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  • She Hid Her Therapy From Her Colleagues—Until Her Daughter Found Out (With Dr. Julie Basler)

    She Hid Her Therapy From Her Colleagues—Until Her Daughter Found Out (With Dr. Julie Basler)
    2026/09/17
    How do you find the courage to lead with total vulnerability when the whole world expects you to stay invincible?Dr. Julie Basler walked away from a high-profile career as a college president to help leaders reclaim their mental health, their boundaries, and their lives without losing their seat at the table. Armed with a PhD in English and decades of leadership experience, Dr. Basler is an author, speaker, and advocate who wrote her transformative book, She Is Strong Enough to Break, to break the silence around female leadership, mental health, and the burden of carrying it all alone.What Happens When Leaders Stop Hiding Behind the Armor?Dr. Julie Basler joins Jim Fielding on Ask for an Answer for a deeply moving conversation about emotional intelligence, personal growth, and the quiet struggles high achievers carry behind closed doors. From secretly going to therapy while running a college to sending a middle-of-the-night email to her entire campus admitting she was broken, Dr. Basler shares the moment her youngest daughter made her realize that hiding mental health struggles teaches the next generation to do the same. Jim and Julie explore how true strength comes from authenticity, why choosing kindness is a radical leadership strategy, and how breaking down opens the door to genuine healing.IN THIS EPISODE:How to recognize when hiding mental health struggles sends the wrong message to those watching you.Why true strength requires stepping away from perfectionism and embracing vulnerability in front of your team.How to shift your focus from the First Mountain of ambition to the Second Mountain of servant leadership.Why simple, intentional acts like handwritten notes can transform how someone feels seen and valued.How standing up for personal values creates long-lasting ripples of courage for others.Why emotional intelligence and high-level leadership belong together in modern organizations.How reframing traffic disruptions or everyday frustration with empathy helps you realize everyone is carrying hidden pain.Why forgiving previous generations for their lack of mental health awareness brings personal peace.How embracing the role of a lifelong learner builds long-term resilience and intellectual curiosity.Why breaking down is often the necessary first step to breaking through into a more authentic life.CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS:00:00 Teaser: A Daughter's Six Words That Changed Everything00:40 Introduction: Welcoming Dr. Julie Basler03:48 From English PhD to College President06:01 Leaving the Office Behind: Transitioning to the Second Mountain10:35 The Book: She Is Strong Enough to Break12:05 Sneaking to Therapy: The Middle-of-the-Night Email19:40 Writing for Women in Leadership21:35 The Dinner Table Conversation That Added an Extra Chapter24:14 Someone Noticed Her: The Power of Handwritten Letters31:18 Jim's Story: The Indiana University Resignation Letter37:20 Hidden Pain: Why Everyone Is Carrying Something41:24 25 Years Later: Going Back to College for Counseling44:41 Research Notes vs. Tech Dashboards55:20 Generational Trauma and Forgiving Our Parents01:03:50 Final Words and Where to Find Dr. Julie BaslerMEET DR. JULIE BASLERDr. Julie Basler is an author, keynote speaker, executive mentor, and President of Strong Teams, a company dedicated to building empathy, service, and compassion in workplace culture. With nearly three decades in higher education leadership, including serving as Vice President of Academic Affairs and President of Platt College for over 18 years, Dr. Basler led her team to achieve initial nursing accreditation with ACEN, the first prelicensure BSN program at a career college to do so.✨ Connect with Dr. Julie Basler🌐 Website: juliebasler.com💼 LinkedIn: Dr. Julie Basler📚 Book: She's Strong Enough to Break: How Female Leaders Can Reclaim Their Mental Health, Their Boundaries, and Their Lives Without Losing Their Seat at the Table✨ Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer: 🌐Website: hijimfielding.com♥️ Instagram:@hijimfielding💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jimfielding🔗 Podcast: Ask For An Answer, available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and SpotifySubscribe to Ask for an Answer on your platform of choice, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it today.#EmotionalIntelligence #Resilience #MentalHealthMatters #WomenInLeadership #AskForAnAnswer
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    1 時間 5 分
  • From Stage 4 Terminal Cancer to Cancer-Free: The Power of Mindset & Gratitude (With Jenn Greenhut)

