THIS Leader Podcast

Imagine opening Slack on an ordinary Tuesday and watching your colleagues' names turn gray, one by one. You refresh. You assume it's a glitch. And then your own access drops, your laptop locks, and your badge stops working.

No call. No meeting. No warning.

That actually happened — and it's stories like this that might be haunting your team members right now.

In this episode, I get into what organizational contraction does to the people you lead, and what you can do to lead the way with coherence, clarity and kindness.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

• Why leading through contraction is a very different challenge than leading through expansion
• What's happening in a frightened brain, and how worst-case assumptions can impact trust.
• The different faces of fear, and how disengagement, over-functioning and combativeness may all come from the same source.
• How information scarcity may be fueling the rumor mill.

Four moves for leading through times of contraction

1. Anchor to your values — (and do this work before you need it!) Your values aren't wall art; they're your decision filters. They determine what you protect and how you make hard decisions.
2. Apply your decision filters. Applying your values helps you make better decisions. It doesn't make hard calls easy, but it make them coherent — and coherence keeps trust alive when people are scared.
3. Slow down, and communicate with extraordinary care. Your instinct in times of crisis may be to speed up. But leaders rushing decisions in times of contraction make worse decisions and break more trust — partly because leaders are having their own fear response, and none of us make our best decisions under stress.
4. Be patient with people's fear responses. Patience isn't permissiveness — you still need the work done. But patience means factoring human biology into your leadership strategy.

This week's challenge

Begin to name your values and decision filters. They will help you make your best decisions. Write down the two or three questions every hard decision in your organization has to pass through. Having these filters clarified up front will make hard decisions a little easier.

If you can't name them, or if your team members all have different ideas about which filters matter most, that's your work.

Resources Mentioned:

• David Rock's SCARF model — status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, fairness
• Harris Poll for Bloomberg News, October 2025 — 55% of employed Americans concerned about losing their jobs
• Episode 66 with Lisa Alessi on fear based responses
• Episodes 58 and 72 with Dr. Lisa Riegel on brain-based leadership

Ready to go deeper? If you want to build the kind of leadership foundation that holds in any season — clear values, real decision filters, and enough trust to get you through the hard parts — reach out for a free consultation. Visit ClaireLaughlin.com and click "Schedule a consultation" at the top of the page.

Until next time, lead the way!

Subscribe & share: If this episode resonated, share it with a leader who needs to hear it. It helps more than you know!

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me on social channels @Claire Laughlin Consulting.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Alignment doesn't happen because everyone nodded. It happens because people leave the room with a shared understanding of the decision, a genuine commitment to move it forward, and the confidence to communicate it consistently to everyone else.

That's where many teams get stuck. We mistake compliance for alignment, assume silence means agreement, and only realize something was missing when the same decision resurfaces weeks later.

In this episode, I explore what true alignment really looks like, why it's so easy to mistake it for compliance, and the simple process that helps teams make better, more aligned decisions together from the very beginning. I will also name the mental models that quietly sabotage alignment before the process even has a chance to work.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

• Clarity vs. Compliance vs. Alignment: Why these three get confused — and why that confusion is costly for teams and momentum.
• The Four-Step Decision-Making Process: Get everyone in the same frame, invent and grapple with real options, step over the decision line, and communicate with intention.
• The Mental Model Traps: The four internal postures — like coming in to sell instead of explore, or protecting your turf instead of the outcome — that derail alignment even with a great process in place.
• The Self-Awareness Check: One question to ask yourself before every high-stakes decision conversation.

This week's challenge

Think about the last important decision your team made. Were people truly aligned or did everyone simply agree to move on?

Choose one upcoming decision and intentionally slow the process down. Invite real discussion, make the decision explicit, and leave the room knowing everyone is committed, not just compliant.

Resources Mentioned in the Episode:

1. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team — Patrick Lencioni
2. Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work — Chip Heath and Dan Heath (Crown Business, 2013)

Work with Claire: Ready to build a decision-making culture where alignment is the norm? Schedule a consultation

Join the Conversation:

Where are you consuming vs. truly learning right now? Share your thoughts with me on social media or through my website — I'd love to hear from you.

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me on social channels @Claire Laughlin Consulting.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Until next time — lead the way!

