The Culture Soup Podcast®️

In this third installment of the Leadership Revival Series, L. Michelle Smith brings the journey full circle. After exploring history & culture in Part 1 and applied science in Part 2, today’s episode takes us into the final pillar of the Call & Response Leadership Revival Framework: leadership theory. This episode weaves together research, lived experience, and a deeply personal full-circle story that became a turning point in the creation of Call & Response: 10 Leadership Lessons from the Black Church (Amistad Books/HarperCollins, Feb 2026). You’ll hear: Why leadership theory is finally naming what many leaders have lived for generations How self-work, relationship work, and world work become the backbone of leadership with heart A powerful reading of L. Michelle’s essay, “When You Receive the Language for What You’ve Lived” A moving sidebar featuring her early connection with Abby West, now VP & Editorial Director at Amistad Books A special clip from Episode 161, “The Sound of Progress,” exploring storytelling, sound, community, and cultural leadership How one unexpected conversation led directly to the acquisition of Call & Response This is the episode where everything clicks — the moment theory, story, science, and culture meet in a single, resonant truth: Leadership isn’t changing. It’s returning. To community. To connection. To courage. To heart. And this episode marks that return. IN THIS EPISODE Part 3 of the Leadership Revival Series Leadership theory explained through a cultural, scientific, and human lens What it means to “receive the language for what you’ve lived” Why narrative and sound have always been leadership technologies How L. Michelle’s relationship with Abby West helped bring Call & Response to life The moment everything came full circle ABOUT THE BOOK Call & Response: 10 Leadership Lessons from the Black Church By L. Michelle Smith Amistad Books / HarperCollins | JVL Media Releases February 10, 2026 Pre-order & learn more: lmichellesmith.com/callandresponse FOLLOW & CONNECT Website: lmichellesmith.com Instagram: @lmichellespeaks LinkedIn: L. Michelle Smith Join SOAR Academy for leadership tools & resources

???? Episode SummaryThe job market isn’t giving today’s college seniors much to smile about—and that includes the Class of 2025. On this timely and powerful episode of The Culture Soup Podcast®, L. Michelle Smith welcomes leadership expert and author Leilani M. Brown for a heart-to-heart on what it takes to launch strong, even in uncertain times.With candor, warmth, and serious know-how, Leilani unpacks what students, families, employers—and even leaders—need to understand about the transition from campus to career. You’ll hear about the emotional toll of today’s job market, what matters most to Gen Z job seekers, and how both individuals and organizations can shift with intention.???? Show ShoutoutsPeople MentionedLeilani M. Brown – Guest, author, CEO of Giant Steps LLCL. Michelle Smith – Host, author, executive coachLeilani’s son – Class of 2025, mentioned as a source of inspirationParents & college students – Broad shoutout to listeners navigating this landscapeOrganizations & InstitutionsGiant Steps LLC – Leilani’s consulting and leadership firmSpelman College – Both Leilani and L. Michelle are alumnaeHoward University – Mentioned in context of the HBCU communityThe Culture Soup Podcast® – In its 8th year, hosted by L. Michelle SmithThe Circle – L. Michelle’s leadership growth and coaching communityNSC Coaching – Executive & personal coaching firm founded by L. MichelleSOAR Academy – Digital learning platform for leadersBooksFrom Campus to Career – Career launch guide for young professionals by LeilaniYour Giant Steps – Leilani’s latest book on professional clarity and growthNo Thanks: 7 Ways to Say I’ll Just Include Myself – L. Michelle’s bestselling bookCultural/Professional ThemesClass of 2025 – Core focus of the episodeGrit, grace, gumption – Leilani’s leadership mantraPurpose, performance, people – Three pillars for career success“The kids are not alright” – Referenced as a cultural truth“You’re not stuck—you’re shifting” – A powerful Leilani quote echoed by L. Michelle???? Learn MoreLeilani M. Brown – leilanimbrown.comL. Michelle Smith & The Culture Soup Podcast® – lmichellesmith.com/theculturesouppodcastJoin The Circle – lmichellesmith.com/thecircle