    From Stage 4 Terminal Cancer to Cancer-Free: The Power of Mindset & Gratitude (With Jenn Greenhut)
    2026/09/10
    What happens when a life-threatening crisis becomes your greatest catalyst for self-love, healing, and purpose?Jenn Greenhut joins Ask for an Answer for a deeply moving conversation on mindset shifts, emotional intelligence, and finding gratitude in life’s hardest moments. A former elite USA National Team gymnast and UCLA athlete who was used to demanding perfection from her body, Jenn found herself facing rock bottom when a stage IV triple-negative breast cancer diagnosis gave her a 12 percent chance of surviving five years. Instead of seeing the news as a death sentence, a single perspective shift at her oncologist’s office helped her view the diagnosis as a gift that ultimately saved her life. Declared cancer-free just four months later, she turned her personal transformation into a mission to heal and give back. Today, she is the co-author of Everyone Needs a Larry, founder of Love, Zero Negative, and founder of The Zero Negative Foundation, supporting cancer patients, caregivers, and families through their toughest trials.Jim and Jenn dive deep into the emotional themes that shape true resilience: shifting from asking "why is this happening to me" to "what is in this for me," replacing self-judgment with unconditional love, and trusting the journey even through trauma. Jenn shares her experience of navigating a terminal diagnosis as a newlywed, the unique bond between a patient and caregiver, and how elite sports discipline shaped her mindset during recovery. They also explore the power of staying present, managing life choices after career-altering injuries, and how simple daily anchors like her "Pinch Me" method can pull you back into gratitude.IN THIS EPISODE:How shifting your mindset from punishment to protection can turn life's scariest obstacles into gifts.Why asking "what is in this for me" creates openness, curiosity, and emotional growth during adversity.How childhood trauma and high-performance pressure create toxic patterns of self-worth tied strictly to achievement.Why self-love and gratitude serve as powerful emotional superpowers for physical and mental healing.How to navigate a severe medical diagnosis as a newlywed while honoring the critical role of caregivers.Why trusting your medical team allows you to surrender outcome control and focus entirely on present healing.How elite athletic discipline provides psychological strength during personal health battles.Why pivoting away from a lifelong dream like the Olympics can open up unexpected new chapters of fulfillment.How to build an intentional brand and nonprofit foundation to support patients and caregivers.Why using simple tools like the "Pinch Me" method snaps you out of anxiety and grounds you in present gratitude.CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS:03:04 Facing a Stage IV Cancer Diagnosis and IVF Struggles 06:02 The Medical Moment That Shifted Her Perspective 08:24 Becoming Cancer-Free in Four Months Through Love and Gratitude 11:47 Turning Trauma Into Purpose and Giving Back 16:28 Writing Everyone Needs a Larry and the Caregiver Journey 21:32 Life as an Elite USA National Team Gymnast 37:33 The Sacrifices of High-Level Athletics and Personal Worth 42:40 Expanding Grants for Families and Fundraising Events 44:45 Pitching and Preparing for a TEDx Talk 48:22 Asking Better Questions and Leading With Curiosity 53:14 Jim Shares His Father’s Story With Pancreatic Cancer 01:00:15 Navigating Genetic Markers and Health Decisions 01:02:08 The Pinch Me Method for Staying Present Meet Jenn GreenhutJennifer "Jenn" Greenhut is a TEDx speaker, author, and founder whose work explores healing, resilience, and transforming life's hardest challenges into opportunities for growth. After becoming cancer-free four months following a stage IV breast cancer diagnosis, Jenn dedicated her life to helping others heal. She is the co-author of Everyone Needs a Larry, founder of Love, Zero Negative, and founder of The Zero Negative Foundation, a nonprofit supporting cancer patients, caregivers, and families.✨ Connect with Jenn Greenhut:🌐 Website: www.lovezeronegative.com🌐 Foundation: www.zeronegativefoundation.org ♥️ Instagram: @lovezeronegative @jenngreenhut @zeronegativeorg 💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jennifergreenhut🎥 TEDx Talk: TEDxRobinsonRoad - Jennifer Greenhut✨ Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer: 🌐Website: hijimfielding.com♥️ Instagram:@hijimfielding💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jimfielding🔗 Podcast: Ask For An Answer, available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and SpotifySubscribe to Ask for an Answer on your platform of choice, and leave a review if you want more of this kind of honest, unscripted conversation.#LeadershipPodcast #EmotionalIntelligence #PersonalTransformation #Resilience #CancerSurvivor #OvercomingAdversity #MindsetShift
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    1 時間 6 分
  • The Simple 3-Question Test That Reveals a Leader's True Character (With Adam Bryant)

