Are you working harder than ever but still getting passed over for promotions? Your problem isn't effort—it's visibility and strategy.

In this episode, Bernadette Boas reveals why 78% of professionals believe their manager has no influence on their career advancement—and how understanding managing up creates a massive competitive advantage for those who get it right.

Most professionals think managing up means being a "yes person" or playing politics. They're wrong. Managing up is strategic leadership that makes you indispensable while advancing your career and supporting your team.

What You'll Learn: 8 actionable strategies to effectively manage up starting this week • How to bring solutions instead of complaints (and why this matters) • The visibility framework that gets you noticed for the right reasons • Why leaders actually want you to challenge them (and how to do it respectfully) • Communication mistakes that make your boss tune you out • The self-advocacy approach that doesn't feel like bragging • How to anticipate needs before they're voiced • Why emotional intelligence is your career currency • The alignment conversation that changes everything

Timestamps

[00:00] Introduction: What is managing up really about?

[03:00] The foundational principle: Leave people and places better than you found them

[09:00] What managing up is (and what it isn't)

[14:00] Myth #1: Hard work and long hours will get you ahead

[16:00] Myth #2: Managing up means being a yes person

[18:00] Myth #3: You can't push back or create healthy tension

[20:00] Mistake #1: Bringing complaints without solutions

[22:00] Mistake #2: Overloading your boss with problems you could solve

[23:00] Mistake #3: Failing to adapt to your boss's communication style

[26:00] Mistake #4: Assuming your boss understands your workload and impact

[28:00] Mistake #5: Inconsistent follow-through destroys trust

[30:00] Mistake #6: Not seeking visibility for your contributions

[32:00 - 46:00] 8 Strategies 

[48:00] Summary: Managing up is about managing your impact

[50:00] Your challenge: Pick one strategy for the next 7 days

[52:00] Final thoughts and next episode preview

Connect with Bernadette Boas

Website: https://balloffirecoaching.com

Book a Discovery Call: coachmebernadette.com/discovery-call 

LinkedIn: @BernadetteBoas 

Podcast Website: balloffirecoaching.com/podcast

Next Episode

Presenteeism: The Silent Culture Killer with Rebecca Reed Discover how showing up without being present is destroying your culture—and what to do about it.

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Are you constantly saying "sorry" for the smallest thing? Smoothing over tensions? Fixing everyone else's problems while your own leadership presence suffers? You're not alone - and it's costing you more than you think.

In this game-changing episode, powerhouse coach Kelly Travis reveals the hidden toll of over-apologizing and people-pleasing among high-achieving professionals. Discover how internalized roles like "the fixer," "the good girl," and "the perfectionist" are unconsciously driving your leadership decisions and holding you back from your true potential.

🎯 What You'll Learn:

• The childhood programming that's sabotaging your adult leadership
• Why your team feels insecure when you constantly apologize
• How to identify if you're "the helper," "the achiever," or "the good girl"
• A powerful exercise to transform your inner dialogue
• Simple language swaps that instantly boost your executive presence

💪 Ready to lead with clarity, confidence, and real self-trust? This episode is your wake-up call to stop operating on autopilot and start making deeply aligned leadership decisions.

Timestamps

[00:02:00] - Meet Kelly Travis: Competitive Athlete, Coach & Mom

 [00:03:00] - Competition Lessons: Why Women Apologize for Success

[00:06:00] - The Breakthrough Moment: Why Kelly Focuses on Apologizing

[00:09:00] - Childhood Programming: Who You Had to Be vs. Who You Are Now

[00:11:00] - The Comfort Zone Trap: Why We Stay in Familiar Patterns

[00:13:00] - Simple Email Fix: "Thanks for Your Patience" vs. "Sorry I'm Late"

[00:14:00] - The Four Types: Perfectionist, Helper, Achiever, Peacemaker

[00:17:00] - When These Roles Become Toxic in Leadership

[00:19:00] - The Self-Awareness Continuum: From Autopilot to Integration

 [00:22:00] - Red Flag Warning Signs You're Stuck in Old Patterns

 [00:31:00] - What Others Really Think When You Over-Apologize

📝 TAKE ACTION:

• Count your apologies for one week - you might be shocked!
• Replace one "sorry" email with "thanks for understanding" this week
• Ask yourself "Is this thought useful?" when you catch negative self-talk

YOUR GUEST:

Kelly Travis is a powerhouse coach, team dynamics expert, and certified Enneagram practitioner who specializes in helping high-achieving women break free from outdated patterns that sabotage their leadership. As a competitive athlete and single mom, Kelly brings a unique perspective on performance, resilience, and authentic leadership.

