240: Leading Inclusion with Dr. Gena Cox
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
Release Date: 11/21/2022
354: One Sentence to Help You Face Difficult Conversations
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather shares the one sentence that will get you to show up for high-stake conversations, even when you absolutely don't want to. While mindset and emotional management are powerful, some conversations - like receiving tough feedback or facing a dreaded interview - can’t be thought or felt out of. Sometimes, the only answer is a simple mantra: Do it anyway. Drawing from her diverse background as a trial attorney, psychology major, and certified hypnotist, Heather explains why acting in spite of dread is the ultimate secret sauce to communication. This episode is a deep...
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353: 3 Ways to Manage Your Emotions for High-Stakes Conversations
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
Ever feel your heart race or your voice shake the moment you need to ask for a raise, set a boundary, or give tough feedback? High-stakes conversations don't have to be high-stress battles. In this episode, communication expert Heather shares three powerful tools to help you master your emotions and handle "difficult" conversations with clarity and calm. You’ll learn how to shift your mindset from "combat" to "collaboration" using the BEAR technique - understanding how your beliefs lead to your energy, actions, and results. Heather breaks down how to stop viewing others as enemies and how to...
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352: Three Tools for Mastering "Difficult" Conversations
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode of The Elegant Warrior, Heather breaks down why “difficult conversations” are only difficult if you believe they are. Whether you’re giving or receiving feedback, negotiating a raise, setting a boundary, or asking for help, Heather shares three practical tools to help you prepare mentally, emotionally, and strategically. Drawing from her experience as a trial attorney, communication expert, and advocate, Heather explains how your beliefs shape your energy, your actions, and ultimately your results. You’ll learn how to reframe the story you’re telling yourself,...
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351: Your Playlist, Your Enneagram, and Your Wisdom with Susan Drumm
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In this episode of The Elegant Warrior, Heather welcomes leadership expert Susan Drumm to explore how music, neuroscience, and the Enneagram can transform your leadership and your life. Susan shares her fascinating journey from Harvard Law School to consulting, television, acting, and ultimately leadership development, showing how following intuition and curiosity can lead to extraordinary growth. Together, Heather and Susan dive into practical tools for recognizing patterns, disrupting limiting behaviors, and building new mental “playlists” that support empowerment, confidence, and...
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350: What is Motivational Interviewing and Why Should I Care? With Kim Bisset
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather sits down with Kim Bisset to explore Motivational Interviewing and why it is such a powerful tool for communication, leadership, coaching, and advocacy. Rather than relying on pressure, persuasion, or fixing, Motivational Interviewing focuses on curiosity, collaboration, and helping people uncover their own reasons for change. Drawing from Kim’s expertise and Heather’s background in law, coaching, and healthcare communication, this conversation breaks down what Motivational Interviewing really is, what it is not, and why it works so well in high stakes...
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349: Does Thought Beat Action? Manifesting, Preparing and Acting for 2026
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather challenges one of the most popular beliefs in personal development: that mindset alone creates change. While visualization, manifestation, and positive thinking all have value, Heather explains why none of them work without action. Joined by frequent guest Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, Heather explores how thinking, dreaming, preparing, and acting each play a role in real transformation and why action is ultimately what creates momentum. Together, they unpack the limits of visualization and manifestation when they are not paired with effort, practice, and follow...
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348: THIS is Way More Important Than Mindset! Why Action Matters More Than Intention
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather challenges one of the most popular ideas in personal development: that mindset alone creates change. While visualization, manifestation, and positive thinking all have value, she explains why none of them work without action. Drawing from her own journey with weight loss, running marathons, writing books, and building a career in advocacy and communication, Heather shows how real transformation only happens when thinking turns into doing. Backed by research, neuroscience, and practical tools, this episode is a powerful reminder that intention without action keeps...
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347: Unfolded - How to Believe in Yourself and Your Ability to Fly
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather welcomes authors, leadership consultants, and husband and wife team Dr. Linda Schubring and Brian Schubring to explore the deeper meaning of identity, transformation, and trusting your inner map. Together, they discuss their bestselling book Unfolded: Lessons in Transformation from an Origami Crane, a powerful allegory that invites readers to rediscover their inner wisdom and reshape how they show up in the world. Through stories of leadership coaching, personal reflection, and creative collaboration, Heather, Linda, and Brian unpack how uncertainty, change, and...
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346: The New Power Pose-and How to Use It to Win
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather invites you to rethink everything you’ve been taught about power poses, confidence, and presence. While the classic “hands-on-hips” stance is often linked to authority, this episode reveals a far more effective and far more compassionate power move: simply sitting down. Drawing from real experiences in leadership, advocacy, and high-stakes conversations, Heather shares how lowering yourself to someone else’s level can transform interactions, build trust, and leave a lasting impact. From courtroom moments to everyday leadership lessons, you’ll see why...
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345: How to Avoid Being Scammed by AI, Other, and Yourself
The Elegant Warrior with Heather Hansen
In today’s episode, Heather Hansen breaks down one of the most important skills we all need in a world shaped by rapid information, social media trends, artificial intelligence, and constant noise: the ability to avoid being fooled, misled, or scammed. As a trial attorney who spent decades cross-examining witnesses and uncovering the truth, Heather Hansen shares a simple but powerful four-part process you can use to stay discerning, think critically, and protect yourself from false ideas, misleading content, and even your own unexamined thoughts. Whether it is viral AI clips, trending online...
info_outlineHow can understanding true inclusion lead to successful leadership? Dr. Gena Cox discusses the highlights of her book ‘Leading Inclusion,’ and shares insights based on her own years of experience in corporate America, as well as the experiences of colleagues and clients.
~ WE’LL DISCUSS ~
- Why she believes inclusion tops diversity
- The breakdown of the REDI, or Respect First, Model
- The 3 Cs critical to successful leadership
- Why she doesn’t use the term ‘belonging’ in reference to inclusion
About Gena Cox, Ph.D:
Dr. Gena Cox is an organizational psychologist, executive coach, speaker, and author of the new book Leading Inclusion, a groundbreaking guidebook for corporate leaders who want to build inclusive organizations from the top down. Gena has spent more than 25 years helping leaders, including some in the Fortune 500, build healthy organizational cultures and measuring employee opinions. A noted voice on human-centered leadership, Gena shows executives how to stop using 2019 behavior to address 2022 workplace challenges.
Gena has written for Harvard Business Review and has been quoted in Forbes, Fast Company, BBC Worklife, The Business Journals, Linkedin News, and other national media.
Gena holds a PhD in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from the University of South Florida and is an International Coach Federation Professional Certified Coach (PCC). She is a member of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP), and the American Psychological Association (APA).
Dr. Cox’s Book recommendation: Unapologetically Ambitious by Shellye Archambeau
To learn more about Dr. Gena Cox, visit the links below:
Her book, Leading Inclusion: Drive Change Your Employees Can See and Feel
Her website, GenaCox.com
Twitter, @genacox
LinkedIn, GenaCox
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