We're surrounded by great leadership content. Podcasts. Books. Courses. Articles. It's never been easier to consume information.

So why do we have to revisit the same struggles and content time and again?

In this episode, I explore the difference between consuming information and structured learning and why our tendency toward consumption quietly keeps so many leaders from growing as quickly as they'd like. Through two personal stories, I share the mindset shift that changed how I approach my own development, and why having proven structure and an on-demand community have become essential parts of how I learn.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

Why consuming isn't the same as learning: The quiet belief that "I should already know this," and why it keeps so many leaders from building the foundation they actually need.

What learning Spanish taught me about leadership: How moving from app-based practice to structured, step-by-step learning helped me build the right foundation and completely changed my feelings of progress, and why the same principle applies to leadership development.

Why community changes everything: How joining a community of leaders reminded me that growth happens faster when you're learning alongside other people.

The power of structure + community: Why information alone won't create lasting change, and how these two ingredients help turn ideas into habits that stick.

The leadership ripple effect: How your willingness to keep learning gives your team permission to do the same, creating a culture where curiosity, feedback, and growth become the norm.

This week's challenge

Ask yourself these simple questions:

1. How do I want to grow as a leader?
2. What do I want to truly learn?
3. What is the most effective path for me to get there?

Then choose one area where you can move beyond collecting ideas and start creating lasting change.

Resources Mentioned in the Episode:

• The AI Playbook, led by Rick Mulready
• EVOLVE Leadership Development Platform
• Schedule a Consult

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me on social channels @Claire Laughlin Consulting.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Until next time, lead the way!

Most of us think we're paying attention to the right things in those conversations. We prepare some points, choose our words carefully, and think about timing and delivery.

We care about others and want to have healthy relationships. But even with the best intentions, our language can sometimes send messages we never meant to communicate. A confident, and self-assured opinion can quietly convey closed-mindedness. A quick, unilateral decision can tell others, "your perspective isn't needed here." A bold claim about "how they are," can make you feel like an expert, while closing the door to building a deeper understanding of any given person or situation.

In this episode, I share a simple, time-tested framework that fundamentally changed the way I communicate. Drawing on the work of theorist Jack Gibb, we'll explore how small shifts in the words we choose can create either a defensive climate where people shut down, or a supportive climate where trust, openness, and honest conversations can flourish.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

• The difference between defensive and supportive communication climates and how to recognize which one you're creating
• How to shift from evaluation to description when giving feedback, so the other person can actually hear you
• Why controlling communication erodes team engagement over time even when you think you're just being decisive
• The counterfeit version of empathy that can damage trust more than saying nothing at all
• How certainty as a default posture shuts down the thinking of everyone around you, and what to do instead

Resources mentioned in this episode:

The Advice Trap by Michael Bungay Stanier

Try this:

Pick one pattern from today's episode that resonates most. In your next difficult conversation, notice when it shows up and try just one small shift.

Connect with Claire:

Website & free resources: clairelaughlin.com

EVOLVE Leadership Development Platform: clairelaughlin.com/evolve

Until next time — lead the way!

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me on social channels @Claire Laughlin Consulting.

No leader wakes up in the morning hoping their team is confused, misaligned, or operating from different assumptions. And yet clarity has a way of slipping through our fingers.

In this episode, I move beyond the idea that clarity is important and explore what it actually takes to create it. Because clarity isn't a destination. It's an ongoing leadership practice. It's a rhythm. It's a habit. Clarity tends to fade and expire quickly, and it requires far more attention than most of us realize.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

Why creating clarity is hard

It's invisible when it's present, painfully obvious when it's absent, and surprisingly easy to assume we already have it. We'll explore why driving for clarity can feel like slowing down when it's actually one of the fastest ways to move the right work forward.

How clarity gaps become people problems

When expectations are unclear, trust starts to erode. Instead of questioning the clarity of the message, we begin questioning each other's competence, commitment, or intentions.

Cohesion, clarity, and alignment

How these three forces work together, and why true alignment is impossible when people aren't clear on what they're aligning around.

Why clarity is a verb

The mindset shift that changes everything, plus why a "good enough" plan everyone understands will outperform a perfect plan that exists only in your head.

