What does it take to achieve ambitious goals without burning out your people or damaging trust? In this episode of the Face with Grace Fireside Chat Series, host Kaitlyn Rios is joined by Kamaria Scott—an IO psychologist, performance strategist, and coach—for a conversation about the pressures that can shape leadership and how to build teams that thrive, not just survive.Kamaria shares stories and practical guidance on recognizing the warning signs of unsustainable performance, protecting team health, and repairing trust when a leader’s actions cause harm. Together, they explore why workplace toxicity is often a symptom of deeper pressures—and how leaders can respond with curiosity, accountability, and care.This episode is a reminder that results matter, but so does the road taken to achieve them. Sustainable leadership builds performance and people.

• Is my team’s current pace sustainable, or are people expected to be “on” all the time?
• What signs might tell me that someone on my team is overloaded?
• What values and boundaries do I want my leadership to demonstrate?
• When my team gives feedback, do I listen for what they want me to understand?
• Do I make time to recognize what’s working—not just what needs fixing?
• When I see a harmful behavior, am I curious about what’s contributing to it?
• What does success look like if team health and trust count alongside results?

Kamaria Scott is an IO psychologist, performance strategist, and coach who works with organizations to help people leaders build engaged, healthy, and high-performing teams. Through her work, she helps leaders develop the awareness and practices needed to support both their people and their organization’s success.

connect@facedwithgrace.org

Connect with Kamaria on LinkedIn and learn more about her work at

Leadership is about more than pushing people toward a goal. The way a team works together—and whether people can sustain that work—matters too.When you notice signs of strain, start with curiosity: What’s happening? When does it happen? What does the team need? A thoughtful check-in, a genuine pause, or a clear boundary can help create the conditions for both people and performance to thrive.If this conversation resonated with you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a leader who wants to achieve results without leaving wreckage behind.

What happens when the version of yourself you’ve been performing can no longer carry the weight of the life you’re living?

In this episode of The Grace Space Podcast, host Kaitlyn Rios is joined by Jennifer Gomez, creator of The Joy Method™, for a powerful conversation about authenticity, pressure, and the moment she hit an internal wall that changed everything.

Jen shares the story of a high-stakes day when the emotional weight of leadership collided with her humanity — and how a single, unexpected joke to her superior cracked open a door to deeper authenticity, connection, and freedom. That moment became a turning point in how she leads, coaches, and teaches others to regulate their “human engine.”

Together, they explore how hidden performance leaks, emotional friction, and the pressure to perform can quietly erode leadership — and why joy, presence, and authenticity are measurable tools for clarity and influence.

This episode is about choosing freedom over performance, learning to recognize when you’re drifting from your true self, and leading from a place that is grounded, steady, and deeply human.

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Key Topics & Moments

• Authenticity as a leadership tool

• The cost of performing leadership instead of living it

• Hidden performance leaks inside teams

• Joy as a measurable leadership asset

• Presence and energy regulation

• High-pressure environments and their impact on identity

• The freedom of being fully yourself

• Sustainable performance and emotional resilience

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Reflection Prompts for Listeners

• Where am I performing instead of showing up as my true self?

• What emotional or operational weight am I carrying that’s slowing me down?

• When was the last time I felt “free” — and what helped me access that feeling?

• What would it look like to treat joy as a strategy, not a reward?

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Guest Spotlight

Jennifer Gomez is a keynote speaker, executive leadership coach, and creator of The Joy Method™ — a performance framework designed to help leaders and sales teams eliminate friction, sharpen decision-making, and lead with clarity under pressure.

With an MBA from LSU, a background in stage acting, and years of experience leading high-stakes operations, Jen brings a rare blend of presence, strategy, and emotional intelligence to her work. She is known for helping leaders identify and repair the “human engine” behind their performance.

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Resources Mentioned

• The Joy Method™

• Leadership presence and energy regulation practices

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Connect

Kaitlyn Rios / Faced With Grace

www.facedwithgrace.org

connect@facedwithgrace.org

Jennifer Gomez / The Joy Method™

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jgomez225/

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If This Episode Resonated

If this conversation resonated with you, consider this:

Leadership isn’t about performing a role — it’s about showing up as the truest version of yourself.

The moments that crack us open often become the ones that shape us most deeply.

And if this episode spoke to you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who might need permission to lead with a little more authenticity — and a little more joy — today.

What happens when the version of “professionalism” you were taught was never meant for you?

In this episode of The Grace Space Podcast, host Kaitlyn Rios sits down with Lauren (L2) Howard, CEO of Clinical Operations Group and founder of ElleTwo and Quirky, for a raw, funny, deeply human conversation about mental health, toxic systems, and the courage it takes to rebuild your identity after environments that tried to shrink you.

Together, they explore the emotional cost of outdated professionalism, the healing power of humor, and why telling the truth — even the messy parts — is one of the most radical acts of self‑care.

This episode is an invitation to stop performing, start breathing, and remember that being different has never meant being broken.

💬 What We Talk About

• The hidden mental health toll of harmful workplaces and societies
• Why “professionalism” often harms women, neurodivergent folks, and anyone who doesn’t fit the mold
• How humor becomes a survival tool — and a healing one
• The story behind Quirky, her community for the “eh‑ntisocial”
• The courage it takes to tell the truth about what hurt you
• Rebuilding identity after burnout, gaslighting, or systemic harm
• Why mental health advocacy must be both personal and systemic

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🔥 Key Moments

• The moment she realized the version of professionalism she was performing wasn’t built for her
• How ElleTwo was born from frustration with patriarchal workplace norms
• Why humor is one of her most powerful tools for connection and healing
• The origin story of Quirky — and why so many people need a space like it
• How she rebuilt her identity after seasons that made her question it
• The truth about boundaries, self‑trust, and refusing to shrink

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🧠 Reflection Prompts for Listeners

• Where am I blaming myself for a system that harmed me?
• What version of “professionalism” have I been performing — and who is it serving?
• What story am I finally ready to tell the truth about?
• What boundary is my mental health asking me to set?
• Where could humor soften something I’ve been carrying alone?

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🌟 About Our Guest

Lauren (L2) Howard is the CEO of Clinical Operations Group, the founder of ElleTwo, and the creator of Quirky, a digital community for the “eh‑ntisocial” — the people who want connection without the pressure to perform. She is also the host of Different, Not Broken, where she artfully overshares because isolation lies.

Known for her bold storytelling, clinical expertise, and humor‑soaked honesty, Lauren is redefining what it means to be “professional,” advocating for mental health, and helping people reclaim their identity after harmful workplace experiences.

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🔗 Connect with Lauren

• Quirky: A community for the eh‑ntisocial
• ElleTwo: Redefining professionalism for women
• Different, Not Broken Podcast
• LinkedIn: Lauren (L2) Howard

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🔗 Connect with Kaitlyn / The Grace Space

• Website: facedwithgrace.org
• Email: connect@facedwithgrace.org
• Instagram: @facedwithgrace

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💛 If This Episode Resonated

If this conversation spoke to you, please subscribe, leave a review, or share it with someone who needs the reminder that they are not broken — they are becoming.