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PODCAST

Grounded and Aligned™

Grounded and Aligned™ is a podcast for people in senior roles who carry real responsibility - budgets, teams, visibility, and pressure that doesn’t switch off at the end of the day. If your role has grown faster than your comfort zone… If you’re managing up, setting boundaries, delegating, and absorbing more than you used to… If you care about being effective and human (without being inauthentic or pushing yourself past your limits), this show is for you. I’m Karen Gombault. I’ve spent decades

business careers

All Episodes

16:53

57. Leadership Superpower #2: Emotional Regulation

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/02/18

In senior roles, pressure is constant. Decisions are visible. Stakeholders bring urgency, frustration, and competing priorities into the room. You cannot control those inputs but you can control your response. In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault examines emotional regulation as a core leadership skill. Emotional regulation is the ability to notice your reaction, pause, and choose how to respond rather than act on impulse. It is not suppression of emotion, but disciplined

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17:37

56. Leadership Superpower #1: Not Taking Things...

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/02/12

At senior levels, challenge is constant, questions are direct, assumptions are tested in real time, and comments are brief and often ambiguous.In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault begins a series on leadership skills that materially affect effectiveness in expanded roles.The first: the ability to avoid turning routine business scrutiny into a "personal verdict", a.k.a. taking things personally.Many experienced leaders know they “shouldn’t” take things personally. Yet in

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12:13

55. Improving Daily Effectiveness in Senior Roles

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/02/04

If you’re operating with sustained responsibility, constant decision flow, and expanding scope, overwhelm often shows up not because of poor time management, but because of how decisions, expectations, and work are structured. In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault addresses why senior leaders remain cognitively overloaded even when they are experienced, disciplined, and committed. She outlines three pragmatic strategies drawn from her personal experience as CEO and her work with

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18:18

54. Identity Shifts Required for Expanded Leadership...

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/01/28

If you are stepping into a new role with broader scope, higher visibility, or C-suite level accountability, the pressure to perform often shows up as more effort, more involvement, and faster execution.This episode of Grounded and Aligned™, looks at why that approach breaks down at senior levels. Karen examines how success in expanded roles depends less on activity and more on how leaders see themselves, how they make decisions, and how that internal reference point shapes authority, boundaries, and

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10:25

53. Decision Speed, Authority and Organizational Impact

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/01/21

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen addresses a pattern that consistently undermines senior leaders taking on new roles: delaying decisions in the name of certainty.When you step into expanded scope with incomplete information, hesitation carries real organizational consequences. Drawing on client work and direct experience, she examines why waiting for clarity rarely produces better outcomes and how early decisions affect authority, momentum, and cognitive load.If you are operating with

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16:58

52. Stepping Into a Larger Mandate: Boundaries,...

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/01/14

Taking on a broader mandate at VP or SVP level is rarely accompanied by clear operational boundaries. The remit expands, visibility increases, and expectations accumulate often faster than they are explicitly discussed.In the early phase, scope is shaped less by formal agreement and more by behavior.Leaders make themselves available.They absorb unresolved issues.They step into gaps to keep momentum and avoid disruption.Over time, those choices define the role as much as the job description does.In

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18:10

#51: Leadership Lessons You Can't Script

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2026/01/07

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault reflects on leadership through an unexpected but instructive lens: observing how people respond when authenticity, vulnerability, and respect are consistently present, without scripting or control.This is not a conversation about celebrity, though it is based on observations of Taylor Swift.It is an examination of why some leaders generate followership effortlessly, while others rely on position, polish, or performance.The episode uses real,

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19:25

#50: Looking Back and Looking Forward

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/12/31

This episode was recorded on December 31, 2025. It’s a simple pause at the end of the year to look at what actually made a difference, personally and professionally. In this solo episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault walks through how she reviewed 2025: time with people she cares about, a full year living in the south of France, and a business that now feels settled and right-sized. There is no push for reinvention here. No pressure to optimize. Instead, this is about noticing what

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12:45

#49: When Stepping In Undermines Your Leadership

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/12/24

The meeting is scheduled for the next day.A decision needs to be made. Teams are waiting for direction.As you review the materials one final time, you see it immediately:the analysis is incomplete. Key inputs are missing. Several assumptions haven’t been tested.This is not new.You’ve been clear about expectations before. And there is no time left to send it back without delaying the decision.So you make a choice.In this episode of Grounded & Aligned™, Karen Gombault examines a pattern common at

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16:23

#48: Evolution

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/11/20

There’s a shift happening in leadership—and in this podcast.In this episode of Stepping Into the Arena, Karen announces powerful changes coming to the show, all rooted in what modern leaders truly need today: clarity, calm, and grounded strength. Drawing on 28 years in corporate leadership and three years coaching successful executives, Karen shares five critical trends she sees in the market and how they are shaping the future of effective leadership.If you're tired of reactive change,

