Remember when getting the top job was THE dream? 

Corner office, big paycheck, fancy title, and all the LinkedIn glory shots you could handle!

Yeah…now for a lot of folks, it feels more like winning a free trip to a haunted house. 

In this episode, I had a fun but important chat with Ciara Lakhani to unpack why so many people are quietly saying, “Hard pass” to climbing the ladder. 

We’re talking burnout, invisible costs, shifting definitions of success, and why ambition doesn’t have to mean signing up for 80-hour workweeks and emotional whiplash. 

Newsflash: You can be wildly ambitious about your craft without ever wanting your boss’s job, and that’s not a failure, it’s a choice!

0:02:47 - One Hard Truth About Work

0:04:57 - Realizing Your Team Isn’t Interested in Climbing to the Top

0:08:06 - How the Idea of Success Has Shifted for This Generation of Workers

0:15:43 - Why Top Jobs Aren’t Appealing to Most People Anymore

0:18:06 - The US’s Perception of Work vs Other Countries

0:22:01 - What Does it Take to be a Great Leader Today?

0:27:51 - Why People Are More Reluctant to Take on Leadership Roles

0:22:01 - What Does it Take to be a Great Leader Today?

0:32:35 - The Invisible Cost of Leadership

0:37:17 - Is Opting Out of Leadership the Same as Lacking Drive?

0:40:21 - How Cutting Middle Management Impacts Leadership

0:41:55 - Getting More People Interested in Leadership

0:44:18 - Advice for Somebody Considering a Top Job, But Quietly Questioning It

Choosing the wrong HR platform is rife with regrets: losing a top performer, promoting the wrong person, or failing to engage your team when the business needs it most.

Fortunately, you don’t have to choose between investing in people programs and consolidating your tech stack. With Lattice, you can have both.

Visit lattice.com to learn more.

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Ciara:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ciaralakhani/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

You ready for a nice reality check?

I hope so, because today’s episode is built around three hard truths about your career that no one talks about enough:

Working hard isn’t a promotion strategy. 

Getting fired might be the thing that finally sets you free. 

If no one with decision-making power knows what you do…you’re invisible. 

I brought on April Little, executive coach, Time 100 Creator, and someone I’ve been professionally stalking on LinkedIn for years, to unpack all of it.

We’re breaking down what it really takes to get ahead, how to show up as a visible leader even if you’re working remotely, and why a career low might actually be your launchpad. 

This episode is part truth bomb, part therapy, and a full-on masterclass in owning your career narrative!

0:01:56 -  When April Found Out She Was on the Time 100 Creator List

0:04:40 -  A Generally Hard Truth About Work

0:07:49 -  Why Work Alone Won’t Get You Promoted

0:10:28 -  Tactical Ways to Build Relationships With Decision Makers

0:14:15 -  When You Do Everything Right and Still Can’t Get Promoted

0:17:50 -  Why Getting Fired Can Be a Gift

0:24:31 - The Difference Between a Career Low and an Opportunity to Course Correct

0:27:23 - Being a Visible Leader While Working Remotely

0:31:06 - Challenging the Idea That Working in an Office Makes You More Committed

0:33:51 - Rewarding Excellence in a Way That Doesn’t Depend on Physical Presence

0:47:56 - Where to Find April

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow April:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aprillatoyalittle/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Have you ever seen a CEO post online and thought, “Who approved this…and why was it them?”

I think we all have at this rate!

In this episode, I’m joined by the iconic Sarah Reynolds, marketing exec, pay equity champion, and all-around ethical disruptor, to unpack what happens when CEOs throw ethics out the window.

From public tantrums to private chaos, we talk about the ripple effects of bad behavior in the C-suite and what it really means for employee trust, brand integrity, and workplace culture in general!

Some of these CEOs are deff getting coal for Christmas. Some should get an audit.

Either way, we had way too much fun breaking it all down, so if you’ve got a story of CEO drama, you might have to send it in. Part two is practically writing itself.