Connect with Kelly:

• Website: KellyTravis.net
• Podcast: Ready When You Are
• Instagram: @WithKellyTravis

YOUR HOST:

Bernadette Boas is an executive coach, author, and host of Shedding the Corporate Bitch podcast. She transforms today's managers into tomorrow's powerhouse leaders through her no-nonsense approach to leadership development.

• Website:

🎧 LOVED THIS EPISODE? Subscribe and leave a 5-star review to help other leaders find this show!

📱 FOLLOW US:

• Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app
• YouTube: Shedding The Bitch TV Channel
• Website: BallOfFireCoaching.com/p

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Do you have a “good guy, but…” on your team? They’re smart, hardworking, maybe even a top producer—but they gossip, interrupt, or stir up conflict. You know it. Your team knows it. And yet, you hesitate to act.

In this episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, Bernadette Boas exposes the hidden cost of excusing a good guy, but..., even when it comes from your most likable or high-performing team members.

You’ll learn:

• Why the “good guy, but…” mentality sabotages trust, culture, and results
• The personal fears and biases that keep leaders from acting
• How one person’s bad behavior spreads like wildfire across a team
• Six practical steps to spot, address, and resolve these issues early
• How to redefine accountability so it feels like courage—not cruelty

If you’re serious about building high-performing teams and protecting your credibility as a leader, this episode is a must-listen.

Listen + Subscribe:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify| 

DOWNLOAD our free Powerhouse Communication Assessment to begin your journey to shift away from the good-guy syndrome. 

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Are you resilient—or just surviving? In this episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, I sit down with Russell Harvey, “The Resilience Coach,” to challenge how leaders and HR managers think about resilience. Together, we unpack why resilience isn’t about “bouncing back” but about springing forward with learning.

If you’re a leader navigating burnout, constant change, and underperforming teams, this episode will show you how to shift from coping to thriving and build a team that’s unstoppable.

⏱ Episode Timestamps

• [00:02] What a truly resilient leader looks like
• [00:06] The 3 things leaders are actually responsible for
• [00:12] Why delegating brilliantly fuels succession planning
• [00:16] The resilience wheel: 7 dimensions every leader must know
• [00:22] How social connection—not happy hours—builds stronger teams
• [00:27] Why your “top five” people shape your leadership style
• [00:31] Reflection practice: What behaviors serve you vs. hold you back
• [00:38] Why resilience is proactive, not reactive

💡 What You’ll Learn

• The difference between coping, surviving, and thriving as a leader
• How to simplify leadership down to three core responsibilities
• The power of delegation for growth and succession planning
• Practical ways to remove blockages and clear the path for your team
• How to use the Resilience Wheel to strengthen yourself and your team
• Why resilience is about choice, not crisis

Resources & Links

• Connect with Russell Harvey at theresiliencecoach.co.uk
• Follow me, Bernadette Boas, on LinkedIn for bold leadership insights
• Subscribe to Shedding the Corporate Bitch wherever you listen to podcasts

Call to Action

If this episode sparked insight, share it with your colleagues and HR leaders who need to hear it. Leave us a rating and review to help more leaders find the show. And don’t just listen—take action: choose one way this week to build resilience into your leadership.

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Time is the one resource you can’t get back — and if you don’t take control of it, it will control you. In this episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, Bernadette Boas reveals why so many leaders struggle with time management, the hidden costs of poor productivity, and actionable strategies to reclaim your focus, sanity, and performance.

Packed with tools like time blocking, the Eisenhower Matrix, SMART goals, and boundary-setting, this episode gives you a proven roadmap to beat burnout, boost productivity, and lead with clarity.

If you’re tired of feeling overwhelmed by your calendar, buried under endless to-do lists, or stuck in the trap of “busyness,” this episode is your blueprint to take back your time — before it masters you.

⏱️ Chapters & Timestamps:

• [00:00] The Real Cost of Poor Time Management
• [02:15] Stress, Burnout, and the Leadership Crisis
• [05:30] Self-Inflicted Time Traps Leaders Create
• [07:45] Why Multitasking Is a Myth
• [09:20] Your Calendar Is Too Full — Here’s How to Fix It
• [11:40] Distractions and Mental Fatigue in Leadership
• [14:00] The Hidden Impact of Overwhelm on Teams & Business
• [20:00] Master Time with Proven Tools & Frameworks
  • SMART Goals
  • The Pareto Principle
  • Eisenhower Matrix (Do, Delegate, Delete, Delay)
  • Time Blocking
  • Two-Minute Rule
• [27:00] Setting Boundaries That Stick
• [31:00] Reflection and Progress Tracking for Lasting Change
• [34:00] Final Leadership Takeaways & Next Steps

🔑 Key Takeaways:

• Why busyness is not a badge of honor — it’s a burnout trigger.
• How to cut through the noise of multitasking and focus on what matters.
• The Eisenhower Matrix framework to prioritize with clarity.
• Why time blocking is the #1 productivity game-changer for leaders.
• The power of saying “no” and setting boundaries without guilt.
• How reflection accelerates leadership growth and team success.

