🎙️In this episode of The Grounded Leader, we explore what it truly means to lead with empathy, authenticity, and a healthy dose of quirk. My guest, Karla Pamanes, is an award-winning designer, branding expert, and mentor based in San Antonio, Texas. Over her 15-year career, she’s worked with powerhouse brands like HGTV, Food Network, and Brit+Co, and now helps creative professionals build brands that tell human stories through The Brand Design Academy.

Karla opens up about how seeing the best in people, honoring her rituals (from snail mail to solo Trader Joe’s trips), and embracing imperfection have shaped her leadership and creative philosophy. Together, we unpack how small, personal joys can keep leaders grounded in high-pressure environments — and why playfulness, empathy, and boundaries aren’t weaknesses, but strengths.

✨ In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why quirks make leaders more relatable and human.
• How empathy creates trust and stronger team culture.
• The power of everyday rituals in staying centered and creative.
• How moments of pause — even procrastination — can become powerful resets.

🎧 Loved this conversation? Don’t forget to follow The Grounded Leader so you never miss an episode about leading with balance, authenticity, and heart.

💌 Share this episode with a friend or colleague who leads with empathy — or wants to start.

💡 Listen now and rediscover how authenticity can transform the way you lead, create, and connect.
🎧 Available wherever you get your podcasts.

✨BIO

Karla Pamanes is an award-winning designer, branding expert, and mentor based out of San Antonio, Texas. She has designed for brands such as HGTV, Food Network, Brit+Co, in addition to several other amazing companies. Her focus is on building branding that tells a story and reflects the core values of a company. Her motto is to "be the person you needed when you were younger." She created "The Brand Design Academy" to share the knowledge and experience she has learned over her 15 years working with corporate brands and small businesses.

If you are looking for advice from a trained yogi and Ayurvedic Doctor, contact Sweta here.

Connect on Socials: Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube

Visit my website

Disclaimer: The content is purely informative and educational in nature and should not be construed as medical advice. The information is not intended for use in the diagnosis, treatment, cure, or prevention of any disease. Please use the content only in consultation with an appropriate certified medical or healthcare professional. If you are nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition, please consult with your health care practitioner prior to the use of any of these herbs.

🎙️Podcast Description

February often arrives wrapped in red hearts and expectations — a season that tells us love must look a certain way. But what if true love begins not with someone else, but within?

In this episode of The Grounded Leader, host Sweta Vikram explores the subtle emotional weight that Valentine’s Day can carry — from comparison to loneliness — and how these moments mirror deeper questions of self-worth. Drawing on Ayurvedic wisdom and lived experience, she unpacks how our relationship with ourselves shapes the way we lead, connect, and show up in the world.

Through gentle reflection and grounded practices, you’ll learn to return to yourself — to lead from worth, not from the need for validation.

💛 Key Takeaways:

· Self-worth is not performance. It’s remembering that your value doesn’t rise or fall with others’ approval.

· Disconnection creates imbalance. In Ayurveda, true alignment begins with reconnecting to your essence.

· Leadership rooted in worth feels safe. When you lead from self-trust, others feel grounded in your steadiness.

· Simple self-love practices heal. Conscious breathing, nourishing food, and mindful gratitude are leadership tools — not luxuries.

· Love becomes leadership. How you love yourself sets the tone for every relationship you nurture — at work and beyond.

🌸 If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and review The Grounded Leader — it helps more people find this space of calm and authenticity.

✨ Continue your journey of holistic leadership and Ayurvedic wellbeing at swetavikram.com, or connect with me on Instagram @swetavikram
for daily reflections on balance, purpose, and heart-centered success.

If you are looking for advice from a trained yogi and Ayurvedic Doctor, contact Sweta here.

Connect on Socials: Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube

Visit my website

Disclaimer: The content is purely informative and educational in nature and should not be construed as medical advice. The information is not intended for use in the diagnosis, treatment, cure, or prevention of any disease. Please use the content only in consultation with an appropriate certified medical or healthcare professional. If you are nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition, please consult with your health care practitioner prior to the use of any of these herbs.

In this heartfelt episode of The Grounded Leader, host Sweta Vikram sits down with Priya Ramteke, a professional leader whose journey beautifully intertwines career success with compassion and service.

At a time when leadership is often defined by metrics, titles, and outcomes, Priya reminds us that true fulfillment comes from giving back. Be it through her volunteer work teaching yoga to underprivileged children or donating her time and services in other ways, Priya has discovered how acts of service can quiet the ego, cultivate empathy, and strengthen the very qualities that make us better leaders.

Together, Sweta and Priya explore how service nourishes purpose, how privilege can be used consciously, and why generosity of spirit may be the most sustainable form of leadership in our fast-paced world.

✨ Key Takeaways

1. Service transforms the self before it transforms others. Giving back is not just an act of generosity—it’s a path toward deeper self-awareness and humility.
2. Leadership is energy management. Teaching yoga to children helped Priya reconnect with stillness, balance, and compassion—qualities she brings back to her professional life.
3. Privilege comes with responsibility. Awareness of opportunity can inspire meaningful action when paired with empathy and intention.
4. Boundaries sustain generosity. Priya shares how she maintains healthy limits to ensure that giving doesn’t lead to depletion.
5. Fulfillment is born from connection. Success feels richer when it is rooted in purpose, presence, and the wellbeing of others.

🎧 If this episode inspired you, take a moment to reflect on how you can give back this week — whether it’s mentoring, volunteering, or simply showing kindness.

💫 Share this episode with a colleague or friend who leads with heart.
💫 Subscribe, rate, and review The Grounded Leader wherever you listen — your support helps us reach more leaders who value purpose, balance, and authenticity.

✨BIO

Priya Ramteke, Head of Learning at NMAJS, brings over 26 years of experience in education — including 17 years in IB schools in India and nine in England. In her current role, she leads curriculum and instructional leadership across both the Primary Years Programme and the Middle Years Programme, with a strong focus on making transitions enriching.

As both a certified yoga teacher and an active IBEN educator, she brings a unique lens to her work — one that integrates well-being and mindfulness into the way schools use data, ensuring that learning remains holistic and human-centered.

If you are looking for advice from a trained yogi and Ayurvedic Doctor, contact Sweta here.

Connect on Socials: Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube

Visit my website

Disclaimer: The content is purely informative and educational in nature and should not be construed as medical advice. The information is not intended for use in the diagnosis, treatment, cure, or prevention of any disease. Please use the content only in consultation with an appropriate certified medical or healthcare professional. If you are nursing, taking medications, or have a medical condition, please consult with your health care practitioner prior to the use of any of these herbs.