Know Who You Are Before Deciding What You Do with Elizabeth Galbreath

Most of us built our careers around answers we gave before we really knew ourselves. Elizabeth has a front-row seat to how that plays out. She's an HR pro and founder of Cultivate Growth Co., who works with early career professionals every day.

In this conversation, we get into the expectations gap between what young people think work will look like and what it actually demands, why knowing who you are matters more than knowing what you want to do, and the reflection practice Elizabeth uses to help people stop measuring their worth by what other people hand them.

We also get into what leaders are getting wrong when it comes to really knowing their people. Leaving your door open doesn't count.

To connect with Elizabeth:

• LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethgalbreath031/)
• Website (https://elizabethgalbreath.com/)

Need a little more balance and a lot more badass in your life? Check out my 1:1 coaching sessions designed to help you tackle your biggest challenges, manage stress, and create a personalized plan for success. Your first 30-minute session is free! Visit tarakermiet.com to get started. 

Want to turn your dreams into reality? Check out my 7 Days to Crushing Your Goals mini-course! This course is packed with practical lessons and hands-on activities designed to help you define your “why,” leverage your strengths, and take decisive action. By the end, you'll have a clear plan and the tools you need to crush your goals. Visit tarakermiet.com/crushyourgoals to join the course and start making things happen! 

Transcript

Tara: [00:00:00] All right. What is up party people? We are back and I'm so excited to have Elizabeth join me here on the podcast. She's an HR pro, a speaker, and she's the founder of Cultivate Growth Co company, whatever we wanna call it. Um, more exciting for me is that she's a fellow hokey, so

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: Virginia Tech grad. If you know me at all, you know I am a diehard, hokey, so. We've already been bonding over all of that and talking about people we know and, and mutual acquaintances. So I'm excited for today's conversation, even if y'all aren't. So that's all I

Elizabeth Galbreath: Same.

Tara: that. Um, but in her day job, so Elizabeth works with early career professionals, so she's really got a front row seat to what's really going on with the next generation of workers.

And, you know, we're talking about, we've heard about these things, right? The big expectations, obviously the burnout. That's what we talk about here. [00:01:00] just all that pressure to really have it all figured out right away, which is just 'cause I'm 40. One and don't have it figured out either.

So she teaches does apply to any stage. So even if you aren't in early career professional, chances are you work with one. Um, but you're also probably listening to this podcast because you're in that season of reevaluating what you want out of work, out of life. So we're just gonna jump right into it.

Welcome to the Balanced Badass Podcast, Elizabeth.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Thank you, Tara slash Fellow Hokey.

Tara: Hello, hokey. I'm loving it. right, so we usually start every episode with an icebreaker, and so I'm, I'm wanting to know what's something that you're loving in your life right now.

Elizabeth Galbreath: I love this question because we need to start like all conversations with this. I think it's just such a good one.

Tara: right.

Elizabeth Galbreath: I am gonna go with a very oddball one, or maybe it just feels really [00:02:00] random. I've been doing a lot of work on myself over the last year and getting more comfortable with stillness because I've been such a doer and I, last winter I really came into the whole.

There are YouTube videos of just like ambiance music that is jazz, like coffee shop vibes, and the fall ones are especially aesthetically pleasing, and so whether it's like a fire or like literally a coffee shop or a cute cabin in the woods with like rain in the background, just having that in the background of me doing stuff around my house or sitting and having some quiet time reading, whatever, I just love it.

It just feels like it makes life better. So that feels like a really random one, but I just love that.

Tara: Oh, I love that so much. And I think that, such a great recognition too of how much, just like our lives and and chaos can really influence us just. Being a part of our regular routine that you need [00:03:00] to take that break and be quiet all the time. So I love that. I, I too, I do like those, like the fire crackling

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep. Yep.

Tara: Um, we actually have like a fireplace now in our house, but it's, uh, I live in North Carolina, so most of the time. We

Elizabeth Galbreath: You don't need it.

Tara: the fireplace, so I will throw on the fake fireplace just to get the ambiance without the heat.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep.

Tara: so yeah, I totally get that. I am one that I love to sit in silence. My husband cannot handle

Elizabeth Galbreath: Mm-hmm.

Tara: quiet.

