974: How to Navigate Leadership Visibility and the Responsibility of Being Seen | Leadership Strategies

Shameless Leadership

Sara Dean

Self-improvement, How To, Business, Management, Education

4.7 • 800 Ratings

🗓️ 13 January 2026

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Leadership visibility sounds empowering, even exciting… until you’re the one being seen. In this episode, I’m talking about why stepping into new levels of visibility so often triggers discomfort, imposter syndrome, and a very loud inner critic, especially for women and others who were never encouraged to take up space or were judged for doing so in the past. I share a recent conversation with a friend facing a visibility opportunity and how it sparked a deeper reflection on why being seen can feel risky even when we know our work matters. I unpack what actually happens when your leadership expands beyond your comfort zone and opens the door to judgment, assumptions, people unfollowing or quietly pulling away - and why none of that means you’re doing it wrong. I offer a reframe I come back to often: those who judge are rarely in the arena with you. Those who are not in the arena are not entitled to live in your head rent-free. Visibility brings up emotions in others, but their reactions are not your responsibility. Your responsibility is your mission, your values, and the people who are helped because you chose not to stay quiet. This episode is an invitation to think differently about visibility, not as self-promotion, but as service. I’ll walk you through questions to anchor yourself when discomfort shows up, including who your visibility helps, what’s at stake when you’re seen, and how being visible challenges the status quo and expands what’s possible for others. If you’ve been feeling the pull to step into a brighter spotlight in 2026 but the urge to avoid discomfort feels just as strong, this conversation is for you. Links Mentioned: [Open Enrollment] Join Sara’s Aligned Leadership Incubator: saradean.com/aligned Hire Sara to speak: saradean.com/speaking Coach with Sara: https://saradean.com/executive-coaching-services Connect with Sara on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saradeanspeaks Watch Shameless Leadership episodes on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@saradeanspeaks Book: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:22.9	entrepreneurs like you sign up for your one dollar a month trial at shopify dot com slash setup
0:28.7	welcome to shameless leadership i'm your host sarah dean this show is for women, transgender people, non-binary folks, as well as allies, who are committed to advancing their leadership while also advancing the leadership of those around them. In each episode, we will offer practical tips, leadership strategies, and inspiring stories to help you become a more confident, compassionate,
0:55.1	and inclusive leader. The truth is, you were born to lead. What might happen for you if you
1:00.6	were to wholeheartedly embrace that part of yourself? So let's start now together.
1:05.7	Hello, shameless leaders. This is the first episode I'm recording in 2026. And if I'm being
1:10.4	honest, I don't feel like I'm totally here yet. I'm I'm recording in 2026. And if I'm being honest, I don't feel like
1:11.5	I'm totally here yet. I'm still like partly in 2025, partly on my two-week break that I took
1:20.3	between the holidays and the new year. Like, I'm not all the way here, but I'm very excited to be
1:26.7	in this conversation today and in this
1:28.3	topic today. So I'll set aside my feelings about, you know, how present I feel in 2026 as we
1:35.2	dig into this topic. And I have to say I actually had a few different podcast topics planned for
1:39.7	today. And I have a handful of things kind of in the pipeline for, for 26, topics that I think will be
1:44.9	really relevant and really interesting. But this conversation happened with a friend recently,
1:49.1	and I was like, oh, this feels like a good starting place to hit record for my first
1:53.4	session back in 2026. Because as you're thinking about where you want to go in the new year and
2:00.0	what your goals are in the new year,
2:01.6	I feel like this is the time when a lot of us start to think about, okay, if I want to challenge
2:06.6	myself this year in a new year, what are my goals around visibility? What are my goals around
	...

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