The Climb

This solo episode from The Climb Podcast is a practical wake-up call for women of color navigating leadership, feedback, boundaries, and career growth. Felicia Smith argues that the conversation you keep rehearsing in your head is often the one that would give you the clarity, information, or next step you actually need. The episode matters because it reframes silence as a decision with consequences. Felicia breaks down four avoided conversations and offers a simple framework, purpose, point, and path, for handling them strategically instead of avoiding them.

• In this episode, Felicia Smith opens with the core idea that silence is not neutral. Avoiding a hard conversation still produces consequences, and often makes the problem last longer.
• She explains how people create entire narratives in their heads about what a boss, colleague, or manager thinks without ever testing those assumptions.
• She highlights three costs of silence:
• assumptions start to feel like reality
• unresolved issues continue longer than they should
• you lose the chance to influence the outcome
• Felicia specifically names the professional pressure many women of color feel around being labeled difficult or aggressive, and distinguishes that from simply advocating for yourself.
• She walks through four conversations professionals often avoid:
• feedback conversations about readiness and growth
• boundary conversations about workload and competing priorities
• unresolved issue conversations after disrespect, tension, or breakdowns
• ambition conversations about what you want next in your career
• She emphasizes that feedback is information, not always truth. It may be unfair, vague, or incomplete, so it should be examined, not blindly accepted.
• On boundaries, she points out that dependable can quietly turn into endlessly available, especially when people keep saying yes without clarifying priorities.
• On unresolved issues, she notes that unspoken tension becomes the lens through which every future interaction gets interpreted.
• She introduces a practical framework called purpose, point, and path:
• purpose: why am I having this conversation?
• point: what exactly needs to be said or asked?
• path: what happens next, and what action or decision should follow?
• She closes by urging listeners to stop having the whole conversation only in their heads and to take one intentional step toward clarity before the year ends.

00:00 - The conversation in your head is costing you

02:37 - Why another project will not solve a communication problem

04:04 - Silence is still a decision with consequences

05:25 - The career cost of assuming instead of asking

07:15 - How assumptions become your reality

08:37 - When silence lets bad situations drag on

09:32 - Why women of color are often pushed toward self-silencing

11:22 - The feedback conversation and what readiness really means

13:43 - The boundary conversation and competing priorities

16:08 - Why unresolved tension keeps showing up in future interactions

19:32 - The conversation about what you want next

21:25 - The purpose, point, and path framework

22:22 - Step one: define your purpose before you speak

24:15 - Step two: make your point clearly and directly

26:01 - Step three: decide the path and next step

29:43 - Your weekly exercise: write down purpose, point, and path

30:42 - Why waiting until next year is a costly mistake

• Identify one conversation you have been avoiding.
• Write down your purpose, point, and path before you speak.
• Decide whether the best format is a meeting, phone call, one-on-one, or thoughtful email.
• If direct conversation is not appropriate, use the proper channels instead of staying silent.
• Stop letting the conversation live only in your head.

🌐 Website: https://the-climb.org

📲 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

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If this episode helped you see how to share your work with confidence, subscribe, share, and join the conversation. Know a woman who’s doing excellent work but still waiting to be seen? Send this episode to her. Your work deserves an accurate story—and the right people need to hear it.

The Climb Podcast is hosted by Felicia Smith, founder of The Climb—a 501(c)(3) committed to increasing the number of women of color in leadership and managerial roles. Each week, we pull back all the layers and talk about the things no one else is talking about: what women of color survive and navigate in the workplace day to day, and how we climb together, teach lessons together, and build community along the way.

This isn’t about climbing ladders alone. It’s about building ladders to success—and reaching back to bring others with us.

Subscribe to The Climb Podcast on YouTube and wherever you listen:

🌐 The Climb: https://the-climb.org

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JoinTheClimb2024

📱 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

DOWNLOAD THE FINISH DIFFERENT SCORECARD

📝 Put this episode into practice: https://jointheclimb.myflodesk.com/products/finishdifferent

Your work doesn’t speak for itself. You have to give it a voice. In this episode of The Climb Podcast, host Felicia Smith explores a question that can shape your next opportunity: Who is telling your story—and is it accurate? As year-end reviews, promotion discussions, and budget conversations approach, Felicia shares how women of color can make their contributions visible, communicate their impact without feeling like they’re bragging, and help the right people understand the value they’ve delivered. Part of the “Finish Different” season, this conversation is about closing the year with clarity, confidence, and a stronger voice in your own career.