    The Simple 3-Question Test That Reveals a Leader's True Character (With Adam Bryant)
    2026/09/03

    How do the world’s most successful leaders learn to navigate massive pressure, personal trauma, and total uncertainty?

    Adam Bryant spent over a decade interviewing more than 500 CEOs for The New York Times Corner Office series. Now Senior Managing Director and Partner at The ExCo Group, Adam joins Jim Fielding on Ask for an Answer to break down what actually makes or breaks a leader when the stakes are highest. From asking executives about their childhood memories instead of their quarterly earnings to recognizing why resilience in the face of early adversity is the ultimate differentiator, Adam brings decades of journalism experience and human insight into one powerful conversation.

    The two reflect on why leading today is harder than ever before and how authentic leadership means closing the gap between how you want to be perceived and how people actually decode you. Adam explains why so much traditional leadership advice falls short when real human beings are brought into the equation. The conversation wraps up with a sharp look at why active listening is the ultimate underrated superpower for anyone trying to build real trust and followership.

    KEY TAKEAWAYS:

    • How early life adversity, family dynamics, and personal setbacks shape the internal drive needed for executive success.
    • Why birth order and childhood expectations heavily influence your default leadership style and team management habits.
    • How to manage the control-freak instinct that gets you promoted before it burns you out.
    • Why your greatest professional strength can easily double as your biggest weakness without deep self-awareness.
    • How to close the gap between how you want people to perceive you and how they actually decode your actions.
    • Why practical human wisdom beats rigid, cookie-cutter leadership theories every single time.
    • How to build psychological safety in remote or hybrid teams by intentional effort toward creating a sense of us.
    • Why admitting you do not have all the answers creates stronger solutions from your entire team.
    • How active listening serves as a foundational superpower containing humility, curiosity, and respect.
    • Why processing information rather than just hearing it transforms surface conversations into real connection.

    CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS:

    03:26 The Origin of Corner Office: Asking CEOs About Their Childhoods

    05:54 The Three Opening Questions That Uncover Real Vulnerability

    10:25 Indicators of Success: Why Early Adversity Drives High Achievers

    15:10 Unpacking Sibling Order, Family Expectations, and Leadership Traits

    17:39 Deprogramming Control Freak Tendencies to Avoid Burnout

    25:46 Starting at the Bottom: Adam’s 30-Year Journey in Journalism

    29:27 The Pivot to Executive Mentoring at ExCo Leadership Group

    31:09 Why Most Cookie-Cutter Leadership Theories Fail in Practice

    37:44 The Dual Challenge of Modern Leadership: Authenticity and Pressure

    41:39 Navigating Hybrid Work Culture and Building Real Team Connection

    51:42 The Underrated Leadership Superpower: Active Listening

    Meet Adam Bryant

    Adam Bryant is a veteran journalist, author, speaker, and Senior Managing Director and Partner at The ExCo Group. Across his 30-year career in journalism, including two stints at The New York Times, he interviewed more than 1,000 CEOs and board directors and created the renowned Corner Office column. He has authored four books on leadership, including The Corner Office and The CEO Test, focusing on practical, actionable insights for modern leaders navigating complex human dynamics.

