The Sync Leadership Lab

Trust and connection are the cornerstone to building a high performing team in today's world, and vulnerability is at the center of that. Take a listen to a former Marine and construction worker talk about his journey with vulnerability and how that is the foundation of the work he does today.

"What do you need more of, and what do you need less of from me as a leader?"

"If you're a little bit uncomfortable thinking about this, you're already doing good work because that means you're starting to build awareness."

Kicking off Season 2 with a quick discussion around belonging.

I share some of my experience seeking belonging, taking steps to create belonging in a way I could control it, and then creating belonging for my team. It is one of my proudest professional accomplishments so I wanted to take a few minutes to share it with you.

I'm excited to kick off this next season of The Sync Leadership Lab and welcome your feedback, topics, and any other engagement at [email protected] or via LinkedIn.

Han was a high performing marketer and produced incredible results in the work she did, but after nearly 2 decades of doing so, she decided to stop doing what she "should" be doing and pursue a career she was passionate about.

Take a listen to how she went from an immigrant with not much more than a box of crayons, to a Berkeley graduate and successful corporate career, to pursuing her passion of art. With many revelations and bold decisions along they way, she is now building an art business while doing the work she loves.

"You get to a point where all the external accolades and monetary gain doesn't make up for what you're compromising with your own sense of happiness and fulfillment."

"When the call for fulfillment and passion and the things that you've been avoiding and neglecting for so long becomes louder than the desire for comfort, then I knew that's when I had to really make a change"

"Be resilient and tenacious with your dreams...because no one's going to pursue them for you."

Create genuine trust and loyalty to drive the ultimate results for your team! Take a listen to Katy Peterson break down how to effectively do so in this Part 2 of the discussion.

We cover very tactical ways to compassionately drive both short and long term results in this fun discussion. You can easily implement many of them today!

"Everybody has a birthday. Put it into your calendar, send an email, call them, send them a card. it's one of those little things that really help in making those personal connections"

"If you have to deliver a tough message, you can't control what you say. You can, however, control how you communicate that information" 

"You're actually doing a disservice to the employees when we're unable to share with them constructive feedback."

Sometimes the corporate drive for results seems in conflict with compassionate leadership. Come take a listen to Katy Peterson talk about how to drive results and accountability through compassionate leadership, including the most impactful compassionate leadership moment she experienced and how it help her win 'Manager of the Year.'

Note: this is part 1 of a 2 part episode.

Some of my favorite quote:

"There's a distinct difference between process and style.

As a leader, I have to hit a number. It's my job. It's my job to get my team to hit that number. There is a process that I must follow to get them to that number. However, how I choose to train my team, the approach that I choose to take, That's my style."

"When you open that door and an employee finally trusts you enough to step through that door and share that piece with you again, that return is significantly"

"I don't have all the answers, so therefore you don't have all the answers, and that's okay. However, together, , this diversity in thought and approach, we're going to win, and we're going to find a way to win."

Burnout is all too prevalent in the workplace these days, so what are you doing to manage it for yourself and your team?

1 - LISTEN: Why do you think there’s a burnout issue? What is the canary in the coal mine?

2 - IDENTIFY: Identify the root cause(s).

3 - TEST: Choose 2-3 solutions to experiment with

Resources:

https://www.capitalhconsultants.com/the-burnout-breakthrough

7 root causes of burnout*

Workload (most common, typically perceived as being the only cause)

Choice & control: Autonomy over how/when of work

Community: Positive team dynamics, camaraderie, low toxicity

Recognition: Social, monetary, intrinsic rewards

Fairness: Perception of fairness: workload, pay, transparency

Values: Alignment of values between individuals and organization

Personal Resilience: The ability to manage stress, emotionally regulate in difficult situations

*Adapted from Christina Maslach's Burnout Inventory: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4911781/

Change is inevitable in life and in the corporate world, now more than ever, so what are you doing to lead through change?

Join me as I sit down with Rob Versaw to discuss ideas and tactics to lead through change including the stages of the change curve and how to progress through frustration and the other phases, the role of a manager through change, and how to get buy in from a team.

"The manager's role is really this two way communication back and forth to the executive team"

"If you don't do the listing and explaining the why talent is going to real quickly be become a problem in your company."

"That's where that's where magic happens. That's where people can go from stuck to really engage and a lot of times those people that get stuck end up being the people that lead out of it"

He built his career to became a successful leader, unfortunately at the expense of his health and family. Come take a listen to the revelations Suneel had and the changes he made to flip prioritizing work to prioritizing family, while still growing his career.

"You're working hard, but ultimately, what are you working for?"

"I was putting work as number one and putting everything else below that. After trying all of this, I realized that I have to flip it."

"I'm now seeing a big change in my interaction with my family and my kids"

Join me for a chat with a great leader and friend, Scott Ryan, as we discuss what it means and what it takes to truly lead people. Listen to how respect, curiosity, and authenticity play such a key role in leading teams and some of the lessons learned along the way on how to do so.

"If you don't understand your team's goals and their why. you can't truly help them achieve what they're trying to achieve. As a leader, that's your job."

Join me as I have an amazing chat with one of my mentors, Georgette Belair. We talk about mindset and tactics to utilize when being a newer manager.

We dive into discussion around the difficult transition from individual contributor to leader, the value of mentorship, what is professional empathy, how to overcome being the youngest or only woman at the leadership table, and so much more.

"I don't expect everyone to come where I am as a leader to be where I am in my headspace or my approach. I go where they are."

"You have to understand that as a leader, you don't have to be smarter than the people you lead."

"You're a leader if your team grows, you are not a leader if your team does"