The momentum surprised even us! After the launch, in just two weeks, more than 1,000 leaders and managers have already joined the Auntie Leader Circle. Clearly, there’s a strong need for this. Leadership, results, and wellbeing belong together. Auntie Leader Circle in a nutshell: A peer network dedicated to managers and leaders who want to combine performance with genuine care for wellbeing. Why now? Because too many people feel mental wellbeing isn’t a priority at work. 59% of employees say mental wellbeing isn’t a leadership priority 37% don’t feel they can talk openly about it at work These numbers are a clear call to action. Our journey begins on 30 September with the webinar. Sustainable leadership: How to drive results without burning out your team. Alf Rehn, Professor of Innovation, Design and Management, University of Southern Denmark Per-Egill Frostmann, Executive coach & mentor, Partner at Marshmallow and OsloExecutive In this webinar, you’ll learn how to: • Strengthen your team’s resilience and stress management skills • Deliver results without causing burnout • Build a culture of trust, collaboration and innovation By registering, you’ll automatically join the Leader Circle community with access to events, content, and discussions on sustainable leadership. Participation is free. Link in the comments. Auntie Germany Auntie Norge

Resilient leadership starts with well-being—and this gathering proved what’s possible when leaders prioritize both. BoardWalk Consulting recently partnered with the Jesse Parker Williams Foundation, United Way of Greater Atlanta, and The Annie E. Casey Foundation to co-host a three-hour immersive well-being experience for a cohort of Atlanta nonprofit CEOs and senior leaders. Led by Y Falami Tyson-Devoe PhD and Shawnta Hooks, the session moved beyond a traditional workshop. Leaders engaged in sound healing, Qigong, meditation, and creative expression—while learning science-backed frameworks to shift stress into clarity and embed self-care rituals into daily practice. The impact was clear: ✅ 100% of participants found the session valuable ✅ 94% want more offerings ✅ Teams are already weaving these practices into staff culture At BoardWalk, we know strong organizations depend on strong leaders—and strong leaders thrive when their well-being is prioritized. ➡️ Read more: https://lnkd.in/eMHvsaJ9

Last night, I read hundreds of LinkedIn posts on leadership. All inspiring. All well-intentioned. All saying the same thing: Be a safe leader. Create psychological safety. Listen more. Care more. But here’s the reality: - We don’t lack advice. - We don’t lack definitions. - We don’t even lack leaders who want to do better. So why do so many people still experience the opposite? → Voices shut down → Ideas excluded → Decisions made behind closed doors → Projects delivered with no value Because it’s not just about leaders. It’s about the system they operate in. If the system rewards speed over clarity, Certainty over exploration, Hierarchy over inclusion - Then even the best leadership philosophy won’t stick. That’s why the question isn’t: “How do we coach leaders to be safer?” It’s: “What process and governance do we need so inclusion, clarity, and transparency are guaranteed?” Framing workshops and clear governance structures do exactly that. They take psychological safety from a philosophy to a practice. Because your philosophy is never greater than the system you work in. 👉 Do you think psychological safety is more about the leader… or the system?

Every day, I witness the quiet courage it takes for brilliant leaders to let go and lead in new ways. This morning’s session started with a CEO staring down a familiar crossroads: “I know I need to empower my team more… but when it matters, I just step in and fix things myself.” We unpacked the pattern. They asked me “am I the only one who struggles with this?” No. In so many organizations, help is offered as a quick solution….step in, patch the issue, rescue the situation, everyone moves along. If this sounds like you, here’s what to ask yourself: What if your version of helpful is quietly holding everyone back? What if your real power lies in letting go so your team can rise? What if your greatest gift isn’t fixing…. but equipping? Safety breeds stagnation. It feels good in the moment, but over time, it breeds co-dependence and burnout… for both the leader and the team. In the executive coaching part of my work, I love the process of empowering leaders to serve with less hand holding and more empowerment.. Less rescuing, more releasing. The reward? When they finally let go, not only do their teams soar… the leaders themselves are freed to lead at a higher level. Letting go isn’t abandoning, and it isn’t losing control either… Letting go can be one of the most lasting kind of leadership.

Flipping the script on leadership…literally. 🎭 At this morning’s SHRM of Greater St. Louis Breakfast Meeting, Dallas Amsden brought humor, energy, and a fresh perspective on what it means to lead well. We often step into leadership roles by: ➡️ Getting “cast” in the role ➡️ Memorizing the scripts of leaders before us ➡️ Rehearsing and embodying those same patterns But what happens when those old scripts no longer serve us or our teams? Dallas challenged us to shift from the old leadership style of: Thoughts → Emotions → Actions → Results to a new style focused on: Emotions → Actions → Results → (New Thoughts) Because emotions drive action. And as leaders, we are stewards of organizational energy. His 4 steps to flipping the script: 1️⃣ Recognize the old script 2️⃣ Rewrite the emotion you want to bring 3️⃣ Rehearse new actions 4️⃣ Realize the results (and reward yourself!) And the biggest key? Curiosity. We don’t have to have all the right answers we need to ask all the right questions. Curiosity creates engagement, lowers defensiveness, and uncovers the real issues so we can lead with intention. I walked away with powerful coaching questions to try with my own teams like “What’s working?” “What support do you need?” and “What’s one thing you can do today to move this forward?” Such a fun and insightful session thank you, Dallas, for the reminder to lead with curiosity and rewrite the scripts that no longer serve us.

