Women of Faith in Leadership | Leading with integrity, Leadership Self-doubt, Christian Leadership, Leading with confidence, Teamwork

What does it actually look like to invite the Holy Spirit into your business decisions?

And how do you know when God is calling you to take a step of faith, especially when the path ahead isn't clear?

In this episode, I'm welcoming Stefanie Gass back to the Women of Faith in Leadership podcast. Stefanie was one of my very first podcast guests, so it's particularly special to have her join me again.

Stefanie is the host of God Led Business, and in this conversation, she shares how her journey from striving and self-reliance to surrendering her business to God completely changed the way she works and leads.

We talk about seeking God's direction, recognising when we're trying to control the outcome, and what it means to genuinely partner with the Holy Spirit in our everyday decisions.

Whether you're building a business, considering a career change or leading within an organisation, this conversation will encourage you to make space for God's wisdom rather than relying entirely on your own understanding.

In This Episode

A Leadership Truth to Take Into Your Week

You don't have to work everything out on your own before taking the next step.

Whether you're leading a business or a team, consider:

Am I genuinely seeking God's direction, or am I making my own plans and simply asking Him to bless them?

Make time this week to bring one important decision before God. Pray, listen, reflect and ask Him for wisdom.

1. Join Stefanie's upcoming bootcamp: Use coupon code RIKA at checkout:

https://stefaniegass.com/bootcamp

2. Listen to Stefanie's podcast:

3. Subscribe to Stefanie's YouTube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/StefanieGass

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My 24-Hour Birthday Flash Sale — Today Only!

Get the Confident Conversations Blueprint and Imposter Syndrome Blueprint together for just $67 instead of $94.

That's a saving of $27, available for 24 hours only on Friday, 23 October.

Get My Birthday Bundle for $67

Have you ever walked away from a difficult leadership conversation wishing you'd handled it differently?

Perhaps you were too direct, softened what needed to be said, or avoided the conversation altogether because you didn't want to upset someone.

As Christian leaders, we want to treat people with kindness and grace. But sometimes we confuse being gracious with avoiding uncomfortable conversations.

In this short bonus Bible study, we're looking at Ephesians 4:15 and what it means to speak the truth in love.

Because you don't have to choose between being clear and being compassionate.

Truth: Why being gentle doesn't mean being vague about expectations.

Love: How to address difficult issues while treating people with dignity.

Courage: Why avoiding discomfort isn't always the same as keeping peace.

You can speak the truth and still lead with grace.

Before your next difficult conversation, ask yourself:

Am I communicating what needs to change clearly, while still treating this person with love and respect?

Then ask God for the wisdom to know what to say, the courage to say it and the grace to communicate it well.

To celebrate my birthday today, I'm offering both of my Blueprints together for $67 instead of $94.

The Imposter Syndrome Blueprint helps you work through the internal doubts that can make you question your ability to lead.

The Confident Conversations Blueprint gives you a step-by-step preparation process, practical scripts and tools to help you approach difficult leadership conversations with confidence, clarity and grace.

One helps you address what's happening internally. The other helps you prepare for the conversations leadership requires.

The birthday bundle is available for 24 hours only, Friday, 23 October 2026.

Get Both Blueprints for $67 — Birthday Flash Sale

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Have you ever found yourself waiting to feel more confident before speaking up, making a decision or having a difficult conversation?

But what if courage isn't about feeling confident first?

In this short bonus Bible study, we're looking at 2 Timothy 1:7 and what it means to lead with courage, even when we feel uncertain or inadequate.

God hasn't called us to wait until we feel completely capable. He's called us to trust Him and faithfully lead where He's placed us.

Why courage doesn't require us to feel confident

What 2 Timothy 1:7 teaches us about power, love and self-discipline

How to take the next step when fear or self-doubt is holding us back

You don't need to feel confident to lead with courage.

Instead of asking, "Do I feel confident enough?", ask yourself:

"What would faithful, courageous leadership look like in this situation?"

Then ask God for wisdom and take the next step.

To celebrate my birthday, I'm bringing together the Imposter Syndrome Blueprint and Confident Conversations Blueprint at a special discounted price. 

The offer is available for 24 hours only on Friday, 23 October.