• Why doing great work and being known for that work are two different things
• How “keep your head down and let your work speak for itself” can lead to invisibility
• The four parts every accomplishment needs: the problem, your contribution, the result, and why it matters
• A simple three-sentence structure for sharing your impact without feeling like you’re bragging
• How to prepare for a year-end conversation that connects your results to future opportunities
• How to recognize the difference between a communication gap you can address and an organization that isn’t valuing you

• Who Is Telling Your Story?
• Finish Different: Making Sure the Right People Know
• Segment: “Somebody Should Have Told Me…”
• Doing Great Work vs. Being Known for It
• When Keeping Your Head Down Becomes Invisibility
• Segment: “Truth Is…” People Forget, Misunderstand, and Get Busy
• The Four Parts of a Strong Accomplishment Story
• Same Work, Completely Different Story
• Making Your Contribution Clear in a Team Project
• Three Sentences to Share Your Impact
• Who Needs to Hear About Your Work?
• Preparing for Your Year-End Conversation
• What If the Problem Isn’t You?
• This Week’s Challenge: Document Three Accomplishments
• The Finish Different Scorecard
• Give Your Work a Voice and Keep Climbing

This week’s challenge: Write down your top three accomplishments from this year. For each one, answer:

• What was the problem?
• What did I do?
• What was the result?
• Why does it matter to the organization?

Then choose one accomplishment and share it with someone who needs to understand your impact. Use this simple structure: “Here’s what I worked on. Here’s what changed because of it. Here’s what I’d like to do next.”

🌐 Website: https://the-climb.org

📲 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

💌 Subscribe to our newsletter: https://jointheclimb.myflodesk.com/newsletter

If this episode helped you see how to share your work with confidence, subscribe, share, and join the conversation. Know a woman who’s doing excellent work but still waiting to be seen? Send this episode to her. Your work deserves an accurate story—and the right people need to hear it.

The Climb Podcast is hosted by Felicia Smith, founder of The Climb—a 501(c)(3) committed to increasing the number of women of color in leadership and managerial roles. Each week, we pull back all the layers and talk about the things no one else is talking about: what women of color survive and navigate in the workplace day to day, and how we climb together, teach lessons together, and build community along the way.

This isn’t about climbing ladders alone. It’s about building ladders to success—and reaching back to bring others with us.

Subscribe to The Climb Podcast on YouTube and wherever you listen:

🌐 The Climb: https://the-climb.org

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JoinTheClimb2024

📱 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

We're in Q4.

And if you're like most high-achievers, you're already doing the math.

What did I accomplish? What didn't happen? How far off am I from where I thought I'd be by now?

And somewhere in that inventory, there's a voice that says — just wait until January.

Don't.

Because your year is not over. And neither are you.

The One Move Challenge: Finish the Year Strong Without Waiting for January

I’m kicking off season eight of The Climb Podcast—focused on finishing 2026 well—by reminding you that you don’t have to cram 12 months of progress into the last few weeks of the year. Instead, I want you to focus on one strategic move—one conversation, decision, ask, boundary, or introduction—that can change your position going into next year. I share that a disappointing year doesn’t have to have a disappointing ending, and I challenge you to stop replaying what didn’t happen and ask what you can still influence right now. I explain that most of us aren’t stuck because we don’t know what to do, but because we keep waiting for January, confidence, or permission while organizations are already planning for next year. I close with my “One Move Challenge”: decide what you want different, what’s keeping it the same, and one concrete action you’ll complete before year-end.

• 00:00 One Move Left
• 00:44 Welcome to The Climb
• 02:08 Season Eight Focus
• 02:31 Strategic Fourth Quarter
• 03:56 Disappointing Year Reframe
• 06:24 One Courageous Move
• 08:22 Stop Waiting Start Now
• 11:00 Positioning Through Relationships
• 12:51 One Move Challenge
• 16:31 January Is Not Strategy
• 17:15 Wrap Up and Subscribe
• 18:01 Podcast Outro

The One Move Challenge

Before the year ends, answer these three questions — and don't just ask them. Answer them.

