If you've ever been told your goals are too high, your credentials aren't strong enough, or you should have a backup plan — this episode is your answer.

Dr. Vicki Johnson, founder of ProFellow and author of Pitch Your Potential, built a 7-part formula for winning competitive opportunities that has helped her community secure over $500 million in merit-based awards. In this conversation, she breaks down the MATCH ME Formula® and shows you how to apply it to jobs, fellowships, promotions, board seats, and any opportunity where you need to make a case for yourself.

This one hits differently right now — we recorded it in the middle of one of the most disruptive job markets in recent memory, with tens of thousands of professionals navigating layoffs and wondering how to stand out when every application looks the same.

In this episode, you'll learn:

- What the MATCH ME Formula® is and why it works better than a stronger résumé

- Why selectors care more about your future than your past — and how to pitch it

- How to show mission alignment so powerfully that credentials become secondary

- What "elegant" means in an application and why it signals emotional intelligence

- Why authentic desire is your biggest competitive edge — even against more qualified candidates

- How to use LinkedIn as a network map, not a feed

- What to do when fear of rejection shows up (hint: it's a signal, not a stop sign)

📌 CHAPTERS

0:00 — Opening Hook

2:00 — Dr. Vicki Johnson's Origin Story

5:00 — What Selectors Actually Want

7:10 — The MATCH ME Formula® Explained

13:00 — Guides vs. Gatekeepers

17:00 — Authentic Desire & Fear of Failure

22:00 — Job Searching in a Layoff Market

26:00 — The Winning Application Story Arc

30:00 — LinkedIn — Still Worth It?

35:00 — ProFellow: Fellowships Demystified

38:00 — Dr. Johnson's Final Advice

👤 ABOUT DR. VICKI JOHNSON

Dr. Vicki Johnson is a speaker, author, and four-time fellowship winner who has spent her career helping ambitious professionals win elite opportunities. She is the founder of ProFellow — the leading U.S. platform for competitive fellowships, graduate programs, and leadership accelerators, with more than nine million readers globally. Through her coaching and the ProFellow platform, she has helped her community secure over $500 million in merit-based funding awards. Her book, Pitch Your Potential: The Formula for Winning Dream Jobs, Awards, and Elite Opportunities, introduces the MATCH ME Formula® — a proven seven-part framework for crafting applications that stand out at every career stage.

🔗 Find Dr. Vicki Johnson:

🌐 ProFellow: https://www.profellow.com

👩‍💼 drvickijohnson.com

🔗 RESOURCES

📘 Free Reset Guide: https://resetguide.giantstepsllc.com/

🌐 Website: https://giantstepsllc.com

📚 Books: https://giantstepsllc.com/books

📬 Work with Leilani: https://giantstepsllc.com/contact

📰 Newsletter: https://giantstepsllc.substack.com

👋 ABOUT GIANT STEPS WITH LEILANI BROWN

Giant Steps with Leilani Brown is a podcast about the pivotal decisions, bold reinventions, and daring choices that shape meaningful work and lives. Leilani Brown is the Founder & CEO of Giant Steps, LLC — a consulting firm supporting leaders and institutions at the intersection of strategy, culture, career, and education. She is a global keynote speaker and the author of three books on career strategy and professional development.

#GiantSteps #GiantStepsLLC #DowellDoGood #CuriousLeilani #CareerAdvice #PitchYourPotential

In the Season 3 finale of Giant Steps with Leilani Brown, host Leilani Brown looks back at a season intentionally built to meet the moment of mass layoffs, AI disruption, and career uncertainty.

This best-of episode features curated clips and the six key lessons from Season 3’s most impactful guests.

Dr. Helen Riess, a Harvard psychiatrist, explains why self-compassion—not self-criticism—is the strongest foundation for rebuilding after job loss.

Career strategist Rachel Tully introduces the Boa Constrictor Approach, a targeted job search method she used to land a role at Tesla.

Certified financial planner Michael Daniels walks through the first financial steps after a layoff, from applying for unemployment to protecting your 401(k).

Bestselling author Minda Harts shares her Seven Trust Languages framework for rebuilding workplace trust during restructuring.

Jocelyn Lincoln, a transformational marketing and talent leader, poses the question every leader should ask: if people weren’t paid, would they still follow you?

And executive producer Jirah Mickel puts Leilani in the hot seat for unscripted rapid-fire career advice.

Whether you’re navigating a career transition, leading a team through change, or looking for practical guidance in uncertain times, this episode delivers actionable advice from experts who’ve been there.

Season 4 is coming—subscribe now so you don’t miss it.

0:00 – Welcome & Season 3 Overview

2:34 – Theme Music / Show Intro

3:01 – Dr. Helen Riess: Self-Compassion After Job Loss

5:04 – Rachel Tully: The Boa Constrictor Approach

7:37 – Michael Daniels, CFP®: Financial Clarity in a Crisis

9:50 – Minda Harts: The Seven Trust Languages

13:57 – Jocelyn Lincoln: Would They Follow You Without a Paycheck?

16:59 – Leilani Brown: Trust Your Own Knowing

19:26 – The 6 Lessons of Season 3

21:17 – Season Wrap-Up & Season 4 Coming Soon

Download our free career guide - resetguide.giantstepsllc.com

What if the most powerful leadership development program in America isn’t at Harvard or McKinsey — but has been operating in Black churches for centuries?

L. Michelle Smith — award-winning author, Fortune 100 C-suite advisor, ICF certified executive coach, and CEO of No Silos Communications — joins Leilani to make the case that the Black church is the most overlooked leadership incubator in this country. Her new book, Call and Response: 10 Leadership Lessons from the Black Church, draws on cultural history, applied neuroscience, and positive psychology to show how the skills forged in that experience — communication, resilience, community building, and purpose — are exactly what today’s leaders need. And these lessons aren’t just for Black people or churchgoers. They’re for anyone who wants to lead with more empathy and more power.

In this episode:

— The AT&T keynote that generated 25 million impressions and launched the question: “Where did you learn to speak like that?”

— Why emotional intelligence — not communication — is the least obvious leadership lesson from the church

— How online church became “like Bumble” and what that reveals about workplace communication breakdowns

— The science of hope theory: why hopeful people are better planners, goal setters, and strategists

— What it means to create “safe soil” for emerging leaders — and why ropes courses won’t cut it

— Why young people are the most important — and least obvious — audience for this book

— Plus, a surprise appearance from Rev Run that ties the whole origin story together

About L. Michelle Smith: L. Michelle Smith is an award-winning author, Fortune 100 C-suite advisor, ICF certified executive coach, and CEO and founder of No Silos Communications. She is the executive producer and host of the Culture Soup Podcast, a contributor to HuffPost Voices, and her work has been featured in Fast Company, Forbes, and Black Enterprise. She has spoken on stages including South by Southwest and the Essence Festival. Her new book Call and Response: 10 Leadership Lessons from the Black Church is available now.

Find L. Michelle: LMichelleSmith.com | Instagram | LinkedIn | Threads

Giant Steps is a production of Giant Steps LLC, a company working at the intersection of strategy, culture, career, and education.

Learn more at GiantStepsLLC.com.

Tags/Keywords: leadership, leadership development, Black church, call and response, leadership incubator, positive psychology, hope theory, neuroscience, emotional intelligence, executive coaching, Gen Z, workplace communication, community building, resilience, L. Michelle Smith, Black leadership