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Creating Brain Trust for Teams: A Podcast Primer about Psychological Safety featuring Laura Jansen, presented by Reticle and Trench Leadership.

“Psychological Safety” is a concept that gets a lot of buzz these days.  Here’s the thing, psychological safety isn’t going away, in fact, it’s been around for generations, but it’s only recently that organizations have come to appreciate the value of a team in which all members, not just the leader, freely contribute their thoughts and ideas.  Organizations are beginning to see the intrinsic value in the unique perspectives that everyone brings to the collective good of the team.

But, how can YOU create a psychologically safe environment?   

To answer this question and more, please join this podcast primer with host Simon Kardynal (Trench Leadership) and his guest Laura Jansen (Reticle Ventures Canada Incorporated) as they explore the concept of psychological safety by answering the questions that are most often asked by leaders and team members.  

What is it, really?

Why is it such a big deal these days? 

Why is it not a given, even when your team is well-intentioned? 

 And, most importantly, how do you create and maintain psychological safety?

Laura takes us through how psychological safety is really about our naturalistic desire to take away disharmony and discomfort, either by controlling or dismissing different views, or by complying, being overly cautious, or staying quiet. She describes, using examples, how this naturalistic behaviour can be turned around by recognizing sabotage in team dynamics and by responding to those ‘hotspot’ moments, with a learning approach. 

In this podcast, team leaders and team members will be offered practical tips to create a psychological safe environment to, such as: how to recognize patterns in your own team, how to hunt for alternative views and explore them, and how to do an effective check-in and check-out that ensures the issues are discussed during the meeting, not after. 

We’re excited to offer this primer to psychological safety and get yourself engaged in becoming a skilled team member and leader in creating work environments where member’s views are explored, appreciated, and expected. 

For more information visit www.reticleteams.ca or connect with Laura directly on

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Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

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I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

Diversity in leadership is one of those topics where people tend to groan when it comes up.  And the reasons for this are as diverse as many the reasons why diversity is so important for leaders.  But there’s one significant, irrefutable fact that no one can deny.


Diverse groups make teams stronger.  

The challenge for emerging leaders is to know how to create a diverse team, and then lead that diverse group of professionals, all of whom have varying personal and professional priorities, towards the common work-related goal.

In this episode, we’ll hear from the team at All Around Consulting, a Canadian consulting company based out of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  

Why the All-Around Consulting team, you ask?  That’s a great question!  And the answer is because they have created a diverse team of leaders with varying professional and personal backgrounds, and they thrive at working as a team, using their diversity as their strength to guide and mentor companies.

And so, we’ll talk about what it means to be a diverse leader, how to be a leader who genuinely embodies diversity in their leadership ethos, and finally, we’ll offer some tips to help create your diverse team.

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been listed in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts in 2021.

Relevant Links:
1. Website - All Around Consulting: https://www.allaroundconsulting.ca
2. Facebook - All Around Consulting: www.facebook.com/AllAroundConsulting
3. Instagram - All Around Consulting:  www.instagram.com/allaroundconsulting
4. LinkedIn – All Around Consulting: www.linkedin.com/company/all-around-consulting/
5. Annalise Schamuhn Consulting website: https://annalisesharon.com/

All Around Consulting Team Recommended Book List:
Due to text character limitations, the recommended book list is only available at www.trenchleadership.ca in

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

Leadership is a never-ending journey of vulnerable self-discovery, one where we are constantly learning about ourselves, refining how we attack a challenge, remaining curious about our environments, learning to see beyond what we can see, all during our quest for personal mastery.

In this episode, we’ll discuss how to create YOUR leadership practice (we actually changed the name of the episode from leadership brand midway through the recording session).  And we’ll do this with a Fan Favourite, Jason “The Donk” Donkersgoed!!  If the name sounds familiar to you, well, it’s likely because you listened to S01E06 where Jason and I talked about creative tension and repeatable language. 

