Accountablity: How to Stop Carrying the Team (Without Becoming “the Difficult One”)
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Release Date: 12/09/2025
Your Odds Change The Moment You Take Action| Sanjay Manandhar
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Most of us check the odds before we try something big. MIT-trained engineer and serial founder Sanjay Manandhar, author of The Why Not Advantage, says that’s the wrong number to look at. A statistic describes the crowd, not you. At 16, Sanjay applied to US schools from Kathmandu. He needed a full scholarship and airfare, and his friends asked if he was nuts. In this conversation, he shares the formula he uses to rewrite his odds, what a Nobel Prize winner’s 40 years of persistence teaches about timing, and why your odds change the moment you take action. In this episode, you’ll learn: ...
info_outline
How to Influence Senior Leaders When You Disagree
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
How do you disagree with a superior or your boss when you see a problem in a decision you still have to deliver? How do you influence senior leaders when you don’t have the final say? In this episode of Speak Your Mind Unapologetically, Ivna Curi explores managing up and upward influence through two real workplace stories from her book, Unapologetic Voice. Amy spent six months building a business case after senior leaders dismissed a gap she saw in their plan. Rebecca challenged a leader’s approach to restructuring by proposing an alternative that addressed his concern about...
info_outline
Are You Kind at Work? 12 Signs You're Not
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Being kind at work is easy when things are going well. Smiling, saying thank you, listening, remembering birthdays. The real test is what you do when there is a problem, a conflict, or a disagreement. This episode is a self-assessment. Twelve everyday workplace moments that look polite on the surface and cost someone else something real. Escalating to a manager before ever telling the colleague what the problem is. Staying silent in a meeting, then criticizing the decision privately afterward. Calling someone disrespectful instead of naming the behavior. Saying yes when you mean no. Redoing a...
info_outline
How to Challenge Your Boss Without It Feeling Like a Challenge | Nita Patel, VP at Otis
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Most people who challenge a superior's decision get it wrong. They oppose. Nita Patel, VP of Engineering at Otis, says the people who have changed her mind did something else: they stayed curious. They asked what happens after step two. They wanted to understand rather than object. By the end of the conversation she is the one asking them what they think, without realizing she was challenged at all. That works because of the larger skill underneath it. Nita calls herself a translator, estimating 30 to 40% of her time goes to it: working out why a meeting matters, what the goal is, and which...
info_outline
She Submitted a Conference Paper in Portuguese. She Didn't Speak Portuguese. She Had Three Months to Learn. Software CEO Katherine on Persistence, Pivots, and Never Giving Up
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Two Ways to Fail: Give Up or Die." How Sigma Software CEO Katherine Built a Foreign Office, Completed a Half Ironman, and Learned to Lead on One Rule "There are only two ways to fail: give up or die. And neither is a reasonable option." That is the saying Katherine's team uses to remind themselves who they are. She means it literally. When she was trying to open Sigma Software Group's first Latin American office, she tried recruiting agencies, acquisition targets, universities, and different countries for an entire year. Nothing worked. Then in a brainstorming session, someone mentioned...
info_outline
They Called Her a Trouble Candidate for Asking for Equal Work. She Won the Company Award That Quarter. Aditi on Speaking Up Without Apology
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Her first year in corporate. She noticed her male peer was getting more technical work than her. She raised it with her supervisor — not loudly, not aggressively, just directly. Instead of addressing it with her, the supervisor took it to a broader forum and told others there was "a trouble candidate in the team." The message filtered back to her. She had asked for fair treatment and had been labeled a problem for it. What happened next is what makes the story worth hearing. A senior leader stepped in, routed someone to talk to her properly, understood what she actually needed, and gave...
info_outline
She Spent Five Weeks Getting Stonewalled Before Landing One Lunch. By the Time the Hiring Manager Called, Three People Had Already Been Talking About Her. Equifax SVP D'Lovely on Networking That Produces Results
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
She Stopped Leading With Her Title and Started Saying "I'm a Technology and Business Diplomat." People Immediately Wanted to Know More. Equifax SVP D'Lovely on Networking, Personal Boards, and Career Infrastructure She was laid off twice. Both times, by the time the hiring manager called her, three or four people at the company had already been talking about her. Not because she got lucky. Because she had spent months having breakfasts, following up on cold contacts, asking questions instead of pitching, and making it easy for people to pass her name along. One of those contacts had been on...
