ChatGMB: Wisdom & Insights for Modern Leaders

I Built My Own Culture: Natalia Sanyal on Belonging, Movement Building, and Humanity-First Marketing

Marissa Badgley — Wed, 05 Aug 2026 14:03:47 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with this rich, honest, and vulnerable conversation with Natalia Sanyal, a humanity-first marketer, brand messaging strategist, conversion copywriter, first-gen immigrant, 3rd-gen entrepreneur, and overall incredible human.

Today, we're exploring the thing most leaders and mission-driven founders dread: marketing themselves. But Natalia is not here to sell you another framework or growth hack. She's here to make the case that humanity-first marketing is not just more ethical, but more effective and supportive.

Natalia has spent more than a decade in marketing, working with brands like Apple, Lululemon, and Glennon Doyle, before leaving the agency world because she was tired of the manipulation. She went out on her own, built a personal brand on LinkedIn entirely through authentic content, and launched a program called Get Embodied that sold out every time she ran it. And then she didn't sell it again for three years, because her nervous system wasn't ready for how well it went. She's building it again now, which is its own kind of lesson.

We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including what movement messaging is and why the brands that use it outperform the ones that don't, the critical difference between a movement and a cult, why viral posts and massive followings don't automatically translate to income, what the nervous system has to do with pressing publish, and why selling (when it's done right) is actually a service, not a violation.

Tune in to hear:

How Natalia went from selling hand-sewn tutus online to building a marketing practice for mission-driven founders
Why she left the agency world, and the manipulation tactics she refused to keep using
What movement messaging is, why it works, and what Apple, Nike, and Obama all have in common
The critical difference between a movement and a cult: agency at every stage
The truth about followers and income: why 100K followers is not a business or marketing plan
Why Natalia celebrated 100 Instagram followers
The Get Embodied story: a $100K launch, a freaked-out founder, and three years of not selling it again
Why "share your scars, not your wounds" is her content philosophy
The nervous system cost of visibility, including why pressing post is dysregulating, and what to do about it
The reframe that changed the conversation: selling is a service, and withholding your offer is a disservice
What it means to be a first-generation immigrant who found belonging in her business

About Natalia Sanyal:

Natalia Sanyal is a humanity-first Marketer, brand messaging strategist, and conversion copywriter who helps mission-driven founders turn their personal brand into a business asset with strategy, self-expression, and nervous system regulation built in. She has more than a decade of marketing experience working with brands like Apple, Lululemon, and Glennon Doyle, and is the creator of Get Embodied, a multi-month cohort that helps founders clarify their message and build it into a movement. Born in Pakistan to a Pakistani father and Filipino mother and raised in Canada, Natalia is a first-generation immigrant and third-generation entrepreneur who found belonging by building her own culture through her business.

Connect with Natalia:

Instagram: @NataliaSanyal — her most active platform and the best place to find out when Get Embodied launches
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nataliasanyal/

ChatGMB: Wisdom & Insights for Modern Leaders is produced for leaders, managers, and changemakers seeking insight, tools, perspective, and real talk on topics such as human-centered leadership, team culture, conflict transformation, burnout prevention, and more. There is no fancy editing or over-polished scripting. Tune in to hear me in all my imperfection, talking for as long as it feels "right" on the topics that light me up or set me on fire.

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

ChatGMB is a production of Reloveution, a consulting and professional development services provider that leverages the magic of humanity to strengthen teams, deepen leadership impact, and catalyze professional well-being. From facilitating team retreats to leading leadership development programs to robust advisory services, we help you build the emotional and cultural conditions for human thriving AND exemplary business outcomes. Learn more at www.truereloveution.com

You might also be interested in our focused conflict transformation practice RepairWorks. When tension rises, communication breaks down, or trust is broken, RepairWorks provides mediation, facilitated dialogue, advisory services, and training to help individuals, workplaces, teams, and established communities move through and transform conflict with clarity, accountability, and humanity. Learn more at www.conflictrepairworks.com

About the Show

GMB stands for “the Great Marissa Badgley” — a nickname my husband lovingly uses to remind me that I am great, good, competent, courageous, and enough. The name is also a playful nod to ChatGPT, which so many of us rely on for answers (maybe more than we should). Think of this as the human alternative: honest real talk, wisdom sharing, and actionable strategies on the specific leadership and culture topics that surface again and again in my consulting, coaching, and facilitation work.

Stop Fixing Everything: Lorena Martinez on Self-Awareness, Humility, and Learning to Trust Yourself

Marissa Badgley — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 14:03:32 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with a conversation that felt less like an interview and more like watching someone become themselves in real time. Lorena Martinez is a social worker, program manager, first-generation American, and daughter of Colombian immigrants who has spent her career working at the intersection of community service, social justice, international affairs, and human potential.

Lorena and I met through Five Frogs Connecticut's Leadership Development Roundtable program, where I served as her coach over eight months. She's since become a member of the Millennial Manager Collective, attended Reloveution retreats, and continued her growth in ways that are visible, concrete, and unbelievably moving to witness. In this conversation, we dig into what it means to lead with humility and values alignment in the social sector, the psychological weight of being a fixer (and what it costs when that's the only mode you know), the concrete tools Lorena still pulls out at team meetings years later, and what it's like to be a first-generation American navigating systems that were never designed with her in mind.

Tune in to hear:

Lorena's origin story: Colombian roots, a grandmother who raised her on culture and language, and high school years spent advocating for day laborers and speaking in front of lawmakers
How she found her way from international affairs to social work
Why self-awareness is "the most important value factor, ever," and what it costs when leaders are blind to their own ego
How she came to coaching thinking she'd be told what she was doing wrong, and discovering reframing, possibilities, and values alignment instead
The concrete tools she still uses: communication styles, leadership types, difficult conversations, and the workbook that still lives in her binder
The "compassionate accountability" frame that changed how she thinks about work entirely
Code-switching, the psychological toll of not being able to show up fully, and what she wishes leaders would do differently
What it feels like to be a first-generation American in 2026 and the hypervigilance that comes with it
What she's working on becoming: someone who can let life unfold, trust that things will fall into place, and celebrate how far she's come instead of only seeing what's left to fix
Her closing wisdom: you don't have to do all the things from a place of scarcity. Do them because they bring you joy, because inherently, you are enough

About Lorena Martinez:

Lorena Martinez is a social worker, program manager, and first-generation American born to Colombian parents and raised in New York and Connecticut. She holds a Master of Social Work and has spent her career working in mission-driven organizations at the intersection of community service, social justice, and human development. She is an alum of Five Frogs Connecticut's Leadership Development Roundtable and a current member of Reloveution's Millennial Manager Collective.

Coaching

Lorena came into coaching expecting someone to tell her what she was doing wrong. What she found instead was a space to see her own situations from the outside, reframe, explore possibilities, and keep her humanity intact. She says the skills and tools she's worked through with me as her coach continue to pay back with exponential returns, and that when she faces a hard situation at work, her first thought is still: how would Marissa look at this? If you're a leader who could use someone like that in your corner, book a connection call to see if coaching with Reloveution is the right fit for you.

Want More from Reloveution?

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Nobody Wakes Up and Says, "I Want to Be Homeless": Theresa Nicholson on Housing, Dignity, and Leadership

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 18:26:42 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with Theresa Nicholson, Executive Director of South Park Inn in Hartford, Connecticut. Theresa has spent more than 30 years advocating for and managing vital services for people experiencing homelessness and severe mental illness, working her way from case manager to vice president to executive director across some of the most complex social service organizations in Connecticut and Massachusetts. She came to South Park Inn in 2024 with a clear intention: to close out her career in a smaller organization where she could have a bigger, more direct impact on her community.

