• Leading without needing to be liked
• People-pleasing vs. performance
• Women, approval, and identity in leadership
• Corporate marketing under pressure
• Respect vs. likeability
• Managing energy and focus across roles
• Cultural communication strategies
• Career resilience after layoffs
• Internal clarity and purpose

00:00 – Intro: When likeability gets in the way
04:12 – Kim’s turning point: “It’s not about being liked”
08:40 – The corporate trap of performative leadership
12:30 – How she resets under pressure (with 3 kids and a big job)
16:45 – Navigating career shifts and layoffs
21:10 – Letting go of overexplaining
25:30 – Aligning with what actually matters
28:50 – Claire’s reflection: respect over approval
32:00 – Final takeaways: How to lead with less noise and more power

• How approval-seeking sabotages your authority as a leader
• Kim’s turning point that redefined how she shows up at work
• The difference between being nice vs. being respected
• How to lead across cultures without overexplaining
• Why “getting things done” often starts with saying less
• A mindset shift for women in leadership navigating burnout and balance

• CoinDesk Data and Indices
• Leadership under pressure
• Respect vs. likeability in leadership
• Career reinvention and resilience
• Balancing leadership and personal life
• Mental fitness practices
• The giving tree book

Follow Claire on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairehayek/⁠

Follow Kim on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-klemballa-80101812/

EWTR LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/company/empower-women-that-rock-inc/

EWTR Website: https://www.womenrock.world/

🎓 Want to train your brain for resilience and high performance?

Join Claire’s free Mental Fitness Masterclass here:👉 ⁠⁠https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass⁠⁠

📩 For free resources, upcoming masterclasses, or to join our next live webinar—click here:👉 ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/clairehayek⁠⁠

📢 Subscribe to The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast for brain-based strategies to lead with clarity, courage, and impact.

The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast is produced by Claire Hayek. All opinions are those of the host and guests. For more leadership resources, visit www.mspteambuilding.com.

TOPICS COVERED:

• Gabriela Embon’s Power Couple Method
• Emotional alignment in leadership
• The leadership impact of unconscious disconnection
• How inner conflict shows up in your outer leadership
• Rituals for reconnecting to meaning and clarity
• The neuroscience of aligned influence and human connection
• Why your strategy might be flawless, but your energy isn’t

Timestamps:

00:00 – Intro to Gabriela Embon + why emotional blind spots matter

02:15 – The difference between being strategic vs. being aligned

07:30 – How the Power Couple Method helps leaders reconnect to self

12:42 – Signs you’re emotionally disconnected in leadership

15:18 – Why leaders often lose meaning during high performance

19:05 – Neuroscience behind meaning, resonance, and behavior

24:16 – Realignment rituals: grounding, presence, intention

27:40 – Final reflections from Gabriela: the shift from “doing” to “being”

What You'll Learn:

• Why strategy isn’t the root cause of most leadership breakdowns
• How the Power Couple Method translates from relationships to executive leadership
• Signs of emotional disconnection that sabotage performance
• The neuroscience of shared meaning, alignment, and motivation
• Simple rituals to help you reconnect to your true leadership self

Mentioned in this episode:

• The Power Couple Method
• Emotional alignment & neuroscience
• Shared meaning as a leadership multiplier
• Mind-body rituals to reset your clarity
• Mental fitness and rewiring through daily practice

Follow Claire on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairehayek/⁠

Follow Gabriela on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielaembon/⁠

Website:⁠ https://gabrielaembon.com/⁠

Facebook:⁠ https://www.facebook.com/gabriela.embon⁠

Offer to download the prologue of my book at: ⁠www.becomingapowercouple.net⁠

🎓 Want to train your brain for resilience and high performance?

Join Claire’s free Mental Fitness Masterclass here:👉 ⁠⁠https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass⁠⁠

📩 For free resources, upcoming masterclasses, or to join our next live webinar—click here:👉 ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/clairehayek⁠⁠

📢 Subscribe to The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast for brain-based strategies to lead with clarity, courage, and impact.

The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast is produced by Claire Hayek. All opinions are those of the host and guests. For more leadership resources, visit www.mspteambuilding.com.

• Identity vs behavior: why you're not just your habits
• Survival brain vs leadership brain
• Rewiring your nervous system for resilience
• Training your brain with mental fitness
• Default Mode Network and leadership autopilot
• Self-awareness vs self-command
• The truth about overthinking, control, and hesitation
• What it actually takes to lead differently in 2026 and beyond

00:00 – Why you keep falling into the same patterns under pressure
01:48 – When the moment hits: “I’ve grown, but something hasn’t shifted”
03:00 – Your brain runs your identity, not your goals
04:00 – The Default Mode Network and how your brain pulls you back
04:45 – How your brain filters reality to protect identity
06:00 – The amygdala and why change feels like danger
07:28 – Why willpower fails under pressure
09:00 – Identity is a pattern, not who you are
10:00 – What mental fitness actually means for leaders
12:00 – A moment of truth: who do you become under pressure?
13:30 – The first step to rewiring your leadership
15:00 – Your nervous system is the real game-changer
17:00 – Final insight: who you're being changes everything

• Why you default to old patterns under stress—even when you know better
• The neuroscience behind identity, autopilot, and your decision-making under pressure
• How the Default Mode Network, Reticular Activating System, and amygdala shape your leadership response
• Why willpower fails when it matters most (and what works instead)
• What mental fitness really looks like in high-stakes leadership
• How to shift from being reactive to becoming grounded and present when the stakes are high

Follow Claire on LinkedIn:

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

🎓 Want to train your brain for resilience and high performance?

Join Claire’s free Mental Fitness Masterclass here:👉 ⁠https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass⁠

📩 For free resources, upcoming masterclasses, or to join our next live webinar—click here:👉 ⁠https://linktr.ee/clairehayek⁠

📢 Subscribe to The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast for brain-based strategies to lead with clarity, courage, and impact.

The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast is produced by Claire Hayek. All opinions are those of the host and guests. For more leadership resources, visit www.mspteambuilding.com.