In this episode, I welcome back my dear friend of more than 25 years, Valorie Burton — bestselling author of 14 books, CEO of the Coaching and Positive Psychology (CaPP) Institute, and my mentor coach. Valorie joins me to talk about her newest release, Rules of Resilience: 10 Ways Successful People Get Better, Wiser, and Stronger, dropping September 16, 2025. Together we explore why resilience is more than a buzzword, how it looks in real life (hint: sometimes messy), and why it’s a system you can strengthen with intentional practices. ✨ What You’ll Learn Why resilience isn’t about being “tough” but about getting back up — even when it’s messy. How cognitive distortions like catastrophizing can derail you, and the tools to counter them. The critical link between values, purpose, and resilience. Why resilience should be taught in schools and practiced in organizations. How Valorie applied her own rules while writing the book, facing down her inner “gremlins.” The bonus rule: paying resilience forward to your peers, family, and future generations.

What happens when the organization that once spoke truth to power… goes quiet?In this candid and courageous conversation, host L. Michelle Smith sits down with her friend and media powerhouse Errin Haines to talk about the urgent state of Black journalism, the legacy (and future) of NABJ, and what leadership must look like when both journalism and democracy are under attack.Errin shares deeply personal stories—from reporting in Ferguson to launching The 19th—and outlines her bold vision for NABJ’s next 50 years. They discuss press freedom, AI, innovation, media accountability, and the hard truth about corporate sponsorship and advocacy.This isn’t just a conversation. It’s a call to action.

Talk to Me Nice with Minda Harts—Cracking the Code on Trust at Work The Memo author and workplace whisperer Minda Harts joins us on this episode! In this heart-forward, thought-deep convo, L. Michelle and Minda explore what it really takes to build trust at work—beyond buzzwords, beyond DEI jargon, and definitely beyond performative leadership. Minda drops gems from her new book Talk to Me Nice: The Seven Trust Languages for a Better Workplace, offering a toolkit to decode how trust actually operates across teams, leadership, and culture. From the neuroscience of oxytocin to the erosion of trust in a matter of moments, they break it all down with candor, warmth, and a few Beyoncé references for good measure. This episode is for anyone who’s tired of saying “I don’t trust my manager” without knowing how to say it better—and for leaders who want to actually earn that trust back.

This week, we step into the second pillar of Call & Response—science. In this episode:

Welcome to the kickoff of the Leadership Revival—a new series on The Culture Soup Podcast that takes you behind the scenes of Call & Response: 10 Leadership Lessons from the Black Church.In this premiere episode, host L. Michelle Smith sets the stage with the “Front Matter”—a soulful introduction to the journey ahead. She reflects on how the book came together not just through writing, but through living. And how its three foundational pillars—history, science, and leadership research—form a scaffolding that holds it all together.This episode features:A clip from a past interview with Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr., whose work anchors the historical context of the book.The debut of our Footnotes segment, exploring how enslaved people worshipped in secret, building the spiritual and cultural foundation of what would become the Black Church.A personal behind-the-scenes look at the transformational journey of writing Call & Response.

The Culture Soup Podcast® – Women’s History Month Episode Guest: A’Lelia Bundles, Award-Winning Author & Journalist

Show Notes - The Culture Soup Podcast In this episode, host L. Michelle Smith takes us on a reflective journey back to 2018, when she first launched The Culture Soup Podcast. She shares how an unexpected speaking career and a chance encounter led her to create both a podcast and a book, despite corporate challenges. She then shifts focus to the present, discussing the impact of recent executive orders on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), particularly in the corporate and federal sectors. With canceled sponsorships and shifting priorities, Michelle emphasizes resilience in times of uncertainty, urging leaders to embrace change as an opportunity for growth. Additionally, she delves into the power of artificial intelligence (AI) in leadership and decision-making, highlighting its potential beyond content generation. She teases upcoming AI workshops designed to help leaders integrate AI into their businesses strategically. Tune in for an engaging discussion on navigating change, leveraging AI, and strengthening resilience as a leader in today’s fast-moving world.