Theresa and I share stories about the people who have impacted us in our careers, dig into what's changed in homelessness services over 30 years, and explore what it means to lead a trauma-exposed team without burning everyone out. Tune in to also hear:

What South Park Inn does and who/how it serves
The fastest-growing population experiencing homelessness right now — and why it surprised a synagogue full of people who thought they knew
What "brief" used to mean vs. what it means now, and what that says about the housing crisis
How Theresa thinks about team wellbeing in some of the most vicarious-trauma-heavy work there is
The "get to yes" framework, and a story about $20,000 in medical beds that almost got sent back
What Theresa wishes she'd known as a young leader
The skill vs. will framework for assessing staff
Why criminalizing homelessness is one of the most urgent and disheartening trends she's watching
The call to action: be an advocate, donate, volunteer, and remember that most of us are one paycheck away from a very different life

About Theresa Nicholson:

Theresa Nicholson is a master's-level clinician and longtime advocate for people experiencing homelessness, mental illness, and addiction. She has served as Executive Director of South Park Inn since 2024, coming from the Center for Human Development in Western Massachusetts, where she was Director of Homeless Services for nearly six years. Previously, she was Chief Program Officer at Chrysalis Center in Hartford and spent 15 years at the Community Renewal Team as Vice President of Behavioral Health Services. She was a former chair of the Greater Hartford Coordinated Access Network. She is also a mother of six adopted children.

Connect with and Support South Park Inn:

Website: South Park Inn
Donate: https://www.southparkinn.org/donate
Get Involved: https://www.southparkinn.org/get-involved
Dance Party Fundraiser: September 26, 2026 at Parkville Market, Hartford, CT

Resources Mentioned:

Greater Hartford Gives (formerly Hartford Foundation for Public Giving) [link]
Connecticut's Coordinated Access Networks

Want Support from Reloveution?

Join our Compassionate Accountability Cohort

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Compliance-to-Growth Shift: Nina Everflow on Decolonizing How We Learn

Marissa Badgley — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:31:05 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with this rich, expansive, and radical conversation with Nina Everflow, a consultant, facilitator, and designer of exceptional, equitable, and effective learning experiences. Nina helps social impact organizations design wisdom systems that turn transformational expertise into lasting practices, shared knowledge, and healthier cultures. She's also one of my favorite community members, someone who can make you smile and feel grounded even when talking about really difficult things.

Nina grew up shaped by a large, loud, diverse extended family and a deep relationship with faith and human behavior, always asking why people make the choices they do, and what happens when we show up with a gap between who we say we are and how we actually act. Those questions became the foundation of Everflow Consulting and Design, where she helps organizations and thought leaders transform wisdom into living systems that can be practiced, shared, and sustained.

In this conversation, Nina and I go deep. Tune in to hear about:

Nina's origin story: an integrative studies degree at George Mason, a big, loud, diverse family, and a lifelong fascination with the gap between who we say we are and how we actually show up
What a "wisdom system" is, and why it's different from a curriculum or a training program
Why knowledge isn't just data, and what gets lost when we treat it that way
The concept of "energetic transferability," and how the more of yourself you bring to a space, the more another person can actually receive what you're sharing
Why being a great in-person facilitator does NOT automatically make you great virtually, and what the real skill shift requires
What "decolonizing learning" means and how it starts with shifting from compliance-oriented to growth-oriented intentionality
Why healthy dissent and conflict are signs of a thriving organization and why leaders have to protect the people who push back
Why "thinking about learning as an ecosystem" is the question Nina starts with every client engagement

About Nina Everflow:

Nina Everflow is a consultant, facilitator, and designer of exceptional, equitable, and effective learning experiences. As the founder of Everflow Consulting and Design, she helps social impact organizations, founders, and thought leaders design wisdom systems that turn transformational expertise into lasting practices, shared knowledge, and healthier cultures. Her approach integrates embodied leadership, adult learning, and value-centered design — grounded in the belief that growth should never come at the expense of integrity. She has nearly 15 years of experience in learning and development and works with authors, nonprofit leaders, and organizations who are ready to move beyond compliance-oriented training toward something that actually changes people.

Connect with Nina:

Website: Everflowco.com
LinkedIn
Newsletter: Tips on liberated learning, facilitation strategies, and stories from Nina's client work [link via website]

Resources Mentioned:

Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown
Bayo Akomolafe
The Adaway Group (Now, Together at Work)
Actions Speak Louder by Deanna Singh [link]

Want Support from Reloveution?

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Room You Need Before the Stakes Are Real: Julia Pileggi on the Body, the Voice & the Boom Room

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 19:27:47 GMT

In today's installment of our Summer Guest Series, we are joined by Julia Pileggi, co-founder of The Boom Room, spoken word performer, and one of those incredible people who build the thing the world needs because the thing didn't exist yet. In this electric conversation, we dive deep into the gap between who we know ourselves to be and who actually shows up when things get hard, the science and soul of why knowing what to do is never the same as being able to do it, why the body defaults to familiar, protective patterns under stress no matter how much we've studied or prepared, and how consequence-free practice before the stakes are real is the missing ingredient in almost every leadership development program. We also trade stories about freezing on stage, the pink-pen-on-yellow-paper moment that changed Julia's career, and what it means that "humiliated" and "human" are almost the same word.

Julia came to this work through years as a simulated patient actor and actor-trainer, and through a deeply personal experience of losing her voice when she and her husband uprooted their lives and moved to Italy with a 20-month-old. Julia, a self-described spoken-word artist who expresses herself for a living, suddenly found herself freezing at the farmer's market trying to order cheese. That disorientation became the seed of The Boom Room, a practice company that uses professional actors and immersive simulated scenarios to help people close the gap between who they know themselves to be and who actually shows up under pressure.

Listen in to hear us talk about:

How losing her voice in Italy became the origin story of The Boom Room
What The Boom Room is, how it works, and who it's for
Why knowing what to do is not the same as being able to do it under pressure
The self-abandonment loop, including what happens in the body when we say something we don't mean
Why "it's not a character flaw, it's a practice gap" is the reframe leaders need most
How the body holds muscle memory, and how to start building new pathways before the real conversation has to happen
Practical tools for staying present: breathing, humming, physical warm-up, and the "what would I do in the Boom Room?" question
The "These 5 Minutes" writing practice Julia built with a friend and kept up for 8 years
Why triumph often feels bad and why that's the signal you're actually growing

Connect with Julia and The Boom Room:

Website: theboomroomexperience.com

Books Mentioned:

Wild Mind by Natalie Goldberg

Want Support Finding Your Voice w/ Reloveution?

Join our Public Feedback Lab (August 10, 2026)
Join our Compassionate Accountability Cohort (September 2026 - March 2027)
On-Demand Coaching

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

We Are All Learners and Teachers: Keesha Ceran on Lifelong Learning and Leading Whole People

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 15:36:22 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with this rich, warm, and wide-ranging conversation with Nakeesha Ceran — affectionately known as Keesha — Deputy Director of Teaching for Change, political scientist, first-generation Haitian American, proud community college graduate, connector of people, and one of my favorite humans.

Keesha has been part of the Millennial Manager Collective for three years, and this conversation is a beautiful example of what happens when someone has been doing the deep work on themselves and their leadership for a long time. She brings a rare combination of big-picture political and historical analysis, profound humility about her own leadership journey, and a deeply practical approach to building culture inside a small nonprofit navigating an enormous, often difficult moment in history.

Keesha and I cover a lot of ground, from the state of public education and the long arc of educator disenfranchisement, to what it means to steward people well as a leader, to the tension between building a beautiful workplace culture and knowing your people are going to leave it. We talk about what COVID revealed and what we forgot too quickly, why "holding people loosely" is an act of generosity and not a failure, and why the question "what do you really want to do?" is one of the most powerful things a manager can ask. As a bonus, we also hear from Keesha about her powerful experiences with the Millennial Manager Collective and Reloveution's public retreats and programs.