0:03:24 - One Hard Truth About Work

0:06:24 - A CEO Scandal Sarah is Thinking About

0:12:28 - The First Move When the CEO Becomes the Problem

0:16:38 - Scandals You Can Recover From Vs Scandals You Can’t Recover From

0:28:13 - Sarah’s Live Reactions to CEO Scandals

0:43:44 - A CEO’s Second Wind After a Scandal

0:57:25 - Final Thoughts and Advice Around CEOs Behaving Badly

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Sarah:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlizreynolds/ 

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

So if you didn’t know,I love a good career pivot story! 

Today’s guest is basically the poster child for burning it all down and starting over, in the best possible way. 

I first found Ash Hynie on TikTok like any good millennial does, instantly became obsessed, and then fully fangirled when we met IRL at a conference! 

In this episode, we talk about why your job isn’t your identity (even if capitalism told you otherwise), how terrifying and freeing it is to start over, and why transferrable skills are your secret weapon, even when you feel like you have none.  

0:02:42 - A Hard Truth About Work

0:05:00 - Ash’s Wild Career Arc: Chef, Engineer, HR, and Tech CEO

0:08:10 - One Hard Truth About Changing Careers That Nobody Talks About

0:15:50 - When Ash Realized Her Dream Job Wasn’t Actually Her Dream

0:28:42 - Advice for People Transitioning Into Something New

0:33:31 - A Skill That Has Helped Ash in Every Role She’s Had

0:40:11 - Things We Tend to Overlook About Transferrable Skills

0:44:23 - Advice For People Who Don’t Know What They’re Good At

0:47:38 - Are There Skills You Need to Unlearn in Order to Grow?

0:54:01 - What Prepared Ash to Become a Founder and What Caught Her Off Guard

0:57:10 - One Question Everyone Should Ask Themselves Before Chasing the Next Role

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Ash:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ash-hynie/ 

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Burnout is basically an epidemic. And HR? We’re patient zero! 

In this episode, I sat down with my brilliant friend Eva Bak to talk about what burnout actually looks like in our world—the mental load, the emotional labor, and the whole exhausting mess of trying to help people while drowning ourselves. 

We get into the duality of being HR (hello therapist and policy enforcer), the unspoken trauma of offboarding, and why community is the only thing keeping us semi-sane. 

If you’ve ever cried in a supply closet or considered moving to the woods…this one's for you.

0:03:01 - What is One Hard Truth About Work?

0:05:17 - Eva’s Interesting Trajectory Into HR

0:08:48 - Defining Burnout

0:17:43 - Important Factors That Contribute to Burnout in HR Today

0:26:21 - How Burnout Shows Up In HR vs. Other Departments

0:29:01 - Warning Signs of Burnout at Work 

0:34:33 - Eva’s Personal Experience with Burnout

0:40:11 - Why Are HR Professionals So Prone to Burnout?

0:56:24 - Advice For HR People Currently Experiencing Burnout

1:00:19 - How Eva Hopes HR Culture Will Address and Reduce Burnout

SPONSOR COPY GOES HERE

TIMESTAMPS (from Madison)

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Eva:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eva-bak-8b7a9820/ 

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Operating without trust in HR is almost IMPOSSIBLE.

The even crazier part is that trust can be destroyed instantly if you say or do the wrong thing!

I mean, I’ve never met a human being who says they love micromanagement.

In this season finale, Minda Harts and I are dragging trust issues into the light! 

We’re dissecting her Seven Trust Languages, why “transparent” leadership feels like a bad magic trick, and how to rebuild trust after your org set it on fire. 

Remote teams, chaotic offices, leaders who think trust = “just do what I say”—we’ve got the receipts and the solutions.  

Multi-state compliance is a nightmare—but SixFifty makes it easy. Get instant answers to employment law questions, generate a compliant multi-state handbook in minutes, and stay ahead of changing laws with automated updates. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SixFifty.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

Whether you’re scaling fast or filling a critical role, Oyster helps you tap into the global talent pool and navigate international hiring with confidence. Hire full time talent or work flexibly with contractors- hire remotely, manage payroll, and ensure compliance ethically, with real employment experts by your side. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠oysterhr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

0:02:10 - One Thing About Work Minda Wishes More Leaders Understood

0:06:11 - Symptoms of a Communication Crisis at Work

0:11:11 - How Do you Repair Trust When It’s Broken?

