"We Tried That and It Didn’t Work”: The Power of the Placeholder
Release Date: 06/16/2025
Finding Treasures in the Trash: From Denial to Self-Devotion with Trudy Goodman
Create Magic At Work®
Ever ignored your gut and paid the price? Cari sits down with beloved teacher and mindfulness pioneer Trudy Goodman for a soul-stirring conversation about intuition, trust, and healing the parts of ourselves we've hidden away. Trudy vulnerably shares the ways denying her intuition led to deep personal pain, and how reclaiming it helped her rebuild a life of wisdom, creativity, and self-love. 🌱 The episode dives into the spiritual paradox of “no-self” vs. self-work, the nuanced dance between confidence and vulnerability, and how the practice of meditation can lead us not away from our...
info_outline
Reimagining Work Beyond Time and Hierarchy with Brian Gorman
Create Magic At Work®
In a world obsessed with artificial intelligence, what if the future of work actually belongs to authentic intelligence? In this episode, Amy Lynn Durham sits down with Brian Gorman, author of Leading Into the Age of Wisdom: Reimagining the Future of Work, to explore how leaders can reclaim humanity at the heart of business. Together, they unpack three essential shifts: 💡 Reclaiming the Human Core: What truly separates wisdom from AI, and why empathy and discernment may be our most vital leadership tools. 🔄 Rethinking Work: How to move from time-based pay to energy- and results-driven...
info_outline
Stop Fixing Everything: The Courage to Let Go and Lead with Ashley Cox
Create Magic At Work®
What does it really mean to lead without falling into burnout? In this episode, Amy connects with Ashley Cox, leadership mentor, author of “Transform Your Stories”, and host of the Impact Ripple podcast, to unpack three common leadership traps that quietly sabotage even the most well-intentioned leaders. ✨ In this conversation, you’ll hear about: The “worker bee,” “niceness,” and “helicopter” traps that drain leaders How reframing delegation as empowerment changes team dynamics The role of self-trust in building high-performance cultures Ashley’s Fire Mapping method for...
info_outline
Why HR Isn’t the Enemy with Jenn Ayala
Create Magic At Work®
What does it really mean to be a human-first leader in HR? In this episode of Create Magic at Work, Amy connects with Jenn Ayala, a seasoned HR executive with over 25 years of experience, to explore what it takes to transform HR from a rule-enforcer role into a people-empowering force for good. ✨ In this conversation, you’ll hear about: Why Jenn believes kindness is the core of effective leadership How she overcame burnout and reclaimed her own well-being The powerful impact of “holding space” for employees in crisis What HR looks like across different generations Why praising others,...
info_outline
One Conversation Away: Hope for Gen Z with JC Carr
Create Magic At Work®
What does the future of leadership look like through Gen Z eyes? In this episode of Create Magic at Work, Amy sits down with JC Carr — an Territory Account Manager at World Emblem, entrepreneur, and social media influencer — to explore how the next generation is reshaping business, philanthropy, and work culture. ✨ In this conversation, you’ll hear about: How JC built a successful exotic car brokerage while still in college Lessons Gen Z is bringing into traditional industries like manufacturing Why philanthropy and giving back are central to JC’s leadership approach Lean management...
info_outline
Finding Treasures in the Trash: Leaning Into the Pain with Lisa Danylchuk
Create Magic At Work®
What if the parts of yourself you’ve tried to hide are actually the keys to your healing? 🌱 Cari sits down with her longtime friend and trauma therapist Lisa Danylchuk, founder of the Center for Yoga and Trauma Recovery and author of “Yoga for Trauma Recovery.” Together, they dive deep into the messy, magical process of turning life’s pain into purpose. Lisa opens up about her experience with grief and how yoga became her lifeline, sparking a lifelong mission to help others heal through self-awareness and compassion. The two explore how even the so-called “trash,” grief, shame,...