Five places to drive for clarity

1. Big-picture clarity: Use a thematic goal to answer the question: What matters most right now?
2. Cultural clarity: Make expectations explicit and build behavioral standards with your team so people genuinely own them.
3. Detail clarity: Get clear on who is doing what, by when, and eliminate ambiguity before it creates problems.
4. Cascading clarity: Create simple disciplines that help important messages travel through the organization intact.
5. Commitment clarity: Make it safe for people to be honest so you get genuine commitment instead of polite agreement.

This week's challenge

Pick one meeting. Before anyone leaves the room, spend three to five minutes asking:

• What did we decide?
• Who's doing what, by when?
• What should NOT leave this room?
• What's the message we're carrying forward?

Then pay attention to what changes.

Resources Mentioned:

1. Episode #2: Setting Your Leadership Standards
2. Episode #26: Silent Culture Killers
3. The work of Patrick Lencioni on team certainty and end-of-meeting discipline

Ready to go deeper? If you want to build real clarity, trust, and cohesion into how your team operates, reach out for a free consultation. Visit clairelaughlin.com and click "Schedule a Consult" at the top of the page.

Until next time, lead the way!

Subscribe & share: If this episode resonated, share it with a leader who needs to hear it. It helps more than you know!

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me @Claire Laughlin Consulting on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Your team member walks in frustrated, overwhelmed, resistant to the change you just rolled out and your instinct is to reassure her with logic, data, and a compelling vision of the future. But the harder you push, the more it backfires.

Why? It's because change sometimes feels threatening and when people feel threatened, overwhelmed, uncertain, or resistant, they're not processing information the way you think they are.

In this episode, Dr. Lisa Riegel returns to the podcast to explore the brain science behind change, emotion, and human behavior. Together, we unpack why leading with facts alone will never be enough and emotions always win over logic. You'll learn what happens when the emotional brain takes over, and what leaders can actually do to make change land with less resistance.

Here's what you'll learn in this episode:

Why "just the facts" is a myth.

Every piece of information your team receives passes through an unconscious emotional filter shaped by past experiences, fears, and associations they may not even be aware of. As a leader, understanding this changes everything about how you communicate.

Why "calm down" is the worst thing you can say

When someone enters a heightened emotional state, their thinking brain becomes far less accessible. Before people can process information, they often need help regulating their emotional response.

The 7 conditions for change to stick

Lisa walks through her research-backed framework for leading change at the organizational, team, and individual level including why celebration and culture aren't nice-to-haves, they're neurologically necessary.

The aptitude/attitude matrix

A practical tool for identifying exactly where each team member is in the change process and how to support them individually instead of applying a one-size-fits-all approach.

Why every change involves a loss

When you ask someone to adopt a new system or process, you may be asking them to give up an identity. Good leaders make room for that mourning.

Resources mentioned:

1. Aspirations to Operations by Dr. Lisa Riegel
2. NeuroWell by Dr. Lisa Riegel
3. Women Who Rise Summit — Asheville, NC, August 21st — www.WomenWhoRiseSummit.com
4. Connect with Dr. Lisa Riegel on her website and LinkedIn
5. Visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me @Claire Laughlin Consulting on Instagram and LinkedIn.
6. Listen to Episode 58 -part 1 Brain Science of Leadership with Dr. Lisa Riegel

Thanks for listening! New episodes are released weekly. Share with others who might benefit!

Meet Our Guest Dr. Lisa Riegel

Dr. Lisa Riegel has spent two decades doing something most of us desperately need- translating the complex science of the brain into language leaders can actually use. As an educator, researcher, and author of five books, Lisa's work sits at the intersection of neuroscience, behavior, and organizational change. She holds a Ph.D. in Education Policy and Leadership from Ohio State University, and her two latest books -Aspirations to Operations and NeuroWell- give leaders and educators practical, brain-based frameworks for creating real, lasting change.

Whether she's working with school systems, corporate teams, or individual leaders, Lisa has a rare gift for helping people understand why they do what they do and how to do it differently. She also hosts the Women Who Rise Summit, bringing together women leaders ready to reinvent and grow. If this conversation sparked something for you, she'd love to connect with you on LinkedIn.

