Lead & Follow

Sharna Fabiano

Lead & Follow offers a candid discussion of teamwork, collaboration, and professional development. Host Sharna Fabiano talks with scholars, educators, and artists to explore the relational dance between leadership and followership, and how to become excellent in both roles.

  1. 17. Juli

    How to Lead AI Before It Leads You: AI Literacy - Elena Filatova

    Send Fan Mail by Text! Most conversations about AI ask "how do we control it?" Sharna Fabiano asks a more useful question: how do you lead AI so it doesn't end up leading you? In this episode, she talks with Elena Filatova about the mechanics behind how AI actually generates answers — and why understanding those mechanics is what keeps a human in the lead role, instead of quietly following whatever the model produces. Elena Filatova spent seven years at Google in data infrastructure and business intelligence before going independent. She now runs BCB Code Labs, where she builds AI-driven applications and helps businesses automate with AI, and teaches AI literacy. You'll learn:  How one changed word can completely change an AI's response, and the mechanism behind itWhy AI "hallucinations" aren't mistakes — they're a statistical feature, not a bug, and why that changes how much you should trust an answerA simple technique — assigning AI a "persona" — for sharper, more targeted answersWhy asking AI to "make a list" is a more useful prompt than it soundsWhere to draw the line between real human-AI collaboration and wasteful "AI slop" Episode References Attention is All You Need (2017), Google Research Connect with Elena www.bcbcodelabs.com Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

  2. 5. Juni

    Managing Up: What Executive Assistants Know That Most Leaders Don't – Basil Read

    Send Fan Mail by Text! The conventional approach to organizational development trains only a few select managers or directors. In this episode, Sharna asks Dr. Basil Read about an alternative approach taken at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), where he designed a multi-level leadership development curriculum for all employees, from top to bottom. Basil shares the impressive results of the initiative as well as key insights from his own research on the influence of Executive Assistants on decision-making. Basil is a retired US Navy Captain, Consultant and a Professor of Practice in Troy University’s PhD in global leadership program.  You'll learn: How the FDIC went from the bottom to the top on employee satisfaction metricsWhy it’s essential for all employees to have a meaningful voice in the work being doneHow executive assistants influence decision-making by executives and boards through language, gatekeeping, prioritization, and emphasis.How to understand leading and following skills as a collaborative process independent of rank or title  Episode References  J. Basil Read, III, “Followership at the FDIC: A Case Study” https://www.emerald.com/jole/article-pdf/13/4/136/10069009/v13_i4_c14.pdf Ira Chaleff, The Courageous Follower https://irachaleffauthor.com/ Connect with Basil Read LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/j-basil-read-iii-ph-d-a1274b23/ Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

  3. 20. Mai

    New Territory for Leadership and Followership – Robert Kelley

    Send Fan Mail by Text! Dr. Robert Kelley shares his current thinking on citizen-level followership in an environment of authoritarian politics, as well as a few observations of how both business teams and community groups are moving beyond leader-follower structures to get things done. Robert Kelley is a Distinguished Service Professor of Management at the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University. He pioneered the concept of "Followership" in his best-selling book The Power of Followership and his Harvard Business Review article "In Praise of Followers" (a top 25 best-selling reprint for HBR) which changed the prevailing view of leadership. Another one of Robert’s books, How to Be a Star at Work, was honored as one of "The 100 Best Business Books of All Time" and the #1 career book by the New York Daily News. As President of CEO Consulting LLC, Dr. Kelley helps national and international clients, like AT&T and Bosch, and consults with government officials and executives across the globe from the USA to China to the EU.  “When we think as followers, is our major responsibility to be a guardrail, to help keep the leader from making mistakes, or is our job to enable the leader to do whatever the leader wants to do?” “Maybe leadership has run its course in terms of a societal institution.”“I think we’re testing out new models of how humans get things done together.”  Episode References Strongmen, Ruth Ben-Ghiat   Connect with Robert Kelley www.kelleyideas.com Carnegie Mellon University Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

  4. 26. Apr.

    Psychological Safety Isn't Only Your Boss's Job: How Teams Actually Build It - Kinsey Hansen

    Send Fan Mail by Text! We usually hear that psychological safety as something leaders create for their teams. In this episode, Sharna explores new research with Dr. Kinsey Hansen that demonstrates something different–that every member of a team has a part in establishing and maintaining it. The co-creation of psychological safety happens in everyday interactions among all team members, not only the formal leader, and shapes the culture of an organization.  Kinsey is an Associate Professor at Angelo State University, where she serves as Program Coordinator for the Master of Arts in Administrative Leadership and teaches in the Student Development and Leadership program. She is part of the team that designed and launched ASU's Doctorate of Education in Transformative Leadership and now serves as a dissertation chair. You'll learn: Why psychological safety is a shared responsibility, not just a leader’s taskHow every person influences whether others feel free to share their perspective, make mistakes, and challenge established ideasPractical ways to create more openness, trust, and collaboration right now Episode References Amy Edmondson, The Fearless Organization Amy Edmondson, Teaming Global Followership Conference Connect with Kinsey Hansen Angelo State University Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

  5. 8. März

    Followership in the CEO-Board Relationship - Otto Henfling

    Send Fan Mail by Text! Otto Henfling brings a distinctive lead–follow lens to the board–CEO relationship, helping boards govern well and CEOs both lead decisively and follow faithfully in service of mission. He is a consultant and governance advisor in Australia with more than 20 years’ experience in the for-purpose sector, including 15 years as a CEO. He also has over 20 years of board experience, including a substantial period as Chair. He works extensively with boards and CEOs on governance, role clarity, risk, and strategic alignment. Otto is currently completing a PhD exploring trust and followership in human services organisations, examining how leaders and followers sustain common purpose in complex environments.  Episode References Christian Monö, Why We Follow S2 E21: Natural Followership - Chris Monö S4 E4: Collaborationship is our Superpower - Chris Monö Joseph Rost, Leadership for the Twenty-First Century Global Followership Conferences www.globalfollowership.com Connect with Otto Henfling  Trusted Leadership Consulting: trustedleadership.com.au  Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/ottohenfling/ Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

  6. 17. Jan.