He needs just noise going on. I could sit in silence probably for a very long time and be okay. So,

Elizabeth Galbreath: Old me could not do that. Knew me is working on it. So I appreciate that in you because that is a skill that people need.

Tara: It. It is, it is, it's certainly good. Although my brain can definitely get

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: me during that time too, so, yeah. All right. Well, let's jump into it. Um, so [00:04:00] I, I do wanna start with this early career professional perspective. So that you've spent a lot of time around folks that are just starting their careers. Just from your perspective, like what are you seeing that concerns you most about the way that young professionals are showing up in the working world and how maybe they're transitioning into it?

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah, and I could talk for 13 years about this one question, so I'm gonna try to be as succinct as I can. I also wanna give a disclaimer. I come from a, an agriculture background, and so my sampling of experience really comes from that industry in different sectors within it. So I just wanna give that disclaimer.

Um, I work within really the STEM world, but just within the agriculture lens. So wanna give that clarification. A couple observations that I've had. I would say one is pretty normal when it comes [00:05:00] to academia versus industry. I think academia has just been known to be a little bit slower in how they teach people things and, and just getting up to speed and that's okay.

Right. They're, they're big, big monsters of machines, um, to do that. And I say that just because I think that gap is pretty normal. And one of the ways that I'm seeing that play out just to. Say that this is still happening is a lot of schools are saying, students, you can't use AI because you need to learn how to think for yourselves.

You need to process and, and problem solve, which I absolutely agree with wholeheartedly. However, when they get to industry, my company uses co-pilot all the time, right? And we're using AI in different ways and so. I think a lot of the, the phrases of AI is not gonna take your job, but someone knows how to use it will.

That's absolutely reality. And so when they get to us, I don't want them to be scared of using it. Right. But I do also, I know [00:06:00] that it's a, it is a tough balance with how do we teach people to think for themselves and not rely on this? So that is a challenge that I'm seeing. I don't necessarily have a solution to it.

I just, again, I wanna recognize that the academia and industry gap is normally there. So that's just kind of what I'll start with. The other thing you, you touched on this in the intro. I think it's really fascinating that we're asking students, when I say students think middle school, high school to make decisions on what they wanna do for the rest of their lives without the one knowledge of who they are and what's important to them.

And then two. Without the experience, and I do recognize that those programs are incredible and that they give them experience at a young age, but I'm thinking about someone basically declaring the equivalent of a major in high school, and the strength to that, again, is the exposure and feeling confident in that path.

The negative to that is feeling like your identity is carved in in middle school or high school, and that you have to commit to that for the rest of your life. I think we already have a hard [00:07:00] time. In HR and, and maybe some other people, maybe just in like their personal lives, um, experience this, but sometimes it's really hard to convince somebody that you don't have to go into a job that was based on your major.

And really what I care about is really how you show up and the skills that you can transfer into what you're applying to. And so I think what's really fascinating is that. Again, we're putting so much emphasis on the what, and I think we really need to put an emphasis on the how and uh, I, this is something I've been thinking a lot about.

I think I'll get to this in a second or a little bit deeper in this, but so much of what we think about when it comes to careers is about the what. It's not about who we are and it's not about how we do it, but I really wanna challenge people to reframe that and think about the who you are and how you're doing things is more important.

Which really brings me to my last thought of something that. Standing out to me, and I spend so much time thinking about this, so thank you for [00:08:00] giving me the ability to share it. But I would say the biggest thing that I'm seeing right now of people entering into the workforce is what I'm calling an expectations gap.

So when I was in college, and maybe when you were in college, Tara. I felt like industry was hard to understand. We didn't know what jobs existed. It felt like it was this big beast that we didn't really understand what that meant, and now we have more information than what we know to do with. And the really interesting part of that is.

All of these people in high school, college, whatever, they have access to what jobs exist. They have access to the salaries, they understand that work-life balance, especially post COVID. The expectations are different, and I think a lot of these young people are thinking, okay, I know what's out there and I know like I'm gonna advocate for myself and I know what I deserve, which is amazing.

However, in your early career. So much of [00:09:00] that is about building credibility and building skills. Again, it's not about the what you do, it's about how you do it and who you are and showing that. And so I think what. I'm seeing is a lot of people want the salary or the flexible schedule in their first job and they're like, oh, well I can get a new job if this is toxic, or this doesn't work out.

