Brave Women at Work Jen Pestikas

When I was coming up in the ranks of corporate, I didn’t know what I was doing. I faced inordinate amounts of Imposter Syndrome and fear. I didn’t have the mental capacity to make purposeful decisions to put self-care at the forefront of my routine, to know what to say yes and no to, to have boundaries, and to determine what type of leader I would become. 
 
Well, buckle up for a beautiful master class in leadership today with my esteemed guest, Carrie Hansen. As you will hear in a minute, Carrie is the Chief Operating Officer at Assetmark and was named COO of the Year at the 2023 OnCon Icon Awards. Carrie openly and authentically shares so many leadership lessons in this show that I would encourage you to listen to this one twice. Or make sure to take notes. Or both!
 
During my conversation with Carrie, we chatted about:
Her rise to the C-suite at 30 years of age, and she’s been there ever since.The conscious and unconventional decisions Carrie made with her spouse to support her career path.The challenges she faced in different cultures as a senior leader.How her history in sports helped her to have steady and unwavering confidence throughout her career. Her principles of strategic leadership.Why servant leadership and making real connections with our employees and what is important to them is what it is all about.And why authenticity and vulnerability are so important as a leader.

Let’s start with a story. Many years ago, I started as an operations specialist to support a team of financial advisors. (If you are new to Brave Women at Work, I have been in the financial services industry for over 20 years.) 

After my first day on the job, my husband asked me where I was sitting in the building. To this day, I don’t know what prompted him to ask, but I told him that I sat with all the other administrative assistants. He told me to move immediately because I wouldn’t be seen as having “more potential” or the ability to move up in the organization.

I didn’t want to rock the boat, so I didn’t ask to move. And you know what? My husband’s prophecy came to pass. It was difficult for me to advance in the company and during talent management reviews, I wasn’t seen as leadership material.

When I met Jamie Vanek, my guest today, I knew I had to have her on the show. The fear of being perceived as “just an admin” is wrong and the myth that administrative assistants are not capable of more needs to be debunked. 

During my conversation with Jamie, we chatted about:

Her career history and why she is so passionate about helping administrative professionals.What led her to write her book, Buried in Business: Find Freedom by Unlocking the Power of Your Admin Team?The gap between administration and leadership.Why being an admin has been considered “a dirty word” for so long.Why administrative staff are the heartbeat of the company.And more.
This show is dedicated to the almost 2.5 million administrative professionals in the U.S. today, of which over 87% of them are female. Let’s give our admins the opportunities for growth they deserve!

Are you ready for this statistic?
 
On average, we spend 90,000 hours at work throughout our lives. This represents over 1/3 of our lives.
 
If we spend that much time at work, I’m sure you would agree that we want to be happy while doing it. But many times, we stay in jobs because we are comfortable, we have golden handcuffs, and more. We may not factor our happiness into the equation. My guest today, Lori-Ann Duguay, believes we should. By focusing on creating happy work environments, we will be more productive as a result.
 
During my conversation with Lori-Ann, we discussed:
How Lori’s book, The Happiness Factor: How to Create a Positive and Productive Workplace, came to be.What is the happiness factor culture check?Why 1 in 4 people are looking for another job at any given time?Positive vs. negative work environment signs and if they are overt or not always perceivable.The 10 needs of a happy worker.How much of this is the responsibility of management vs. the individual employee?What role do feedback and recognition factor in positive work environments?

As a mid-career professional, what has your experience been working with or leading Gen Z employees? How would you manage and work with Gen Z employees? My guest today, Stephanie Joong, is a friend and colleague who shares her experiences with Gen Z employees and co-workers. Since Stephanie is a millennial and I am Gen X, I thought it would be helpful to hear her perspective. I learned a thing or two from Stephanie during our conversation!
 
During my chat with Stephanie, we discussed:
1. Her work history and experience as a Millennial.
2. The differences Stephanie has seen between Millennials and Gen Z people.
3. Gen Z expectations for work and how they differ from Millennials and Gen X.
4. How Stephanie has flexed her leadership style to support her Gen Z employees.
5. The stereotypes of Gen Z and how we can defend and even learn from this generation.

Hello everyone! How are you doing out there?

I wanted to provide you all with a personal update. It’s been a whirlwind so far this year. We’ve done some remodeling on our house after having some water damage issues for the last several years. I traveled to Las Vegas in February to co-host a women’s leadership retreat. And now, I am about to go to Europe with a dear friend for two weeks.

Two weeks! I have not been to Europe this long without my family, well, ever. The last time I went to Europe without my husband and family was 16 years ago. To tell you I’ve had a little bit of travel anxiety and mom guilt would be an understatement. I have gone through all the feelings. What kind of a mom am I to leave my kiddos that long? Ouch. That Imposter Syndrome and shameful voice has been loud. I’m sharing this with you because I’m not immune to this work. I have to do it too. And I’ve had to let all that go because if I fill my cup, I know I will be a better mom to my girls. I will also be a better wife, daughter, friend, podcaster, and the list goes on.

I would like to thank my friend, Jennie, for inviting me on this trip. If you are curious about where we are going, we are traveling to Croatia, Montenegro, and Portugal. I’m collecting those passport stamps this year! I would also like to thank my husband, John, for encouraging me to do this. And of course, a thank you to my girls for being excited for me too.

So, let’s switch gears. During the show today, I speak with my guest, April Roberts, about time freedom and having a Vixen Voice. I don’t know about you, but anything to do with time freedom, and owning my voice interests me. I’m a free spirit at heart, obviously with the upcoming trip to Europe. I like the idea of having as much autonomy as possible over my time and life.

During my conversation with April, we chatted about:
What drove April to do the work she does todayHow we can structure our calendars to achieve time freedomWhat you should be adding and removing from your calendarHow time and energy management are directly relatedWhat the Vixen Voice is and how we can claim it for ourselves

So, we talk about superheroes with their superpowers in the movies, in books, and when playing with toys with our kids. We may have even believed we had the ability to authentically be ourselves and claim what makes us special and unique, what makes us stand out from the rest of the crowd. Then we grow up and stop believing in make believe and a lot of magic.

What if we turned back to that and started believing in ourselves again? In our superpowers? In our ability to be authentic? In our dreams? In careers we love to go to each day?

Erin Hatzikostas, my guest today, was so fun to interview and a firecracker of energy. She shared so much wisdom about how we can follow and lead with our authenticity. It’s through this path that we can uncover our professional superpowers and land in positions that truly light us up from the inside out.

During my conversation with Erin, we chatted about:
1.      What strategic authenticity is all about.
2.      What the compromise calculation is and how we’ve all done it.
3.      The BS Burnout Wall and why it’s a real thing.
4.      More about her book You Do You(ish): Unleash Your Authentic Superpowers to Get the Career You Deserve.
5.      How we can identify our own workplace superpowers.