How do you transition from team member to team leader without letting the pressure and power turn you into a bad boss? I interact so often with well-meaning new managers suddenly discovering how different it is to lead the team than to be a member of it. Luckily, we have the wisdom of executive coach and author Sabina Nawaz to turn to!

Sabina wrote her new book, “You're The Boss: Become the Manager You Want to Be (and Others Need)” after spending more than 20 years counseling C-level executives and experiencing her own “bad boss” moment. She speaks with me about how to balance the pressure and power of management and use it to bring out the very best in your leadership journey, wherever on the corporate ladder you might be.

Fine-tune your leadership with Sabina’s expertise:

• How to become pressure-proof so you can turn tension into teamwork;
• The microhabits that can help you be a compassionate leader (and partner, and parent);
• How to deal with the feedback distortion that occurs when you shift from team member to manager;
• Self-assessment questions that will identify your challenges and make you a better boss.

Related Links:

• Order Sabina’s book, “You’re the Boss” - https://sabinanawaz.com/book/
• Learn more about Sabina’s work - https://sabinanawaz.com/
• Episode 512, The Engagement Crisis Impacting Young Workers - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode511
• Episode 437, The Succession Gap and the Growing Value of Your Aspirations - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode437
• LEVEL UP: a Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

How do new parents balance limited paid leave and a newborn who has to spend weeks in intensive care? Becoming a NICU family is heart-wrenching enough, but having to weigh returning to work before your newborn has come home from the hospital makes this already-stressful time even harder.

Today, I’m thrilled to share some good news about a new groundbreaking law that has Colorado once again on the forefront of caring for caregivers.

Whether you’re living in Colorado or wondering how to advocate for your state to take more action on this front, this episode is essential listening for anyone passionate about the infrastructure of care and gender equality in America.

Learn all about the new legislation, including:

• How inspiring new benefits will benefit parents with babies in the NICU;
• How employees and businesses alike are benefiting;
• And how the state is reducing premiums while increasing benefits.

Related Links:

• Episode 489, How the Cost of Childcare Has Become a Workforce Issue - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode489
• Episode 434, The Economic Imperative of Affordable Childcare - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode434
• Episode 479, America’s Parents Are Not Okay - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode479
• Senate Bill 25-144, “Change to Paid Family Med Leave Insurance Program” - https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2025A/bills/fn/2025a_sb144_00.pdf
• A Better Balance, “Colorado Expands Paid Family and Medical Leave for NICU Parents” - https://www.abetterbalance.org/colorado-expands-paid-family-and-medical-leave-for-nicu-parents/
• Colorado General Assembly, “Change Paid Family Medical Leave Insurance Program” - https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb25-144
• Colorado Politics, “Colorado governor signs bill increasing family leave for parents of NICU babies” - https://www.coloradopolitics.com/governor/colorado-governor-signs-bill-increasing-family-leave-for-parents-of-nicu-babies/article_04eeae6d-9c50-485d-bbde-9feadc2d062c.html
• Denver7, “Deductions for Colorado's paid family, medical leave program begin in 2023” - https://www.denver7.com/news/politics/deductions-for-colorados-paid-family-medical-leave-program-begin-in-2023
• Colorado’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program - https://famli.colorado.gov/
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

With the uncertain state of the economy right now, money is on most people’s minds. Now is the perfect time to explore why our finances are so much more than “just numbers,” and how intricately emotions and money intertwine.

My guest, Aja Evans, is a financial therapist and the author of the new book, Feel Good Finance. After noticing how often people in therapy sessions breeze past their money stresses, she set out to make talking through our financial concerns more commonplace. This one is certain to resonate—Aja’s insights left me feeling like I’d just had a cathartic therapy session myself.

Identify your financial priorities and values with Aja’s expert advice:

• Why we need to consider our childhoods when thinking about money;
• How we can talk about money with our kids to set them up for their own financial futures;
• The hefty, wide-ranging impact of financial trauma (and why we need to address it);
• How to start figuring out our basic needs and making brave changes to get aligned.

Related Links:

• Learn more about Aja’s work - https://ajaevanscounseling.com/
• Get a copy of “Feel Good Finance” - https://bookshop.org/p/books/feel-good-finance-untangle-your-relationship-with-money-for-better-mental-emotional-and-financial-well-being-aja-evans/21301669
• Connect with Aja on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ajaetherapy/
• Listen to Hidden Brain, “Rewrite Your Money Story” - https://hiddenbrain.org/podcast/money-2-0-rewrite-your-money-story/
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/