From Chaos to Courage: The Framework Leaders Can’t Ignore
A couple of months ago, I was celebrating the launch of Selena Soo‘s USA Today Best-Selling book Rich Relationships, and met Gloria Feldt, Founder of Take The Lead Women and former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. WOW…she is 83 years old and STILL WERKIN’ it. Her mission, energy and tenacity to keep standing for women’s rights moved me so much that I had to support her at their annual conference, Courage to Lead, in Washington, DC.
Selena Soo, you are truly an inspiration.
I’ve been honored to be at some amazing conferences between Microsoft and my entrepreneurship life, but something about being in DC during such a tumultuous, divided, transformational time felt serendipitous. It was like the Universe saying to me…” ladyboss, you’ve gotta WERK it and activate your voice and power even bigger!’
A key part of Take the Lead and the foundational way to move into a courageous leadership is the 9 PRINCIPLES of COURAGEOUS LEADERSHIP that Gloria created from her decades as a CEO, activist, speaker, author and mother. I found these particularly supportive during this chaotic time in our history and wanted to share them with you:
- KNOW YOUR STORY – Your past, your struggles, and your triumphs are the foundation of your leadership. I talk about this all the time, because it’s also the foundation of your personal brand and presence.
- USE WHAT YOU’VE GOT – Your unique gifts, skills, and lived experiences are not limitations. They are your greatest assets. That’s why the very first thing we do in our 4-step process is dig into your skills, because they reveal your superpowers. Ready to find yours? Download my free guide and start building your personal brand from the inside out.
- TELL YOUR TRUTH – Authenticity is not optional. It is the bridge that builds trust and connection.
- CREATE A MOVEMENT – Leadership is not about followers. It is about mobilizing others around shared purpose and change. That’s exactly what our YOUmanize™ movement is all about, empowering professionals to lead with authenticity and build personal brands that create real human connection. When you show up as 100% you, your voice doesn’t just stand out, it moves people.
- EMBRACE CONTROVERSY – Disruption is uncomfortable. But it is often the magic that creates transformation.
- CARPE THE CHAOS – When the world feels unstable, chaotic or even dark, true leaders see opportunity where others see crisis.
- DEFINE YOUR TERMS – Clarity is P-O-W-E-R. When you name what matters to you, you set the standard for how others engage with you.
- WEAR THE SHIRT – Have the courage to be visible. Stand for something PUBLICLY, even when it feels risky.
- LEAD WITH HUMANITY – At the heart of every movement, every business, and every breakthrough… are people. UM hello, how aligned are we with this, especially with the launch of our new YOUmanize™ Your Brand podcast launching next week! (subscribe to our YouTube page please!)
These principles weren’t just aspirational sticky notes on a whiteboard. They’re reminders to women leaders and our allies that our leadership is needed and distinct.
Voices That Change History: What Courage Sounds Like
Part of women rising to leadership during a time of chaos, is seeing others who have come before you, taking the lead and inspiring our movement. The speakers had conviction, started movements and stayed courageous despite mountains of challenges. They embody courage, truth, and visibility in ways that triggered something deep inside me, so much so that I wanted to share their stories with you. Women like Lily D. McNair, Ph.D, the first Black female president of Tuskegee University, opening the event with the 9 Principles of Leadership.
Marina Arsenijevic is a Serbian-born American pianist and composer. Marina’s story of growing up in Yugoslavia and using music to promote unity through diversity deeply moved me. A true inspiration and reminder of music’s power to connect us.
So honored I got to experience Marina’s gift.
Gloria Feldt, Co-Founder & President of Take The Lead. Her fire reminded me that a personal brand is never vanity. It is visibility. It is claiming your power publicly so no one else can define you. A former CEO of Planned Parenthood and now a Forbes 50 Over 50 honoree, Gloria Feldt has spent decades redefining how women relate to power. Her mission for intersectional gender parity and her Intentioning tools are transforming how women lead, boldly, unapologetically, and on their own terms.
Gloria Feldt, I hope to be making an impact like her in my lifetime.