Tune in to learn more about:

Keesha's origin story from small-town Ohio to the Bay Area to DC, and how her grandfather's love of the news became her foundation for civic curiosity
Teaching for Change's mission: filling the gaps left by textbooks and helping young people understand their own power to change history
Why the attack on honest history education isn't new, and how a 2020 executive order connects directly to what we're seeing in classrooms today
Why Keesha calls educators first responders, and why they deserve the same reverence
Where Keesha finds hope and leans into faith (even when it's hard)
Her leadership reckoning: the low moment in a previous role, the harm she had to repair, and what it taught her about the leader she wanted to be
What "holding people loosely" looks like in practice, and why it requires a lot of humility from a supervisor
Why she tells every direct report, "this is a step," and asks them what they really want to do
The 50/50 one-on-one, and how Keesha sets up her team relationships from the start
Why your employees and interns are your ambassadors, whether you've thought about it or not

About Keesha Ceran:

Keesha Ceran (she/her) is a dynamic, mission-driven mid-level executive with a background in political science, higher education, and nonprofit operations. She currently serves as Deputy Director of Teaching for Change, a national pre-K through 12 education nonprofit headquartered in Washington, DC, whose mission is to equip educators and families with tools to teach for social justice and help young people understand their power to change the world. A first-generation Haitian American raised in Ohio and the Bay Area, Keesha holds three degrees in political science and has spent her career at the intersection of education, social justice, organizational culture, and people development. She is a proud member of the Millennial Manager Collective and a natural connector of people, ideas, and communities.

Resources Mentioned:

Teaching for Change
Social Justice Books
Teach Truth Campaign
Other Ways to Connect: https://linktr.ee/teach_change

Connect with Keesha:

Connect: https://about.me/nakeeshaceran
Social Media Connections: https://linktr.ee/kjc89

Shameless Plug:

Keesha has been part of the Millennial Manager Collective for three years, and in this episode she calls out what she calls "Marissa Magic," the rare ability to create a container where participants become co-creators of the experience, and consistently walk away more transformed than they expected. She describes me as someone with an astute awareness of people that is genuinely hard to put into words and says the community she's found through Reloveution's ecosystem is one she taps regularly to think through her own leadership.

If you resonated with this conversation and could use a space like that in your corner, please check out:

The Millennial Manager Collective (including our open events)
The Reloveution Retreat
On-Demand Coaching & Advisory

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Federal Grants, Fierce Opinions, and the Leadership Gaps Nobody Talks About w/ Fielding Jezreel

Marissa Badgley — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 20:04:16 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with this wide-ranging conversation with Fielding Jezreel, Founder of Jezreel Consulting and the Federal Grants Accelerator, and one of the country's foremost federal grant experts.

Fielding and I reconnected recently after going to grad school together many years ago, and in this episode, we discover just how many parallels run through our stories, including toxic workplaces that pushed us out the door, partners who said " we believe in you; go figure it out," businesses that pivoted hard during historic disruptions (one during a global pandemic, one during a federal funding collapse), and a shared belief that mission-driven work deserves to be run with strategic rigor and real accountability.

Tune in to hear:

How Fielding went from fleeing a toxic workplace with no plan to building a thriving eight-year solo consulting practice entirely by word of mouth
What happened when $100,000 in revenue disappeared in one week in 2025, and how she used the chaos to build something better
Why federal grants are uniquely merit-based, and why that matters for organizations that have been told "it's all about who you know"
What the Federal Grants Accelerator is, who it's for, and why the program runs for two years (with a guarantee)
The common mistakes small and mid-size nonprofits make when pursuing federal grants, and the three things leadership needs to have in place before they even start
Why AI has flooded the grants field with look-alike applications, and why "you need the expert plus AI, never just AI"
The consultant title effect: what it says about how nonprofits treat their internal experts
Why grant writers are often the most knowledgeable people in the building, why they're almost never in the room where strategy happens, and the issue with that
Three things that would retain 50–60% of the grant professionals who leave
Why grant professionals might belong in compliance or operations rather than development

Mentioned in this episode:

Connect with Fielding:

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Join our Compassionate Accountability Cohort — the thing Marissa accidentally announced live on this episode!

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Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Controllable and Uncontrollable Forces: A Veteran's Guide to Leading Well w/ D'Juan Wilcher

Marissa Badgley — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 16:33:33 GMT

Our Summer Guest Series continues with this profound, energizing, and a-little-silly conversation with D'Juan Wilcher, a Navy veteran, a distinguished alum of Indiana University, and Deputy Director at the George W. Bush Presidential Center, where his work spans veteran economic opportunity, education pathways, mental health, and civic engagement. He's also a first-generation college student from Gary, Indiana, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Truman National Security Project, a mentor, a husband, and a dad of three boys, which, as you'll hear, might be the most instructive leadership laboratory of all.

In this conversation, Marissa and D'Juan dig into several critical topics, including what it takes to talk and lead across difference, the ingredients that set good leaders apart from mediocre ones, why leaders have to get comfortable with non-closure, and what emotional integrity and compassionate accountability look like for different generations. We also trade many metaphors about crayons, lemons, and holding doors open (literally and professionally). D'Juan also opens up about his transition out of the Navy, reflecting in real time on how living in Chicago during a period of social unrest reshaped what service meant to him, and how being a Black father means holding two truths at once: preparing his sons for the world as it is, while protecting their childhood for as long as he can. Tune in to hear:

Why curiosity and humility are the engine of every conversation across difference
Why not everything needs resolution
The inference trap: how "if they believe that, they must believe this" thinking breaks teams, tables, and countries
Marissa's ask vs. assume framework for interrupting assumptions before they harden
Parenting as leadership: what managing three kids in three different ways teaches about meeting people where they are
The crayons-in-the-box metaphor for emotional vocabulary, and why every generation is coloring on different paper
What civilian organizations could learn from the Navy
Service beyond the uniform: why holding the door open (at Target and in your career) counts
Why it's so important to prioritize your people's growth, hold folks accountable to what you agreed on, and lead with optimism

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn More with Reloveution

TRANSPARENCY NOTE: While this podcast production is usually 100% unedited, we want to be transparent that we did some light editing on this one to mitigate technical errors throughout the episode. All content and humanness have been preserved!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Talk Less, Ask More: Brad Lademann on Curiosity, Connection, and Raising Adults

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 14:50:32 GMT

What makes a great facilitator, an effective leader, and a strong network? According to this week's guest, the answer to all three is the same: strong relationships and deep curiosity.

In this episode, I sit down with Brad Lademann, Associate Director of Quality Initiatives at the Missouri AfterSchool Network, where he has spent 11 years supporting after-school professionals across the state through professional development, facilitation, conferences, and now a year-long leadership development program he and Marissa have built together.

Brad spent a decade as a youth pastor before moving into after-school and dropout prevention work, and the lessons he learned from showing up for teenagers have become the backbone of his approach to adult leadership and professional development. He and I swap stories from our time working with youth; dig into what it takes to build belonging across a statewide network that spans rural towns of 500 people and major urban programs alike; discuss why the after-school field deserves more money, more respect, and a real career pathway; and what a book about a fancy New York restaurant can teach us about leadership. Brad also opens up about his experience with burnout and what it took to find his way back.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Why Brad says relationships are the most crucial ingredient for a good life
The two things that unlock real connection: curiosity and listening to learn (not to respond)
Why the same principles that work with teenagers work just as well with adult colleagues and employees
How the Missouri AfterSchool Network builds belonging across a wildly diverse statewide ecosystem
The case for professionalizing the after-school field, and why "I just work with kids" should never be said in air quotes again
What "helping raise adults" actually means, and why Brad takes the long view on everyone he leads
Why "almost is not a story" — and how that phrase keeps him from letting the good intentions collect dust

Book Recommendation from Brad:

Learn More:

Call to Action: Call on your representatives to support and fund afterschool!