When was the last time someone on your team asked a question that made everyone really stop and think? For many teams, those moments feel uncomfortable. There are deadlines to hit, problems to solve, and a never-ending list of priorities competing for attention. So the question gets set aside, and everyone gets back to work.

The trouble is that innovation rarely emerges from moving faster through the same patterns. It begins with wonder.

In this episode, I talk with Working Genius master facilitator Heather Italiano, whose highest genius is Wonder, about how to make real space for curiosity at work without losing your sense of productivity.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

Why questions feel risky at work

When someone asks, "Isn't there a better way to do this?" it's easy to dismiss the question and move on. Heather explains why that response can unintentionally silence your most curious people and limit your team's ability to innovate.

The difference between solving problems and exploring possibilities

Many teams spend their days reacting to challenges and fixing what's broken. We discuss why real innovation requires a different question entirely: not "What's the problem?" but "What's possible?"

How to create space for wonder without losing productivity

Wonder doesn't have to mean endless brainstorming sessions or unanswered questions. Heather shares practical ways leaders can make room for curiosity while still moving work forward.

Connect with Heather: http://peoplewarriors.com/

Resources mentioned:

1. Episode 31: Using Your Strengths (Working Genius overview)
2. The Working Genius model (Patrick Lencioni)
3. Appreciative Inquiry & the "4-D Cycle" (Discovery, Dream, Design, Destiny)

Visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me @Claire Laughlin Consulting on socials.

Thanks for listening! New episodes are released weekly. Share with others who might benefit!

Meet Our Guest

Heather Italiano is a Fellow and master facilitator of the Working Genius, whose own highest genius is Wonder—a kind of radar that never switches off, always scanning for what could be better and what else might be possible. She works with teams to turn that instinct into one of the most productive things an organization can do, helping leaders make real space for curiosity and channel it in service of the work itself.

With more than a decade of experience in the hospitality space, Heather has worked with countless hotels and leaders to move beyond reactive problem-solving and into genuine innovation. She's one of Claire's favorite people to think out loud with and in this conversation, you'll hear them riff and build on each other's ideas from start to finish.

Connect with Heather: http://peoplewarriors.com/

What happens when a new employee ignores their own good instincts and follows the wrong advice instead? In this episode, I share a personal story about a new employee who found himself caught between what his gut was telling him and the advice of a more senior team member. It's also the story of a manager whose four simple words changed the way he saw himself and his future. In this episode, you'll hear about:

• Why the "what do I do in this case?" feeling never really goes away. It's not a beginner's problem but a human one. Every new role, manager, and team brings it back at new altitudes.
• Why "I've got your back" is a verb, AND a feeling. The difference between the slogan and the substance is whether you actually do something visible to prove it.
• Backing your people returns their judgment to them. When you validate good instincts and stand between someone and the risk, you give them the confidence to speak up next time.
• The ripple effect on culture. One leader's choice to back someone or not teaches everyone watching what's safe. Those lessons compound into a culture.
• Why instinct matters more than many leaders realize. Strong judgment isn't developed through policies and manuals alone. It grows when people are encouraged to think critically, trust their observations, and learn from experience.

Three ways to put "I've got your back" into practice:

1. Assume positive intent – even before you have a track record to go on. When someone's new, extend trust in low risk situations.
2. Validate the judgment, not just the feelings. Soothing the feeling misses the transformational lesson. Affirm that their read on the situation was trustworthy.
3. Take visible action. Pick up the phone. Correct the record. Let them see you spend a little of your own capital because this is rocket fuel for helping them feel safe.

This week's challenge: Find one person on your team who's standing in that vulnerable, stretching spot right now. Validate their judgment. Tell them their instincts are good and then do something visible that proves you mean it.

Resources mentioned:

1. EVOLVE Leadership Development Program — Give your leaders a shared foundation and common language for leadership, supported by facilitated conversations that turn learning into lasting change. Learn more at clairelaughlin.com/evolve
2. Episode 65 on psychological safety with Janet Williams — The perfect companion to this episode.

Subscribe & share: If this episode resonated, share it with a leader who needs to hear it. It helps more than you know!

