Podcast Episodes

Are You Ready to Be a Leader?

Episode 73

What distinguishes a leader? How do you know if you’re ready to lead? And how do you make the transition into a leadership role?

The shift from being part of a team to leading one isn’t like flipping…

Published on 1 year, 4 months ago

Leadership Lessons from a NASA Tragedy

Episode 72

In early 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated as it re-entered the earth’s atmosphere. All seven astronauts on board were killed.

This was not the first NASA mission to end in disaster, and…

Published on 1 year, 4 months ago

The Key to Abraham Lincoln’s Leadership

Episode 71

In 1863, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln wrote a scathing letter to his top Union general, who had squandered an opportunity to end the American Civil War. Then Lincoln folded it up and tucked it away…

Published on 1 year, 4 months ago

Lessons from Maggie Lena Walker’s Entrepreneurial Leadership

Episode 70

Growing up in the heart of the Confederacy, Maggie Lena Walker started work as a laundress at age nine. At the urging of her mother and mentors, she turned to education, and used it to propel her lif…

Published on 1 year, 4 months ago

NBA Star Chris Paul on Communicating as a Leader

Episode 69

Most of us can point to a few key people who have made a real difference in our lives and careers—the coach who pushed you to outperform, the teacher whose passion for a subject inspired your own, or…

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago

How to Coach an Employee Who’s Struggling to Perform

Episode 68

Do you have a difficult employee on your team— someone who might be underperforming or resistant to taking feedback? Do you know how to help them?

Melvin Smith says that coaching can be harder than y…

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago

How to Embrace Ambiguity When Making Decisions

Episode 67

Making business decisions often means choosing one path over another—but that doesn’t always need to be the case. Wendy Smith and Marianne Lewis argue that leaders should move beyond “either/or” choi…

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago

What Is Psychological Safety, Really?

Episode 66

You’re probably familiar with the term “psychological safety.” But do you know what it really means?

HBR contributing editor and workplace conflict expert Amy Gallo says both the idea and the value o…

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago

Getting Project Management Right

Episode 65

Many of us manage projects—even if “project manager” isn’t in our official job title. We try to learn the basics as we go: how to manage multiple stakeholders, adapt as circumstances change, and set …

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago

Leadership Lessons from Adventurer and Environmentalist Rick Ridgeway

Episode 64

Mountains are often used as metaphors for the challenges that arise in business and leadership. But when Rick Ridgeway compares mountaineering to risk management, he’s speaking from deep experience n…

Published on 1 year, 6 months ago