Claim OwnershipOut of the Comfort Zone
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© 2026 Out of the Comfort Zone
Description
There is no growth in comfort and no comfort in growth. Business today typically values and promotes leaders for their subject expertise. Leaders who have command of the details and execute based on knowledge and experience are highly respected. However, to grow as a leader you have to get out of your comfort zone – that means learning to lead without just being the expert. Learn to gain the trust and respect of a team that might know more than you do. Get comfortable with ambiguity and with not having all the information. Develop the skills and confidence to lead in a different way.
For female leaders, subject expertise is usually the source of their confidence. Learning to lead outside your comfort zone is one step for breaking through the glass ceiling.
The show’s purpose is to give you tips on how can you develop the capability to lead – to get out of your comfort zone?
563 Episodes
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Send a text We often talk about the importance of caring for your employees – leaving them feeling that they matter more than for just the output they produce. In this episode, we hear from one of the few leaders who has built a strong business really putting people first. How did it happen? What makes it work? And why do so many companies fall short when they claim to be people-first? Listen in for a powerful story about getting out of your comfort zone along with great advice on how to real...
Send a text The better you as a leader understand your personal drivers, preferences, values and the story you hold about what it means to lead; then, the better you will be at working with a range of people and getting the best from them. Knowing yourself deeply creates space to know someone else. Where do you begin? How can you define your values with credibility and authenticity beyond the one or three common words everyone uses? How does that information help you lead a team more ef...
Send us Fan Mail Leading requires that you not only get out of your comfort zone and lead without being the expert but that you also learn to build trust with people you don’t necessarily appreciate immediately. Those micro-cultures make all the different in team engagement and team performance. Easily said but not so easily done. What do you need to understand about trust, yourself and your approach that can create the kind of culture people want to be a part of and where performance follows...
Send us Fan Mail Sometimes we can learn a lot about leading a business team by stepping outside the business world and examining a successful sports team. In sports, if you want to win at the top level, there are so many things you have to do well beyond just the physical skills - such as building a strong team culture, mentally preparing for adversity and building the right leadership model for your mission. While not all sports require the same level of teaming, sailing does. Thus, it’s a g...
Send us Fan Mail Many managers/leaders are stressed, frustrated, and sometimes even angry when they think about what the youngest generation is expecting from their careers. However, the experiences of Gen Z are not like generations before. Therefore, to get the best from the generation, leaders will have to think differently. What does the newest data say about Gen Z and their fears? What if their mental health really is at greater risk than leaders understand? What can leaders realist...
Send us Fan Mail If you are leading a team, most likely you have team members in different countries with different cultures, traditions and expectations about what you should do as a manager. What do you need to know to be effective with a different culture? What should you watch for? How can you build trust across borders? Listen in for stories from the road. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instagram: https:...
Send us Fan Mail Meetings are using an enormous amount of time with little reward. Too many meetings creates overload, stress, no time to think, long hours to make up the work that couldn’t get done because of meetings. There has to be a better way to coordinate and collaborate. Listen in for tactical advice on how to get your meetings fit for purpose, time efficient and a joy rather than a hassle. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-a...
Send us Fan Mail Every leader, to create leverage and to achieve more impact, must be able to delegate successfully. So few know how. They either over direct or instruct or they dessert, ditch abandon and hope all goes well – it rarely does. There is a better way. Listen in to find out to do differently to get yourself out of the weeds, motivate your team and drive great performance. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcastho...
Send us Fan Mail I have watched several high performing leaders take two steps up in their career at once, land themselves on the executive committee and find that they are not prepared for the challenges of operating at that level. The fallout is not good for the individual, the top team or the organization. What are they missing? What does it take to be ready to participate at the top level of an organization? How do you communicate with the CEO and other C-suite leaders? How do you find an...
Send us Fan Mail Body language may convey more about you and your message than the words you say. How then can you use body language to grab and sustain attention? How does body language help you build relationships and show empathy? What can body language tell us about deception? Listen in for practical insights on what you can do. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wandatwal...
Send us Fan Mail Leaders do need to understand their core values because these values drive behavior, relationships and decisions. Having clear values gives a bottom line for making tough decisions. Clear values help you know when to say no and stand your ground, rather than getting swept along with the tide of whatever is happening at their company. And clear values help leaders maintain their authentic identity in the midst of all the changes organizations require. The challenge is how to u...
Send us Fan Mail Good management is one of the hardest skills to master. In over thirty years of coaching experience, host Dr. Wanda Wallace has seen many leaders – and their team members – struggle. What is the team really motivated by? Which task will create the greatest value for the organization? What does my boss really want to know and how do they want it communicated? Why is my boss dragging their feet when it comes to making decisions? How do we give good feedback and help each other ...
Send us Fan Mail Too many report feeling that they are barely surviving between workload, pressure to lead well, push for more from above and just the general chaos of like these days. Most leaders say that can’t find time to think or plan even a few months out. In that state thriving seems like a pipedream. By thriving we mean feeling connected, creative, calm, able to develop clever solutions, to name a few. How can you thrive more? What can you do? ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: htt...
Send us Fan Mail Tribes exist at work and in our communities and they have existed throughout human history. Sometimes they are positive forces and sometimes not. What drives tribes? How does that knowledge help us lead change and create the kinds of organizations that are a constructive force? ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wandatwallace/ ► Main YouTube: https://www.youtu...
Send us Fan Mail Disruption feels like it just around the corner in every aspect of business whether that is driven by customer demands, shareholder demands, new competitiors or AI. How should we think about disruption? How does it really work? What do we need to know to lead through or into disruption and out the other side? ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wandatwallace/ ►...
Send us Fan Mail As soon as any leadership discussion mentions younger generations at work, the complaints start pouring in. It doesn’t have to be so hard. What is it about Gen Z that makes them so unique, valuable and frustrating all at the same time? What do you need to do as a leader to get the best from the youngest generation? Listen in for great insights and advice. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instag...
Send us Fan Mail Being able to influence people, to persuade them of your point of view, to convince them to take an action you want them to take is an essential skill to lead people and to get anything done. Anything that inches your skill forward is worth noting. Listen in for a refresher on key principles of influence (up, out and down) as well as an important discussion about ethical practices. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-a...
Send us Fan Mail If you want a team that’s motivated, engaged, committed, and accountable, you need to make sure each member knows they matter both to you and to the outcome. But how do you actually do that? And more importantly, why should you even bother? Listen in to find out. ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wandatwallace/ ► Main YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@wandawa...
Send us Fan Mail Are you ready for the next level of promotion but can’t seem to get there, and not sure what’s holding you back? There are six key blind spots that might be the source of your challenges. But what are they? How can you identify which one applies to you? And most importantly, what can you do about each of them? ⬇️ Connect with me! ► LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wanda-wallace-publicspeaker-author-podcasthost/ ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wandatwallace/ ► Main...
Send us Fan Mail Getting out of your comfort zone is all about recognizing that what got you to this point in your career, is not necessarily what will make you successful and effective in the next stages. Leadership is a continuous growth journey and doing it well requires awareness and courage to evolve. Because leadership is not a destination — it’s a constant journey of awareness, courage, and transformation. So ask yourself, What’s blocking your success? What mindsets are holding you bac...
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