The CEO in You Podcast with Melissa Hartmann
After two decades leading complex growth and transformation across global corporates and scale-ups, I now help senior professionals lead with greater influence, secure bigger outcomes, and shape their careers on their terms.
If you're ready to step into the CEO role of your life, and your leadership, you're in the right place.
Inside The CEO in You, you'll find strategies on executive influence, stakeholder alignment and navigating large-scale change. This is where bold leaders become high-impact transformation experts, without burnout, politics or second-guessing.
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The CEO in You Podcast with Melissa Hartmann
Ep. 7 Dangerous Expressions: The hidden traps to watch out for when you are leading transformation
In this episode of The CEO in You, we go beyond the tired clichés and unpack the seemingly harmless phrases that can quietly sabotage your transformation efforts. These are the expressions that sound good in the boardroom but can drain momentum, stall progress, and frustrate your best people if left unchecked.
We share real-world examples, the risks behind them, and what to do when they show up in your organisatio, so you can spot the warning signs early and keep your transformation on track.
You’ll hear us explore:
- Why “we need to bring everyone on the journey” can slow you to the pace of the slowest person, and how to bring people along without losing your frontrunners
- The silent danger of “crickets” from sponsors when you’re under stakeholder fire, and how to secure genuine air cover
- The trap of “we need to plan it all out first”, and why overplanning can be as risky as underplanning
- What to do when stakeholder language sounds supportive, but their actions say otherwise
If you’re leading change in a complex, high-stakes environment, this conversation will sharpen your ability to read the room, interpret intent, and protect the pace and integrity of your transformation.
Where to find Melissa Hartmann:
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