0:16:03 - Trust Violations and Their Impact

0:19:43 - Exploring the Seven Trust Languages

0:27:58 - The Moment Minda Was Inspired to Develop The Seven Trust Languages

0:36:46 - Manifesting Trust in the Remote World

0:44:16 - Practical Steps to Take to Enhance Trust in Your Org

0:48:38 - The Future of Trust in Workplace Culture

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Minda:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mindaharts/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Look, we’ve all been there at this point:

Your company claims it's “all about accessibility,” but somehow, employees still struggle to find answers to basic questions. 

Leadership preaches an open-door policy, but good luck getting a response anytime soon.

And don’t even get me started on the “We’re ADA compliant!” flex like it’s some kind of gold medal when it’s actually the bare minimum!

That’s why I brought in the brilliant friend Lia Seth, Director of People at Cylinder Health, disability advocate, and self-proclaimed Accessibility Queen, to break down why access and accessibility aren’t the same thing, how hustle culture is sabotaging your teams, and why your transparent pay philosophy might still be leaving people in the dark.

We’re calling out gatekeeping, ghosting, and performative corporate nonsense, because employees deserve better, and HR is done cleaning up avoidable messes!

Multi-state compliance is a nightmare—but SixFifty makes it easy. Get instant answers to employment law questions, generate a compliant multi-state handbook in minutes, and stay ahead of changing laws with automated updates. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SixFifty.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

Whether you’re scaling fast or filling a critical role, Oyster helps you tap into the global talent pool and navigate international hiring with confidence. Hire full time talent or work flexibly with contractors- hire remotely, manage payroll, and ensure compliance ethically, with real employment experts by your side. Visit ⁠⁠⁠oysterhr.com⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

0:02:24 - One Truth About Work Lia Wishes More Leaders Understood

0:07:40 - What Access and Accessibility Means in the Context of Your Workplace

0:09:16 - The Biggest Misconceptions Between Access and Accessibility

0:13:49 - Why Employees Feel Shut Out

0:20:17 - Why Access to Leadership is a Barrier in Some Companies

0:26:49 - An Example of a Small Change That Can Create Genuine Access for Employees

0:31:06 - How Tech Can Unintentionally Create Accessibility Issues

0:39:04 - Gatekeeping Behaviors in the Workplace and How to Dismantle Them

0:49:34 - How Companies Can Move Past Performative Accessibility  

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Lia:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/liaseth/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

I hate to say it, but your “amazing culture” might be a lie.

Today, Latesha Byrd and I are ripping off the culture band-aid to expose what’s actually happening in your org!

You know the drill: shiny values on the wall that nobody abides by, all-hands full of empty promises, and that lovely gaslighty feeling when leadership says “we’re family” but acts like a toxic ex.

We’re explaining why “bring your whole self to work” is a scam if your culture is performative, how to spot and fix the disconnect between what leaders say and what employees live, and the corporate red flags that scream RUN, along with the green flags worth fighting for!

Multi-state compliance is a nightmare—but SixFifty makes it easy. Get instant answers to employment law questions, generate a compliant multi-state handbook in minutes, and stay ahead of changing laws with automated updates. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SixFifty.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

Whether you’re scaling fast or filling a critical role, Oyster helps you tap into the global talent pool and navigate international hiring with confidence. Hire full time talent or work flexibly with contractors- hire remotely, manage payroll, and ensure compliance ethically, with real employment experts by your side. Visit ⁠⁠oysterhr.com⁠⁠ to learn more!

0:01:40 - One Truth About Work Latesha Wishes More Leaders Understood

0:03:51 - How to Define Real Culture and How to Tell When It’s Missing

0:10:39 - When a Company’s Culture Initiative Falls Completely Flat

0:19:03 - Why Performative Actions Ruin Trust at Work, and How to Fix It

0:22:47 - The Role Communication Plays in Shaping Culture Narratives at an Org

0:26:30 - Towing the Line Between Being Inspiring and Being Honest About Challenges

0:31:32 - How to Hold Leaders Accountable

0:37:31 - The “Red Flag or Green Flag?” Game

0:41:10 - If Latesha Could Redesign Culture From Scratch, What Would She Prioritize First?

