In this deeply personal and expansive conversation, John Marshall sits down with Dr. Sohee Jun, leadership coach, organizational psychologist, and bestselling author, to explore what authentic power actually looks like from the inside out. Drawing from more than 25 years of coaching highly accomplished women and her own journey as a bridge generation immigrant, Dr. Sohee unpacks why outward success so often masks internal noise, how the "shoulds" we inherit shape the way we lead, and what it genuinely means to bring your thinking, your words, and your actions into alignment. The conversation moves from Gandhi to polyvagal theory, from confirmation bias to body awareness, from transactional achievement to the freedom that comes from releasing attachment to outcomes. Rich, honest, and full of lived wisdom, this episode is an essential listen for any leader who suspects that the most important work they could do is not on their calendar yet.

Resources:
The Aligned Mindset by Dr. Sohee Jun
Mommy Tracked by Dr. Sohee Jun
Polyvagal Theory by Stephen Porges
Lightyear Leadership

Connect with Dr. Sohee Jun: LinkedIn | Website

Takeaways

• Despite outward achievement, many highly accomplished leaders carry an internal narrative of not being enough, and that gap between outer success and inner alignment is exactly where the real work begins.
• Alignment, in Gandhi's words, is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony — and mindset is the place to start.
• The "shoulds" we inherit from culture, family, and profession are often the loudest obstacle standing between a leader and their authentic power.
• Feedback from trusted peers is one of the most accessible and underused tools for creating self-awareness, especially before a life-altering event forces that reflection.
• The mid-career stall is often not a skills gap but a relationship and self-awareness gap — emotional intelligence, not technical performance, is what separates those who advance.
• Authentic executive presence is not a performance style to be adopted; it is the natural expression of a leader who is grounded in who they actually are.
• Tying your sense of self-worth to an outcome is the exact thing that prevents you from showing up with the confidence that would produce that outcome.
• The body often signals incongruence before the mind catches up — learning to notice those physical cues is one of the most practical leadership skills available.
• Releasing attachment to outcomes is not about lowering your ambition; it is about removing the transactional layer that strips authenticity from every interaction.
• Get curious, give yourself compassion, and start where you are — the entry point to self-awareness looks different for every person, and all of them are valid.

Visit The Present Professional webpage on humessence.com and learn more about how we support leadership development and culture enablement at growth-stage organizations.

Thank you for listening.

Coach John Marshall | Instagram | LinkedIn

In this candid and energizing conversation, John Marshall sits down with Jessica Miller Merrell, founder of Workology, president and CEO of Exceptional HR, and author of Digitizing Talent, to pull back the curtain on what HR professionals are actually carrying — and why so much of it stays invisible. Jess draws on decades of frontline HR experience to unpack the burnout epidemic in people operations, the gap between what companies say they invest in their people and what employees actually experience, and why HR leaders struggle to communicate their strategic value in the language of business. From logging every task in 30-minute increments to mastering the art of internal influence, this episode is a practical, honest, and deeply human guide for HR professionals who are ready to stop doing everything and start driving real change. Whether you lead an HR team or work alongside one, this conversation will shift the way you see the role of people operations in building a thriving organization.

Resources:
Workology
Kaggle
Neuro-Linguistic Programming

Connect with Jessica Miller Merrell: LinkedIn

Takeaways

• HR professionals are often carrying invisible workloads that would be unacceptable in any other department — and the first step to changing that is making it visible.
• Connecting HR activities to revenue, retention, and time-to-productivity is the only language that consistently moves C-suite decision makers.
• Burnout in HR is often a signal that leadership does not respect or understand the function — and consecutive short tenures in a CHRO role are a clear organizational red flag.
• Moving from a human resources model to a people leadership model is more than a name change — it reflects a fundamental shift in how organizations value the human element of work.
• Business acumen and the ability to influence are the two most underdeveloped skills in the HR profession, and both can be learned.
• Logging tasks in 30-minute increments for even a few days can reveal hidden hours and build a compelling story for leadership investment.
• Knowledge gatekeeping is real at every level of leadership — and breaking that pattern by sharing best practices is both a leadership and a cultural act.
• Leaders who share what went wrong, not just what went right, create the psychological safety that makes teams want to follow them.
• Building discoverability before you need a job — through video, podcasts, or writing — helps candidates and leaders stand out in a world flooded with AI-generated sameness.
• One 20-minute conversation between an executive and their HR team, followed by action on just one thing, can begin to rebuild trust and reposition people operations as a true strategic partner.

Visit The Present Professional webpage on humessence.com and learn more about how we support leadership development and culture enablement at growth-stage organizations.

Thank you for listening.

Coach John Marshall | Instagram | LinkedIn

In this compelling conversation, John Marshall sits down with Dr. Angela Jackson, Harvard lecturer, researcher, and founder and CEO of Future Forward Institute, to explore what it actually takes to build a workplace where people and performance thrive together. Drawing from research across more than 1,700 companies, Dr. Jackson shares the nine pillars of her Win-Win Workplace framework — a data-driven, deeply human roadmap for leaders and organizations ready to close the gap between what they say about their people and what they actually do for them. From centering employee voice and reimagining benefits, to activating frontline managers and building the kind of trust that feeds an organization like oxygen, this conversation challenges the outdated zero-sum model of work and replaces it with something far more sustainable. Packed with real case studies, tangible data points, and practical first steps for culture carriers at every level, this episode is essential listening for anyone who believes that the best businesses are built on the best people practices.

Resources:
The Win-Win Workplace by Dr. Angela Jackson
Future Forward Institute
Win-Win Workplace Summit

Connect with Dr. Angela Jackson: LinkedIn | Website

Takeaways

• Performance and well-being are not in conflict — the data shows they reinforce each other when the right practices are in place.
• Centering employee voice is the foundational pillar because everything else built on top of it only works if people trust that they are actually being heard.
• Companies are spending billions on employee listening programs while nearly two thirds of workers still feel their company does not care about them — that gap is the opportunity.
• Trust is the most important nutrient feeding a high-performing organization, and it is built or eroded in micro moments every single day.
• Reimagining benefits means asking what people actually need today, not what looked good on a benefits brochure five years ago.
• Most frontline managers were never trained to manage people — they were simply promoted for being great individual contributors.
• Voluntary turnover data is one of the most powerful tools a culture carrier can bring to a C-suite conversation to make the cost of disengagement undeniable.
• The best organizations invest in learn-it-all cultures and measure people practices with the same rigor they apply to financial performance.
• Pillar nine — distributed leadership and an ownership mindset — is not a destination but a continuous loop that requires ongoing investment and attention.
• Being present with your people, tracking two to three data points per direct report, and asking how they are really doing costs nothing and changes everything.

Special Listener Offer
The first five (5) listeners who connect with Dr. Angela Jackson on LinkedIn and mention The Present Professional Podcast will receive a free copy of The Win-Win Workplace.

Visit The Present Professional webpage on humessence.com and learn more about how we support leadership development and culture enablement at growth-stage organizations.

Thank you for listening.

Coach John Marshall | Instagram | LinkedIn