Executive Access

In this short, 7-minute episode, Jamie gets real about how top performers often feel a quiet discontent while at work, impacting both them and the organizations they work with. Top performers are wired to hit the gas pedal, so busy achieving that they don’t often take time to reflect on their dreams or acknowledge them.  Each of us is wonderfully and uniquely made with a God-given purpose.  When we can’t connect our work to that purpose, discontent grows until it boils over.  Jamie shares 3 steps you can take to find clarity and make your work epic, benefitting both you and the organization you work with.  

In this episode, Jamie refers to the following work:

• The “I GOT THIS Framework” for identifying your purpose and setting goals
• Find your Why: A Practical Guide for Discovering Purpose for You and Your Team by Simon Sinek

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

Energy on any team is the difference between winning and losing, the difference between second place and first place, and the difference between seeing hard things through and throwing in the towel.  In other words, high energy teams deliver great results and are magnets for talent. At Microsoft, we were told as leaders to “generate energy.” That’s what great leaders do.  But how do you generate energy with your team? This short video, “Generate Energy” breaks down several ways that any leader can bring more intentionality to the way they generate energy.

Jamie refers to a previous short video: 38. Be Yourself: The Power of Authenticity

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

What if your biggest strength is quietly sabotaging you? One of the realizations I had in my executive coaching practice is that our biggest strengths, when overdone, show up as our biggest weaknesses. What if these overused strengths are showing up as your team’s biggest problems? Please review my 7-minute short video for ideas for identifying these potential areas in your leadership and how to take action!

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

The most powerful thing you bring to leadership isn’t your title, it’s your true self.  I believe this so deeply that when I was asked by an emerging leader a few months ago,  “What advice would you give for leading authentically?” I was excited to answer.  But when I tried to articulate HOW I was able to make that transition from “imitating others” to “embracing my authentic way of leading”, or how I have witnessed others make the same transition, I struggled to explain it.  After much thought, I finally have the right answer and I captured it in this 5-minute short video.  Enjoy!

In this episode, Jamie refers to “The Neuroscience of Trust” by Paul J. Zak.

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

Early in my leadership journey, I used to worry about being the leader with all the answers. If I let on that there were things not quite figured out yet in the business, I worried that the team would get distracted, become frustrated, or (worse yet!) question my ability to lead. Yet, I learned that people don’t need perfection or to feel the illusion of perfection. What they want is transparency. People are infinitely more resilient than my overprotective early leadership style gave them credit for. Join me to learn about a critical tool I developed called “the Radio is Working” for increasing transparency and building trust with your team.

During the episode, Jamie refers to the following:

• Epi #10 – Every View Matters, Executive Access Podcast

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

What makes a truly powerful leader? My answer is a bit counter-cultural. Two of the biggest qualities I consistently observe in the most powerful leaders are that they are Principled and they are Responsible. Being principled starts with being extremely clear about your own personal values and modeling those values in all circumstances. Being responsible starts with seeking to understand first, suspending judgment until that happens. So what are two things that Powerful, Principled and Responsible leaders do? They assume best intent and they stay in their lane (values lane that is!) Please listen to this short episode where I make my case and share practical tips for how you can truly be a powerful leader.

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

Successful leaders regularly make time for reflection and recovery. As a parent of three with a busy executive career, I’ve been asked hundreds of times, “How do you maintain a healthy work-life balance?” I believe it’s time to flip the script. In this episode, I share why that question is often the wrong one to ask. Instead, the right question each of us should be reflecting on is, “What have I decided to do?” Juggling multiple priorities is often challenging, but we walk in power when we are clear on what our goals, priorities, and non-negotiables truly are…and then get after those choices with intensity.

In this episode, I refer to the following work:

• Simon Sinek’s Find Your Why
• The Ideal Life by Mark Congdon

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

I gauge the health of an organization’s culture, in part, by how fast or slow bad news travels. No one likes to hear it, but bad news that is ignored or hidden can be deadly to an organization. When bad news travels slowly, innovation is stifled, time and effort are wasted, and morale is generally very poor. Great leaders understand that driving positive results depends heavily on identifying issues fast so that they can be resolved. In this episode, I share two core reasons that bad news is stifled in an organization and three things that great leaders do to make sure bad news travels fast instead.

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

Giving constructive feedback is one of the best ways to help people grow and keep teams aligned. Yet, many people I work with struggle with giving constructive feedback effectively – including me earlier in my career! This short 7-minute video will explain a few reasons why leaders struggle and the unintended bad consequences that occur when they don’t share feedback well. Also, learn a simple 3-step framework that will positively transform your ability to give effective feedback, enabling you to do so regularly and comfortably.

Jamie refers to this book, Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High by Joseph Grenny and Kerry Patterson.

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

One of the most important leadership skills is communicating effectively to a variety of audiences. This short 11-minute video will share 3 simple practices that you can use immediately to improve the way you communicate; tell them where you are going, say it simply, and “so what, who cares.” Also, learn why fixing your team’s problems is less important than demonstrating that you understand them.

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community, and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.

We think that focusing first on our own goals and needs is the best way to achieve results. However, a much more powerful approach flips that script and is something Jamie calls “First THEM, then (and only then) You.” The most powerful leaders are those who practice an Outward Mindset to learn, create value, and make connections for others, their organizations, and ultimately themselves.

During the episode, Jamie refers to the following work:

• Outward Mindset by Arbinger Institute
• Every View is Powerful

The best leaders are always noticing how their actions and behaviors affect those around them. Strong leaders are master influencers and recognize they can control the way they are perceived by others, and this is very powerful in driving desired outcomes. This episode introduces a model – Warmth and Strength – for leaders to self-assess their impact on others and take action to shift their behaviors to maximize their influence.

Amy Cuddy – Your body language may shape who you are

Connect, Then Lead – Harvard Business Review, Amy Cuddy, Matthew Kohut, and John Neffinger

Each of us in an organization has a unique view out our window and every view is important. Often, early in our career we don’t think that our ground floor view is too special. Later in our careers, we miss those earlier floor views, but we don’t often go back and seek them out. Truly powerful people in any organization are the ones that understand the power of their unique view AND learn how to seek out other views. This short, 8-minute video will give you a new perspective on the power of your view and how you can use it to create untold influence and impact in your organization.

In this short video, Jamie describes the power of building a Growth Mindset for businesses and individuals. Growth Mindset cultures exhibit high innovation, resilience, and empowerment. Jamie defines a Growth Mindset and compares it to its counterpart, the Fixed Mindset. She shares a case study about how Microsoft transformed its culture using Growth Mindset principles and gives practical examples of how you can immediately start practicing a Growth Mindset today.

During the episode, Jamie refers to the following work:

• Carol Dweck’s Growth Mindset – link to the book here
• Acquired Podcast with Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal – April 21 and July 21 Microsoft Volumes I and II
• Neuroleadership Institute – The Essentials of Growth Mindset

Executive Access is produced by The Ideal Life, a platform that provides coaching, community and content for people to grow both personally and professionally.