📢 Call to Action:

If you’re ready to stop playing catch-up and start leading with intention, hit subscribe to Shedding the Corporate Bitch on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.

👉 Share this episode with a colleague or leader who needs to hear it.
 👉 Want personalized coaching to master your time and leadership? Visit BallOfFireCoaching.com to learn more.

Stay bold, stay focused, and keep shedding the corporate challenges holding you back!

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Connection isn’t a “nice to have”—it’s a business driver every leader needs to put front and center if they want to achieve their goals and succeed. 

When employees feel seen, heard, and included, performance skyrockets. Yet, many leaders still struggle with creating cultures of belonging. Why is that?

In this powerful episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, I sit down with Greg Morley, global leader, author of Bond: Belonging and the Keys to Inclusion and Connection, and champion of inclusive leadership. With over 25 years of HR experience at companies like Disney, Hasbro, and LVMH, Greg shares hard-earned lessons and practical tools to help leaders and HR professionals turn inclusion into impact.

🔑 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why inclusion is not just a moral imperative—it’s a business imperative
• How risk-taking connects directly to inclusive leadership
• The micro-actions leaders take daily that shape culture
• Why the quietest voice in the room often carries the best ideas
• How to measure and sustain belonging with real-world tools

⏱️ Episode Timestamps:

• 00:02:00 – Greg’s global journey and what inspired his book Bond
• 00:08:30 – Why belonging is the foundation of high-performing teams
• 00:11:00 – The role of risk-taking in driving inclusion
• 00:15:00 – The “10 scoops of vanilla” analogy: finding uniqueness in similarity
• 00:18:00 – Why inclusion is a proven driver of business results
• 00:23:00 – How to move inclusion beyond “politically correct” language
• 00:26:00 – Practical techniques to ensure every voice is heard in meetings
• 00:31:00 – Trust: the #1 element of lasting culture change
• 00:35:00 – Building collaboration through strengths and weaknesses
• 00:39:00 – Greg’s #1 step leaders can take today to foster belonging

🚀 Call to Action:

✅ Learn more about Greg at www.gregmorley.com

✅ Pick up his book: https://www.gregmorley.com/books

 ✅ Follow the show and reach out to Bernadette: BallofFireCoaching.com/podcast

Support the show

Your highest performers haven’t quit—yet. But they’re not fully present either. They’re quietly cracking under the weight of stress, burnout, AI-driven changes, and poor leadership. And the cost? A staggering $438 billion in lost productivity.

In this episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, Bernadette Boas unpacks:

• What “Quiet Cracking” really is and how it’s different from Quiet Quitting
• The hidden warning signs leaders miss in their best people
• The real business costs of burnout and disengagement
• A proactive action plan to stop Quiet Cracking before it destroys your culture

If you’re an HR leader, manager, or executive who wants to protect performance, retain talent, and lead with confidence—this episode is a must-listen.

🕒 Episode Breakdown with Timestamps

• 00:00 – 01:00 | The crisis you don’t see: Why your top people are quietly cracking
• 01:00 – 02:30 | Quiet Cracking vs Quiet Quitting: What leaders need to know
• 05:00 – 10:00 | 7 warning signs your people are cracking under the pressure
• 06:30 – 07:30 | The shocking stats: $438B lost productivity, 67% burnout rates
• 15:00 – 22:00 | The leadership action plan: Conversations, pulse checks, redesigning workloads
• 27:00 – 28:30 | Why Quiet Cracking isn’t a character flaw—it’s a leadership signal
• 30:00 – 31:30 | How to reset your team’s wellbeing + free assessment
• 31:30 – 32:00 | Next episode preview: Belonging & Connection with Greg Morley

✅ Resources & Call-to-Actions

• 📥 Download Your Free Tool: Powerhouse Communication Assessment - balloffirecoaching.com/opt-in
• 🎯 Book a Reset Workshop: 45-Minute Workload & Wellbeing Reset - coachmebernadette.com/discoverycall
• 🎧 Catch All Episodes and Expert Interviews: Shedding the Corporate Bitch Podcast -balloffirecoaching.com/podcast

Support the show

Your success as a leader isn’t determined by how well you talk—it’s determined by how well you connect. And nowhere is that more critical than when the stakes are high and emotions are running hot.

Episode Overview:
In this episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, I sit down with Dr. Amber Johnson—leadership consultant, high-stakes communication expert, and truth-teller on why most leaders fail in conflict.

We dig into the hidden reasons leaders struggle to get communication right—especially under pressure—and why avoiding tough conversations is costing you trust, performance, and top talent.