    ✨ Connect with Adam Bryant

    🌐 Website: excoleadership.com

    💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/adambryantleadership

    📚 Books: The CEO Test, The Corner Office, Quick and Nimble, Jump-Start Your Career

    ✨ Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer:

    🌐Website: hijimfielding.com

    ♥️ Instagram:@hijimfielding

    💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jimfielding

    🔗 Podcast: Ask For An Answer, available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify

    Subscribe to Ask for an Answer on your favorite platform, and leave a review to help us bring you more honest, unscripted conversations!

    #LeadershipPodcast #EmotionalIntelligence #Resilience #ExecutiveCoaching #ActiveListening
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    1 時間
  • The 3 Leadership Lessons That Changed Me (Season 2 Recap) | #32

    The 3 Leadership Lessons That Changed Me (Season 2 Recap) | #32
    2026/08/06

    What Happens After 31 Conversations With Extraordinary Leaders?

    After an unforgettable second season of Ask for an Answer, Jim Fielding steps behind the microphone alone to reflect on the biggest lessons that emerged from 31 conversations with CEOs, creatives, public servants, founders, athletes, journalists, and changemakers.

    This isn't a highlight reel. It's a deeply personal look at what changed Jim's own thinking about leadership, curiosity, and what it really means to ask better questions.

    Drawing on conversations with guests like Jeremy Hobson, Olivia Jordan, Marie Harf, Gerardo Celasco, Ryan Stana, and Brad Stulberg, Jim shares the three ideas that kept resurfacing all season—and why they've become the foundation of his next book.

    More importantly, he explains why leadership isn't about having the right answers. It's about creating the conditions where better questions can be asked.

    What Are the Three Lessons Every Leader Needs?

    Jim explores how the best leaders don't walk into a room trying to win—they walk in ready to learn. He reflects on why asking honest questions always comes with personal risk, why consistency matters more than breakthrough moments, and why kindness isn't soft leadership. It's one of the strongest leadership strategies we have.

    He also shares a personal update, including why he's taking a short break from the podcast to finish his second book and what's coming in Season 3 of Ask for an Answer.

    Whether you've listened to every episode or you're discovering the show for the first time, this conversation captures what the podcast has always been about: curiosity, humanity, and leading with intention.

    KEY TAKEAWAYS

    • Why the best leaders enter conversations ready to learn, not ready to win.
    • How asking better questions creates stronger teams, deeper trust, and better decisions.
    • What Jeremy Hobson, Olivia Jordan, Marie Harf, Ryan Stana, Brad Stulberg, and Gerardo Celasco taught Jim about modern leadership.
    • Why clarity is an act of kindness, especially during difficult conversations.
    • How consistency—not breakthrough moments—is what actually builds meaningful work.
    • Why leaders should stop performing and start listening.
    • The leadership philosophy behind Jim's upcoming second book.
    • Why rest isn't the reward for great work—it's part of doing great work.
    • What listeners can expect from Season 3 of Ask for an Answer.

    Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer

    Website: hijimfielding.com

    Instagram: @hijimfielding

    LinkedIn: James (Jim) Fielding

    Podcast: Ask For An Answer on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify

    Community: LeagueOfRadicalKindness.com

    If this episode reminded you that leadership starts with better questions, subscribe to Ask for an Answer and leave a review. It helps more curious leaders discover the show.

    CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

    00:00 Welcome to the Season 2 Recap

    01:15 Lesson One: How You Walk In Changes the Room

    03:05 Lesson Two: The Questions That Cost You Something

    05:00 Lesson Three: What You Keep Is What You Become

    07:00 The Leadership Philosophy Behind Jim's Next Book

    09:10 Gratitude for Season 2's Guests and Community

    10:45 Why Jim Is Taking a Short Break

    12:15 Inside the League of Radical Kindness

    13:15 Season 3 Preview: What's Coming Next

    14:30 Final Reflections: Why Questions Still Matter Most
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    18 分
  • Beyond the Echo Chamber: Marie Harf on Democracy, Dialogue, and Leading Through Division

    Beyond the Echo Chamber: Marie Harf on Democracy, Dialogue, and Leading Through Division
    2026/07/30

    What does authentic leadership look like in a world that's more divided than ever? How do you have meaningful conversations with people who see the world completely differently? And what happens when democracy itself is being tested?

    In the final guest episode of Season 2 of Ask for an Answer, Jim Fielding sits down with foreign policy expert, political analyst, and University of Pennsylvania executive director Marie Harf for a candid conversation about leadership, civic responsibility, and why engaging across differences matters now more than ever.

    Drawing on her experience at the CIA, the U.S. State Department, and nearly a decade as a Democratic political analyst on Fox News, Marie shares what she's learned about communicating across political divides, America's changing role on the global stage, and why thoughtful disagreement is essential to a healthy democracy.

    Together, Jim and Marie explore the challenges facing the Democratic Party ahead of the 2026 midterms and 2028 presidential election, the qualities the next generation of leaders will need, and why hope, curiosity, and community remain powerful forces during uncertain times.

    Whether you're passionate about politics, interested in leadership, or simply looking for a thoughtful conversation about where we go from here, this episode offers perspective without sacrificing nuance.

    In this episode, you'll learn:

    • Why America's role in the world is changing and what it means for the future
    • How to have productive conversations with people you fundamentally disagree with
    • The leadership qualities the next generation of political leaders will need
    • Why democracy depends on participation, not perfection
    • How radical kindness, curiosity, and community can bridge even our deepest divides

    Chapter Timestamps

    00:00 Why Democracy Depends on Better Conversations

    03:15 Marie Harf's Journey from the CIA to Fox News

    08:05 America's Changing Role in the World

    18:20 Inside Fox News: Finding Common Ground Across Political Divides

    31:00 What Democrats Need to Learn Before the Next Election

    42:15 The Leaders to Watch for 2028

    50:00 Why Democracy Requires More Than Winning Elections

    54:30 Hope, Civic Responsibility, and Building a Better Future Together

    Meet Marie Harf

    Marie Harf is a former CIA analyst and State Department Deputy Spokesperson who has spent her career at the intersection of foreign policy, national security, and public communication. She is the Executive Director of Perry World House at the University of Pennsylvania and has been a Democratic political analyst on Fox News for nearly a decade, where she brings thoughtful perspective to some of the country's most important conversations about democracy, leadership, and America's role in the world.

    Instagram: @marieharf

    LinkedIn: Marie Harf

    Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer:

    Website: hijimfielding.com

    Instagram:@hijimfielding

    LinkedIn: James (Jim) Fielding

    If this conversation resonates with you, subscribe to Ask for an Answer, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who believes better conversations can lead to a better future.

    #LeadershipPodcast #Democracy #PoliticalLeadership #ForeignPolicy #CivilDiscourse
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    1 時間 11 分
  • The One Belief Behind Every Successful Career Pivot | #30