Brad Johnson and David Smith who were on The Good Guys Panel. Hearing male allies speak with conviction about championing women was soooo refreshing. It was proof that systemic change cannot happen without men standing shoulder to shoulder with us. What’s missing from gender equality efforts? Men.
Brad Johnson, PhD, a clinical psychologist, and David Smith, PhD, a sociologist and former Navy pilot, are nationally recognized experts on gender in the workplace. Together, they’re leading the charge to educate and empower men to be better allies with evidence-based tools and lived experience from their military and academic careers.
Their books, Good Guys: How Men Can Be Better Allies for Women in the Workplace and Athena Rising, offer a blueprint for what inclusive leadership looks like. Their stance? Allyship isn’t passive. It’s a proactive choice to break bias, support women’s advancement, and redefine power structures, together.
Christine Brennan, legendary sports journalist. Covering every Olympics since 1984, Christine Brennan has spent decades speaking truth to power in the world of sports journalism. As a trailblazing USA Today columnist, TV analyst, and best-selling author, she’s one of the most respected voices in the industry, known for breaking barriers and holding institutions accountable.
Her words on truth-telling in the media hit me hard. In an age of misinformation, truth is revolutionary. And she’s not slowing down, Christine just helped launch Caitlin Clark’s new book, Caitlin Clark: This Is Caitlin, continuing her legacy of spotlighting women in sports and amplifying stories that matter.
Christine Brennan, veteran sports journalist, and fearless truth-teller in media.
Ellie Artone, Mariana Castro, Bayly Hoehne, gave me hope on Gen Z! These three ladybosses..They are courageous, fiery ladybosses activating their voices amongst their peers and trying to create transparency and objective points of views through influencers and social media. Love it!
Bayly, Chief of Staff, Voters of Tomorrow. 17-year-old political organizer leading the largest Gen Z voter outreach group.
Mariana, Director, Trending Up. Advocate, DACA recipient, and content creator. She uses her platform to share immigration stories and connect pop culture with politics.
Ellie, Co-Founder, Chief Creator Officer, Social Currant. Forbes 30 under 30 honoree, Leads impactful campaigns for mission-driven organizations, connecting them with values aligned creators to drive civic engagement and social change.
Leading Through Uncertainty and Change
As I sat in that room, I could feel both the fear and the urgency. Fear of rights being stripped away. Fear of visibility being erased. Fear that progress made could be undone in a single political cycle. And yet, the call was louder than the fear.
→ Use your voice
→ Take a stand
→ Choose your side of history
It was a mirror, reflecting back the question: what does courageous female leadership really mean right now? I’m still figuring it out but I’ve been on this journey the last 4+ years as I’ve shed my employee identity and have become a business owner, entrepreneur and mother. While the walls of legacy systems are falling and democracy seems to be at risk, I know that something new is rising and I’m uniquely part of this historical moment in our history.
This rebirth is both painful and powerful for all of us. It’s uncomfortable to be part of something so big and changing, but it’s also a privilege. I think about my children, and how I can positively impact the next generation while we’re experiencing such technological, societal and political shifts. This isn’t the first time in human civilization that we’ve experienced massive change. What about when electricity was invented? The Internet?
We’ve been here before which makes it incredible, it’s just that we’re experiencing change so incredibly fast and the online world is just a whole new beast.
As many have said before, with great power comes great responsibility. The choices we make today aren’t just about posting content for followers or making money. They are about creating a future where everyone can live peacefully, equally, and abundantly. We can try to ignore all the haters, war, ‘people not like us’ but that’s not going to move us forward.
A Gartner-related reference on employee activism and civil workplace culture:
- 83% of millennials say it’s important their employer aligns with their values
- 90% of Gen Z expect action on social/environmental issues
Edelman’s 2025 Trust Barometer revealed that 64% of people say they struggle to discern credible news from disinformation, and less than half trust those with opposing political beliefs. That’s BIG. Because it means we’re not just fighting for women’s voices, but for truth itself. If leaders don’t rise with courage and clarity now, using scientific, data driven perspectives, the very foundations of trust and connection in our society could crumble…and in many ways already are…
I’m asking each of us… mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, partners, leaders, entrepreneurs, YOUmans to decide: will we join the dark forces of destruction, or will we rise from them with love, compassion, and purpose? A bit philosophical here, I know, but lately I’ve been more and more tapped into my intuition and speaking from the heart.