info_outline
Your Story Matters: Love Notes for Leaders with Cynthia Gregory
Create Magic At Work®
We’ve all read the data on how storytelling drives connection and empathy. But what happens when people go beyond storytelling and put their most vulnerable, transformative experiences on the page? In this episode, I sit down with Cynthia Gregory—award-winning writer, journaling advocate, and publisher of “Love Notes from the Soul” and the upcoming “Love Notes 2.0”—to talk about how personal narrative can reshape workplace culture, inspire human connection, and even shift our physical and emotional well-being. ✨ Why vulnerability on the page can create power in real life ✨...
info_outline
Is Money Mindset Coaching Empowering Women… or Exploiting Them? with Suzanne Longstreet
Create Magic At Work®
We’ve all seen the programs promising to “fix” your money mindset. But are they truly helping women step into power, or just selling us the same story in a shinier package? In this conversation with Suzanne Longstreet, master mindset coach, NLP trainer, and co-author of The Millionaire Codes, I ask the questions many of us are secretly thinking: ✨ Do women actually need more money mindset coaching, or do we need a new system altogether? ✨ How much of our struggle is “limiting beliefs” vs. systemic barriers like patriarchy and pay inequity? ✨ Why confidence often trumps...
info_outline
Red Flags, Green Flags, and Grace at Work with Kaitlyn Rios
Create Magic At Work®
Red flags. Green flags. And the invisible signs of a toxic workplace that too many of us ignore until it’s too late. This episode brings you the powerful story of Kaitlyn Rios — her journey through burnout, the near-breaking point that changed everything, and the creation of Faced With Grace, her nonprofit dedicated to helping women navigate toxic work environments with courage and clarity. 🎧 Listen in as Kaitlyn and I dive into: The subtle red flags of a toxic workplace you might be missing The “green flags” and glimmers that point to healthy, life-giving environments Her deeply...
info_outline
Finding Treasures in the Trash: The Journey to Wholeness with Henry Most
Create Magic At Work®
What if the parts of yourself you’ve spent years pushing away are actually the keys to your biggest growth? 🌱 Cari sits down with Stanford professor, executive coach, and therapist Henry Most for a deep yet playful dive into shadow work. Together, they explore Carl Jung’s framework for how we become our truest selves, why anxiety might just be a sign that hidden treasures are knocking at the door, and how leaders can move from constant “doing” to authentic “being.” Henry gets real about his own story, from childhood dynamics to a life-shaking crisis that became a turning point,...
info_outlineEver been told: “We tried that and it didn’t work”?
Most people hear that as resistance. But what if it’s something else entirely?
In the 2nd episode of the Archetypes of Change Summer Series, Amy Lynn Durham introduces you to the Placeholder archetype—a vital, often misunderstood role in the workplace. You’ll meet Teresa, a steady leader who held her team together during a messy system rollout—not by pushing forward, but by protecting what was already working.
🎧 In this episode:
- What defines the Placeholder Archetype (and why every team has one)
- The real reason “we tried that already” gets said—and what’s hiding underneath it
- How Placeholders create safety, structure, and rhythm in times of uncertainty
- The risks of ignoring their wisdom—and how to engage them in change without steamrolling
This isn’t a personality quiz. It’s a lens for seeing your team—and yourself—more clearly. And it might just change the way you lead your next change initiative.
💼 Ready to bring the Archetypes of Change to your org? Create Magic At Work® offers transformational coaching and team experiences for leaders navigating transition.
Additional Resources:
Discover Your Spiritual Intelligence at Work
Learn More About Create Magic at Work
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Key Takeaways:
- Placeholder Archetype: Focuses on stability and thoughtful change, not resistance.
- Grounding Transitions: Placeholders bring practical wisdom and honor what works.
- Shadow Side: Over-reliance can lead to fear, delay, or blocking progress.
- Realism, Not Resistance: Caution often stems from past poor change experiences.
- Leadership Insight: Understanding archetypes boosts communication and smoother change.