    The Tango Waits For You - Episode 4: Night of Spirits

    Send Fan Mail by Text! This is a bonus episode of The Tango Waits For You, a 3-part audio documentary series that tells the story of the first year of building a brand-new tango community in Long Beach, California. It’s both my story, of losing a dream and finding it again, and it’s also a story of dozens of people coming together by chance in a way that feels like it was truly meant to be. It’s a story full of friendship, connection, trust, and discovery, all the things we seek together on the dance floor. Being together in person is so important right now. Whether you dance tango or not, I hope you enjoy these episodes. Episode 4: Night of Spirits -  LB Tango hosts its first ritual milonga for the greater LA tango community, in celebration of Dia de los Muertos. Episode References “Tar Liom Siar,” written and performed by Moya Brennan, Lynne Earls, and Cormac de Barra. Produced and recorded by Lynne Earls, from the album Timeless.  Long Beach Tango https://www.sharnafabiano.com/tango Altar Milonga (Photos by Andrei Andreev) https://www.sharnafabiano.com/altar-milonga Elena's Elixirs https://elenaselixirs.com/ Altar Society Brewing & Coffee Co. https://altarsocietybrewco.com/ Mike Cokley, Altar Society General Manager gm@altarbrands.com Wisdom of the past (by Elena's Elixers) Ilegal Joven Mezcal • Largo Bay Coquito Liqueur • Cacao Liqueur • Fresh Lime Juice • Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur • Egg White • Aztec Cacao Bitters Garnished with fresh nutmeg and floating marigold From the high deserts of Oaxaca to the sun-warmed shores of the Caribbean, this cocktail traces an invisible thread through the Americas—where every region honors those who came before. In Mexico, marigolds (cempasúchitl) carpet the paths for Día de los Muertos. Guatemala flies giant barriletes for Día de Todos Los Santos. Bolivia shapes bread into guaguas de pan for Día de Todos los Difuntos. Peru, Ecuador, El Salvador—each has its own name, its own ritual, yet all share the same November vigil. This drink brings together ingredients with no obvious reason to meet, yet they dance in surprising harmony. Un Abrazo Final (by Elena's Elixers) Tequila Reposado • Malbec • Fresh Lime Juice • Grenadine • Araceli Marigold Liqueur • Fernet-Branca Sea salt rim, finished with a spritz of rose and marigold for fragrance On Día de los Muertos, the veil between worlds grows thin. The living and the dead draw close—not in sorrow, but in celebration, in one final dance of remembrance. This cocktail honors that tender moment when memory becomes presence, when those we've lost feel near enough to touch. Salt crystallizes like tears along the rim. Fernet-Branca whispers bitter truths of departure. Grenadine holds the sweetness of stolen moments, while Malbec bleeds with the complexity of love and loss. Tequila and marigold become golden offerings, guiding souls homeward, while rose and marigold scent lingers at the threshold between worlds. Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

  7. 31.12.2025

    The Space Between: How Followership Expands our Ability to Lead - Sharna Fabiano & Amy Lombardo

    Send Fan Mail by Text! This is a reverse interview with my coaching colleague and former teacher Amy Lombardo, originally recorded for Amy’s podcast, Human Not Hacked.   Through the lens of dance, art, and embodied practice, this conversation challenges one of our culture’s most persistent illusions: that power means control, and that growth requires constant self-improvement. In this soulful conversation, Sharna and Amy unpack what happens when we stop trying to master ourselves and instead learn to move with life, not against it. Together, they explore how the anti-self-help philosophy—the heart of Human Not Hacked—intersects with Sharna’s groundbreaking work on leadership and followership. From the dance floor to the boardroom, they talk about what it means to lead with presence, to follow with awareness, and to allow space for the unexpected. They also dive into how control shows up somatically: in the body, in relationships, and in the subtle ways we tighten around our desire to “get it right.” Sharna shares her lived experience of unlearning the toxic self-help conditioning that tells us we must be endlessly optimized, productive, and emotionally contained. She speaks candidly about the courage it takes to unhook from those narratives, to honor our imperfections, and to build a new relationship with power—one rooted in responsiveness, humility, and connection. Sharna also reflects on her experience in the Brilliance Coaching Academy, discussing how the training helped her shed the “shoulds” of performance-based leadership and reconnect to her authentic voice as a coach and teacher. About Amy Amy Lombardo is the founder of the Brilliance Coaching Academy and author of the award-winning book Brilliance. With more than 25 years of experience as a coach, leadership mentor, and yoga teacher, Amy weaves together somatic practices, deep listening, and inclusive leadership tools to guide people into authentic transformation. Her work is rooted in the belief that each of us has an inner brilliance waiting to be expressed—and that when we nurture it, we change not only our own lives but the world around us.  Amy Lombardo https://amylombardo.com/ Brilliance Coaching Academy https://coach-brilliance.com/ Human, Not Hacked: The Anti-Self Help Podcast https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-human-not-hacked-the-anti-297892497/ Support the show * Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/ Order the book: Lead & Follow https://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/ Support the Show! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support

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Lead & Follow offers a candid discussion of teamwork, collaboration, and professional development. Host Sharna Fabiano talks with scholars, educators, and artists to explore the relational dance between leadership and followership, and how to become excellent in both roles.