HR Truths and the Third Path to Promotion: A Dialogue with Ashley Paré and Jamie Lee

Everything worthwhile is on the other side of a risky conversation—especially when it comes to women’s health, birth, and career. In this episode, I sit down with professional investor–turned–hypnobirthing educator Maria Lernerman to talk about how hypnosis, birth preparation, and self-advocacy can transform one of life’s most intense experiences into a joyful, empowering memory.Maria shares how she navigates being a daytime asset manager and nighttime hypnobirthing educator, hypnotist, lactation counselor, and mom of three, and why talking openly about hypnosis in a buttoned-up industry was a risky (and worthwhile) career conversation. You’ll learn what hypnobirthing actually is (beyond the woo), how it helps many parents have calmer births—often with less or no medication—and why these tools become “meta skills” you can use in high-stakes work situations, from boardrooms to hospital rooms. Maria also offers grounded advice for women and couples planning to grow their families, including those going through IVF or navigating “high-risk” labels in the medical system.If you care about self-advocacy, emotional regulation, and having real choices in your healthcare, this conversation will expand what you think is possible—for birthing, working, and beyond.Timestamps 00:00 – Who is Jamie Lee? Introducing executive coaching, “risky conversations,” and guest Maria Lernerman03:17 – Maria’s “risky conversation”: bringing hypnobirthing and hypnosis into a traditional investment career09:24 – What is hypnobirthing? The Mongan Method, full-spectrum birth prep, and why partners matter14:12 – How can birth be more comfortable with little or no medication? Fear, tension, relaxation, and the body’s design18:08 – Maria’s own birth stories: from terrified first-time mom to hypnobirthing educator (and the Uber-driver tipping point)23:12 – Self-hypnosis as a meta skill: staying grounded in chaotic hospitals, high-stakes meetings, and everyday conflict26:22 – Client success stories: natural births, empowered C-sections, partners stepping up, and redefining what a “good birth” looks like31:55 – Advice for women and couples (including IVF and “high risk”): choice, providers, and protecting your sense of agencyYou can learn more about Maria’s work at DiscoverYourPowerBirth.com and about the Mongan Method at hypnobirthing.com.Learn more about bespoke executive coaching with Jamie Lee at JamieLeeCoach.com and book a free hour-long consultation with Jamie here. Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

In this episode, I sat down with leadership coach and former HR leader Ashley Paré to pull back the curtain on the "risky conversation" that cost her a corporate role but won her ultimate freedom and self-respect. We dive into how that experience became the catalyst for her mission: helping women navigate the complex systems of corporate power to advocate for their worth—without the burnout.We discussed:[09:20] The "Third Path" to Power: How to move beyond the binary of staying silent or "burning it all down" by managing your nervous system and creating safety from within.[10:48] The FEAR-less Framework: Ashley’s 4-step process to Feel, Evaluate, Accept, and Respond so you can take inspired action from the driver’s seat of your career.[14:40] Navigating the "Manager vs. HR" Dynamic: What to do when a boss claims their hands are tied by HR, and how to use that as a catalyst to seek direct information and advocacy.[16:00] Navigating Pay Transparency: How to use salary bands and job descriptions to your advantage when preparing for an annual review.[29:00] Redefining Success: Why high-achieving women are opting out of broken systems to build work lives that actually honor their freedom and ambition.Featured: Connect with Ashley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleypare/Learn more about Ashley's Leadership Program here: https://ashleypare.com/Connect with Jamie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leejieunjamie/Learn more about Jamie's Bespoke Coaching Program here: https://www.jamieleecoach.com/applyAbout Ashley: Ashley Paré is a Leadership Coach, Speaker, and the CEO & Founder of Own Your Worth® who believes you are more than enough. Her mission is to activate your highest potential and deactivate your deepest fear. She helps clients connect to their inner confidence and courage to take bold action and make big asks. About Jamie, the host of Risky Conversations podcast: Jamie Lee is an executive coach for smart women who don't like office politics. Jamie helps them get promoted and better paid without throwing anyone under the bus. She blends practical neuroscience with no-nonsense communication frameworks to shift the brain's approach to self-advocacy. Her unique methodology empowers gutsy women to speak up for their professional value, turning workplace friction into a catalyst for personal agency and financial reward.Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

In this episode of Risky Conversations, I sit down with global storytelling expert Gabrielle Dolan, author of Story Intelligence: The craft of authentic storytelling made smarter with AI. Gabrielle shares how one risky career conversation led her to leave a secure executive role at a major bank to build a global storytelling practice, eventually training leaders at the Obama Foundation. Together, we unpack why personal, values-based stories are the most underused yet powerful tool for leadership, promotion, and influence. You’ll learnPractical tips to uncover your own stories,How to avoid sounding braggy or AI-generic, andHow to communicate in a way that feels real, memorable, and unmistakably you.Featured: Connect with Gabrielle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielledolan/Follow Gabrielle on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gabrielledolan.1/Keeping It Real with Jac and Ral Podcast:https://podfollow.com/keeping-it-real-with-jac-and-ralGabrielle's Website: https://gabrielledolan.com/Connect with Jamie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leejieunjamie/Follow Jamie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamieleecoach/Jamie's Website: https://www.jamieleecoach.com/Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

