The Inner Work of Leadership with Carole Robin, PhD
Release Date: 03/14/2025
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Marcy Syms is a pioneering businesswoman and advocate for respect in leadership. She’s seen leadership fads come and go. She was a CEO when people still thought “women shouldn’t do that sort of thing” And she’s done something many folks have never had to endure - shuttering her family’s business while making her key creditors whole - an act deeply in line with her core value of respect. Marcy shares insights from her journey in the retail industry, her experiences with leadership dynamics and her advocacy for the Equal Rights Amendment - something she hopes to see made...
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Download free chapters from : Listen now 👇 🎙️ Spotify: 🍎 Apple: And please or Also! support the podcast with or a : Full show notes: SUMMARY In this conversation, Adam Kahane discusses the complexities of transforming systems, emphasizing the importance of understanding systems thinking, collaboration, and the role of individual contributions. He shares insights from urban transformation examples, the significance of culture, and the necessity of engaging with systems responsibly. Kahane introduces seven habits for transforming systems,...
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Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk, and master the art of conversations big and small: Please support the podcast! 💌 : 💌 : or with : : Check out for the full transcript and video highlights. Money! It can be an emotional topic. But, as my guest on today's podcast, fractional CFO Lauren Pearl says, it's emotional for everyone in different ways! In this episode, Lauren reveals her perspectives on how to approach these difficult conversations. Given how many leaders she’s worked with, we also explore her thinking about effective leadership, intentional...
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The Inner Work of Leadership with Carole Robin, PhD
The Conversation Factory
Master the art of conversations big and small - both inside yourself and in your teams and organization. Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk: Please support the podcast! đź’Ś Subscribe on Spotify: đź’Ś iTunes: or with a monthly contribution here: or make a one-time donation here: For the full transcript, video highlights, and more show links, check out the episode page here: Every conversation - especially the hard ones - is an opportunity to learn more about yourself, to learn about another person and to learn about interpersonal dynamics - if you can set aside judgment...
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Download free chapters from Please support the podcast by or , making , or making . Check out for the full transcript and video highlights. Dr. Anjan Chatterjee is a renowned professor and the founding Director of the Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics. He's a leading expert on how our brains perceive beauty and art, and author of an engaging book on this topic: “The Aesthetic Brain: How We Evolved to Desire Beauty and Enjoy Art" In this beautiful conversation, we explore: the intersection of beauty, conversation, and the human brain how our biological evolution has...
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Warning - this episode uses a specific curse word - a lot. And once we started using one, we started using more of them. So…if f-bombs, sprinkled like salt are not your cup of tea, this is a good episode to skip! My guest today is Rebecca R Block, PhD, who is an expert in helping organizations build programs, services and products that equip young people to develop the confidence and skills they need to enter adulthood as thriving and adaptable lifelong learners. She has spent the last 14 years leading the design, improvement, and evaluation of educational programs and services to make them...
info_outlineMaster the art of conversations big and small - both inside yourself and in your teams and organization.
Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk: https://www.danielstillman.com/good-talk
Please support the podcast!
đź’Ś Subscribe on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3QzcPAW
đź’Ś iTunes: https://apple.co/4ifh6pb
or with a monthly contribution here: https://bit.ly/support-tcf-monthly
or make a one-time donation here: https://bit.ly/support-tcf-once
For the full transcript, video highlights, and more show links, check out the episode page here: https://theconversationfactory.com/podcast/the-inner-work-of-leadership-with-carole-robin-phd
Every conversation - especially the hard ones - is an opportunity to learn more about yourself, to learn about another person and to learn about interpersonal dynamics - if you can set aside judgment and be open to curiosity. I’m SO excited to share this epic podcast conversation with the "queen of Touchy Feely" - Carole Robin, PhD. Carole taught the most popular elective at Stanford Graduate School of Business, Interpersonal Dynamics (mostly known affectionately as "Touchy Feely"!) for nearly 20 years and is co-author (with co-teacher David Bradford) of the excellent book Connect: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends and Colleagues.
She has a vast reserve of wisdom to share. We discuss the importance of navigating vulnerability and intentional connection as an essential leadership skill and unpack some of her most powerful principles of effective communication. We also talk about Carole’s conversations with her own personal AI, trained on all of her past writings and course notes…and how it helped her evolve how she tells her own story!
Building exceptional relationships is work that’s done one conversation at a time. Carole’s insights can help you unlock the potential in each conversation.
Key Moments
00:00 The Art of Greeting with Interpersonal Dynamics in mind
03:00 AI and Personal Narratives: The Evolution of Carole’s Story in collaboration with her personal AI
06:01 Leadership Lessons: Emotions in Business
09:06 Vulnerability vs. Strength: The Leadership Paradox
12:04 Transparency in Leadership: The Balance of Sharing
14:58 Strategic Authenticity: Navigating Vulnerability
18:01 True and Kind: The Principles of Effective Communication
20:50 The Importance of Self-Care for Leaders
21:59 Navigating Emotions in Leadership
23:49 Vulnerability and Authenticity in Leadership
30:07 Self-Management and Emotional Discipline
32:59 Curiosity as Leadership superpower
37:57 The Work of Building Relationships