In this episode, host Joe sits down with Melody Wilding, an executive coach and author of Managing Up: How To Get What you Need From the People In Charge to explore the dynamics of power, status, and influence in the workplace. Melody shares practical strategies for managing up effectively, not by being a sycophant, but by building stronger relationships, communicating with confidence, and navigating workplace dynamics with integrity. Together they discuss
- What it really means to “manage up” (Hint: it’s not about being a suck-up)
- Why proximity to power can distort your focus—and how to avoid the status trap
- The importance of upward empathy and understanding your boss’s pressures
- How to adapt to different leadership styles to build stronger relationships
- The power of the “ME Manual” and why self-awareness is key to success
- How to set boundaries at work—without damaging your reputation
- The concept of “Pushback Power” and how to know when (and how) to say no
Whether you work in the military, corporate world, or any hierarchical environment, this conversation will help you become a more effective leader from wherever you stand.
Meet Melody
Melody Wilding is the author of Managing Up: How to Get What You Need from the People in Charge and Trust Yourself: Stop Overthinking and Channel Your Emotions for Success at Work.
For more than a decade as an award-winning executive coach, she’s smart, thoughtful top performers at the world’s most successful companies — including Google, JP Morgan, and Verizon — get the recognition, respect, and pay they deserve.
She’s a licensed social worker with a master’s degree from Columbia University, professor of human behavior at Hunter College in New York City, and former emotions researcher at Rutgers University. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and dozens of other respected publications. She’s a regular contributor to Harvard Business Review, Forbes, Fast Company, and CNBC.
A Special Thanks to Our Sponsors!
A special thanks to this week’s sponsors!
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