Strong Leaders Serve with Teri Schmidt

We're taking a brief pause but join us back here in April for some excellent guests and content that we can't wait to share with you! Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teri-m-schmidt/ Get 1-on-1 leadership support from Teri here: https://www.strongleadersserve.com/coaching Set up an intro call with Teri: https://calendly.com/terischmidt/discoverycall

What makes delegation one of the most challenging skills for new (and, if we're honest, experienced) leaders?  Why are we, as leaders, so reluctant to give up control, leading us to be D.I.N.O.s? It may not be what you think.   Using a few illustrative stories, Teri explores the difficulties associated with delegation and offers strategies you can try today to develop this skill that has the...

What deserves a "why" in your leadership today? In this episode of Strong Leaders Serve, host Teri Schmidt explores the concept of intention in leadership through a thought-provoking story about a former corporate rockstar, Jill, and her post-illness career struggles.  Teri delves into the inertia that often keeps leaders and team members from challenging the status quo, emphasizing the...

It's my birthday!  Will you help me with one of my wishes? It only will take 30 seconds and would mean a lot to me. Just click on the link below and let me know what leadership challenges/topics/guests you would like to see on future episodes of Strong Leaders Serve: https://forms.gle/rMyHUtmKPj3YMGzW6 And listen in for a preview of what we have planned for our upcoming season! Connect on Lin...

At Strong Leaders Serve we seek out and celebrate leaders who are making a positive impact through their work and leadership style. In today's episode, we have the honor of welcoming Breene Murphy, President of Carbon Collective , a climate-focused investment adviser. Breene shares invaluable insights on the importance of building relationship frameworks within teams, fostering clear directio...

This episode features Vera Quinn, the CEO of Cydcor , who shares her journey from a door-to-door salesperson to running the company. Vera provides valuable insights on her personal journey, challenges faced by female leaders, and the importance of fostering a people-first atmosphere in organizations. She gives practical advice for upcoming leaders, emphasizing the need to be interested in others,...

Decision-making is one of the most difficult jobs of a leader, especially in uncertain times.  In this episode, our guest, Olena Petrosyuk, shares her unique experiences, journey, and insights into the difficult decisions she's wrestled with throughout her career, in both the corporate world and her current role as COO at Klevu.  We discuss the constraints of decision-making, the importance o...

Did you know that when there is psychological safety on a team, it actually can reduce our cognitive load, making it easier to solve problems and innovate? We no longer have to perform the mental risk calculations and assess our vulnerability whenever we want to ask a question. Instead, we can focus our brain power as a team on problem solving and innovation. In this episode, Tom Geraghty, founder...

As we get ready to begin a new year, are you wondering how you can you can lead with more intention and courage?  Our guest, Catherine Bell, is a thought-leader and prime example for women who lead with intention and courage. As the founder of two very successful companies - Blue Era and The Awakened Company, a bestselling author, an executive coach, and an inspiring leader, Catherine is making wa...

Do you experience conflict in your workplace or home? Then this episode's for you.  (So basically, it's for everyone). We talk with leadership expert, speaker, and best-selling author of "Don't Feed the Elephants," Sarah Noll Wilson, about the transformative power of leading with curiosity to address conflict and create inclusive, open-minded environments.  Our conversatio...

When working to make our workplaces more compassionate and just, it's easy to give into the temptation to utilize the "us vs. them" paradigm.  "Othering" those who disagree with us can bring a sense of clarity and belonging. But, our guest for this episode, Dr. Amanda Aminata Kemp, emphasizes the need to move away from divisive thinking and instead focus on regenerative ju...

Did you know that  women represent over 52% of the professional workforce, but they only occupy 24% of C-Suite roles and only 10% of Fortune 500 companies are led by women? What if the main barriers holding women back are actually outdated cultural assumptions that we have about the concept of work? Dr. Tara Schwegler is back to talk about how challenging our assumptions about work can help advanc...