Courageous Leadership Starts Here: The Shift Women Need Now
It takes practice. Courageous leadership is not a one-and-done pit stop along the way. It starts with simple but powerful shifts you can make today and consistent effort to have a long-term impact.
Here’s how businesswomen can step into their courageous leadership right NOW:
1️⃣ Own Your Story
Your story isn’t just your background or where you grew up as a kid. It’s your superpower. Too many leaders hide behind job titles, credentials, or polished bios. Today, I want you to do one thing: write a post on LinkedIn or share a story with your team that reveals a part of your journey most people don’t know. Maybe it’s the struggle you turned into strength, or the mistake that changed everything for you. That vulnerability creates instant connection online and offline. For me, sharing my shift into motherhood and entrepreneurship (messy, beautiful, and raw) has been the most magnetic part of my brand online. It’s also created vulnerability, loyalty and commitment with my team.
2️⃣ Stand for Something Bigger
Your brand is not just about what you sell. It’s about what you believe. And right now, people are hungry for leaders who take a stand (not those relying on ChatGPT to solve all their problems). Choose one value you’re willing to plant your flag in and let it guide your actions this week. It could be equity, humanity, creativity, freedom. Whatever feels right for you.
For me, this looks like starting our new podcast YOUmanize™ Your Brand launching next week, because we’re ready to create a movement that brings trust back into business. My mission is to YOUmanize™ the way businesses go to market building trust, advocacy and awareness and it’s time to step into my courageous leadership and create something that’s never been done.
3️⃣ Build YOUuman Trust
We live in a world of misinformation and noise. Trust is the most valuable currency you have. And trust doesn’t come from being perfect. Nope! It comes from showing up consistently and practicing what you preach. It’s about following up, and showing your capabilities, not just telling people you’re amazing. One quick win you can try today: respond to 3 people in your network with thoughtful, genuine comments that go beyond “great post.” Ask a question. Reflect back what moved you. Start a conversation.
That human-to-human engagement builds relationships that algorithms can’t touch. This is the heartbeat of what Joshua B. Lee and I are building at StandOut Authority: brands that don’t just get seen but get felt.
Believe me, when your voice rises, YOUR movement will be born. And when movements are born, you stop blending in and start changing history.
Trust Is the New Power Move for B2B Brands
Our clients are real people, and we’re all experiencing a trust recession. There’s a ton of noise online, with AI, politics…you name it, so the best move you can do is focus on trust building marketing activities with some of these recommendations.
If you’re thinking about implementing a thought leadership strategy with your company, I’d love to connect with you more. And if you’re ready to focus on your own personal brand strategy that reflects your truth and builds real impact, I’m soooooo excited to open up space in our new LinkedIn Brand LaunchPad.
Together, we’ll uncover your voice, clarify your message, and build the foundation for a brand that is fully you, online and offline. BONUS 1-day photoshoot (in your city) included (worth $5000+ alone). The ROI on being SEEN by the RIGHT audience is impossible to calculate. Want to know our current investment level?
👉 Let’s talk. No pressure. No BS. Just a real conversation about where you are and where you want to be. Go from invisible to undeniable in just 30 days. CHECK IT OUT HERE
P.S. The special bonus is for the first 3 people for Q4 only (once it’s gone, it’s gone).
💜ICYMI: My LinkedIn LIVE with Cory Blumenfeld
So many of us wait until we feel “ready” before starting something new. But what if waiting is the very thing holding us back?
That’s exactly what I unpacked with Cory Blumenfeld, a 4x founder with two exits, $5M raised, and a 40k+ LinkedIn audience, on my recent LinkedIn LIVE. We talked about:
💜 Why speed to market matters more than perfection
💜 How delegation and systems fuel sustainable growth
💜 The role of AI in scaling without losing your edge
💜 Why visibility and personal brand are non-negotiable
👉 Catch the replay here and connect with Cory, you’ll want him in your network.