Or, um, you know, they just seem to have pretty firm boundaries, which, again, boundaries are healthy. I'm a recovering people pleaser. I know that that's important, but I also wanna level set the expectation that. When you start your career, that is way different than you building the credibility, you having the experience, um, and the time management skills, right?

To know how to adjust your schedule. So I'm not talking about everybody here, of course, this is a generalization, but I would say we as a society need to be. Really intentional about meeting them where they're at when it comes to their preferences and their desires and their needs in the working world.

And they also need to meet industry where they're at of saying, Hey, maybe I haven't built enough [00:10:00] credibility or experience to, um, to ask for unlimited vacation days or to work, leave work at 3:00 PM or whatever it is. So I was, I call it the expectations gap, but that's one thing I'm noticing a lot of, and something I'm really passionate about trying to be.

Clear about what industry means, but also clear about, hey, I've been in my career for this long and I've worked to get to this point. It wasn't like I just started with that and I never want to come across as a girl like this is how it's always been, but there is some reality to we have to see what you're made of and we have to see good work before we really trust you to, to have that flexibility.

So I will end my rant there, but there's definitely a lot more, uh, where that came from.

Tara: Yeah, I, you know, I appreciate what you said first about AI because, um, AI wasn't even that big when I was working in higher ed just a few years ago. And obviously it's blown up a lot and I mean it existed, but [00:11:00] to the lay person like myself, we didn't really know much about it. Right. but I see like my former colleagues that I've worked with that are still working in the industry, that it's becoming such a conversation and there is that sense of fear, like especially folks that. Are working as faculty members, like trying to navigate do you teach appropriate usage of it, but also hold those boundaries and hold people accountable and all that. And that, you know, it, it does make me wonder like what are, and I don't know 'cause I'm, I'm out of that field, but like what are we teaching students?

Especially co I say I talk about college 'cause that's just where my. Experiences, but like how discernment, on how to use it appropriately and like how to be strategic about it and you know, to your point of like to know how to use it so that it doesn't [00:12:00] take your job or the person that knows how to use it better, doesn't take your job. Uh, because I think if we're not talking about it in that lens, we're putting students at a disadvantage for when they do enter the workforce. But what I really wanna touch on is what you were talking about as far as like you have to know who you are and when you're young, mean your, your brain is literally not fully

Elizabeth Galbreath: Correct.

Tara: enough to even know that and to process that. Um, I talk a lot about like values and understanding like who you are and what you want. And I am even seeing just. Not with young professionals, but with mid-career or even advanced career folks are kind of at this crossroads of like, what do I value? What's important? Because we have grown up with like what the shoulds, I

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: you know, um, quit shoulding ourselves and

Elizabeth Galbreath: Mm-hmm.

Tara: of stuff. [00:13:00] And when you talk about this expectation gap, there's, I see such a close connection with that because. Especially when you think about like the boundaries and the things that you're advocating for. If you don't know important to you professionally, if you don't know the value that you're bringing to an organization, you're still figuring all that out when you're, you know, five-ish years into your career. How can you determine the right boundaries to advocate for? You know, like just keep thinking about if I would've I, and what's important to me now was not important to me when I was younger in my career. So like also thinking about that and how that could change and ebb and flow. And to your point too, there's also this opportunity like you have to consider like. What kind of influence do you actually have? What kind of leverage do you have when you're first starting compared to a couple years in when you have really established that rapport? Establish the evidence [00:14:00] value that you're providing the organization. so Elizabeth, I do love that you really teach people about. Listening to their internal compass and kind of knowing who you are and what you bring. And, for someone that either has never really done that before, um, or especially those folks that are maybe following what they think they should do, do you even tell them to start with this?

Elizabeth Galbreath: I first wanna give validation to, if you like, if, if you're. Listening to this and you are completely overwhelmed at like internal compass or what's important to me, know that I've been there and that's very, I think it's a very normal thing, especially when you're going through school. Even if you don't go to college, a lot of the time you are basing your.

