All Episodes

June 19, 2025 16 mins

Every leader, no matter their level of experience, encounters an inner skeptic—a doubting voice that questions whether they’re hearing genuine input or simply what others think they want to hear. This internal tension can erode trust, create isolation, and hinder clarity in decision-making. Understanding how to distinguish between genuine feedback and filtered information is essential for fostering a culture of psychological safety and truth-telling in any team or organization. Leaders must also contend with evolutionary psychological mechanisms, such as imposter syndrome, past betrayals, and the isolating effects of authority, all of which can amplify these doubts.

Today’s episode dives into the practical strategies leaders can use to crush that inner skeptic. By building honest feedback loops, asking smarter questions, and trusting both yourself and your team, leaders can create high-performing cultures where truth is valued over comfort. This episode is packed with actionable insights for leaders seeking to move from suspicion and self-doubt to understanding and empowered leadership.

Timestamped Overview

  • [00:00:00] Introduction to leadership challenges and the importance of honest feedback for leaders
  • [00:01:59] Announcing an upcoming leadership book inspired by real-world lessons and guest interviews
  • [00:04:05] Exploring the struggle between what leaders want to hear and what they need to hear
  • [00:05:03] The roots of inner skepticism: evolutionary psychology, imposter syndrome, and isolation
  • [00:06:28] Understanding the power dynamic: why people filter information, and the leader’s role in decoding it
  • [00:07:14] When skepticism is a helpful signal: identifying genuine gaps in communication
  • [00:08:45] When skepticism becomes harmful: overanalyzing, eroding trust, and corroding relationships
  • [00:09:30] Four ways to defeat the inner skeptic: building a culture of truth-telling and psychological safety
  • [00:10:46] The importance of never shooting the messenger and modeling transparent communication
  • [00:11:37] Asking better, open-ended questions to elicit honest and actionable feedback
  • [00:13:08] Leveraging trusted third parties, coaches, or confidants for objective input
  • [00:13:55] The leader’s gut check: questioning your own suspicions to foster genuine trust
  • [00:14:30] Training the inner voice and leading with clarity and trust
  • [00:15:06] Closing thoughts and reminders on the importance of trust in peak performance leadership

For the complete show notes be sure to check out our website:

https://leaddontboss.com/349

Mark as Played

Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang

Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang

Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!

Crime Junkie

Crime Junkie

Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.