In this episode, I take time to reflect on 5 lessons I've learned over the past five years of running my professional private coaching practice. We are celebrating NSC Coaching's 5th anniversary all this month, and we are also observing International Coaching Week. Listen for what I learned along this journey so far about perseverance, determination, focus, relationships and other important lessons that you can take away for your journey as well. I also tease a big announcement that's forth coming. It's a special episode, so tune in!

In 2019, I did what many corporate types would call "the unthinkable." I walked away from opportunities at a Fortune 10 after being "surplussed" without a job lined up. Sure, I had opportunities externally. Yes, I had a seedling of a business that I had started, but I wanted to take the time to think through my next step methodically. I had a mission that only a few were aware of, and that drove me to seek out the one thing that I needed to activate it. Could I do it and remain in corporate? I had interested organizations telling me that I could do both-pursue my calling to author books and speak across the country and internationally and work for them. But I knew that would eventually cause friction. I'd lived it already. That one piece was missing that would activate my mission, and a scroll through Instagram and an ad from a longtime sisterfriend and former client would ultimately become the the gateway to my destiny. I let that sisterfriend turn the tables on me this week, and I thought it would be great to finally share my story: how I went from there...to here, five years later with a thriving, global executive and personal coaching and consulting practice, a publishing journey that has been extraordinary and the speaker tour that began in 2015 and has yet to end. What took me from a 25+ year-long career in strategic communication, agency side, agency owner, and client side to here? I pass Valorie Burton, MAPP, MCC the mic on my show, The Culture Soup Podcast ® as she featured me in her global preview call for The Coaching and Positive Psychology (CaPP) Institute. That is where I earned my certification that would tee me up for credentialing at the world's most respected coaching organizations, International Coaching Federation. I began with her Coach Training Intensive (CTI). So it's befitting that I allowed Valorie to throw back the covers on my purpose-driven story. My pen as my sword, my speaking as my munitions, evidence-based coaching, I discovered, would ultimately become my armor. Join me and Val for this inspiring and powerful conversation about what it actually takes to take on coaching as a profession in this special, extended video edition of The Culture Soup Podcast ® brought to you in part by The CaPP Institute. We're continuing to celebrate the five years anniversary of NSC Coaching, and six years for the podcast with this exclusive rebroadcast of "Conversation with a Coach", and it streams everywhere Thursday afternoon.

Where have I been? What have I been up to, you ask? This episode will catch you up, and drop some Nuggets that you probably weren't expecting.

The Culture Soup Podcast LIVE: Yes Please! A C-Suite Chat We're kicking off a series that will take us into fall... The Culture Soup Podcast®️ presents A C-Suite Chat, where we highlight voices from my new book, Yes Please! 7 Ways to Say I'm Entitled to the C-Suite. This episode, we are featuring Kecia Kelly DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FACHE, SVP and Chief Nursing Officer at one of the largest healthcare networks in the nation. Dr. Kelly and I discuss

This special episode is dual streamed and sponsored by The Culture Soup Podcast(r) and PR Yourself Podcast with Leah Frazier who is my guest host for today's show. It is a replay of the DFW Book Signing for Yes Please! 7 Ways to Say I'm Entitled to the C-Suite. It was recorded before a live audience. Listen to part one of the Fireside chat between myself and Leah and then tune in to Part 2 on TCSP After The Show, exclusively on Apple Podcasts. It includes more of the conversation, my reading from the book and the Q&A, which took a surprising and delightful turn. TCSP After the Show is available on a subscription basis. Subscribe today! #YesPleaseBook #TCSPAfterTheShow #TheCultureSoupPodcast

