Reclaiming Your Light After Workplace Toxicity

Have you ever felt like you were standing in your own way, despite a track record of high-level success?.

In this powerful episode of The Story I'm Telling Myself, host Rita Ernst sits down with Dalia Feldheim, former CMO and author of Lead Like a Girl, to dismantle the myths surrounding imposter syndrome and toxic leadership.

Dalia shares her "full-circle" journey from being a top-rated executive at Procter & Gamble to "shriveling" under the weight of a bully boss. This episode serves as a masterclass for any professional woman who has felt her confidence erode in a toxic environment.

What you'll discover in this episode:

• How Imposter Syndrome Happens to Strong Women: Dalia reveals how even a 17-year streak of success couldn't protect her from a "not good enough" narrative when her core strengths were systematically denigrated.
• The Anatomy of a Toxic Boss: Learn the red flags of workplace bullying, including the "dance of death," where a leader deliberately uses humiliation and "tough love" without the love to belittle high-performers.
• Wounded Femininity vs. Wounded Masculinity: Explore the concept of "wounded" leadership traits and why it is critical for modern leaders to balance Emotional Intelligence (EQ) with IQ to drive long-term results.
• Post-Traumatic Growth: Discover how to turn workplace pain into purpose. Dalia discusses her transition from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to a mission of humanizing the workplace.

Actionable Insights for Listeners

• The "Frog in Boiling Water" Syndrome: How to recognize when you have become numb to microaggressions and "death by a thousand paper cuts".
• The Strengths-Based Reset: Learn the INSEAD-backed intervention of focusing on your strengths before a challenge to close the confidence gap.
• The Waterfall Analogy: Strategies for achieving emotional detachment by stepping into the "cave" behind the waterfall of toxic emotions.
• The Power of Speaking Up: Why "zero tolerance" is the only effective strategy against bullying and how to "lift others as you rise".

Why You Should Listen

Whether you are currently dealing with a toxic work environment or looking to build professional resilience, this conversation provides the language and tools to rewrite your internal story. Dalia reminds us that you cannot fight darkness; you can only focus on increasing your light until the darkness shrinks.

Connect with Dalia

Follow Dalia on Instgram

Work with Dalia: daliafeldheim.com

Watch Dalia's TEDtalk

Buy Dalia's book: Lead Like A Girl