Explore My Birthday Flash Sale

Join My Weekly Newsletter · Submit a Listener Question · Follow Me on Instagram

With clarity and grace,

Links Mentioned in This Episode

🎂 My Birthday 24-Hour Flash Sale — Friday, 23 October 2026

For one day only, get both the Imposter Syndrome Blueprint and the Confident Conversations Blueprint at a discounted price!

Explore My Birthday Flash Sale

Join My Email List to receive updates before the sale.

Being in middle leadership can sometimes feel like you're standing between two completely different worlds.

Your team is looking to you to hear their concerns, advocate for them and explain decisions they may not agree with. At the same time, senior leaders expect you to implement organisational decisions, including decisions you may not have made or even fully agree with yourself.

And somewhere in the middle, you can end up trying to keep everyone happy.

In this episode, we're talking about how to navigate that tension without becoming the emotional shock absorber between your team and senior leadership.

I'll walk you through four practical strategies to help you advocate wisely, communicate upwards, support your team without undermining senior leaders, and recognise what is, and isn't, yours to carry.

Because being a good leader doesn't mean keeping everyone happy.

It means leading with integrity.

How to listen to your team without automatically taking their side

The difference between empathy and agreement

How to turn your team's frustration into constructive advocacy

Why raising a concern with senior leadership isn't the same as complaining

How to speak up respectfully when you disagree with a decision

What to do when you've advocated for your team and the answer is still no

How to communicate decisions clearly, even when you didn't make them

Why you should promise your actions, not outcomes you can't control

How to stop carrying responsibility for everyone else's emotions

What Galatians 6 teaches us about supporting others without carrying what doesn't belong to us

When you're caught between your team and senior leadership, you don't necessarily need to choose a side.

You need to choose integrity.

You can listen to your team without joining in with criticism. You can respectfully question a decision without undermining authority. You can advocate without complaining. And you can faithfully implement a lawful and ethical decision, even when it isn't the decision you personally would have made.

Your responsibility is to steward the influence and authority God has entrusted to you, not to control every outcome.

This Friday, 23 October, is my birthday.

And to celebrate, I'm doing something special for the female Christian leaders in this community.

For 24 hours only, I'm bringing together two of my resources:

The Imposter Syndrome Blueprint

For those moments when you're questioning your abilities, doubting whether you belong in your leadership position or struggling to recognise the value you bring.

The Confident Conversations Blueprint

For those moments when you need to address a difficult situation, speak up, set a boundary, give feedback or communicate something you know might not be well received.

I think these two resources work particularly well together because confidence in leadership involves both what happens internally and how we communicate externally.

And that's especially relevant when you're leading between your team and senior leadership.

You need to recognise that your voice matters, and you need to know how to use that voice wisely.

Normally, the two Blueprints cost $94 combined.

But for my birthday, you'll be able to get it at a discounted price!

The birthday sale is available on Friday, 23 October 2026, only.

Visit the Birthday Flash Sale Page

If you're listening before Friday, join my email list so you don't miss the details.

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With clarity and grace,

Demanding seasons of leadership can make it surprisingly easy to drift from the very practices that keep us grounded.

When work is busy, people need you, difficult decisions are piling up and your mind is constantly solving the next problem, time with God can quietly become something you'll get to “later.”

In this episode, we're talking about how to stay spiritually grounded when leadership feels demanding, without turning your relationship with God into another task on your already overflowing to-do list.

We'll explore what it looks like to invite God into the ordinary moments of your leadership, recognise what pressure is bringing out in you, release the outcomes you were never meant to control, and lead from dependence on God rather than trying to carry everything yourself.

In This Episode we talk about:

A Truth to Take Into Your Week

You don't stay spiritually grounded because your circumstances are calm.

You stay spiritually grounded because you know where your foundation is when they aren't.

Rather than trying to add another elaborate spiritual routine to your schedule, look for ordinary moments where you can intentionally turn your attention towards God.

Before you open your laptop.

Before the meeting.

Before you respond to the email.

Before the difficult conversation.

And when you finish your work for the day.

God doesn't need to become another thing on your list. Let Him be the One you walk through the list with.

Freebie - Before the Conversation: A biblical guide to prepare for those difficult workplace conversations.

CLICK HERE to access the freebie

or navigate to: https://womenoffaithinleadership.com/before

When a Difficult Conversation Is Adding to the Weight

Sometimes what's making a demanding season feel even heavier is the conversation you've been carrying around in your head.

You're replaying what happened, thinking about what you should say, anticipating how the other person might respond and wondering whether now is the right time to address it.