We’ll talk about being genuinely curious, how to be effectively and efficiently reflective, and we’ll round out the episode with some inspiration for emerging leaders as they are leading in the trenches.

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been listed in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts in 2021.


Relevant Links:
1. Gallup Strength Test website: https://www.gallup.com/home.aspx
2. Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model: https://www.simplypsychology.org/learning-kolb.html

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.


It’s likely that at some point in everyone’s professional or personal life, they haven’t been taken seriously with the after-effects of these moments having a lasting impression on us.  

From the lens of emerging leaders, these impressions often have a direct correlation to how we lead from the trenches.

In this episode, we’ll explore some of the reasons why people, specifically emerging leaders, tend to not be taken seriously, we will offer some tips to calm the self-doubt inside ourselves, and finally, we will reach into our leadership tool boxes and hand out some practical tools to enable each other to ensure everyone is heard as much as they want to be.  

To accomplish this, I’ve assembled a group of professionals who will share their stories of not being taken seriously, and how they ensures their voices were heard. I’d like to welcome talking to Jillian Webber, a U.S. Army Veteran, public speaker, and Health and Life Coach, and Brienne Hennessy, a Vocal Empowerment Coach, Corporate Trainer, and published author.

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been listed in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts in 2021.

Relevant Links:
Brienne Hennessy:
1. FB Group: http://facebook.com/groups/empoweryourvoice
2. IG: Instagram.com/yourvocalvitality
3. LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/brienne-hennessy 

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

When I say the term survivorship bias, what’s the first thought that comes to mind? 

Most often, the response I receive is that of people using their personal and professional survival stories to help them make informed choices.  And while this is a great answer, this is most definitely NOT what survivorship bias is about.

Survivorship bias is, in my opinion, one of the most vital biases that emerging leaders need to understand if they want to be truly open minded with their leadership decisions.

In this episode, you’ll hear from me, Simon Kardynal, your host, where I’ll talk about the basis of survivorship bias and then provide some examples of survivorship bias in action.  

You’ll learn how to see this bias in yourself and your team, and then you’ll hear how to use this bias to yours and your teams’ advantage, making everyone more efficient.

Relevant Links:
1. Margaret Wheatley Website: https://margaretwheatley.com 

Simon’s Recommended Book List:
1. The Fifth Discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization by Peter Senge
2. Leadership and the New Science by Margaret Wheatley
3. Perseverance by Margaret Wheatley
4. The Leadership Challenge: How to make extraordinary things happen in organizations by James Kouzes and Barry Posner

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

Burnout is a real thing.  The trick with burnout is that most often we don’t, or can’t, see when we are on that edge, teetering on the cliff of exhaustion.  

And the western world philosophy and definition of a work ethic doesn’t help either because the philosophy demands real-world results, make more money, grow the company, get promoted, whatever, and inevitably we get caught up in this whirlwind, and like all storms, eventually the winds will stop and we will fall down, often hard.

And so, in this episode, you’ll hear from Christin Sambor, a burnout and boundaries coach, who will help us understand burnout, its signs and dangers, and how to create realistic boundaries for emerging leaders to manage the stresses of our personal and professional lives while we lead from the trenches.

Reviews are the best way for us to know what we are doing right, what we are doing wrong, and what we should talk about in the future, so please click on the links below and let us know if this episode was helpful.

Relevant Links:
1. Christin Sambor website: www.christinsambor.com
2. Christin Sambor on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christin-sambor-1833bb8/
3. Christin Sambor on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/christinsambor/
4. Life Clarity Worksheet - https://mailchi.mp/92a9be028df4/life-clarity-worksheet
5. Free 30 Minute Clarity Session - https://christinsambor.as.me/trenchleadership 

Christin’s Recommended Book List:
1. Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself - Dr. Joe Dispenza
2. Present over Perfect - Shauna Niequist
3. The Burnout Generation - Anne Helen Peterson

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

In this episode, we’re talking with Lynn Power, the Co-Founder & CEO of MASAMI and the Co-Founder of Isle de Nature and we will be talking about how being an empathetic leader will help build more effective teams.  

