From Start-up to Grown-up: Transformative Leadership and Team Building | Alisa Cohn

Renowned start-up coach and author Alyssa Cohn joins us to share powerful insights into the critical steps for transformative leadership. With her book "From Startup to Grownup" as a guide, Alyssa explores the essential growth that founders undergo as they evolve into effective leaders. She sheds light on often overlooked yet vital leadership skills, including managing budgets, leading productive meetings, and handling tough conversations. Her extensive experience with both startups and Fortune 500 companies provides a rich backdrop for her advice, making this episode invaluable for anyone looking to elevate their leadership journey.

Alisa delves into the critical nature of self-awareness for leaders, especially those thrust into leadership roles without formal training. She emphasizes that leaders' actions and words carry more weight than they might realize, often being scrutinized by their teams. Through practical tools like journaling, Alyssa guides leaders to better understand their motivations and emotional impacts, offering ways to manage imposter syndrome by challenging negative self-talk and embracing a growth mindset. Our discussion includes techniques for receiving and acting on 360-degree feedback, helping leaders identify strengths and blind spots.

Building and nurturing effective teams is another focal point of this conversation. Alyssa stresses the importance of personalizing leadership routines to align with individual strengths and optimizing existing teams before expanding. She offers strategies for creating clarity in hiring processes and ensuring cultural fit, while also sharing scripts for handling difficult conversations, available on her website. This episode is packed with actionable insights and tools, making it a treasure trove for aspiring leaders eager to grow their businesses and themselves.

What You’ll Learn:

• Transitioning from founder to effective leader.

• Unlocking leadership potential through self-awareness.

• Mastering team dynamics and optimizing team strengths.

• Overcoming imposter syndrome with a growth mindset.

• Techniques for receiving and acting on 360-degree feedback.

Podcast Timestamps:

(00:00) Lessons in Leadership: From Startups to Fortune 500 CEOs

(06:44) Self-Awareness as the Foundation for Leadership Development

(15:53) Optimizing 360 Feedback with a Growth Mindset

(22:03) Managing Imposter Syndrome

(27:30) Building Effective Leadership Routines

(32:52) Effective Team Building

(37:10) Values-Based Leadership 

(44:49) Difficult Conversations as Opportunities

More of Alisa:

Alisa Cohn is a globally recognized executive coach, named the #1 Startup Coach in the world at the Thinkers50 Marshall Goldsmith Leading Coaches Awards and one of the Top 30 Global Gurus for Startups. Based in New York City, she works with startup CEOs, co-founders, executives, and Fortune 500 leaders from companies such as Venmo, Etsy, Pfizer, IBM, and The New York Times. Alisa is the author of From Start-Up to Grown-Up, a multi-award-winning book and podcast. She frequently speaks at prestigious institutions, including Harvard and Cornell, and has been featured in the New York Times, BBC, and more. With expertise in executive presence, strategic decision-making, and personal branding, Alisa also designs workshops for leaders and teams.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/

Website: https://www.alisacohn.com/

Podcast: https://www.alisacohn.com/podcast/

Mentions:

From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn

5 Scripts: https://www.alisacohn.com/5scripts/

Key Topics Discussed:

Positive Leadership, Startup Leadership, From Startup to Grownup, Leadership Skills, Effective Meetings, Tough Conversations, Self-Awareness, Emotional Impact, Imposter Syndrome, Growth Mindset, 360 Feedback, Hiring Processes, Cultural Fit, Leading with Values, Difficult Conversations, Communication Scripts, Leadership Journey, CEO Success

More of Do Good to Lead Well:

Website: https://craigdowden.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigdowden/