The CEO Sage (Formerly Leadership is Feminine)

Why is holding people accountable so difficult as a female business owner? How did simply holding people accountable become associated with being bitchy? Why do not only others tend to think that but we, as women, can even think that about ourselves? It's not right! In this episode, I tackle the problem of holding people accountable. It seems that in today's age, this can be harder than ever befor...

Finding the right people to work, especially in the last couple of years, has become very tangled. People have started new businesses, closed businesses, changed jobs, juggled an ever-changing job landscape… and so on. While experts in fields have become more scarce, many entrepreneurs have had businesses explode before they are even ready. And thus, they need help but it has been rather chaotic....

Is CEO a noun or a verb? You may have never contemplated that question but the differences it implies are significant. What do you think of, what comes up for you internally, when you hear the word CEO? Do you have a visual in your mind of a particular person? A functional role? A personae? A specific vibe? As we continue on our path of new and of change this season, I want to challenge your brain...

Can you be a successful entrepreneur but not a visionary? And vice versa, can you be a successful visionary but not really an entrepreneur? Perhaps before you can answer those questions, you must first decide: Are you an entrepreneur, a visionary, or both? And, most importantly, how does leadership fit into it all? As we continue this brand new season (Season 5) of Leadership Is Feminine , I invit...

Why do I say yes when I really want to say no? Why do women, more often than men, gravitate toward people pleasing? I found myself asking these questions and thus pondering: What do I think I'm accomplishing when I'm so agreeable? What am I actually accomplishing? To take it a step further, I pondered the reverse: What am I actually accomplishing when I'm being more controlling? As we start Season...

There's a current phenomenon called "quiet quitting". As business owners, we need to be aware of trends like this because they can potentially affect us. In particular, this approach to life is being promoted by Gen Zs but anyone could jump onboard with it.  So what exactly is "quiet quitting" and how can small businesses prepare for its possible impact? In this episode, I explore generational dif...

If you're juggling the questions of "When should I hire?" or "Who should I hire?" – let me help guide you. The answers to those questions are completely tied to the answer to a question that should come first. That is, "What phase of growth is your business in?"    This episode idea sprouted from help I've been giving to many regarding hiring and two recent Live Coaching with Kris episodes. As we...

As your business grows, you're going to need help. You can't build your queendom all alone. But what position should you hire first for your growing business? Should you hire someone to match your work and share the load? Should you hire an assistant to perform numerous tasks? Should you hire someone to complete just specific projects? Is there a way to know what the best choice is? For this episo...

"You should do this." "You should do that!" "Hey, have you considered…" When you're building a business, so many voices and ideas constantly come at you. You can become lost in all the possibilities and your business becomes your life. Maybe it's time to build your businesses a little differently… Especially if you realize you've built your life around your business, rather than your business arou...

The cost of doing business seems to be rising by the day. Inflation is hitting small businesses pretty hard. The current economy and labor market are so different than even just a couple years ago. And when you've got a team, wages, in particular, are a big consideration in your budget. Because of these unique changes, I hope to help you have a bit of a brain shift in this episode. As leaders, we...

Countless methods and resources are available to help you grow your business. Courses, programs, systems, outside help, advisors, even business coaches. But should you hire a business coach? What do they do or not do? For that matter, is everyone with the title "business coach" actually a business coach? In this episode, I share many thoughts and insights into what a true business coach does. From...

Do your meetings with your team end up off track? Do you avoid scheduling meetings because they're really not productive? If so, you're definitely not alone. In this second installment of "Live Coaching with Kris", I tackle this prevalent problem. As I coach a listener about how to run a productive 1:1 meeting, clarity in business rises to the surface. When you're running a business, clarity is ne...

All business owners face this dilemma: Should I hire a friend? Of course, there is an added emotional dynamic when employing someone close to you. Those ties do require consideration. However, regardless of who you hire, consistent frameworks need to be in place. Without them, decisions and potential outcomes can become very messy. In this first installment of "Live Coaching with Kris" on my Leade...