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me @Claire Laughlin Consulting on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Even strong teams drift over time. Expectations can become assumptions. Purpose gets overshadowed by deadlines. Relationships become more transactional. And before anyone notices, people are working alongside each other rather than together. It's not a sign that anything is wrong with you or your people. It's just what happens.

In this episode, I share a simple framework for bringing your team back into tune: the team reset. Whether your team has drifted or has never really been "set" in the first place, the same three moves apply:

1. Reclaim your standards. Declare your intent out loud, then build team agreements together.
2. Revive your purpose and relationships. Reconnect to your "why" using a simple "TO…(contribution) SO THAT…(impact)" structure, and make real time to genuinely know one another.
3. Refocus your energy. Shorten your goal horizons to create urgency and build in a sense of real progress; cascade goals so everyone sees the line from their to-do list to the mission; and celebrate progress along the way.

And if you've ever thought, "yeah, but I don't have time for this team building stuff" I'll address why tending your team is the work, not a distraction from it.

You don't have to overhaul everything all at once. Pick one area. Make one intentional adjustment and start your reset.

If you'd like help, this is exactly what I do often in a single, focused day: the One-Day Team Reset. Reach out and schedule a consultation, and we'll talk about what your team needs.

Until next time, lead the way!

Resources mentioned:

1. Patrick Lencioni's The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
2. Jim Kouzes & Barry Posner's The Leadership Challenge
3. Simon Sinek's Start With Why
4. Teresa Amabile's The Progress Principle
5. Episode 5 - "Energize Your Team."

• Amabile, T. M., & Kramer, S. J. (2011). The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work. Harvard Business Review Press.

• Lencioni, P. (2002). The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Jossey-Bass. (Trust → Conflict → Commitment → Accountability → Results pyramid; via The Table Group.)

• Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. The Leadership Challenge. — "the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle for shared aspirations." (Direct quote.)

• Sinek, S. (2009). Start With Why. Portfolio/Penguin.

• Michael Hyatt — "Focus on your why and you won't lose your way." (Direct quote.)

• Stephen R. Covey — "Stop setting goals. Goals are pure fantasy unless you have a specific plan to achieve them." (Direct quote; widely attributed to Covey but primary book/source unconfirmed — verify before publish.)

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me @Claire Laughlin Consulting on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Much of our leadership stress doesn't come from big crises. It comes from the constant stream of "quick asks," shifting priorities, vague expectations, and the pressure to keep everyone happy without dropping the ball yourself.

In this episode, Claire shares a simple framework to help you respond to those requests and to the people above you with confidence, clarity, and a lot less stress. Instead of reacting habitually or making decisions under pressure, you'll learn how to pause, assess, and respond in a way that protects both your relationships and your priorities.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

• The hidden cost of silos: The invisible rework, duplicated effort, and decisions made in a vacuum that quietly drain organizations of precious time, even when the work is technically "getting done."
• The real problem with cross-functional requests: It's not that you're too busy or that colleagues are unreasonable. It's ambiguity, i.e., not knowing the ask, the urgency, or your role.
• The ACE Framework: Three steps to ground every response- Assess the ask, Clarify your role, and Engage your stakeholders.
• How to provide great internal customer service by saying, "Here's what I can do. Here's by when. Here's what I need from you."
• The proactive prioritization / managing-up conversation: Four questions, ten minutes, once a month to build clarity before the chaos.
• Why we don't use the tools even when we have them: Three internal barriers and how to move past each.

Resources mentioned:

1. EVOLVE Leadership Development Platform, including the Leadership Essentials six-week challenge. Learn more at https://www.clairelaughlin.com/evolve
2. "Managing Up: The Mid-Manager's Guide to Effective Collaboration" — a short companion guide to this episode

Join the Conversation: Navigating a tricky cross-functional request right now? I'd love to hear how you're handling it—reach out on social or through my website.

Subscribe & Share: If this episode helped you, share it with a colleague who's in the middle of that push and pull. The more openly we talk about this, the better our organizations get.

To learn more about my services, subscribe to my newsletter, and for additional tools to enhance your leadership impact, visit ClaireLaughlin.com and connect with me @Claire Laughlin Consulting on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! New episodes are released weekly, so be sure to subscribe.

Until next time, lead the way!