same sort of kindness, care, and compassion can be much more challenging. It’s important that we do as we position ourselves to most effectively lead ourselves and others, whether that be professionally or personally.

Feedback (I want to hear from you):

If you’re a senior leader, or even an aspiring leader, and you are interested in the ways you can get out of your head and not only improve your effectiveness as leader, but also love it at the same time, click here to book time for us to talk.

You can also connect with Hakim at https://lakhdarcoaching.com/ 

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders and teams in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Send us Fan Mail

Kim Auker, a Transformational Coach for revolutionary mothers, joins Access Your Leadership to share how deeply connected she is to supporting women (and men) who are juggling the roles of powerful parent and ambitious entrepreneur. In this episode, Kim talks about the power of desire and how what we personally want to create in our lives and in this world can be a drive for incredible success. She shares stories of her past where she felt powerless and how that impacted how she saw herself as a parent and entrepreneur. Kim talks about feeling and playing it safe and where she found herself playing in that space throughout her own career, before becoming a powerful coach. Does being a mother (or parent) prevent you from being a powerful creator? How does fear factor into how we identify what it is that we truly desire? How does being a mother/parent and ambitious business owner/professional provide fuel for excitement and motivation in all things in life? What does it feel like to identify as powerless and how can we notice that occurring in real-time? Why are our needs and our desires such an important part of regaining and operating from our truth, our power? How do external validation, rules and structure play into how we lead ourselves, our families and our business? How does a mother/parent juggle all the responsibilities they have while still honoring their own desires for themselves and their business? So much self-leadership is discussed in this episode and, whether you’re a parent or business owner or both or neither, you’ll want to hear Kim’s perspective on this topic! 

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Kim Auker on Facebook and Instagram

To connect with Kim directly you can email her at [email protected]

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Send us Fan Mail

Nicole Miller is the Founder & CEO of WERRK Creative Brand Strategy, a strategic branding and marketing agency supporting businesses in brand awareness resulting in significant sales growth. Nicole joins Access Your Leadership to share her own story as well as her recent and exciting updates regarding her business and new personal/professional focus. She shares how these new amazing developments were the result of some not-so-amazing events that have occurred in her life recently and how your mindset, self-leadership and outlook have served her. Nicole shares insights from her second book that she’s currently working on and how her mother and Nicole’s own role as a mother has helped shape who and how she is today! What’s the relationship between self-awareness and self-leadership that Nicole has incorporated into her way of creating opportunities? What does 28 years of experience and working as an employee teach you about yourself that might prepare you for solo entrepreneurship? How important is it to surround yourself with the right network of people to build you up and support you? How are purpose and passion related and what does it mean (or feel like) to be working from your purpose? How does one create clarity around their purpose so that they live and breathe it every day? Where and how can we learn to get back up when we’ve been knocked down, and how do we prevent those obstacles from defining us? Where does self-talk play a role and what's the potential impact on success when there's negative self-talk? What does going out on your own mean to you as a parent, especially reflecting back onto your own childhood and influences? Nicole’s inspiring story is one of resilience, purpose, passion and authenticity. As she shared in the episode, “I get to be ME everyday” and I can certainly say that we’re all beneficiaries of that. 

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Nicole on LinkedIn here

Or you can find her on Instagram here

To learn more about WERRK Creative Brand Strategy click here

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Send us Fan Mail

Aida C. Rodriguez, CEDS, the CEO and Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer of Ascension Global Staffing and Executive Search, joins Access Your Leadership to share her amazing style of leadership that has allowed her to build a world-class team of professionals and a thriving business. In this episode, Aida talks about how her people truly are her company’s biggest asset. She talks about her early years working in the legal services industry and how a couple pivotal moves and opportunities taught her so much about what it meant to be a valued employee. Aida shares how her experiences along with her highly-developed sense of emotional intelligence has shaped her into the leader she is today. How important is it to make your employees feel seen, heard and valued through the way in which you lead? How does family play a role in building a strong, high-trust team? Why do the most effective leaders spend so much time building relationships and how does that feed into building trust within an organization? How can a leader focus so much time on the “soft skills” in support of building the business and how are they related? What is the value of diversity of thought and how does recognizing talent come into play when building the right team and culture? Is leading from the heart a real thing and why is love often a four-letter work when it comes to leadership? How important is listening not only to clients but to team members and how do you create a psychologically safe environment for regular feedback? There are so many gold nuggets in this conversation with Aida, that you’ll need to listen to really appreciate her authentic, driven and passionate approach to leadership.

Feedback (I/we want to hear from you):

You can connect with Aida Rodriguez at [email protected]  

Or follow her on LinkedIn here

Did this podcast spark something in you or get you to take action in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on our conversation. You can hit me up on Instagram @lakhdar_coaching, LinkedIn: /hakimlakhdar, Twitter @LakhdarCoaching, and Facebook/LakhdarCoaching

I’m always looking to connect with people who are passionate about leadership as well as companies who value and support strong leaders in their own organization. If that’s you or you know someone then drop me a line at [email protected] 

Check out previous episodes of Access Your Leadership on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever else you may listen to your podcasts.

Check out these links!

1. Click here to learn more or get in touch with the amazing team at Ascension Global Staff and Executive Search