Leadership Trailblazers

What Kind of Leader Do You Want to Become? Complete the free Self-Assessment Now:

https://www.loisburtononline.com/pl/2148831091

Leading today isn’t easy. Between managing generational shifts, adopting new technology, and trying to stay agile in an unpredictable world, modern leadership requires a completely dynamic skill set. Professor Alexandra Gerbasi, Executive Dean at the University of Exeter and Professor of Leadership, breaks down what it truly takes to build a high-performing team and step up as a trailblazer. Discover why pure subject expertise isn't enough, how sports-style performance reviews can transform your leadership, and why building a team that actively challenges you is the ultimate secret to success. The conversation also tackles navigating Gen Z workplace expectations, mastering organizational networks, and bringing your authentic self to work without alienating those around you. Packed with practical wisdom, this episode offers a refreshing guide to thriving as a modern leader.

5 Key Takeaways

- Build Complementary Teams: A truly effective team shouldn't clone its leader; it should compensate for weaknesses and offer constructive challenge.

- Prioritise Self-Reflection: Success relies heavily on pausing to review leadership actions and outcomes, much like athletes reviewing match film.

- Master Cross-Generational Management: Adapting to changing expectations from Gen Z and Alpha requires greater agility, support, and inclusive communication.

- Leverage Strategic Networks: True leadership impact extends beyond immediate team management to engaging broader internal and external stakeholders.

- Balance Authenticity with Respect: Bringing an authentic self to work means building positive relationships without using personal style as an excuse for poor behaviour.

5 Direct Quotes

"It's not easy, I think it's becoming harder and harder actually, the more I think about it."

"It might be impossible to be the perfect person, but I think you can build a pretty darn close to perfect team."

"One of the most important things you can get people to do is stop, pause, and reflect."

"Athletes watch tape. They review their performance."

"How to be authentic without being a jerk."

Chapter Timestamps

00:00 – Welcome & Intro: Meet Prof. Alex Gerbasi

00:55 – What Makes a Trailblazing Leader Today?

04:30 – Knowing vs Doing: The Power of Self-Regulation

07:49 – Cultivating a Growth Mindset and Team Challenge

10:36 – Navigating Feedback Culture Across Regions

14:46 – Managing Gen Z and the Future Workforce

18:18 – Agility, Trust, and Flattening Hierarchies

22:39 – Human Connection in the Age of AI

26:08 – Making Leadership Visible Without Overexposure

31:09 – Strategic Network Thinking for Leaders

39:59 – Defining Leadership Moments & "Watching the Tape"

42:29 – Authentic Leadership Without Being a Jerk

44:01 – Wrapping Up & How to Connect

How To Connect with Our Guest:

https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/are-you-an-authentic-leader-or-an-authentic-jerk/

Email: a.gerbasi@exeter.ac.uk

About the Host:

Lois Burton is a highly respected executive coach and leadership development specialist with over 25 years of experience supporting senior leaders and executives across a wide range of sectors, including leisure, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, and higher education.

Early in her career, Lois worked closely with coaching pioneers Sir John Whitmore, author of Coaching for Performance, and Peter Bluckert, co-founder of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council, gaining first-hand experience during the formative years of professional coaching in both the UK and the USA.

In 2000, she founded Lois Burton Ltd, growing it into one of the UK’s leading specialist leadership coaching consultancies. Widely regarded as “the leaders’ coach,” Lois is recognised for her expertise in developing high-performing, high-potential leaders and helping them navigate complex leadership challenges.

Lois works with organisations and executives nationally and internationally, partnering with leaders across multiple countries to drive lasting leadership impact.

www.loisburton.co.uk

www.loisburtononline.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/LoisBurton

www.facebook.com/LoisBurton

www.instagram.com/loisburtoncoach

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

What Kind of Leader Do You Want to Become? Complete the free Self-Assessment Now:

https://www.loisburtononline.com/pl/2148831091

Hope isn't just a warm feeling—it's an essential strategic engine for high-performing, engaged teams. With employee engagement dropping to alarming levels, cultivating genuine hopefulness across an organisation has never been more critical for leaders. Drawing on psychological research, neuroscience, and decades of executive coaching experience, this practical episode breaks down how to construct a culture of hope without falling into common organizational traps. Discover the essential balance between unwavering long-term vision and radical present honesty, learn to avoid the subtle dangers of a rescue culture, and gain concrete strategies to empower teams to shape their own successful futures.

Key Takeaways

True hope relies on clear goals, credible pathways, and individual agency rather than vague optimism.

Engagement surges when leadership actively fosters genuine enthusiasm about what lies ahead.

Creating a rescue culture breeds dependency, placing an unsustainable burden solely on leadership.

Grounding hope in transparent evidence and visible progress builds authentic organizational trust.

Shared accountability ensures teams maintain active control over achieving ambitious milestones.

Quotes

"Building hopefulness into your culture as a leader is very, very significant."

"The goal equates to the ambition and the agency equates to motivation."

"Top teams set the emotional weather in the organization."