Not just identity, but I would say your, your worth and what other people think of you. Like, if you think about grades, for example, how you do on a grade, that [00:15:00] doesn't really come from you. I mean, you work for it, right? But it, a teacher is giving that to you. A professor is giving that to you and whether or not somebody gives you a job, right?

Like that's kind of how you're measuring your worth. And so it's very normal to be feeling lost and sometimes if you're close with your family or friend or community in some regard. It's really easy just to be thinking, well, this person told me that I would be good at this, or this person does this job and I wanna be just like them.

It is so normal to have all of those experiences, so I just wanna say that out loud because there's nothing wrong with you if that is the case. And I had a combination of literally everything that I just said. I put, I grew up in a dairy farm and work was life, and life was work. So identity. Work was a very big problem in my life until recently.

And then in addition to that, I really respected a lot of people around me. My parents, I respected our community, and so I was like, oh, I wanna be just like them and. [00:16:00] It was really, really hard. So this comes from a place of me doing this myself and saying that there's no magical answer to doing this perfectly.

But I wanna give some insight as to what I think is a really good starter level to get into it. And the first thing is just create, I would say an hour is a great time. Um, but just start with some reflection and start with some, some prompts make it. Comfortable for you. So whether that's the music we were talking about earlier, putting that on and getting a cup of coffee or something, um, and just giving yourself like an hour time, like put a time timer and put your phone on Do not disturb and just focus on the writing, but focus for 30 minutes, an hour and answer some questions.

I have a couple of questions I'll share now. That I think are relevant. One, uh, one group being more relevant to career, and then more and more being about really what's, um, what's important to you for the rest of your life. And so I would say get comfortable 30 minutes to an hour once [00:17:00] and get started with these prompts.

So some of the career questions would be think about things that you really do like when it comes to work and things that energize you. That could be literally the jobs that you've had, even if they were part-time or an internship. Or that could be activities that you do at work, like your current job go through.

Like, I really enjoy, um, my weekly meetings with this group of people I really enjoy. Um. Getting to network with these people or whatever it looks like. That is really an helpful way of just like, okay, what do you like? Do the same thing for things that you don't like and things that don't energize you.

I'll be the first to admit expense reports. My least favorite thing, because I know that, uh, it's an attention to detail and the detail and math is not my strong suits, so, uh, I could tell you that. I can also tell you that. Um, rejecting people from jobs. One of my least favorite things takes away my energy, but it's a part of my job that I can't get rid of, right?

Like if you're a recruiter, you have to tell people no. So it's helpful just to know those things so that [00:18:00] I can manage my energy effectively. And after you do that, think about. How can you incorporate a little bit more of what energizes you into your week? Even if it's like, well, I really like talking to people.

I'm gonna do a lap around the office and say hi. Or I'm gonna try to meet with a new person. So those are, that's like the starter level for career. I would also spend some time during that same period, um, to think about again, the who and the how. We've talked about this. Like who do I wanna be? How do I wanna be known?

And here are some of the questions that I think are helpful for that. Where do I wanna be at the end of my life? Like, you can think about that very literally. You can think about it in terms of career, family, whatever, but what type, what type of person? Do I want to be? And what do I hope that I'll be proud of?

So maybe that's your family. Maybe that's the fact that you took risks in your career. Maybe that's the fact that you, um, you stood up for something that you believed in, right? Those are some things to think about at the end of your life. What do you hope that you are proud of? And then also think [00:19:00] about what other impact that you wanna have on other people.

Um, how do you wanna make other people's lives better? I mean, some people you, if you're in survival mode, you might not be thinking. About that, but honestly, sometimes bringing you up to that level of like, okay, I can, I can make other people's lives better. Right now I feel like I'm struggling, but there are ways that I can make other people's lives better, so.

Thinking about how you can impact people. And then the last question that I think is really a fun one, because we don't usually stop and think about it, is, what is a cause or a mission that I care really deeply about that I wanna learn more about? And that could be literally working at an animal shelter or that could be.

Um, you're really passionate about a disease that's been in your family that you want to just support a little bit more, learn more about. Or it could be like, well, I really like scuba diving, so I wanna, I wanna learn more about that and how I might be able to do it. Right. So I think that's a really comprehensive list.

