Workday Playdate

In this Workday Playdate, Erin sits down with Lily Zheng to unpack why traditional DEI efforts keep falling flat. Lily and Erin discuss what leaders can do instead to create workplaces that are actually fair, inclusive, and built to last.

If you’ve ever wondered why diversity trainings, performative culture initiatives, and “quick fix” belonging strategies rarely create real change, this episode is your invitation to rethink workplace equity through a practical, people-first lens.

Inside This Episode:

Why DEI Efforts Keep Missing the Mark: Despite decades of workplace initiatives, discrimination rates remain shockingly high, and many solutions are still surface-level.
The FAIR Framework Changes the Conversation: Lily shares a practical, problem-solving approach to building inclusion that focuses on fixing real workplace barriers.
Belonging Is Measurable: Learn how employee experience connects directly to retention, engagement, performance, and long-term business success.
Middle Managers Have More Power Than They Think: Practical ways to influence leadership, advocate for change, and create safer workplaces from any level.
Human-Centered Leadership Creates Lasting Change: Why authentic leadership, psychological safety, and consistent action outperform performative workplace culture efforts every time.
What to Do Now:

Audit Your Workplace Culture: Ask whether your organization is solving real employee problems or simply signaling values externally.
Translate Human Issues Into Business Metrics: Use turnover, burnout, retention, and engagement data to advocate for meaningful workplace change.
Create One Honest Conversation This Week: Invite feedback without defensiveness and focus on listening before fixing.
Your Freebie

What’s your leadership style and next business move? Find out by taking a fun little quiz here.

And thank you to our sponsors Intuit Quickbooks Payroll.

To learn more visit:   https://quickbooks.intuit.com/workforce/

About the Guest:

Lily Zheng is a DEI strategist, consultant, speaker, and the author of Fixing Fairness: A Framework for Equity and Organizational Change. Lily works with organizations to move beyond performative diversity efforts and build measurable, sustainable systems for fairness, inclusion, and accountability. Their work focuses on practical, problem-solving approaches that help leaders create healthier workplace cultures rooted in trust, transparency, and real human impact.

Connect with Lily Zheng
Lily’s LinkedIn
Lily’s website
Lily’s book Fixing Fairness: 4 Tenets to Transform Diversity Backlash into Progress for All
Connect with Erin Diehl x improve it!
Leadership Playground online membership community
Erin’s website
Erin’s Instagram
Erin’s TikTok
Erin’s LinkedIn
improve it!’s website
improve it!’s Instagram

For more information on improve it! visit www.learntoimproveit.com.

In this Workday Playdate, Erin explores what human-first leadership actually looks like in a workplace shaped by AI, uncertainty, and nonstop change.

If you’ve ever wondered how to lead when technology is evolving faster than your team can adapt, this episode is your reminder that human skills are the future-proof skills.

Inside This Episode:
Human-First Leadership Isn’t Soft, It’s Strategic: Why leaders who prioritize connection, curiosity, and psychological safety are outperforming those who rely on authority alone.
AI Can’t Replace Human Trust: As automation increases, employees are craving authenticity, communication, and leaders who know how to create belonging.
The Best Leaders Create Space, Not Pressure: Why innovation happens when teams feel safe enough to experiment, fail, and speak honestly.
People Support What They Help Build: Collaborative leadership creates stronger buy-in, better ideas, and more resilient teams.
Adaptability Is the New Leadership Superpower: The leaders who thrive aren’t the ones pretending to have all the answers — they’re the ones willing to evolve in real time.
Burnout Doesn’t Build Better Teams: Sustainable performance comes from leaders who understand energy, trust, and human motivation — not constant hustle.
What to Do Now:

Audit Your Leadership Style: Ask yourself whether your team feels managed or genuinely supported.
Create One Moment of Psychological Safety: Invite honest feedback this week without defensiveness or fixing.
Prioritize Human Connection: Schedule one conversation this week that isn’t about productivity, but about the person behind the role.
Your Freebie

What’s your leadership style and next business move? Find out by taking a fun little quiz here.