"Hopefulness is not one person's job. It's everyone's job."

"Hope does come from honesty, but it starts with being honest with yourself."

Podcast Chapters

00:00 Welcome to Leadership Trailblazers

01:24 Defining Hope: Goals, Agency, and Neuroscience

02:51 The Impact of Hope on Engagement & Performance

05:18 Three Pitfalls Leaders Must Avoid

10:58 Three Practical Tips for Cultivating Hope

13:30 Recap & Moving the Conversation Forward

About the Host:

Lois Burton is a highly respected executive coach and leadership development specialist with over 25 years of experience supporting senior leaders and executives across a wide range of sectors, including leisure, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, and higher education.

Early in her career, Lois worked closely with coaching pioneers Sir John Whitmore, author of Coaching for Performance, and Peter Bluckert, co-founder of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council, gaining first-hand experience during the formative years of professional coaching in both the UK and the USA.

In 2000, she founded Lois Burton Ltd, growing it into one of the UK’s leading specialist leadership coaching consultancies. Widely regarded as “the leaders’ coach,” Lois is recognised for her expertise in developing high-performing, high-potential leaders and helping them navigate complex leadership challenges.

Lois works with organisations and executives nationally and internationally, partnering with leaders across multiple countries to drive lasting leadership impact.

www.loisburton.co.uk

www.loisburtononline.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/LoisBurton

www.facebook.com/LoisBurton

www.instagram.com/loisburtoncoach

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

What Kind of Leader Do You Want to Become? Complete the free Self-Assessment Now:

https://www.loisburtononline.com/pl/2148831091

Putting off that uncomfortable chat with a team member because you’re dreading how it’s going to land? Difficult conversations usually derail not because of the message itself, but because harsh delivery triggers defensive threat responses. In this episode, executive coach Lois Burton breaks down how to navigate tough dialogue using the power of gentle conversations. Far from being soft or conflict-averse, gentle conversations ensure hard messages are truly heard and acted upon. You’ll explore the six core principles of compassionate communication, a practical five-step structure to structure your approach, and actionable tips to prepare internally, rehearse opening lines, and debrief effectively. Discover how handling difficult moments with calm intention and silence helps build a psychological safe team culture, one conversation at a time.

5 Key Takeaways
- Delivery, not content, causes difficult conversations to fail by triggering a defensive amygdala response.
- Separate the individual from the behavior to ask genuine questions with natural curiosity.
- Regulate internal emotions first so tone and body language communicate genuine goodwill.
- Holding silence during tough chats gives others space to process without feeling pressured.
- Leadership culture is built incrementally through how every everyday conversation is handled.

5 Key Direct Quotes
"A gentle conversation doesn't mean a soft conversation."
"It's almost never the content. It's almost always the delivery."
"Holding silence, giving somebody thinking time is really, really powerful."
"Culture is built not in dramatic gestures. Culture is built one small conversation... at a time."
"Lead with understanding before asking to be understood."

About the Host:

Lois Burton is a highly respected executive coach and leadership development specialist with over 25 years of experience supporting senior leaders and executives across a wide range of sectors, including leisure, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, and higher education.

Early in her career, Lois worked closely with coaching pioneers Sir John Whitmore, author of Coaching for Performance, and Peter Bluckert, co-founder of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council, gaining first-hand experience during the formative years of professional coaching in both the UK and the USA.

In 2000, she founded Lois Burton Ltd, growing it into one of the UK’s leading specialist leadership coaching consultancies. Widely regarded as “the leaders’ coach,” Lois is recognised for her expertise in developing high-performing, high-potential leaders and helping them navigate complex leadership challenges.

Lois works with organisations and executives nationally and internationally, partnering with leaders across multiple countries to drive lasting leadership impact.

www.loisburton.co.uk

www.loisburtononline.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/LoisBurton

www.facebook.com/LoisBurton

www.instagram.com/loisburtoncoach

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

Click below for the free PDF guide on ‘Setting Clear Expectations’

What Kind of Leader Do You Want to Become? Complete the free Self-Assessment Now:

https://www.loisburtononline.com/pl/2148831091

Unclear expectations trigger the brain’s threat response, driving down team focus and motivation. Bridging the gap between setting clear targets and driving daily momentum requires practical shift in communication. Discover how explicit conversations transform outcomes across the entire team, keeping high achievers challenged whilst ensuring steady performers feel genuinely valued. Simple adjustments—like adopting tailored success briefs and quarterly expectation MOTs—reconnect every individual to their core purpose, eliminate uncertainty, and unlock consistent, high-level results across the board.

Key Takeaways

Unclear expectations trigger the amygdala's threat response, lowering cognitive performance.

Tailored success briefs remove ambiguity by defining what good looks like.

Connecting individual roles to overall purpose drives deep work engagement.

Regular expectation MOTs maintain ongoing clarity, alignment, and momentum.

True fairness means consistent standards applied flexibly to individual needs.

Quotes

"Clarity is a cognitive performance enhancer."

