What are the leadership qualities that inspire people to follow you? There is no shortage today of people in power leading through force and intimidation. This frightening reality should serve to remind us how essential it is that the people we choose to follow lead with empathy and compassion, not coercion.

Tamra Ryan is a nationally recognized speaker, author, and leadership expert who redefines what it means to lead with purpose and care. In this episode, she and I discuss how leaders can inspire a following through courage and conviction, as well as compassion. Tamra has a long history of empowering others to lead, and her perspectives and recommendations for what that requires are what we need to keep pushing for a better world, right now.

Build your own “followship” with the virtues that really make an impact:

• Why it’s just as important to give grace as it is to speak your mind;
• The four elements of leadership that capture hearts and minds;
• And how to stick to your convictions as a leader, even in today’s delicate climate.

Related Links:

• Learn more about Tamra - https://www.tamraryan.com/about
• Connect with Tamra on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamraryan/
• Learn more about Women’s Bean Project - https://www.womensbeanproject.com/
• Learn more about the Common Sense Institute - https://www.commonsenseinstituteus.org/colorado/about/fellows/tamra---ryan
• Episode 352, “Self-Advocacy Hacks for a Toxic Workplace” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode532
• Episode 536, “Strategic Detachment: A Trend for Surviving and Thriving” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode536
• Episode 525, “Resisting Despair: Coping Tools For A Declining Democracy” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode525
• SPEAK UP: A Live Assertive Communication Course - https://www.bossedup.org/speakup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

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What would change if you stopped agreeing to take on everything at work? If you have perfectionist and overachiever tendencies like I do, it’s possible this question has never even occurred to you. In the race to the top, it can feel like everything is urgent and our responsibility. But there’s a better way. A new trend floating around social media recently caught my attention, and it’s called “strategic detachment.”

In this episode, I take a look at a more thoughtful approach to workload management and delegation, especially as it applies to team leaders. The professional landscape is transforming so rapidly in so many ways—this might just be the trend we need to survive 2026.

Hop off the overachieving hamster wheel and onto your true career trajectory. Tune in to learn:

• The unintended consequences leaders create when they won’t step back;
• What strategic detachment really means (and what it doesn’t);
• Why you might need to examine your fear to avoid burning out.

Related Links:

• Episode 403, How First-Time Managers Can Embrace Coaching - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode403
• Episode 368, What Quiet Quitting Can Help…or Hurt - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode368
• LEVEL UP: a Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How often have you heard the rhetoric that if you want success badly enough, if you work hard enough, you’ll find success? As women, we grow up with a promise—from little girls who can “be whatever we want to be” to full-grown “girl bosses,” the world is our equal-opportunity oyster.

But the data doesn’t prove this out. It’s that data Stefanie O’Connell breaks down and picks apart in her new book, The Ambition Penalty, and in our honest and research-backed conversation. As her book’s tagline says, “corporate culture tells women to step up―and then pushes them down.” Whether this feels all too real to you or you’re skeptical, Stefanie’s exploration of the metrics and the myths will get you thinking about how you challenge inequality in every environment where it still thrives.

Stop blaming yourself and start challenging the status quo:

• Why prioritizing self-optimization can backfire;
• The systems we should be holding accountable for the ongoing inequality;
• The problem with the male victimhood narrative;
• What happens when we model healthy power and gender dynamics to our children?

Related Links:

• Listen to Episode 408, Women and the Ambition Penalty - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode408
• Connect with Stefanie on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefanieoconnell/
• Pre-order The Ambition Penalty - https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-ambition-penalty-how-corporate-culture-tells-women-to-step-up-and-then-pushes-them-down-stefanie-o-connell/bf6de978036a09ff
• Subscribe to Too Ambitious on Substack - https://tooambitious.substack.com/
• Follow Stefanie on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/stefanieoconnell/
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.