Leading Becomes You: How to Lead from Your Own Skin By Dr. Natalie Pickering

Drnataliepickering.com

About the Guest(s):

Dr. Natalie Pickering is a distinguished work psychologist and board-certified executive coach with over 20 years of global experience in leadership and team transformation. She is dedicated to helping leaders discover their personal leadership superpowers and transform organizational cultures to fit people rather than the other way around. Previously, Dr. Pickering served as a trauma psychologist at a veterans hospital and later transitioned to the role of an internal employee assistance professional, which influenced her shift to leadership coaching. Her multifaceted approach includes psychological safety, emotional intelligence, and team development, drawing from her extensive clinical background to fortify leader identity.

Episode Summary:

Welcome to another enlightening episode of The Chris Voss Show, where host Chris Voss converses with the esteemed Dr. Natalie Pickering about the intricacies of leadership and identity. Natalie introduces her upcoming book, "Leading Becomes You: How to Lead From Your Own Skin," and shares groundbreaking insights into discovering leader identity and composting personal and professional experiences for growth. As a work psychologist with a storied career, Natalie highlights the importance of a personalized leadership field guide and the common pitfalls leaders face, such as imposter syndrome and burnout.

Throughout the episode, Natalie elaborates on her comprehensive approach to leadership development, emphasizing the necessity of personal reflection and connecting with one's true leadership identity. She discusses the challenges many leaders encounter, including unclear leadership identities and misplaced connection with colleagues' agendas. Using engaging analogies like "The Petrified Forest," Natalie vividly illustrates the traps of overconfidence and disconnection that leaders can fall into. Additionally, she explains her unique coaching methodologies that focus on clearing life debris, enabling leaders to unlock their highest potential and foster flourishing organizational environments.

Key Takeaways:

Individualized Leadership Development: Dr. Pickering emphasizes developing a personal leadership field guide to enhance effectiveness and prevent burnout.

Leader Identity Clarity: Understanding one's true leadership identity is crucial for motivation, decision-making, and personal alignment within a team.

Overconfidence vs. Competence: Confidence can often be mistaken for competence; leaders should strive for a balance that encourages ongoing growth and development.

The Role of Past Experiences: Past personal and professional incidents shape current leadership abilities, and addressing unresolved issues is essential for growth.

Supporting Women's Leadership: Dr. Pickering highlights the prevalence of imposter syndrome among women leaders, stressing the need for tailored support and development.

Notable Quotes:

"Leadership identity is the most underutilized performance strategy for leaders."

"The real question here is being differently."

"Confidence gets mistranslated as competence."

"People leave managers, people leave supervisors, people leave leaders—not necessarily the company."

"In the book I call that 'The Petrified Forest.'"