Three months into new leadership roles, Lyndsey (leading remotely on 7-hour time difference) and Briony (international move + new transformation role) do a raw check-in on the 4 habits they committed to from day one.

Lyndsey's Reality:

Transparency – Sends regular updates. Gets zero response. Feels vulnerable sending into silence. Learning: explicitly ask for feedback.

Psychological Safety – Prioritized over quick wins. Meetings are silent. No one admits it doesn't exist. Intentionally asks "why" to understand resistance.

Ruthless Boundaries – Books 10-minute meetings (not 30). Replies "That can be an email" to meeting requests. Proving remote work IS more effective.

Energy Management – Saves energizing tasks for hour before UK comes online. Leaves thinking "achieved loads + had thinking time."

Briony's Reality:

Being Authentic – Mission accomplished—people know who she is. Week 3 wobble (retreated, stopped speaking up), but picked back up. Way more vulnerable than expected.

Daily Reflection – Used AI for 100 reflection questions, picks 2 daily. Does it 4/5 days. Helps adapt to THIS team, not assume from old team.

Protecting Resilience – Last months = most challenging of life. International move, kids struggling, house moves, proving herself as unknown. Maintained exercise/boundaries. Eating more sugar, sleep worse. Letting herself binge-watch TV. It's a season.

One-to-Ones – Too hectic for formal slots. Adapted: calls people about tasks, adds "What else have you got?" Mini one-to-ones work. Don't let perfect be enemy of good.

Key Lessons:

✅ Habits ebb and flow
✅ Being yourself is vulnerable
✅ Adapt when not working
✅ Take control yourself
✅ Consistency > perfection

Challenge: What 2 habits will you start THIS WEEK for mid-November through Christmas?

Download "Walk the Week" planner: https://pensight.com/x/leadtheroom/plan-you-week-with-purpose-connection-creativity-and-courage

In this episode of Lead the Room, Briony and Lyndsey tackle the biggest misconception in leadership today: that transforming team culture requires massive time investments, expensive away days, or sweeping organizational overhauls. They reveal how intentional small actions can fundamentally shift team dynamics, boost performance, and create the high-performing, connected workplace culture that modern teams desperately need. Through practical examples and honest conversation, they dismantle the broken leadership playbook that prioritizes hustle culture over sustainable excellence, offering leaders a realistic path to building counter-cultural teams where people actually want to work.

Key Takeaways:

• • Culture Change Happens Daily, Not Quarterly: High-performing teams aren't built through quarterly away days, they're built through consistent 15-minute daily actions that compound over time. Leaders who wait for the "right moment" to focus on team culture will wait forever. The transformation happens in everyday moments: how you run meetings, give recognition, and make decisions visible to your team.
  • Micro-Actions Send Massive Signals: Small, intentional behaviors, such as explaining the "why" behind decisions, communicate your values far more powerfully than any mission statement ever could. What you do repeatedly becomes your culture, and these tiny consistent actions multiply across your team.
  • Friction-Fixing Creates High-Performance Momentum: The most effective leaders don't collect long lists of blockers for future analysis, they identify and solve small problems immediately. When you model solving friction in the moment rather than scheduling it for discussion, your team adopts the same problem-solving mindset. This daily habit of removing obstacles creates momentum that transforms team performance without adding hours to anyone's week.

  
  

  
  

  
  

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"Governance" might be everyone's least favorite word, but hear us out...

This isn't about bureaucracy or PowerPoint decks nobody understands. This is about the difference between projects that drift endlessly (despite everyone working hard) and teams that deliver smoothly without burning out.

In this week's episode, we're sharing 3 lightweight strategies you can implement in your NEXT team meeting:

✅ The 15-min traffic light check-in (support, not surveillance)
✅ The "what does done look like" document (clarity, not control)
✅ Decision rights from day one (so 12 people aren't trying to make every call)

No fancy software. No consultants. No away days. Just human-centered ways to keep transformation projects on track.

Share your governance wins and woes with us over on instagram or hello@leadtheroom.co.uk