You blocked off three hours to work on that big project. Then a meeting ran over, two "quick questions" turned into forty minutes, and by the time you sat down, the day was gone. Sound familiar? My guest today, Fran Hauser, says the problem isn't your discipline. It’s that you've been taught to think about productivity in a way that guarantees you'll never have enough of it.

You’ll discover:

• The donation trick Fran learned from a friend that became her model for saying no before anyone even asks
• What to say in your next check-in so your manager helps you deprioritize work instead of piling more on
• How to run a 20-minute meeting that gets more done than most hour-long ones
• The one question to ask yourself when you catch yourself procrastinating (hint: it has nothing to do with your schedule)

About Fran Hauser

Fran Hauser is a leading career expert and vocal champion of women in the workplace, a former President of Digital at Time Inc., and a startup investor. She is also the owner of Bedford Books in Bedford, New York, and the acclaimed author of The Myth of the Nice Girl. Her forthcoming book, Twenty Minutes Is the New Hour, will be published by Penguin Random House/Crown Currency in September 2026. She has spoken at over 200 organizations, including Meta, Google, Unilever, BlackRock, Mastercard, and The Conference for Women. Fran’s insights have appeared in Fortune, CNBC, Fast Company, Elle, Refinery29, and Business Insider.

https://www.franhauser.com/

https://www.franhauser.com/twentyminutes

Sign up for the Psychology at Work Weekly newsletter:

https://melodywilding.com/newsletter/

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

High-stakes decisions rarely come with perfect information, total agreement, or unlimited time to make them. In this episode Melody speaks with Caroline Webb, author of Leadership Intelligence, about how you can think clearly under pressure, make better trade-offs, and communicate choices in a way that builds trust instead of creating defensiveness. You’ll learn how to make tough calls when there is no obvious right answer — and how to bring people with you even when the decision is difficult.

What You’ll Discover

▪️ A simple question that can widen your thinking when pressure makes your brain narrow.

▪️ How to use the “Know, Be, Do” model to lead through uncertainty without pretending everything is fine.

▪️ Caroline’s “common ground” technique for handling someone’s emotional reaction to your choices without caving.

About Caroline Webb

CAROLINE WEBB is a leadership coach, economist, and author of How to Have a Good Day and the forthcoming book, Leadership Intelligence. She has been named one of the top fifty executive coaches in the world by Thinkers50, and one of the top fifty leadership and management thinkers by Inc. magazine. She is a senior advisor to McKinsey & Company, where she was previously a partner. Her work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Financial Times, The Economist, The Guardian, and Fortune. https://carolinewebb.co/

Sign up for the Psychology at Work Weekly newsletter:

https://melodywilding.com/newsletter/

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

DOORS CLOSE 9/28 FOR 2026: https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

If you spend hours preparing for executive presentations, only to watch the audience get lost, this is for you. Raji, a senior manager with 20+ years of experience, lived that cycle for most of her career. She shares how she cracked the code on presenting to demanding decision-makers and got 20 hours a month back in the process.

You’ll discover:

• The #1 communication skill that ended years of confusing feedback like "great content, wrong packaging"
• What Raji did to cut her presentation prep from 5 hours to 45 minutes without losing an ounce of credibility
• How to talk about your accomplishments so leadership hears "valuable contribution," not "bragging"

https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

Disagreeing with powerful people can feel risky. One wrong word and you worry you’ll sound difficult, defensive, or like you’re challenging their authority. But staying silent has a cost too. In this episode, Melody shares three “sneaky-smart” ways to push back on executives, board members, senior stakeholders, or major clients without damaging the relationship. These subtle responses will help you raise concerns without triggering defensiveness.

What You’ll Discover:

▪️ What separates a trusted truth-teller from someone who just seems combative

▪️Magic words for pushing back on your skip-level without burning the relationship

▪️ How to share information with senior leaders without implying they missed something obvious.

▪️ The one question that gets an executive to mentally rehearse your idea as their own

https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

You give an executive a thorough answer and they still look unsatisfied. One question turns into five, you walk away wondering what you missed, and a week later you hear they were uneasy with where things stand. What gives? In this episode, discover the three underlying needs behind almost every executive question and how to diagnose which one is driving any given question in seconds so you sound more influential and convincing.

You’ll Discover:

▪️The reason a thorough, well-organized answer erodes an executive's confidence in you

▪️ Scripts that show a senior leader they can trust your team without having to step in

▪️ How to sound decisive when you're put on the spot, even when you don't have all the data

https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

You're operating at a senior level, yet you’re seen as "too tactical," "in the weeds," "great executor, not quite ready for what's next." Melody identifies how and why that label gets in place and gives you 4 subtle communication mistakes reinforcing it every time you speak up in a meeting, email your skip-level, or update your boss.

What You’ll Discover:

▪️ The questions you’re posing in meetings that scream “please give me more day-to-day minutiae"

▪️ Seemingly polite language training senior leaders to treat you as a subordinate, not a peer

▪️ Think you’re interrupted because people are rude? WRONG. Here’s the REAL reason you’re talked over

https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

You don’t need direct reports or a bigger title to prove you can lead at a higher level. You just need to communicate with greater authority. In this episode, Speak Like a Senior Leader™ client, Karla, shares how she shifted from permission-seeking to bringing forward a recommendation confidently, how to adapt a message for different executives, and explains the recognition now coming her way.

You’ll Discover:

▪️The seemingly harmless words and phrases that keep you trapped in your boss’s shadow and read as “not ready for the next level”

▪️Language swaps to stop sounding like a junior level executor and instead convey senior-level prowess

▪️ What Karla said that led a C-suite executive to seek her out for a high-visibility role—and how changing the way she showed up in meetings earned her praise from top executives

https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up

The toughest negotiations at work happen with people who outrank you. Whether you walk away with more headcount, a faster yes, an extension on a deadline, or a project sponsor's full backing depends less on the strength of your case than on what you understand about the psychology of negotiating up. In this episode, attorney and negotiation expert Kwame Christian breaks down what works when the other side holds all the formal authority.

• Why Kwame doesn't play for neutrality in any negotiation and the bias you should INTENTIONALLY trigger in the first ten minutes
• So you're about to push back on your boss? Use this two-line opener.
• Try this one-word swap to instantly diffuse a defensive response
• Why elite negotiators use the 70/30 rule to steer towards outcomes they want

About Kwame Christian

Kwame Christian, a first-generation Caribbean American from Tiffin, Ohio, transformed his life through a negotiation course in law school, revealing that negotiation is a learnable skill. This discovery led him to excel in negotiation competitions, win national awards, and ultimately found the American Negotiation Institute. His personal journey from a people pleaser to a master negotiator is relatable and inspiring, resonating deeply with audiences and empowering them to handle challenging conversations confidently. https://kwamechristian.com/

https://speaklikeaseniorleader.com

Connect with Melody:

1. FREE NEWSLETTER: Psychology at Work Weekly
2. Get on the Waitlist for Speak Like a Senior Leader™
3. Get on the Waitlist for Lead from Within
4. Get Melody's new book, Managing Up