info_outline
She Names the Three People Who Changed Her Career and Exactly What Each One Gave Her. Director and Venture Partner Nancy on Building Your Personal Board of Directors
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
She credits three people with transforming her career trajectory at AWS and beyond. Tatiana got her into AWS. Wayne sponsored her advancement within it. Dan helped her break into venture capital as a partner at Felicis Ventures. She did not stumble into these relationships. She built them intentionally, maintained them with discipline, and gave back at every stage — even when what she could give seemed small compared to what she was receiving. Nancy was Director and General Manager at AWS Data Protection when this episode was recorded. She has since been promoted to CTO. She is also the...
info_outline
A Junior Employee Publicly Questioned Whether She Was Being Overpaid. She Stood Up and Said: "I Believe I Am Appropriately Compensated." Dr. Monique, CIO at Cal State Chico, on Advocacy, Bias, and Leading With Confidence
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
She came to the United States from Cameroon almost 30 years ago with a master's degree in education, almost no exposure to computers, and a goal to pursue a doctorate. Her two sisters, both already in IT careers, redirected her. She thought she could never succeed in the field. She became an IT help desk worker. Then a network administrator. Then an IT manager. Then a director. Then a CIO. Then a COO in Spain. Then a Chief Technology and Innovation Officer. Then a Vice President and CIO at a California State University. Her PhD — the original goal from 1995 — she completed in 2019....
info_outline
Before Accepting the Offer, She Asked to Meet Her Manager's Manager. It Could Have Cost Her the Role. Coverys CITO Saadia on Courage, Bias, and Bold Career Moves
Speak Your Mind Unapologetically Podcast
Her Peer Kept Misattributing Statements to Her Team. She Let It Slide Once. The Second Time She Confronted Her Directly. She had a verbal offer within four days. They were eager. Before she accepted, she called HR and said: "Before I accept, I want to speak with my manager's manager." That request could have cost her the role entirely. She had already weighed it: if they say no, that tells me everything I need to know about this culture. If they say yes, I make a more informed decision. Within 24 hours, the executive cleared his calendar during a conference lunch and took a 30-minute call. He...
info_outlineIf you’ve ever felt like you’re the one holding everything together at work — following up, reminding, double-checking, fixing last-minute mistakes, and caring more about the outcome than everyone else — this episode is for you.
Because you shouldn’t have to sacrifice your time, your sanity, or your career reputation just to compensate for other people’s lack of follow-through.
And you also shouldn’t have to choose between:
- staying silent and doing it all yourself or
- speaking up and being labeled “difficult,” “demanding,” or “not a team player.”
There’s a better way, and it starts with assertive accountability.
You’ll learn:
- why holding others accountable feels so uncomfortable
- how to stop chasing and reminding without sounding controlling
- how to protect your boundaries without damaging relationships
- how to speak up early (before resentment builds)
- how to get colleagues and partners to follow through, without nagging or apologizing
We’ll walk through 10 accountability conversations you can use with anyone you work with peers, project partners, cross-functional teams, even leaders to get results while maintaining respect and likability.
If you want to be known as someone who is reliable, respected, and not walked over, this episode will give you the exact language and confidence to make it happen.
🎁 Free Resource:
Download the 30 Power Shifts Guide — a free, practical cheat sheet with real-life “weak vs. powerful” word swaps for meetings, presentations, and everyday conversations.
-
Replace soft, hesitant phrases with powerful, natural ones.
-
Speak with clarity, conviction, and calm authority.
-
Be heard without apology.
👉 Get your free guide here: https://assertiveway.aweb.page/30power
✅ Free Newsletter: https://assertiveway.com/newsletter/
✅ Take the Quiz 'Do You Speak Like a High-Impact Leader?': https://myassertiveway.outgrow.us/highimpactleader
✅ Listen on the Speak Your Mind Unapologetically podcast on Apple Itunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/speak-your-mind-unapologetically-podcast/id1623647915
✅ Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6L1myPkiJXYf5SGrublYz2
✅ Order our book, ‘Unapologetic Voice: 101 Real-World Strategies for Brave Self Advocacy & Bold Leadership’ where each strategy is also a real story:
https://www.amazon.com/Unapologetic-Voice-Real-World-Strategies-Leadership-ebook/dp/B0CW2X4WWL/
✅ Follow the show host, Ivna Curi, on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivna-curi-mba-67083b2/
✅ Request A Customized Workshop For Your Team And Company: http://assertiveway.com/workshops
Contact me: [email protected] or [email protected]
Contact me on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivna-curi-mba-67083b2