Challenges We Tackle:

• Why “being nice” is sabotaging your leadership effectiveness
• How busyness kills connection and erodes team trust
• The gap between leaders’ “open door” intentions and employees’ real experiences
• Why avoidance turns small problems into reputation-damaging crises

What You’ll Learn:

• The difference between kindness and niceness—and why it matters for results
• How to lead without having all the answers by mastering the art of powerful questions
• Simple techniques to keep conversations future-focused and defuse defensiveness
• How to recognize when your “open door” is actually closed
• Strategies to address issues early—before they turn into patterns or cultural problems

Key Takeaways:

• Kindness is truth delivered with care; niceness is a performance that avoids discomfort.
• The conversation IS the relationship—avoid it and the relationship weakens.
• If no one has given you hard feedback lately, your team doesn’t feel safe enough to tell you the truth.

Your Next Step:
Don’t let communication blind spots limit your leadership impact.
🎧 Listen now and discover the tools to lead with clarity, connection, and confidence—even when conflict knocks at your door.

👉 Download the episode here: balloffirecoaching.com/podcast
📌 Follow me on LinkedIn: Bernadette Boas
📌 Take the Powerhouse Communication Assessment: balloffirecoaching.com/opt-in

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction: The Importance of Tough Conversations
00:21 Welcome to Shedding the Corporate Bitch
00:56 Meet Dr. Amber Johnson
01:16 Challenges in Leadership Communication
02:57 Amber's Background and Personal Insights
04:22 Strategies for Effective Communication
10:42 The Power of Asking Questions
15:56 Creating a Safe and Open Environment
20:11 Handling Difficult Bosses
29:39 Avoidance in Leadership
31:39 Final Thoughts and Takeaways
33:57 Closing Remarks and Resources

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What if the biggest threat to your workplace isn’t external—but staring back at you in the mirror?

In this powerful episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, Bernadette Boas dives deep into the hidden signs of toxic leadership, team behavior, and culture. You’ll learn how to identify red flags before they cost you your best people, and discover proven strategies to transform a dysfunctional team into a powerhouse culture that thrives.

Whether you’re a corporate leader, HR professional, or aspiring change agent, this episode will challenge your thinking, sharpen your awareness, and equip you with actionable steps to create a high-performing, healthy team environment.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

• The silent killers of team trust and performance
• How leaders unintentionally feed toxic cultures
• Strategies for confronting and eradicating toxic behaviors
• Why culture change starts with inner work, not policy
• The essential steps to build a team that’s engaged, empowered, and loyal

Timestamps / Chapters:

0:00 – Introduction: The hidden threat of toxic leadership
 1:15 – My own wake-up call: Realizing I was the problem
 2:30 – What “toxic behavior” really means in the workplace
 5:00 – Key questions every leader must ask themselves
 6:20 – Hidden signs of a toxic individual or team
 21:00 – Identifying and addressing one key toxic behavior
 33:00 – The hallmarks of a high-functioning culture
 36:10 – Why real change takes time and persistence
 37:00 – Call to action: Start the conversation and lead boldly

Call to Action:

If you’re ready to become a powerhouse change agent, share this episode with your team, colleagues, and HR partners. Start the brave conversations that will transform your workplace into one where people love to contribute, grow, and thrive.

📌 Free Discovery Call: https://coachmebernadette.com/discoverycall
📌 Past Episodes including HR: The Superpower You're Ignoring - https://balloffirecoaching.com/podcast

SUBSCRIBE, FOLLOW, and RATE the show on Apple Podcast, Spotify and YouTube 

Support the show

What if the most underused resource in your company isn’t money or talent — but your HR team?

In this powerhouse episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, Bernadette Boas pulls back the curtain on a dangerous blind spot in leadership: the failure to partner with HR proactively and strategically.

🚫 HR isn’t a compliance cop.
 ⚡ HR is your culture driver, succession strategist, performance coach, and leadership ally — if you let them be.

Whether you're a corporate executive trying to build high-performing teams or an HR leader tired of being left out of the room, this episode is your wake-up call (and your blueprint).

🔥 In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why most managers only engage HR when it's too late — and the cost of that delay
• How treating HR as an “afterthought” kills performance, morale, and retention
• The four mindset shifts corporate leaders must make to unlock HR’s full value
• Tangible steps HR professionals can take to claim their strategic seat at the table
• How to build real alignment between business goals and people strategies

💡 If you want to lead boldly, retain talent, and build a people-first culture that actually performs, this episode is for you.

👂 Listen Now On:

🔹 Apple Podcasts
🔹 Spotify
🔹 YouTube (@ShedTheCorpBitchTV)
🔹 balloffirecoaching.com/podcast

📩 Ready to unleash the powerhouse leader in you or your team? Book a discovery call with Bernadette at coachmebernadette.com/discoverycall

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