We’ve heard a lot about quiet quitting. But a far bigger threat is rising: quiet cracking. Quiet cracking isn’t laziness. It’s people breaking under unclear expectations, shifting priorities, and cultures that celebrate busyness over clarity. And here’s the truth: quiet cracking is not a people problem, it’s an organizational problem. When leaders fail to create clarity, people don’t just get tired. They silently crack. And when they crack, so does trust, performance, and creativity. The antidote? Clarity-driven leadership. 1️⃣Defining the “why” so people see the meaning in their work. 2️⃣Simplifying priorities so overwhelm doesn’t break teams. 3️⃣Creating predictable communication channels. 4️⃣Building psychological safety so people can speak before they break. 5️⃣Measuring clarity, not just output. Leaders who don’t address this risk losing their best people, not to competitors, but to burnout and disconnection. The longer you wait, the deeper the cracks spread. That’s why I built my clarity-driven leadership courses and coaching, to help leaders and organizations stop quiet cracking before it silently takes them apart. If you want your team to stop cracking and start thriving, take my courses or reach out directly. Because the leaders who bring clarity today will be the ones still standing tomorrow. For Leadership Resources click below https://lnkd.in/dF-85UfT? 🔁 Repost to start a better leadership conversation. 📍Follow Michael Amanetu for content on leadership, clarity, and transformation

Leadership can look different depending on the setting, whether nonprofit, corporate, community, or at home. But a few lessons I’ve learned seem to apply everywhere: 1. Lead through empathy: Understanding the challenges of your team or family and listening deeply is not just nice, it is essential for results. 2. Seek outside wisdom: There is real value in wise counsel and accountability. Whether through mentors, a personal board of directors, or learning from people we might overlook, humility opens the door to growth. 3. Delegate intentionally: Leaders spend their time on what matters most and entrust others with the rest. At home, this might mean sharing chores or responsibilities so everyone contributes and grows (or outsourcing completely if possible). 4. Trust those around you: When you step back and let others take ownership, growth happens. And it’s one of the most beautiful things to witness! Empowerment beats micromanagement every time, both at work and at home. This is one I have to work on daily (according to my hubby 😊) 5. Have hard conversations early: Avoiding tough topics only makes them harder later. Respect grows when challenges are addressed directly and with compassion. 6. Take care of yourself: Rest is not optional. Leaders who model balance create environments where everyone can thrive long-term! These principles have guided me across different seasons of leadership, and I keep returning to them. 💬 Which of these leadership lessons resonates most with you today?

One of the most important transformations in moving from independent contributor to organizational leader is shifting from complaint to ownership. I’ve spoken with many emerging leaders about the changing conditions in their organizations. Often, they feel frustrated, resigned, or hopeless that their workplace will ever live up to their vision. In short, they feel powerless. But when we pause to ask, “What’s really going on here? What’s my role? Where do I have influence?” things start to shift. They begin to see where they can shape the outcomes they most want. Powerlessness turns into possibility. Influencing change is rarely easy. But when you identify even small areas of control, it can ease feelings of frustration and resignation. When you take those small, steady steps toward being part of the solution, you may even access more satisfaction and fulfillment in the work. This doesn’t erase the reality that organizational challenges can be real and persistent. Yet when we recognize the ways we can participate in addressing them, we see that how we show up to the challenge matters deeply—for the issue itself, and for our long-term well-being in the role or organization. This shift—from complaint to ownership—is at the heart of moving from contributor to leader. This is the kind of shift I support through 1:1 coaching and with teams in Leadership Launchpad. Learn more at the link in comments.

Could I be any more passionate about this? This post beautifully captures the essence of what it truly means to step into leadership. As a GenXer who grew up believing 'if you want something done, do it yourself,' the transition from individual contributor to leader can feel like suddenly being accountable for everyone's garden hose issues. But the shift from 'complaint to ownership' isn't just a corporate buzzword; it's the very heartbeat of effective leadership. I've spent 20+ years in HR, and I've seen countless times how this mental pivot transforms frustration into real impact. It's about finding those levers of influence, even the small ones, and understanding that how you show up doesn't just impact the problem, it profoundly shapes your own professional fulfillment. This isn't to say organizational challenges magically disappear – because, hello, welcome to the real world! But recognizing your agency and embracing the role of a solution-driver? That's where the magic (and the actual work) happens. It's the difference between asking 'Why is this happening to me?' and 'How can I make this happen better?' What's been your biggest 'ownership' moment in your leadership journey? Share below!

Leadership isn’t measured by scale. It’s measured by presence. When I was leading large teams, I thought performance meant filling my calendar. Every hour was booked. Every meeting looked important. But what I found was this: the busier I became, the less connected I felt to the outcomes that mattered most. My days were full, but my leadership felt empty. When I finally shifted into coaching, I realized I wasn’t alone. Many mid-career leaders hit the same wall. They’ve built success, but the pace and pressure quietly rob them of clarity. The leaders who stand out aren’t the ones who grind the hardest. They’re the ones who create space to be present. Presence is what fuels better conversations, sharper decisions, and real influence. Without it, performance is just motion. Here’s one way to practice presence: 1. Step out of your usual environment. 2. Put the agenda down. 3. Give yourself ten quiet minutes to reflect before reacting. That simple reset can change how you show up for the entire week. Mid-career leadership isn’t about adding more to your plate. It’s about reclaiming presence so performance flows naturally. ☕ If you’re ready to anchor your decisions with more clarity, explore the free Leadership Alignment Compass it’s the framework I use with leaders to keep presence at the center of their leadership. Just DM me and say: Compass.