So just kind of taking an inventory of what's going on now in terms of, you know, current [00:20:00] position, but also like, what are you aiming for? And one of the best pieces of career advice I ever got was think about the impact that you wanna have on the world at the end of your career, and what are the steps that will help you get there?

So I think that that's a really clear roadmap of at least giving you an idea of what is the end goal, because if you don't have an end goal, then you're not gonna be able to get there. So I would say that part reflection is really important. And then. Incorporate this like into your month, like do an audit of the things that you've done that really energized, you do an audit of the things that you're like, oh, that really was not my favorite thing to do again, like expense reports.

Or it was, um, you know, you really had to work late one night and you were really tired the next day and that was not ideal for you or, or whatever it is. But I think holding yourself accountable to taking, whether it's weekly, monthly. Um, anything, I mean, you could even do it daily if you wanted to, of how do I feel about the things in my life?

Um. It's so easy just to go through life without even thinking about how you feel about [00:21:00] it. And so the really important thing here is to think about what do you want? Take the voices out of your head, take the voices out from your ears, from all the people around you, and think about if I had to make a decision without anybody else's input, these are the things that I would do.

And then think about, and then of course, like record how those things are making you feel so you know how to adjust accordingly. That's really step one. And then step two. I don't think that has to happen right away is I love, um, Dr. John Delony. I don't know Tara, if you're a fan of him. Um, I figured that you would be based on, uh, based on this, but I.

Absolutely love how he describes mindfulness is literally the space between something that happens to you and what you decide to do next. And I think when you're a people pleaser like me or the should, uh, camp that you were talking about, or if you are just used to going through the motions because you don't know any different.

It is so easy for you just to keep going to never think about the impacts on you, [00:22:00] your body, your mind, your spirit, right? And so I, what we talked about earlier, I really have tried to incorporate, um, five to 10 minutes of not doing anything. Every day so that I can be like, okay, how do I actually feel in my body?

And also, wow, I can't turn my mind off today. Like I need to physically give myself a couple minutes of mindfulness meditation. Or, Hey, I'm feeling really stressed, like I'm gonna have a dance party and get this energy outta my system, whatever. But I think it's so easy just to say yes to things and to keep doing things and just not think about it.

And so once you turn off the automatic obligation to doing things or the kind of the automatic, um, just. System that you have, it really will help you be able to figure out, actually I don't really like doing that. I don't know why I said yes to that, or I don't, I've never thought about it that way. I didn't, I didn't really, I didn't enjoy that or my gosh, I'm so glad that I did that.

That doesn't happen unless you create the space for it. So I think five to 10 minutes a day is really helpful. I incorporate mindfulness meditation just to clear my mind. That [00:23:00] helps me feel better. Um, but I would say that margin in that space in your life is a game changer.

Tara: Yeah, and I I what you said too about the margin's important, but building it into the routine I think is so important because. As you're starting to document these things and going through these questions pretty regularly, as someone who does this as well and, and reflects quite often, you start to see trends and you start to see patterns. Um, like I have noticed, like where my energy drains may coincide with. Certain life experiences going on, even like the seasons and all that too. And that's important to recognize, not just for what you're looking for in a job, but also how you approach your work. Because you know, I talked about, you mentioned earlier, like time management kind of stuff. [00:24:00] A lot of what we need to do is less time management and more energy management and

Elizabeth Galbreath: Oh, amen.

Tara: where you can. Get the most return on investment with your

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: And if you don't know what those things are, then that's

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: I think to even take what you were talking about a step further is to even think about not only are you tracking, like what, what energizes me?

What tasks am I enjoying, blah, blah, blah. What drains me opposite of that, right. But also then taking it a a step further and thinking. Why, like why do I enjoy this? And this is where I try to connect with strengths because I think if you can do more where you're living in your strengths and on those and really putting those to good use through the work that you do. Yes, you're still gonna have tough [00:25:00] times. We're, we're all gonna struggle. Work is work. It's not gonna be fun all the time. It's not sunshine and rainbows, but you will feel like you're doing something purposeful. And that's where I think where the difference between this like burnout experiences is getting further and for further disconnected from that purpose or

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep.

Tara: why behind things too.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep.