Informational interviews, job interviews, and offer negotiations: these are the "risky" conversations that stand between you and a career you actually love. But what if you could de-risk these moments and catapult yourself into a new dimension of success?That is exactly what my client, Sarah-Neel Smith, PhD, did. In this episode, Sarah-Neel pulls back the curtain on her journey from feeling "stuck" in academia to pivoting into a high-impact career in philanthropy. By combining well-structured informational interviews with coaching to advocate for her potential, she transformed her professional life—negotiating a 7% increase on her first offer and a staggering 50% pay bump on her second.We discuss how to build self-trust, create meaningful connections, and find the "creative sharpness" that only comes when you stop grinding and start advocating for your value.Take the next step in your own career transition:Join my free training for smart women who are tired of being the over-utilized yet under-appreciated "secret weapon" in their workplaces. On May 20th: Exit Negotiations: How to Get Better Paid So You Can Be Your Own Boss Check out Sarah-Neel's workshop on informational interviews: Small Conversations Big Impact Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

Many people think I'm a negotiation coach, but I'm really a practitioner of change working at the intersection of ancient Eastern philosophy and modern Western neuroscience.The Science: Quantum physicists like David Bohm and Zen masters in the mountains agree: Everything you think is "solid" (your desk, your body, your obstacles) is actually 99.9999999% empty space. Similarly, neuroscientists like Michael Gazzaniga have found that there is no singular, fixed "I" in your brain. You are a "Society of Mind," an aggregate of different parts negotiating conflicting and inherently empty impulses in real-time. The Philosophy: In Zen, this is encapsulated in a single character: Mu (無). It often gets translated as “empty,” but it can also reference a kind of boundlessness.The Intersection: When you realize matter is mostly space, the "solid" walls in your mind begin to soften. You realize you are not your self-talk, the very thoughts that lie at the root of professional stress. Instead, you are the boundless potential behind the action. What you'll learn in this episode: 02:15 – The Humble, Good News: Why you don’t need a PhD or to become a monk to benefit from these fundamental truths04:30 – Your "Society of Mind": How the illusion of being a fixed, singular "I" is dismantled by both modern neuroscience and ancient wisdom. 06:50 – Tyranny of Self-Talk: Getting to the root of all professional stress when external circumstances don't seem to go your way. 07:45 – The Liberation of "Mu": What becomes possible when new perspectives enable new ways of thinking, feeling, and responding to circumstance beyond our control. 09:30 – The 3 Stages of Change: A roadmap through Dissolution (of negative self-talk), Mental Rehearsal, and Embodied Brave Action.11:00 – The Fortress of Trust: Why true trust comes from realizing your "self" is not a fragile, solid thing that can be broken.12:15 – Creator & Masterpiece: When tangible results like getting promoted and better paid are the byproduct of accessing a deeper truth of who you really are. To learn more about working with me 1:1, come on over to https://www.jamieleecoach.com/apply Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

When I sat down to record this conversation with M. Cristina Alcalde, Ph.D., ACC, last December, institutional biases hadn't yet turned as blatantly fatal as they have in the aftermath of Operation Metro Surge.But truth be told, systemic exclusion leading to institutional violence has never been news for BIPOC and immigrants.The endlessly "moving goalposts" is just one of many ways BIPOC professionals experience institutional bias in the workplace. My guest Dr. Cristina Alcalde is an anthropologist, author, leadership coach, and professor of Global and Intercultural Studies at Miami University in Ohio.In this episode, we explored: Beyond "Us vs. Them": Why addressing institutional whiteness isn't about attacking people, but about fixing the hidden systems that block everyone from equity.The "Illusion Bubble": Why the status quo feels so "natural" to some, while creating moving goalposts for high-achieving women of color.Feminist Curiosity: How to stop being "complicit" and start asking the risky question: "Who actually benefits from the status quo?" Agency in the Heavy Moments: Navigating institutional hate while holding onto our internal authority and resistance.Connecting the Dots: How historical exclusions—like redlining—continue to build the workplace barriers we see today.Mentioned in this episode: Connect with Dr. Cristina Alcalde on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/m-cristina-alcalde-ph-d-24b71b8b/Dr. Cristina Alcalde's Faculty Webpage: https://miamioh.edu/profiles/cas/m-cristina-alcalde.htmlDr. Cristina Alcalde's Website: https://www.crisalcalde.com/Donate to Support our St. Paul Public Schools Community Fund https://my.cheddarup.com/c/support-our-st-paul-public-schools-community/itemsLearn more about Jamie's Executive Coaching Services: https://www.jamieleecoach.com/applyText me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