"Purpose and belonging are psychological needs. Meet them and performance soars."

"Fairness is not treating everybody identically. Fairness is about giving each individual what they need to succeed."

"High achievers need stretch, challenge and space and your steady and reliable performers need clarity, stability and acknowledgement."

"That one conversation can change everything."

About the Host:

Lois Burton is a highly respected executive coach and leadership development specialist with over 25 years of experience supporting senior leaders and executives across a wide range of sectors, including leisure, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, and higher education.

Early in her career, Lois worked closely with coaching pioneers Sir John Whitmore, author of Coaching for Performance, and Peter Bluckert, co-founder of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council, gaining first-hand experience during the formative years of professional coaching in both the UK and the USA.

In 2000, she founded Lois Burton Ltd, growing it into one of the UK’s leading specialist leadership coaching consultancies. Widely regarded as “the leaders’ coach,” Lois is recognised for her expertise in developing high-performing, high-potential leaders and helping them navigate complex leadership challenges.

Lois works with organisations and executives nationally and internationally, partnering with leaders across multiple countries to drive lasting leadership impact.

www.loisburton.co.uk

www.loisburtononline.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/LoisBurton

www.facebook.com/LoisBurton

www.instagram.com/loisburtoncoach

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

What Kind of Leader Do You Want to Become? Complete the free Self-Assessment Now:

https://www.loisburtononline.com/pl/2148831091

Change is rarely just about project plans and business cases—it is deeply, inherently human. Host Lois Burton sits down with Sue Roberts (Director of Students and Scholarly Services at the University of Auckland) and Dr Caroline Williams (University Librarian at the University of Sydney) to unpack their co-authored book on change leadership. Together, they share hard-won insights from across the UK, New Zealand, and Australia, exploring how to balance hard business goals with the psychological impact of transition. From using David Rock’s SCARF model to understanding resistance through a lens of emotional intelligence, Sue and Caroline reveal why great leadership starts with managing yourself. They also share profound lessons learned from Indigenous perspectives on guardianship, country, and reciprocity. If you are leading an initiative or looking to bring your authentic self to your role, this conversation offers practical, grounded guidance for the long game.

Key Takeaways

Manage Yourself First: Leading change is an exposing process; regulating your own emotions and mindsets is essential before attempting to lead others.

Reframe Resistance to Change: Rather than dismissing pushback, effective leaders seek to understand what is triggering people from a values and psychological perspective.

Balance Strategy and Psychology: Successful transformation requires pairing hard business case development with human-focused models like SCARF and the Kubler-Ross grief cycle.

Embrace Indigenous Principles: Concepts such as Kaitiakitanga (guardianship), Country, and reciprocity offer rich, relational ways to lead sustainably.

Lead with Courage and Congruence: Leadership means taking on difficult challenges while aligning your skills, purpose, and natural communication style.

Quotes

"The fundamental reason Caroline and I wrote the book is to write the book we wish we had been able to read when we were practitioners coming up."

"Great leaders now are seeking to understand what is going on for people so that the way we move through different stages can be done in an emotionally intelligent way."

"I used to think that managing change was about managing other people. And I realized it was about managing myself."

"Silence is not acceptance. Silence is probably where everybody's gone underground."

"Whatever we're doing, we're doing it as guardians of that service, of those people... tread lightly."

Episode Chapters

00:00 – Welcome & Guest Introductions

02:42 – Why Write a Practical Handbook for Change?

03:36 – Balancing Hard Strategy with Psychology (SCARF & Grief Models)

07:12 – Reframing Resistance: Moving from Pushback to Sense-Making

09:35 – Securing Support & Socialising Your Business Case

16:53 – Managing Yourself: Emotional Regulation in Leadership

18:41 – Building Coalitions & Seeking External Support

21:16 – Addressing Severe Reactions & Creating Space for Process

32:47 – Cultural Contexts: Leading Change in the UK, NZ & Australia

39:43 – Lessons in Leadership from Indigenous Worldviews

45:14 – Golden Advice for New Change Leaders: Courage & Congruence

About the Host:

Lois Burton is a highly respected executive coach and leadership development specialist with over 25 years of experience supporting senior leaders and executives across a wide range of sectors, including leisure, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, and higher education.

Early in her career, Lois worked closely with coaching pioneers Sir John Whitmore, author of Coaching for Performance, and Peter Bluckert, co-founder of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council, gaining first-hand experience during the formative years of professional coaching in both the UK and the USA.

In 2000, she founded Lois Burton Ltd, growing it into one of the UK’s leading specialist leadership coaching consultancies. Widely regarded as “the leaders’ coach,” Lois is recognised for her expertise in developing high-performing, high-potential leaders and helping them navigate complex leadership challenges.

Lois works with organisations and executives nationally and internationally, partnering with leaders across multiple countries to drive lasting leadership impact.

www.loisburton.co.uk

www.loisburtononline.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/LoisBurton

www.facebook.com/LoisBurton

www.instagram.com/loisburtoncoach

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/