ChatGMB: Wisdom & Insights for Modern Leaders

Giving feedback is one of the hardest and most important parts of leadership. We overthink it, we avoid it, and sometimes we deliver it in ways that cause more harm than help. But feedback isn’t about criticism, it’s about connection, clarity, and care. In this episode, Marissa shares how to give feedback that helps people feel seen, not small. You’ll learn how to ground your feedback in compassio...

What do you do when it feels like your boss just doesn’t care about your goals? You’ve got ambitions, you’re working hard, and you’re trying to grow, but your manager chronically deprioritizes or ignores what matters most to you. Here’s the hard truth: it is part of a manager’s job to care about your growth, but sometimes they don’t. In this listener question episode, we offer thoughts, strategies...

Even the most confident leaders can spiral when someone points out a gap, mistake, or area for improvement. Our bodies tense, our brains defend, and suddenly we’re not listening, we’re deep in survival mode. In this episode, Marissa dives into: Why your body reacts to feedback like it’s danger, and what to do about it Five grounding moves to stay calm and open during tough feedback A clear framewo...

Episode Summary Managers are often promoted because they were great at their jobs, not because they were prepared to manage people. Too often, organizations assume that a one-off training or “big box” program will set new managers up for success. In reality, these approaches miss the mark and can erode trust, credibility, and team performance. In this episode, I unpack the most common mistakes I s...

Most of us have been both the person who has been triggered  and  the person who has unintentionally triggered someone else. So what do we do when harm happens, especially when it was unintentional? What’s fair? What does accountability look like? And how do you move toward repair? In this episode of ChatGMB , we explore one of the hardest (and most important) dynamics in modern wor...

Ugh! Feeling stuck! We all know that feeling. When you stare at your to-do list and can’t even pick a starting point, or when you’ve been in the same role for years and don’t see a path forward, or when you’re working toward change and it feels like you’re hitting wall after wall, or when you've been applying for jobs for months and just aren't landing anything. Perhaps you’re waiting for resource...

When a restructure is looming and everyone (including you) is freaking out, it’s easy to feel powerless as a middle manager. You may not control the decisions being made at the top, but you do shape how your team experiences this moment. In this listener question episode of ChatGMB , we share: How to protect psychological safety when stress and uncertainty are high. Ways to offer clarity without s...

So many of us equate ‘advancement’ with promotions, new titles, or bigger paychecks. And while those things absolutely matter, they’re often outside of our direct control and may not be achievable goals in the short-term or without significant changes. That can leave us and our employees feeling stuck or overlooked, and it can leave leaders scrambling to hold on to talented people when promotions...

You’ve probably heard it a hundred times: “Start with a compliment, slip in the constructive feedback, and end with another compliment.” Or maybe you’ve been told to “sugarcoat it a little” so your feedback doesn’t sting. Here’s our hot take: both of those are terrible strategies for building strong, trust-based feedback cultures. In this quick Soapbox Episode, we break down why the sandwich metho...

Have you ever seen a leader yell at someone on behalf of their people? The intention is good. The frustration is real. The stakes matter. And sometimes… the strategy is completely wrong. In this episode of ChatGMB , we reflect on a real encounter in a hotel lobby when the elevators were broken, and a leader chose to escalate by yelling at a frontline worker with little power to fix the situation....

Founders Marissa Badgley ( Reloveution ) and Robyn Harper ( The Chiron Project ) come together for a candid, unscripted conversation on Burnout, Compassion Fatigue, and Vicarious Trauma in the social impact sector. We discuss how burnout has shaped our experiences, the strategies we've used to heal our own nervous systems, and the cultural and systemic shifts we imagine for a healthier and more su...

Scarcity is real for many leaders and organizations right now. There are real budget constraints, real staffing gaps, real exhaustion, and real grief. And, at the same time, there is also perceived scarcity: the stories, habits, and assumptions that shape how we lead, decide, and treat people, even when more is possible than we realize. In this episode, we cover: Why scarcity is not “just a mindse...

Many of us were taught as young people to say “I’m sorry” to end discomfort, smooth things over, temper someone else's feelings, or move on quickly, without ACTUALLY acknowledging harm, rebuilding trust, or changing behavior. Which are actually the most important parts. In today’s workplaces and world, where tension is high, trust is low, and people are exhausted, learning how to apologize well (a...

Today’s power question: How can leaders and managers minimize ambiguity and maximize predictability in uncertain times? Uncertainty and ambiguity are uncomfortable and inevitable forces in today’s workplaces. Shifting priorities, sudden changes, unexpected crises, and volatile social, economic, cultural, and political realities make clarity and stability much more difficult.  But we know that...