We were taught somewhere along the way that the outside world holds our inner happiness. So, if fulfillment and peace aren’t from the next big project, the next promotion, or the bigger house, where is it? The conscious achiever podcast helps answer this question. The Conscious Achiever is a leadership and mindset podcast that reframes how we think about achievement. Inviting listeners to create conscious cultures in business, life, and the world, we explore how to live fully engaged, lead with integrity and authenticity, disrupt systems, push boundaries and own our unique leadership styles. Your host is Ghada Khalifeh.
Have you ever experienced a moment where your reaction to a situation left you pondering ?Perhaps you snapped at a coworker over a minor issue or found yourself unexpectedly moved by advertisement. These situations serve as clues, offering us to look within and ask, "What caused that reaction?This is the essence of self-awareness – the cornerstone of understanding our thoughts, emotions, and actions.
In today's episode, Join me and Dr. Hatem Goucha as we explore layers of self-awareness and its impact on effective leadership. Dr. Hatem is an executive coach specializing in resilient high performance teams, and 1-on-1 executive coaching. Hatem, with experience across cultures and industries, has effectively worked with C-suite executives in KSA and UAE, applying the Kintla approach to projects like Fugro-Suhaimi and NEOM Trojena. Before coaching, he spent 26 years at Bechtel, managing multibillion-dollar projects. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Texas, a Master's from UC Berkeley, and a Bachelor's from Michigan State University. Fluent in Arabic, French, Italian, and Spanish, he caters to the cultural training needs of multinational firms.
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Why do some people continue to push themselves to breaking point? Why do they feel exhausted and anxious, and constantly berate themselves for "not doing enough"?
These are key signs of burnout and perfectionism.
In this episode, I’m in conversation with expert Vassia Sarantopoulou about the internal, perfectionistic voice of and how it manifests in our personal and professional lives. According to Vassia, the goal is not to eradicate perfectionism. Instead, we need to distinguish between healthy and toxic perfectionism, understanding how it can fulfilling and sustainable.
Vassia is the Founder, CEO, and Head Psychologist of AntiLoneliness, a company offering mental health services in The Netherlands and worldwide. Besides being a Trainer, Perfectionism Expert, and Mental Health Ambassador, she promotes inner peace, mental strength, and healthy relationships with others and ourselves. She is trained in (Group) Schema Therapy and Emotionally Focused Therapy, among other approaches (CBT, ACT, CFT), and she is a member of NIP (Dutch Institute for Psychologists), ICEEFT (International Center of Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy) and ISST (International Society of Schema Therapy).
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In this episode, we discuss how to navigate our saboteurs. This episode is part of a series on self-sabotage, which is designed to help with something we all struggle with: the inner judge that sabotages our progress.
We cover why our saboteurs matter, questions to ask ourselves when we notice our saboteurs in action, strategies to recognize the judge and other saboteurs, and finally, strategies to help us move beyond them and make decisions from a compassionate place.
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In today's fast-paced work environment, emotions can easily get the better of us, especially during times of uncertainty. In these moments, we may say or do things that we later regret. Many clients ask me how to regulate emotions in the workplace to avoid conflicts and create a more positive and productive work environment.
To address this common question, we are pleased to welcome Dr. Hatem Goucha as our special guest. An esteemed expert in the field of emotional regulation and workplace resilience, Dr. Hatem will provide valuable insights and practical techniques to help us navigate the complex world of emotions at work.
Dr Hatem is an executive coach specializing in resilient teams, cultural awareness, and one-on-one coaching. With extensive experience across diverse industries and cultures, including construction, finance, sports marketing, logistics, research institutes, and defense R&D, Hatem has successfully worked with C-suite executives and entrepreneurs in KSA and UAE. He has successfully applied the Kintla approach with Fugro-Suhaimi and also worked with NYU AD researchers and professors. Prior to coaching, Hatem held various roles at Bechtel for 26 years, bringing a seasoned approach and extensive line management experience. He holds a Ph.D. in Construction, Engineering, and Project Management, a Master's degree in Earthquake Engineering, and a Bachelor's degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering.
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When describing leadership superpowers, words like "influential," "fierce," "inspirational" and "powerful" might come to mind, but "empathetic" is often overlooked. However, leaders are starting to recognize the importance of understanding their employees' feelings and external issues that may impact their work. This requires a critical skill: empathy.
In today's episode, we have a special guest, Leanne Butterworth, joining us to explore the super power of empathy in the workplace. Leanne will share insights and strategies on how empathy can be a valuable asset in the workplace, while also debunking some myths about it.
