Home Podcasts Psychology at Work | Career Success, Leadership, Communication Skills
Psychology at Work | Career Success, Leadership, Communication Skills

Psychology at Work | Career Success, Leadership, Communication Skills

Melody Wilding, LMSW 110 Episodes Aug 19, 2026

Best-selling author, therapist, and executive coach Melody Wilding explores how to achieve career success by balancing confidence and influence. The podcast offers practical advice on office politics, communication, executive presence, managing up, emotional intelligence, and self-advocacy. It's designed for driven professionals who want to advance their careers, strengthen leadership, and feel more in control.

Episodes

118. Influence Without Formal Authority: Communicate So Senior Leaders Trust (and Reward) You
118. Influence Without Formal Authority: Communicate So Senior Leaders Trust (and Reward) You Aug 19, 2026 2335 You don’t need direct reports or a bigger title to prove you can lead at a higher level. You just need to communicate with greater authority. In this episode, Speak Like a Senior Leader™ client, Karla, shares how she shifted from permission-seeking to bringing forward a recommendation confidently, how to adapt a message for different executives, and explains the recognition now coming her way. You
117. Negotiating with Powerful People, featuring Worldwide Negotiation Expert Kwame Christian
117. Negotiating with Powerful People, featuring Worldwide Negotiation Expert Kwame Christian Aug 12, 2026 2620 The toughest negotiations at work happen with people who outrank you. Whether you walk away with more headcount, a faster yes, an extension on a deadline, or a project sponsor's full backing depends less on the strength of your case than on what you understand about the psychology of negotiating up. In this episode, attorney and negotiation expert Kwame Christian breaks down what works when t
116. Beat the AI Job Search Black Hole & Get Hired in Record Time with Emily Durham (@Emily.The.Recruiter)
116. Beat the AI Job Search Black Hole & Get Hired in Record Time with Emily Durham (@Emily.The.Recruiter) Aug 5, 2026 2792 It's no secret that job searching has completely changed. With AI infiltrating applications on both sides, how do you stand out and actually get a human to review your application when one job posting pulls 2,000 applicants in a matter of days? Melody sits down with Emily Durham, known to her 1.3M+ followers across Instagram and TikTok as @Emily.The.Recruiter), for a straight-shooting look at
115. Build a Team That Takes Ownership & Doesn’t Depend on YOU for Answers with Michael Bungay Stanier
115. Build a Team That Takes Ownership & Doesn’t Depend on YOU for Answers with Michael Bungay Stanier Jul 29, 2026 2362 How do you get your team to be more resourceful? What’s the best way to help people think for themselves before they come to you? And how do you stop being the person everyone relies on for the answer without becoming hands-off, unavailable, or unclear? In this episode, Melody sits down with Michael Bungay Stanier, author of The Coaching Habit (+1 million copies sold)  to talk about how busy leade
114. How to Turn a High-Stakes Stretch Into a Promotion Accelerator
114. How to Turn a High-Stakes Stretch Into a Promotion Accelerator Jul 23, 2026 1920 🚨CLOSING: Apply for the final Lead from Within cohort of 2026 by Sunday July 26th 11:59pm ET: https://melodywilding.com/lfwCertain stretches of your career are compressed. The reputation you'd normally build over 18 months of steady work gets decided in a matter of weeks. Handle it well and you accelerate onto the shortlist for the next role. In this episode, engineering manager Alejandro wal
113. Are You Executive-Ready? Here's the Real Test [MINI MASTERCLASS]
113. Are You Executive-Ready? Here's the Real Test [MINI MASTERCLASS] Jul 20, 2026 2315 🚨APPLICATIONS CLOSING 🚨Apply for the final Lead from Within of 2026 by Sunday July 26th 11:59pm ET: https://melodywilding.com/lfwThis is a mini masterclass on the four pillars of executive readiness. These are the things no business school will teach you, no performance review captures, no leadership book breaks down with this level of specificity. Melody walks you through all four, with a clear d
112. Top of Mind & Tapped for More [FULL TRAINING]
112. Top of Mind & Tapped for More [FULL TRAINING] Jul 15, 2026 7177 📢 NOW OPEN: Apply for the final Lead from Within cohort of 2026: https://melodywilding.com/lfwWhether you want to position yourself for a promotion, step into a bigger scope or go from tactician to enterprise-level leader, the next six months will make or break your shot at what's next. Leverage Q3 & Q4 to rise into the role, projects, and pay that match your caliber. You'll discover
111. Escape “Hero Mode”: The Overfunctioning Leader’s Guide to Letting Go
111. Escape “Hero Mode”: The Overfunctioning Leader’s Guide to Letting Go Jul 8, 2026 1898 At a certain level, being the one everyone depends on can stop feeling like proof of your value and start feeling like a ceiling. The same pattern that makes you trusted can also keep you buried in execution and trapped making decisions your team should make independently. In this episode, you’ll learn how to recognize what Melody calls “hero mode” in real time, neutralize the hidden emotional dri
110. The #1 Career Insurance Policy Most High Performers Never Build
110. The #1 Career Insurance Policy Most High Performers Never Build Jul 1, 2026 1640 One look at the headlines and it’s clear: experienced professionals don't feel free or at ease at work right now. Middle layers are being flattened, the path upwards is narrowing, and even the most accomplished leaders are carrying worry about what's next. How do you escape it? Drawing on everything from finance theory to real stories of Lead from Within clients who've used this to
109. Senior Leaders: Your Next Promotion Depends on What You Do This Summer (Here’s Why)
109. Senior Leaders: Your Next Promotion Depends on What You Do This Summer (Here’s Why) Jun 24, 2026 1636 📌 NEW CLASS 7/15 – Top of Mind & Tapped for More: Leverage Q3 & Q4 to Rise Into the Role, Projects, and Pay That Match Your Caliber: https://melodywilding.com/trainingMost mid-to-senior professionals treat summer as career downtime and then every fall, they're blindsided when the promotions, projects, and budgets get handed to someone else. The truth is that your next 12-18 months are
108. Endurance Beats Brilliance: What 700+ Interviews with the World's Brightest Leaders Taught Me (with Ryan Hawk)
108. Endurance Beats Brilliance: What 700+ Interviews with the World's Brightest Leaders Taught Me (with Ryan Hawk) Jun 17, 2026 2681 Early in your career, the metrics are clear and your effort translates into direct results. But what happens when that stops being true? When you have to reinvent yourself constantly, and when it seems - no matter how hard you work - success is slow to come? Ryan Hawk – host of The Learning Leader Show has spent years having over 700 conversations with the world's brightest authors, scholars,
107. Stop Talking Yourself Out of Opportunities You've Earned: The #1 Secret from Behavior Change Expert Nir Eyal
107. Stop Talking Yourself Out of Opportunities You've Earned: The #1 Secret from Behavior Change Expert Nir Eyal Jun 10, 2026 2408 What really drives your executive presence, career decisions, and ability to influence the people around you? No, it’s not talent, effort, or strategy. It's your beliefs. In this episode, Melody talks with Nir Eyal, a globally recognized authority on behavior change and human potential, about his new book, Beyond Belief. You’ll Discover:The critical difference between a fact, a belief, and fa

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