Feeling stuck trying to navigate uncertainty in your leadership journey? In this episode of The Leader Within, award-winning executive coach and leadership consultant Dr. Carol Parker Walsh shares how to lead through ambiguity, reframe fear, and tune into your intuition for greater clarity.

With a background as a former attorney, senior leader, professor, and dean, Dr. Carol brings a unique blend of lived experience and deep insight into human development, identity, and people-forward leadership™.

As the CEO of Carol Parker Walsh Consulting Group, she specializes in executive coaching, leadership development, and organizational renewal—helping companies elevate and retain top talent.

Whether you're navigating a career transition or leading through complexity, this episode provides powerful coaching tools and practical leadership tips to help you move forward with clarity and confidence.

🎯 What You’ll Learn:

• Why questioning your thoughts increases leadership awareness

• How your mindset shapes your leadership presence

• Coaching prompts to move from fear to purpose

• When leaders model desired behaviours you can drastically improve a culture

How can leaders navigate complexity and systemic issues—while staying accountable to thecommunities they serve?

In this episode of The Leader Within, Angela Nguyen speaks with Sandra Clarkson, CEO of the Calgary Drop-In & Rehab Centre Society. They explore how Sandra leads through a housing crisis, toxic drug supply, and mental health challenges—while supporting a trauma-informed team.

Key themes include:

•  Compassion fatigue and navigating uncertainty as a leader
• Building trust and sourcing candid feedback in high-pressure environments
• Debunking common myths around homelessness
• Why affordable housing is central to long-term social impact
• Using systems thinking to drive sustainable solutions

 Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandra-clarkson-40233815/

Music intro credit: https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#LeadershipPodcast #CompassionFatigue #AffordableHousing #TraumaInformedLeadership #NonprofitLeadership#SelfLeadership #SystemsThinking #MentalHealthLeadership #ResilientTeams#FutureOfWork

What does it take to lead with empathy, resilience, and vision in today’s complex world?

In this episode of The Leader Within Podcast, host Angela Nguyen sits down with Dr. SaskiaSivananthan—an internationally recognized dementia policy leader, co-founder and CEO of The Brainwell Institute, Affiliate Professor at McGill University, and health data scientist.

Dr. Sivananthan shares stories from her journey, including how caregiving experiencesreshaped her career, what failure taught her about leadership, and why co-designing solutions with lived experience is essential for lasting impact.

Together, they explore:

• Why failure and imperfection can strengthen adaptive leadership.
• How caregiving impacts professionals—and what leaders must understand to better support teams.
• The urgent need for systemic change in dementia care.
• The role of empathy, equity, and shared leadership in shaping the future of work and healthcare.

Whether you’re leading through change, navigating caregiving responsibilities, or building more human-centered systems, this episode offers practical insights to help you grow the leader within.

Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-saskia-sivananthan/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-brainwell-institute/https://www.instagram.com/brainwell_institute/

www.brainwellinstitute.org/mindthegap

Music intro credit: https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#LeadershipDevelopment #EmotionalIntelligence #SelfLeadership #FutureOfWork #InclusiveLeadership#CareerGrowth #SystemicChange #WellBeing #SelfMastery #LeadershipPodcast

At 17, Jevon Wooden faced a 7-year prison sentence. A moment of empathy, set him on a path of personal transformation that would eventually earn him the Bronze Star for heroic leadership in Afghanistan—and later lead him to coach leadership teams around the world.

In this episode of The Leader Within, Jevon shares his insights on the impact of emotional intelligence, effective communication, empathy, flexibility and giving feedbackto help leaders and organizations unleash their full potential.

Takeaways from this episode:

• How empathy can redirect the course of a life—and a team
• Slowing down to make decision effectively while under pressure
• The ACT Framework: for direct, compassionate feedback
• Why flexibility is more than mindset—it’s a muscle
• Navigating your first time leading other leaders
• How yoga, self-awareness, and structure fuel resilience

Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

http://linkedin.com/in/jevonwooden

https://jevonwooden.com/books/

Music intro credit: 
https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#LeadershipPodcast #EmotionalIntelligence#SelfLeadership #TransformationalLeadership

In this episode of The Leader Within Podcast, Angela Nguyen speaks with Trish Lindo—personal branding architect, LinkedIn strategist, and CEO of Too Ambitious Consulting.

Trish shares her leadership journey from high-paced careers at Buzzfeed and LinkedIn to launching her own consulting business that empowers women executives and entrepreneurs. Together, Angela and Trish explore how leaders can balance empathy with performance, builda personal brand that accelerates career growth, and develop the self-awareness needed for authentic leadership.

What You’ll Learn:

• How to find and develop your authentic voice as a leader
• Why empathy + results = sustainable leadership
• Personal branding strategies that fuel career growth
• Why “selfish leadership” doesn’t last
• Challenges women entrepreneurs face (confidence, visibility, funding)
• How to align personal and business brand for greater impact

Key Takeaways:

• Leadership starts with inner work: reflection, boundaries, and self-awareness
• Empathy + performance + boundaries is the foundation of sustainable leadership
• Personal brand is not separate from business—it’s the core
• Slowing down strengthens resilience and self-leadership

Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/trishlindo/

Instagram: @TrishlindostyleToo Ambitious Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@TrishLindoStyle/featured

Music intro credit: https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

 🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#LeadershipDevelopment #SelfLeadership #PersonalBranding #WomenInLeadership #CareerGrowth#AuthenticLeadership #FutureOfWork #EmotionalIntelligence #InclusiveLeadership #SelfImprovement

In this special 2-year anniversary episode of The Leader Within, host Angela Nguyen flips the script and shares her story—one of setback, patience, and purpose.