    The One Belief Behind Every Successful Career Pivot | #30
    2026/07/23
    Leslie Grandy worked for James Cameron and Brian De Palma, then walked away from Hollywood at 35 to start over as the most junior person on a tech team. That decision led to Apple, Amazon, T-Mobile, and a career built on one belief: you can figure it out.What Happens When You Stop Waiting for Permission to Pivot?Leslie Grandy joins Ask for an Answer for a freewheeling conversation about self-trust, reinvention, and why creative confidence matters more than ever in the age of AI. A Northwestern film graduate who earned her way into the Directors Guild of America with no industry connections, Leslie built a successful Hollywood career before realizing the lifestyle would cost her the relationship and the life she actually wanted. So she got an MBA, took an entry-level product role, and rebuilt from scratch. That second act took her through Visio's billion-dollar sale to Microsoft, the first Android phone launch at T-Mobile, and product leadership roles at Apple, Best Buy, Discovery, and Amazon.Jim and Leslie dig into what made the pivot work: choosing what you're moving toward instead of running from what isn't working, trusting your own judgment over external approval, and having the humility to swallow your ego when starting over. Leslie shares the story of applying to exactly one college, early admission only, because she believed she'd get in. She did.Can You Stay Creative When AI Does the Thinking for You?The conversation turns to Leslie's award-winning book, Creative Velocity: Propelling Breakthrough Ideas in the Age of Generative AI. Leslie makes the case that creativity isn't a talent you're born with. It's a capacity everyone carries and most people abandon, especially now, when a machine can hand you polished output with no soul behind it. She and Jim talk about using AI as a thinking partner rather than a replacement, why leaders must build environments where teams believe they can solve unfamiliar problems, and how curiosity connects directly to the Ask for an Answer philosophy of leading with questions instead of certainty.The episode closes with a candid look at redefining retirement. Leslie's definition is simple: never doing anything she doesn't want to do. From teaching executive education at the University of Washington to planning a life with a husband 22 years her senior, she shows what it looks like to design your time around joy, vitality, and learning. Her answer to Jim's final question, what she'd tell her younger self, is one every high achiever needs to hear.KEY TAKEAWAYSHow to know when a career pivot is right by identifying what you're moving toward instead of what you're escaping.Why creative confidence, not raw talent, determines who solves unfamiliar problems and who runs from them.How to use generative AI as a thinking partner without surrendering the human creativity that gives work meaning.Why starting over at a lower level requires ego management, and how self-belief makes the trade worth it.How prioritizing a core relationship can clarify major career decisions instead of complicating them.Why leaders who admit they don't have all the answers draw better solutions from their teams.How curiosity and the willingness to say "I don't know how this works yet" build durable self-confidence.Why the best answers in a room often come from the most junior or unexpected voices.How to define retirement as freedom of choice rather than the absence of work.Why going easier on yourself may be the most important leadership lesson high performers learn too late.CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS00:00 Introduction: Welcoming Leslie Grandy02:18 From Northwestern Film School to the Directors Guild03:14 The Pivot: An MBA and a Billion-Dollar Startup Exit06:01 The Two Moments That Made Leaving Hollywood Clear08:12 Choosing a Relationship Over Industry Stature09:57 Self-Approval Instead of External Validation11:03 Starting Over at 35 and Managing the Ego13:22 Building Self-Trust Without Role Models16:11 Betting on Herself: The One-School College Application21:55 A Totaled Car and the Problem-Solver Instinct26:45 Why Leslie Wrote Creative Velocity28:51 Protecting Human Creativity in the Age of AI32:07 Curiosity as the Foundation of Creative Confidence34:17 Why Leaders Don't Need All the Answers36:50 Redefining Retirement: Only Doing What Brings Joy41:36 Planning Life and Retirement With a 22-Year Age Gap43:19 Money, Timing, and the Freedom to Choose49:35 Aging, Vitality, and the Morning Body Inventory54:32 Ask for an Answer: What Leslie Would Tell Her Younger Self56:46 Closing ThoughtsMeet Leslie GrandyLeslie Grandy is a product executive, speaker, and CEO advisor who spent 25+ years leading first-to-market products at Apple, Amazon, T-Mobile, Best Buy, and Discovery after an early career in film as a Directors Guild of America assistant director for Brian De Palma and James Cameron. She's the author of Creative Velocity: Propelling Breakthrough Ideas in the Age of Generative AI (Wiley), founder of The ...
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    59 分
  • How to Build a Personal Brand That Actually Matters with Vanessa Errecarte | #29

