69. How to STOP Feeling Intimidated Around Senior Executives
Whenever you get around powerful executives, you shrink. Your usual confidence evaporates, your words get jumbled, and you find yourself acting like you're grateful just to be in the room. This episode dives into the hidden reasons behind why accomplished mid-career professionals like you often feel intimidated by those in authority and how to stop undermining yourself. What You’ll Discover:Why some leaders make you feel instantly smaller while others feel like equals (hint: it’s not their title!)How to spot when you're unconsciously handing over your powerThe subtle language patterns that immediately signal you're operating from a disadvantaged positionWhat your strongest reactions to certain leaders reveal about youConnect with Melody: FREE GUIDE: Steal These Scripts for Saying No at Work FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Waitlist Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up
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68. 7 Unconscious Beliefs That Make or Break Your Leadership Success
As a leader, it’s easy to point the finger at someone else when something goes wrong – expectations aren’t met, peers are slow to act, or pressure from the top adds to an already stressful environment. Leaders spend so much time trying to control others, stressing and ruminating on how to force a situation to bend to their will, when they should instead focus on themselves. Today, Muriel M. Wilkins, author of LEADERSHIP UNBLOCKED, joins the show to share seven hidden beliefs that block leaders’ progress and how to get unstuck. About MurielMuriel M. Wilkins, founder and CEO of Paravis Partners, is a sought-after C-suite adviser and executive coach with a twenty-year track record of helping senior leaders take their performance to the next level. She is the author of Leadership Unblocked: Break Through the Beliefs That Limit Your Potential and coauthor of Own the Room: Discover Your Signature Voice to Master Your Leadership Presence. Muriel is the host of the Harvard Business Review podcast Coaching Real Leaders, consistently ranked as a top-ten podcast in Apple's Management category. www.speaklikeaseniorleader.comConnect with Melody: FREE GUIDE: Steal These Scripts for Saying No at Work FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Waitlist Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up
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67. Layoff Anxiety
It’s no secret that work is more uncertain than ever. You may spend each day worrying, “Will I be let go?” even if you’re a top performer. There’s a term for this: layoff anxiety. In this episode, Melody breaks down how to manage constant stress about your job security without letting it consume you or hurt your performance. What You’ll Discover:Why 58% of companies plan layoffs in 2026 and how these cuts are different from previous yearsHow to separate real layoff warning signs from anxiety-driven overthinkingSpecific questions you can ask your manager to gauge job security without sounding paranoidWhat leadership actually looks for when making difficult staffing decisionsConnect with Melody: FREE GUIDE: Steal These Scripts for Saying No at Work FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Waitlist Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up
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66. Unforgettable Presence (Even as an Introvert) with Lorraine K. Lee
Hard work doesn't guarantee career advancement – and pretending otherwise is keeping you stuck. In this episode, Melody sits down with Lorraine K. Lee, author of Unforgettable Presence to explore the biggest missing piece in most people's career strategy. What You’ll Discover: Identify if you've hit the "invisible ceiling" and warning signs to watch forBuild a career brand that opens doors instead of keeping you invisibleApply the RAVE model (Relationships, Appearance, Visibility, Expertise) to create workplace influenceCommand attention on video calls About LorraineLorraine K. Lee is a keynote speaker, best-selling author of Unforgettable Presence: Get Seen, Gain Influence, and Catapult Your Career, and instructor with LinkedIn Learning and Stanford. She is recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice with hundreds of thousands of followers, and has a decade of experience leading editorial teams at top tech firms. Her insights have appeared in outlets such as CNBC, Bloomberg, and Fast Company. Learn more: https://lorraineklee.com/www.speaklikeaseniorleader.comConnect with Melody: FREE GUIDE: Steal These Scripts for Saying No at Work FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Waitlist Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up
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65. Servant Leader or Total Pushover? How Sara Protected Her Bandwidth & Built Leadership Backbone Without Abandoning Her Values or her Team
🚨 RESILIENT enrollment is open. Final cohort of 2025. Secure your spot: https://melodywilding.com/resilient In this episode, I sit down with Sara, a team leader who grew up in a military family and carried that "stand at attention" mentality straight into the corporate world. Sara shares how she went from automatically deferring to anyone with authority while simultaneously babysitting her team through every decision, to building the backbone needed to challenge up, set boundaries, and actually develop her people. If you've ever found yourself nodding along in meetings when you have something valuable to add, saying "yes sir" when you should be pushing back, or constantly rescuing your team from problems they should solve themselves, this conversation will resonate deeply.What You’ll Discover: How Sara went from silent observer to strategic contributor in executive meetings – and why her boss started specifically asking for her inputThe childhood programming that made Sara cower around authority and how she broke free without losing respectHow she learned to redirect out-of-scope requests diplomatically while actually helping people get better solutionsThe fix that freed up hours of Sara’s week that she could reinvest in more important work www.speaklikeaseniorleader.comConnect with Melody: FREE GUIDE: Steal These Scripts for Saying No at Work FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Waitlist Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up
About Psychology at Work | Career Success, Leadership, Communication Skills
Have you ever felt like you're the only one struggling with self-doubt at work? Maybe you’ve wondered why office politics seem so complicated or how some people seem to influence so effortlessly? The secret is that every day at work, we're surrounded by psychological dynamics - internal and external. There's the voice in our head second-guessing our decisions, the subtle power plays in meetings, the unspoken expectations that shape our behavior and others. Yet most of us are dropped into our careers with zero insight into these invisible forces.That changes today. Welcome to Psychology at Work. I’m your host Melody Wilding, licensed social worker, human behavior professor, and author of two books: Trust Yourself: Stop Overthinking and Channel Your Emotions for Success at Work and Managing Up: How to Get What You Need From the People in Charge. With a background as an emotion researcher, therapist, and after over 13 years of coaching thousands of executives and leaders across the world, there’s nothing I love more than helping emotionally intelligent people like you use superpower to make work better for themselves and everyone around them. Because here’s the thing, technical skills will only get you so far in your career. It's mastering your own psychology and understanding that of others that will truly make or break your success.While your coding skills might land you a job, it's your ability to manage stress and stay focused under pressure that will help you meet tight deadlines and deliver high-quality work.Your financial acumen might get you noticed, but it's your ability to navigate stakeholder relationships and office politics that will help you secure buy-in for your ideas.Your strategic thinking might earn you a promotion, but it's your self-awareness and ability to regulate your emotions that will make you an effective leader people want to follow.The title of this show is a playful nod to our double focus. First, we explore how psychology operates in professional settings. But second, in each episode you’re going to walk away with practical insights that you can put to work right away. I know firsthand how challenging it can be to navigate the workplace when you're sensitive, empathetic, and prone to overthinking. That's why I created this podcast that brings you the tools and insights I wish I'd had earlier in my career.Get ready, because you’re going to learn how to master the ‘silent rules’ of human behavior so you can achieve career success without sacrificing inner peace.
Listen to Psychology at Work | Career Success, Leadership, Communication Skills, No Stupid Questions with Susan Edmunds and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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