Tara: appreciate that. And like you gave like good. Tangible things that folks can think about. Um, I also, just to add to that, if folks are looking for additional things, one of my favorite activities is actually like a branded activity, but um, to get folks to ask. Let's say five people that have known them from different parts of their lives.

So it could be somebody that knew you when you were in high school, college, whatever, folks that work with you, family members, just friends, whatever. and ask them for one story of when you [00:26:00] were at your best,

Elizabeth Galbreath: Ooh.

Tara: themes in those stories, like what strengths came out. What were you doing? Even think about like what, what did you remember from that experience? It's such a great insight because sometimes this is something I always say is like, you can't read a book that's sitting flat on your face,

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: and so we can't sometimes see. Within ourselves, what we're good at, what we're talented at, especially if you're in a tough time, like, I mean, burnout it, the science shows, like the data and research shows, it takes away your confidence.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep.

Tara: And so sometimes you need those, that outside perspective to give you a different lens. So that's a great way to, to add to and supplement. And see where might there be some ties across, like where you're getting energy or drained versus like when people see you at your best too.

Elizabeth Galbreath: A hundred percent and I think. After the why question [00:27:00] too. It's almost, uh, one thing I just wanna say out loud is I had to work with a coach to figure out what my core values were, and once I started realizing things that I really enjoyed and, and I felt burnt out in a previous role, um. I worked with a coach to be like, okay, I don't, I don't know where I'm at.

Like I know these things. I know generally things that I don't like, things that I do like, but I'm, I'm starting from ground zero, so help me figure that out. And so I think I say that because determining your core values is a part of this, but it's not where you're gonna start. Like you have to notice the small stuff, especially if you're in a b burnout stage to get to that point.

So, I, I just say that of it's a staircase. You're not gonna start with the biggest thing first.

Tara: Yeah. Yeah. Um, pick the small wins

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep. Yep.

Tara: way. That way you can. Yeah, for sure. Um, so let's talk about, for folks that may be listening that are managing. [00:28:00] People that are people managers. 'cause I know this is another piece of what you talk about of like putting the people first in

Elizabeth Galbreath: Mm-hmm.

Tara: and, and understanding that.

And that's something that someone who has worked for previously, a claimed people first organization that values were not aligned with that. Um, so it's something that's very important to me to put people at the center of our work. So if you had to pinpoint maybe like. biggest blind spot that leaders have when it comes to really knowing their people. What would it be and like, how do we as managers get to know our people better?

Elizabeth Galbreath: This is such a loaded question. I'm excited to give my take on it, but I feel like I'm only gonna give like one, 100th of the piece of the pie. Um, so, uh, but I will say something that I've noticed is. I feel like assumptions are very common when it comes to leaders that I have worked with and [00:29:00] seen in the sense of assuming that.

The people on this team have the same level of loyalty to the cause or to the organization that they have or the CEO has or the VP has or whatever, and that everyone feels confidently about the change because you feel confidently about the change. Right? And you have known about it for months, but they just heard about it two years ago, or excuse me, two days ago, right?

You heard about it two years ago. Um, or people, uh uh. So I guess I would say. I'm trying to put different words on this is it's failing to think about things from the team's context, and one of the other ways I see this come up is leaders thinking like, well, I'm transparent. I leave my door open. I'm I'll tell you anything that you want to hear.

Leaders, you have to initiate that. You can't just like do the passive thing waiting for them to come to you like you have to show, number one, that you care, that [00:30:00] you want them to get you to know you personally, if that's what you'd like to do, that they can respect you and trust you. You can't just sit back and wait for that to happen because leaders are hard to approach.

I don't care if you're the nicest person in the whole world, like you having a title behind you and having authority behind you within an organization. Makes you harder to approach, especially when, um, maybe that it's a pretty hierarchical organization, right? So I think that's really important. And I also think that one of the things I've noticed is some leaders have a really good perspective of like the whole picture.

Your teams typically are so in the weeds on something that when you make a change, like it would be so empowering for someone to say. I know that this makes your process a lot harder. It's gonna take you a lot more time. It's a really easy thing to do, but I feel like a lot of people don't recognize it because I feel like a lot of the time people don't know.

How much these people are doing, right? So maybe [00:31:00] it's just like not understanding the workload or maybe it's just not willingness to say that one sentence of like, I know that this is gonna make your life harder. I think they try so hard all the time as they should to be positive and to lead with a positive attitude.