Business ethics is one of the most important, yet least talked about elements of leadership. That's one reason we're kicking of our series highlighting female changemakers with Dr. Bev Kracher.    Dr. Bev holds the Robert B. Daugherty Endowed Chair in Business Ethics & Society in the Heider College at Creighton University and  is the Founder of the Business Ethics Alliance whose purp...

In today's rapidly changing world,  according to our guest, Alex Budak, we have two choices: We can bury our heads in the sand and ignore the changes We can use our agency to leverage, shape, and steer that change In this episode, we dive into the concept of taking the second path and becoming a changemaker, discussing everything from the importance of mindset and leadership to taking action...

If you want to lead in a way that creates a more compassionate and just workplace, you can't avoid holding people accountable. As leaders, we likely all know this, but as our guest, Jill Shroyer,  mentions without the skills needed to have the difficult conversations that accountability demands, we might choose just to avoid the situation.... until we can't. In this episode, we discuss h...

Do you have any meetings on your calendar this week that you're pretty sure will be a waste of time? You're not alone. In the last of our series that highlights some of the collaboration skills that we teach in our Learn by Doing Good team building experiences. I've brought on meeting expert,  Mamie Kanfer Stewart to share her practical tips for how we can make all types of meetings...

Have you ever had that coworker who is really difficult to work with?  Or maybe there's another leader who seems to have a completely different personality than you? Or maybe you're just moving into a new leadership role and you're eager to build your network and establish strong peer relationships? If any of those are true about you, this episode is for you.  We talk about one of t...

You care about your team and you want to serve them.  But in an attempt to lessen their struggles, are your actions actually contributing to their burnout? In this episode we discuss: What it means to serve as a leader  The well-intentioned behaviors of empathetic leaders that can contribute to burnout What to do instead Resources Mentioned: Strong Leaders Serve LinkedIn Newsletter: Leaders, Serve...

If I told you there was 1 collaboration skill that I think could transform culture and significantly reduce stress in our teams, homes, and communities,  what would you guess it was? Listening. I thought I was a really good listener, especially at work.  But after learning more and observing my actions, it turns out I'm not.  And that unseen skill gap has led to a great deal of unnecessary fr...

Giving and receiving feedback (especially when it's constructive) is HARD. In this episode we dig into why it's so hard and discuss helpful tips and team practices that lessen the difficulty and make it a valuable tool for improving individual and team performance. Join us as we unlock the power of feedback and explore ways to create a team culture that encourages growth and maximizes pe...

Can you believe it's almost Q4? Are you struggling to create connections with your team in hybrid or remote environments? Are you planning Q4/end-of-year/holiday gatherings and want them to be both meaningful and impactful to your business? I want to direct you to one of my favorite podcasts, The Empathy Edge with Maria Ross.  This week, she released an episode with our conversation aimed at...

Getting people to do what you want is hard work. You'd think that some positional authority would make it easier right?   As a manager, shouldn't you be able to get your team members to take ownership of their work?  Or more easily align with your peers? In this episode, Teri shares her reflections on positional authority, extrinsic vs. intrinsic motivation, and how she's seen leade...

Why do so many teambuilding events fail to deliver real business impact? We explore that question in this episode and provide three steps that you can take to ensure that you get a return on your investment of time and money. Team connection does drive business results, but teambuilding events don't always drive team connection. PS:  This is a great episode to listen to if you're in the...

Have you ever been told no for an opportunity that you knew was perfect for you?  What did you do?    Our guest today, Andrea Feigl, the CEO and founder of the Health Finance Institute has a strategy for getting past those roadblocks and succeeding in her efforts.  Her story is an inspiring example of what it means to be your own conduit of change.   Her journey, which began growing up in a small...

Do you love a fresh start? As many of us in the northern hemisphere begin a new school year, we have a great opportunity to reflect on and reset our leadership and our team's direction so that we can finish the year strong. In this solo episode, I share a simple exercise that has helped me reduce stress, prioritize better, align my leadership, and focus as a team. If you want to talk through...