340: How to Share Your Personal Life Without Hurting Your Career with Catherine Kleshinski
Release Date: 04/12/2026
357: Why We Avoid the Very Thing That Makes Us Happy at Work with Nick Epley
Allyship in Action
As an author and allyship advocate, I constantly find myself researching the power of human connection, yet I still fall into the same social traps as everyone else! We all intellectually know that relationships are vital to our health and happiness, yet we consistently talk ourselves out of simple, daily opportunities to connect. In this episode, I had the absolute pleasure of chatting with Nicholas Epley, behavioral science professor and author of A Little More Social. Nick's research translates complex social cognition into real, actionable insights that completely reframed how I...
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356: How to Build a Gender Fair Workplace with Brad Johnson and David Smith
Allyship in Action
I was so thrilled to sit down again with my dear friends and true allies, Dave Smith and Brad Johnson . Every time we connect, it feels like a warm reminder of what sustained, meaningful allyship really looks like—not just showing up when it’s trending, but doing the steady, daily work that actually moves the needle. Listening to them walk through their allyship trilogy, from Athena Rising to The Good Guys and now their latest book, Fair Share, brought back so many memories of my own journey navigating corporate America as a new mom. (Trust me, I’ve shed my fair share of tears...
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355: Moving Male Allyship Forward in the Age of AI and the Manosphere with Robert Baker
Allyship in Action
If you’ve ever found yourself scrolling through social media, wondering if we are somehow slipping backward into the dark ages of workplace dynamics, you are definitely not alone. It is easy to look at the massive rise of toxic online ecosystems and feel a bit of existential dread. That is why I talked with Robert Baker, who always grounds me. He has this incredible gift for taking a heavy, whack-a-mole topic and infusing it with actionable clarity. We dive deep into why male allyship isn't about being an individual superhero, how global shifts are impacting our teams, and why—despite the...
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354: Bringing Psychological Safety to Life for Leaders with Minette Norman and Karolin Helbig
Allyship in Action
How do we actually live out psychological safety, rather than just talking about it as some grand, academic theory? A couple of years ago, Minette Norman and Karolin Helbig came out with the Psychological Safety Playbook. I’ve been using her practical phrases in my own training sessions ever since (with full credit, of course!). But as any facilitator, parent, or human being knows, putting this stuff into practice is darn hard. You want to be the supportive expert, but then real-world pressures—like meeting targets, sudden organizational shifts, or just plain old fear of looking...
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353: Behind the Shiny Objects: Real Inclusivity in a Changing World with Katryn Wright
Allyship in Action
You might remember Katryn from episode 292, where we dove deep into the behavioral blueprint for inclusion. Well, a lot can happen in a year—or in our current case, since the wild ride of the 2026 election—and the DEI landscape is shifting beneath our feet. I’ll admit, when I first started this work ten years ago, I thought we could just shout from the rooftops that inclusion matters and everyone would just magically get it. But as we look at the headlines today, it’s clear that "shiny object syndrome" has left us with a lot of noise and not enough real, systemic change. Katryn and I...
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352: Better Leadership Starts with a Better Night of Sleep with Dr. Carlos Nunez
Allyship in Action
Sad to admit, after 350+ episodes, I have never dedicated a full show to sleep . I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve been doing a ton of deep-diving into sleep lately. Between life changes, career shifts, and navigating perimenopause, my nights haven’t exactly been peaceful . In fact, coming off a rough night myself, I’m sitting here with a massive afternoon coffee, fully aware that I reached for a sugary lunch to get through the slump! We’ve all been trapped in that vicious cycle, right ? But today, we are busting the toxic, old-school corporate narrative that sleeping is lazy or...
