Season 2, Episode 7 | Performing Under Pressure: The Power Of Being A Resilient Leader

Episode 7 | Performing Under Pressure

When is the last time you were in a high-pressure situation? What about a scenario that caused sudden surprise… maybe even pain… causing you to have to complete pivot from your original plan?

All leaders have been there, and one point or another, and most athletes have also been there. 

Yet one thing that all of those situations, and all of those people have in common is that typically, persevering and pushing through those hard times actually ends up molding them into more resilient leaders. 

Being a resilient person is an incredibly valuable skill set. Because of this, let’s break down a few tips and pointers that you can keep in mind for when those hard situations arise. Setting yourself up to use hard times to brand yourself as a more resilient leader will pay dividends in the long run. 

  • 7:00: Why the Sha’Carri Richardson Olympic Trials story prompted this podcast topic 
  • 9:30: Melissa’s own story on when she had to recently perform through pain 
  • 12:30: Why pain is part of the process of growth 
  • 14:15: Leading through high-pressure situations
  • 18:55: A common mantra that Melissa’s uses in hard times
  • 21:58: Why resilient leaders thrive in the face of adversity
  • 27:30: Melisa’s journey with infertility and what she learned through that pain
  • 29:45: On finding the deeper ‘why’ 
  • 32:30: Resilient leaders set new personal bests
performing under pressure

At the end of the day, getting outside of your comfort zone is never easy. Which is why it’s important to keep in mind that through the hard, or high pressure times, you’re also being stretched to become a stronger person, and a more resilient leader. 

To read more on the topic of performing through pain, head to our full-length article here

Want to learn more about the Take The Stage mastermind program that Melissa mentions in this episode? Head here

Melissa founded Velvet Suite® in 2006, as a leadership innovative firm focused on building future-ready leaders. The She-Suite is the female-focused initiative of Velvet Suite, addressing the persistent pipeline gap for all women and women of color in particular with a proven method to unleash hidden potential.

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Melissa Dawn Simkins Coined “The First Lady of Personal Branding”, Melissa is the CEO of Velvet Suite, a trusted advisor to Fortune 100s, C-Suite executives and influencers, highly-sought after keynote speaker on leadership innovation, a contributor to Inc.com and a frequent guest on news and business media, including CNN, HLN, MSNBC, Essence, Black Enterprise and more.

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