Our guest, Leanne is an Empathy Educator and Social Entrepreneur who aims to create happy and healthy workforces and communities through Empathy Training. Having experienced late-diagnosed postnatal mental health issues, she recognized the life-changing impact of empathy-based listening and communication. Leanne is the founder of Empathy First, lectures Social Enterprise Business for Queensland University of Technology, and has presented her empathy work in Australia, Canada, and the United States. She has a degree in Applied Science from UQ and a Graduate Certificate in Business (Nonprofit and Philanthropy Studies - QUT). She received a George Alexander Foundation Scholarship and was inducted onto the Nu Lambda Mu International Honor Roll. Through her experience and research, she believes empathetic leadership is not a nice-to-have but a business imperative.
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I have always been fascinated by the work of IFS and find myself using the language without realizing that it is IFS. We all have different parts inside of us, and this is normal. To heal and grow, we must repair our relationship with all of our parts. I was thrilled to meet our guest Lucy Orton, who spoke about Internal Family Systems (IFS) in a clear and digestible way. I just had to have her on the podcast, and I am so thankful that she was open to it.
In today's episode, we explore the wonderful path of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and provide a deeper understanding of IFS. Lucy will give us an introduction to basic concepts and what it's like to experience different parts of us and practice IFS for restoring wholeness and Growth. Lucy Orton is an IFS-informed practitioner and a certified positive psychology coach as well as an Apple Top 10 podcaster (Self-Sabotage To Success). Lucy works with individuals and with organizations to empower their most valued talent. She helps clients unlock greater confidence and super-charge their self esteem and to shift mindsets away from feeling like an imposter or not enough into a space of radical self-compassion and kindness.
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Impostor Syndrome is a common feeling among high achievers where they worry about being exposed as a fraud. They translate every error, mistake, or experience of not knowing as evidence of being a fake. Around 70% of people have experienced Impostor Syndrome at some point in their lives. This frequently results in individuals feeling the need to cover up and overwork in order to gain approval from others and a sense of security, ultimately leading to burnout and a lack of balance.In this episode, our guest expert Alicia R. McLain explains in detail what "it" is, its triggers, symptoms, and coping behaviors and masks. She also discusses systemic mindsets connected with the term and offers tips on how to turn down the volume of mind chatter that can block your power.
Alicia is an Organizational Transformation & Leadership Coach with over 20 years of experience within the software development and IT domains. Her expertise is in the change management aspects of Agile transformation. Alicia coaches, trains, and transforms mid-size to large companies both domestically and internationally. Known as the 'Organizational whisperer', Alicia's focus is on using coaching to build mental fitness, leadership agility, and accountability in organizations and on teams.
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In part four of this five-episode series, we focus on the different types of saboteurs. The aim of this series is to shed light on something we all struggle with: the inner judge that sabotages our progress. In this episode, we explore three types of saboteurs: the hyper-achiever, the hyper-vigilant, and the hyper-rational. We discuss what they say, how they approach time management and feedback, their blind spots, and their deepest fears. While each saboteur has good qualities, too much achievement, hyper-vigilance, and hyper-rationality can hinder progress.
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The purpose of this episode series is to provide a better understanding of the 9 types of mental saboteurs, and educate viewers on a topic that affects all of us: the inner critic and inner judge inside of us that sabotages our progress. So this week, we are going to talk about the pleaser, the avoider, and the victim. I walk you through each and every one of these saboteurs and how they impact you. This episode gives you a lens through which to understand how your inner critic is communicating to you, and how it is holding you back from moving forward in your life.
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The purpose of this episode series is to provide a better understanding of the 9 types of mental saboteurs, and educate viewers on a topic that affects all of us: the inner critic and inner judge inside of us that sabotages our progress. In this episode, I will start by discussing the first three saboteurs that go hand in hand: the restless, the stickler, and the controller. I walk you through each and every one of these saboteurs and how they impact you. This episode gives you a lens through which to understand how your inner critic is communicating to you, and how it is holding you back from moving forward in your life.
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It can be tough enough to manage your own stress. But how can you, as a manager, help the members of your team handle their feelings of stress, burnout, or disengagement? What can you do to help your team, post the pandemic and as we head into the unknown with the economy? Today on the show, we’re excited to have Elliot Ng, he is going to share his experience and advice on how to manage your team’s anxiety.
Elliot is a digital executive and Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) focusing on transforming careers. His vision is to build many bridges to connect us all in our leadership transformation journey. He helps technology leaders to discover their career visions and guides them to manifest promotions. His professional background helps him decipher between signals and potentials when others see noise and chaos —whether in disorganized operations or poorly functioning teams.
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If you are an overachiever who feels anxious, exhausted, and self-critical, you may be experiencing role conflicts. On today’s episode, Our guest expert April Boyd addresses the challenge of trying to be a good employee, a good mom, and a good friend all at the same time, and how to navigate through it all by looking at how the pieces add up to the whole of your life.
April is a psychotherapist, a coach, and the host of the show, “Is it Them or Is it Me?” Podcast. She helps women and couples across the globe to show up, speak up, and connect with more courage, confidence & kindness. She believes in boundaries, truth telling, and that you can do everything you want to do, just not all at the same time. When she’s not doing the work she loves, she’s usually lost and searching for coffee and wifi in some foreign country.