***Interested in bringing a multi-month leadership development program to YOUR organization or network?! Book a connection call with Reloveution or email us at info@truereloveution.com!***

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

You Can't Out-Think Your Nervous System: Blessing Uchendu on Leadership and the Body

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 25 Jun 2026 15:14:58 GMT

What if the thing standing between you and sustainable leadership isn't your mindset, your strategy, or your time management, but your physiology? In this episode, I sit down with Blessing Uchendu, a licensed clinical social worker and somatic leadership coach who spent nearly 20 years in social work before bringing that clinical depth into coaching high-achieving women leaders.

Together, we explore:

What it means that "you cannot out-think your nervous system"
Why physical breakdown under chronic stress is a normal response, not a personal failure
The distinction between therapy ("healing backward") and coaching ("healing forwards")
How stress hijacks access to the reasoning part of the brain
How marginalized identities — especially for women and people of color in leadership — add an extra layer of nervous system vigilance at work
A nervous-system approach to building belonging
Practical language for naming dysregulation in yourself or someone else without shame
Why pausing during conflict only works if you return to the hard conversation afterward
An exercise for mapping your own stress signals and communicating what you need from your team
Resisting urgency culture and slowing down to match your body's pace and needs.

About Blessing :

Blessing Uchendu is a licensed clinical social worker and somatic leadership coach who works with women leaders who are excellent at their jobs and exhausted in ways that no amount of time off seems to fix. After nearly 20 years as a social worker, she brought her clinical depth into private practice and eventually into leadership coaching, helping leaders recognize the stress patterns — over-functioning, conflict avoidance, invisible emotional labor — that are shaping how they lead, and building the nervous system capacity to stay grounded under pressure. She works with women leaders and organizations through one-to-one somatic leadership coaching and facilitation, and is available for speaking engagements on nervous system intelligence at work.

More Goodness from Blessing:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blessinguchendu/
Website: https://www.freshwatercc.com/
FREE RESOURCE: How to Finally Relax Without Needing a Vacation
Free Leadership Clarity Call

Want Support from Reloveution?

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

"Step Back, Not Away" - Brittany Rodriguez's Leadership Story

Marissa Badgley — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 16:53:32 GMT

This episode of ChatGMB Wisdom and Insights for Modern Leaders is a little different because it's a conversation between Marissa and someone she coached. Brittany Rodriguez is the Senior Director of Programs at Hartford Youth Scholars, a college-access organization in Hartford, Connecticut, where she's worked for 9 years and was once a student herself. Marissa coached Brittany through FiveFrogs' eight-month Leadership Development Roundtable (LDR) program, and this episode brings their working relationship full circle.

Brittany talks about growing up in Hartford with a single mother, attending boarding school, and the early career jump from a stable job in finance to mission-driven nonprofit work, a decision she's never once regretted. We dig into what's kept her at one organization for nearly a decade, the leadership values she leans on, and the ongoing, very human work of leading a team without burning out or taking over.

We also talk candidly about coaching and cohort-based leadership development, and what it felt like for Brittany to be coached by Marissa. The episode closes with Brittany sharing that she's open to her next opportunity after nearly a decade at Hartford Youth Scholars and what she's looking for next.

Listen in to hear:

What's kept Brittany at one organization for 9 years (and what most workplaces could learn from it)
The difference between "power-with" and "power-over" leadership
How she builds consistency for her team amid the chaos of nonprofit work
Why "balance" is subjective, and how she's worked through the guilt of logging off
The hardest leadership skill she's currently practicing: stepping back without stepping away
What it was like to go through an 8-month leadership cohort (LDR) and 1:1 coaching at the same time

About Brittany Rodriguez:

Brittany Rodriguez is the Senior Director of Programs at Hartford Youth Scholars, where she supports students and families navigating historically inequitable education systems through intentional, compassionate academic support that positions them for undergraduate completion and success. A first-generation, queer Latina raised by a single mother in Hartford, Connecticut, Brittany is herself an alum of Hartford Youth Scholars and has spent nine years building her career there after a brief stint in finance. She was a participant in Five Frogs Connecticut's Leadership Development Roundtable (LDR) program, and is currently (as of June 22, 2026) open to new professional opportunities.

Connect with Brittany on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittany-leighrodriguez/

Other References

Working with Marissa as a Coach:

Brittany describes her coaching experience with Marissa as one of the most concentrated growth experiences in her leadership journey. She says she expected criticism and got affirmation instead, along with concrete tools she could put into practice immediately (sometimes walking straight from a coaching session into a team meeting to try them out). She calls Marissa relatable, perceptive, human, and authentic, and says several of the tools from their work together have stuck with her ever since.

If you're a leader who could use someone like Marissa in your corner, book a connection call here to see if coaching might be the right fit for you. You can also learn more HERE.

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Withholding of Self: Elaine Lin Hering on Voice, Power, and Silence at Work

Marissa Badgley — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 15:09:12 GMT

In this episode of ChatGMB, Marissa talks with Elaine Lin Hering, speaker, facilitator, former lecturer at Harvard Law School, and author of the USA Today bestseller Unlearning Silence: How to Speak Your Mind, Unleash Talent, and Live More Fully. The conversation is both personal and practical, with a central premise that one of the biggest, if not the biggest, obstacles to good leadership, healthy teams, and real progress isn't a lack of confidence but silence.

Elaine defines silence as the withholding of self for the comfort and convenience of others and breaks it into three layers: self-silencing, social silencing, and systemic silencing. Drawing on her own experience as the youngest daughter of an immigrant family and her career inside elite institutions, Elaine explains why telling people to "just speak up" misses the point entirely, and why so much leadership advice (be more confident, be louder, be more like the person who got promoted) is solving for the wrong problem. Together, we talk about:

Elaine's definition of silence and how it shows up in our lives and work
Why "just speak up" doesn't work, and what leaders should solve for instead
The danger of conflating organizational values with personal values
Red flags that a team or organization has a silence problem (hint: watch how leaders respond to bad survey scores)
The common ways leaders (including maybe even you) unintentionally silence others
The distinction between strategic silence (a tool) and oppressive silence (a trap)
Real-time processors vs. post-processors, and how to build cultures that work for both
Why "different" doesn't have to mean "wrong" on a team

About Elaine Lin Hering:

Elaine Lin Hering is a speaker, facilitator, and former lecturer on law at Harvard Law School who works with organizations and individuals to build skills in communication, collaboration, and conflict management. She has worked on six continents and facilitated executive education at Harvard, Dartmouth, Tufts, UC Berkeley, and UCLA. She has served as Advanced Training Director for the Harvard Mediation Program and as managing partner for a global leadership development firm, with clients including American Express, Chevron, Google, Nike, Novartis, PayPal, Pixar, and the Red Cross. She was named a Thinkers50 Global Management Thinker to Watch and is the USA Today bestselling author of Unlearning Silence: How to Speak Your Mind, Unleash Talent, and Live More Fully.

Connect with Elaine:

Complementary Resources from Reloveution

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Curiosity, Compassion, Clarity: A Better Framework for Change Management w/ Caitlin Harper

Marissa Badgley — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 17:48:43 GMT

What do a closed office bathroom, a years-long sidewalk construction project, and a surprise $1,000 windfall have in common? They're all examples of disruptive change, and disruption, even when it's positive, carries a real cost for people, strategy, and outcomes.