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15:40

#47: Grateful and Dissatisfied Can Co-exist

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/11/13

You can be grateful—and still feel dissatisfied.In this episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen unpacks a powerful phrase shared by her mentor: “You can be grateful and dissatisfied.” At first glance, those emotions may seem contradictory, but they often show up together at pivotal career moments.Karen shares her personal experience of having a successful job, a fulfilling personal life, and yet feeling something wasn’t right. That subtle dissatisfaction was a signal—one she followed more than

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18:33

#46: The Power of Mentorship in Executive Growth

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/11/06

Your next level of leadership might just start with one conversation. In this episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen shares why mentorship—formal or not—is essential for sustainable growth and powerful leadership. With personal stories, real-life examples, and a clear call to action, this episode will inspire you to find your next mentor (or become one).Whether you're navigating a new role or aiming to evolve your leadership style, this conversation will shift how you think about influence,

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23:26

#45: Year in Review: Lessons from a Big Leap

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/10/30

What actually happens when you bet on yourself? In this deeply personal year-in-review podcast episode, Karen shares the six most important lessons she’s learned after going all-in on executive leadership coaching. If you’re a senior leader stepping into a new role or a bigger scope, this is the episode that will help you feel seen—and give you pragmatic insights to navigate the messy middle of growth and transition.These are hard-won truths from a year of courage, discomfort, and intentional

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15:16

#44: How to Recover When a New Job Doesn’t Work Out

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/10/23

When You’re Not Confirmed in Your Role: What Now?You took the leap. A big new role. A new company. A bold career move. And then, a few months in, the call comes: they’re not moving forward with you. You’re not being confirmed in your position. It’s unexpected, it’s brutal—and it can shake your confidence to its core.In this podcast episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen Gombault breaks down what not being confirmed really means, why it happens more often than people talk about, and how to leave

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19:05

#43: Stop The Power Leaks

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/10/16

Awareness is only the beginning—real leadership transformation happens when you take bold, intentional action. In this powerful podcast episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen Gombault lays out the exact steps you need to plug the four most common power leaks senior executives face.If you've recently stepped into a bigger role, and you're juggling visibility, credibility, and pressure, this is your tactical guide to reclaiming control, sharpening your presence, and protecting your energy.You don’t

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17:04

#42: How Power Leaks Erode Your Influence

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/10/09

When executives lose influence, it rarely happens in one dramatic crash—it fades away slowly, almost invisibly. In this episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen Gombault reveals the four most common ways senior leaders leak power in the first six months of a new role. These aren’t obvious failures; they’re subtle habits that silently drain your credibility, clarity, and presence. Learn how to plug these leaks so you can lead with stronger influence, more confidence, and measurable impact from day

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14:28

#41: Delegation Benefits Everyone

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/10/02

In this episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen reveals why senior leaders hesitate to delegate and how it costs you time, authority, and impact. You’ll learn a simple, practical framework to define when you should decide, when you should collaborate, and when your team should take the lead.If you’ve been holding on too tightly—or becoming the bottleneck—this podcast episode gives you the tools to reclaim your calendar, empower your team, and scale your leadership influence.5 KEY

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16:45

#40: White Space: The Hidden Power Executives Overlook

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/09/25

When your calendar is packed back-to-back, you may think you’re maximizing your value. In reality, you’re draining your influence. In this podcast episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen Gombault shares why white space—the intentional pauses in your day—is not a luxury but a leadership essential.If you’ve just stepped into a bigger role and feel like you’re always behind, this conversation will help you reset your rhythm, reclaim your energy, and show up as the steady, strategic leader your team

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16:20

#39: Influence Decisions Before the Meeting Starts

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/09/18

Influence doesn’t happen in the meeting—it happens before it.In this week’s Stepping Into The Arena podcast episode, Karen reveals why the real work of influence happens long before you step into the boardroom. She breaks down the three arenas of influence—before, during, and after the meeting—and shows you why shaping decisions ahead of time is the key to expanding your authority, credibility, and impact.5 KEY TAKEAWAYS:Most of your leadership impact happens before. Pre-wiring, seeding ideas, and

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14:24

#38: Stepping Into the Arena: Own Your Executive Power

Grounded and Aligned™ ·

2025/09/11

You’ve got the seat—now what?This premiere episode of Stepping Into the Arena is not just a rebrand—it’s a bold invitation to own your executive presence and expand your influence. Karen Gombault shares why this evolution matters and what it means for ambitious leaders facing high-stakes transitions.Whether you’re stepping into a new executive role, inheriting a larger team, or navigating a merger, this episode is your strategic reset. Karen walks you through the four essential lessons she’s seen

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117 results

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