And thank you to our sponsors Intuit Quickbooks Payroll.

To learn more visit:   https://quickbooks.intuit.com/workforce/

Connect with Erin Diehl x improve it!
Leadership Playground online membership community
Erin’s website
Erin’s Instagram
Erin’s TikTok
Erin’s LinkedIn
improve it!’s website
improve it!’s Instagram

For more information on improve it! visit www.learntoimproveit.com.

In this Workday Playdate, Erin tackles leadership in the age of AI with talent expert, Steve Cadigan.

If you’ve ever wondered, “Will AI replace leaders?” or felt the pressure to have all the answers in a rapidly changing workplace, this episode is your reality check. 

About the Guest:

Steve Cadigan is a globally recognized talent strategist, keynote speaker, and former Chief HR Officer at LinkedIn. He’s known for helping organizations rethink leadership, talent, and the future of work in a world defined by constant change. Steve brings decades of experience advising leaders on how to build cultures rooted in trust, agility, and continuous learning. 

Inside This Episode:

AI Won’t Replace Great Leaders, It Will Expose Weak Ones: Why human skills like trust, empathy, and adaptability are becoming the ultimate competitive advantage.
Ditch the Control Model: Outdated command-and-control leadership is slowing teams down; today’s best leaders prioritize autonomy and ownership.
Trust Is the New Currency: Letting go of control is required to unlock innovation, speed, and engagement.
Growth > Loyalty: Employees are looking for lifelong learning. Leaders who invest in development win.
Agility Is Everything: What companies like Tesla teach us about rapid iteration, continuous improvement, and staying relevant in constant change.

What to Do Now:

Challenge One Leadership Belief: Identify one assumption you have about control, productivity, or trust and question if it still works in today’s environment.
Practice Trust in Real Time: Fully delegate one task this week. Provide clear ownership and space for the other person to deliver.
Have a Growth Conversation: Ask one team member what skill they want to build next and how you can support it.
Your Freebie

What’s your leadership style and next business move? Find out by taking a fun little quiz here.

And thank you to our sponsors Intuit Quickbooks Payroll.

To learn more visit:   https://quickbooks.intuit.com/workforce/

Connect with Steve Cadigan 
Steve’s LinkedIn
Steve’s book
Steve’s podcast
Connect with Erin Diehl x improve it!
Leadership Playground online membership community
Erin’s website
Erin’s Instagram
Erin’s TikTok
Erin’s LinkedIn
improve it!’s website
improve it!’s Instagram

For more information on improve it! visit www.learntoimproveit.com.

In this Workday Playdate, Erin tackles one of the most searched topics at work: feeling stuck in your career.

If you’ve ever thought, “Is this it?” or felt trapped between comfort and craving something more, this episode gives you a simple, actionable framework to stop spiraling and start moving. Career growth is about small, intentional steps that change your trajectory.

Inside This Episode:
Feeling Stuck at Work? You’re Not Alone: Why burnout, disengagement, and lack of clarity are more common than you think, and what they’re really telling you.
Energy Before Strategy: Why you can’t think your way out of burnout and how resetting your energy unlocks better decisions and career clarity.
The “Improv Your Way Out” Framework: A five-step method to help you get unstuck, gain direction, and start taking action today.
Call the Scene: How naming your current reality (honestly) is the first step to changing it.
Yes, And Your Life: How to hold gratitude and desire for more—without guilt or self-judgment.
Create Your Next Career Identity: Why stepping into a new “character” helps you align your actions with who you want to become.
Baby Steps > Big Leaps: The secret to career change that actually sticks (hint: it’s not quitting your job tomorrow).
Upgrade Your Environment: How the people around you either accelerate or drain your growth.
Mindset, Habits, Environment: The real drivers of career fulfillment and how to start shifting all three.
Small Moves, Big Career Shifts: Why consistent, aligned action beats waiting for the “perfect” moment every time.