In this episode, Marissa speaks with Caitlin Harper, founder and principal strategist at Commcoterie, to dig into her work as a change management expert and consultant and to learn how leaders can "do change" better. Caitlin spent years leading change from inside organizations before realizing that "change management" was a real job people get paid for. Now, in her seventh year running her own business, she helps mission-driven leaders and teams design strategy, communicate change, and build the trust that enables sustainable transformation and real human buy-in.

Marissa and Caitlin talk about why announcing a change is not the same as actually managing it, why "all change is harm" even when the change is good, and why trying to make everyone happy during a transition is not the right goal. They get into the difference between additive change (new tech, new processes) and subtractive change (program closures, team mergers, things going away), and why organizations so rarely plan for and often underresource the latter. Caitlin also shares her "curiosity, compassion, clarity" framework, explains why she'd rather lead with compassion than empathy, and gives managers concrete questions to ask leadership when they're stuck delivering a change they didn't design or maybe don't even agree with.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Why "change management" happens in organizations before anyone calls it that
How power imbalances and lack of control shape the way people experience even small disruptions
Why transparency isn't really what people want even if they think they do
How to share strategy "in lieu of information"
Questions managers can ask leadership to advocate for their teams during a transition
Why compassion, not empathy, is the more sustainable leadership skill

About Caitlin Harper:

Caitlin Harper is a strategist and thought partner for leadership teams of mission-driven companies and nonprofits navigating constant change. For more than 15 years, she has designed strategies and led change across organizations large and small, working as an organizational change, internal communication, and operations leader. She is the founder and principal strategist of Commcoterie, where she helps values-driven organizations design strategy, navigate change, and build stakeholder communication that supports their missions.

Learn More About Commcotterie: https://www.commcoterie.com/
Subscribe to Caitlin's Newsletter: https://www.commcoterie.com/newsletter
Listen to Caitlin on The Ways We Learn Podcast

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Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Am I Gross for Staying?!

Marissa Badgley — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:30:00 GMT

Should you leave a job that no longer feels aligned or an organization that is dysfunctional or toxic? Or is it okay to stay, even when things are messy, frustrating, toxic, or less than ideal? In this episode, we tackle a question that has come up multiple times in our community this month: "Am I gross for staying?"

Whether you're considering a job change, feeling trapped by circumstances, or trying to make peace with staying in your role, this episode will help you reconnect with your agency and make choices that honor both your reality and your future. We explore:

Why staying in a difficult job does not make you weak, complicit, naive, or "gross"
The hidden shame created by workplace advice that assumes leaving is always the right answer
My personal story of burnout and the lessons I learned from staying too long
The difference between consciously choosing to stay and staying by default
How agency serves as a protective factor for well-being
Four ways to "stay well" if you're remaining in a challenging workplace
Herbert Simon's concept of "satisficing" and why good enough may be wiser than perfect
Eight reflection and discernment questions to help you discern whether to stay, leave, or build a bridge between the two

Key Takeaways

Staying is a choice. Leaving is a choice. Staying while building an exit strategy is also a choice.
You are the only person qualified to weigh the costs and benefits of your own life.
Staying becomes dangerous when you stop protecting yourself.
Agency matters. The same situation feels fundamentally different when you believe you're choosing it.
Your health, integrity, and sense of self are not acceptable sacrifices for any organization.
Not every decision requires optimization. Sometimes "good enough for right now" is the wisest path forward.
The goal isn't to find a perfect answer, but to make a conscious one.

The 8 Discernment Questions

What is keeping me here?
What is staying costing me?
What would staying for one more year (or any amount of time) cost me that I can never get back?
Is this situation static, fluid, temporary, or changing?
What would have to be true for staying to feel like the right choice?
What would have to be true for leaving to feel like the right choice?
Am I staying because I’ve decided to stay or because it's the default?
Do I want to stay or go? OR What do I notice in my body about staying or going?

The Best Career Coaches I Know

We're all here for you!! Please reach out if you need support!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Work Beneath the Work w/ Lindsey Lerner

Marissa Badgley — Tue, 26 May 2026 18:10:44 GMT

Lindsey Lerner is one of those people who makes you feel like the conversation you're having is the most important one you've had all week. She's an artist, documentarian, TED speaker, and creator of Field Notes from the Work (and the Wild), a project documenting the unseen rituals, invisible processes, and quiet realities that fuel creativity, community, and change. She's spent nearly two decades building startups, managing national music tours, shaping cultural policy, and leading creative strategy, always focused on the people and the persistence that makes things possible.

Lindsey and I met in the early days of the pandemic, talked for hours about everything and nothing, and became fast friends and collaborators. Tune in to hear us talk about:

What it means to have a squiggly, nonlinear career (and why Lindsey thinks now is actually the best time to be a multi-hyphenate generalist)
How Lindsey went from art school dropout to anthropology student to music industry advocate to travel tech founder to field documentarian, and what connects all of it
What she's documenting, why it matters, and the five patterns that have shown up across every single story she's collected
Pattern 1: The work that people get paid for is rarely the real work
Pattern 2: Every story contains a permission moment — a day when someone stopped waiting to be chosen and started anyway
Pattern 3: The invisible process — the doubt, the preparation, the years of trying differently — is where the real work happens
Pattern 4: Fear appears right before meaningful work begins. It's not a warning. It's a signal.
Pattern 5: Meaningful work is always relational. You cannot do the real thing alone.
The questions leaders should be asking in interviews to get at the invisible — including "What do people often miss about what you do?" and "How do you know you're making progress when no one can see it?"
What Lindsey realized when she was hitting all the business markers of success and still feeling miserable, and what that taught her about the difference between what you do and who you are

Find Lindsay:

Looking for support on your career journey, looking for support in answering your biggest questions, or noticing patterns you want to disrupt in your work or leadership?

Check out our upcoming public events and on-demand coaching services!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

When the Therapist Is Also the Boss w/ Laura Goldstein, LCMFT

Marissa Badgley — Fri, 22 May 2026 20:47:06 GMT

Laura Goldstein and I met during pre-orientation week at Franklin & Marshall College, both of us drawn to community service before we could possibly know what that meant for our careers or futures. We lost touch for over a decade, reconnected through the magic of millennial social media lurking, and have ended up doing meaningful work together. She's attended our public retreats, brought me in to facilitate a day-long retreat with her team, and has become someone whose perspective I trust. Which is why I invited her to join me on ChatGMB!

Laura is a licensed marriage and family therapist, founder of Montgomery County Counseling Center, and creator of TheraCourses. She's been doing this work for 14+ years, and she runs her practice in a refreshing way that is untraditional in the mental health world. This conversation is full of wisdom for any leader who is also a helper, a business owner, or someone trying to figure out how to build a culture that reflects their values and the world they want to live in. In the episode, we explored:

How Laura went from pre-med to therapist to practice owner, and what she would have told her college self
Why she chose to grow slowly and intentionally, and what she thinks leaders get wrong when they hit the gas too fast
What it's actually like to run a mental health practice with a people-over-profit model, including a recent big shift from commission-based pay to salary
The irony of mental health organizations being some of the most toxic workplaces that exist, and how she's trying to do it differently
The line between being a therapist and being a boss, and what happens when therapy language shows up in a management conversation
Why compassion and accountability are not opposites, and how DBT's core dialectic maps directly onto the leadership work I do
What it means that "you can't read the label from inside the jar," and why even the most skilled helpers need support from the outside
Laura's number one piece of advice for modern leaders

Connect With & Learn More About Laura

Interested in Going Deeper w/ Reloveution?

