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August 5, 2025 19 mins

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Tired of feeling stuck between upper leadership and your team?

The Leadership Shift Coaching helps mid-level leaders lead with clarity, influence outcomes, and build teams that thrive without burning out. https://go.cignalpartners.com/leadershipshift


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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
There comes a moment in your career when you feel it
in your gut it is time to go.
I've been there, actually morethan once.
I still remember the day Iturned in my resignation.
I was exhausted, frustrated andhonestly done.
But before I could even walkout the door, before the ink

(00:24):
dried on the resignation letter,my company offered me more
money to stay.
And guess what?
I said yes, and it was theworst decision I could have made
.
Because here's what I realizedlater.
Because here's what I realizedlater If I was worth that money

(00:45):
the day I resigned, I was worthit long before I had to threaten
to leave.
That raise didn't fix the realproblem, it didn't get to the
root of anything and it didn'terase the resentment that I felt

(01:10):
for being overlooked in thefirst place.
In today's Leadership Unfilteredepisode, I want to talk about
the signs it may be time toleave, why staying for money
rarely solves the real problem,and how to leave with clarity
and confidence.
And I'm also going to share howto give your organization the
chance to meet your needs beforeyou walk away.

(01:32):
So let me back up a little bit.
The reason I turned in myresignation wasn't just about
pay, and I need to clarify that.
It was about feeling and beingundervalued and overlooked.
I had been showing up, puttingin the work, delivering

(01:55):
excellent results.
It showed up on my reviews andin other ways, and yet I kept
getting passed over foropportunities.
And yet I kept getting passedover for opportunities.
When I gave my notice, theysuddenly saw my value.
Look at that and offered memore money to stay and for a
moment I felt validated.

(02:18):
It actually felt likevalidation.
I thought man, they finally seeme.
But in the coming weeks andmonths, the same frustrations
return.
The culture didn't change, thelack of growth didn't change and
, honestly, my feelings towardthe organization didn't change.

(02:40):
I actually became morefrustrated.
Change I actually became morefrustrated.
That's when I learned thistruth that money doesn't fix
misalignment.
It only delays the inevitablebecause I ended up leaving
anyway.
If you're listening to this andwondering if it's time to go, I

(03:00):
want to share with you today.
I'm going to share with yousome red flags I wish I had paid
more attention to sooner, oneof the ones that I was able to
see, which is why I ended upleaving.
I was constantly beingoverlooked for promotions and
growth opportunities.
If that is you, this is a clearred sign.

(03:26):
I had exceptional reviews.
I made sure that the personthat I was reporting to, and
even human resources, knew thatI was looking to grow with the
organization, because I wantedeverybody to know.
I also had awesome team success.

(03:48):
I had been able to turn aroundlow performing departments more
than once and still I wasoverlooked for promotions and
growth opportunities.
The other thing is is that youdon't see a clear path forward
for your career.
If you are looking to grow, ifthat is your ultimate goal, you

(04:13):
need to be able to see a clearpath forward for your career
with the organization thatyou're working with, and if you
don't see that, that's anotherred flag.
This is a big one.
The culture or leadership isdraining your energy or
misaligned with your values.

(04:33):
This is why I talk a lot aboutknowing your principles and
understanding your values, sothat you could clearly see when
there is a misalignment.
And the last thing is is thatyou are burnt out, disengaged or
feeling invisible.
No matter how hard you work,you feel unseen and again,

(04:54):
you're burnt out and disengaged.
You just you're not feeling it.
So if you're nodding your headto any of this, it's a sign to
pause.
I'm not saying leave.
It's a sign to pause and takean honest look at your situation
.
However, there's a caveat.

(05:16):
If you still enjoy the work oryou believe in the organization
that you work for, before youleave, make sure that you are
vocal about what you need inorder to stay.
Maybe it's a title change, apay adjustment, more growth
opportunities or simplyrecognition for what you bring

(05:39):
to the table.
Give your leaders the chance tomeet your needs first.
The first thing you doshouldn't be to resign.
If you are like I said, youenjoy the work and you believe
in the organization, then givethem the opportunity.
That way, if they don't step up, you leave with clarity and no

(06:02):
regrets.
You'll know you advocated foryourself before making a big
decision, because it is a bigdecision to leave an
organization, especially ifyou've been there for a while,
especially if you are in aleadership position and you have
a team.
It doesn't just impact you andthe people around you, it
directly impacts your team.