Has believing you're not business minded held you back? If so, I have good news to share: That may only be because being business minded may not be as you envision it. There is much more to it than stats, accounting and marketing. Don't allow behaviors and skills that can be cultivated and activated – even if you weren't good at them in the past – hold you back any longer! Because how we think abo...

Stress is inevitable. We're running our businesses, cherishing our personal lives, navigating the changing world around us… No matter where we turn, stressors are present. Simply trying to tell ourselves not to feel stressed, and to just relax or to just suck it up, is unhelpful and often ineffective. I want to offer an approach that helps: acknowledging the stress, identifying what's going on whe...

Business models, kits, courses, systems and similar flood the marketplace. A simple online search pulls an overwhelming number of options. But finding a model designed for women, with women in mind is trickier. As female entrepreneurs, we possess natural strengths and assets which differ from men. We need a business strategy that leverages those. In this business mastery episode, I address busines...

For many leaders, hiring is scary enough but what about when you need to let someone go? As I promised, throughout Season 4 of Leadership Is Feminine , I'm tackling some of the most daunting and critical components of business mastery. And how to fire someone, and do it nicely, ranks right at the top for most leaders.  Knowing how to kindly part ways is an invaluable skill, not only for yourself b...

What exactly is The Founder's Curse? Of course, it's not truly a curse but there is a genuine concept here. One that, for lack of a better description, plagues most founders. As we journey together through Season 4 of Leadership Is Feminine , I want to focus on business mastery. You already have mastery of what you do in the world, that is, your subject matter expertise or practitioner expertise....

This episode starts Season 4 of Leadership Is Feminine . If you've not heard all of the amazing, everyday women I had with me in Season 3, I encourage you to go back and listen to all the episodes. The encouragement, inspiration and wisdom you'll gain is phenomenal. For Season 4, I want to focus on leadership excellence and mastery for women. In particular, I believe that the characteristic of res...

Changing your mindset as a leader is a magical gift. It allows you to manage yourself, and therefore, your team, with greater empathy. The beautiful truth about changing yourself is that some change can happen very quickly and it is always worth the investment. In today's episode, Dr. Camysha Wright and I talk about change as a leader. We discuss how empowering it is to make time for necessary cha...

How much do you allow yourself to have in regards to money? As women, we are conditioned to "tuck it in" when it comes to being extremely successful in earnings. Shame often accompanies this conditioning and holds us back from fulfilling our full potential both for ourselves and for those we love. But a woman's relationship with money is more deeply connected than it appears on the surface. In thi...

No matter how long we've been working at something or how much money we make, doubts will creep in and times of uncertainty will come. But we must learn to listen to that little voice inside that guides us. Tuning into the wisdom of that inner voice, as well as listening to the wisdom of others will fuel us with resolve to carry on. In this episode, I chatted with Deborah Perlman, founder and CEO...

In our businesses, we all need someone who can help with the books. But we also need someone who can help us think forward. Someone who can help us forecast, not retract, and change our thoughts and habits around money. For me, that is my CFO and the owner of Nice Job, Inc., Emily Sandberg . I wanted to have Emily on an episode to share some of her wisdom and magic, and she delivered. We discussed...

As your business grows, your role as a leader should change and evolve. This includes what you do on a regular basis and what you relinquish to others. As you realign your leadership into co-creation, you'll face countless challenges, including properly choosing and nurturing a team, letting go of all the things you once personally did, and even breaking old habits. In this episode, I converse wit...

With the demands of life and business in our modern times, peace can be elusive. Yet, as female CEOs, we sometimes talk ourselves out of creating that necessary environment of calm. We wrongly believe we're not worthy or that it's indulgent or selfish, but it isn't. It's truly an investment in yourself and your business. In this episode, I talk with interior designer Tara Fust ( Tara Fust Design )...