I am hooked! I can't stop watching and listening @TarynSmithMovement on Instagram.

She is rowing across the Atlantic all by herself... she's on roughly, Day 44.

What can a 24-year-old rowing solo across the Atlantic teach seasoned corporate leaders about courage, endurance, fear, and leadership?

More than you think.

In this episode, we explore leadership through an unexpected but powerful lens: crossing an ocean alone. This is not an adventure story—it’s a leadership case study on how to lead when certainty disappears, fear shows up, and endurance matters more than intensity.

If you’re navigating ambiguity, pressure, burnout, or high-stakes decisions, this episode will challenge how you think about strength, courage, and what leadership actually requires today.

⏱️ CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS

00:00 – Opening
Leadership when the horizon disappears

02:10 – Why an Ocean Is a Leadership Classroom
Uncertainty, isolation, and sustained effort

04:45 – Leadership vs. Management
Why leadership must work without clarity

07:30 – Endurance Over Intensity
Why you can’t sprint leadership (or an ocean)

11:15 – Burnout and Corporate Myths
Why exhaustion is not a credential

14:20 – Fear as Data, Not Danger
How leaders misuse fear—and how to use it properly

18:30 – When Fear Becomes Taboo
The innovation cost of fear-based cultures

22:10 – Beginner’s Mind and Adaptability
Why leaders must become students again

25:40 – Solo Doesn’t Mean Alone
Vulnerability, support, and leadership trust

28:45 – Practicing Courage Daily
You don’t need an ocean to lead boldly

31:00 – Final Reflection & Call to Action
What’s the ocean you’re facing right now?

FREE BONUS - Start assessing your leadership capability with our free Powerhouse Communication Assessment. DOWNLOAD HERE

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Leadership isn’t proven by certainty—it’s revealed by consistency under uncertainty
• Endurance beats intensity in long-term leadership effectiveness
• Burnout is not a leadership credential
• Fear is information; suppressing it kills innovation
• Cultures that shame fear create cautious leaders, not bold ones
• Beginner’s mind is a strategic advantage, not a weakness
• Vulnerability builds trust without eroding authority
• Courage is a daily practice, not a personality trait

🎯 CALLS TO ACTION: Reflect on these three leadership questions this week:

1️⃣ Assess your courage
What conversation, decision, or risk are you avoiding?

2️⃣ Become a student again
Where are you relying on past success instead of learning what’s changed?

3️⃣ Model vulnerability
How can you build trust by being honest—not performatively confident?

Leadership isn’t about knowing the way.
It’s about moving forward anyway—one stroke at a time.

CONNECT & FOLLOW

🎙️ Podcast: Shedding the Corporate Bitch
📍 Host: Bernadette Boas
📺 Watch on YouTube
🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts and all major platforms

👉 Subscribe, rate, and share this episode with a leader who’s navigating uncertainty.

Support the show

Your job is not your identity—and believing it is may be costing you your energy, joy, and leadership longevity.

In this episode of Shedding the Corporate Bitch, burnout coach and author Elisha Meek breaks down how high achievers unknowingly trap themselves in burnout through perfectionism, people-pleasing, and control. She shares practical tools to reclaim purpose without quitting your career, including her Brains-Body-Soul 5-5-5 reset and the power of identity diversification.

Timestamps:
00:00 – Why your title is not your identity
02:00 – Elisha’s burnout “lightning bolt” moment
05:30 – Hidden signs of burnout leaders ignore
10:00 – Identity diversification explained
14:30 – Control, perfectionism, and people-pleasing
21:30 – When strengths become career-limiting
27:00 – The Brains-Body-Soul 5-5-5 reset
33:00 – Why breakthroughs rarely happen alone
38:00 – One micro-step to reclaim purpose
42:00 – How to break up with burnout before it breaks you

Connect with Elisha Meek:
Website: elishameek.com
Instagram: @elisha.meek
LinkedIn: @ElishaMeek
Facebook: @Elisha Meek Coaching

Join the Book Launch Team of her upcoming book, Breakup with Burnout
breakupwithburnout.elishameek.com/launch

Call to Action:
Subscribe, rate, and share this episode with a leader who needs permission to stop burning out in silence. PODCAST VIDEOCAST

Support the show

This should shock you! Only 25% of executives feel prepared to lead through disruptive change. In this episode, we explore why reactive leadership fails—and how anticipatory leadership equips leaders to navigate AI, automation, workforce shifts, and uncertainty with confidence.

You’ll learn the four core components of anticipatory leadership, the future-ready skills leaders must develop now, and how to shift from crisis-driven decisions to opportunity-focused strategy.

Timestamps

00:00 – Why reactive leadership is no longer enough
01:00 – What anticipatory leadership really means
02:00 – AI, automation, and workforce disruption
04:00 – The hidden cost of avoiding uncertainty
05:00 – Reactive vs anticipatory leadership explained
08:00 – The four components of anticipatory leadership
09:00 – Environmental scanning and spotting quiet signals
15:00 – Scenario planning and testing your strategy
19:00 – Adaptive decision-making in uncertain environments
22:00 – Change shaping and building trust
26:00 – Future leadership skills you must develop
31:00 – Reflection questions for leaders
35:00 – Final thoughts and next steps

Calls to Action

✔ Subscribe & follow the show
✔ Leave a review to help other leaders find the podcast
✔ Share this episode with your leadership team

🔗 Podcast hub: balloffirecoaching.com/podcast
🔗 Discovery call: coachmebernadette.com/discoverycall

Host & Handles

Host: Bernadette
Website: balloffirecoaching.com
YouTube: Shed the Corporate Bitch TV

Support the show