What if accepting a compliment could change your entire leadership trajectory?

Join me as I sit down with Gretchen Moore, Executive Director of Women in Manufacturing Education Foundation. We get into why accepting compliments might be your superpower - and why following someone else's playbook won't get you where you're meant to go.

Gretchen's career has spanned politics, community development, and nonprofit leadership - and at the heart of it all is a commitment to helping women lead with confidence and self-awareness.

You'll Learn:

⭐ Why women don't reach the same confidence as men until their 40s

⭐ The "green room" concept: Knowing which voices to let in

⭐ How to shift from constant doing to strategic leadership

⭐ The catcher analogy for understanding your natural leadership style

Key Insights:

The Compliment Superpower: Learning to genuinely accept compliments is a transformational skill that shifts how you see yourself and your impact.

The Confidence Timeline: Women often spend the first two decades of their careers building the confidence men enter with - but that delay creates wisdom, depth, and empathy that makes women in their 40s and 50s powerful leaders.

Your Green Room Matters: Not every voice deserves access to your inner circle. Being selective about whose opinions you internalize is essential to authentic leadership.

Authentic Leadership Over Playbooks: Following someone else's leadership style will always feel forced. The work is discovering and owning what makes you effective.

Send the Elevator Back Down: True legacy isn't just about your own success - it's about creating pathways and opening doors for the women coming up behind you.

Timestamps:

[00:01] - Introduction and the origin of "Kind of a Big Deal" series

[02:50] - The transformational moment of learning to accept compliments

[06:59] - Gretchen's career journey from politics to manufacturing

[13:56] - How Women in Manufacturing supports women in the industry

[16:18] - The confidence gap: Why women take longer to build confidence

[22:18] - Why 40s and 50s feel empowering for women

[24:36] - The Yates Academy concept and teaching leadership skills

[30:55] - The catcher analogy: Understanding your natural leadership style

[34:18] - The importance of knowing which voices to let into your "green room"

[41:06] - Shifting from constant doing to strategic leadership

[43:30] - Discovering your authentic leadership style

[49:42] - Building a legacy by sending the elevator back down

Resources and Links:

Find host Kristin Belden on LinkedIn or at Beldenstrategies.com. Sign up for my newsletter at Beldenstrategies.com/newsletter

Connect with Gretchen Moore on LinkedIn

Women in Manufacturing Education Foundation

CliftonStrengths

DISC Assessment

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