We’ll do this by clarifying the difference between being sympathetic and empathetic and how emerging leaders can check to see which version they lean towards.  We’ll also discuss how empathy can make emerging leaders stronger team leaders and in turn, make their teams much more effective.  

Lastly, we’ll offer some practical tools to help emerging leaders become more empathetic leaders.


Relevant Lins:
The Masami Website: https://www.lovemasami.com

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been listed in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts in 2021.

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

Branding is important. But what’s even more important is to make your brand be about who you are, who you feel like you are, how you want to be portrayed.

And as emerging leaders, quite often we are trying to figure out what our leadership brand can and should look like.

Here’s the secret..... your leadership brand needs to represent who you are.  Don’t try to fake it, people can tell when a brand is a way to hide behind fear or confusion.

In this episode, Patrice Bisiot, author and style interventionist is back to offer advice and real-world, actionable tips to help all of us create a brand that highlights our authentic selves.


Relevant Link:
The Image Impact Index website: https://www.imageimpactindex.com

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been listed in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts in 2021.

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

Emotional Intelligence is one of the hottest leadership-related catch phrases ‘out there’ right now. But, while there are many people extolling the importance of being emotionally intelligent, most often this is where the conversation stops.  And that’s just not good enough. 

In this information-rich world, people expect the ‘why’ of something, and if we as leaders don’t provide these answers, well, you’ve heard it many times in my episodes, they’ll simply go to Google and use the first hit as gospel, regardless if it’s fact or not.

In this episode, we’ll be hearing from The Threedom Coaches, an emerging consulting company spread out over three countries where we’ll do a deep dive into emotional intelligence.  We’re going learn what emotional intelligence is, how and why it’s important for emerging leaders, and we’ll cap off the episode with some hints and tricks to make sure you are being your most emotionally intelligent.


Relevant Link:
The Threedom Coaches website: https://www.thethreedomcoaches.com/home

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been listed in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts in 2021.

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.

Send us a text

I’d like to begin this episode by acknowledging the land that I am learning and living on is the traditional un-ceded, un-surrendered territory of the Anishnaabeg Algonquin People.

Sports, much like the military, are often heralded for creating leaders.  And this belief makes sense because stressful moments tend to bring out the leader in us, and afterwards, during the inevitable de-brief or watching of the game tape, we can take the time to reflect on what worked and what was an epic fail, but.... no matter what, learning has happened... We learned about our leadership, we learned about ourselves, and also, we earned about our passions.

And so, in this special Remembrance Day episode, we’re going to talk about learning, about ourselves and our passions.  To do this, I’ve brought back Ryan Carey, the Director of Military Engagement for the Concussion Legacy Foundation Canada, and Tim Fleizer, the Executive Director, also from the Concussion Legacy Foundation Canada, where we will talk about how they were able to turn their passions into their careers.

Relevant Links:
1. Concussion Legacy Foundation website: https://www.concussionfoundation.ca
2. Project Enlist web page: https://www.projectenlist.ca
3. Health Support Line: https://www.projectenlist.ca/support-line

Support the show

Trench Leadership: A Podcast From the Front is humbled to have been named #6 in the Top 20 for Best Canadian Leadership-themed podcasts for 2025.

Connect to Trench Leadership:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYnaqOp1UvqTJhATzcizowA
Trench Leadership Website: www.trenchleadership.ca
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trench-leadership-a-podcast-from-the-front/?viewAsMember=true


Are you looking for a podcast editor/producer? Do you enjoy the quality of the show? The editor of Trench Leadership, Jennifer Lee, is taking new clients. Reach out at https://www.itsalegitbusiness.com.

Reviews are the best way for the show to know what is working, what needs improvement, and what to talk about in the future.

If you have a topic that you're passionate to hear more about, feel free to reach out at [email protected] to connect and share your ideas.