(06:22):
And I know I already know,because I used to think this way
as well that some of you arethinking well, they should just
know.
My work should speak for itselfand let's be real, it doesn't
always work that way and closedmouths don't get fed.
If you want an opportunity, apromotion, support, whatever it

(06:45):
is, you need to speak up and askfor it.
If you never speak up, yourleaders might assume that you're
content with where you are.
Everybody does not want to grow.
Everybody does not want toreach the next level.
So, before you walk away froman organization that you
actually like, give them achance to meet your needs.

(07:08):
Advocate for yourself, becausesilence won't get you the career
that you want or the careerthat you deserve.
I've done it myself, which iswhy I started by saying earlier
that they knew I wanted to raise.
They knew I wanted to grow withthe organization.
They knew all of these things.

(07:30):
I was vocal about it and youwant to be vocal about it as
well.
It's that important.
Now let's talk about the moneytrap that I fell into, that
raise or counteroffer.
It feels good in the moment,but the reality of it is it's

(07:53):
short-term relief or a long-termproblem.
There were other problems thatI had with the organization and
money doesn't erase missedopportunities or a toxic culture
.
That doesn't change because youmake more money and in many
ways specifically in my case,accepting a raise to stay it

(08:15):
just delays the departure.
Like I said, I ended up leavinganyway because it wasn't only
about money, but I don't have aregrets and because of the God I
serve, I understand thatnothing is wasted.
I learned a lesson that I'mable to share right now, today,

(08:39):
and if it can help one person bysharing my story, if I can help
one person, then I've alreadywon.
It's worth it.
And I know that there arepeople listening to this podcast
right now, because I know I'mnot the only one.
Remember, I coach leaders, so Iknow that I'm not the only one

(09:02):
that have experienced this orare experiencing this.
I know that there's people outthere that's listening to it,
and you may be one of them, andthis is going to help you with
the decision that you need tomake.
So the money trap we're notfalling for it.

(09:22):
The other trap that I fell into,and maybe some of you have too,
is the recognition trap.
That's what I'm going to callit.
I was showered with bonuses, soI was at the manager level.
I got bonuses, I got awards andpublic praise and all type of

(09:44):
recognition.
I have some stuff around heresomewhere.
That's how valuable it was tome.
I have some stuff around heresomewhere that I was given you
know whether it be plaques andyou know all other kinds of
stuff but I never got the seatat the table that reflected my
value or allowed me to have theinfluence I desired.

(10:09):
And this is where the trapcomes in those recognitions and
all of that stuff.
That is the trap.
I was good enough to executethe decisions but not trusted
enough to influence them.
Let me say that again I wasgood enough to execute the

(10:30):
decisions but not trusted enoughto influence the decisions.
And at first, the recognitionand all of that, it felt good.
Who doesn't like recognition orbonuses and things like that?
But the truth is, applausewithout advancement is just a
temporary distraction and that'sexactly what that was.

(10:53):
It was a distraction for whatit really was, that I wanted and
that I deserve.
So organizations they can giveyou all the feel good moments
they want.
So recognitions and plaques andbonuses and all of that stuff
is good.
I'm not saying that it's notgood.
I share with my leaders that Iwork with that you want to give

(11:17):
your team recognition, you wantto make sure you acknowledge
them, but if they're notoffering real growth and
influence or path forward.
It keeps you stuck in the sameplace.
You're not offering real growthand influence or a path forward
.
It keeps you stuck in the sameplace.
You're not going anywhere and,over time, the gap between how
hard you work and how far youcan go only grows.
You become more frustrated.

(11:39):
So I want you to be reallycareful with this trap and
really understand that a lot oftimes, this is so that you don't
reach the level of influencewhere you're actually
influencing decisions not justexecuting the decisions that

(12:01):
have been made, but influencingthe decisions.
If this is something that youwant to do, everybody does not
want to grow.
I've worked with managers thatthey like and enjoy being a
manager and they're good wherethey are.
If your goal is to grow, thenthis is a part of it, right

(12:21):
being able to influence thedecisions.
So I want to wrap this upbecause I've talked about a
couple of different things.
If you have done yourreflection and you've sat in it
because I really want you to doit and you have come to the

(12:43):
conclusion that this is not theorganization for you and it
should be about more than money,this could be about the
environment, the culture, thebeing overlooked, because in my
case, it wasn't that thereweren't any open positions.
The positions became availabletime and time again.