Yes Please! Release Day Launch Event Be a part of the crucial conversation as award-winning, best selling 3X author L. Michelle Smith is joined by guest host Condace Pressley, host of Perspectives/WSB-Atlanta for an in depth fireside chat about the new book Yes Please! 7 Ways to Say I'm Entitled to the C-Suite: Secrets Women of Color Need to Know Now to Find their Happy and Win in an Exclusive Corporate Culture. We will also welcome special guest Dr. Jeff Gardere, "America's Psychologist" who penned the foreword for the new release. Yes Please! is a leadership development tool and coaching guide that is grounded in applied positive psychology and neuroscience that supports women of color in finding happiness in the midst of the uniques challenges they face as women of color. #YesPleaseBook #LiveEvent #BookLaunch #WomenLeaders

Ever finally get that sponsor and your high hopes are dashed because they just didn't deliver? My conversation with Dr. Christopher Butts, Learning & Development and DEI expert and a voice in my upcoming book Yes Please! 7 Ways to Say I'm Entitled to the C-Suite...we delve into the idea of sponsors who just aren't cutting the mustard and more reasons why Black women are stalled on their way to the C-Suite in droves. Check out part 2 of my conversation, and be sure to preorder the Kindle version of the book on Amazon leading up to pub day on Jun 15. Also, don't miss next week's episode where special guest host Condace Pressley of WSB-TV in Atlanta turns the mic around on me and special gues Dr. Jeff Gardere, America's Psychologist for a lively conversation about the book! #TheCultureSoupPodcast #YesPleaseBook #WomenLeaders

I grabbed some much needed catch-time with my friend Dr. Christopher Butts, Learning & Development and DEI Expert to talk about themes from my upcoming book, Yes Please! 7 Ways to Say I'm Entitled to the C-Suite. He is one of the expert voices in the book, and we discuss the pitfalls of sponsorship, especially for Black women and other women of color and what allies can do to step up fill these crucial gaps. We get pretty specific too. I hope you're ready.

Everyone is so concerned about getting that elusive sponsor, but what happens after you get one? I talk about it with Dr. Diana B. Allen, women-in-tech empowerment advocate and senior cyber security expert in part 2 of our conversation which began in Ep 177. We get down to business with this conversation, and you won’t want to miss it. It will stream live on LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and TheCultureSoup.com Thursday and the audio will stream wherever you get you podcasts. Also, if you are on Apple Podcasts, don’t forget to subscribe to our bonus content called TCSP After the Show & Duets. We’ll be posting another one of our favorite shows to the archive with a guest we all know and love. Subscribe to find out who it is. One hint—-he can find out all about your great granddaddy and where your people originated. It’s a classic. Check it out!

Let's take a look back at my conversation with one f the world's most loved historians, Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. This takes us back to Episode 51 where we discuss his hit show Finding Your Roots and his journey to the show.

Let's talk CULTURE...and when I say culture--I mean the ARTS! I'm throwing it back to one of my favorite episodes as I wrap up a year-long engagement with one of my favorite clients, Lyric Opera Chicago and round the corner on my last term on the board of Opera America. One of the most acclaimed mezzo sopranos of our time is joining me on The Culture Soup Podcast®, and I’m so proud to call her friend! She debuted at the Metropolitan Opera, She’s sung for multiple Presidents. She is on the faculty at Juilliard. She even sang at the home going of Ruth Bader Ginsburg and she is on a mission to tell the story of Black people in opera. Meet the prolific and lovely Denyce Graves-Montgomery! She is the Founder of the Denyce Graves Foundation of which I am an advisory board member, and she is dedicated to telling the stories of Black people in Opera that you’ve never heard before. Tune in on Thursday to hear our conversation where we talk about the importance of seeing Black people in all aspects of Opera…from the stage to the composers, librettists and directors. We also talk about the importance of telling Black stories and seeing Black artist play characters that aren’t historically cast that way. It’s on this throwback episode of The Culture Soup Podcast®.