Our Newsletter
One Day Leadership Intensive: The Feedback Lab
Workshop Series: Emotional Integrity at Work: Building a Culture of Accountability & Psychological Safety

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Management ≠ Micromanagement: Why Knowing the Difference Changes Everything

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 14 May 2026 15:27:48 GMT

So many leaders I work with and talk to fear micromanaging or surveilling their teammates. And that's good because nobody should be micromanaged or surveilled. Today's episode is all about how "I don't want to micromanage" is often an excuse for under-managing or not managing at all. Most of the time, when people say this, what they're actually describing is just... management. So where's the line? How do we empower ownership without taking over? What do we need to let go of in order to manage more effectively? That's what we're digging into in this episode!

Key Takeaways

The traps of "I don't want to micromanage" and why people need to be managed
The four distinctions between management and micromanagement
Setting clear expectations vs. controlling the how and when, and the difference between editing someone's work and coaching/empowering them
How to check in without hovering
What to do when someone is genuinely underperforming, because micromanagement is not a performance management strategy
Why compassionate accountability, meaningful consequences, and a culture of regular feedback are the real answer to underperformance
The equity dimension of micromanagement that isn't talked about enough
What it means to extend trust, autonomy, and development opportunities equitably across your whole team

Follow-Up Resources

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Why I'm Ditching My Oxygen Mask [Soapbox Episode]

Marissa Badgley — Tue, 05 May 2026 18:22:20 GMT

You've heard it a thousand times: put your own oxygen mask on before assisting others. It sounds wise. It sounds right. But what if this well-meaning metaphor is actually making burnout (and burnout culture) worse?!

In this episode, I get on my soapbox about the oxygen mask metaphor, including what it gets right, what it gets dangerously wrong, and why I think we need something better. You'll hear about my own experiences of martyrdom-driven burnout, the four specific problems I see with the metaphor, and an alternative framework for sustainable, equity-centered care. Specifically, you'll learn:

The four problems with the oxygen mask as a burnout prevention framework
It centers the individual, not the system. Oxygen masks don't fix mechanical failures.
It implies crisis and scarcity, and you cannot think expansively from inside survival mode.
It's transactional and ties self-care to usefulness and worth to productivity.
It doesn't account for equity, identity, or the unequal distribution of access to rest, care, and resources.
A better metaphor: Feed the Fire, Don't Become the Fuel
What sustainable, communal, healing-centered leadership can actually look like (no oxygen masks required)

Resources for Your Journey

One-Day Leadership Renewal Retreats & Annual Reloveution Retreat
Burnout Blueprinting Call
Bring a Workshop or Learning Series to Your Team --> Start with an email or connection call!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Seven Bridges of Leadership Communication

Marissa Badgley — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 15:27:25 GMT

If you've ever been in a conversation at work where you could feel a gap and had no idea how to close it, this episode is for you. Bridge communication isn't about giving in or making everything comfortable. It's about having the language and tools to build bridges (sometimes one plank at a time) between feelings, perspectives, and intentions. In this episode, we cover seven communication bridges and how to build them, including sample language you can use if you find yourself on one shore while others seem to be on another!

Bridge 1: Emotion → Constructive Response — From feeling it to doing something useful with it

Example: "There's a lot of energy in this conversation right now, and I think it might help if we name how we’re both feeling before we try to problem-solve."

Bridge 2: My Perspective → Their Perspective — From being right to being curious

Example: "I feel like we're looking at the same situation pretty differently. I don't want to just talk past each other. Can you help me understand what you're seeing that I might be missing?"

Bridge 3: Hard Truth → Trusted Relationship — From unfiltered honesty to honesty they can hear

Example: "I'm telling you this because I respect you and I genuinely want you to succeed here. What I need you to hear is ___."

Bridge 4: Ambiguity → Enough Clarity to Move — From "we don't know yet" to "here's what we do know"

Example: "I know this feels uncertain, and I want to be honest with you about where we are. What I know is [X]. What I don't know yet is [Y]. While we wait for more clarity, here's what I need us to focus on: [Z]."

Bridge 5: Individual Need → Team Good — From "what this person needs" to "what we all need"

Example: "I want to honor what you need here, and I also have to think about what's fair and sustainable for the whole team. Here's how I'm trying to hold both: ___."

Bridge 6: Intent → Impact — From "that's not what I meant" to "I understand what it did"

Example: "I'm realizing my intention and the impact were really different here, and the impact is what matters right now. I'm sorry that it landed that way. Can we talk about it?"

Bridge 7: Silence → Speech — From what's true to what gets said out loud

Example: "I've been noticing some tension on the team and I'd rather surface it than pretend it isn't there. Can we talk about what's going on?"

Learning how to build these bridges helps enhance communication in teams, transitioning from emotions to constructive actions, understanding differing perspectives, and fostering collaborative environments. By actively working to close these gaps, leaders can build stronger connections and navigate challenges more effectively!!

Follow-Up Resources

Our Weekly-ish Newsletter
On-Demand Coaching (15-minutes to 2-hours)
Conflict Competence Skills Inventory
Feedback Preparation Template

And if you need help with any of this, I'm here! Reach out to info@truereloveution.com or book a connection call!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Your Leadership Can Be Healing (Without Being Therapy)

Marissa Badgley — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:18:03 GMT

After our last episode, "Managers Are Not Therapists," hit a nerve, people started reaching out with validation and more questions:

"But now what?"

"Do I just... ignore what people are going through? Do I pretend I don't see it?"

"Do I keep it moving and act like everything is fine?"

This episode is the answer. I want you to walk away knowing in your bones that your leadership can be genuinely healing for the people you lead without a therapy license, without doing anything extra, and without blurring the lines we drew in part one.

Key Takeaways

What "healing leadership" means and what it doesn't
Three core principles of healing-centered organizations (and why none of them require you to become a therapist)
Why reliability and consistency are more restorative than most leaders realize
Five concrete practices of healing leadership you can start using immediately
How to normalize emotions without fixing, processing, or getting lost in them
Why healing leadership is systemic, not just interpersonal, and what that means for how you build culture
How to weave trauma-informed principles like trust, reciprocity, compassion, humility, and equity into the structures you already have
The four areas of development worth investing in if you want to go deeper
Why healing culture and accountability are not opposites, and what happens when we treat them like they are

Follow-Up Resources

Our weekly-ish newsletter
One-Pager: Healing Ecosystem Blueprint
The ABC's of Millennials at Work [focused on healing principles]

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Managers Are Not Therapists (And Work is Not Group Therapy)

Marissa Badgley — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 20:42:23 GMT

A lot of workplaces and leaders are trying to do better when it comes to emotions, and in many cases, we’ve swung a little too far. If emotional expression on your team feels blurry, heavy, or harder than it should… this episode is for you. We’re unpacking what it actually looks like to create a human-centered workplace without turning work into group therapy and without expecting managers to be therapists.

Key Takeaways

Emotions belong at work. Harmful or unregulated behavior does not.
What unhealthy emotional dynamics actually look like on teams
The difference between psychological safety and emotional permissiveness
What I call emotional integrity (and why it’s the goal)
What a manager’s role is and very much is not
How therapy language is being misused (and sometimes weaponized) at work
Why this is almost always a culture problem, not just a “one person” problem
How leaders can reset expectations without shutting people down

Follow-Up Resources

And if you need help with any of this, I'm here! Reach out to info@truereloveution.com or book a connection call!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Anatomy of a (REAL) Apology

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 (and knowing when not to apologize) is essential. And we'd also argue that the ability to initiate repair when harm has been done is a core leadership competency and a strong predictor of healthy cultures.

