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Do you ever feel like a theme or lesson keeps showing up in your life on repeat—almost like déjà vu? That’s been me lately with words like honesty, integrity, and self-trust.

In this episode, I’m diving into Ryan Leak’s book Leveling Up. I thought it would be just personal development, but halfway through I realized: personal development and leadership development are the same conversation. This book held up a mirror and forced me to ask some hard questions I think every new manager needs.

We’ll cover:

• The Self-Awareness Question – “What is it like to be on the other side of me?”
• The Vision Question – “What is my definition of success?”
• The Humility and Integrity Questions – “What mistakes can I own?” and “Am I being honest with myself?”
• The Fun Question – “Am I enjoying it?”

I get really vulnerable in this one. From realizing I wasn’t being as honest with myself about small things (like tracking food) to admitting I wasn’t showing up as the mom or leader I wanted to be, this episode is all about how self-integrity connects directly to the way you lead your team.

Because leadership isn’t built on perfection. It’s built on honesty, humility, and the courage to ask better questions.

By the time you finish listening, you’ll discover:

• Why feedback is more powerful than grace when it comes to growth
• How to define your own version of success so you don’t climb the wrong ladder
• Why admitting mistakes builds more trust than pretending to be perfect
• How joy and enjoyment fuel culture more than toxic positivity ever could

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• How to Set Boundaries, Unplug After Work, and Move Your Body Even When You're Exhausted
  • Diving Into the Question around Rest

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

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Take the 5 Love Languages Assessment (for free!)

Do you ever feel like your appreciation isn’t landing with your team?

New managers often rely on the “golden rule”, treat others how you want to be treated. But that approach leaves gaps, frustrates employees, and creates disengagement. The better approach? Learn how your team wants to be appreciated, and match your recognition style to theirs.

In this episode, Desiree breaks down the five love languages at work, show you how to adapt them to your leadership style, and share the three biggest mistakes that ruin even the best intentions.

By the time you finish listening, you’ll learn:

• Why mismatched appreciation creates disengagement, burnout, and toxic culture
• The three most common mistakes managers make when showing appreciation
• How to use love languages to build trust, handle conflict, and lead more effectively

The 5 Love Languages (translated into the language of Work!)

Words of affirmation → Verbal praise and specific recognition

Quality time → One-on-one attention and active listening

Acts of service → Helping remove obstacles or pitching in

Gifts → Small, thoughtful tokens of appreciation

Physical touch → Professional gestures like handshakes or high fives

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

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Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

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Feeling stuck, complacent, or burned out at work? In this episode, Jason Barnaby shares how to reignite your fire, overcome fear, and create meaningful culture through intentional action.

In this episode, we're shifting gears into something every new manager and leader wrestles with, how do you keep your spark alive when comfort zones and fear want to hold you back?

I’m joined by Jason Barnaby, Chief Fire Starter of Fire Starters Inc., who has made it his mission to help people and organizations reignite hope and torch fear. Together, we unpack what it really means to show up as the leader you want to be and how culture isn’t a top-down mandate, it’s the sum of how we each lead ourselves.

Jason shares his powerful framework (Find your fire, Fan your flame, Ignite your life), the dangers of letting “what if abouts” (those sneaky negative thoughts and doubts) keep you stuck, and why your tribe matters more than you realize. Whether you’re feeling uninspired at work, stuck in complacency, or struggling with imposter syndrome, this episode will remind you that change starts with striking just one match.

Key Takeaways

By the end of this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why the difference between being content and being complacent could make or break your leadership.
• How to overcome your “what if abouts” and start seeing possibilities instead of barriers.
• The role of intentional tribes and small actions in building momentum and reigniting your fire.

Additional Links

Connect with Jason Barnaby on LinkedIn

Read Ideal Team Player by Patrick Lencioni

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

Liked this episode? Share it with a fellow podcaster!

Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

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Guest: Tessa Kampen - Team Engagement Catalyst

Why are Gen Z and millennials avoiding leadership? In this conversation with Tessa, we unpack the future of leadership, bridging generations, and what new managers must do to create trust, mentorship, and lasting influence.

Additional Links

• A New Kind of Diversity by Tim Elmore
• The 5 Levels of Leadership by John Maxwell
• How the Right Frameworks Turn Fear into Confidence | Craig Denison

Why don’t younger generations want to be leaders? The answer isn’t that they lack ambition, it’s that they don’t want the kind of leadership they see modeled today. Long hours, toxic cultures, fear-driven managers, and positional power aren’t inspiring the next wave of leaders.

We'll dive into generational leadership, mentorship, and the shift from positional power to true influence. You’ll hear why Gen Z and millennials are still deeply interested in leadership, but on their own terms.

We’ll also talk about how senior leaders can mentor and share knowledge without fear of being replaced, and why leadership is a verb, not a title.

By the time you finish listening, you’ll learn:

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

Liked this episode? Share it with a fellow podcaster!

Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

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Discover how to grow your head, heart, and gut intelligence to strengthen emotional intelligence, build trust, hold employees accountable, and create a thriving team culture as a new manager.

