301: Real Talk: How to Stop Guessing What Your Boss Wants and Start Managing Up with Confidence with Melody Wilding
Release Date: 07/30/2025
304: How to Actually Enjoy Networking (Yes, It’s Possible)
Workday Playdate
In this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin shares her five-step play process that flips networking from “ugh” to actually fun. If the thought of walking into a room full of strangers makes you want to hide by the snack table, this is your permission slip to try networking a whole new way. Instead of dreading it, Erin shows you how to treat networking like an improv game: playful, curiosity-driven, and connection-first. With tips that blend practical strategy and improv magic, you’ll learn to leave a lasting impression without feeling salesy, stiff, or stuck in small talk. Inside...
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303: Are We Settling Without Even Knowing It? Steffani LeFevour Spills the Truth and How to Break Free
Workday Playdate
In this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin sits down with Steffani LeFevour—speaker, coach, and conscious creation educator—to unpack the surprisingly radical act of living on purpose. If you've ever felt like you're coasting through your days, stuck in default mode, or quietly settling in a career, relationship, or mindset that no longer fits, you’re not alone and you’re not stuck. This episode is your permission slip to snap out of autopilot and into alignment. From rewiring your inner dialogue to redefining networking as a tool for service, Erin and Steffani deliver soul-deep...
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302: Your New Networking Rule: Simple, Sticky & Stress-Free
Workday Playdate
In this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin tackles the career skill most of us dread but desperately need: networking. If you break into a cold sweat at the words “elevator pitch” or feel like networking is just performance in business casual, this one’s for you. Forget awkward small talk and robotic intros. Erin’s here to flip the script with her Simple, Sticky, Stress-Free Networking Rule that makes connecting with people feel more like improv night and less like a corporate casting call. Inside This Episode: Why most networking advice makes you sound like a LinkedIn bot The...
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301: Real Talk: How to Stop Guessing What Your Boss Wants and Start Managing Up with Confidence with Melody Wilding
Workday Playdate
In this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin gets real about one of the toughest career skills no one really teaches you: managing up with confidence. Because let’s be honest, trying to figure out what your boss actually wants can feel like decoding emoji hieroglyphics at 11 PM. Enter Melody Wilding: therapist-turned-career-coach, emotions researcher, and author of Managing Up. Named one of Insider’s “most innovative career coaches,” Melody is here to help you stop overthinking every Slack message and start building a relationship with your boss that’s rooted in clarity, confidence,...
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Workday Playdate Trailer
Workday Playdate
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Snack 24: How to Make Managing Up Feel Natural (Not Cringey)
Workday Playdate
In today’s snack-sized dose of Workday Playdate, Erin’s flipping the “fear your boss” script and serving up an improv-inspired reframe that’ll help you manage up with confidence, not chaos. Spoiler: It starts with a Slack message and ends with you owning your power. The Problem: You get a vague “Let’s chat” from your boss and spiral. Are you getting fired? Forgotten something? Turns out, you’re not alone. Gallup says 70% of team engagement depends on your manager... but only 30% of early-career pros feel confident talking to theirs. Most of us are winging it. Badly. The...
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300: You Found a Mentor - Now Here’s How to Keep the Relationship Thriving
Workday Playdate
In this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin tackles one of the trickiest parts of professional growth: keeping your mentor relationship alive and thriving. Finding a mentor is like landing the perfect avocado - rare, precious, and you don’t want it to spoil. This episode is packed with improv-inspired strategies to help you nurture that connection, create a two-way relationship, and turn “one coffee chat” into long-term mentorship magic. Whether you’re a new grad navigating your first job, a career changer looking for guidance, or a freshly promoted manager wondering how to level up,...
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Snack 23: How to Be a Mentee They’ll Want to Root For
Workday Playdate
In today’s snack-sized dose of Workday Playdate, Erin’s flipping the mentorship script and serving up a strategy that’ll make your mentor want to shout your name from the rooftops. Spoiler: It’s not about being the smartest in the room. It’s about showing up with intention. The Problem: We all say mentorship matters, but too often mentees treat it like a vending machine: insert question, get answer, disappear. That’s not how real relationships (or career growth) happen. The truth? Mentees who bring energy, curiosity, and follow-through are the ones who win every time. The...
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299: Want to Nail Employee Engagement? Here’s What Actually Works (No Gimmicks Needed) with Dr. Angela Jackson
Workday Playdate
In this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin unpacks what employee engagement really looks like in today’s world with Dr. Angela Jackson, founder of Future Forward Strategies. Forget the ping pong tables and perk-loaded culture decks. This is about centering worker voice, listening with intention, and designing workplaces that actually work, for everyone. Whether you’re leading a team, managing up, or trying to make your 9–5 feel more like a “want to,” this conversation delivers bold, strategic insights for building motivated, mission-aligned teams in the modern workplace. Inside...
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Snack 22: The Real Secret to Employee Engagement (Hint: It’s Not Ping-Pong or Pizza Parties)
Workday Playdate
In today’s snack-sized dose of Workday Playdate, Erin’s serving up a spicy truth: no amount of kombucha or karaoke can fix what’s really broken when it comes to employee engagement. The Problem: Only 33% of U.S. employees are engaged at work. And, spoiler alert: swag won’t save us. Connection is the missing link, not cold brew on tap. The Improv Hack to Try: The Scene Partner Swap Flip the script. Instead of waiting for someone else to boost morale, ask: If I were my boss or teammate… how would I help ME feel more engaged? Then act from that mindset for one week....
info_outlineIn this episode of Workday Playdate, Erin gets real about one of the toughest career skills no one really teaches you: managing up with confidence. Because let’s be honest, trying to figure out what your boss actually wants can feel like decoding emoji hieroglyphics at 11 PM.
Enter Melody Wilding: therapist-turned-career-coach, emotions researcher, and author of Managing Up. Named one of Insider’s “most innovative career coaches,” Melody is here to help you stop overthinking every Slack message and start building a relationship with your boss that’s rooted in clarity, confidence, and collaboration.
Whether you’re a new grad navigating your first 1:1, an early-career professional trying to stand out without burning out, or a sensitive striver who struggles to speak up, this episode will help you transform anxiety into action and guesswork into game plans.
Inside This Episode:
- What managing up really means (and why it’s the fastest way to build trust and grow)
- The 3 toughest conversations to have with your boss — and how to start them
- Why “sensitive strivers” are actually management superstars (with the right mindset shift)
- How to protect your boundaries without damaging your reputation
- One simple step you can take today to feel more confident in every manager conversation
Who This Episode Is For:
Early-career rockstars. Career changers. Anyone tired of reading between the lines of vague emails and ready to build real, human, mutually beneficial relationships at work.
Stop guessing what your boss wants. Start showing up like the leader you’re meant to be.
Listen now and share this episode with a friend who’s stuck in the “do they hate me?” spiral. Let’s make managing up feel less like a guessing game and more like a playdate.
Feeling stretched thin but still trying to “stay positive”? Grab our free Positivity Without Pretending Toolkit. It’s a quick, honest reset for people leaders who want to show up without faking it. In five minutes or less, you’ll reframe, refuel, and lead with heart (even when you're running on fumes). Download it now and take the pressure off.
No, You Hang Up First (Let’s Keep Connecting)
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