In this episode, we cover:

What we learned as kids about apologizing and why it often fails us as adults
The difference between apologizing to end discomfort vs. repairing harm
When an apology is actually needed and when it isn’t
Why women and people with marginalized identities are often pressured to over-apologize
The REPAIR framework for making meaningful amends
How power and hierarchy shape apologies (apologizing down, up, with peers, and across difference)
What to do after you apologize, and what not to do
Why repair is not a one-time event, but an ongoing leadership practice

Reflection Questions:

When I apologize, am I apologizing to restore comfort or to truly repair harm? What are the ingredients of REPAIR that feel most important for me to practice?
On my team or in our workplace, who tends to apologize most often and who gets the most grace?
When I apologize, do I expect reassurance or quick forgiveness?
How does power or identity shape how my apologies are received, or how I receive them?

Resources & Follow-Up:

Making Amends & Repairing Relationships (REPAIR) One-Pager
Apology Builder Template
Conflict Competence Skill Inventory (a self-assessment for individuals teams, orgs, and groups)
Feedback Preparation Template
Learn more about Reloveution’s work: https://www.truereloveution.com
Book on-demand coaching or advisory support: https://www.truereloveution.com/on-demand
Book a connection call to explore mediation, training, or partnership: https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall
Connect with or follow Marissa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissabadgley

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Interrupting Real & Perceived Scarcity at Work

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 mindset problem.”
The difference between real (absolute) scarcity and perceived (relative) scarcity
How scarcity turns from a situational reality into a harmful story
The “starvation cycle” that keeps teams and organizations stuck
How language reinforces scarcity and how to shift it
What leaders can actually do when resources are limited

Reflection Questions:

Is this a real constraint or a familiar story?
Where do I/we actually have more agency or resources than we think (or are told)?
What would it look like to lead/live/work with faith over fear?
What do you/we actually control right now?
What would it look like to choose care, clarity, and courage?
What’s the next right decision, based on the abundance we have?

Resources & Follow Up

Enabling Language One-Pager
Learn more about Reloveution’s work: https://www.truereloveution.com
Book on-demand coaching or advisory support: https://www.truereloveution.com/on-demand
Book a connection call to explore partnership or support: https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall
Connect with or follow Marissa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissabadgley

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Burnout, Compassion Fatigue & Vicarious Trauma, OH MY [A Conversation with Robyn Harper]

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 sustainable social impact ecosystem.

Need help preventing or healing from burnout? Book a Burnout Blueprint Call (use the code PEOPLELEADER for 20% off)

Learn More About Reloveution: www.truereloveution.com

Learn More About The Chiron Project: www.thechironproject.com

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

What Does a Broken Elevator Have to do with Conflict, Power, and Leadership?

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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. The moment offers a powerful lesson about advocacy, power, feedback, and conflict, and how leaders often confuse intensity with effectiveness.

This episode isn’t about shaming. It’s about unlearning, experimenting, and building better tools for navigating conflict when emotions run high. You'll learn:

Why being right doesn’t automatically make you effective
How public confrontation often undermines accountability instead of creating it
The difference between advocating for your people and modeling harmful conflict norms
Five active, constructive strategies leaders can use to navigate high-stakes conflict
How leaders unintentionally teach culture through how they handle frustration
Why conflict competence is a leadership skill and an important part of workplace culture

Key Takeaways:

Advocacy doesn’t require humiliation or dominance to be effective
Yelling is often a failure of strategy, not a sign of strength
How leaders behave under stress teaches teams what’s acceptable
Public conflict is rarely about the person being confronted
Skillful escalation and de-escalation beat emotional discharge every time

Resources & Follow Up

Conflict Competence Skill Inventory (a self-assessment for individuals teams, orgs, and groups)
Feedback Preparation Template
Apology Builder Template
Book on-demand coaching or advisory support: https://www.truereloveution.com/on-demand
Bring conflict training, facilitated dialogue, or mediation to your organization: info@truereloveution.com
Book a connection call: https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall
Connect with Marissa on LinkedIn for ongoing insights and real-time reflections: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissabadgley

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Why I Hate the Sandwich Method and Sugarcoating

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 method and sugarcoating make feedback less effective and less productive. You'll learn...

Why the sandwich method trains people to distrust praise and ignore the real message
What healthy feedback cultures do instead
The hidden harm of sugarcoating and how it often reinforces inequity
The connection between “tone policing,” code-switching, and emotional labor
What to say instead when you’re tempted to soften the truth

Resources & Follow-Up:

Feedback Preparation Template
Conflict Competence Skill Inventory (a self-assessment for individuals teams, orgs, and groups)
Book a coaching call to discuss feedback strategies: https://www.truereloveution.com/on-demand
Bring a feedback workshop, intensive, or learning series to your team! Reach out to info@truereloveution.com
Explore our approach and services at https://www.truereloveution.com
Book a connection call at https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall
Connect with Marissa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissabadgley) for ongoing insights and reflections

Thanks for listening! Please reach out if we can help!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

The Nine Advancement Goals Every Professional Needs - Tips & Tricks for Advancement without Promotion

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 just aren’t available or possible.

Important: advancement is bigger than any org chart, job title, or salary band. It’s about stretching, growing, and finding fulfillment in all kinds of ways, which means that we need more comprehensive language and ways to talk about advancement for ourselves, our teams, and our organizations.

This is a workshop episode focused on the nine advancement goals every professional should have and the steps to move towards, reach, and celebrate these goals even when a raise or promotion isn’t on the table. We also give you tips and tricks for navigating advancement conversations, and a few ways leaders and managers can think about advancement for and with their teams.

How Reloveution Can Help

Book a VIP Advancement Session with Reloveution to clarify your advancement goals, identify practical strategies that fit your reality, and chart an actionable plan to get you moving.
Book a Connection Call to explore how you can expand advancement opportunities for your team—even when promotions and raises aren’t on the table. Together, we’ll identify no-cost strategies, build language for honest conversations, and design pathways that keep your people growing and engaged.

Template for YOUR Advancement Statement

I want to [specific advancement goal] by [date or deadline] because it will help me [purpose or desired outcome]. Currently, [describe current reality: where you are, what's working, what's not working]. To get there, I will [strategies, resources, or approaches] and take the first step of [specific, actionable step] by [timeline or deadline]. I will hold myself accountable by [strategies or approaches]. In order to advance, I need [resources, support, buy-in, etc.], and I will do [strategy] by [timeline or deadline] to get and/or advocate for what I need.

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

How Can I Support My Team During a Looming Restructure (When I Feel Powerless and Stressed Too)

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 speculating or feeding the rumor mill.
Why lowering the expectation bar during upheaval is both wise and necessary.
How small human touches (joy, rituals, humor) make a big difference.
A reframing of your role: not to fix the restructure, but to hold your people through it.

Check out our private podcast series on Layoffs: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

Learn more about Reloveution: https://www.truereloveution.com

Book a connection call with Marissa: https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

What Do You Do When You Feel Stuck?

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 resources that never arrive, maybe you’re second-guessing every move, or perhaps you’re looking at the state of the world and wondering if it’s even worth trying.

This is a listener question episode dedicated to Rose. You'll learn eight strategies for navigating the feeling of being stuck and moving out of the messy middle towards the next right step.

Feeling stuck? Check out our on-demand and ongoing coaching & advisory services or book a connection call at https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

When Intentions Are Good but Impact Hurts — What Comes Next?

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 workplaces: trauma, triggers, and repair. You’ll learn what accountability truly looks like from both sides of the experience, how power and equity shape what is considered “fair,” and what it means to build trauma-informed, conflict-competent, and healing-centered workplaces that support real people with real nervous systems.