The Confident Conversation Blueprint helps you move that conversation out of your head and prepare for it intentionally.

Inside, you'll work through the preparation process so you can identify the real issue, separate the facts from your emotions, clarify what needs to change and prepare yourself to approach the conversation with biblical wisdom and calm confidence. You'll also have practical frameworks and ready-to-use scripts to help you find the words when you're unsure what to say.

Because you don't just need to prepare the conversation. You need to prepare yourself to lead it well.

Get the Confident Conversation Blueprint

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Follow Rika on Instagram @rikawhelan

With clarity and grace,

As leaders, we can say that we value accountability, initiative, honesty and responsibility, but what really shapes our team is what happens when people demonstrate those behaviours... or when they don’t.

Sometimes, without even realising it, our leadership responses can reinforce the very behaviours that frustrate us.

We step in when someone misses a deadline. We give more work to the person who is already reliable. We soften an expectation when someone becomes upset. Or we spend so much time managing difficult behaviour that the people quietly doing a great job barely get noticed.

In this episode, we’re looking at the behaviours leaders can accidentally reward, how those patterns influence team culture, and what we can do differently to encourage greater ownership, accountability and growth.

In This Episode we talk about:

A Leadership Question to Take Into Your Week

Instead of only looking at the behaviours that frustrate you, pay attention to what happens after those behaviours.

Ask yourself:

“Am I reinforcing what I actually want to see more of?”

Look at who gets rescued, who gets extra work, who receives most of your attention and what gets quietly tolerated.

Sometimes changing a team pattern begins with recognising what our own leadership has been unintentionally teaching people.

When a Pattern Needs a Conversation

Perhaps this episode has brought a particular person or recurring behaviour to mind.

You know something needs to change, but you're unsure how to address the pattern without sounding harsh, creating defensiveness or allowing your own frustration to take over.

The Confident Conversation Blueprint can help you prepare for that conversation.

Inside, you'll work through how to separate the facts from your frustration, identify the real issue, clarify what needs to change and prepare what you want to communicate. You'll also have ready-to-use scripts and practical language to help you approach difficult leadership conversations with clarity, calm confidence and biblical wisdom.

Because changing a pattern often starts with changing the conversation around it.

Get the Confident Conversation Blueprint

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Follow Rika on Instagram @rikawhelan

What if some of the most painful parts of your story became the very places God used to shape the way you lead?

Zahara McCoy was born in Uganda and lost her mother during the AIDS epidemic when she was just ten years old. Without a parent to advocate for her, her future became incredibly uncertain. But through sponsorship, Zahara was connected with Marianne McCoy in California, a relationship that eventually led to adoption, education and an entirely different future.

Years later, Zahara returned to Uganda and encountered children facing circumstances painfully similar to those she had once experienced herself. It became a pivotal moment in her story: she was no longer the child needing someone to step in for her; God was now giving her the opportunity to step in for someone else.

Today, Zahara leads Children of Grace, the organisation her adoptive mother began, supporting vulnerable children in Uganda through education, mentorship and holistic care.

In this conversation, we talk about Zahara's journey from Uganda to America, faith, identity, advocacy and how our lived experiences can profoundly shape the leaders we become.

A Leadership Truth to Take Into Your Week

One of the things that stayed with me after this conversation was Zahara's statement: “Identity precedes performance.”

Leadership isn't only shaped in boardrooms, qualifications or positions of authority.

Sometimes God uses the very experiences we would never have chosen to develop our compassion, perspective, courage and ability to advocate for others.

So perhaps the question to take into this week is:

What has God allowed me to walk through that could now help me lead and serve someone else well?

Connect with Zahara

You can connect with Zahara and follow her work on social media:

Instagram: @zaharamccoy

Children of Grace

https://www.childrenofgrace.com/

Sponsor a child

https://childrenofgrace.donorshops.com/sponsorship

“We’ve always done it that way.”

It sounds harmless, but when that phrase becomes part of a team’s culture, it can quietly stop people from questioning, improving and growing.

In this episode, we’re talking about how to recognise when a long-standing process, expectation or way of working may no longer be serving your team — without falling into the opposite trap of changing things simply for the sake of change.

We’ll explore how to honour what has worked in the past while still creating a culture where people feel safe to ask, “Is there a better way?”

In This Episode we talk about:

A Leadership Question to Take Into Your Week

Take a look at something your team has been doing for a long time and ask:

“Does the reason we started doing this still exist?”

You may discover there’s a very good reason to keep doing it.

Or you may discover that it’s simply there because nobody has stopped to question it.

The goal isn’t change for the sake of change.

The goal is growth.

When Growth Requires a Difficult Conversation

Sometimes you can see that something needs to change, but the part you're struggling with is how to communicate it without creating defensiveness or unnecessary tension.

That’s exactly the kind of leadership moment the Confident Conversation Blueprint was created for.

The Blueprint helps you prepare before you walk into the conversation — clarifying the real issue, deciding what needs to be communicated, thinking through the outcome you’re working towards and preparing for how the other person may respond.

You’ll also have practical frameworks and ready-to-use scripts to help you communicate with greater clarity, calm confidence and biblical wisdom.

Because sometimes the difference between avoiding change and leading change is simply being willing — and prepared — to have the conversation that comes with it.

Get the Confident Conversation Blueprint

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When everything feels urgent, it can be difficult to know what actually deserves your attention.

Someone needs an answer. An unexpected problem lands on your desk. A team member is stressed. Your inbox is filling up. And before you know it, the priorities you started the day with have disappeared underneath everyone else’s needs.

In this episode, we’re talking about how to lead when everything feels urgent, without becoming reactive, absorbing everyone else’s stress, or taking responsibility for problems that were never yours to carry.

We’ll also look at what we can learn from the way Jesus responded to pressure and why calm leadership isn’t passive leadership. It’s learning to discern what genuinely requires your attention and having the wisdom to pause before you respond.

In This Episode we talk about:

A Leadership Question to Take Into Your Week

Instead of beginning your day by asking:

“How am I going to get everything done?”

Try asking:

“God, what actually needs my leadership today?”

Not everything that is loud is important, and not everything that feels urgent requires an immediate response.

Prepare for the Difficult Conversation You’ve Been Avoiding

Sometimes the thing that genuinely does need your leadership is a conversation you’ve been postponing.

If you know something needs to be addressed but you’re unsure what to say, how to approach it, or how the other person might respond, the Confident Conversation Blueprint will help you prepare before you walk into the room.

Inside the Blueprint, you’ll find the step-by-step preparation process, practical frameworks and ready-to-use scripts to help you approach difficult conversations with greater clarity, calm confidence and biblical wisdom.

Because confidence doesn’t come from personality. It comes from preparation.

Get the Confident Conversation Blueprint

Stay Connected

Subscribe to the Weekly Newsletter

Subscribe to the newsletter

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Submit your listener question

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Follow Rika on Instagram @rikawhelan

Have you ever sensed that something is off in your team, even though there’s no obvious conflict?

Everyone is still showing up. People are being polite. Nothing major has happened.

And yet communication feels different. Frustrations are bubbling under the surface. People seem less engaged, and the culture somehow feels heavier.

Unhealthy cultures rarely develop because of one dramatic event. More often, they slowly erode through small patterns that go unnoticed, unchallenged, or unaddressed.

In this episode, we’re looking at four silent culture killers leaders often miss — and what you can do before those small issues become much bigger leadership problems.

We talk about:

why culture is shaped by what gets repeated, tolerated, rewarded, and ignored

how unclear expectations quietly create frustration and inconsistency

what your team learns when problems repeatedly go unaddressed

how rescuing and over-functioning can create dependency within your team

why gossip is often a symptom of deeper communication and trust issues

the connection between healthy workplace culture and courageous conversations

why addressing small issues early can prevent much harder conversations later

Culture isn't created by what you say matters. It's created by what you consistently reinforce.

Healthy cultures don't happen accidentally. They are built intentionally — through clarity, accountability, shared responsibility, and conversations that leaders are willing to have.

Maybe as you listened to this episode, a person or situation immediately came to mind.

Perhaps there’s something you’ve noticed but haven’t addressed yet because you’re worried about making it worse or simply don’t know what to say.

The Confident Conversation Blueprint was created to help you prepare for those moments.

Inside, you’ll find the Difficult Conversations Script Pack and the complete Confident Conversation Sprint training, giving you practical scripts and frameworks to help you:

clarify what actually needs to be addressed

prepare what you want to say

communicate with calm authority

approach difficult conversations with both truth and grace

Because confidence doesn't come from personality.

It comes from preparation.

👉 Learn more at:

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