1. What do I want to be different going into next year? Not ten things. One.
2. What's keeping it the same? Be honest about what's in your control — not just what's broken in the system.
3. What is one move I can make before this year ends? Needs to be an action. A verb. Send. Schedule. Ask. Apply. Call. Decline. Start. Stop. Decide.

Reflection Question

What's the move you've been putting off — and what are you actually waiting for?

January doesn't send the email.

January doesn't ask for the meeting.

January doesn't advocate for you.

You do.

🌐 Website: https://the-climb.org

📲 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

💌 Subscribe to our newsletter: https://jointheclimb.myflodesk.com/newsletter

🎧 Subscribe, share, and bring a friend who's about to write off the rest of their year.

Because we are not just climbing careers.

We are building ladders. ✊🏾

Are you paying attention to what's happening in your organization — or do you understand what it means? In the Season 7 finale of The Climb Podcast, host Felicia Smith unpacks one of the most underrated leadership skills there is: seeing the through line — your ability to connect what looks separate into a single story. It's the difference between attending every meeting and actually thinking like a senior leader. This is the skill that turns strong individual contributors into strategic, invaluable leaders.

• What a "through line" is — and why seeing it separates leaders from great individual contributors
• How your questions have to change as you climb: from "what's my deliverable?" to "why are we doing this, and how does it connect?"
• Five concrete places to spot the through line: repeated language, money, attention, cross-functional patterns, and organizational history
• How connecting the dots lets you anticipate what's coming — the rare, career-defining muscle that makes you invaluable
• A practical weekly exercise to start building your enterprise mindset

00:00 – Are You Paying Attention, or Understanding What It Means? 00:40 – Welcome + Wrapping Season 7: The Through Line 01:30 – What Is a Through Line? Connecting What Seems Separate 03:15 – Segment: "Somebody Should Have Told Me" — Your Job Is to Know How It Connects 06:00 – From Individual Contributor to Enterprise Thinker 08:15 – Segment: "Truth Is" — Nothing Happens in Isolation 10:45 – #1 Listen for Repeated Language 12:15 – #2 Follow the Money (the budget tells a story) 14:00 – #3 Watch What Gains and Loses Attention 15:30 – #4 Look Across Functions 17:15 – #5 Connect What's Happening Now to What Happened Before 19:00 – The Leadership Shift: From Reacting to Anticipating 21:00 – Segment: "Another Rung Mended" — The Through Line Exercise 23:00 – What's the Through Line? Season 7 Finale Close

🌐 https://the-climb.org 📲 @JoinTheClimb

If this episode made you think differently about your organization, subscribe, share, and send it to another woman who's ready to strengthen the way she thinks and leads. Real leadership is not about rising alone — it's about redesigning the system so others can rise with you.

The Climb Podcast is hosted by Felicia Smith, founder of The Climb — a 501(c)(3) committed to increasing the number of women of color in leadership and managerial roles. Each week, we have honest conversations about what women of color encounter as we navigate our careers and climb into leadership. We pull back all the layers and talk about the things no one else is talking about — and how we climb together.

This isn't about climbing ladders alone. It's about building ladders to success — and reaching back to bring others with us.

Subscribe to The Climb Podcast on YouTube and wherever you listen:

🌐 The Climb: https://the-climb.org 📺 YouTube: (109) The Climb - YouTube 🍏 Apple Podcasts: The Climb - Podcast - Apple Podcasts 🎵 Spotify: The Climb | Podcast on Spotify

📱 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

That's a wrap on Season 7 — 10 episodes done. We'll be back for Season 8. Keep climbing.

Strong is not the same as well. In this episode of The Climb Podcast, host Felicia Smith sits down with Ebony Grover — founder and CEO of LYLAS (Love You Like a Sister) — for an honest conversation about the cost of being the strong one. We talk about burnout, the pressure to be "twice as good," why rest isn't a reward you earn, and how Black women can move from surviving to thriving without carrying it all alone.