Have you felt the crushing weight of otherization as the only woman or person of color in the room? Or maybe you've been told you’re "too intense," "not assertive enough," or some other maddening combination of subjective, conflicting feedback at work?In this episode of Risky Conversations with Jamie Lee, we dive into why these experiences are not personal failings, but symptoms of the systemic injustices we swim in every day.As a South Korean immigrant living in the U.S., I feel the tension of both: I've gained advantages by understanding how global workplaces function, yet I've also experienced the invisible barriers many marginalized people face, working harder than most, only to be undervalued.In this episode, you’ll learn:The Truth About Intersectional Feminist Coaching: Why traditional "think positive" coaching fails women of color, and how to embrace the paradox of systemic reality versus personal agency.The Biology of Bias: How systemic inequities and "otherization" trigger your nervous system and create inherited belief systems that lead to over-functioning.Real-World Case Studies: How a woman in the male-dominated construction industry reframed "intensity" into leadership; how a single mother successfully challenged the assessment that she wasn't "technical enough"; and how a BIPOC woman transformed her income and impact by choosing to believe in herself when no one else at work would.The Three Votes Strategy: A practical framework to regain your agency—voting for yourself, voting with your tribe, and voting with your feet.To learn more about my coaching philosophy, process, and pricing, come on over to www.jamieleecoach.com/apply Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

Earlier today on January 13, 2026, LinkedIn published an article The 2026 job market: What to know about hiring, confidence and opportunity. The data is mixed: U.S. job growth is sluggish and many job seekers are feeling stuck where they are but not prepared for the job hunt. Plus, with a bulk of the growth in the economy happening in the AI infrastructure space, a forward-thinking professional can't help but wonder, "Will I be replaced by AI?" I'm answering this question head-on in this episode. I talk about what AI is excellent for and what it can't do, and what it means for smart leaders planning ahead. What you'll learn: 00:00 – AI cannot fully replace human coaching and the value of human insight01:30 – A quick case study on uncovering human blind spots and parlaying them to build generative intelligence07:30 – The 2026 job market challenges and the push for AI-integrated skills12:00 – Importance of discerning wisdom and cognitive agility for future career success16:30 – Doubling down on humanity and bridge-building as a competitive edge18:30 – Reflective questions for listeners about uncertainty and growth through human conversationsText me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

Are you a high-performance leader feeling "allergic" to the slow, constrained pace of your current office? In this episode, I share the "Ferrari on a Golf Course" metaphor—a perspective shift that has been a game-changer for my 1:1 executive coaching clients. As we enter the Year of the Fire Horse in 2026, it’s time to stop trying to "fix" your engine and start finding the right track.In this episode, you’ll learn:The "Shush" Factor: Why high-achieving women are often told to "tone it down" and how to handle it.The Fire Horse Connection: Why 2026 is the year to embrace your capacity, ideas, and intensity rather than apologize for it.The Difference Between Identity and Environment: How to stop blaming yourself for the "bumpy ride" caused by a misaligned workplace.Real-World Success Stories: How two leaders (one in entrepreneurship and one in a corporate reorg) moved from being undervalued to being fully utilized, promoted and better paid.Three Truths for the Misaligned Leader: A framework to help you decide your next "Risky Conversation."Key Quotes:"A Ferrari doesn’t need to be fixed; it needs a track.""The bumpy ride isn't your fault; it's the grass.""Everything worthwhile is on the other side of a risky conversation."Resources Mentioned:Book a free 1:1 coaching consultation with Jamie HEREText me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected] 

In this episode, I talk with Neelam Patel, who left a 22-year tech executive career to follow her passions for poetry, dance, and performance. We dive into the risks and rewards of creative self-advocacy, how joy and anger can guide personal transformation, and what it really means to rebuild a life around authenticity. If you’ve ever felt the pull between convention and creativity, this conversation will inspire you to reclaim your own voice.Featured in this episode:  Neelam's Instagram account @dancewithneelamNeelam's website: tailoredpoetry.comNeelam's book: Burning It Down: Dancing Through the RubbleJamie's 1:1 executive coaching practice: https://www.jamieleecoach.com/applyTimestamps:[00:00] — Introduction and Neelam’s background: Jamie Lee opens the episode, introduces Neelam Patel, and they discuss Neelam’s journey from tech executive to poet and artist.[04:21] — Tech career and personal transformation: Neelam describes how improv and creative pursuits influenced her growth (and promotions) in the tech world.[10:47] — Risky conversations and work-life negotiation: Neelam shares stories of honest, risky conversations at work, including advocating for her creative needs.[34:36] — Anger as an ally: Neelam and Jamie discuss the power of anger, addressing repression, shame, and channeling anger into advocacy.[48:04] — Life after “burning it down” and current work: Neelam gives an update on her creative career, including her dance residency and ways listeners can connect with her (Instagram, website).Text me your thoughts on this episode!Enjoy the show? Don't miss an episode, listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.  Leave me a review in Apple Podcasts. Connect with meBook a free hour-long consultation with me. You'll leave with your custom blueprint to confidence, and we'll ensure it's a slam-dunk fit for you before you commit to working with me 1:1. Connect with me on LinkedIn Email me at [email protected]