But sometimes, especially when things are harder, it's a big change. You have to admit the things that, um, are different for them than different from you. And so, um. Especially in, in a hybrid environment, like you have to really go outta your way to create spaces for people to know who you are and for you to know them and, and to feel like it's a meaningful exchange, not just like a call.

Right. So I would say just generally not putting yourself in the team's shoes, um, it's not their fault, right? Because they obviously have a different perspective. They're at a different level for a reason, however. There would be so much value in getting down to their level and saying like, I wanna be in the weeds with you just to understand this and the impacts for you, um, or understand that this is hard.

So that's one thing. There's probably a zillion answers to that question, but that's what I've [00:32:00] noticed.

Tara: Yeah. And. You know, the, I've heard a lot in the past when I was supervising folks or whatever of like, the leadership doesn't know what I do. Like they, and, and the expectation that they know, which they should know to a certain extent. Are they gonna know the nitty gritty of what every day looks like for you?

Probably not unless you share that with them. It has to be a meal, psychologically safe environment to be able to do so. Um, but what I think is important too, and something that I see missing a lot is including people, people in the process. So as change is occurring, even if you can't. Change. The change.

Like if, 'cause a lot of times it's top down, right? We don't, especially middle managers like you are pretty much just the deliverer, right? You're the shock [00:33:00] absorber and the deliverer all at the same time. But there are ways to bring them in of, okay, let's, let's talk about how this is going to impact you and your role. Strategize on how we can approach it together. We may not be able to change what's happening, but we can change our response to it and like what that means for you. And I do think that that's missing a lot because there is this assumption of like, well, my door's open and nobody came to me about complaining or like, had any concerns.

And like, just 'cause I didn't tell you does not mean that the concerns weren't there.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Even if they offered, even if you were like, well, come to me if you have any problems, that doesn't mean they're gonna come to you.

Tara: Right, and it, there's something to be said for reaching out individually to each person and just be like, Hey, I just wanna pulse, check real quick, see how things are going. Any concerns on your end, especially with your role, like [00:34:00] whatever you're talking about, having that one-on-one connection too. 'cause also if you bring it up in meetings, I see this a lot too with management, or you'll have a staff meeting, you'll present something.

Anybody have any questions? You see the same three hands raise. Or nobody says anything. They're not, either. They're not comfortable in that environment or they are processors, so it takes them some time to really think through whatever it might be. You can't just do one and done and offer that OP as an opportunity and a blanket opportunity for the everybody. You need to give different options for different folks to connect, and that comes from knowing your people because you need to know how they process information, how they receive information, how they like to share insights, like how they think, how they work, that kind of stuff. I'm genuinely taking the time to get to know your people.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep. And I, I would say that. I [00:35:00] think sometimes it's assumed that your manager or a leader is just gonna do that for you, and it's not the leader's fault. Sometimes they're just not thinking about it. They don't have the capacity, the time, the season, whatever. So I'm just a really big believer in like co-creating the expectation that that is what's happening, which is exactly what you're saying.

I just, I'm a big believer that. It's not just up to the leaders to make this stuff happen, it's up to the teams to make this happen and vice versa. And sometimes I just, um, to say what I said earlier differently, I just wish that, um, leaders would know that just the bare minimum isn't enough in some cases.

And like you said, getting to know your people is, and individually is really important part of that.

Tara: Yeah, and I always emphasize that too when I'm teaching about like providing feedback and all that kinda stuff because feedback hits differently for different people and, and it, really does take. That time to know those [00:36:00] individuals, to know how to best deliver that feedback to get the result that you're looking for as a leader, because that's, at the end of the day, the feedback is to steer them and coach them in the right direction for the results that you're looking for and for them to be successful.

But if you're not delivering it in a manner is going to be received and absorbed by that individual, You're wasting everybody's time, essentially, and you're doing them a disservice. That's another thing that I always think about too, like always, when I was supervising folks, like I really wanted to provide an opportunity where have the foundation to be successful. I'm not doing anything to hinder their success. What they choose to do with that opportunity is out of my hands,

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yep.