    How to Build a Personal Brand That Actually Matters with Vanessa Errecarte | #29
    2026/07/16
    Can you build a successful career if no one understands the value you bring?In this episode of Ask For An Answer, Jim Fielding sits down with marketing strategist, educator, and author Vanessa Errecarte for a conversation about visibility, leadership, and why personal branding has become one of the most important professional skills in today's AI-driven world.Vanessa never planned to become an author. While teaching MBA students at UC Davis, she noticed a pattern. Some of the most talented people in the room struggled to communicate what made them different. As technology made expertise easier to access, standing out became less about credentials and more about helping people understand the value only you can create.That realization became Valuable and Visible, a book that challenges the traditional idea of personal branding. Instead of focusing on self-promotion, Vanessa argues that the strongest personal brands are built through service, generosity, and genuine expertise.Jim and Vanessa also reflect on their coaching relationship, the realities of writing a book while balancing career and family, and why asking for help is often the catalyst for meaningful growth.What Does It Mean to Be Valuable in an AI World?As artificial intelligence reshapes nearly every industry, Jim and Vanessa explore what technology can and cannot replace. They discuss why AI rewards people who think clearly, communicate authentically, and build trust over time. Rather than competing with technology, professionals have an opportunity to become even more human by developing relationships, sharing ideas, and leading with curiosity.The conversation also dives into coaching, confidence, family, entrepreneurship, and the discipline required to keep growing even after you've reached professional success.Key TakeawaysWhy personal branding is really about serving others instead of promoting yourself.How teaching MBA students inspired the ideas behind Valuable and Visible.Why AI is changing careers without replacing the need for human connection.The role coaching plays in building confidence, perspective, and long-term growth.How writing a book transforms the way you think about your own expertise.Why saying no is often more important than saying yes.The challenge of balancing leadership, entrepreneurship, and family life.How visibility creates opportunity long before you need it.Why authentic relationships will always outperform manufactured influence.The mindset shift that helps professionals stay relevant in a rapidly changing world.Meet Vanessa ErrecarteVanessa Errecarte is a marketing strategist, executive coach, UC Davis Graduate School of Management instructor, and the author of Valuable and Visible. Through her consulting, teaching, and coaching, she helps professionals and organizations build brands rooted in trust, expertise, and meaningful impact.✨ Connect with Vanessa:🌐Website: vanessaerrecarte.com💼 LinkedIn: Vanessa Errecarte♥️ Instagram: @vanessaerrecarte📖 Book: Valuable and Visible✨ Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer: 🌐Website: hijimfielding.com♥️ Instagram:@hijimfielding💼 LinkedIn: James (Jim) Fielding🔗 Podcast: Ask For An Answer, available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify If this conversation challenged the way you think about personal branding, leadership, or your own career, subscribe to Ask For An Answer and leave a review. It helps more thoughtful conversations reach the people who need them most.Chapter Timestamps00:00 Welcome and how Jim and Vanessa first connected through coaching and books02:06 The classroom insight that sparked Valuable and Visible05:53 Why personal branding matters even more in the age of AI10:25 Balancing entrepreneurship, family, and writing a book15:20 How coaching creates lasting personal and professional growth20:25 Why asking for help is a leadership strength30:23 Launching a book while managing real life35:14 The power of saying no and protecting your energy45:09 Why relationships shape every career opportunity50:17 What AI can never replace
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    58 分
  • Why Do Curious Leaders Build Better Companies? | #28

