79. From Panic to Poise: How to Speak Clearly When the Stakes Are High

You work hard, get promoted, receive praise—but there’s still a part of you that feels like it’s all temporary, that maybe it happened by chance. In this episode, Melody reveals how imposter syndrome goes beyond simple self-doubt. It's about how we process positive experiences, often attributing success to luck while internalizing every small misstep as proof of inadequacy. She shares four actionable steps to help you shift your thinkingWhat You’ll Discover:Why your successes often feel fleeting or undeserved—and what you can do to make them truly stickHow imposter syndrome tricks you into downplaying achievements and amplifying self-doubtHow to rewire your brain to see success as a reflection of your skills rather than pure luckThe neuroscience behind why praise feels uncomfortable for high achievers and how to overcome it.Four proven techniques to reframe how you see your achievements and start owning your success.Connect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

⏰ LAST CHANCE: Doors for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ close December 16th at 11:59pm. Get the details and secure your spot: https://speaklikeaseniorleader.comYou know that sinking feeling when you're in a high-stakes meeting and your brain just... scrambles? You start talking in circles. In this episode, Melody sits down with Missy, an IT Director who was being groomed for VP but struggled with one thing: staying articulate and composed under stress. Through Speak Like a Senior Leader™, she stopped winging it and learned exactly how to stay and be articulate in high pressure moments.Tune in if you want to project the poise and clarity that makes executives see you as ready for the next level and finally walk out of meetings knowing you nailed it instead of replaying every word. Connect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

📢 DOORS OPEN: Speak Like a Senior Leader™ gives you the system to become a crisp, clear, confident communicator and be handed dream opportunities before you ever ask for them. Secure your spot: https://speaklikeaseniorleader.comA key influence skill of executive leaders is “reading the room,” but HOW do you do it? In this episode, you’ll hear from Candice, an analytics leader at Google. She shares exactly how she learned to diagnose someone's communication style in minutes and tailor her message on the fly. You'll hear the framework she uses to read any room (interviews, stakeholder meetings, even emails), how she positions the same achievement differently depending on who's listening, and more. If you've ever felt like you're guessing in high-stakes moments and need a system for reading people fast, this conversation gives you one.Connect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

In this value-packed replay of Melody’s most recent training, you will: Discover a 3-second test that reveals whether you sound credible and executive-ready…or still like a junior executorSay goodbye to agonizing over the "right" thing to say. THIS matters more than accuracyLearn one simple structure to go from a rambling response to laser-sharp clarityGet five words that flip a combative conversation into strategic problem-solvingSee what you're missing in every status meeting that could position you for promotionConnect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

📢DOORS OPEN: Speak Like a Senior Leader™ gives you the system to become a crisp, clear, confident communicator and be handed dream opportunities before you ever ask for them. Secure your spot: https://speaklikeaseniorleader.comYou keep waiting for someone to tell you the secret of what's actually standing between you and the next level. It feels like everyone else got a handbook that you didn't. In this episode, Speak Like a Senior Leader™ graduate Lindsey DellaDonna shares how she went from being stuck in this maddening limbo – on the cusp of director for months with no clear path forward for years – to getting promoted in a matter of months by finally cracking the code on what "executive presence" and "strategic communication" mean in practice. What You’ll Discover: Why executive meeting invites don't equal promotion readiness – and the real test of whether you're advancingThe communication shift that turned polite nods into executive action on Lindsey's ideasWhat "leadership presence" means in practice when your evaluators can't define itHow Lindsey restructured her presentations for faster buy-in – without changing her actual workConnect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

🎟️ FREE TRAINING: RSVP for 5 Steps to Speak Like a Senior Leader happening December 3rd 5pm ET: https://melodywilding.com/training Your manager says you're ready. You're getting pulled into important meetings. Leadership says "on their radar." But somehow, the promotion never seems to happen. Welcome to promotion purgatory. In this episode, Melody reveals signs you're stuck in this limbo without even realizing it and shares how to break out without working harder, playing politics, or leaving your company. What You’ll Discover:The hidden message behind vague feedback like "executive presence" (and why your manager can't explain how to fix it)Why the instinct to "prove yourself" backfires – and what to do insteadA little-known skill that shows you're already operating at the next level before the promotion happensConnect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

📢 FREE CLASS: 5 Steps to Speak Like a Senior Leader happening December 3rd 5pm ET: https://melodywilding.com/training After 21 years with the same organization, Jessica thought she had it figured out. Then new leadership came in. And suddenly,  her comfort zone disappeared overnight. The people who understood her body of work, her contributions, and her value were gone. In this episode, Jessica shares how she repositioned herself and her team in the new landscape and built credibility with skeptical stakeholders to go from unknown to influential. You’ll discover: Ways to rebuild your credibility from scratch when new executives arrive with completely different assumptions and prioritiesHow to communicate your value when you can no longer rely on people "just knowing" what you've accomplishedChanges Jessica made to translate her work into language that resonated with new leaders The mindset that freed her to take imperfect action instead of overthinking every messageConnect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

🎟️ FREE TRAINING: RSVP for 5 Steps to Speak Like a Senior Leader happening December 3rd 5pm ET: https://melodywilding.com/training Melody breaks down the five types of power that determine who gets heard, who gets ahead, and who gets overlooked, regardless of job title or intelligence. This framework turns office politics from something frustrating and opaque into something you can actually decode and navigate strategically.What You’ll Discover:Stop feeling confused about why certain people get respect and others don'tHow to leverage your place in the hierarchy without coming across as authoritarian or controllingThe type of power that can take years to build but seconds to destroyThe diagnostic questions that reveal where your influence comes from right now – and what power base to build nextConnect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

🎟️ FREE TRAINING: RSVP for 5 Steps to Speak Like a Senior Leader happening December 3rd 5pm ET: https://melodywilding.com/training You prepared and built up that conversation with your manager for days, maybe even weeks. And then... it doesn't deliver the closure you hoped. It didn’t go bad, but it feels like nothing was really resolved. In this episode, Melody names the invisible pattern behind this frustration – and why it has nothing to do with how well you prepared or what you said. What You’ll Discover:The 3-phase mental journey that happens before you even open your mouth (and why it sets you up for disappointment)The #1 shift to stop replaying conversations wondering what went wrongHow to keep important topics alive over time without burning political capital or seeming difficultConnect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

Are you constantly measuring yourself against everyone else at work? This constant comparison is exhausting. And according to today’s guest, Ruchika T. Malhotra, it's also sabotaging you. Ruchika is the author of Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Success and joins Melody to share a radically different approach to success – one that doesn't require being obsessed with always being the best.What You’ll Discover: The invisible beliefs about competition draining your energy at work (and how to break free from them)How to handle colleagues who seem to get ahead by stepping over othersWays to advance your career without "sharp elbows" or playing political games that make you feel grossAbout Ruchika Ruchika T. Malhotra is the founder of Candour, a global inclusion strategy firm that has worked with some of the world’s biggest organizations. A former business journalist, she is now a regular contributor to Harvard Business Review and her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Forbes, Bloomberg, The Seattle Times, and more. She is the author of Inclusion on Purpose: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work and Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Success.  https://www.ruchika.co/ Connect with Melody: FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™ Follow Melody on LinkedIn Follow Melody on Instagram Get Melody's new book, Managing Up