Tara: have to control what I can control. And that's the environment, the foundation, the support that they receive.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Amen. I'm super passionate about feedback. So I'm with you.

Tara: [00:37:00] management is fun.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: but I think it's also important. I'm really glad you kind of talked about this too, because. We get to this like pointing fingers phase, right? Like you've

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: and leadership pointing down to the, their direct reports being like, they're not doing this. And then you have the direct reports pointing out saying, well, my manager is not doing this.

And, and we all have some responsibility in the relationship. It is to your set, to your point. Like it's a partnership, it's co-created. Um, and just like any relationship where you have to put effort into it. is one of those relationships.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Agreed. If you want it to be good, you have to work at it. That's just how it goes.

Tara: Yeah. Well, I know we are getting to time, so I want to ask you my last question. So this podcast is all about balanced living with badass results, and so I love to ask every guest on the podcast, how do you [00:38:00] define being a balanced badass in your own life?

Elizabeth Galbreath: This is. Going to sound redundant of what I've said, but I, it just means that I really believe it. Knowing who you are and what's important to you, pursuing that in a way that. You are proud of and making an impact on the people around you all at the same time. So for me, that is taking time to really know what is in my heart, how my, like again, how my body is feeling like, 'cause that tells me a lot about what's going on.

Making sure my decisions align with that and moving in direction. Acting in a way that I'm like, this is of integrity. This is a way that I will be proud of in the future, but also impacting people around me. So it's a metric that I think everyone should hold themselves to that standard. Like that's the goal, right?

To to know yourself and wanna be the best version of yourself while making an impact on other people. Uh, I'm not perfect at it, but it is something that is a really good barometer. And I love the name of the podcast. I love [00:39:00] what you're going after. I think it's a great, um. It's a great way to think about this is the goal.

It's not a career ladder. It is about what does balance and success look like for each person.

Tara: Yeah. love what you said about being proud of, I think that that's something we lose sight of the more in it we get sometimes, and so just having that be your. Temperature, gauge your checkpoint on a regular basis. Even building that in to the reflections that you brought up earlier, know, asking that question of like, what was I proud of this week? What was I not

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: Am I living more in alignment with what I say? important to me.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Mm-hmm.

Tara: I think that that's a, a good, good way to end the episode.

So

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah.

Tara: that.

Elizabeth Galbreath: You got it.

Tara: this was definitely such a good conversation. We could [00:40:00] probably do this for a much longer time. Um, but for anyone who wants to keep learning from you or, you're a speaker, so if they wanna bring you in to speak, where's the best place for them to find you?

Elizabeth Galbreath: Yeah, I am probably most active on LinkedIn, so you can find me Elizabeth Galbrath, um, on LinkedIn, and then my website is elizabeth galbrath.com. So my last name is GALB. R-E-A-T-H, so elizabeth galbrath.com and you can find information about speaking. I've got a blog there where I talk about some of the stuff we discussed today.

And then, um, would love to work with events or people that are trying to help people again, find the inner compass, self-awareness, confident careers and building relationships, or really the focus of what I do. So would be happy to connect with anybody.

Tara: Awesome. And I'll be sure to link everything in the show notes too. Um, but yeah, thanks so much for here today.

Elizabeth Galbreath: Oh my gosh. Thank you for having me. And thank you for again, [00:41:00] creating the conversation about this as someone that's gone through burnout myself in multiple roles. What you do is so important because people feel so overwhelmed when they're in that season. So you giving just bite-sized pieces of advice on how to help them get out of it is probably changing people's lives.

Whether or not you realize it, but thank you for the light that you give to the world through that. You

Tara: thank you so much. I appreciate that. Oh,

Elizabeth Galbreath: got it.

Tara: made my heart warm. Um, so yeah, so for anyone listening, I just wanna say, I think the biggest takeaway, at least for me here, is that a lot of this clarity that comes with. Choosing your career, finding the right avenue for you, just, it doesn't just happen.

You really have to make space for it. And so whether you're early in your career or you've been at it for 20, 30 years, it's never too late to just. Take a pause, check in with yourself and do a little realignment sometimes. We all need that, [00:42:00] um, especially at different seasons of our life. So as we wrap up, I hope that you'll share this episode and we'll see you in the next one.