    Why Do Curious Leaders Build Better Companies? | #28
    2026/07/09
    Bruno Gavino built a 30-person global digital agency from Lisbon. Then he started asking whether AI was quietly making everything his agency did irrelevant. His answer wasn't to panic. It was to build.What Happens When an Introvert Becomes the Face of an AI Company?Bruno Gavino is the CEO and founder of CoDesign, a digital agency based in Lisbon, Portugal, with offices in Boston, Singapore, and Los Angeles. He's also the creator of LLM Search Console, a tool that tracks how brands are showing up (or not showing up) across AI platforms like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity. He joined Jim all the way from Portugal for a wide-ranging conversation about building globally while staying rooted, leading teams through constant change, and why curiosity isn't just a nice-to-have. It's the only filter that matters in hiring.This episode covers a lot of ground fast. Bruno and Jim talk through what it actually feels like to run a service business at the exact moment AI is automating the services you've built your company around. They get into the regulatory patchwork both in Europe and the U.S., why the biggest AI models are trending toward generic, and why Bruno thinks smaller, more specific models may ultimately win for real-world business use cases.How Do You Build a Team That Thrives on Uncertainty?Some of the best material in this conversation is about hiring and culture. Bruno uses curiosity as a literal metric in every interview. His team members from unrelated departments conduct screening conversations specifically designed to surface how candidates think, not what they know. His rule of thumb: don't hire anyone you couldn't sit with in a car for three hours. He learned that one the hard way, after a run of great resumes that went nowhere.Bruno is also candid about the harder personal stuff. He talks about growing up with a grandmother whose philosophy of radical kindness still anchors him, a voice in his head that sounds very different from the corporate achievement pressure most founders carry. He discusses the challenge of always trying to fix everyone's problems, the discipline of learning to say no, and why, after 10 years of building, he still doesn't feel like he's winning.Jim shares his own parallel journey: leaving corporate at Disney and DreamWorks, learning Canva from YouTube videos, breaking his website the day of this recording, and discovering that being on your own forces a kind of nimbleness that nobody in a big organization ever needs. The conversation closes on agriculture, pomegranates, Portugal, and why both of them think the best leaders have more in common with good farmers than they do with most people in Silicon Valley.KEY TAKEAWAYSWhy measuring brand visibility across AI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini is the new version of SEO, and why most companies aren't doing it yet.How to use curiosity as a quantifiable hiring metric, including what kinds of interview questions actually surface it.Why the broader and more general AI models become, the more opportunity opens up for niche, domain-specific alternatives.How building your team around where the talent lives, rather than where your office is, creates stronger culture than proximity ever did.Why the most dangerous hire isn't someone underqualified. It's someone with a beautiful resume and no chemistry.How European regulatory experience with GDPR is giving companies like CoDesign a faster adaptation cycle than their American counterparts as AI regulations ramp up.Why curiosity looks easy in younger workers not because they're smarter, but because they have fewer hard-won habits to unlearn.What it costs emotionally to build a company with a close friend, and the practices that keep the relationship intact over a decade.How radical kindness, modeled by a grandmother, became the anchor for a tech founder navigating an industry obsessed with speed and scale.Why founders who learn to say no to problems they can't control become measurably more effective than those who keep trying to fix everything.Meet Bruno GavinoBruno Gavino is the founder of CoDesign, a global digital agency headquartered in Lisbon, Portugal, and the creator of LLM Search Console, an AI intelligence platform that tracks brand performance across large language models. He also hosts the Voice of Experts podcast, where he interviews leading thinkers in AI and digital strategy.✨ Connect with Bruno:💼 LinkedIn: Bruno Gavino🌐Website: codedesign.org🔗Podcast: Voice of Experts✨ Follow Jim Fielding & Ask For An Answer:🌐Website: hijimfielding.com♥️ Instagram:@hijimfielding💼 LinkedIn: James (Jim) Fielding🔗 Podcast: Ask For An Answer, available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and SpotifyDid this conversation make you think differently about curiosity, hiring, or what it means to lead through change?If so, subscribe to Ask for an Answer and leave a review. It's the best way to help more people find the show.#LeadershipPodcast #AILeadership #...
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    58 分