4x CMO: I Lost My First CMO Role — Because of My Own Mistakes (Joanna Lord)

In this episode, Joanna Lord, global CMO, board advisor, and multi-time tech executive, reflects on the moments that forced her to grow the most. She shares how being passed over for a promotion after a colleague threatened to quit cracked open her entire leadership style, as well as the AMA that sent her into a full-blown panic attack just days into a new global CMO role. These moments became turning points, pushing her to shift from a self-focused high performer to a more collaborative and self-aware leader.

Joanna also talks about impostor syndrome, recovering from public missteps, and learning to separate her identity from her job title. This isn’t just a conversation about leadership — it’s about resilience, reinvention, and what it really means to grow up in your career.

In this conversation, you’ll learn:

• Why your high performance won’t carry you past your people skills
• How “qualified” and “capable” are two entirely different bets
• What changes when you stop being the hero and start being the glue

Things to listen for:

(00:00) Intro

(01:29) Early life in Vermont and career beginnings

(02:24) Joanna’s journalism aspirations

(06:56) Receiving devastating career feedback

(10:30) Thank you to our sponsor, Navattic

(22:50) The AMA that led to a panic attack

(29:34) Being capable vs. being qualified

(33:14) Imbuing swagger on your team

(37:25) A major mistake and avoiding accountability

(43:51) Resilience and moving forward

(45:48) Unstitching identity from job titles

(50:23) Creating a healthy work environment

This episode is presented by:

Navattic: Interactive Product Demo Software - https://navattic.com/value

Resources:

Connect with Joanna:

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

Official newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7003840481180749824/

Official website: https://www.joannalord.com/

Connect with Andrew:

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

Substack: https://media.deliveringvalue.co

Hire Andrew as your coach: https://deliveringvalue.co/coaching