(13:04):
I'm talking about the personthat I report to.
They filled that positionseveral times While I was in my
role.
If you've come to the conclusionthat it's time for you to move
on, there's a couple of thingsthat I want to leave you with.
So, if you've reached the pointit's time to move on, I want to

(13:25):
talk to you about some bestpractices for leaving the right
way.
This is extremely importantbecause for me, anytime I've
left an organization, the crazything about it is I go to
another organization and someonethat I work with in my past is

(13:45):
there.
Or they're a vendor or in someway, our paths have crossed.
Also, I've had where I left anorganization and someone that
worked at that organizationcalled me for a job.
So I didn't have to do a lot ofinterviewing because they knew
me.
They knew how I work, they knewwhat I brought to the table,
they recognized the value, theywere in another organization and

(14:08):
they wanted me there and theycalled me.
This is why we want to dothings the right way when we
leave.
So the first thing I want you todo is reflect, know your why
and be clear on your next move.
Know exactly what it is thatyou're looking for, why you want
to leave the organization, whatyou want in your career, so

(14:30):
that you are clear on what yournext move is.
And again, if this is anorganization that you feel that
you like and you could continueto work there, advocate for
yourself before you exit.
Ask for what you want.
Don't leave wondering what if Ihad asked?
Ask them people, see what theysay.

(14:55):
The third thing is before youleave, prepare financially and
logistically.
I share on a previous episodethat I'll link below, where I
did not do that.
Thankfully, things ended upworking out for me, but I

(15:16):
allowed myself to get to a placewhere I was so overwhelmed and
burned out and frustrated that Ijust went to my desk and turned
in my resignation, typed it upon their time on their computer
and turned in my resignationbecause I did not prepare the
way I could have or should have.

(15:37):
So I want you to preparefinancially.
Make sure you have a plan inplace or a cushion.
The fourth thing is and youshould be doing this on a
regular basis document your wins.
Document your wins.
Many times we don't do a goodjob at this, and I work with a

(16:02):
lot of women and we are some ofthe worst people at doing this.
We get a win and we patourselves on the back and it's
like yay, and maybe have a glassof wine, and then you're on to
the next thing.
But those days are over.
I want you to go out, get you ajournal a separate journal
that's specifically for thiswhere you are going to document

(16:24):
your wins and your successes,and then you're going to update
your resume and LinkedIn withyour accomplishments.
The 15th exit with grace.
Give proper notice, transitionyour work and keep the doors
open.
Like I said, you never knowwhen you're going to meet

(16:47):
somebody in another organization, in another place.
Even let me just say this, evenowning my own business, let me
just say this, even owning myown business, it has benefited
me to leave gracefully, becauseI'm interacting with some of
those people.
Some of those people havereferred me to get jobs.

(17:14):
That's number five.
Number six prioritize yourpeace.
Leaving is as much aboutreclaiming your energy and
confidence as it is about careeradvancement.
Prioritize your peace.
This is a big step and this iswhy I want you to make sure that

(17:37):
, if this is something that youare trying to do, that you put a
lot of thought behind it andalso that you are intentional
with how you move through thisseason of your career season of

(18:01):
your career.
Here's what I would like you towalk away with today.
If an organization only valuesyou when you're leaving, that's
a sign it's already too late.
Speak up, advocate for yourselfand, if nothing changes, give
yourself permission to go whereyou are truly valued.
If today's episode hit home foryou, if you've ever felt

(18:21):
undervalued, overlooked or stuckin a role where you're good
enough to execute but neverinvited to influence, don't stay
in that space alone.
This is exactly why I createdthe Leadership Shift Coaching.
It's a space for leaders likeyou to get the tools, support
and strategies you need toconfidently advocate for

(18:44):
yourself and build the careerand team you actually want and
deserve.
If you want to learn more aboutthe Leadership Shift, you can
go to Signal Partners Signalwith a C C-I-G-N-A-L partnerscom
, slash the shift and you canlearn more information.

(19:04):
And if you want bite-sizedweekly tips to strategies to
help you navigate leadershipchallenges, make sure you're
signed up for the Team Navigatornewsletter, which is going to
be linked below in the shownotes, you'll be able to find
also the link to the LeadershipShift as well.
Until next time, protect yourpeace, trust your gut and lead

(19:27):
with confidence.
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