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351: How to Speak Up and Get Your Voice Heard at Work with Daniel Newton
Allyship in Action
When I started my business, I wanted to create spaces where every single person felt seen, heard, and like they truly belonged . It sounds so beautifully simple on the surface, doesn't it? But as we all know, making sure people feel heard at work can get incredibly messy . This week, I had the absolute pleasure of chatting with a peer of mine from grad school, Daniel Newton, an Associate Professor at the University of Iowa, whose research on workplace engagement is quite literally out of this world . He’s spent years studying how people speak up and stay engaged, working with everyone from...
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350: How to Lead Values-Based Decision Making with Jenny Bates Heaton
Allyship in Action
Jenny Bates Heaton is the founder of Bates Leadership and has a brilliant new TEDx talk. What really blew me away during our chat was how Jenny used her personal journey facing a massive medical decision after a cancer-risk mutation diagnosis to completely rewrite the script on how we make choices. It got me thinking about my own life and how often we make decisions based on what we think we should do, rather than what aligns with our deepest values. For me, everything comes back to fairness, justice, and a whole lot of strength. When things feel off-balance in the world, my mental health...
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349: Driving Change from the Inside Out with Tara Jaye Frank
Allyship in Action
If you are feeling a bit battered by the cultural waves and political turbulence swirling around us right now, trust me—you are not alone. I’ll admit, when I woke up the morning after the 2024 election, I felt physically sick worrying about what the fallout would mean for our businesses and the hard choices ahead. That is why I love this conversation with Tara Jaye Frank. She met me right in that messy space with the ultimate reframe, sharing a beautiful story about how a simple grocery delivery from a man named Socrates gave her the title for her new book, You Are Before the World. It is...
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348: Why AI Is Not a Replacement for Human Talent with Christopher Lind
Allyship in Action
This week, we dive deep into a topic that’s been on everyone’s mind—and probably in every news alert you’ve received lately: AI. While the world seems to be split between AI will save us all, and AI is coming for our jobs, our guest and AI expert, Christopher Lind, brings us back to earth with a much-needed reality check. As Christopher points out, the real risk isn't just the tech itself, but the disconnect between leadership's lofty expectations and the actual human experience on the ground. He often jokes about AI being a hammer looking for a nail, but in our rush to be efficient,...
info_outlineI am so excited to share this conversation with my wonderful colleague and friend, Dr. Catherine Kleshinski from Indiana University. We’ve all been there on a random Monday morning when someone asks, "How was your weekend?" and we’re dying to share a picture of our new puppy or the chaos of a first birthday party. I used to think these me-search moments were just simple trust builders—and they are!
Catherine’s latest research in the Journal of Applied Psychology reveals that there is a lot of nuance behind that water cooler talk. It turns out that while sharing the non-work vibes makes us all seem warmer, the way it impacts our reputation actually depends on where we sit in the hierarchy. So, how can we build authentic connections without accidentally triggering the workplace gossip mill?
The Warmth Benefit vs. The Distraction Penalty: Everyone who shares positive personal news is perceived as warmer and more caring, but junior or lower-status employees may simultaneously be viewed as less focused on their professional responsibilities.
"Everyone gets the warmth benefit, but the work ethic connotation depends on power dynamics."
The Gossip Ripple Effect: Reputation isn't just a static feeling; it drives how people talk about you when you aren't in the room, leading to either flattering or unflattering workplace gossip.
"If you have this reputation for being a relationship builder, people will engage in positive gossip about you, but if you are somebody with a reputation for being distracted, they'll gossip negatively about you."
The Invisible Line of Disclosure: There is a delicate balance between sharing enough to build trust and oversharing details like health issues or intense personal data that can make others uncomfortable.
Creating Safe Spaces for Connection: Leaders should focus on creating icebreakers that allow for choose-your-own-adventure levels of vulnerability so that no one feels pressured to share more than they are comfortable with.
Actionable Takeaway
Audit your icebreakers. If you are a manager, be mindful that vulnerable sharing can unintentionally disadvantage your junior team members. Instead of asking personal questions, try a reciprocity ring where teammates request help with a specific task, or use "Tell Me Something Good" to allow people the choice between sharing a professional win or a personal one.