946: LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES: 7 Ways to Rise When Your Boss Holds You Down
Jul 1, 2025
Discover how to thrive even when your boss undermines you. This discussion focuses on reclaiming your power through bold self-advocacy and setting firm boundaries. Learn to cultivate a strong leadership brand and surround yourself with supportive allies. Strategies for documenting toxic behavior and understanding your boss’s motivations are shared, empowering you to make strategic choices and protect your emotional well-being. Emphasizing the importance of preserving your peace, the conversation encourages you to lead yourself first.
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volunteer_activism ADVICE
Separate Worth from Boss's Opinion
Separate your self-worth from your boss's negative opinions and treatment.
Their behavior reflects their own issues, not your value or capabilities.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Trust Your Instincts
Trust your instincts when you suspect something is off in your boss's behavior.
Self-doubt caused by manipulation is often intentional and not your fault.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Be Visible Beyond Your Boss
Build visibility beyond your direct boss by engaging with other leaders and teams.
Seek opportunities that showcase your leadership to open new doors and gain allies.
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Sometimes your boss is the biggest obstacle to your leadership growth. Whether they’re dismissive, manipulative, or flat-out toxic, their behavior or opinion of you does not define your worth. After watching too many women leaders suffer under harmful male leadership recently, it feels crucial to share actionable strategies to help you trust your instincts and keep your intuition grounded in truth. It’s time for you to reclaim your power even in environments designed to diminish it.When your boss won’t advocate for you, it’s time to advocate for yourself—boldly and strategically. In this episode, I share how to get visible beyond your direct boss, surround yourself with mentors and allies, and cultivate your leadership brand regardless of what your boss says (or doesn’t say) about you. You’ll learn how to set unapologetic boundaries, document manipulative behavior, and protect your emotional safety. We talk about how to navigate power dynamics with intention. By understanding your boss’s motivations and insecurities, you can learn to protect your own energy and make more informed, strategic choices about how to engage. This clarity will allow you to choose your battles wisely, preserve your peace, and lead yourself first. In doing so, you will model a more grounded and powerful style of leadership for those around you, even in the absence of support from above.Remember, you always have a choice. Sometimes, navigating a “strategic stay” is the right move for right now. Other times, the best thing you can do is leave. This episode is an invitation for you to consider what growth, alignment, and success look like on your terms. Because even when you’re being held down, you are still leading. Your job is not to shrink in the shadows of someone else’s smallness. Your job is to stand tall in your truth, build your brand, and be the leader of your life.
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Links Mentioned:
Women Business Owners, join me for a free business building workshop on July 16th, Focused & Fierce: Lead with Purpose and Build Your Business in a Noisy World:saradean.com/fierce
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