In this episode you’ll learn how to identify your dominant center (even without a personality assessment) and practical ways to grow all three so you can:

• Build trust and credibility with your team
• Hold employees accountable without micromanaging
• Handle conflict with confidence
• Lead effective team meetings that drive results
• Repair or prevent a toxic culture

By the time you finish listening, you’ll know how to balance clear thinking, relational connection, and decisive action to improve team dynamics and shape the culture you want to be part of.

Key Takeaways:

• The role of emotional intelligence in leadership success
• How to identify your dominant center of intelligence
• Practical ways to grow your head, heart, and gut skills daily

Additional Links:

• Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment + free 20-minute debrief with Desiree

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Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

Liked this episode? Share it with a fellow podcaster!

Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

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Coachin...

Guest - Heather Italiano, High-Energy Speaker and Facilitator
Book - The 5 Levels of Leadership by John Maxwell

Are your employees following you because they want to, or because they have to? In this episode, Heather Italiano unpacks the Five Levels of Leadership and how new managers can build trust, increase influence, and avoid falling into the trap of positional leadership.

Have you ever felt like your team only listens because they have to, not because they want to?

That’s the reality for many first-time managers. In this Leadership Podcast for New Managers, guest Heather Italiano joins me to explore how to build trust as a manager and move beyond positional leadership into real influence. We’re talking about team dynamics, managing up, and the moment your title stops being enough.

Heather breaks down John Maxwell’s Five Levels of Leadership and explains how even experienced leaders can fall back to level one when trust erodes. Plus, she shares her practical CARES framework to help you connect with your team in a way that builds loyalty, commitment, and results.

If you’re trying to fix a toxic culture, handle conflict at work as a manager, or simply become a better leader, this episode is your blueprint.

By the time you finish listening, you’ll learn:

• The difference between positional leadership and people-first leadership
• How to rebuild trust after it’s been lost
• A simple, 5-part framework to increase your influence as a new leader

If you loved this conversation with Heather, scroll down and leave a 5-star rating and review! Then share it with a colleague or friend who’s trying to grow their confidence as a new manager.

Guest & Additional Links:
Check out the

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

Liked this episode? Share it with a fellow podcaster!

Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

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Coachin...

Find Desiree Petrich and Tessa Kampen on Linkedin!

Watch Desiree's Disrupt HR Talk: You're The Problem, and It's affecting Your Team!

Struggling with difficult employees or clashing coworkers? In this episode, Desiree Petrich and Tessa Kampen unpack practical ways to improve team dynamics and work with people you don’t like.

You rarely to choose who you work with. Whether it’s a coworker who triggers your inner eye roll or a difficult employee who's throwing off your team dynamics, you still have a job to do.

In this episode of You're the Boss, Now What?,the go-to Leadership Podcast for New Managers, Desiree Petrich and honorary co-host Tessa Kampen dive into the Coaching for Managers tools that help you work with people you don’t always like… without losing your cool.

We share stories, tactical advice, and New Manager Tips on everything from how to handle conflict at work as a manager to recognizing your own blind spots. If you're struggling with how to hold employees accountable, battling imposter syndrome in leadership, or trying to build trust as a manager, this one’s for you. You’ll also learn how to delegate, give feedback effectively, and lead team meetings that don’t spiral off track (even with strong personalities at the table).

You don’t have to like everyone. But if you’re going to lead them? You do have to understand them.

By the time you finish listening, you’ll learn:

• How to understand the root of conflict using personality assessments like DISC and Working Genius
• Why difficult coworkers might not be as “difficult” as they seem—and what role you might be playing
• When it’s time to set boundaries, or let someone go, for the good of the team

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

Liked this episode? Share it with a fellow podcaster!

Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

Get a curated list of Desiree's favorite books in every genre

Connect: Linked In | Instagram | Website

Coachin...

Links

• The Truth About Employee Engagement by Patrick Lencioni
• List of my Favorite Books

You’ve offered raises, perks, and flexible schedules, so why does your team still seem disengaged? In this episode, we explore the real reasons employees check out and what you can do to re-engage them.

In today’s episode, we’re breaking down the book The Truth About Employee Engagement by Patrick Lencioni and exploring the real reason behind low morale, quiet quitting, and disengagement.

If you’ve tried surface-level perks, bonuses, or team outings to boost culture and it’s still not working, you’re not alone. This episode covers why so many leaders are unintentionally missing the mark, and how to start fixing it today.

By the time you finish listening, you’ll learn:

• The 3 root causes of disengagement every new manager needs to recognize
• Why building trust as a leader goes far beyond small talk and birthday cards
• How to hold employees accountable without micromanaging or burning them out

You don’t need another pizza party. You need a plan that helps your team feel known, needed, and successful.

Key Takeaways

• Disengagement is often caused by anonymity, irrelevance, and lack of clear measurement
• Quiet quitting doesn’t mean lazy, it usually means unseen
• High performers burn out fast when they don’t feel appreciated or purposeful employee engagement, quiet quitting, high-performing team, how to fix a toxic culture, building trust as a leader, how to hold employees accountable

Connect With Desiree on Linkedin
Buy the book - Taking Intentional Action: How to Choose the Life You Lead

Liked this episode? Share it with a fellow podcaster!

Love this show? Say thanks by leaving a positive review.

Take the DISC or Working Genius Assessment and get a FREE 20 minutes debrief with Desiree

Get a curated list of Desiree's favorite books in every genre

Connect: Linked In | Instagram | Website

Coachin...