What you'll hear in this episode:

Why trauma-informed awareness matters for every team and leader.
What to do if you are the person who got triggered, including strategies for self-regulation, reflection, and asking for what you need.
What to do if you unintentionally trigger someone else, including how to respond without defensiveness and move toward meaningful repair.
How accountability works on both sides: repair for the person who caused harm, and self-regulation for the person impacted.
How power and positional authority shifts responsibility in the repair process.
Five first steps for building trauma-informed, conflict-competent workplaces before harm happens.
What it looks like to create systems where safety is expected, not earned, and where repair is part of the culture, not an exception to it.

Helpful Resources

Want support building trauma-informed systems and conflict-competent leaders in your organization?

That’s precisely what we do at Reloveution. Here are a few ways we can help:

Conflict Dynamics Profile
1:1 Facilitated Dialogues for People in Conflict
Team Conflict Transformation for Groups Experiencing Conflict
Workshops & Trainings
Trauma-Informed & Healing Leadership
Workplace Conflict 101: Navigating Difficult Team Dynamics, Tension & Big Feelings
The Art and Science of De-Escalating Workplace Conflict
Conflict Transformation Practices for Leaders and Managers
1:1 Advisory to Build Individual Leader Conflict Competence, Confidence, and Capacity
Organizational Conflict Systems Consulting

Book a Connection Call or email info@truereloveution.com to learn more!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Manager Development Gone Wrong - Why Your Manager Training Isn’t Working (And What To Do Instead)

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 see organizations make in developing managers, explain why traditional training programs fall short, and share five practical ways to build programs that actually prepare managers to succeed. We cover:

Why manager development matters.
Common misses in manager development and what most organizations are currently doing wrong.
Why much "Big Box" or cookie-cutter training fails
Ways to do manager training differently and better
What to start with in your program for new managers

Learn more about Reloveution: https://www.truereloveution.com

About Our Simply Human Management Accelerator: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tCv1P_KNtRX6pKKhOTYQawroQOXwj4Q3/view?usp=sharing

Learn more about the Millennial Manager Collective: https://www.truereloveution.com/millennialmanagercollective

Book a connection call with Marissa: https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall

Our Recommended Manager Development Sequence

Whether you decide to work with Reloveution on your management development needs, use this as a checklist as you're vetting potential facilitators!!

Phase 0: Pre-Work

What is Your Organization’s Leadership & Management Culture?

Phase 1: Philosophical Foundations

Foundations of Leadership & Management (definitions, values, mindsets, cultivating confidence, being curious, etc.)
Navigating the Transition from Peer to Manager + Getting Comfortable with Positional Power
Trauma-Informed & Healing Leadership
Disrupting Inequity, Bias & Oppression in Management
The Emotional Labor of Leadership & Management + Leading Without Martyrdom
Managing the Big, High-Energy & Unpleasant Emotions of Others
The Anatomy of Trust + Building the Management Trust Factor
Managing in Climates of Change, Ambiguity, or Uncertainty

Phase 2: Foundational Skill-Building

Communication Fundamentals
Giving & Receiving Feedback + Having Difficult Conversations
The Art of Compassionate Accountability
Motivating & Influencing Direct Reports
Conflict Competence & Basic Mediation Skills
Coaching & Developing Others (High Performers & Under Performers)
Building Advancement Pathways when Promotion isn’t possible (for self and others)
Empowering Ownership without Disconnection
Principles of Effective Delegation
Managing Up and Being Managed Up

Then...everything else :-)

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Receiving Feedback Without Falling Apart

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 framework for listening, clarifying, and following up
How to filter feedback for credibility, intent, and resonance
What to do when feedback is biased, discriminatory, humiliating, careless, or harmful
How to transform feedback into actionable growth

Resources & Follow-Up:

Free Feedback Preparation Template
Book a coaching call to debrief hard feedback you've recently received: https://www.truereloveution.com/on-demand
Bring a feedback workshop, intensive, or learning series to your team! Reach out to info@truereloveution.com
Book a connection call at https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall
Connect with Marissa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissabadgley)for ongoing insights and reflections

Thanks for listening! Please reach out if we can help!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

What Do I Do if My Boss Doesn't Care About My Goals?

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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, and a dose of real talk to help you own your power and keep advancing even when your manager isn’t invested. You'll learn:

A simple self-reflection process
How to identify what you actually need your manager for, and where to look elsewhere for support.
Practical strategies for self-advocacy
Why you can’t—and shouldn’t—exhaust yourself trying to make someone care who doesn’t.
How to vet future managers in interviews with thoughtful, revealing questions about how they support growth.

Interview Questions

If manager support matters deeply to you, ask one or several of these questions in your next job interview:

Can you tell me about someone you’ve managed who grew under your leadership?
How do you approach supporting your team’s professional goals?
What does success look like here after the first year, beyond the job description?
How do you balance business priorities with supporting career growth?
What resources are available for professional development?
How do you ensure your team’s contributions and growth get visibility?

***

Feeling stuck? Check out our on-demand and ongoing coaching & advisory services or book a connection call at https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall

[Want to get YOUR question answered? SUBMIT YOUR QUESTION TO CHATGMB HERE]

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Giving Effective Feedback

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

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 compassion, make it actionable and specific, and navigate discomfort with confidence. You'll learn:

Why giving feedback feels so hard (and what makes it easier)
The eight ingredients of truly effective feedback
How to make feedback feel like a gift
What to do if you're avoiding a feedback conversation right now
Ways to make feedback an ongoing relationship, not a one-time event

Resources & Follow-Up:

Feedback Preparation Template
Conflict Competence Skill Inventory
Bring a feedback workshop, intensive, or learning series to your team! Reach out to info@truereloveution.com
Book a connection call at https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall
Connect with Marissa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissabadgley)for ongoing insights and reflections

And please submit your listener questions for future episodes at https://forms.gle/Ped9H7ncvjnFh4DF8

Thanks for listening! Please reach out if we can help!

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

How Do You Handle a Manager Who Constantly Changes Direction?

Marissa Badgley — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:35:33 GMT

Few things derail momentum faster than a manager who changes direction constantly. One day it’s Project A, the next it’s Project B, and by Friday (or lunchtime) you’re left wondering if anything you’ve done all week will stick. It’s frustrating, exhausting, and it can erode trust and psychological safety over time.

This is a listener question episode dedicated to Alisa. We unpack practical strategies for regaining clarity, protecting your power, and navigating the chaos when your manager seems to change their mind every other day. We also explore:

Why it’s important to clarify directives in the moment
How to spot patterns in your manager’s behavior and adjust accordingly.
How to manage up with empathy: balancing flexibility with clear communication about impact.
The importance of being adaptable and setting boundaries.
Why you shouldn’t yield your power just because of positional hierarchy.
When it’s time to escalate to senior leadership or HR, and when exiting a toxic environment may be the healthiest choice.

Feeling stuck? Check out our on-demand and ongoing coaching & advisory services or book a connection call at https://bit.ly/reloveutionconnectioncall

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show

Minimizing Ambiguity & Maximizing Predictability in Unstable Times

Marissa Badgley — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 22:46:59 GMT

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 this heightened ambiguity comes at a real cost. Our brains and bodies hate ambiguity, and we often react to the unknown in maladaptive but necessary ways. We feel unsafe, out of control, and are more likely to spiral into fear or distrust. Today, we’re going to explore the science of ambiguity, how it impacts teams and organizations, and practical strategies for minimizing ambiguity and maximizing predictability. One of your principle roles as a leader or manager is creating conditions of clarity and consistency. And when we do it right, it helps people feel safe enough to keep showing up, contributing, and thriving, even in the most unstable times.

If you like what you hear and want more wisdom and insights for your journey, sign up for our weekly-ish newsletter!!

Have a question you'd like us to answer in a future episode? Submit questions (anonymous welcome) HERE.

About the Show