What to Do Now:

Call It + Claim It: Write down what you’re currently tolerating at work—and what you actually want instead. Clarity creates momentum.
Take One Aligned Step: Don’t wait for a full plan. Send the email, start the conversation, or try something new this week. Small moves shift everything.
Upgrade Your Energy + Circle: Reset your mindset (hello, Positivity Without Pretending Toolkit) and spend more time with people who challenge and energize you.
Your Freebie

You don’t need to fake a good attitude to be a great leader. But chances are, you’ve been taught to push through instead of reset.

Enter your free resource: The Positivity Without Pretending Toolkit. A quick, human-centered reset designed to help you shift your mindset, refuel your energy, and show up with authenticity, especially on the hard days.  

Download the Positivity Without Pretending Toolkit here.

And thank you to our sponsors Intuit Quickbooks Payroll. To learn more visit:   https://quickbooks.intuit.com/workforce/

Connect with Erin Diehl x improve it!
Leadership Playground online membership community
Erin’s website
Erin’s Instagram
Erin’s TikTok
Erin’s LinkedIn
improve it!’s website
improve it!’s Instagram

For more information on improve it! visit www.learntoimproveit.com.

In this Workday Playdate, Erin brings together innovation experts Rich Braden and Tessa Forshaw to challenge everything you thought you knew about creativity at work. This episode proves that innovation is not reserved for a select few, but something everyone can access through mindset, play, and small, intentional actions.If you’ve ever thought “I’m not the creative type,” this conversation will expand your definition of innovation and give you practical ways to bring more curiosity, experimentation, and whole-brained thinking into your day.About the Guests:Rich Braden is an innovation strategist, educator, and global speaker who helps organizations unlock creativity through human-centered design, play, and experimentation. With experience spanning corporate, startup, and academic environments, Rich is known for making innovation accessible, actionable, and energizing.Tessa Forshaw is a creativity and innovation expert, educator, and consultant focused on helping individuals and teams activate their innate creative capacity. Her work blends research, facilitation, and playful practice to challenge limiting beliefs and build cultures where innovation thrives.
Inside This Episode:
Innovation Isn’t Exclusive: Why the biggest barrier to creativity is the myth that only certain people (or roles) are “allowed” to innovate.
Whole-Brained Thinking Wins: How blending analytical rigor with creative exploration leads to better problem-solving, smarter decisions, and more innovative outcomes.
The Play Advantage: Why improvisation, curiosity, and experimentation aren’t “nice to have”—they’re essential tools for unlocking new ideas and embracing failure.
Mindset > Talent: How small, intentional mindset shifts can reignite creativity and help you move from “right vs. wrong” to “what’s possible?”
Diverge, Then Converge: The airplane metaphor for brainstorming that helps you generate bold ideas and actually land them.
Innovation in Action: Practical ways leaders can lower the bar, model experimentation, and create cultures where risk-taking is rewarded (not punished).
Small Moves, Big Impact: Why innovation isn’t about big breakthroughs—it’s about consistent, everyday experimentation.

What to Do Now:
Try “Yes, And” Today: In your next meeting, build on someone’s idea before critiquing it. Watch how quickly energy and creativity shift.
Run a 10-Minute Diverge/Converge Sprint: Set a timer. Generate as many ideas as possible (no judgment), then switch modes and narrow to your top 1–2 actions.
Lower the Bar for Innovation: Pick one small experiment you can run this week.
Model the Behavior You Want: As a leader (or future leader), openly share a risk you took or a failure you learned from to create psychological safety for others.

Your FreebieYou already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.Take the Human Leadership Edge Quiz here.And thank you to our sponsors Intuit Quickbooks Payroll. To learn more visit:  https://quickbooks.intuit.com/workforce/
Connect with Rich Braden and Tessa Forshaw
Rich’s LinkedIn
Tessa’s LinkedIn
Rich and Tessa’s book, innovation-ish

Connect with Erin Diehl x improve it!
Leadership Playground online membership community
Erin’s website
Erin’s Instagram
Erin’s TikTok
Erin’s LinkedIn
improve it!’s website
improve it!’s Instagram

For more information on improve it! visit www.learntoimproveit.com.