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Timelines are shorter, expectations are higher, and quick wins are attractive in the world of overachievers, fast movers, and doers …And yet… moving too fast has its downsides. So, what does it mean to bring attention to your pace as a leader? What impact might slowing down and pausing have on your team and their effectiveness? On this episode our guest Dianne Nelson shares lessons she's learned as an overachiever leader and what it means to foster a slowdown mindset in businesses.
Diane is a Certified Facilitator and C-IQ, PQ Coach with 30 years of Management experience. Her leadership style is to lead from behind thereby supporting and guiding others to develop their unique leadership style. As CEO of three organizations, Diane became an expert in building diverse teams and developing emerging leaders. Diane has worked extensively with First Nations people and new Canadians of diverse backgrounds and has coached senior leaders and business owners.
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It has become obvious that well-being positively impacts our performance. It isn't just an ingredient, but rather the foundation of sustainable high performance. In this episode, our guest Nina de Sausmarez describes the links between performance and well-being as well as her story of becoming a high performer. Nina has turned her passion for coaching into her mission in just over 3 short years. Leaving home at 16 and fending for herself has been the foundation of her strength and resilience that she draws on to support others. Her transformation from a learning support assistant in a local Primary School to Director Of Breakthroughs at High Performing Coach is fearless and she is now empowering coaches from all corners of the globe to step out of their shadows and remember who they truly are.
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It's easy to get caught up on the path of Achievement. Before we know it, we become hyper-achiever who wants to achieve more and more without ever reaching the satisfaction that accompanies achievement. I work with high achievers who set the bar so high they can't even see their own achievements, much less how to achieve what they really want. I help them get out of their own ways, identify their saboteur, learn how to change their behaviors so they can do less and accomplish more, and feel great on the way.
In today's episode, we will discuss the hyper-achiever saboteur's key traits and habits and how they frequently derail our efforts to achieve success and happiness. This episode is based on the work of positive intelligence by shirzad Chamaine as well as my experience as a mental fitness coach in cultivating a more conscious and happy achiever.
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When you think about your career and future, do you see limitless opportunities or multiple barriers? On this week’s episode, our guest Dr Nebila Dhieb talks through developing an abundance mindset and how it contributes to our success and financial freedom. She explores beliefs and shed some of the scarcity mindset that all of us experience sometimes, and explains how an abundance mindset can open doors in our career.
Through her company Transformative Consulting, Dr. Nebila Dhieb provides executive coaching dedicated to helping professionals unleash their full potential, build a success mindset, and create a master plan for their lives. Dr. Nebila who has over 20 years of experience as an educator, helped more than 200 professionals as well as corporations, which resulted in generating more than $50 million in revenues.
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So many people hate their jobs or are thinking about leaving work. They blame it on the leadership, their boss, their colleagues, or the economy. On this week’s episode, my guest Ann Zimmerman explores how their overall relationship with work may be the problem, not the job itself, and shares steps on how to Create a Healthy Relationship with work.
Ann is a certified professional coach based in the US. She specializes in partnering with people who feel exhausted and overwhelmed from constantly questioning if they are in the right job or career. She serves as a thought partner and guide to help them discover and choose work that is meaningful to them and aligned with who they are, so they can be fully present in life.
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You’re likely listening to this podcast because achieving something is important to you, So what is it about success that drives us? Does success remake us happy? are success and happiness connected? If your definition of success makes you feel “less than”, get ready for a helpful reframe.
In the first episode of the conscious achiever, I sit with Angie Alexander and dive into the theme of success, her journey to redefine success, and insights to challenge your own. Angie is a Professional Engineer with over 20 years of oil & gas experience. Her passion for unlocking people's potential and solving complex technical and business problems led her to launch her business as an executive coach, facilitator, and consultant. She has been equipping executives, professionals, and technical teams to rise above their circumstances, grow their Positive Intelligence “muscle”, and bring their best selves to work.
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→ Looking for a free course on redefining success: Click here→ What type of achiever are you? Take the quiz → check our Website
As we concluded the Living in Alignment podcast in May this year, a brand new podcast is born: The Conscious achiever.
Somewhere along the way, we were taught that the outside world holds our inner happiness. So, if fulfillment and peace aren’t from the next big project, the next promotion, or the bigger house, where is it? The conscious achiever podcast helps answer this question. The purpose of the conscious achiever podcast is to:
Come join us in conversations and learn how to live fully engaged, lead with integrity and authenticity, disrupt systems, push boundaries, and own your leadership role. In each episode, you will learn from other conscious achievers as they share their journey to overcome survival patterns and serve a greater purpose, as well as practical lessons from coaching case studies. We encourage you to grow in self-awareness, purpose, well-being, and presence in the leadership of yourself and others.