• Why being strong is not the same as being well — and why the difference is essential to sustainable leadership
• How burnout actually shows up for Black women, and why it's so hard to admit out loud
• Why rest is a form of resilience, not a reward you have to earn
• The difference between productivity and purpose — and how to stop over-performing
• How delegation becomes a promotion strategy, not a sign of weakness
• Practical first steps to reclaim your time and protect your well-being

00:00 – Strong Is Not the Same as Well 00:44 – Meet Ebony Grover, Founder of Lila's (Love You Like a Sister) 02:56 – The First, The Only: Who Is the Blueprint? 04:53 – Segment: "Somebody Should Have Told Me…" 05:36 – Why We Won't Admit We're Burned Out 07:12 – Reframing Burnout: It's Not Weakness, It's Delegation 08:40 – Rest Is Resilience (and Sleep Isn't a Reward) 10:33 – Segment: "Truth Is…" Wellness vs. Being Strong 11:48 – "Twice as Good to Get Half as Far" 13:03 – They're Hoping You Don't Know How Good You Are 14:11 – We've Confused Productivity with Purpose 15:40 – Being Needed Is Not the Same as Being Valued 16:38 – Segment: From Surviving to Thriving 18:00 – Why We Put Ourselves Last 20:37 – Stop Celebrating the Weight: Reclaim Your Time 22:19 – The First Step to Reclaiming Your Time 23:37 – Delegation Is Your Freedom 25:13 – Inside the Lila's Retreat in New Orleans 27:06 – How to Connect with Ebony 28:04 – Keep Climbing: Build the Ladder, Reach Back

🌐 Website: https://www.lylasbiz.com 💼 LinkedIn: Ebony Grover, MBA 📸 Instagram: @Lilas (Love You Like a Sister) 🌴 The Lila's Retreat — New Orleans, October 6–8: professional development meets wellness, in a Black-owned space with all Black-owned vendors. Prioritize yourself and join.

🌐 https://the-climb.org 📲 @JoinTheClimb

If this episode resonated with you, subscribe, share, and join the conversation. Real leadership is not about rising alone — it's about redesigning the system so others can rise with you. Know a woman who's burnt out, tired, and holding it all together for everyone? Share this episode with her.

The Climb Podcast is hosted by Felicia Smith, founder of The Climb — a 501(c)(3) committed to increasing the number of women of color in leadership and managerial roles. Each week, we pull back all the layers and talk about the things no one else is talking about: what women of color survive and navigate in the workplace day to day, and how we climb together, teach lessons together, and build community along the way.

This isn't about climbing ladders alone. It's about building ladders to success — and reaching back to bring others with us.

Subscribe to The Climb Podcast on YouTube and wherever you listen:

🌐 The Climb: https://the-climb.org 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JoinTheClimb2024

📱 Follow The Climb: @JoinTheClimb

As women of color, many of us weren't just taught to work hard—we were taught to survive.

We learned how to stretch a paycheck, help family when they needed us, and celebrate career milestones. But too often, no one taught us what to do once the paycheck got bigger.

In this episode of The Climb Podcast, Felicia Smith sits down with financial planner and educator Nadia Vanderhall to have an honest conversation about wealth, budgeting, emergency funds, behavioral finance, and why earning more money doesn't automatically create financial freedom.

Together, they unpack the unique financial realities many women of color face—from supporting family members to navigating new wealth, avoiding lifestyle creep, and building habits that create lasting financial security.

If you're climbing professionally, it's time to make sure your money is climbing with you.

• Why the racial wealth gap affects more than just income
• The difference between generational and intergenerational wealth
• What every woman should know after landing a promotion or six-figure salary
• Why emergency funds are more important than ever
• How to avoid lifestyle creep as your income grows
• The truth about Buy Now, Pay Later programs
• Why your money story shapes your financial decisions
• Practical steps to build healthier financial habits

What's one financial habit you've carried from your past that may no longer serve the future you're trying to build?

More importantly...

What new money story do you want to begin writing today?

If this conversation encouraged you, share it with another woman who's working hard to build not only her career—but her wealth.

Because we're not just climbing careers.

We're building ladders.

Have you ever left a meeting wondering, "How did they come to that decision?" Or watched someone get promoted and thought, "What am I missing?"

Many of us assume the answer lies with the people involved. But what if the real answer is the system they're operating in?

In this episode, Felicia Smith explores one of the biggest mindset shifts in leadership: developing an executive lens. As you grow in your career, success becomes less about doing your job well and more about understanding how the entire organization works.

You'll learn why executives often see the same situation differently, how organizational history, relationships, competing priorities, and unwritten rules shape decisions, and why thinking beyond your own role is essential if you want to lead at the next level.

• Why there are really two organizations—the one on paper and the one that actually operates every day
• The difference between managing your work and understanding the business
• Five things executives see that most professionals overlook
• A practical framework to help you think more strategically when workplace decisions don't make sense
• How to begin developing an executive mindset without becoming "political"

Think about one recent decision at work that frustrated you.

Instead of asking, "Why would they do that?" ask yourself:

• What business problem were they trying to solve?
• What information might leadership have that I don't?
• Who are the key stakeholders?
• What competing priorities exist?
• What constraints may have influenced the decision?

You may discover there's more to the story than you first realized.

If this episode challenged the way you think about leadership, share it with another woman who's ready to move beyond doing great work and begin seeing the bigger picture.

Because we're not just climbing careers.

You've probably heard the advice:

"Work hard and your work will speak for itself."

While performance absolutely matters, leadership requires something more.

It requires relationships.

In the final episode of our Emotional Intelligence series, we're talking about Relationship Management—the ability to build authentic relationships rooted in trust, consistency, and mutual respect.

I share a pivotal moment in my career when someone else received an opportunity I believed I had earned. That experience forced me to realize something I had never been taught:

People don't just invest in ideas.

They invest in people they trust.

In this episode, we'll explore why trust is built long before opportunity arrives, how healthy relationships create influence, and three practical ways to strengthen your leadership through genuine connection.

• Why relationship management is essential to leadership

• The difference between networking and trust-building

• Why consistency creates credibility

• How to navigate conflict without damaging relationships

• Three practical habits to strengthen your professional relationships

Think about one relationship you've unintentionally allowed to become transactional.

What would it look like to invest in that relationship with no expectation of an immediate return?

Because leadership is built one conversation, one commitment, and one relationship at a time.

🌐 https://the-climb.org

📲 @JoinTheClimb

Because we are not just climbing careers.

We are building ladders. ✊🏾

It's about understanding the people around you.

In Part 3 of our Emotional Intelligence series, we're exploring Social Awareness—one of the most overlooked leadership skills and one of the biggest differentiators between good leaders and exceptional ones.

Because leadership is never practiced in isolation.

Every meeting, every conversation, every difficult decision involves people. And often, what's happening beneath the surface matters just as much as what's being said out loud.

In this episode, we'll explore how to become more observant, why empathy doesn't require agreement, and how understanding organizational dynamics can make you a more effective leader.

• Why social awareness is essential for leadership

• How to read the room and understand unspoken dynamics

• The difference between empathy and agreement

• Why organizational awareness matters

• Three practical ways to strengthen your social awareness

At your next meeting, spend the first five minutes observing instead of preparing your response.

What do you notice now that you wouldn't have noticed six months ago?

Because the room is always communicating.

The question is...

Are you listening?

🌐 https://the-climb.org

📲 @JoinTheClimb

🎧 Subscribe, share, and join the conversation.

Because we are not just climbing careers.

We are building ladders. ✊🏾

The real test of leadership is what you do with that knowledge when emotions are running high.

In Part 2 of our Emotional Intelligence series, we're talking about self-management—the ability to regulate your emotions, respond with intention, and lead strategically under pressure.

Because leadership isn't measured when everything is going well.

It's measured when you're frustrated.

When you're overlooked.

When your ideas are ignored.

When someone challenges your expertise.

When you have every reason to react—but choose strategy instead.

In this episode, I explore why professionalism isn't the absence of emotion; it's the management of emotion. I share lessons from my own leadership journey, the importance of "the pause," and practical strategies to help you respond thoughtfully instead of reacting impulsively.

If you've ever sent an email you regretted, responded too quickly in a difficult conversation, or struggled to separate what you were feeling from what you needed to do next, this episode is for you.

• Why self-management is essential for effective leadership

• The difference between reacting emotionally and responding strategically

• Why emotions are data—not directives

• The power of the pause in high-pressure moments

• Three practical strategies to strengthen your emotional regulation

The next time you feel yourself getting frustrated, pause and ask yourself:

"What outcome am I trying to achieve?"

Because leadership isn't about pretending you don't have emotions.

It's about making sure your emotions never make your decisions for you.

🌐 Website: https://the-climb.org

📲 @JoinTheClimb

🎧 Subscribe, share, and join the conversation.

Because we are not just climbing careers.

We are building ladders. ✊🏾