After rupturing her Achilles tendon during a Muay Thai session, Angela was forced to slow down—a jarringshift for a high performer. What followed was not just physical rehab, but deep leadership insight on decision-making, resilience, self-compassion, and redefining what it means to lead through uncertainty.

Through real-time reflections on surgery, recovery setbacks, and psychological growth, Angela explores:

• The cost of indecision and how delayed action impacts leadership

• Why rest is not weakness—and when “pushing through” becomes sabotage

• The importance of trusting your body, your instincts, and the right support systems

• How adversity can illuminate your core leadership values
• Why leadership effectiveness isn’t built in the spotlight—but in the gray

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#LeadershipDevelopment #ResilientLeadership#PodcastForLeaders #HighPerformanceHabits #LeadThroughTheGray

In this episode of The Leader Within podcast, Angela is joined by Akua Nyame-Mensah— Leadership, Culture & Transformation Advisor. Together, they explore what it really means to lead when there’s no playbook and you're constantly being pulled in different directions.

💬 Akua shares:

• Her 3-step leadership framework
• Lessons from building a team from scratch (and letting go of control)
• Change management tips especially when change fatigue is killingmomentum for leaders and teams
• How to manage evolving KPIs without losing trust
• Tools for better team communication in high-growth environments
• The mindset shift that helps leaders shift from micromanagement to identifying and communicating expectations
• Why emotional intelligence is critical in the age of AI

Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

https://www.akuanm.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/akuanm/

 Music intro credit: https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

Whether you're new to leadership or redefining what success looks like in your role as a founder or leader, this conversation will help you lead the leader within—so you can lead others more effectively.

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#LeadershipPodcast #ExecutiveCoaching #SelfLeadership #CareerGrowth #SelfImprovement #EmotionalIntelligence #StartupLeadership #OvercomingOverwhelm #FutureOfWork #PersonalGrowth

🎻 What can corporate leaders learn from anorchestra conductor? More than you might think.

In this episode of The Leader Within, international orchestra conductor and performance coach, Roit Feldenkreis shares how the high-stakes world of live performance offers apowerful lens on leadership, communication, and presence.

From earning trust in minutes to navigating chaos with composure, Roit translates the art of conducting into practical, high-impact lessons for today’s forward-thinkingleaders.

🎯 Topics we explore:

• Leading through uncertainty with emotional intelligence
• Building trust quickly with new teams
• Navigating gender dynamics in leadership
• Using music to create immersive leadership experiences
• Common themes she is noticing leaders areencountering at this time

Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

https://www.bhz-group.com  

https://www.linkedin.com/in/roit-feldenkreis/https://roitfeldenkreis.com  

https://www.instagram.com/roitfeldenkreis/https://www.facebook.com/artistmentor/https://www.youtube.com/@roitfeldenkreisconductor

Music intro credit: https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

If you’re leading in fast-paced environments or preparing for your next big leap, this conversation will inspire you to strengthen your inner foundation—and lead from within.

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕button!

#LeadershipDevelopment #WomenInLeadership #TheLeaderWithinPodcast

Curious as to what leadership lessons this former monk is sharing with fortune 500 leaders, tune in!
In this episode of The Leader Within, Angela interviews Pandit Dasa, CEO of Work Mindful Corp. Pandit is a distinguished keynote speaker specializing in workplace culture, the future of work, resilience, mental health, andmindfulness. As an accomplished author and former monk, he has addressed numerous Fortune 500 companies and some of the world's largest organizations.

Key Takeaways

• Self-awareness fuels leadership: When isthe last time you’ve checked your ‘battery’ and how has your level been impacting your team?
• Introspection is key to discovering your purpose
• Leading in Service to others builds trust and long-term impact.
• Mindfulness can be a transformational performance tool: Breathing techniques and emotional check-ins improve clarity under pressure and your ability to de-escalate high-tension situations.
• Appreciation transforms culture: Small moments of praise build belonging, loyalty and performance.
  

Want to stay connected to our guest and the great work that they are doing? Check out the links below:

https://www.panditdasa.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/panditdasa/

Music intro credit: https://pixabay.com/music/upbeat-uplifting-2463/⁠ 

🔔 Ready to empower the leader within? Click that ➕ button!

#Leadership #TheLeaderWithin #LeadershipDevelopment #MindfulLeadership #FutureOfWork #WorkplaceCulture #PersonalGrowth

Hey everyone — I’m pressing pause on new episodes starting July 8th, and I’ll be back August 12th.

In this short solo update, I’m sharing why I believe stepping back is sometimes the smartest move — even when FOMO and algorithms tell you otherwise. After interviewing over 70 guests, I know we can’t just keep grinding without taking time to think, plan, and live in alignment with how we want to lead and live.

I’m spending this break recharging, exploring how AI can help me work smarter as a one-woman production, catching up with loved ones, and recovering from my Achilles rupture.

Need a listen in the meantime? You’ve got 69 episodes here and 200+ videos on YouTube waiting for you: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLeaderWithinPodcast8

✨ I’ll be back on August 12th — until then, take care of yourselves and remember: holding space for yourself helps you effectively lead yourself and others .