Be Yourself At Work: how emotional optimism, bravery, and efficiency drive real performance - with world's first Chief Heart Officer Claude Silver

In this special episode of Change Wired, I sit down with Claude Silver, the world’s first Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX, to celebrate the launch of her new book, Be Yourself at Work: The Groundbreaking Power of Showing Up, Standing Out, and Leading from the Heart.

Together, Angela and Claude unpack how to build cultures of belonging -where people don’t just fit in, they flourish. 

🔑 Episode Highlights

• Why “fitting in” is outdated and how belonging unlocks performance.
  Claude explains that belonging is about psychological safety, while fitting in is about conformity. Teams thrive when people feel seen, not when they match.
• The 3 Emotional Pillars of Heart-Led Leadership:
  • Emotional Optimism — believing things can get better and seeing possibility even in hard moments.
  • Emotional Bravery — having the difficult conversations with compassion and self-awareness.
  • Emotional Efficiency — creating clarity and speed through empathy and trust.
• The Lie Exercise:
  A simple self-awareness tool Claude uses to help people challenge limiting beliefs. Write down the lie you tell yourself (“I’m not smart”) and find evidence that proves it wrong. Replace it with a truer, kinder statement (“My intelligence shows up in many ways”).
• Culture Fit vs. Culture Add:
  Great companies don’t clone culture, instead they expand it. Claude shares how curiosity and openness to difference build stronger, more creative teams.
• How to Retain Top Talent:
  Don’t wait for exit interviews, instead do stay interviews. Listen before people leave. Create opportunities, mentorship, and moments of appreciation.
• Running on Calm:
  “When I get anxious, my team gets anxious,” Claude says. She shares practices like grounding, breathing, and visualization to help leaders find calm under pressure.

💬 Practical Takeaways

• Ask yourself: What part of me am I not bringing to work?
  Reflect on what it costs you—and your team—to hide that part.
• Practice Emotional Bravery: speak up when something feels misaligned, with respect and curiosity.
• Make time for self-awareness rituals: journaling, stay interviews, reflection moments, or asking your team, “What do you need from me this week?”

👩‍💼 BIO

Claude Silver is the world’s first Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX, working alongside CEO Gary Vaynerchuk to build a people-first culture that powers creativity and growth. A pioneer in emotional intelligence at scale, she’s on a mission to bring more heart, humanity, and authenticity into the workplace. Claude has been honored with Campaign US’s Female Frontier Award and AdWeek’s Changing the Game Award, and has spoken at Meta, Google, the US Armed Forces, and more.

She lives in New Jersey with her wife and two children.

🔗 Links

• 🌐 Claudesilver.com
• 📘 Be Yourself at Work 
• 💌 Newsletter & Resources via Website
•  💬 Connect on LinkedIn and Instagram  

Chapters

• 0:00 Setting The Stage: Heart-Led Leadership
• 2:53 Meeting Claude Silver
• 5:36 From Imposter Syndrome To Belonging
• 10:54 Success As Selfhood, Not Armor
• 14:30 Whole Self At Work: Performance Case
• 18:34 Leaders As Models Of Vulnerability
• 21:29 The Three E’s: Optimism, Bravery, Efficiency
• 27:24 Speed, Safety, And Decision Quality
• 31:37 Labels Are For Soup Cans
• 36:31 Self-Awareness Tools And The LIE Exercise
• 43:06 Boundaries, Emotion Regulation, And Trust
• 48:24 Belonging Versus Fitting In
• 53:50 Culture Fit Vs Culture Addition
• 59:16 Values As Unity, Not Uniformity