0:46:16 - What the Next Generation of Employees Will Expect From Real Workplace Culture

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Latesha:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lateshabyrd/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Look, I’ll be honest: most “leadership experts” lowkey make me want to throw my laptop into a pool. 

But Dr. Matt Poepsel? This man’s the REAL DEAL!

Marine veteran, Ironman triathlete, PhD in psychology, and the actual godfather of talent optimization (no, really, he wrote the book on it)! 

So when he says leadership today is broken, you listen.

Today, we’re dragging egos, calling out the “hero leader” BS, and answering the question employees are too scared to ask: 

Why are so many leaders terrible at their jobs? 

From vulnerability without oversharing to why your status reports are already obsolete, this is the leadership reset you didn’t know you needed.

Multi-state compliance is a nightmare—but SixFifty makes it easy. Get instant answers to employment law questions, generate a compliant multi-state handbook in minutes, and stay ahead of changing laws with automated updates. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SixFifty.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

Whether you’re scaling fast or filling a critical role, Oyster helps you tap into the global talent pool and navigate international hiring with confidence. Hire full time talent or work flexibly with contractors- hire remotely, manage payroll, and ensure compliance ethically, with real employment experts by your side. Visit ⁠oysterhr.com⁠ to learn more!

0:02:30 - One Truth About Work Matt Wishes More Leaders Understood

0:03:37 - How to Build Self-awareness as a Leader

0:06:57 - When A Leader’s Ego Gets in the Way of Good Leadership

0:09:36 - Spotting the Difference Between Authentic Leaders and Stiff Leaders

0:12:58 - A Game-changing Moment in Matt’s Leadership Journey

0:19:21 - What Employees ACTUALLY Want From Leaders

0:22:19 - If a Manager Only Has Time to do One Thing, What Should it Be?

0:27:07 - A Small Action Leaders Can Take That Has a Huge Impact

0:32:41 - The Fine Line Between Vulnerability and Oversharing

0:34:39 - Navigating Leadership in an Era of Burnout, Layoffs, and AI

0:40:03 - Something Every CEO Should Understand About Their Company

0:43:41 - Rewriting the Playbook on How Companies Develop Leaders

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Matt: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattpoepsel/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Whether we like it or not, office politics are an unavoidable part of corporate life.

But don’t worry—you’re in for a TREAT today because one of my absolute favorite humans, Jessica Winder, is back on the pod, and we’re diving into the BS of corporate life in detail! 

You know, the kind where you’re expected to read minds, kiss ass, and perform miracles while leadership acts like promotions are some kind of Da Vinci Code situation. 

We’re talking about why “being liked” often beats “being right,” how LinkedIn is just one giant performance of corporate cringe, and why trust is literally cheaper than surveillance (but somehow, companies still don’t get it). 

There’s value in learning how to play the corporate game without compromising your integrity, so let’s get into it!

Multi-state compliance is a nightmare—but SixFifty makes it easy. Get instant answers to employment law questions, generate a compliant multi-state handbook in minutes, and stay ahead of changing laws with automated updates. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠SixFifty.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more!

Whether you’re scaling fast or filling a critical role, Oyster helps you tap into the global talent pool and navigate international hiring with confidence. Hire full time talent or work flexibly with contractors- hire remotely, manage payroll, and ensure compliance ethically, with real employment experts by your side. Visit oysterhr.com to learn more!

0:03:17 - One Truth Jessica Wishes More Leaders Understood

0:04:16 - What Does Kissing Ass Mean in the Workplace?

0:06:02 - When Good Work Isn’t Enough to Get Ahead

0:08:57 - Unwritten Rules of Career Advancement That Nobody Talks About

0:12:06 - Is Playing Office Politics Part of the Job, or is There Another Way to Succeed?

0:15:01 - How Race and Gender Tie Into Unspoken Rules of Advancement

0:24:23 - Hebba’s Round of Spicy Questions

0:35:11 - How Jessica Would Rewrite the Rules of Career Advancement

0:38:44 - Employees Who Feel Stuck Because They Refuse to Kiss Ass

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out  https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Jessica:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicadwinder/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef