Some leadership frameworks are born in classrooms.
 Others are born in suffering.

In this deeply personal episode of The Leader in You Podcast, Dr. Lola shares the story behind the Emotional Connection (EmC) process—a journey shaped by years of workplace conflict, disconnection, and emotional pain, and ultimately transformed into a path of healing, clarity, and hope.

Rather than offering another set of leadership tips or behavior-change techniques, this conversation explores what actually happens to us under pressure, why so many leadership and conflict-resolution programs fail when emotions run high, and how emotional connection became the missing piece.

In this intimate interview, you’ll hear:

• How prolonged workplace suffering led to the creation of the EmC process
• Why logic and skills break down during conflict and stress
• What attachment science and neuroscience reveal about leadership under pressure
• How emotional safety restores balance, trust, and performance
• Why anyone—not just those with formal authority—can bring light into a struggling team

This episode is especially meaningful for internal trainers, HR professionals, and L&D/O&D leaders who work with leaders and teams in distress and are searching for approaches that create lasting change—not just short-term relief.

This is a conversation about tragedy, resilience, and the quiet power of emotional connection to bring light back into our work, our relationships, and ourselves.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this inspiring episode, we sit down with Merry Brown—a philosopher-turned-mediator, ombuds, facilitator, and host of Conflict Managed—to explore how her unique journey from academia to workplace conflict resolution is reshaping the way organizations think about tension, triggers, and team relationships.

Merry brings a calm, grounding presence and a rare ability to connect the intellectual world of philosophy with the emotional realities of human behavior at work. Her story offers a refreshing reminder: conflict is not a failure—it’s information. It’s a signal that something in the relationship needs care, clarity, and connection.

This episode is especially meaningful for internal trainers, HR professionals, L&D strategists, OD consultants, and people leaders who want to shift from reactive problem-solving to proactive relationship building.

Together, we explore:

• How philosophy prepared Merry to navigate the deeper “why” behind conflict
• What actually triggers emotional reactions at work—and why people get stuck
• How personal narratives, assumptions, and old patterns quietly shape team dynamics
• The difference between healthy conflict and toxic conflict
• Practical ways to help teams slow down, reflect, and interrupt negative cycles
• Why emotional safety—not policies—is the real foundation for performance
• How to guide people who are constantly triggered or overwhelmed
• What it looks like to co-create small, sustainable agreements that rebuild trust

Merry also gives us a preview of her new book on generational dynamics and how age-related narratives fuel misunderstanding at work. Her insights bring immediate value to anyone trying to build inclusive, emotionally intelligent teams.

If your role involves supporting people through difficult conversations—or teaching leaders how to handle conflict with confidence and compassion—this episode will give you practical tools and a renewed sense of hope.

A meaningful, energizing conversation for anyone committed to creating workplaces where people feel seen, valued, and connected.

Connect with Merry Brown on LinkedIn

Visit her website - 3pconflictrestorateion.com

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this special and heartfelt episode of The Leader in You, Dr. Lola Gershfeld and co-host Polina Marian welcome a uniquely insightful guest—16-year-old CEO, influencer, and long-time EmC practitioner, Elli Goldberg.

Elli shares her remarkable journey of navigating family transitions, growing through emotionally focused therapy, and applying the Emotional Connection (EmC) process to her relationships, her business, and the world of social media influence.

Despite her age, Elli brings an emotional depth and clarity that many adults struggle to find. She opens up about:

• How divorce, family challenges, and therapy shaped her emotional confidence
• What it’s like to manage conflict publicly in the influencer world
• How the EmC process taught her to slow down emotions and find her true feelings
• Why drawing emotional images is both the hardest and most transformative part of the process
• How empathy and emotional awareness changed the way she views people, relationships, and even online drama
• Why teaching kids and teens emotional language can change their lives—and yours

Elli’s voice offers a rare window into the next generation—one that is emotionally aware, deeply expressive, and committed to connection.

If you’re a parent, a leader, or someone who wants to understand emotional safety from a fresh and inspiring perspective, this episode is a must-listen.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this heartfelt Thanksgiving-week episode of The Leader in You, Dr. Lola Gershfeld and co-host Polina Marian explore a surprisingly common but rarely discussed experience at work—how even a small moment of feeling forgotten or unseen can shake an entire team.

Drawing from a real situation (shared with permission) with a CEO and CFO, they walk through how a simple birthday misunderstanding spiraled into days of emotional distance, avoidance, confusion, and team-wide tension. More importantly, they show how the EmC process helped the leaders reconnect, repair their bond, and restore safety and trust to the whole team.

You’ll learn:

• Why people “act weird” when they’re emotionally off-balance
• How disconnection at work follows predictable emotional patterns
• What raw spots, triggers, and fears get activated in everyday moments
• Why repairing quickly matters for your well-being — at work and at home
• Simple steps you can take to regain balance when you’re triggered
• How gratitude becomes more accessible when connection is restored

If you’re heading into the holidays feeling stressed, hurt, or disconnected, this episode offers a path back to emotional grounding — and a reminder that weird behavior is nearly always a sign of longing for connection, not a character flaw.

A comforting, insightful episode perfect for this season of gratitude, belonging, and reconnection.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this episode of The Leader in You, Dr. Lola Gershfeld and her daughter and co-host, Polina Marian, explore one of the most universal leadership challenges: how to keep your focus during stressful situations.

We often believe that staying focused means staying on the problem—the facts, the content, the mistakes, the timeline. But as Lola and Polina explain using the Emotional Connection (EmC) framework, true focus comes from shifting your attention away from the content and toward the underlying emotional experience—yours and the other person’s.

Through a compelling real-life example from a global organization, Lola illustrates how a leader transformed a tense, disconnected moment into a breakthrough of understanding, empathy, and reconnection—not by fixing the problem, but by slowing down and focusing on raw spots, triggers, and emotions.

You’ll learn:

• Why stressful conversations knock us off balance
• How focusing on content keeps teams stuck
• How to quickly shift your focus to what actually matters
• The specific questions that help people express vulnerability
• The role of co-regulation and co-creation in emotionally safe teams
• How staying focused on emotional experience resolves problems more effectively—and prevents them from repeating

If you’ve ever found yourself reacting, shutting down, defending, or trying to fix things too quickly, this episode will give you a simple, powerful roadmap for staying grounded and creating connection—even in the hardest moments.

Watch or listen to the full episode to learn how emotional focus can transform your conversations, your leadership, and your team culture.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this insightful episode of The Leader in You, Polina and Dr. Lola Gershfeld sit down with Dr. Jamie Goff, author of The Secure Leader, to explore how attachment science shapes leadership, team relationships, and the emotional culture of the workplace.
 

Jamie shares her personal journey—from teaching emotionally focused therapy (EFT) to stepping into leadership and realizing how her own attachment patterns showed up in her role as a department chair. A single moment with her administrative assistant (“You have to let me do my job”) became a turning point that opened her eyes to how deeply our relationship histories influence our leadership behaviors.

Together, we explore:

• Why leaders don’t show up at work as “blank slates”—they bring their whole relational history with them
• How avoidant or anxious patterns quietly shape leadership decisions, conflict, and collaboration
• The emotional courage it takes to go beneath the surface and own your fears and needs
• Why emotional attunement and high expectations are not opposites—they strengthen each other
• Practical tools from The Secure Leader to increase emotional awareness, regulate reactivity, and move toward earned security
• How connection creates resilience, clarity, and healthier conversations—even during difficult moments
   

This episode is warm, relatable, and filled with powerful insights about what it truly means to be a secure leader—one who fosters trust, emotional safety, and a connected culture.

Where to Find Jamie’s Work

• Website: drjamiegoff.com
• Book: The Secure Leader 

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this heartfelt episode of The Leader in You, Dr. Lola Gershfeld speaks with Niamh Hannan, EmC Certified Trainer in Ireland, about what it truly means to bring people home—to themselves, to one another, and to emotional safety at work.

Fresh from leading a two-day EmC Master Class in Ireland, Niamh shares moving stories of leaders and coaches who discovered how to transform disconnection into trust and teamwork through the Emotional Connection (EmC) process. Together, Lola and Niamh explore:

🌱 How emotional awareness builds safety, confidence, and connection.
 💬 Why structure in the EmC process helps people open up safely.
 🌍 The universal need to belong—across cultures, teams, and virtual spaces.
 🤖 How to keep the human factor alive in an AI-driven world.

This episode reminds us that no matter where we are—in the office, online, or across continents—home is not a place, but a feeling we create through emotional connection.

✨ Connect with Niamh:
Visit https://niamhhannan.com/
or connect with her on https://www.linkedin.com/in/niamhhannan/
to learn more about her work and upcoming trainings.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this episode, Polina and Dr. Lola unpack what happens when workplace conflicts take an unexpected turn — what they call “the curveball.” Whether it’s defensiveness, shutdown, or denial, these moments often derail even our best intentions to connect.

Together, they explore how emotional disconnection fuels these reactions and how leaders, managers, and teammates can use the EmC process to slow things down, recognize protective behaviors, and create safety for real conversations to happen.

Tune in to learn:

• Why “curveballs” in conflict are really protection signals, not attacks
• How to spot the pursuer–withdrawer cycle and use the right phrases to rebuild trust
• What managers can do to help two people reconnect without taking sides
• Why expressing emotion is like putting down a heavy bag of bricks — freeing both the heart and mind

Join Polina and Dr. Lola as they show how even the toughest moments can become opportunities for healing, connection, and growth at work.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

What happens when two aerospace engineers just can’t get along—and a manager decides not to force a resolution?

In this insightful and entertaining episode from Day 2 of the ATD OrgDev Conference, Dr. Lola Gershfeld, Polina Marian, and guest Matt Gjertsen with Better Everyday Studios uncover how a workplace conflict turned into an unexpected story of connection, understanding, and emotional growth.

Matt shares a true story about two teammates who went from frustration to friendship—not through confrontation, but through simple, human moments of care. Together, we explore why emotions are contagious, how safety and empathy reshape team dynamics, and why no amount of AI or automation can replace genuine human connection.

Get ready for laughter, science, and inspiration—from handshakes and hugs in boardrooms to the power of emotional attunement that can transform entire teams.

🎧 Listen in to discover how turning conflict into connection can unlock trust, collaboration, and creativity at work.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...

In this lively conference edition of The Leader in You Podcast, Dr. Lola Gershfeld and her daughter and co-host, Polina Marian, bring listeners behind the scenes at the ATD OrgDev Conference in Houston — joined by special guest Beth Messick, leadership coach and advisory board member for OrgDev.

Together, they unpack key insights from keynote speaker Galen Emanuele, who used the principles of improv — especially the “Yes, And” mindset — to illustrate how openness, flexibility, and emotional presence transform team dynamics and connection at work.

From playful improv exercises to deep reflections on emotional triggers, presence, and body awareness, this conversation bridges performance and neuroscience — showing how saying yes (and meaning it) creates trust and emotional safety in organizations.

You’ll learn how:

• The “Yes, And” approach mirrors emotionally safe communication in teams.
• Presence helps us tune into others’ emotions beyond just words.
• Disconnection and indifference can feel more painful than outright “no.”
• Emotional awareness allows leaders to expand flexibility and repair trust.

🎧 Tune in for a powerful mix of laughter, learning, and lived experience — and discover how Emotional Connection and improv thinking together can build more responsive, resilient teams.

The Leader in You is the go-to podcast for anyone who wants to create a workplace culture where you can thrive.

Envision a future where you are more grounded, confident, and in sync with your team.

CONNECT:
EmC Leaders
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube Channel

RESOURCES:
TESA - TEAM EMOTIONAL SAFETY ASSESSMENT
RESOURCES & DOWNLOADS
EMC MASTER CLASS
CONTACT US

Connect with Dr. Lola Gershfeld:

LinkedIn: Dr. Lola Gershfeld
Instagram: @drlolaemc

Connect with Polina Marian:

LinkedIn: Polina Marian
Instagram: @livewithfivekids

Dr. Lola Gershfeld, a distinguished organizational psychologist, has dedicated her career to delving into the intricate layers of employee engagement, team ...